Sarah makes another friend on Dominica!
Stream
Darrell Jackson and Sarah Barnes
Wed 23 Apr 2014 13:59
The bus was almost full so it was amusing when it stopped to pick up two more passengers, who turned out to be workers testing and digging holes for wooden telegraph poles on the mountainside. They had no official transport and were carrying the tools of their trade with them. These were composed of a triangular shaped shovel, a 2.4 metre by 5cm iron pole with a chisel shaped end and a 60cm long machete! Tools safely stowed beneath the seats our journey continued, interrupted every now and then by the public spirited driver stopping to remove boulders off the road that had been brought down by the overnight rains. After a brief detour around the backstreets of Soufriere to drop off the workers at the start of the mountain trail, an elderly lady passenger and deliver some building materials (including long plastic pipes stowed beneath the seats with the machete and long pole) we soon arrived in the fishing village Scott's Head, the most southerly point of Dominica.
A brief walk up the track onto Scott's Head gave us good views over the village and across to Martinique, as well as down onto the coast where we were going snorkelling. From the summit you could clearly see the reefs around the point. Of course before we got back down to village the heavens opened again. Darrell stripped off to his trunks, Adam got out his umbrella and Sarah got very wet. A small bar provided shelter and a local grapefruit juice for Sarah and instant coffee with condensed milk for Adam and Darrell, lovely! Plus the entertainment of a six year old and her stickers. Once the rains had stopped, we had a walk around the village before the sun came out making snorkelling the best option. So we wandered back along the beach to find a space, not under the poisonous Manchineel trees that were scattered about, to change. This was especially important in regard to the fact that it was raining, which could wash the sap down onto us. The sap burns the skin and causes blisters. Whereas the apples if eaten will causes blisters all the way through your innards! So best avoided, but they are common on Caribbean beaches.
What a treat! It's not fair to say this was the best snorkelling we've had as everywhere has had its individual merits, but this was very different. We swam from a black sandy volcanic beach over patches of coral covered rocks to a drop off with cliffs going vertically down 100 feet providing a very different experience for us. The water welling up from several hundred metres only a short distance away provided a nutrient rich environment in which many different species of fish and corals thrived. It was not only the variety of fish that impressed us but the variety of sizes. There were many young fish from those only a few mm long to those that were mini versions of their parents. There were massive corals in the shape of urns in bright colours including a luminous blue and purple. There were flat corals, many that were new to us, that went a long way down the side of the bank disappearing in the depths. All this to ourselves which was special.
We then wandered into the village for lunch. The boys had the catch of the day, while Sarah tried Accra, a local dish, which is similar to pakoras but less spicy. We then walked along the Chinese highway to Soufriere, another fishing village about a mile back along the coast. Here we bathed at bubble beach; a charmingly rustic venture where they had made pools to mark the hot spring water and gas bubbles that come up through the sand. They provide a shelter to change, some chairs and benches, and a man who ensures that the water is free of leaves and debris. We spent a pleasant hour floating in the pools and being questions from the local girls enjoying the pools. 'Why do white people have pointed noses?' 'Why is Darrell hairy?' Which led to a discussion on genetics and evolution and where Darrell fits in to all this.
On the way up to the bus stop, Sarah was approached by a man who was certain he knew her. It was a totally new chat up line on all of us. He was adamant that he had met her in Brazil, where as she is just as sure she had never seen him in her life, which she would have remembered due to his dentition involving his one wonky tooth! Nor has she ever been to Brazil or South America even! She does attract a strange type of person! He then stated that he had been appointed by the Messiah to show the world the error of their ways and that he would pray for Sarah and her companions to help them find the light. He then fell on the floor and started to speak in tongues. (All this to the bemusement of Sarah.) As he recovered from this interlude he stood up and hugged Sarah, luckily at this point the bus came and the driver leapt out and quickly ushered us into the bus. We're not sure if this was a common rescue exercise for the driver, but never the less it was a timely get out for us.