Jolly Harbour in Antigua had been good for us. We had used the time to fix the boat properly and had a great sail down to Deshaies at the Northern end of Guadeloupe. All systems were working fine except for Pat’s knee which was painful and swollen.

We arrived in the dark and had to thread our way through several lobster pot markers before we could anchor. Thanks to Hawkeye Margery who stopped me getting tangled up in any of the annoying little things.

 Next day Pat and Paul hobbled round town while Barrie and Margery did some training for Margery’s next adventure (walking from Skipton to Penrith) by scrambling up a river. Now I think she deliberately organised that to avoid the return ocean crossing but she claims not. Just can’t get the crew these days!

Deshaies is a charming little town and obviously has a bit of French money backing it up. Everything seems organised and working efficiently unlike some of the non French Caribbean. There’s no jobs for job’s sake. To clear in through customs and immigration you go to an internet café – type in your boat and crew details – print the page – get it stamped and all while drinking a beer. If you leave on the day you said you would leave you don’t even have to clear out. Brilliant.

Compare that to Antigua – 3 offices - 8 people – all in uniforms – all hand written forms and you have to go back again to clear out. Vive la France !

But then of course that damn Montserrat had a laugh and we ran as fast as possible to the main marina in Pointe a Pitre – the Capital. Relentlessly hauling buckets of sea water is no substitute for mains water and a hose when it comes to cleaning up the aftermath of a volcano. Don’t argue – I’m now an expert in these matters.

After cleaning the boat for the third time it was Valentine’s day so I let the crew have some time off. We split up and each couple went there separate ways for romantic dinners. Barrie being a good guy captured the moment for posterity.

Paul’s not nearly as organised as Barrie and forgot his camera. Problem is without a camera you tend to forget the details. But I seem to remember this featuring in the evening.

Next day a quick hose of the boat and then it was off to catch a bus and explore the main town. Paul negotiated the bus fares in his best French and got away with 50 cents each – bargain! It cost over twice that much on the way back.

First thing we came across was this absolutely beautiful but disturbing mural. The people on the right were locals and on strike for higher wages. Now Guadeloupe was (and still is) a French department. Paris was not having any of this so sent in the troops with orders to shoot anybody who moved. Lots of innocents who had nothing to do with the strike were gunned down because they just happened to be walking by.

The date for all this – 1967 !  Vive la France !

After that we went to the Schoelcher museum. He was a more civilised Frenchman who was in charge of abolishing slavery throughout the French colonies. France stopped slavery long before we did. Vive la France!

We spent some time wandering the streets looking at buildings. Some had been beautifully decorated

Markets are always interesting and the spice market was a good one. We came across a new one -spice de chien – dog spice to you and me. I think/hope something got lost in the translation but you never know.

After a lazy Lebanese lunch we wandered a bit more and then came across this statue. Marcel Lollia known as Velo was a popular Gwo Ka drummer

Finally before we left town I came across this piece of art on a wall. I’m not usually one for graffiti but this seemed quite cute to me

Next stop the island of Marie Galante