…DO IT!!!

We had a nice ride to Dominica from St Pierre – motorsailed halfway, sailed half - and after shutting off the battery-charging, water-making engine and putting up our big jib, we blew past friends on Horizon and Scherzo. Someone once said, any time there are two sailboats on the water, it is a race!

In Roseau, we were met by Dwayne (also known as “Beans”) and escorted to a mooring buoy just off of Aldive Dive Center and Restaurant in a quiet corner of the bay. Dwayne is an up and coming guide in training and was helpful and friendly, shared information, scheduled a tour for us and ran errands all the days we were there.

We have been spending lots of time with friends on three boats – Jeff and Diane from Horizon, Scott and Paula on Scherzo, and Steve and Maria on Aspen. It has been fun to be part of a lively group, sharing hikes and yoga, going to the market, meals out, “movie nights” (a computer on the companionway hatch and all of us in the cockpit like a drive-in!) with popcorn, and cocktails and “noodling.” And meeting other boats that they all know. So our group of East Carib friends continues to grow. Our friend Gerry is still with us and having a great time getting tan, meeting new sailors, getting blisters hiking, telling us funny stories, and has been a big help with all the boat chores.

While in Roseau we took an all day tour with our “Sea Cat” guide, Stowe (“Stew”), Horizon, two German guys Michael and Dieter, and an Austrian singlehander, Peter, with a big, fluffy dog named Benny. We visited a Carib farm, swam in the Emerald Pool under a waterfall, drove down the Layou River past Rodney’s Rock, had lunch at the Rock Café – (YUM! Best rum punch!), swam up the narrow Titou Gorge, saw bubbling sulphur (phew!) pools, sat in steamy, hot pools beneath Trafalgar Falls, and drove back through the botanical garden. It was a good, long day full of laughter and learning and friendship.

We continued our active pace on a great 2-tank dive with Scherzo in the marine park on a wall that rolled over into a turquoise nothingness, and then dove near the champagne bubbles of underwater fumeroles.

Had a few drinks in town with friends on Cutter Loose, and had a very nice Valentine’s Day dinner with Scherzo at Aldive. Can you tell we thoroughly enjoyed Roseau?

After all this, we headed up to Portsmouth, at the northwest end of Dominica, where we were greeted by Albert, one of the PAYS (Portsmouth Association of Yacht Security) men, and assigned a mooring buoy. The buoy belonged to Martin (or “Providence”) so we became “his boat.” These guys (“boat boys”) are great. They are organized, work together, take turns, are very friendly and not aggressive, are VERY well versed in the natural and cultural history of their island, and are wonderful guides. They are certified by the government after passing several tests, including 1st Aid and CPR. They will take your garbage, your laundry, bring you bread, and are just helpful in general. At their own expense, they patrol the harbor all night. And they formed this association all on their own.

This is remarkable to Roberta, who worked in international sustainable tourism development for years. She says the first thing USAID tried to do, even before a project started, was to help businesses organize into groups of like stakeholders and then into a tourism association. It was difficult, because in most places they viewed one another as competitors. These 12 Portsmouth guys realized on their own that they are stronger together, and have now even become active in supporting their larger community, almost like a Lions or Rotary Club.

PAYS also fundraises by hosting a BBQ for the visiting boats once a week during the cruising season. They built an event site where we can get out of the rain (this IS a rainforest island!) and put on a BBQ chicken and fish feast, with FREE rum punch! And then they clear out all the dining tables and hold a dance. WHAT FUN!!! We met lots of other cruisers, felt like we were helping a good cause, and had a great time. So we went twice more!

We also went on an Indian River tour with Albert, who rowed us up this beautiful swampy river, one of 365 in Dominica, explained everything we were seeing, and wove in stories of Dominica’s political history and his childhood. These guides are also wonderful with information about cultural uses of plants and herbal medicine so the trip was fascinating just to listen to, but the scenery was fabulous, and the quiet rowing was a peaceful change from the wind noise or engine noise of moving a sailboat.

