Magnifique Martinique

Brrr!   The 2013-14 winter months are long and we are experiencing unusually bitter cold temperatures.  We need a break from winter.  So, we book ourselves on an 11-day Southern Caribbean Cruise. 

Day 8:  At 8:00 a.m., the ship arrives at Fort-De-France, Martinique.  This is our first time visiting this island and I am really looking forward to seeing it. 

One of the first things we see in Fort-de-France is the St. Louis Cathedral (steeple is seen from our ship).  While Martinique has a variety of religions, the Catholic faith is the most prominent

  

St. Louis Cathedral, Fort-de-France

Our bus tour takes us through some small towns but the most interesting is Sainte Pierre.  In 1902, Mount Pele erupted twice destroying the town and killing over 30,000 people.  Before the volcanic eruption, Sainte Pierre was known as “The Paris of the Caribbean”.  It has never recovered from the devastation.   We drive through Sainte Pierre making a 10 minute stop to photograph the view and some of the ruins. 

              

St Pierre Church                      St. Pierre

Our scenic drive continues toward the interior of the island through the rain forest where we encounter a rain shower and the outside temperature drops from 80F to 70F.  The bus windows are streaked with raindrops temporarily halting my photographic opportunities.  The roads are winding and narrow. At times, I cringe when I look down from my window view and see how close we are to the edge of a ditch or to another car. 

We arrive at the Balata Church for a 10 minute photo stop and view of Fort-de-France and the Noordam in the distance.  The Balata Church (built in 1926) is a miniature version of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Paris (Sacré-Cœur de la Balata Church.

    

Balata Church

The sun is setting and a crescent moon is riding high in the early evening sky as we sail away from Martinique.  I would like more time to explore the streets and towns of this island.  I guess a return visit is in order.  In the meantime, we sail onto our next port – St. Maarten.