Date: 21-03-07 Time: 22:00 UTC Position: 16:18.41N 061:47.81W Name: Deshaies, Guadeloupe
Med Rønnaug nesten tilbake i full form, fikk vi litt mer ut av dagen i dag
enn de siste dagene her i Deshaies. Guadeloupes fineste botaniske hage ligger
litt utenfor byen, på skiltet står det 1,5km så vi bestemte oss for å gå dit.
Det som ikke sto på skiltet var at det var 1,5km med bratt motbakke. I den varme
solsteiken ble det mange pauser under det som fantes av skygge før vi kom fram.
Nå rundt vårjevndøgnet står sola på 74 grader her ved 16 grader nord - det er
ganske så høyt, og høyere blir det nå utover våren. Hagen var meget velstelt med
alt mulig av frukttrær, blomster, palmer,orkideer osv. De hadde også
kjempegullfisker papegøyer av forskjellige størrelser - se dagens bilde. Vi
brukte et par timer til å gå rundt og fikk en fin opplevelse. Det var atskillig
lettere å gå tilbake til byen i nedoverbakke, og vi rakk fram til tollkontoret i
god tid - og de var åpne! Det var de samme enkle papirene som på Martinique og
mannen var lite interessert i saken og vil ikke engang se båtens
registreringsbevis eller våre utsjekkingspapirene fra Dominica.
Tilbake ombord ble det en avslappende ettermiddag i sola med en god lunsj
etterfulgt av en liten lur, så en svømmetur. Det er kommet litt flere båter i
dag - kanskje gårsdagens regnbyger gjorde at folk holdte seg i ro. Hele tre
svenske båter ligger her nå, og én dansk. Vi vil reise til Antigua i morgen hvis
ikke noe uforutsett dukker opp.
Disse tillitsfulle fugler nyter litt
juice.
These trusting birds enjoy a cup of fruit
juice.
English version
It is nice to have Rønnaug back in reasonable shape again and we have thus
actually got out a bit today. Deshaies has Guadeloupe's best botanical garden
which we decided to visit. According to the sign it is just 1.5 km out of town,
so we decided to walk. The distance was probably correct, but it was all up a
steep hill which was quite a struggle with Rønaug still not 100% and the heat of
the mid day sun. The sun stands now around the equinox at 74 degrees over
the horizon her at 16 degrees north - and it will get even higher before we
leave the Caribbean in early May. The gardens themselves were very well kept and
with a path leading through the entire place and all well labelled - though only
in French. We saw all sorts of fruit trees, palms, flowers, orchids etc,
together with parrots (see today's picture) and giant goldfish. We spent a
couple of hours admiring the place before walking down the hill back to town -
just at the right time for the customs office (which was actually open as it
said it would be) where we filled out the papers for entry and departure and got
them stamped by the completely uninterested customs officer who couldn't speak
English and didn't want to see the boat's papers or our exit papers from
Dominica.
Back on board for a late lunch we have just had a lazy afternoon with a
nice sleep, then a cooling swim and shower. There has been a lot of activity in
the bay with a few boats leaving and several arriving, including no fewer than
three Swedish boats. Perhaps the showery weather of yesterday put people off
moving and they have all come today instead. We sail to Antigua tomorrow
assuming nothing unexpected happens - like the wind not coming from the
east.
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