We are spending four days on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, an archipelago forming an overseas region of France. When we booked our trip, we thought we were going to a French-speaking island, not to France. Now we find out that Guadeloupe is a constituent territory of the European Union and the Eurozone, the euro is its official currency, and any European Union citizen is free to settle and work there indefinitely (although it is not part of the Schengen Area.)
Shows what we know, right?
Note that the name of the island is not Guadalupe, and is not pronounced “Gwada-lew-pay”. It is a French word and pronounced “Gwada-loop.”
We are staying at a hotel called the “Mahogany Hôtel Résidence and Spa“, we have a rental car, and we plan to spend our time here without an agenda, which is the perfect way to travel. The hotel is pretty cool, but before we take a look at it, let’s look at the beaches on Guadeloupe. After all, it is an island. 😎
Beach Life
Guadeloupe has many beaches, enough that you can find one that suites your taste. We prefer deserted beaches where we can find romantic pleasures.
Frolicking on one of the many pristine beaches of Guadeloupe.
This unnamed beach catches our eye as we drive along the coastal roads of Grande-Terre, the eastern portion of this butterfly-shaped island.
Please take a moment to look at the many beautiful beaches of this island. You can see why so many people prefer island life.
Down on the boardwalk…
We love this photograph of an empty pier with boats positioned lazily in the background, set against a tropical forest.
Smile!
Hmmmm, the wind seems to be picking up a bit…
So this is happening now…
You’d think I would have learned my lesson after our adventures in Kauai, wouldn’t you? Short skirts and oceans breezes don’t mix, take my word for it!
No, wait. This is the real boardwalk!
The folks on Guadeloupe thoughtfully provide a raised wooden walkway to allow us to enjoy an inland beach. We are transported from a tropical forest to a deciduous forest. Sweet.
Pointe de la Grande Vigie
Our travels take us to la Pointe de la Grande Vigie, the northernmost point of Guadeloupe.
The Pointe de la Grande Vigie is panoramic.
According to the internet, “this rocky peninsula with vertical limestone cliffs reaching up to 80 metres (260 ft) high is reminiscent of the French coasts of eastern Normandy and Brittany. Exposed to trade winds and sea spray, it has scanty and xerophytic vegetation, and it has been the site of almost no construction.”
It also says, “Its coastal escarpment makes access by sea difficult.” Gee, ya’ think?
The Pointe de la Grande Vigie is pointy.
We try to pose by the edge, but it really is a sheer drop-off and a bit intimidating, so this is a close to the edge as we go. Quite a view, eh?
Cimetière de Morne-à-L’eau
La Cimetière de Morne-à-L’eau est un cimetière pas comme les autres.
C’est un cimetière magnifique.
The internet tells us that the 1,800 tombs are staged on the sides of a natural amphitheater, dotted with typically tropical green vegetation. Under a generous sun, it inspires less melancholy than its counterparts in temperate countries. Especially since marble or granite with such dark colors are prohibited; the vast majority of the vaults are in fact built in cement and especially in earthenware tiles. The bright white predominates, with a few touches of whimsy: some deceased lie under graves of a blue or a discreet pink. But the great originality of the cemetery is due to the black and white checkerboard patterns which decorate the majority of the graves, giving the whole of the airs of a large chessboard.
What we like is how the tombs are built to resemble a town. Which, I guess, makes this a ghost town. 🙄
Sadly, no room to grow. Where will the new dead people live?
The legend for the red dotted line reads, “Limite de carrès.” We know how that translates, but not what it means here. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Whatever happened to “cogito, ergo sum”?
Perhaps it’s an island saying. Or maybe the person was gabby. We will never know.
Musee du Rhum
Our travels take us to to Musee du Rhum, where we drop in to see what it has to offer.
You can’t go wrong with Rhum.
The internet says, “The main exhibit of the museum takes you through three centuries of history about the art of making rum, using the distillery next door as their main focal point. After viewing a video, you can taste the varieties of rum, then move on to the fully reconstructed cooper’s shop, view over 5,000 insects, and view other artifacts that are important to the natural history of Guadeloupe. Another exhibit features scale yacht models, and yet another focuses on the cultures and traditions of the country.” Yes, 5,000 insects, for some reason…
So, we just purchase a couple of bottles of Rhum, and we’re on our way again.
Mahogany Hôtel Résidence and Spa
A little backstory….
If you have a very good memory, you might recall that our visit to Guadeloupe is part of our island-hopping adventure. As with all trips, there are unexpected adventures that are not entirely to our tastes.
