Mount Obama

On President Barack Obama’s Inauguration Day last January, I was lucky enough to be at a major tourism conference in the Caribbean. The organizers placed huge TV screens around the conference floor, and when the historic ceremony began, all business stopped as the attendees from 35-plus nations focused on the momentous occasion that was unfolding. The look of pride from the multicultural assemblage was so inspiring, and for those 15 minutes we all felt like one small, connected world.

It all came flashing back to me this morning, when I learned that Antigua’s highest point, Boggy Peak, is being renamed Mount Obama Monument and will be the centerpiece of a new national park. “It is intended to create a place of pride and dignity for the people of Antigua and Barbuda and give visitors an understanding of the similarities in our histories and cultures,” said Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer. The renaming ceremony will take place on August 4, also the president’s 48th birthday. Pretty cool.