Indian River And Fourth Of July

HERE IS A QUICK VIDEO OF THE INDIAN RIVER. I HAVE A QUICK 360 OF MY HAMMOCK SPOT AT THE END.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1VL27OQ2aI&feature=youtube_gdata

This 4th of July weekend proved to be a very fun holiday here in Dominica. To celebrate the 4th, our plan was to go up to the north side of the island and stay with our fellow Daytonians in Woodford Hill. However, in order to caprpe the diem of Friday morning, we scheduled a boat tour of the Indian River. We rendezvoused with our friends in Portsmouth, a coastal town where the Indian River meets the Caribbean Sea, and stocked up on small snacks and provisions for our boat journey. After we were stocked up, we walked the length of the town to the river mouth, and talked to some locals who sent word to Fire (our tour guide) that we had arrived. Fire arrived 10 minutes later, and chatted with us momentarily on the beach before he escorted us to his brightly colored boat. He explained to us that the Indian River was the site of the eerie river in Pirates of the Caribbean where Calypso lived. Once we climbed aboard, he used the boats motor to pull out of the small marina, but then switched off the engine and proceeded to use the two large technicolor oars to row us for the remainder of the voyage. Our adventure started us at Ocean, and took us up stream with a beautiful view of the mountains in the beginning of the trip.

To The Mountains

Oh Captain My Captain

However, the mountains soon disappeared and were replaced by a shroud of jungle canopy that enveloped the river around every bend. Once in the rain forest, our boat slowly glided up the river to a small, run down shack. This shack, Fire explained was a replica of Calypso's house in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Apparently, after filming, the crew had dismantled Calypso's hut and returned it to Hollywood to work on other movie magic. But recently a Russian Millionaire had come to Dominica to shoot his own Pirates movie staring his grand kids, and re built the hut to be part of his film.

Docking At The Witch's Hut

On Dock By Calypso's

Inside Calypso's House

A Scene From The Actual Movie

We continued up stream, and Fire identified many flora and fauna that we had never seen on the island before. Ancient trees with root networks that climbed feet and spanned meters crept along the riverbanks as blue crabs snapped their claws and stared at as menacing from the shoreline. We passed the ruins of Dominica's only railroad, which lasted from 1903 to 1906 as a means to transport plantation goods across the island.

Cruising Down The River

Leftover Props From Russian Movie Reminding Us Dead Men Tell No Tales

The Mysterious Indian River

 As he rowed, he told us stories of how he shuttled the actors and film crews from the Pirates of the Caribbean movie on his boat, and even helped film part of the movie. He explained how he would row the camera crews while they were filming river scenes, and at one point he had to row so hard due to the extra weight that he fell out of his boat! As we went he continually pointed out the spots where filming took place, as well as places he used to play and work when he was a kid. He took us as far up the river as was physically possible, where the water swallowed up to only a few inches deep. Here, however, was a very interesting bar dubbed "The Ticking Croc Tavern" a name that lay homage to the famous Lost Boy's Leader, Peter Pan.

The Ticking Croc Tavern (Drink Up Me Hearties Yo Ho)

A Bad Picture Of The Ticking Croc

 We disembarked our vessel and relaxed at the bar, observing the lovely gardens and interesting natural wood decor. After we had enjoyed the environment long enough, we re boarded Fire's vessel, and he began to row us back down the river. The water was clear and clean, and many fish could be seen swimming along with our boat. However, there was certainly a whitish glow to the water whenever the sun's rays were able to pierce through the canopy overhead, which may be attributed to the sulfur or algae that lines the river.  Regardless, the river certainly had a very mysterious ora, and I would not want to be anywhere near it when the sun went down.

The Roots of 400 Year Old Trees

The Milky Misty Water When The Sun Hits

Boat View From Ticking Croc

 As we continued our boat ride, we laughed and swapped stories as we rounded bend after bend in our little boat. When we finally returned to shore, Fire offered to motor us to the bus station, We turned him down, as we were looking forward to the hike across town, as the mountain's look incredible along Portsmouth's nice roads. We walked a mile or two to a little restaurant and ate a nice lunch, and then proceeded to catch a ride back to Woodford Hill.

