Martinique - March 14

Welcome to Martinique! This is one of my favorite islands to visit in the Caribbean, as there is so much to see and do, both in the port and around the island. 

We had a bit of rain, followed by a rainbow, prior to reaching our berth, but the day promised to be hot (95F/35C) and it did reach that temperature. 

Again, I had no excursion planned here, but planned to do a wander around the city and perhaps a little shopping. 

I believe this is the Royal Clipper ship docked next to us. (I neglected to get a photo of the ship's name). It carries 227 passengers and 106 crew. Compare that to the 3080 passengers and 1200 crew on the Ruby Princess.

I was off the ship by 8:30 a.m. My first destination was La Savane Park in Fort-de-France. I was looking for the headless statue of Josephine Bonaparte. I know, I know, I'm weird. The statue was installed in the park in 1859 and in 1991 the statue was "beheaded" and splattered with red paint. Martinique is part of the French Republic and the outermost region of the European Union. Thus, the primary language is French and the currency is euros. I came prepared with some of the euros, though not as prepared with the French language skills. Un petit peu, seulement. 

The park was oceanside and a short walk of ten minutes or so from the downtown. I wasn't successful in finding the statue though as I didn't veture to the far end of the park. 

On my way back to the city center, I decided to stop in at a store and purchase a baseball cap as the heat of the day was ramping up and the sun was hot on my head. In addition, the store offered free WiFi, so I took advantage of that too. D and Eli had an appointment in the city and I wanted to check in with her before she left home. Eli was having some issues with the medication he had been prescribed for the seizures, however the pediatric neurologist in Saskatoon wasn't able to see him yet, so the neuroligist in Regina agreed to see him. This doctor doesn't generally work with children but a med change was indicated. He's now on another prescription and I'm happy to say he's doing much better.

Back to Martinique; I wandered downtown looking for the bookstore where I had purchased a book for Eli on an earlier trip. Like the statue, I couldn't find what I was looking for but there was more to see and do regardless.

This is St. Louis Cathedral (it is featured in the first photo as well). The cathedral was completed in 1895 in the Romanesque Revival style. There was a service being held at this time, so I didn't enter the church.

Across from the cathedral is a small park. This allamanda cathartica or golden trumpet was blooming beautiful! I had to stop and enjoy the beauty. I've since learned that I can purchase this as an annual for my garden containers. I'm sure it won't grow nearly as big and bushy for me here. I'll be looking for it at the nursery later this spring.

Beyond the park is a building that captures the cathedral in its windows. 

I wandered through the market vendors and found a street vendor selling fresh squeezed juice. With a glass of grape, watermelon and mango juice, I settled in at a table and watched people go by. 

I did chuckle at the sight of the KFC store, it seems to be a staple in the islands.

Feeling refreshed and well hydrated, I headed off to walk about more. No luck still in finding the bookstore, but I did find a fabric store.

Oh, if only I were talented enough to sew well. The fabrics were gorgeous - and I ought to have taken a photo of the interior. I was looking for a crochet hook and decided a fabric store might very well carry them - and it did! I had thought, being as port heavy as this cruise was, that I wouldn't have time to work on a small project so hadn't brought yarn or a crochet hook with me. However, the sea days at the beginning of the cruise reminded me I like to have something in my hands to work on. I'd found some cotton yarn in the dollar store in Fort Lauderdale, but no crochet hook. It was in this store that my lack of French was obvious. However, the clerk and I managed through pantomine and a few words to find what I was looking for. 

I took a bit of time to wander through the open air market, but bought nothing there.

Look at the size of the melon slices!

There were tables of souveniers available too, and while I loved the colors, nothing said take me home.

You could not convince me to drive on these streets. They are incredibly narrow and with pedestrians walking about, it would be a nightmare (at least for me)

I much preferred those streets that appeared to limit vehicular traffic. After my walk-about, I decided it was time to head back to the ship for a late lunch, some reading in the shade and a short nap.

From this perspective it appears the clipper ship's masts are almost as tall as the Ruby. 

The clipper left port before we did, and very shortly had its sails up.