The first night on this island, we stayed at a very strange hotel, one of those places where everything seems a bit off. For example, our room is not in the main hotel, but in a smaller building nearby. To get to the building, we have to walk past the hotel’s dumpsters.
Okay, the water stops working early in the evening for the entire hotel. (Later we find out that it was not working for the whole town.) That can happen, right? I go to the front desk and interrupt the desk clerk, who is texting on his phone. He is nonchalant about the situation, but assures me that he will send bottles of water to our room—which never arrive. Another visit and a phone call to the front desk, and still no water. Morning arrives without water, and I use the hotel lobby’s facilities to take care of business—which, it appears, is what every other male at the hotel is doing.
So, we pack our car and turn in our room key without a word, deciding to deal with the consequences later. (In fact, we had booked via Expedia, and when we explained that we broke our reservation due to lack of basic sanitation, Expedia refunded our money.) We drive east (for no particular reason), deciding we will drive until we find running water.
And that is how we came to stay at the “Mahogany Hôtel Résidence and Spa“.
Sunrise over the hotel.
Since it is shoulder season, there are only five rooms rented in this large hotel, and the manager gives us a tour of the grounds and allows us to choose the room we want.
We have the pool to ourselves.
Normally, we would have selected a room with a view to the sea, but at this time of year, the kelp is decomposing and smells of sulphur, so we take a room overlooking the pool to be slightly farther from the beach. Still, the view is beautiful and we are happy.
The pool has an art display in the wading pool.
You can see the lobby of the hotel; to get to the dining area on the right, you cross over an arched bridge. Cool, eh?
Do we need reservations this morning?
We enjoy a romantic breakfast in an outdoor dining area on the coast of a Caribbean island. ?
Euro-style breakfast in the Caribbean.
Meats, cheeses, fruits, breads, juice, and coffee. All of this for only two of us. We won’t go away hungry.
Yes, the service is excellent.
We take a panoramic photograph of the hotel’s outdoor dining area so you can see that, indeed, we do have the place to ourselves.
We should all live like this.
In fact, we get used to the smell of sulphur in a short time, and decide to take our breakfast nearer to the sea. Beautiful, isn’t it?
The hotel’s lobby is decorated with an assortment of unusual furniture. Although some of the pieces may look somewhat unpleasant, they are all quite comfortable. For example, the stools that appear to have corks as cushions have springs under the corks so they contour to your contours.
Let’s take another look at the swimming pool, shall we?
The view from our room in the evening.
Typically, we avoid rooms that overlook swimming pools, because swimming pools are typically filled with children, and children are LOUD. However, while we are in residence at The Résidence, we never see anyone in the pool except ourselves.
Here are a few more photographs of the pool, necessarily panoramic. Pretty sweet.
Cooling off in France.
The name of the hotel includes the word “spa”. We do not avail ourselves of these services, but we do notice an image advertising such benefits.
Something is not right here.
I know it’s just a symbol of flexibility, but it is still a bit odd, don’t you think?
The bathroom near the pool is worthy of a photograph.
This bathroom is nicely done, with the mirror giving the illusion of an abundance of paper products, a skeletal creature’s image on the wall, and a sign encouraging caution that we’ve seen on other French-speaking islands. 😀
Okay, enough about the hotel. Let’s look at some dancing!
Dancing in Guadeloupe
On the first night in Guadeloupe (before the hotel ran out of water), we manage to have some nightlife at a local bar.
Pretty maids all in a row.
We are in a small club we pick at random to have a cocktail, and see that it has a stage. Soon, a one-man band begins to play calypso and a group of colorful dancers treats us to island dancing.
Nightlife in France in the Caribbean.
A couple of dancers dance as couples.
The show continues, and we sip our drinks. Yup, life is good.
Sunset Over France
We are on an island (you may recall) and have a beautiful view to the west.
The sun sets over France.
The evening is quiet save for the gentle waves against the shore. In the distance is Basse-Terre, the western side of Guadeloupe.
The colors of the world change.
We are reminded that our sun is very yellow and, if it weren’t for the effects of the scattering of light, our planet would be shaded amber rather than blue.
Another evening, another sunset.
Palm trees, sailboats, and sunsets make of the perfect end to a day.
Each day has its own adventures, and each evening has its own, unique sunset. We enjoy them all.
Life is good in Caribbean France.
And so, our adventures in Guadeloupe draw to a close. We hope you are inspired to travel to France, as we did, just a short trip from Florida’s coast. Au revoir!