And then we went on a land tour with Martin… to Chaudiere Pool and little falls where Michael and Gerry jumped off a 20’ high rock in to the pool, to the charming village of Calabishie where the streets are lined with pretty flowers and everyone has a garden. We had a fabulous local lunch and fresh, natural juices, and then visited Red Rocks cliffs. Like Stowe and Albert, Martin shared stories, told us local jokes, stopped all along the way to show us fruits or plants and gave us sample tastes of some, explained and shared tastes of green versus mature coconuts, and gave all the ladies a bouquet of heliconia at the end of the day.

Gerry hiked with us up to Fort Shirley, through the museum and all the renovated buildings, and uphill past interesting ruins with trees and vines growing over them, up to the East Cabrits Battery with a glorious view of two bays and the swamp below. We chatted with Clara, of the Forestry Department afterwards and bought a book by Lennox Honeychurch about the history of the Portsmouth area.

We were in Portsmouth for their version of J’ouvert – around the opening of Carnival week. J'ouvert is a large street party during Carnival. The celebration involves calypso/soca bands and their followers dancing through the streets. In Portsmouth this includes a sort of parade. The origins of street parties associated with J'ouvert coincide with the emancipation from slavery which provided Africans with the opportunity, to not only participate in Carnival, but to embrace it as an expression of their newfound freedom. Some J'ouvert traditions are carried forward in historical remembrances of slavery.

One tradition of J’ouvert involves smearing oil on the bodies of participants known as "Jab Jabs". A jab-jab is a person dressed up as a devil-like character, in Caribbean carnivals, who carries a whip in hand that is used to hit other devils with.

Another tradition of Carnival is a “jumbie.” A moko jumbie is a stilts walker or dancer. The god Moko is from the Congo and Nigeria, and the Caribbean people added their own touches. Moko, in the traditional sense, is a god that watches over his village, and due to his towering height, he is able to foresee danger and evil. The idea of the Moko survived by living in the hearts of African descendants during slavery and colonial life, and after emancipation to eventually walk the streets in a celebration of freedom (Carnival).

In the J’ouvert parade that we saw, the jabjabs were jumbie dancers, covered with oil, wearing horns and carrying whips – scary! Perhaps these devils are reminiscent of plantation foremen??? In a Fat Tuesday Carnival Parade, the jumbies would be dressed in prettier clothing and would be more celebratory. We also saw some fluffy, shorter jabjabs with costumes made from shredded plastic bags and monster masks.

Two highlights of our stay in Portsmouth: We had friends over to Celilo say farewell to Gerry, who was catching a ride with Randy on Sinbad back down to his plane to the States in St Lucia. Martin and his wife Florian joined us all for shrimp quesadillas and margaritas and played a few local songs on the Celilo guitar. It was a fun evening. And then, Martin came to Celilo to teach us all how to make Dominican “cocoa tea.” Best hot chocolate ever!

Here is the recipe:

Take the meat out of one mature coconut. Chop it up finely in a blender with about a cup of water. Put the mash in a strainer and squeeze out the juice into a bowl. Set this coconut cream aside and throw away the pulp. Put 2 chunks (or one small log) of pure Dominican cocoa into 1½ cups of water with a twig of rosemary, 1 spice-bay leaf, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, a pinch of fresh grated nutmeg, 1” of slightly mashed ginger, and 2 lemongrass blades. Boil it all 5 minutes. Add the coconut cream, 2 drops vanilla, 2 heaping tablespoons raw sugar, heat it all up again. Remove from heat, strain, and pour into cups. WOW!!!

Our last couple of days in Dominica, Roberta had a terrible cold, so her activities were a little subdued… couldn’t dive all congested, or hike a couple of trails we are interested in, so we have things to do on our next visit – and we very much hope to be here again. We love Dominica! Michael has been struggling with 7-year old, failing batteries so we have ordered new ones to meet up with us later. Gerry is on his way south, the first leg of his trip home, and tomorrow we will say goodbye to friends on Aspen and sail off to Les Saintes, Guadaloupe with Scherzo – back to France, baguettes, pain chocolate, and great wine, cheese and pate.