Boiling lake

Vittororio Walking down the trail

The last exploration in Dominica was a hike to the world’s largest boiling lake. The distance from Portsmouth to the lake is a couple hours by car and the hike itself takes a few hours each way. A group of five Earthlings from various nations decided to rent a car and drive to this site. Virginie from France, Vittorio from Italy, Syd from New Zealand, Nico is Lebanese/American, and I am Persian/Swedish with an American twist.
This adventure was a 12 hour trip back and forth in the spectacular nature of Dominica. Driving up and down the mountains, around sharp turns, on a narrow two way road made me desire a motorcycle ride.

We had to ask for driving directions along the way and it seemed that everyone had different understandings of how long it took to do this specific hike. Some told us it takes 5-6 hours each way and it was recommended to have a guide. The time a hike takes depends on your health condition and the terrain. I have friends in their 70’s that would be able to keep up and go on hikes for hours and others in their 20’s that would run out of breath within minutes. We already knew that Mike and Rebecca on “Zero to Cruising” did it in less than 3 hours, most likely it wouldn’t take us much longer. The trail is well laid out, steps are placed everywhere, and appears to have been around for a long time.  Whoever made it, must have put a lot of time  and labor into it. We certainly appreciated the work. The trail is medium to difficult and in rainy season, it would probably be muddy and challenging. I don’t think it’s necessarily to have a guide, however, as Dominica’s income relies on tourism, it would be kind to hire one when disposable income is available.

Vaporizing Steam

According to some sources, this lake is the last remaining in the world. The other one is in New Zealand and it’s drying out. It feels like some of the places we visit might disappear in our life time. I feel fortunate to see all these hidden places. This site is in the middle of a rain forest, you don’t see many fruit trees and it’s wet and mossy. There is green, black, grey, short, and long moss growing on trees, bushes, steps, and everywhere else. The symphony of twittering birds entertained us most of the way! The closer we got, the more we smelled the "rotten eggs", we joked, and blamed it on each other. The cause of this was from the sulfur mist, springs, and rivers. Sulfur is good for the skin and the opportunity to take a bath in the pool underneath a hot sulfur waterfall was taken advantage of by this group of Earthlings. In the main valley, steam is vaporizing out of the ground and the mustard yellow/red rocks look like they just came out of the oven. It is slightly frightening to walk between these objects and one concern is to not step into a boiling spring. It’s not impossible to get burn injuries!

Edge of the Wall

The view of the lake is absolutely astonishing. The lake is always covered in haze and when the wind blows, the boiling water in the center is clearly visible. I was thinking; while walking the edges of the tall wall alone, that a landslide underneath ones feet is imminent ejection out of paradise. That thought was scary for a second! But by not letting fear in, the land is less likely to slide!


Love from the Boiling Lake

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Bamboo Palace

Dean is climbing the orange tree

Dominicans are friendly and helpful people. Fortunately, the world’s monetary system hasn't spoiled and corrupted them as much as the rest of us. If money wasn’t around, relationships would be established on a solid and true ground. When people offer you products and services, you don’t really know their true intentions. That is a dilemma for me when I meet locals in different countries.

The abundance of food and water in Dominica, makes it possible for some to detach from money, such as my friend Dean. His home is in an almond tree right on the beach. He built it with his own hands and lives there with his wife and three children. He has no electricity or running water and his fire pit is on 24/7, all year around. The Almond tree is always engulfed with a positive spirit. A couple of days ago, I showed Dean our broken oar and left it with him. The next day, the oar was repaired and it was stronger than ever! Dean would not accept anything form of payment, as matter of fact he never touches money or charges for things in a monetary way. He is very handy and helps/fixes anything in the neighborhood. He has been mentioning the “bamboo palace” that he wants to build on a segment of land up in the mountains that has been in his family for a long time. He, his friend Cruzan, Nico, and I left Portsmouth early morning on foot and hiked up the mountain towards the location.

