It was a joy to have our friends, Paul and Suzanne, onboard Hope for a week. It had been quite some time since we had guests, so this was a welcomed treat.
Paul has had a lot of sailing experience and wanted to give Suzanne the opportunity to see what life is truly like living on a boat, from cooking and cleaning, navigation and operations, to boat projects and daily excursions. They are considering buying a catamaran of their own, so we made their stay as close to normal life as possible on a boat. Although, life on a boat is never quite “normal”.
During Paul and Suzanne’s visit, we also had an opportunity to explore the island. We saw beaches and banana plantations, the volcanic hillside of Mount Pelee, and small towns with churches, boullangerie’s (bakeries), boutiques, chandleries, eateries, and fishing villages.
We explored two of Martinique’s great shopping malls with our friends, La Galleria and Genipá. It was close to Thanksgiving (although they don’t celebrate that in Martinique), and the stores were all decorated for Christmas already. It was fun to have Suzanne as my shopping buddy while the guys found comfortable chairs to “talk shop”.
During Paul and Suzanne’s week-long stay, we also had an opportunity to enjoy some wonderful meals out together. We walked the little towns of Saint Anne and Le Marin several morning to grab some fresh croissants, baguettes, and cappuccinos. We also enjoyed scrumptious French cuisine at a fancy hotel restaurant and chicken gyros from Elite Kabob on Thanksgiving. We certainly weren’t lacking in the food department!
and sautéed crunchy vegetables
We had a delightful time with our friends and look forward to their next visit, probably somewhere up the Caribbean island change. We’re grateful for the memories!