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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 06, 2014 08:00 PM Sailing the Caribbean...
The moon was full when we were leaving Miami. Now Big blue is all around. People ask me why I travel also on the cruise ships? Because it is the cheap way to get to the different islands and ports. You avoid the cost of flights, you have full board and you do not spend money for the hotels...
Carnival is not expensive line, if you travel with somebody else the cost is even lover...
I must confess that I smuggled to the ship 1l bottle of Captain Morgan rum, bought in the duty free for just 8 $, so it is also time to celebrate 2 weeks of the happy voyage through the islands.
We are sailing west. Nice music around.
In the evening we attended nice show in the theatre (Fiesta Latina)
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Dec 05, 2014 08:00 PM Flying to Miami
Sun was rising over St Kitts when I was walking from Fern Tree B&B to the airport. It took me 25 minutes - taxi drivers ask for 10 USD for such a distance :)
At check-in there was a surprise: I had award ticket from American Airline but they said that I have to pay anyway for my backpack: 25 $ Shame! I decided to take it to the cabin as carry-on. Fortunately security did not discower any sharp things in it!
Then there was lovely 3-hours flight with a great aerial views of the Virgin and Bahama Islands. In Miami I took a shuttle minibus from the airport directly to the port. Two hours before the departure I was already aboard the Carnival Glory...
Last expensive inside cabin is comfortable enough. It is time for rest...
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Dec 04, 2014 08:00 PM Hiking around Nevis Island
Columbus named this island Nuestra Seniora de las Nieves - Our Lady of the snows because the eternal white cloud covering the top of the volcano remained him the snow. Nevis is 13 km by 10 km. Thereis a road going around the volcano - almost 20 miles long.
I decided to go around the island to see main attractions: old stone churches, beaches concenteated on the NW corner and just to see, how do the locals live here.
Officially published taxi rates list says that Island tour costs 75 USD. With some effort I did it for free - yes, it is possible! Walking and hitch-hiking....
On the eastern side they have a heritage center in the old cotton and sugar estate. 4 USD entry fee. Botanical garden is well out of the main road and keep in mind that it is private institution - they charge hefty 13 USD for entry but in my opinion it is not worth the price.
Then in the Fig Tree I visited nice St John church where Nelson's marriage with a lady from Nevis was registered.
But the best know son of Nevis was Alexander Hamilton. Adiutante of Washington and later - treasure secretary. You have his face on every 10-dollars banknote. His museum is in the town.
In the afternoon I am coming back to St Kitts by ferry hoping that in the morning I will fly on the award ticket to Miami to board the cruise ship.
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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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