Cruzan craved “Jelly for the Belly”. Dean found a coconut tree and in no time, had climbed barefoot and bare hands right to the top. The coconut juice and jelly didn’t have caffeine in them but worked perfect as an energy drink. Along the way, Dean climbed trees to get bread fruit, calabash, bananas, nutmeg, raspberries, and grapefruits for his family and us. He knows this area like the palm of his hand. He knows what fruits are in season, where the trees are, and who they belong to. Everybody that passes by in their cars, on foot, or bicycles, waved to us and knew Dean by name.

I have been looking for strong bamboo to make a trolling fishing pole and an LED light fixture. Up in the wilderness we found many bamboo trees. Dean cut some for his handy crafts he makes and for my projects. Bamboo can be used for many different purposes, such as furniture, houses, musical instruments (flute), rafts, swords, chalices, et cetera. I have a good feeling we will catch some fish with the new bamboo trolling pole! 

By the time we got to the “Zion” as they call it, our stomachs were growling. Cruzan and Dean went up to the field to get dasheen for lunch and to take home. It didn’t take long before the fire was going and the dasheen was boiling in the pot. Dasheen is a root vegetable, similar to potatoes. They can be much larger in size, more starchy and creamy, and therefore more filling.     

Dasheen served on a leaf

We got to a flat area in Zion located in a crater of an inactive volcano. Several hundred year old trees stand in the middle surrounded by many fruit trees that were planted by Dean’s ancestors and himself. During the stay in Zion, we let our imaginations take us freely away and we came up with tons of ideas for the future bamboo palace. In our minds, we built cabins by the waterfall, reconstructed the flow of water to run through the land, installed a turbine and solar panels for electricity, hung hammocks, build shelters, and so forth.
The sharp hill next to Zion takes you down to a river and a set of three water falls. There are no trails leading there hence we followed the sound of water. It’s absolutely breathtaking, stunning, and a well kept secret. We also brainstormed about having ropes and steps to take you down each waterfall and to its corresponding pool. I live to build and do these kinds of projects. I will visit Dominica one day for an longer, extended time and help construct the bamboo palace.         

If you are lost in your world and don’t know your purpose in life, come to Dominica and go into the wilderness alone, you will find enlightenment. This is why Dean and Cruzan are calling this location the Zion!

Love from the Bamboo Palace

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Dominica

Carib Resident

Dominica is one of the smallest countries in the world with a population of 73 thousand. People live very simple lives here. There is an abundance of fresh water, but not necessarily every body has running water in their households. Water faucets are on every block and that’s where we fill our tanks as well. The nominal GDP per capita is only $5200, which doesn’t mean much, because there is plenty of food and no body starves here. This country grows enough food for millions of people. Many of the islands in the Caribbean import vegetables and fruits from Dominica. Last year, in the mountains in the DR, we bought a water melon from a street vendor, which was imported from Dominica. Dominican Republic and Dominica sound similar and can be confused, they are 2 different countries, both in the Caribbean Sea, but 450 miles away from each other. This land’s soil is extremely

Custard Apple

fertile. Most of the Islands in the Caribbean are volcanic and Dominica has 7! The hills and mountains are lush, green, and almost anything can grow here. The locals joke that you toss any  seed on the ground, it grows. There are many tropical fruits that I have never seen or eaten before, such as the custard apple. A few days ago after dropping off Kelly at the airport, we visited the Carib Territory. A custard apple tree got our attention and the family that lived there invited us to try the fruit, which was very creamy and sweet.  
Caribs are the original inhabitants of Dominica and their territory is on the east side of the Island. Their facial appearance is asian and lighter in color, however, they have been mixed with the Africans over the last couple hundred years.

