Life On The Rode: martinique to anguilla

old church in St Pierre

Mt Pelee with NO CLOUDS. The whole time we were there we only saw the top of the mountain once.

This is the usual view. Clouds always on the tops of the mountains. It is that way on most of the islands. One group of islands they call "Islands that brush the clouds." So true.

We left Martinique and sailed by beautiful Dominica. We did not stop this time as winds were good. We instead thought Isle de Saintes looked interesting and stopped there. Definitely was not what we expected. Kirk called it "Ocean City of the Caribbean." There were many ferries that ran from Guadeloupe to Isle de Saintes bringing tourists who rented motor scooters and raced up and down the streets. There were only mooring balls no anchoring. After one night of big wakes from the ferries and a quick trip into town early in the morning we headed out to Guadeloupe.

We stopped in Dehaise. We had stopped here on our way down the chain when Christian was with us. Kirk liked this place as there is a bakery at the end of the dingy dock with good baguettes and other pastries. The town is a small fishing village and people for the most part were friendly. When Christian and Kirk were in town on the way down, they noticed what they thought was mini storages on the hill. Well turns out that it is the cemetery not a mini storage. Of what I could tell, it was all above ground. Quite an experience.

Cemetery (Cimetierre)

View of pretty town.

We walked the river at one end of town and then up the hill to the cemetery at the other end of town. It was hot so we stopped at this restaurant for a cool drink. I opted for ice-cream to soothe my sore throat. It was real cream. Never tasted anything like it. Ah the French. Kirk order a rum punch or so he thought. What he got was a Ti Punch which was a small round glass filled with mostly rum, a little simple sugar and a hunk of lime. The look on his face was priceless. Brought many giggles for the next few days. We then had to order french fries (friets) to soak up all the rum.

View from halfway up the hill at the cemetery. Pretty bay.

Walking along the river. Lots of huge boulders. Maybe from a volcano long ago?

The wind sometimes whips through the valley like a funnel.

This silly bird stayed with us for an hour or so entertaining us. He was fishing for the flying fish scared up by our boat. I tried to get one of him chasing the flying fish but they were out of focus. Sorry. He was comic relief after a rough day ending in Nevis the night before.

Montserrat Another island whose history has recently been altered with volcanic activity. This is Plymouth, the old capitol, abandoned due to lava destruction.