January Video of the Month

Memory Maker

We do not remember days, we remember moments.  The richness of life lies in the memories we have forgotten. 
- Cesare Pavese

It's really hard to pinpoint our favorite moment, memory or experience.  But if I were to classify them, I would say that one of the highlights in the wildlife category is seeing the animals up close, personal and in their habitat.  We have seen dolphins, whales, sea turtles, parrots, iguanas, lizards, goats, flamingos, spotted eagle ray, eels, octopus, lobster, conch, nurse shark, fish, fish and more fish - just to name a few.  If we had to pinpoint a favorite, it would be dolphins swimming in our bow waves, as we huddle around mesmerized.  We never get tired of watching them because it's always as exciting as the very first time.  Be that as it may, we now have a new favorite after spending time in the Pain de Sucre anchorage in the Les Saintes.
As we dropped the line of our mooring ball outside the harbor of Terre-de-Haut, we were on a quest to find a more secluded anchorage that was a bit less rolly.  We first motored across the harbor to Ilet a Cabrit only to find no place to drop the hook except in 70 feet of water and more mooring balls.  Our next opportunity for quiet seclusion and protection was Pain de Sucre, not far from either harbor.  As we approached the small cove, there were a few other anchored boats and lots of people snorkeling.  Upon our arrival and circling around trying to figure out if it would be suitable to anchor, I spotted something in the water.  What was that?  A turtle?  The snorkelers all seemed to be bunched up and moving simultaneously in the same direction.  Then, all of sudden I saw 2 dolphins gracefully breech the water for a breath of fresh air.  They bobbed in and out of the water as they came to greet us and circled our boat.  OMG!!  We are staying, no question about it!

We had heard from a nice boutique owner in town, that there might be dolphins swimming in this particular cove.  It was a special time of year and they only stay about 2 weeks.  While Craig dropped the anchor, the girls and I scrambled to get our swim suits on and the snorkel stuff out as fast as we could.  Maggie hollered through her snorkel mask "doh' horget da hideo hamera!".

Funny thing about these beautiful creatures is that they are curious, just like we are.  Craig dove down on our anchor to make sure it was set and we wouldn't drag.  As he was down on the ocean floor, he looked over and 4 feet away, there was mama and her baby checking him out, almost as if they wanted to help or learn something about anchoring.  Craig said it was just about the coolest thing he has ever seen.

We have never paid to swim with dolphins at a resort, so I can't really compare.  But I would say that this was 10,000 times better.  First of all, it was free!  Secondly, it was in their natural habitat.  The most precious moments I observed was when mama and baby would rub noses and swim in elegant circles around each other as if to say I Love You!

We hiked up that mountain, Le Chameau.  Pain de Sucre cove to the right.

Entering the cove around this piton

Mama and her baby swimming by our boat as we anchored 

someone else swimming with the dolphins

The whole gang following mama and her baby

They swam back and forth, all around the cove, in between the boats.  They never seemed to venture away from the cove and weren't bothered by all the people.  

The best time to swim with them was late in the day or early in the morning when there were less people.  If I floated real quiet and didn't try to chase them, they came right up to me.  I could also hear them talk in their whistle and clicking sounds.  I could reach out and touch them if I wanted to.  It was definitely a priceless moment!!

Sunset in Pain de Sucre 

Conquer and divide

While still in Les Saintes, Chris and Craig took all the kids to Fort Napoleon while Erica and I went grocery shopping.  Now keep in mind that in the french countries, they don't have one all encompassing store like we do stateside.  It was a tough morning visiting all three necessary stores to pick up our provisions - in the tiny town that was about 1/2 mile long!  And, they don't provide a bag for your purchased items, so one must be prepared.  We agreed to meet the dads and kids at 12:30 in the town square.  Well, wouldn't you know it, we gals had a little extra time on our hands.  And what do girls do best when left alone....they shop.  I must confess, I am not much of a shopper myself, in fact, I hate shopping.  But, I do really enjoy the occasional girlie shopping trip where it's more about time spent together and less time shopping.  Terre-de-Haut Island is one of two islands (remember there are 8) that are inhabited.  This particular island had some really cute shops with jewelry and clothing that I could actually picture myself wearing.  As opposed to the crazy and wild jumpsuits that were sold in Guadeloupe.  We made it into nearly all the shops in a very short period of time.  I think they call it 'power shopping'.  In our defense, there weren't that many shops to choose from.  We spent most of our time in a boutique called Maogany, where the owner had fun with us as we tried on lots of dresses (more Erica than me).

