Curaçao is unique among the former Dutch colonies in the Caribbean. It has a very European flavor compared to nearby islands such as Aruba and Bonaire. Even today, there are more European tourists on Curaçao and Dutch is more actively spoken than on the nearby islands. Willemstad is the base for travels in Curacao, and …
From the World Heritage inscription: This property is an eminent example of a type of structure illustrating the historical situation of Haiti at the dawn of its independence. These Haitian monuments date from the beginning of the 19th century, when Haiti proclaimed its independence. The Palace of Sans Souci, the buildings at Ramiers, and, in …
From the Historic Bridgetown World Heritage inscription: As one of the earliest established towns with a fortified port in the Caribbean network of military and maritime-mercantile outposts of the British Atlantic, Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison was the focus of trade-based English expansion in the Americas. By the 17th century, the fortified port town was …
From the Pitons Management Area World Heritage inscription: Dominating the mountainous landscape of St Lucia are the Pitons, two steep-sided volcanic spires rising side by side from the sea. Gros Piton (770 m) is 3 km in diameter at its base, and Petit Piton (743 m) is 1 km in diameter and linked to the …
From the World Heritage inscription: After the arrival of Christopher Columbus on the island of Hispaniola in 1492, Santo Domingo became the site of the first cathedral, hospital, customs house and university in the Americas. This colonial town was laid out on the grid pattern that became the model for almost all town planners in …
Hello from the island of St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands where I’m one week into my Caribbean island hopping adventure! I have been excited about this trip for quite some time. I’ve always had a fascination with small countries and islands. When I began my travels in 2007 I started in the Pacific …
This was written in The Bahamas at 24 35.9107′ N, 76 02.5875′ W The first day aboard my first cruise has come and gone. Somethings surprised me and some totally met my expectations. The moment people get on board the ship they enter into vacation mode. Just walking around after I put my bags away, …
Our cruise itinerary was changed because of a hurricane in the Caribbean. What was to be our last stop ended up becoming our first stop. It was the place I was looking forward to the least. In the previous post I mentioned that Princess owns a private island in the Bahamas. It turns out that …
Day three was much better than day two. There were two big highlights of the day. The first was the backstage tour of the boat we were given. What was original supposed to be a three hour tour of the ship ended up being a five and a half hour tour. We visited backstage of …