If I ever won a lottery, I think I'd really enjoy an opportunity to sail on one of these ships. On the other hand, I've never experienced seasickness on the large ships - I'm not so certain I'd be as lucky on such a small one. 

It was a wonderful day in Martinique. The weather was simply incredible (and hot!). I spent much of the day off ship just enjoying the atmosphere of Fort-de-France. Everyone I met and spoke with were friendly, even when there was some difficulty in understanding one another. 

Next up - Barbados

Wild weather, waiting, and mishaps

We had thunderstorms roll through last Saturday evening, and through the night. While other areas of the city got pummelled in the earlier storm, my area didn't see a whole lot of rain until 1:30 a.m. A loud clap of thunder woke me, and my son came up the stairs to join me in the sun room so we could watch the lightning. For about 30-45 minutes the storm raged, with lightning flashes coming one on top of the other. My lightning app showed that there were strikes just a couple of blocks from here. The rain poured down and my back yard became a pond again. I had gone out during the evening and pulled my vegetable containers closer to the shed, in case we got hail. Thankfully, while other areas of the city did see hail, we did not.

The following morning, I went out to check and found the rain gauge (Wednesday's photo), indicating we had received over 1 1/2 inches of rain in just over an hour or so. The lawn was still soaked but the standing water had receded. One of my tomato plants appeared to have taken a bit of a beating but by the afternoon was standing tall again. Sunday was a cooler day, but we didn't get any more rain, and by Monday the temperatures were on the rise. Can you say mosquitos?

The construction saga continues. Jason, the contractor called on Sunday to advise that they would be delivering the flooring late on Monday afternoon. The reason: he has sold his house, possession date is next week, and he and his wife (who is pregnant) haven't found a new place to live. So, he's using his crew to move his household goods into temporary storage while they continue their search. He thought at that time the crew would be here to work Tuesday and Wednesday, or Tuesday and Friday, and assured me the project will be completed next week sometime. There was no point in arguing with him, I can't change his circumstances, and I want the job done properly and not rushed. 

The crew showed up on Tuesday, all of us assuming that the flooring would be installed in the two spare bedrooms, and the hall. However, after doing some prep work, it was discovered that there is a hump in the floor. It could be resolved in a extended period of time by adjusting the teleposts in the basement (Carter suggested up to 2 months!), or they could use a leveling compound. Not leveling was not an option or the laminate flooring would pop as one walked on it. I chose the most timely (and expensive) option. The guys spent the rest of the day mixing, spreading, and cleaning up the material. It couldn't be walked on for at least 8 hours - which meant no access to my bedroom, so Saku and I spent the night in the sunroom. I have a recliner out there; with a blanket and pillow it was quite comfortable.

Wednesday was a quiet day, I did get out to stitch and chat which was very nice. There were only two of us, I crocheted a dishcloth, while B worked on appliqueing tooth fairy pillows. I've asked to purchase one for her for Eli. It was good to get out of the house; everything is covered in drywall dust. When the crew isn't here I vacuum and dust, but I can't seem to keep up with it. Living in a construction zone is not only a nuisance but oh so tiring.

The first mishap of the week occured on Wednesday, when C advised that the downstairs toilet was clogged. We, unsuccessfully, took turns using the plunger, then he ran to the local Rona to pick up a toilet snake, however that wasn't enough to clear whatever was causing the blockage. While the water did eventually drain, it just won't flush. A plumbing company was originally scheduled to be here on Friday to deal with that issue.

The next mishap occured on Thursday, when I decided to repaint my master ensuite as there were a couple of dings that have happened over the last few years. All went well, until the stool I was standing on slipped out from under me as I was painting the top of the wall above the mirror.  On my way down, I managed to break three of the four light bulbs in the light fixture and splashed paint on the mirror and vanity. After checking the linen closet, I had to run out for more bulbs, but first I finished the rest of the painting, and cleaned up my mess. 

Carter arrived around 4 p.m. to do another coat on the drywall. He assured me they would be here at 8 a.m. on Friday. 