Meeting up with the rest of the family after a successful shopping day!  I bought a couple of dresses including one made using the Batik method (from Maogany) but without the traditional print or pattern.  These were made to look like the sea in soft blue, turquoise and seaglass.

Maggie does not get her shopping gene from me

The kids were less impressed with Fort Napoleon, mostly because everything was, you guessed it, in french!  They did have a few message boards with facts in english.  The view was great from the top and the walk was not too bad either.

View from Fort Napoleon

Middle of the fort where the museum now resides on the second floor.

Model of a slave ship

Ammo room or cannonball room.  There was one of these rooms approximately every 40 feet all around the fort.

Croissants, Baguettes and more things French

We sailed away from Guadeloupe on a beam reach and comfortable seas 18 miles to Les Saintes.  We entered the harbor and picked up a mooring ball, which was our only choice.  When the boat came around to collect our payment, they also took our order for fresh croissants and baguettes that would be delivered to the boat the next morning!

The french do know how to make a delicious baguette, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.  Spread a little butter, cheese or Nutella on a baguette still warm from the bakery and that's what I call heaven.  One of the benefits of touring the french islands was the wonderful bread and cheese available everywhere.  The bakeries made fresh bread daily and they were dirt cheap.  Oh, I mean inexpensive.  We saw people walking through town during the morning hours carrying 2-5 baguettes each!  And I mean nearly everyone had a baguette in hand.  The supermarkets were supplied with great cheese like gruyere, gouda and brie.  How could we go wrong?  We had a fresh baguette handy at almost every meal!  It reminded us of sitting on the steps of Basilique du Sacre Coeur in Paris.  The produce was equally as good too, especially the tomatoes.  We enjoyed a hunk-o-baguette spread with butter, a slice of cheese and tomato, sprinkled with a little sea salt and an over easy egg for breakfast.  Mmmmm, good stuff!

Iles des Saintes, also known as Les Saintes are a little archipelago of eight volcanic islands south of Guadeloupe and north of Dominica.  They are not even on some maps of the Caribbean and if they are, they are mere specs.  Les Saintes have the natural beauty of the Caribbean and none of the bells and whistles of a tourist attraction.  Which is a good thing, in our opinion.  In fact, only one of the islands has a ferry from Guadeloupe.  The rest are only accessible by boat.  The people that lived and worked in Les Saintes were very friendly, helpful and willing to practice their english with us, as well as be patient with our limited french.  We loved the quaint feel and the picturesque, coziness of this little french village.

Fisherman heading out to hook his daily catch.  The birds are no fools, following close behind 

These fisherman are getting ready to drop the lobster pot - the biggest one I have ever seen.  It looks a little topsy turvy to me.

I'll take this one please

Local fishing boats

Mr. Iguana watching us closely as we passed by

The main street through town, lined with homes, restaurants, bakeries and shops.

The local scooter beach bar

Looking at Fort Napoleon up on the hill and the anchorage below

We hiked 1000 vertical feet to the top of Le Chameau

Pretty steep incline - but it was paved most of the way

And the view was spectacular!

Reese and Liv found natural chalk and wrote their names on a bean pod

View from the fort hight atop Le Chameau - looking at the harbor of Terre-de-Haut, where we were anchored

Animal jail.  Really, it's true!  They put stray animals, goats in this case, here until their owners come to claim them and post bail.  What a nice view for an animal jail, don't ya think?

Kate and Reese in the fort

Looking out the canon windows

Soldiers happy to have made it to the top.  They had fun running around the fort playing war.

One of the 8 islands of Les Saintes

More islands

Guadeloupe to the north

Lava rock makes a great playground

Cute little church that was overflowing with people on Sunday morning

The ornate gingerbread trim work on the houses was very cute

The church steeple

Looking the other way into town

Almost life like

Yummy, but tart, star fruit.  A first for the kids to taste.

Freshly sliced baguette ready to be devoured