Do-me-knee-ca

Dominica is an amazing island. We found out early on that it is not
pronounced like Dominica as in the Dominican Republic but like
Do-me-knee-ca. The locals are very strict about this. When we first
arrived at port we went out on deck to eat breakfast early so we could
get off and stop exploring. The view from the boat was beautiful,
Dominica looks like the island on Lost. There are tall mountains covered
in rain forest and winding roads everywhere with little houses built
into the hillsides. There are only black sand beaches because it is a
volcanic island which is one of the reasons they don't have much
tourism, tourists like to sit on pristine white beaches (say the
locals). On day one we went out to explore the 'city'. Roseau consisted
of small colorful shacks with narrow streets and no real pattern to the
placement of roads. It was pretty easy to get lost but really
interesting to walk around. Literally every local knew that Semester at
Sea was in town and so everyone was so friendly and telling us all the
hot spots we had to hit on the island. After exploring I went on a
kayaking trip with an organized SAS group, we went down the Layou River
which was so beautiful. Except toward the end they were clear cutting so
there were only like huge construction vehicles to look at. But then we
made it to the ocean and so many people were flipping over from the
waves. After kayaking we got to swim and then the locals served us fruit
and rum punch. They love rum in Dominica, they make their own brand
called Red Cap which is 250 proof and so disgusting. They also make
their own beer called Kubuli which is delicious. On Monday night we
went out to a local bar called JR's which was a great time.... there was
a huge dance floor but no roof so it was a really cool atmosphere.
I had to be up really early on Wednesday for another trip I had planned
with some friends, so we left early which was actually really lucky. Our
other friends left later and on the way back a girl had her bag stolen.
It was one of those over the chest bags and two guys sprinted up to her
even though she was with a group of people and took a knife and cut her
bag strap and ran away with it. She lost her camera and all her credit
cards. So scary. It was definitely an eye opener that we all need to be
so cautious.
On Tuesday we woke up early and took a taxi to this place called
Titu Gorge. The ride was probably half an hour long but the views were
so pretty so it didn't even feel long at all. our taxi driver, Lloyd,
was awesome and basically gave us an entire island tour the whole way.
They drive like maniacs there on narrow roads that have no guardrails
and like huge drops so it was pretty stressful but we survived. Anyway,
we got to the gorge and Lloyd walked us to where you can get in to
swim. Once we were in you could swim through all these caves and there
was rainforest all around, it was probably the coolest thing I have ever
done. Inside a ways there was a huge waterfall that you could jump off.
Then we had Lloyd drive us to the best restaurant on the island. He
brought us to this little like shack thing were they didn't even hand
out menus they just ask "chicken or fish". So I got the chicken and it
was pretty mysterious. They served it with these hard bananas and beans
and another thing I really couldn't identify. I wasn't a fan. In the
afternoon a group of us decided to go snorkeling at Champagne Reef which
was amazing! We saw a sea turtle, an octopus, and like a million fish.
I'm like obsessed with snorkeling now, I want to go in like every port.
To Dominica, tourism is everything. They have a lot of bananas but
locals were telling us that Chiquita Banana basically monopolizes that
industry. The island is super sustainable because they harness
hydroelectricity. Driving around the island is so funny because all the
taxi drivers have their vans personalized with their names and nicknames
on their windshields. Our favorites were Uncle Tito, Donkey, and Ninja
Man. They are also very family oriented and everyone on Dominica knows
each other. Honking the horn there doesn't mean anything angry or bad it
is just a hello. We asked Lloyd after he honked at like twelve people
and he told us he was just saying hi and that everyone is Dominica was a
good driver so they didn't need the horn for making people move or
anything.
I have already learned that taxi drivers are the cheapest tour
guides you can get. They know so much about the place and they are
usually really friendly. I also learned not to over plan each port
because the most spontaneous trips turn out to be the most fun. We are
off to Brazil now and should be in the Amazon River by Sunday.