Bank Holiday Thursday

Last Thursday it was a public holiday for France, Fête de la Victoire (Victory in Europe Day) which celebrates the end of hostilities in Europe at the end of the Second World War.

We decided to spend the day at the beach in Port-Louis, but stopped off at Anse de la Pointe Nord, the most northern point of Guadeloupe.

This point is known to locals as Turtle Cliff and while we were admiring it we witnessed the most incredible sight. A mummy whale with her calf just swimming along. They were so close and it was magical to see them completely free! I was so amazed I didn't even take photos!

England is straight behind us.. just about 4,000 miles away...

We stopped off again to discover a little hidden beach.

And then a baby was buried in the sand.

Which turned him a little bit silly.

 There is an amazing ice cream parlour in the city centre in Pointe-à-Pitre where they make all of the ice cream by hand using local flavours and produce. Unfortunately it is a bit of a dodgy neighbourhood so you get in and out as quickly as possible. I had Coco (coconut) and Quatre Épices (Four Spices- Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg and cloves). As I still can't understand quite a lot of things, I love saying to my host parents to decide for me. It means I try a lot of flavours/foods that I normally wouldn't be brave enough to!

When we got home my host dad chopped down a bunch of coconuts from the garden. They know how much I have fallen in love with coconut water here and he wanted to prove that our coconuts taste much better. I must admit, it was a better taste, not too coco-nutty or sweet but just perfect!

I refused to let them throw away the cream inside all of the coconuts so spent my bank holiday evening carving out the cream to attempt making coconut jam...

Me Time

I love Wednesday afternoon's here. For most places it is a half day, which means I am free from 2pm and don't have to pick the boys up from school or sort their dinner. 

I am getting braver and starting to discover new places without worrying so much about how I will find the way home again afterwards! 

 This is a little cove near Gosier that was so beautiful and empty! You need beach shoes to be able to swim there though!

 Swimmng is much better at Gosier, and I really love that you can see Îlet du Gosier, even if the beach is a bit busy and the blonde hair and blue eyes are quite an exciting site to some men, who don't get the message, even when you very clearly speak back in English to get rid of them!

Îlet Du Gosier

 Last weekend we went to Îlet Du Gosier, a tiny island less than a kilometre wide. It is only about 200 metres off from Gosier beach, but you can only get there by swimming or going on a little boat ride.

People seemed to gather over one side of the island, this side was completely deserted.. apart from the boat.

The island is uninhabited but there are several abandoned buildings that have been half constructed and are now covered in graffiti.

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/12252457/?claim=feeaecqkhx6">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Coconut Water

At home I have only tried Coconut Water twice. Both times it has been horrendous. It is common knowledge it is good for you, but I just couldn't stand the taste of it.

I wanted to try real, fresh coconut water to see if it tastes the same.

Green coconut's are used, before they get to the hairy brown stage. The top of the coconut is sliced off with a Machete, the rest of the coconut then splits. 

The Coconut Water inside is then poured into a bottle through a funnel.

The Machete is then used to create a natural spoon, from the other end of the coconut, so scoop out the coconut cream.

It is much more like a jelly than a cream, but is absolutely lovely!!

The coconut water is so kept cool inside the shell and is absolutely lovely!!! I think it is my favourite thing I have had so far in Guadeloupe. It is really refreshing with a bit of a nutty taste. It is nothing like the Vita Coco that we back in the UK that has been heated and processed to make it last!

I think it is like milk, here you can only buy U.H.T milk, which smells like evaporated milk and is generally pretty nasty. Nothing is quite the same as when it is fresh!