This is the most scenic place we’ve visited so far this winter. \u00a0The mountains rise all around us, and there is the pristine little village of Deshaies nestled against the protective shore in this northwest corner of Guadeloupe. \u00a0The pretty church tower rises above all the other buildings in the village, and the whole vista seems like an illustration from a fairy tale. \u00a0I must not be the only one who thinks this, since this is the place where the popular crime series, “Death in Paradise,” is filmed. \u00a0I haven’t seen any of the episodes yet. \u00a0Isn’t it cruel\u00a0that I will have to wait until I get home to watch a tv show about the place I am currently visiting!<\/p>\n
Guadeloupe is two islands sitting very close together with a small opening between the two. \u00a0One island is very steep with volcanic mountains, and the other island is quite flat. \u00a0Seen from above the two island together look like a lopsided butterfly. Ironically the mountainous island is called Basse Terre, and the flat island is called Grande Terre.<\/p>\n
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Guadeloupe is one of several island called “the islands that brush the clouds,” along with Antigua and Dominica. \u00a0The clouds are full of moisture which contribute to\u00a0daily rain showers and lush greenery that includes rainforests. \u00a0There are some significant waterfalls on Guadeloupe.<\/p>\n
When we found out that there is a botanical garden in Deshaies, we were determined to visit. You can walk up the very steep road to the garden, or you can call them and they will send a van to pick you up. Since we do not speak French, we were lucky to have a shop owner call for us. \u00a0The van met us at the main crossroad that heads out of the village.<\/p>\n
It was quite an experience! \u00a0The gardens are well maintained and wonderfully designed. \u00a0There are tropical plants in abundance, and\u00a0also plants from other exotic places around the world.<\/p>\n We met some fellow cruisers, originally from Colorado, who live aboard their boat Hi Flite<\/em>. \u00a0It turns out we have many cruising friends in common, and have been hearing each other on various SSB networks–that is, before our SSB died. \u00a0It was nice to finally meet them, and they took this photo of Bob and me standing in front of a large specimen poinsettia!<\/p>\n The same was true of rex begonias and angel wing begonias–they grow as big as hedges in their natural habitat! \u00a0There were all kinds of large specimen growth plants that I’ve only ever known as potted plants…. deiffenbachia, schlefferia, phalaenopsis and paphiopedilum orchids, bromeliads–well, if I named them all I’d never stop typing. \u00a0The plant\u00a0that impressed me most is a vine from some region of Africa that I see every time I visit the New York Botanical Gardens (the one in the Bronx, not Brooklyn). \u00a0It is a lush vine that has long drooping flowers in a truly nasty, unnatural shade of aqua. \u00a0But, of course it is perfectly natural. \u00a0Whenever I visit the gardens in New York someone always has to have their photo taken in the midst of these strangely colored flowers.<\/p>\n There were some beautifully designed landscapes.<\/p>\n some with secluded places to sit to admire the views.<\/p>\n The water features were run by electric pumps, but the water came from a natural spring and was wonderfully icy cold in this tropical climate!<\/p>\n We made plans to meet\u00a0our new acquaintances\u00a0from Hi Flite\u00a0<\/em>for lunch at the restaurant at the top of this waterfall and spent some time getting to know each other and finding all the connections we had in common.<\/p>\n The coi match the plants at the edge of the pond–a familiar potted plant in northern nurseries. \u00a0At the moment I can’t remember the name, but you will know it.<\/p>\n All through the gardens there were stands of this bromeliad that is well known for it’s colorful flower stalks. \u00a0The flowers were all spent but the plant is better known for the stalk than the flowers anyway.<\/p>\n Here is a banana in flower and starting to make fruit.<\/p>\n There were several stands of these large plants, and you could walk into them, like walking into a grove a bamboo. \u00a0But these were not anything like bamboo. \u00a0They were starting to flower with large pink flowers on tall stalks–chest high. \u00a0I wanted to make a point of remembering the name of this impressive plant, but now that name is long gone! It’s a ‘rosa something.’ The flower is larger than a baseball….maybe larger than a grapefruit. \u00a0Stunning.<\/p>\n Here is Bob standing in the midst of a kapok tree. \u00a0Remember kapok?<\/p>\n There was an entire arbor of red passion flowers, just coming into bloom.<\/p>\n And there were so many phalaenopses and bromeliads growing on trees. \u00a0Some of the phalaenopses were clearly meri-clones of new hybrids that have become so popular–with strange color breaks that have never occurred in nature. \u00a0It did not seem natural to see them in a garden setting, but then neither did that strange aqua flowered vine that does occur in nature.<\/p>\n This is the healthiest staghorn fern I have ever seen. \u00a0I wanted to take a piece…actually, I was terribly tempted to take many things. \u00a0I don’t have any\u00a0plants onboard this year and I am sorely missing a little greenery. \u00a0There was plenty to choose from here, but I could not do it! \u00a0I was holding out that there would be plants for sale in the gift shop.<\/p>\n And the birds! \u00a0What a feast of color! \u00a0There was a large aviary full of ‘parakeets’ like these. They were such a delight flying all over and around us. \u00a0They’d swoop down right next to anyone on the path–no fear at all. \u00a0They sang beautifully too. \u00a0Very mesmerizing.<\/p>\n Then there were very large parrots outside at another part of the garden. \u00a0What keeps them in the park? \u00a0Having their wings clipped? What amazing colors. \u00a0I thought of all the feather tapestries I saw at the pre-Columbian textile exhibit at Yale last summer. How many birds would it take to make one of those tapestries?<\/p>\n And there was a flock of not so colorful flamingoes. \u00a0Maybe there aren’t enough live shrimp for them on this island? Still, they are beautiful birds, whether deep coral or slightly off-pink.<\/p>\n![\"3-22-17a](\"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/3-22-17a-133.jpg\")
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