A change of heart? Absolutely! This is a French charm at its best.
Terra d’en Haut is 10 km off of Guadeloupe and is the largest island in the Isle Des Saintes group of eight small islands that make up Des Saintes. It also has the only village in the Saintes; Bourg des Saintes. As the island was too hilly and dry for sugar plantations, slavery never took hold here and the islands still trace their roots to the seafaring Norman and Breton colonists. Many locals have fair skin and red or blonde hair. It is unhurried and feels like a slice of France has been transported to the Caribbean.
All the inhabitants of African descent have arrived fairly recently as by choice. The difference between French and English Islands was pointed out in one of the guide books: New inhabitants of English colonised islands were encouraged, if not forced, to keep their distance from the native people. They didn’t learn their culture or language. They didn’t mix with them and usually lived in a fenced village away from them. In contrast the French were encouraged to live with the locals and form relationships, as a result there are not only many more mixed race people on the French islands but there is also an absence of any atmosphere between the races. (Ja nee!)
We arrived and moored at 15h00 just off of the town and rushed into customs to check in as Doyle guide had said they closed at 17h00. The officials casually pointed us to the local internet café and said we had to go do it on computer as we had for the other French Islands. NO mess no fuss! The other three boats had arrived shortly after us and anchored. A quick stroll through town and back to the boats as we had been invited to the Friday night Braai (A tradition between the South African boats, Southern Blue, Quest, Ocean Spice and us)
We had no sooner settled back on the boats when the customs officer (the internet man) came around on his dinghy and told the others who had anchored to take a mooring buoy or move on! So much for our braai L. Southern Blue took a buoy next to us and Ocean Spice and Quest moved to the nearby anchorage of Pain des Sucre. Close but not close enough to dinghy back after a late night braai. Instead Johan and Jeanne from Southern Blue joined us for an evening stroll around town and a pizza dinner at the local pizzeria. We had fun trying to decipher what the French menu meant. One thing about the Frenchies here, they all try to understand my horribly broken French; try to speak English and even helped me pronounce some words and taught me some new ones. Viola! J Nope not even swear words! Well I have used them and not been slapped and they have not fallen about laughing so I guess they taught me correctly.
That evening a beach potjie had been organised by John and Joanne on the mono-hull “Out of Africa”. They are from Simonstown and are also cruising. There we met some more of our neighbors.
One of which is Tom and Lilly Service from the sailing vessel “Tiger Lilly”. Tom is a retired Naval Officer and Lilly was the first American woman Triathlon champion. What a delightful couple. Tom is so knowledgeable. We spent some time with him giving us information on cruising the inland waterways on the East coast of the USA and Chesapeake Bay. (Our plans for next season). He is so interesting and a delight to listen to with a wealth of information to share. Lilly has a limitless supply of energy and keeps him on his toes; he calls her his ‘Monster’. We got along very well I really enjoyed her company. She is very competitive and thought she had found someone who could compete on her daily expeditions but I am no match for her, she is so fit. Every morning before breakfast she walks up the highest peak on the island to the lookout point as easily as we get out of bed. Sorry Lilly I was unable to challenge you on our climb. (More about that later)
Our next hike took us through the village. Quaint little houses, most of which are beautifully maintained and have obviously been passed down through the generations. The one house right over the water has been built in the shape of a ship. Its lowest level touches the sea and the front is shaped and painted like the bow of a ship. From the sea you have to look carefully to realise it is not a large cruiser docked there but a house. It currently is the home and practice of the local Doctor. The road winds its way through the village and up the hill to Fort Napoleon built in 1867. This is one of the three forts on the island. The whole area has been beautifully restored. The top half is a garden of cactus and succulents. The iguanas here are very “tame” having been spoilt by tourists passing on their lunch. I will load a video of me feeding one. J Views from the top are awesome.
After a fascinating evening with Tom learning about sailing the inland waterways, he and Lilly invited us to join them for a hike the next morning, up the highest peak on the island, Le Chameau. Here are the remains of the lookout tower for the forts. From this point you can see right across the Island. On spotting incoming ships the lookout would signal to the forts to prepare. From this vantage point you can see Dominica and it was on this stretch of ocean between the two islands were the Battle of Trafalgar took place. Lilly said we would take the easy way up and come down the road which was more difficult. Her path, through the bush, was an hour walk uphill. The trail was marked by someone coming downhill and so the paint marks are all behind rocks and trees on the way up making it a bit of a hide and seek game too. But Lilly led us to the top. That girl is amazing I swear she didn’t even raise her pulse rate, no laboured breathing like the rest of us; she never even broke a sweat. The rest of us, Johan and Jeanne from Southern Blue and Andre and I, were breathing like we had run a marathon looked like we had showered. It was worth it the view from the top was spectacular. As Lilly had promised the walk down was easier but we were so glad we had not walked up that way. It is 1000ft elevation and the road up is even steeper than the path we took. Back in the village Lilly had not had enough exercise and suggest we walk to the beach on the other side of the island. The beach looks more like a lagoon with a narrow entrance to the sea. Rows of coconut trees along the beach provide shade and we all sat catching our breath.
From the lookout point we had seen a coral reef right in the middle of the bay and we decided then we wanted to snorkel there. The next day we together with Tom and Lilly, Johan and Jeanne and John and Joanne took the dinghy over, anchored and snorkelled. We were lucky you see Morey eels, Parrot fish, and many other reef fish. The visibility was great and it averaged about 5 meters depth so everyone could enjoy the views below.
We had planned to leave the next day and as we were getting ready to set off Tom and Lilly insisted we come over for a quick coffee before we left. Three hours later we were still sitting chatting. So much for leaving that day! That evening it was drinks and snacks on Tiger Lilly and we bid them a sad farewell the next morning with a promise to meet again. They are traveling south as we go north.
The next morning we set sail for Pointe-a-Pitre, the Capital of Guadeloupe.
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