Who Could Ask For Anything More?

The only Caribbean place missing (I Think) in my postcard collection is the Dominica, and my friend did work on a cruiser which docked in Dominica on a few occassions, but sadly couldn't find any postcards to send...my 2nd wish was a view card from Curacao as I didn't have any by that point - isn't it inviting? Just as a Caribbean view should be I suppose lol, thanks Matt :)

Btw I wasn't aware but upon glancing at this sticker stamp that NAf (Netherlands Antillean Guilder) is still being used in parts of the Dutch Caribbean.

St Jean At St Barths

St Jean is one of the best known beaches on St Barths; Gustav III Airport is only about a mile away, so this sight is quite common for the locals. Its been 7 years since I posted about St Barths here for the first and only time; back then I wished for a local cancellation instead of the general La-Poste one, and my wish came true - thank you Denise :)

2nd Caribbean Cruise Itinerary

Yep, we went to the Caribbean twice, yay. I know I never would have ventured to this part of the world if it wasn't for the cruise ship job, for that I am grateful. Plus, because I was working as a photographer, I had (for some time) a decent equipment at my disposal. This voyage was shorter than the last one, encompassing two Azores ports and five Caribbean ports. In short ( I mean as short as it gets with me heh):

22nd March Praia da Vitoria once more; though this time with a tour, and no less than visiting a WHS site Angra do Heroísmo. 

28th after five (!) sea days we come to Bassetere in St Kitts and Nevis, the only place with postcards sent. Will have one more post about it :)

29th Philipsburg in Sint Maarten, with the famous Maho Beach known for planes flying very low over it. I was on a tour sailing on a tall ship Mercedes and could only see this from afar. 

30th St John's Antigua, and another WHS tour, to Nelson's Dockyard and some associated sites. The town centre is pretty much a huge shopping mall in the open.

31st Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique. Just hanging on a local beach with more iguanas around than people lol. Lots of peeps hired boats to nearby more popular beaches. Again I can't be bothered, when beaches are in question...

1st of April is just hanging around the port area in Barbados, it was a hot day for a longish walk into town that I've already been to. Shame really, I should have done more photos.

7th (and again after five looong sea days) a walk around Ponta Delgada in the Azores.

Hmm I think I have been fairly brief here after all! On to a few postcards that I've managed to send. I remember not having time in Sint Maarten, having low budget in Antigua, and not being properly in town in Martinique. 

The Soufrière Hills Volcano Eruption, Montserrat

After a long period of dormancy, the Soufrière Hills volcano became active in 1995, and has continued to erupt ever since. Its eruptions have rendered more than half of Montserrat uninhabitable, destroying the capital city, Plymouth, and causing widespread evacuations: about two thirds of the population have left the island.

This eruption looks fierce - and I fear that, much like this volcano, I will erupt soon lol. Alert!

La Galera, Venezuela

Starting off this week with this lovely view of the fishing village La Galera, part of the Juan Griego urban area situated on the north coast of the famous Isla de Margarita. Sent by dear postcrossing friend Luis Alberto, many thanks for this possibly last postcard from Venezuela I'll receive for a while...Things have been extremely rough for the people of Venezuela in the last years, and I can only hope this will resolve soon, with a positive outcome for this beautiful country.

The Magnificent Frigatebird, Barbuda

The magnificent frigatebird is a large, lightly built seabird with brownish-black plumage, long narrow wings and a deeply forked tail. The male has a striking red gular sac which it inflates to attract a mate. The female is slightly larger than the male and has a white breast and belly. Frigatebirds feed on fish taken in flight from the ocean's surface (often flying fish), and sometimes indulge in kleptoparasitism, harassing other birds to force them to regurgitate their food.

The magnificent frigatebird is widespread in the tropical Atlantic, breeding colonially in trees in Florida, the Caribbean and also along the Pacific coast of the Americas from Mexico to Ecuador, including the Galápagos Islands. It has occurred as a vagrant as far from its normal range as the Isle of Man, Denmark, Spain, England, and British Columbia.

Saint Kitts And Nevis

This is one place where I made special effort, as it was the only country the ship went to that I still haven't had a postcard from...and am posting it despite the sub-quality of my photo...a new country after, wait for it...2 years and 7 months, at least! Wow I didn't even realise until this moment in time that it has been that long...

In any case, it was a very pleasant experience visiting St Kitts and Nevis (we were berthing in the capital Basseterre), as I didn't have gangway in the morning, and thankfully no crew drills, AND I got the shore excursion that I applied for, yay! After the excursion I even had a little free time to go to town and look for a post office. As I recall it was more of a challenge to find an operable atm...Two ladies at the post office were really friendly, and even though there wasn't an impressive display of postcards or stamps on offer I still managed to come out of there happy and with a distinct sense of accomplishment :) 

In the end, what more can I say but...this photo feels very apt for my current situation. Where do we go from here?