We had more thunderstorms roll through on Thursday night, with accompanying rain. When I checked the gauge the next morning, we'd had another inch and a quarter of rain overnight. There was flooding in various parts of the city which had traffic backed up. Carter's drive, normally fifteen minutes took over a half hour. The rest of crew live even further away in the north end of the city, and their commute took an hour! 

This is one of four underpasses in the city that consistently flood every time we have a good amount of rain. And, as usual there are at least a couple of drivers who tempt fate. As I said to my brother, who sent me this photo, "exposing idiots, one storm at a time." 

Once the crew arrived, it didn't take long for the saws to be set up and the guys got busy. One of the crew was installing the flooring in the hallway, while the other two worked on the railing for the steps from the kitchen to livingroom. When they left about 3:30 p.m. both spare bedrooms had flooring (including the closets), and the hallway was near completion. The railing is up, but needs to be sanded to round the edges, and the pickets put in before it can be painted.

While all of this was going on, the Roto-rooter guy showed up to clear the blockage in the downstairs toilet. Thankfully it was nothing more than that, so he was in and out in less than 30 minutes. After he left, I went downstairs to wash the floor. 

We had more thunderstorms and rain again last night, with another 1/2 inch in the rain gauge this morning. As you can imagine, I haven't had to do a lot of watering of the containers this week. Today, we're expecting a high of 30C (86F), so I'm sure I'll be pulling out the watering can again shortly.

I'm off to go garage sale-ing this morning with my friend C this morning; my son and I will move my bedroom furniture to one of the spare bedrooms later in the day. The crew will be back Monday to pull the carpet in there, and prep the room. I'm hoping they will be able to finish the hall, and start that bedroom flooring that day too. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

The sun shines in Ketchikan, Alaska

 Before we arrive in Ketchikan I'll share a couple of photos from our sea on May 8. I started my day early and was thrilled to see we were sailing into a rainbow - a good omen for this trip!

We weren't alone on the ocean, though I'm not referring to the ship in the photo. 

I attended the naturalist lecture later that morning - Mark Harris told us that one can tell the difference between the humpback whale and a grey whale by their spouts. A humpback whale's spout looks like a spout, while a grey whale look more mushroom shaped. Hence I believe this was a humpback...but of course, I could be wrong. I saw spouts almost daily and even a couple of breaches!

On to Ketchikan. 

We were in Ketchikan on May 9 and 19. Both days were sunny and mild. Known as the rain capital of Alaska, I've visited the community three times and each time the sun was shining. A local told me at the burger stand that I must have brought it with me. I can't make that claim as our ship's captain informed us on every sunny day that he was responsible. (If it was overcast or rainy it was the cruise director's fault.) :)

On our first stop, our ship was parked right downtown and across from the Ketchikan sign. From there it was a short walk to the Christmas store (I bought nothing though I did look), and to Creek Street. Creek Street is infamous as Ketchikan's red light district and one of the properties, Dolly's house is now a museum. I've visited there years ago, and it's an interesting place to see. Creek Street is so named as Ketchikan Creek runs alongside. Behind the buildings is a winding pathway named Married Man's Way, a trail used by patrons to avoid being seen out front.

I thought I had taken a photo from the ship of Creek Street, but I did not. Instead you get a photo of Ketchikan Creek. There was a sign that indicated that salmon do spawn in this creek but it was too early in the year for that activity.

I did a wander about the downtown area and ended up at the Pioneer Cafe for lunch. No salmon in the creek, but I had a great homemade salmon burger for lunch. Delicious!

When I left home on May 6, I had noticed my Jacob's Ladder and bergenia's were just beginning to spring forth. In Ketchikan I found blooms!

After my lunch and a bit more walking I headed back to the ship, to the Wakeview bar for the rest of the afternoon. Just to give you an idea of how big the ship is, this is a photo I snapped on my walk back.

There was more entertainment to be found. The Coast Guard pulled over a small boat with it's lights and sirens and an officer went on board the smaller vessel. It wasn't long before the boat was on its way, so I presume all was well.

There were many float planes taking off and landing. For those who don't know, my first full time employment when I left high school (many, many moons ago), was as a dispatcher and bookkeeper for a charter air service in Northern Saskatchewan. I've never lost my love of listening for and watching float planes. This appears to be a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, a true workhorse of the north. 

