Guadeloupe and The Saints

Once the wind and the waves had settled we had a fairly easy sail to Guadeloupe. We had been here before so knew the lie of the land. We anchored in Deshais and went ashore to check in.

Busy anchorage

The following morning we went ashore again for a walk around the town. The British TV series Death in Paradise was filmed here. We found the police station which was closed. They open it for tourists but it is €10 per person to enter. Needless to say, we didn't spend the money.

View from the balcony of the police station

Could this be the restaurant they all hang out in?

We continued our amble around the town. It is quaint with some houses and shops painted in bright colours.

Beautiful murals painted on the walls

Not how you want to see your boat

Local artist

Clothes boutique

After our tour around the town we upped anchor and set off down the coast. We dropped anchor in the little bay near Pigeon Island. 

Cheeky, noisy visitor

Even invited his friends

The following day we set sail for The Saints. The last time we came this way up to Guadeloupe, we were much further out. It was lovely to see all the little villages along the coast. 

If we had tried to make the banana peel land on the railing we would not have been able to do it. But the banana peel carelessly flung into the sea landed there and stayed for quite a while! The things that keep us entertained while sailing!

The Saints is very similar to Guadeloupe. The streets look the same with their brightly painted houses and cement roads.

One morning we decided to go for a walk to the Fort Napoleon. It was a long, windy uphill slog in the heat, but we managed it. The views got better and better the higher we went.

On the way up the hill you can see this derelict building which looks like the bow of a boat.

Always a meter or two behind

It's hotter than it looks

Nearly there

The following picture is the first building you see. Not very promising. However, we were pleasantly surprised at how well the fort had been restored and maintained. 

Last stretch

View from the top

The grounds were beautiful but very dry. The islands don't seem to be getting much rain at the moment. 

Modern day moat

What is she peering at? Looks like she's afraid of heights

Perspective is everything

Inside various rooms had been set up with different memorabilia.

We thought this was the kitchen but we weren't too sure about the hole in the ground. Maybe it was a well.

Calypso is still there

The following day we went ashore for another walk on the other side of town. 

View of the bay from the industrial side of town

We stopped off at a beach bar for a refreshment. Something we haven't done for a while.

Continuing our commute home on the beach

The place to check out in The Saintes is a shop with a laundromat which is only open between the hours of 2 and 4 in the afternoon. I'm not sure if the laundromat closes as well or just the check in computer.

Needless to say the queue was long when Andrew went to check out. Andrew has managed to get the check out process, even with the French style keyboard, down to about 5 minutes. Sadly that is not the same with every boat captain that needs to check out!

While Andrew was waiting for his turn, Laura and I wandered around the centre of town. We found a lady who was selling these cakes which are famous in Guadeloupe. They are called Tourment d'Amour (Torment of Love).

Tourment d’Amour

The story behind these delicious jam filled pastries is as follows: Caroline, a young girl from Terre-de-Haut and Freminville, a visiting ship's captain, fell in love. During their courtship, Freminville was given orders to leave immediately. Unable to see her before he set sail, Freminville left Caroline a letter telling her the day that he would be back.

On the day of his expected return, Caroline baked a special dessert. But the captain was delayed, and the days passed with no sign of Freminville, Caroline took her own life. When Freminville finally returned, he found Caroline dead in her house, the dessert she had lovingly baked still sitting on the table, hard and stale.

Legend has it that ever since then the women of Terre-de-Haut, and now the surrounding islands, make the pastry when their husbands go off to sea, praying that they will return safely to eat the delicious jam filled pastry while it is still fresh.

They were indeed delicious!

I took this picture on the walk back from the fort. If you look closely you can see the sargassum on the beach. It is a terrible weed that is filling the ocean. It smells horrendous when it is washed up on the shore.

One afternoon two people in a dinghy stopped at our boat. They had recognized the name and wanted to say hello. Jacqui and David Pemberton, sv Jackster, were friends with the previous owners of Calypso and had sailed quite extensively with them. 

A bit later another couple stopped by. Mick and Janice, on Zoa, had also known Paul and Maureen and had sailed with them in the Pacific. Janice said that she had sewed some things for Maureen including the bag for snorkelling gear on the back of the boat which we still use.

It was wonderful to chat to both of them about the boat and hear their tales.

Our next stop on our trip south is Dominica. This was another island that we dropped anchor at but didn't go ashore on our trip north so it was wonderful to be able to spend some time exploring.