And a very enjoyable day it was too…despite the scorching heat we had a good look around …think we went down every single Street of the old town.
Category Archives: News
Dominica – Portsmouth
Portsmouth is definitely the place to be if you are on a boat. It is the most friendly and welcoming place with everyone working hard to ensure that our stay in the bay is pleasant.The bay is very scenic and the small town has a laid back feel which is nice. Again all the local are extremely welcoming. The fresh fruit and veg market is well stocked and we have seen some beauties at the fish market…Mahi-Mahi that big!!
We also met some old and new friends here which is always nice and the hiking boots have been taken for an airing or more accurately a muddying…they don’t call it the rain forest for nothing!And whilst on the subject of shoes, Ian dropped his in the water by the dingy dock, before the party would you believe, 2 attempts to find it in barely 2 metres of water were unsuccessful… I guess Dominic
Dominica – Roseau
We arrived safely in Dominica. What a contrast, it really feels like we are back into the Caribbean. The island from the sea is just a jagged mass of green and luxurious peaks and deep valleys. A few villages dotted around but nothing as developed as in Martinique. Looking forward to explore it. The Doyle’s guide waxes lyrical about its wonders and we will definitely try to make the most of them… with 9 volcanoes, endless waterfalls, hot springs and a boiling lake, there is plenty to see. And that is before we start speaking about an extraordinary number of birds and flowers.Mind you given the steepness of the mountains around us, not for the fainthearted. Going to be tough. Guess I better find my hiking boots!
Leaving Martinique
This has been our view for the last 10 days….watching the clouds and the rain come and go over the hills surrounding Fort de France has been our daily occupation.
It will be hard but after over 5 weeks in Martinique, we have had a lot of fun here, carnival galore and good food…we now need to move on. Ian’s wounds are now healed, no more excuses.
We will be setting sail tomorrow morning. If the wind is favourable, we should be landing in Dominica in the afternoon.
Not sure how we are going to cope without French bread every day!
Sunday Carnival Fort de France
Ready to join Carnaval in Martinique. Went for the traditional Doudou look… knew my Senegalese outfit would come handy. Raised a few smiles and waves from our fellow boaties across the anchorage. Not often you see a Doudou rowing ashore! We had a brilliant day and night. Only need to sort the trillion pictures!
Carnivals in Fort de France
5 days worth of Carnival parades and festivities started on Saturday with the Queens outing. Cute young girls in fantastic costumes wilting in the hot sunshine.
The main event is Sunday but right until Wednesday we will be treated to various themes events. Particularly looking forward to the “marriage burlesque” and “diables rouges” days. And yes we will make an effort to blend in the crowd!
View from my hammock
A few days rest after the whirlwind visit of Carole & family.
Somewhat forced rest as Ian has some infected wounds on his leg which necessitated a visit to the doctor, the nurse and the pharmacy. He has even managed to convince the nurse that he can and will do his own injections…which he duly does every day, much to his delight. So we are taking it easy at the Pointe du Bout, waiting for him to heal.
The hammocks are put to good use on the pretty beaches by the bay. Hopefully we should be on the move within the next few days. We need to go to Le Marin (south of Martinique) to check up the chandlers and I really want to visit St Pierre before we leave for Dominica.
Martinique is really beautiful and so easy going, it feels really relaxed and safe. A little bit of France in the Caribbean sea.
The Garagnani family joined us in Martinique
That was an unexpected pleasure meeting up with the Garagnani family in Martinique. As per usual all last minute arrangements but it did work beautifully. Carole not so keen to spend 10 days on Mr X had rented a villa in the hill of the Anse a l’Ane, complete with swimming pool and a view to die for. We could even see Mr X in the bay down below, well, the top of its mast anyway.
We had a fabulous time touring the island and finding the best beaches. Finally managed to set up the hammocks and it did feel like a real holiday. The last 2 days sailing were fun too, I think they enjoyed the snorkelling from the boat.
Highlights: lazing around in the hammock on the atmospheric Atlantic beaches, walking up the waterfall in Ajoupa Bouillon, drive up the mountains in the clouds….and plenty of good food (in and out) and excellent company….without forgetting hot showers and a brand new camera!
Happy birthday to Ian
Birthday boy enjoying the sun in Marigot Bay…. Tough life! Well deserved treat after slumming it across the ocean. Really feel like we have arrived in the Caribbean at last!
Day 27… we have arrived in St Lucia
Last one in the ARC fleet we reached St Lucia on Saturday 17th December, after nearly a month at sea. We were so excited to have got there and totally overwhelmed by our reception… the whole marina seemed to be clapping, cheering, tooting their fog horn for our arrival. Even friends from the ARC+, turned up much to our surprise. It was very emotional, the rhum punch did help though. We were the last boat in before the prize giving ceremony. Barely time to tie the boat up and we were whisked to the prize giving… got the wooden spoon award! And then party! It was just brilliant to catch up with everyone and share our experiences.
What an adventure….we did not expect to stop in Cape Verde -we had to turn back and put our disruptive crew member ashore. Lesson learned: forget internet crew search and trial sail for all crew from now on! Will tell more when the dust has settled, the story needs to be told! The passage from Cape Verde was fantastic, we had a ball.
Both Richard have now gone and we are home alone. Need time to chill and regroup, where better than St Lucia for Christmas in the sun?