In addition there was a squadron of helicopters nearby. I believe some of my fellow passengers took a flight on a helicopter in order to land on the Misty Fjord. Sorry, not sorry, I won't fly in a helicopter...ever. A fixed wing plane can usually glide to a landing spot (search Gimli Glider), while a helicopter becomes a piano when the rotor stops. I know they are flown safely every day but I simply cannot convince myself.

On a happier note, on our return trip to Ketchikan we were parked at the other end of town, basically next door to the float planes. I did laundry that morning before heading off the ship - I knew the laundry would be busy our last day at sea. I spent some time on the decks watching the dock crew tie up the ship. They use massive ropes for this purpose - it takes three guys and a winch to bring the ropes up. 

Look who sailed in shortly after we arrived. It's the Holland America Koningsdam we'd seen in Vancouver. I seem to recall they were in another port one other day but otherwise their itinerary was different than ours.

We off boarded from a lower deck and had a ramp to climb. This photo was taken from the ramp. Those posts are starting to look a little worn for wear from my perspective. :)

My goal that day was simply to do a walk around that area, and go to the Dairy Queen for lunch. Several of the crew members had told me that it was the best place in town for a hamburger - I just had to give it a try. There was a bit of a line-up when I arrived at 11:30, and it was a half hour wait before I got my order. As the cashier said, "we aren't making fast food here, we're making good food". Look at the size of that burger - no fries required! Like every good burger it was messy. I enjoyed my meal sitting on a bench on the dock, people watching.

While I waited at the burger joint, I noticed these ferns growing out of the rock wall at the back of the property. Again, at home my ferns were just barely out of the ground.

Back on board ship, I headed once again to the Wakeview bar. I'm sure you are sensing a trend here. This was the afternoon I was bound and determined to get another photo of an eagle. Unfortunately my zoom just couldn't do the job as they circled high overhead. Frustrated, I had put my camera away and was reading when someone hollered eagle. I looked up to see the bird flying just a few feet away from the ship! Did it fly by again? Of course not. 

This tug was pulling these large barges with freight cars down the channel. At one point it moved from the side to the the front (as shown here). I assume it has to do with the depth of the water. Amazing that something that small can manage that kind of load.

If you have a cool $9.2 million available this yacht can be yours. Another couple told me they'd talked to someone at a bar in town who said the price had recently been reduced. 

Though I didn't do anything special in Ketchikan, I definitely enjoyed our time there. There were people and airplanes to watch, a few elusive eagles, and great food. I even did a little shopping on the last day, picking up a photo album for those that I'll print and a t-shirt for Eli.

And that eagle photo I wanted? Well, as we sailed away from Ketchikan, I finally spotted another one. I've cropped the photo because so it isn't the best, but you can see the bird on the pole.

Next up - Juneau, Alaska

Simple moments

I'm starting to feel like I'm on repeat...another week nearly over, with great weather for the weekend. 

The work week was particularly short with Monday as a holiday, I was in the office on Tuesday, then flew out to Calgary for a meeting on Wednesday and Thursday, and had scheduled Friday as a vacation day.  The meeting went well as my presentations were generally well received.  I say, generally, as my first presentation was on time management.  Many of the participants were quite adamant that they were far too busy to use the suggestions I provided.  Hmmm...perhaps there was a lesson to be learned that was missed.  On the other hand I had some of the participants tell me they will definitely use some of the suggestions and a couple asked if they could job shadow me for a month.  (Of course, that won't be happening but it was a lovely compliment).

On the way home, I was upgraded to Plus (that's never happened before) so I was seated right at the front of the plane.  My seat mate got on just before we took off, and when the air was turned before the engines were started, she had a bit of a panic attack.  The attendant checked with her, and she shared that as a teenager, she had been trapped in a car wreck and the confined space and heat was troubling to her.  As we took off, I noted the tears falling.  Not knowing what to do, I did what I know best.  I asked her if she was from Regina.  Through her tears she told me she was.  I waited a minute or two, and asked if she was in Calgary for business or pleasure.  She told me she'd been in Phoenix with her daughter.  I kept this up for several minutes, asking a question that led from the answer she had given.  

