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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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Dec 03, 2014 08:00 PM Nevis - my new island...
Where to stay on Nevis? I want to be not in the isolated , luxury resort but close to the local life. Pinney's Beach resort is on the outskirts of the town, at the beginning of the beach. They make refurbishment, but this gave me to negociate down the room price.
Charlestown with its small houses retained a lot of colonial charm. Friendly tourist office just in fronnt of the ferry dock will give you a set of brochures and maps including the description of their heritage trail. It starts at Fort Charles. The ruins there are overgrown by the lush vegetetion. A lot of flowers around... Then you can see old Baths Hotel (there are hot sptings below), Jewish cemetary and Queens House - now the hospital. In the evening I attended as the only tourist in the crowd of black locals the great event - christmas tree lighting ceremony on the little city square (everything is litte here). There were singings, speaches of the pastors (many ofvthem on the small island) but I loved most the music performed by the steel drum band. Oh, these young black ladies in the red shirts gave me a lot of pleasure...
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Dec 02, 2014 08:00 PM To St Kitts or Saint Christopher...
vening flight operated by LIAT was yesterday delayed for more then one hour so it was dark when I landed on St Kitts. Immigrations and customs are very friendly here - not like on Antigua, so soon I was out of the terminal. My map was bad, but I decided to walk to my Fern Tree B&B since it was only 3 kms. Orientation in the strange town is not easy in the dark. After 1 km I asked people for the direction. Nice people - they were so courious (-Why dont you take a taxi?) that they put me on the pickup and delivered to B&B. The problem was that the driver was drunk, so it was very short but emotional journey.
In the morning I received my breakfast served in the nice garden verandah and took the walk to the main road for local minibus ride to the capital of St Kitts (officially: St Christoper and Nevis). So called bus station for the public minibuses is right in front of the ferry dock - so it took only 1 minute to buy ticket for 10 USD, put my name on the possenger list and to jump on the little, junk ferry "Mark Twain". Nevis Island - the second island of this miniature Caribbean state was visible on the horizon - rising like volcano from the blue sea...
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Dec 01, 2014 08:00 PM Ah, Barbuda - my new island!
I reported at the ferry dock at 8.30 am just to recognize that my "ferry" to the dream island is just a tiny, single deck catamaran only slightly bigger the the yacht! They charged money at the jetty (50 $ each way or 159 for the day tour with the meal) It is recommended to makecadvance booking - few people ware waiting there on stand-by.
We departed at 9. The sea was choppy, byt after my sailing to Desirade I was not impressed...
After 2 hours little, flat island appeared on the horizon. Barbuda! Little dock, car was waiting for the day-trippers. They took us to the little settlement, then to the Atlantic coast with a caves and infamous reef where more then 200 ships find the grave. Locals were thempting them by ligth and then approaching wreck on the reef by raft to plunder it.
Then they put us on the little boat to cross big lagoon to the frigate birds reserve - biggest on the Caribbean. Wow! This was the highlite! The big black birds are nesting here not on the land like on Galapagos, but on the miniature, forested islands. Thousans of them. Males are more impressive with their big, red bulbs...
Then kilometres of the wide, empty beaches, little fort and... nasty sandflies
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Nov 30, 2014 08:00 PM The island of 365 beaches
That's what they say. But the first impression after Gwadeloupe is that it is much less wild, highly populated and the landscape is not so dramatic here. Beaches are nice. I decided to stay this time north of the capital - St. John's at Dickenson Bay. Beach hotels are expensive, but if you are ready to stay a bit higher the prices go down. Dick Bay Cottage is nice place, especially if you come in the mini group. Check the price on the net and then contact them directly to get the discount :)
I took the walk along the coast to the Fort James located at the entronce to St John's harbour, There are still cannons on the walls but the buildings are in ruin. So I ask the question: where the money goes from this expensive beach rooms and taxes collected from tourists?
Antigua is getting much less rain then Gwadeloupe, but the flowers are still in blossom and the green is lush. Tomorrow I will try to reach new island - exotic Barbuda.
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Nov 29, 2014 08:00 PM Last day in the French zone
Hitch-hiking on Guadeloupe is not so bad, especially if they see that you are tourist. Probably because the bus service is so erratic.
Bu I rented a car for 24 hours to get with a my big pack to the distant airport. The car allows me also to visit two intresting places on the island. The first one was Pointe des Chateaux - the eastern-most point of Guadeloupe. I saw this cape from the boat going to Desirade Island. Now . Now I had a chance to climb the rock where big cross is standing - for the great view. See the enclosed picture.
The second stopover on my way to the airport was Porte d'Enfer on the eastern coast. There is nice cliff around little bay and a secluded beach, if you want to spend a day in the great scenery and you prefere privacy.
The LIAT airline was as always delayed, so it was already evening when, after just 20 minutes of flight I landed on Antigua Island. There were a long line to the immigrations (they charge 37 $ of tax but this is not enough to prepare more officers) and then even longer line to the two ugly customs ladies. They are not in a hurry, they do not smile, they do not like their job. Vere bad first impression. Once out of terminal I ask taxi coordinator if I can share taxi to the hotel (no bus here). No! They put me on the taxi and after 2 minutes waiting we had onboard second person going to the same village. Of course the they charged for two separate taxi rides. Welcome to Antigua, here we speak English! (And cheat the tourists...)