Montserrat, Leeward Islands, The Caribbean

Montserrat is a Caribbean island—specifically in the Leeward Islands, which is part of the chain known as the Lesser Antilles, in the British West Indies. It is a British Overseas Territory,  measuring ca 16 km in length and 11 km in width, with approximately 40 km of coastline. Montserrat is nicknamed The Emerald Isle of the Caribbean both for its resemblance to coastal Ireland and for the Irish ancestry of many of its inhabitants.

Oh my...a year has passed without me posting the Montserrat cards...what is happening? Heh. A short fuse someplace, somehow. Many thanks to my friend who made a great effort!

Map Of Antigua

The 2nd time my friend visited Antigua he sent me this wonderful map card :))

The tree on the stamp is mesquite - is one of the most expensive types of lumber in the U.S. A mature tree can be milled and sold for thousands of dollars. It was a very popular type of wood used by early Spaniards to build ships; but is now used most commonly for high end rustic furniture and cabinets.

Wild Donkeys Of The Turks And Caicos Islands

Wild donkeys, remnants of the salt industry on Grand Turk, Salt Cay and South Caicos, still roam around the islands looking inquisitively at passing visitors

The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago, north of the larger Antilles island grouping. The resident population is about 31,500 on  a total land area of 430 square kilometres.

What a great surprise to receive this card from Denise, a new country, and donkeys nonetheless! The gorgeous flower stamp shows Oncidium auriferum, a species of orchid. So very happy, thanks sooo much Denise :))

Martello Tower, Barbuda

Martello towers are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. They stand up to 12m high (with two floors) and typically had a garrison of one officer and 15–25 men. Their round structure and thick walls of solid masonry made them resistant to cannon fire, while their height made them an ideal platform for a single heavy artillery piece, mounted on the flat roof and able to traverse, and hence fire over, a complete 360° circle.

My friend was in Antigua a number of times but it is only last year that he managed to also visit Barbuda - which is situated north of Antigua and has a population of about 1638. He managed to find one single view card - literally! how lucky for me :)) 

Goat Alive In Anguilla

The word 'alive' is not there by accident - apparently a goat stew is a popular dish in Anguilla. I like goats. I like colourful houses. And I love receiving such a great piece of mail (first ever from Anguilla) thank you Pat!

Market in Guadeloupe

I am loving the market scenes more and more...and this one may very well be my favourite :) Many thanks to Olga for this swap :) I find the stamp farthest on the right curious - with the expression Être serrés comme des sardines which means 'being packed together like sardines' i.e. in a very small space, and the appropriate illustration...I just wonder what is the inspiration to put this on a stamp..:)

Saint Thomas, USVI

 

 

Crystal clear waters and amazing thunder view of Saint Thomas, an island in the Caribbean Sea, part of the United States Virgin Islands. These were sent later than the first batch, but also have San Juan PR cancellation so am still wondering..!

Views Of Martinique

Martinique is an island in the Lesser Antilles in the eastern Caribbean Sea, an overseas region of France consisting of a single overseas department. It is directly north of St. Lucia and south of Dominica. As part of France, Martinique is part of the European Union, and its currency is the Euro. Its official language is French, although many of its inhabitants also speak Antillean Creole (Créole Martiniquais).

Le Morne-Rouge is one of its communes and a town overseen by an active volcano Mount Pelée.

A wonderful set of postcards showing many faces of Martinique, thanks to aAsh :)) He used the full set of stamps gfrom 2012 dedicated to Cubism.

Saint Vincent And The Grenadines

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an island country in the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. Its territory consists of the main island of Saint Vincent and the northern two-thirds of the Grenadines, which are a chain of smaller islands stretching south from Saint Vincent Island to Grenada.

How much bluer can the sea be?!  So happy to receive my first postcards from this country :))

UNESCO - Pitons Management Area, Saint Lucia

This is one of those utter surprises that land in my mailbox,  increasing my Caribbean collection! Thank you again my friend :)) I was over the moon - a new country, an Unesco site, and sooo green :)) The volcanic spire rising dramatically from the sea here is the 770-m-high Gros Piton - the Petit Piton is not that much smaller but still manages to 'hide' behind it.

This volcanic complex includes a geothermal field with sulphurous fumeroles and hot springs, and  coral reefs covering almost 60% of the site’s marine area. At least 148 plant species have been recorded on Gros Piton, 97 on Petit Piton and the intervening ridge, among them eight rare tree species; they are also home to some 27 bird species - five of them endemic. Sounds like paradise eh?

Isle Of Spice - Grenada

And Ashley strikes again, lucky me! I'd have such huge 'holes' in Africa and Caribbean departments if it wasn't for him...I have swapped for Grenadian postcard some years ago but never received anything...and now these riches, maps and views, and great stamps!!
Grenada is an island country consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea. It is also known as the "Island of Spice" because of the production of nutmeg and mace crops of which Grenada is one of the world's largest exporters.