"Providence" Martin

Dominica has been nicknamed “Nature Isle of the Caribbean” because of its unspoiled nature. There are an extensive numbers of rivers, waterfalls, and springs. We have hiked to several waterfalls and some were totally deserted with not a single soul around.
There are hot springs and cold boiling springs. Last week, we biked to a hot spring that supposedly only locals know about it. The hot water was running out of a cliff into a pool, where we took a dip. It was just like a jacuzzi, but all natural, in the middle of the wilderness, surrounded by tall trees with the sounds of chirping birds and running water. A great place for meditation!
Since the arrival in Dominica, Earthling has been anchored in one spot, Portsmouth. This is the best place to anchor and explore the island by bus or rental car. Most sailors hire a boat boy/tour guide, whom offer yacht services, they bring ice, water, fruits, and they will take you on the Indian

Waterfall,  Carib Territory

river and other tours. We employed Martin who goes by “Providence”. He has been a professional guide for 25 years and has a great reputation. Martin has been telling us where to go or what to visit and during the time Kelly was here, he would come by and check if she needed anything. Moreover, you can do lots of activities on your own. From Portsmouth you can walk or hike to waterfalls, rivers, springs, and so forth.

So far Dominica is my favorite place in the Caribbean, mostly because of it’s unspoiled nature, waterfalls, rivers, springs, fruits, people, and inexpensive food.

Love from Dominica
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CARE

Pascal and I

The past 10 days we have been busy assisting and taking care of Kelly. After coming back from the hospital with her foot in a cast, our first task was to find crutches. In Dominica resources are not as accessible as in the U.S., but once you find what you are looking for, it won’t cost you a fortune! We were sent to Pascal who runs an organization that helps elderly and under-privileged children. Pascal lent us crutches and did not accept any donation in monetary form. So I offered to do some volunteer work and he agreed to that. Last monday, I volunteered for CARE organization and it was a great experience working with the local Dominicans. Pascal suggested that Kelly keep the crutches till she gets back to the U.S and passes them on to someone else who needs them.  

Kelly's Cast

A couple days after the incident, we realized that the cast was too soft underneath the heel, right where it’s fractured. We went back to the clinic in Portsmouth and Dr. Hector personally reinforced the cast. Now the cast is strong and better than it was originally. She is flying out today from Melville Hall Airport here in Dominica. There is a sad and emotional ambience present on Earthling right now. I’m glad to have my friend Nico here for now so I don’t have to feel totally alone.  


I have not had time to write about the beautiful land of Dominica yet. We have done some activities here such as going on hikes in the rainforest, waterfalls, hot spring, and so forth. I will write about our adventure in Dominica in the next update.

Love from Portsmouth  

Minor Casualty Aboard - Part Two

Written by Kelly

2:30pm

It was a hot day (duh!), the middle of the day, when the sun is highest in the sky. We already had lunch and I fell asleep reading a book that I’m not really interested in, but I’m trying to get through anyways. When I opened my eyes I knew I needed to jump in the water to refresh myself. I asked Nico and George if they’d like to swim to the beach with me and swing on the rope swing. George passed; he said he wanted to finish writing something for the blog. But Nico seemed enthusiastic and put his book down, and within moments we were on our way. Since we’ve been here at this anchorage we are a perfect distance to swim to shore and also are able to see the locals and visitors swinging from the tall palm tree. When we got there, the smaller palm had younger kids swinging from the rope, and the bigger kids, if able or crazy enough to, climb up a steeper palm to swing from a taller height. A young man went before me and showed me how to climb up. I threw the line up to him and he swung a few times almost knocking into the tree on his back swing, but then finally let go of the rope while he was over the water and landed smoothly. After watching him, I figured I was ready. Once I was up the hand made steps on the palm, I felt the adrenaline kicking in, and that in itself is a thrill! He passed the rope up to me and at the same moment, I remember Nico had swung from the lower palm first and after a few swings he let go over the water but the way he landed in shallow water, had hurt his tailbone. So my reasoning is, if I let go of the rope on the first swing there won’t be the possibility of banging myself into a palm on the way back and that I’ll have more momentum to get myself over deeper water. That wasn’t the case… I landed in less than 4 feet of water just under waist deep. I felt the ground, and I felt it hard on my feet! I collapsed under the water and knew I had hurt something, my feet were throbbing. So I lengthened my body on the surface of the water, supporting myself with just my arms. For the moment, I was trying to figure out if I could even stand. I couldn’t. The thought of even touching my feet to the ground made them hurt. So I pulled myself up the sand, my feet trailing behind me, and then turned to face the water. I yelled out to Nico, up by the swing, to not let go of the rope, we didn’t need another minor casualty aboard!