After we'd reached altitude, the attendants came by and she ordered a glass of wine and a snack.  We chatted while she ate, and drank, and by the time we were starting our descent into Regina, she was relaxed, and told me I must be a good mother, as I had managed to keep her distracted through most of the flight.  I definitely thought that was a nice compliment!  

Friday morning, I did a little housework before meeting my friend K for lunch.  Who knew there were two Applebees' in Regina?  Apparently, neither of us.  K thought it was odd that I wasn't there at 11:45 (our agreed time) and asked the waiter.  She then hopped in her car and drove across the city to the east end Applebees.  I had thought she was at line dancing so hadn't worried when she didn't arrive on time.  

We ended up having a very leisurely lunch, not leaving the restaurant until 2:30.  We chatted about their most recent cruise, a TransPacific from Japan to Vancouver, their upcoming cruise to the Baltics in September, and our New Orleans cruise in December.  She's looked into renting a car for at least a day so we can visit a plantation.  I want to visit one of the cemeteries; she wasn't certain what her partner J wants to do.  

I had my nail appointment at 3, while K dashed off to bar tend (volunteer) at a nearby senior's complex. My esthetitian L, told me about a tomato/herb container she had purchased at Lowe's.  I hadn't planned to have any vegetables this year, but the price, $26.99, was too good.  I headed up to Lowe's and picked one up.  It contains a cherry tomato, a marigold, basil, oregano, parsley and thyme.  The tomato has several fruit already on it, and the herbs are quite large and definitely healthy.  If I had purchased the items separately, I'm certain the cost would have been much higher.

Dinner was with the regular crew at the regular spot.  The service was so-so, the food about the same, as usual.  It is the company that keeps me coming back.  C and I made arrangements to get together for coffee on Saturday morning when her husband N was off gliding at the base in Moose Jaw.  I've missed her at work, and it was lovely to get together and have a gab.  Their yard is so lovely, too.  C has the green thumb and an artistic flair, while N provides the muscle.  This year they have replaced the base for their new gazebo, enlarging it to 10 X 14 (from 10 X 10).  C has planted most of the containers, of which there are approximately 40, as well as the two flower beds out front.  She is holding off on the beds in the back yard until the gazebo is finished.  The only thing I don't care for in their yard, is the fact they back onto a busy roadway, but she says they don't notice the traffic noise.

Last evening we had a thunder storm roll through the area.  Eli was still awake, so we took him outside.  D and I took the chairs from the front patio and moved them onto the sidewalk.  Eli ran between us until Uncle C came out and sat on the step.  That child loves his uncle!  He wasn't the least bit frightened by the thunder, though I don't believe he noticed the lightening.  However, when the rain started and Eli wandered off the sidewalk onto the patio, we learned he didn't like being rained on. I think it was a shock as it was too dark to see the rain drops.  It started coming down hard then, so we all moved into the house. 

Today, I got more housework done in the early morning before heading out to relax and read on the deck.  I grilled some chicken for lunch, made myself a Caesar salad, and ate my lunch outside as well.  By 2 it was getting quite warm, so I came back indoors.  D and Eli came back from running errands, he had a brief nap while she ate lunch.  We're currently watching the pre-season football between the Saskatchewan Riders and the Edmonton Eskimos.  Sad to say, the game isn't going well for our team.  Later we'll watch the Memorial Cup Junior Hockey final as the local team, the Regina Pats are playing.  D is responsible for dinner tonight; she'll be grilling a rack of ribs and asparagus, while I'll do potatoes in the microwave. 

No garden photos this week, but I do have a couple of shots of the rainbow from a week ago.  

The first shot was taken on my deck looking to the north east.  I've enlarged it because of the double rainbow.  The second shot is from the street out front, looking east.  We didn't get much rain that evening, and I only just happened to walk out the back and spotted the rainbow. 

It's back to work tomorrow. I doubt the week will pass quite as quickly as the last... but I'm sure there will be simple moments to look back on too.  Have a great week everyone!