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Nov 28, 2014 08:00 PM Guadeloupe once again...
For those, who are the beach lovers Sainte Anne on the south coast has the best offer: nice, calm palm beach just at the center of the little town. Even kids can swim here without the risk.
I went to see the Pointe au Pitre after years. The capital of thd island is much cleaner and they restored many buildings using EU money. It is hard to believd that we have a piece of European Union in America!
I decided to rent a car for the last day of my stay on the island.
Many agencies offer rentals starting from 23 eu per day. I trust in Avis - they have office only in the airport. It is not necessary to pay for expensive taxi to get to the airport. Take any northbound bus from Gare Routiere Bregavin (0,90 euro) and get of at big shopping center before Abymes. Then take the road going left before shopping center and after some 2 kms you will be at the airport.
Once in tge car I was heading north - to Pointe dela Grande Vigie - northern cape of the Gwadeloupe. Good, paved road goes as far as car park - 50 kms from the airport. Then you have to walk about 100 m on the coral rocks to the windy viewpoint on the cliff. There are great views to the both sides, but better lighting is probably in the morning.
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Nov 27, 2014 08:00 PM Les Saintes - the pearls of the Carribean
So far I met here maybe 10 foreign tourist. French dominate! No wonder that very few of us knows the Saints Island. From Saint Francois ship goes first to Marie Galante and then to Saints - so for me it was 2 hours in the choppy sea each way. They charge 39 euro for the round trip if you buy the ticket the day before.
Saints form a extremely picturesque group of two bigger and few small islets. The main one - Terre de Haut is breathtaking. On the hill there is a quite big stronghold - Fort Napoleon (5 euro entry fee but not much to see inside). From the way to the fort there are great views of the bay.
But to see really great panorama you have to climb much higher Mt Chameau - 293 m above the sea. It was not easy task, but after an hour I reached the stone tower on the top. The view is one of the best of the Caribbean - comparable only, I think to Shirley Heights on Antigua. It is worth to continue some 100 m by the forest path for the another view of the second-large island of Saints and the Sugar Loaf.
there are also beaches, snorkeling places, but landscape with a changing colors of water is the top attraction. Great day!
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Nov 26, 2014 08:00 PM New island - Marie Galante
To be at 7 am at the jetty I must get up before sunrise. But the ship schedule is conveniet - you are arriving to the island at 8 am and you have full day to explore before 4.30 depature to Saint Francois.
Marie Galante is much bigger then Desirade - it is round and has 15 kms end to end. I arrived to little and cozy Saint Louis, but the capital of the island is much bigger Grand Bourg - ferries from PTP arrive there. The third settlrment is Capesterre - it has the nicest beach and many flowering trees - see the picture.
Marie Galante is almost flat, it is sugar cane island. The stone towers of the sugar windmills are still present in the landscape ( more then 100 of them) and three destilleries still produce the rum and rum-based coctails. I visited Bellevue. They offer free tasting (I found 6-year old rum the best) and then you can buy... 1 litre bottle cost like 8 euro. But the economy box of 4,5 l costs only 24 eu - good deal for the sailors from the yachts anchoring here in the picturesque bays.
Nice views, stone bridge in the north of the island and remains of old sugar farms - that is Marie Galante.
On the way back the sea was very choppy - many people used sickness bags. But not me! :)
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Nov 24, 2014 08:00 PM New island - Desirade
Day transfer from Saint Francois by ship costs 27 euro for round trip. Departure is at 8 am and 45 minutes later you should be on Desirade but the sea was very rough today. Well, it was not a Drake Passage but our small ship was dancing on the waves quite well. Backbone should be protected on such adventure.
At the end of Guadeloupe island there is a rocky cape with a cross on it and I had a real problem to stand up and to take photo.
Desirade, discovered by Columbus is 11 kms long with nice beaches on southern coast and high cliffs on the north. 9 kms long road goes from east to west end. Few people know that thdy have a public minibus going all this way and charging just 1 euro for the ride. After visiting the ruins of leprosery on the east end I used it to move to Pointe Cilibri where iguanas live.
Then I wasclimbing in the heat of the noon the road to the mountain chapel (some 250 m above the sea) for the great panorama. Sleepy Desirade with friendly Creoles impressed me. Sea on return was much
calmer... Great day with few warm showers!
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Nov 23, 2014 08:00 PM Gwadeloupe after years...
EGwada is probably the only hostel on expensive Gwadeloupe. They charge hefty 25 euro per person in the 11-bed dormitory. The toilet is downstairs... But it is on the Hill, so you have a great panorama even from the bathroom :).
They say it is in Gosier, but let you know that in fact they are in Saint Felix - eastern end of Gosier. On seconnd roundabout in Saint Felix turn left and after some half kilometer look for the sign on the left side. Prepare for hard climbing!
In the morning I went to the Saint Felix beach and then - taking pictures - to the central Gosier and onward - to the fort.
It was 29 deg during the day and high humidity - it was hard walk.
In the afternoon I took a public bus (2.20 euro) to the lovely town of Saint Francois. This will be my base to explore smaller islands around.
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