A Walking We Will Go

On The Road Again

 Once in Woodford Hill, we put on our swimsuits and walked to the beach. The waves were exceptionally large today, and we body surfed among the waves until our trunks were weighed down with sand and we couldn't smile anymore. As we floated at the point before the waves break, I felt like a surfer floating on his board, waiting for the perfect curl to come my way. I was amazed that every time I caught a good wave, I was unable to wipe the smile from my face until a minute or so after I was finished riding. Who knew surfing could be so addicting?

After we finished our time at the beach, we returned home and showered, and convinced our local friend Bert to drive us to a restaurant for dinner. I ate a delicious meal of Goat Curry, and we all had a wonderful time relaxing at the outdoor restaurant. We relaxed there until the restaurant was about to close, and with no sign of Bert, we decided to begin our walk home.

The Resteraunt

Puss and Boots Wanted Some of My Curry

As we walked, we explored the local area, exploring a large circus esque tent and several other locations along the road. We kept our phone lights on for visibility, and would clear off the road whenever a lone car would come down our road. The walk prooved to be one of the highlights of the night, as it was an enjoyable night hike with a semi spooky atmosphere. A possum scared us all to death, and at several points along the way the roadside bushes would rustle as an unknown creature ran away from our presence. We ended up walking about 4 miles, before Bert picked us up and drove us the remaining half mile home. We were tired when we returned, but played an all american game in our apartment, and then proceeded to go to bed.

We awoke in the morning to a 4th of July playlist and to the smell of Catherine cooking corn and green beans for our beach side picnic today. We were meeting up with all the peace core volunteers today at a nearby beach for a picnic to celebrate Independence Day. When we arrived, we were shocked at the age difference of the peace core workers. Some kids were roughly our age, while one or two seemed old enough to be my grandparents. We had only 1 experience with a retiring peace core worker who lived in our village for roughly a week before she finished her tenure and returned home to the US. Regardless, we had fun swimming and relaxing on the beach with some fellow Americans, and then wished them adieu, as we hiked back towards Portsmouth where we were going to be spending the night. Because it is the off season for tourists, it was not difficult to find an incredibly cheap apartment that agreed to house us for one night. We were unable to get the power on for much of the night, so our time spent in the apartment was by flashlight, which proved to be a very fun atmosphere. Apparently, you pay in advance for electricity in Dominica, so if you forget to order more, they simply shut you off. So we set up shop in our apartment, showered, and savored an american treat I have been saving all trip for the 4th, a tube of Astronaut Ice Cream (probably the most american food on the planet),

Chilling In The Dark

 We then proceeded to go out to dinner at a local restaurant. Portsmouth is a probably the most interesting town on the island. It is separated into two sections roughly a mile apart, one section is a large Dominican town, the other is a mini college town surrounding the Ross University, the Island's Medical School. We had planned to stay on the Ross side, as the school is comprised of mostly Americans, who we were sure would be excited to spend the 4th of July with us. After we ate, we went to a 4th of July party at a local restaurant, which was packed with Americans and had a DJ specifically for the night. It was very strange seeing so many Americans and hearing american music pouring out of the speakers, as we typically do not see many Caucasians in a day, let alone a whole party full. After the party was winding down, we hopped in the "shuttle" (a pick up truck that is payed to usher kids to and from the party) which took us back into town. We socialized with our fellow patriots until the wee hours of the night, having a wonderful time digging the local scene. After we were plum tuckered out, we returned to our apartment, and slept a wonderful sleep until we had to take a bus back to Eggleston the next morning.

On Monday I returned to my favorite hammock spot on the island and relaxed and read amongst the jungle sounds. My spot is roughly a mile walk along the road to the retreat center, and is a spot I walk to almost daily on the island. I am currently reading Angels and Demons, the prequel to the DaVinchi Code. I plan to return to that spot with my hammock once I finish this blog post. Overall I am loving my time here in Dominica, and am making the most out of exploring the land and seeing all there is to see.

 My Peaceful Hammock Spot

 Hammock Selfie

We were on the News again this week, this time on the government station discussing our involvement with the DMA. We had a 15 minute long segment this time, which was just enough time for us to enjoy our time in the air conditioning. We are scheduled for an hour and a half long radio broadcast later this week, and I will keep you posted how that goes! Once again, thank you for following my blog, and I will keep you updated on my Adventures in Dominica!

News Room Michael

A picture from the 10 Year Olds Birthday A Few Weeks Ago

Another Picture From The Birthday

Adventure is out there!

Michael