CANADIAN VISITOR Patti Austin has a special love affair with Barbados. And for the 60-year-old, this connection only grows stronger with time.
In fact, Austin relives one of her most treasured memories of the island every year, a date with her husband, Jim Kusnick.
The match, made in paradise, first met at a wedding in 2009, an event Austin describes as destiny. Austin, who did not change her last name, said they got married a year later and have been celebrating their love in Barbados ever since.
“It’s a standing date for us and it could be grounds for divorce if we don’t come,” said Austin during a SUNDAY SUN interview at Quayside Centre in Rockley, Christ Church, recently. The high-spirited woman quickly embraced her husband, noting that she was joking.
Austin, a retired technical writer and web designer, has been visiting Barbados for more than 50 years. And, fortunately, her trips to the island have been life-changing. She explained that before meeting Jim, she had already given up on love, especially since her previous marriage, which lasted for 18 years, failed.
“When we first met at the wedding, he seemed like a very nice man but I wasn’t interested in meeting anybody at that point in my life. But he was so nice that I couldn’t tell him to leave me alone,” she said.
Sparks flew between the two, who had their first date at Waterfront Café days after. And of course, she kept in contact with the 68-year-old, who was a widower, when they returned to Canada.
“He kept trying to win me over so he sent me an email which said ‘If you marry me, we can spend the winter in Barbados every year. It was nice to find somebody that loved Barbados as much as I did. It’s amazing how it all worked out,” she enthused.
Kusnick, a retired policeman, said he moved more than a thousand miles, from his home in Winnipeg to Vancouver, British Columbia, to spend his life with Patti.
Austin, still stunned by how they met, said she believed their love story was written in the stars.
“I only went to the wedding [in 2009] to take pictures because I do photography. And I only met the bride’s parents ten years [before] on a plane from Toronto to Barbados. We just hit it off and remained in contact. So years later, they insisted I attend the wedding,” she said.
Apart from meeting a man who was “considerate and generous”, Austin said she owes many wonderful experiences to the island. The fun-loving visitor first vacationed in Barbados at age seven with her parents Blake and Peggy, twin brother, Blake, and late sister Judy.
The explosion of colours around the tropical island, the sea, cane fields, and sunsets, fascinated Austin. The family trips, which happened twice a year, during Easter and summer, also made her teenaged years exciting. She especially enjoyed the nightlife, and danced the night away at clubs like the Pepperpot and Bearded Fig Tree, which are no longer in business. These days, she opts for more relaxing forms of entertainment.
“Jim and I go to Oistins on Monday nights because it’s not as crowded. We go to enjoy Mr Impact’s singing and the limbo performance. I still love to dance and everything but it’s not like it used to be, where I used to go out until four in the morning,” she said.
Trips to Barbados have become much more than an escape from the harsh Canadian winter. For Austin, these holidays are a nice change of pace, which allows her to take deep breaths and enjoy nature.
“It has made me a more relaxed person. I enjoy nature more because of Barbados. I love all the flowers, the trees, the sunsets are magnificent,” she said. And thanks to the island, she can now share these moments with the love of her life. Without a doubt, Barbados will always have a special place in her heart.
“It’s home to me. I feel at home as soon as I walk off the plane, it feels like I’ve never left. It’s like I belong here. It’s just my favourite place on earth. I just absolutely love it here and that’s why I keep coming back,” she said.
