Arrival in Paradise

It's a curious thing to travel 50 degrees of temperature in the same day. It's even more curious to go from downright frigid, snot-freezing -25 degrees, to a steaming, sweltering and humid +29 degrees. We essential jumped from January to July, and only in 5 hours. How wonderful. Upon arrival, I immediately removed my extra layers and donned my sandals, because what else would you do upon reaching paradise?

We picked up our rental car, because how else are you supposed to get around paradise, and began the twisty, turny, winding drive along the coast of Basse-Terre towards Trois Rivieres. We passed names like Saint-Sauveur and the likes, which make us think that we are really not that far away from home, though the weather tells a different story. Up and down the coastline of the volcanic side of the island, sometimes even more than the engine of our little Fiat Picante can take, when we finally come upon the exit for Trois Rivieres. We descend into the town on narrow roads where we are surprised to see oncoming traffic can even pass by our tiny car. Following vague directions, we pass the church, then the grocery store, and 30 metres ahead, we find the green wall outside the garden where our quaint litle wooden bungalow sits.

Marie-Odile and her son, Antoine, welcome us through the gate and inside where we discover not only the charm of the cute little 2-storey, but also a rather large spider, which Marie-Odile smacks with her sandal. Needless to say, I spent the rest of the evening watching every corner of the house for more of the same...After they depart, we settled in for the night, enjoying a cozy pasta dinner and an evening with the Golden Globes. Tomorrow, it will again be 29 degrees, and sunny, and adventure awaits.Read more