Dominica

A view from the ship.

Monday we arrived to our first port! I had a trip planned for both days. On Monday, I went on the Trafalgar falls and cultural performance tour. We went to the Twin Trafalgar Waterfalls where the two falls are named father and mother. The father is taller but the mother flows stronger. (Our tour guide made a joke about this!) We stopped at Sulphur Springs of Wotton Wavon. Also stopped at Botanical Gardens and there were many tropical plants in abundance. I was amazed at all of the neat trees, there were so many and were all so diverse. We continued to Morne Bruce View Point where we enjoyed an aerial view of Roseau and the MV Explorer. Our final stop was at the Papilotte Wilderness Eco-Resort where will were entertained by one of the Islands' folkloric groups. That night we all went out to Crazy Coconut, a local bar. So many Semester at Sea students were there. I was nervous on our cab ride though, because of the rules with alcohol in Dominica. There are basically no rules against alcohol. The cab drivers can drive drunk, anyone can have open containers on the street, and there is not age limit to drink. 

Tuesday I went on a trip to the residential cultural Carib Indian Community, called Touna Aute, which is situated in the northeast of Dominica. It was a two hour drive to this place and the drive reminded me of the Road to Hana. The roads had so many pot holes and all of the roads are winding and weave through the mountains of rainforest. We stopped to visit the Emerald Pool, a 50-foot cascading waterfall and impressive view. At the Carib Community, I was able to squeeze sugar cane juice using traditional techniques. I was also able to witness and learn the making of cassava bread, a centuries-old staple of the Carib diet. Natural medicine is still practiced here, and locals shared secrets of herbs used for healing. 

Morne Bruce View Point

Twin Trafalgar Waterfalls