Early morning I was awaken by the noises of the ship and the people and crew getting the ship ready for the day. As is my habit, when roused by anything other than my own intent, I am aggravated and annoyed in addition to being tired. I changed into swim gear and a cover up and headed upstairs with a tea bag and my journal. Some swam, others simply watched and drank coffee and waited for breakfast, which, as promised, was continental. And good.
The plan for the day was for the passengers to mostly leave the ship and explore Martinique. There is no lunch or dinner on board today, so it did stress me out a little. Wasn’t sure how/what etc for for the day today. Elke, Bill, Bernd and I had planned on spending the day on the beach, and the map showed that it was easily reached by foot from the marina. So we headed out on the dinghy at 9:30AM, and walked to the beach, and were very disappointed. Part of the issue is that while I wanted some sun and to swim, my friends were in search of shade. And the beach was crowded and the tide was high on the sand, and there weren’t many trees.
Understanding that Elke was sorta in the middle — her partner, her brother and her friend, and how that can be stressful and challenging— I made it clear that I was going to find my bit of beach and sun and not to worry about me. I had hoped to meet up with them at lunch, as we had all agreed that the 2PM return skiff was of interest. With the beach of no appeal, we felt that we could better enjoy swimming from the boat. So I found my sun, and a spot in the water with LOTS of sea glass, and around 12:30 texted Elke and walked back to town, hoping to run into them for a meal. That didn’t happen, and instead I found myself doing the thing I dislike most; walking around looking at restaurants and menus and trying to figure out where to eat. Finally settled on a little cafe, had a lovely salad, picked up a baguette and walked to the dock. Where I found my friends as well as several others from the ship.
Once we got back we did jump in the water and had a lovely short swim. Lots of little tiny schools of fishes, which must’ve been the ones that I saw last night nibbling at the surface and churning up the water. After the swim, tried to find some sun on board, but this really isn’t a ship for sunning, at least with the sails down and the shade covers over the full length of the ship. So it will be interesting how it goes when we are underway.
Which is the plan for tomorrow — sailing north to Dominica which we understand to be quieter and beautiful and hopefully with some good snorkeling and nice beaches. For the rest of this afternoon I will get my book and read; no dinner tonight (baguette and sausage sticks will be it for me), and with any luck an early and quiet night.
