Pointe a Pitre
11 February 2015 | Guadeloupe
A slow motor sail up to Guadeloupe as the wind was very light but a lovely sunny day and entered the huge well protected harbour of Pointe a Pitre. The anchorage we choose was just outside the marina bas du fort along with several other cruising yachts. Once we had checked in we were free to explore, the first day we walked into town some thirty minutes along the busy road. The town is Guadeloupe's largest and most important town, it is lively with a mix of old and new buildings, and a vast variety of shops. Along the water front the fishing boats pull along side to sell their catch beside the stalls pile high with fresh fruit and vegetables also there is a craft and souvenir stalls with their brightly coloured umbrellas and wares.
On another day we took the dingy up to the market area as it is possible to tie it to the old ferry dock and explored the town further finding more markets and a flower market although this was quite small. We also walked along the boulevard and into Jarry which is and industrial shopping area you can get just about anything you need from here and a rather large chandlery shop to browse around. Once we had our fill of shopping and sight seeing we moved the boat out to Gosier and anchored near the Ilet du Gosier which is a tiny island surrounded by reefs with soft white sand beaches and an old fashioned light house. This was good for a couple of days relaxing and swimming waiting for enough breeze to take us back down to Marie Galante