Turks And Caicos: Day 3 (Part 1)

June 10, 2013

During our stay at The Somerset on Grace Bay, the Turks and Caicos Tourism Board wanted to share with us some of their favorite things to do and see while vacationing on Providenciales.  Since this was our first time visiting, we were excited to experience the best of what the island nation had to offer with some locals as our guides.  Our first stop was lunch at Bugaloo’s Conch Crawl.  Located in Five Little Cays, this restaurant is quickly becoming one of the most popular places to eat due to its amazing location and delicious fresh seafood.

We ordered a sample of conch fritters, coconut cracked conch, conch salad, and fried shrimp that we simply could not get enough of!  Bugaloo Williams, the owner of the restaurant, is the originator of “fresh from the sea” conch salad, which then resulted in a conch frenzy between locals and visitors alike.  Along with being a master of “conchology,” Bugaloo’s is great at brining people together, especially on Conch Crawl Sundays with live music.

Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
After lunch we had some time to wander around the adjacent beach.  I almost could not believe what was in front of my eyes, because it was that beautiful.  This breathtaking part of the world should be enjoyed by everyone.  Do not feel like you cannot see it, either.  Yes, you have to save up some money if you want to spend your holidays in Turks and Caicos, but you can also find some good deals on hotels if you look in the right places.  The best piece of advice I can give, having traveled to this region, is to start out by looking into some online travel websites.  You will be surprised by the prices of some hotels and that might just inspire you to start planning an unforgettable vacation of your own.

We spent some time with two of the restaurant’s conch gurus.  They taught us everything we needed to know about how to find, cook, and eat conch.  I have never met two men more passionate about their jobs before.

Then it was time for a completely different experience on another part of the island.  We were taken to the Potcake Place; a dog rescue charity whose mission is “to reduce the number of homeless potcakes on the island.”  Locals have affectionally named the homeless dogs ‘potcakes’, which is the term used to describe the leftover part of a rice dish that no one eats and is then given to the animals.  At one point the population of dogs was becoming unmanageable and thus Potcake Place was formed.  It is responsible for taking care of the potcakes until they are adopted.  Many tourists who visit the rescue shelters find them irresistible and bring them home like souvenirs from their trip.  Unfortunately, due to all of my traveling, I cannot take care of a dog right now, otherwise I would have definitely brought one home with me.

On the way to our next stop, my husband asked the driver to pull the car over on the side of the road.  He quickly got out, grabbed something from what looked like a bush, and then came back to me with the biggest smile on his face.  He had found some cotton!  As per tradition, second anniversary presents are supposed to be cotton-based and he said once we returned home he would find the perfect glass casing to showcase it in.  This spontaneous romantic gesture was definitely one of the highlights of the trip for me.

Where would our next stop be?  All we knew was that it was our guides favorite place on the island. . .

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Andi Perullo de Ledesma

I am Andi Perullo de Ledesma, a Chinese Medicine Doctor and Travel Photojournalist in Charlotte, NC. I am also wife to Lucas and mother to Joaquín. Follow us as we explore life and the world one beautiful adventure at a time.

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64 thoughts on “Turks And Caicos: Day 3 (Part 1)

  1. Melanie Fontaine

    The more you show us of these islands, the more beautiful they are! I had no idea you could eat conch – or that even was something in them you could eat. Definitely shows that I don’t know anything about the sea! 🙂

    Reply
  2. Cata

    I didn’t know about cotton! I have to tell Andre. The Caribbean is so beautiful. I can’t wait to plan a trip.

    Reply
    1. Andi Perullo de Ledesma Post author

      Yes, cotton is #2! Paper is #1 and we bought each other plane tickets for that. 🙂 Leather is #3…I’m already planning which purse I want hahaha. I want to go to the Caribbean with you and Emma!!!

      Reply
  3. Sujin

    wow it looks like an amazing place! I wish I could be there right now. I envy you for your amazing experiences in that island!! And the beach shot is an art!

    Reply
  4. James

    Those conch fritters look to-die-for! Yummmmmm. And I love that your visit included the dog rescue. Not an average itinerary item but great nonetheless. I almost wouldn’t mind being a potcake on those islands!

    Reply
  5. Roxanne

    I have traveled and worked at a few places around the Caribbean, and I still think the Turks and Caicos had some of the most memorable food. I remember eating brie with honey, followed by cracked conch, and salivating for days — just as I am now that I am remembering and eating vicariously through this post! Mmmm! I cannot wait to hear about the rest of your adventures — you really always look glowingly happy on a good beach, Andi! xo

    Reply
  6. Katie @ Domestiphobia

    How CUTE that he grabbed the cotton!! One thing I’ve often found disheartening about travel is the stray dogs, so it’s so cool they had a rescue! And I’ve never eaten conch – I’m so curious about how it tastes!

    Reply
    1. Andi Perullo de Ledesma Post author

      Isn’t that so cool? I wish they could do something like that in Buenos Aires!!! And they take such good care of them and get them ready to live in loving homes. I should have taken some pics of the dogs, but I was too busy playing with them. Conch is delish!!! It tastes a little like calamari. The texture and taste is really hard to describe!

      Reply
  7. Gourmet Getaways

    Every where in this story looks so beautiful! I can’t get over how white the sand is and how in itig the water looks… And the food! Yum!!

    You have a lovely romantic husband 🙂
    Can you explain exactly where you are on this holiday… I am not sure :/

    Reply
  8. Alex

    Your photos, as usual, are amazing! And I absolutely LOVE Potcakes Place — that would be my favorite stop on the tour! Lovely!

    Reply
  9. Marisol

    Hi Andi, that beach looks so unspoiled and so heavenly. And those food at Bogallo’s made me drool. Looked like you guys had a wonderful anniversary trip. You deserve it.

    Reply
  10. KAIT

    what wonderful photos! that beach looked incredible and I loved the idea of “potcakes place” I probably wouldn’t be able to resist taking a little guy home with me 😉 and the cotton plant was just the cutest!

    Reply
  11. Global Nomads

    Just out of curiosity, did Turks and Caicos Tourism Board pay for your visit? That sounds like an interesting opportunity. We have never been in contact with any tourism board, but had one sponsored trip for book launch and it was nice.

    Reply
  12. Pingback: Turks And Caicos: Day 3 (Part 2) | My Beautiful Adventures

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