As soon as we started serving breakfast it was obvious that the dining room was too small; once we started serving lunch people were having to line up at the door waiting for tables to clear and Mac decided to build an extension on top of the water tank.
The water tank is the first thing one builds on Bequia, whether it be for a home or a business. Without a water tank to catch rain from the rooftops during the rainy season it makes no sense to build at all …..everyone needs water! The rain runs down spouting into a cistern that stores the water, which is then pumped up as needed.
When Mac started constructing the pizzeria the water tank came first. While digging he discovered the stone ruins of an old sugar mill and followed its contours to make the cistern. This saved on cement tremendously, although the tank he had planned would have been much bigger. “Scott’s Mill” became our water tank, and that’s where Mac decided to build his extension. It lay right beside the dining room, and with a few steps down to make a different level it would be an outdoor patio big enough for four more tables. A lovely plum tree spread its branches over the top of the tank, offering a certain amount of shade throughout the day.
Mac enlisted the help of his friend Nattie Simmons, and the two of them started to make red tiles for the patio floor. I believe Mac borrowed the tile forms from Ross Lulley of Lower Bay and purchased red cement from the mainland. Mac and Nattie worked from the house, making tiles outside the kitchen door day after day until they had enough for the project. They laid the tiles with care, then surrounded them with a beautifully made stone wall. They did a great job and I was pleased by how pretty it looked.
Shortly after the extension’s creation I watched from my large kitchen window as a friend sat to have breakfast. Tiare looked so peaceful sitting under the plum tree on my new patio, ready to enjoy her morning coffee and cinnamon bun. As she reached for some sugar a blackbird flew overhead and shat straight onto the bowl of her spoon. I don’t know if Tiare remembers but I laughed ‘til I nearly peed my pants!
Outdoor patios are nice, but you have to watch out for the birds of paradise.