3:45pm

Mike and Rebecca from Zero to Cruising had just arrived on the beach. They came over to me because they wanted to ask how the swing was. I told them & Nico I hurt myself bad. I didn’t want to make a scene so I kept calm.  At this point I felt my body going into shock and I was shaking from the amount of pain I was feeling, mixed with the adrenaline. I couldn’t put any weight on my left foot, and my right foot could take a tiny bit, but not much. Then we look up and see George getting in the dinghy to come to the beach where we were. He knew something was wrong. He later told me he had looked out at us to take a picture and saw me lying on the beach with everyone crowded around. George gets me in the dinghy and Nico swims back. The pain is now so powerful I’m worried and don’t realize much of what’s going on. Thank god we have ice to put on my left foot right away. It melts quickly and Rebecca rides over in there dinghy to bring us more. I’m still salty and wet, and full of sand, so George helps me rinse off and get into clothes. We joke that now he can pick out the panties I’m going to where! The swelling continues and pain persists, we decide it’s time to go to the hospital. I had taken some Paracetamol which is a pain reliever but a weak anti-inflammatory. Luckily we have a handy-dandy Marine Medical Kit aboard and find a multi-purpose splint and ace-bandage to stabilize my left foot for the dinghy ride. Then the fun part… getting to the hospital.

4:30pm

We have to get me in to the dinghy first, which isn’t even easy when you’re not gimpy! The ride to shore was a success, although I did get a little salty since we were heading straight into the wind. When we get to the fisherman’s dock, which we heard is the closest to the street the hospital is on; George carries me to the 1^st intersection. It’s the busiest one in the village so there’s a chance to catch a ride quickly. Everyone is staring at us wondering what had happened. We obviously had concerned looks on our faces! A local woman points to a “bus” across the street that is dropping off a full load of people. George carries me over and I pull myself in the side door. The buses here are more like passenger/ minivans. We are relieved that the driver can take us up the steep street quickly, because I wasn’t going to make George or Nico carry me all that way! We arrive at the drop off area of the hospital, go in, and see no-one.

5pm

George sets me down on some benches so I can keep my foot elevated. He and Nico look around for someone, anybody! Finally, there’s a nurse in a separate room and he brings me to her. They put me on a gurney and she un-wraps the ace bandage and takes a look at my foot. It’s absolutely awful looking… swollen, bruised, and puffy in the strangest spots. I didn’t even recognize my own foot (Except for the long gangly toes!)! The nurse then called the doctor and he arrived within 20-30 minutes. He took a look at my foot inspected it a little, and said I needed an x-ray. The hospital here in Portsmouth is not equipped with a computer, let alone an x-ray machine. So they tell us I have to go to Roseau (the capital) which happens to be on the south end of the island 50 miles away. Luckily, they have ONE ambulance in town and it can take me and one other person.  We had our handheld VHF (we always take with us) and call Mike and Rebecca to ask if they could pick up Nico from shore so we could leave our dinghy at the dock for when George and I get back.

6:15pm

From the ambulance, the sunset was stunning that evening and we were fortunate enough to see it from an elevated height up on the road that ran along the lush mountainous coast.

7pm

When we arrived in Roseau, the emergency area had a ton of different people waiting in wheelchairs, stretchers, and standing everywhere. Complete with crack heads that were quite enterntaining! The nurses all dressed in white uniforms, with white stockings and even white nurse hats. It was like right out of the movies! So I waited in a wheelchair since there weren’t any benches. Waiting… waiting… waiting…

9pm

I was called into a room where a doctor, a student doctor, a nurse, and a “higher up” doctor were. They started discussing 3 different patients x-rays. All the while, I’m still in so much pain and just want an answer. Is it broken?  Will I need surgery?  Maybe it’s just a sprain? The top doctor informs the other doctor, while holding up the image of my foot, that mine is a fracture. A WHAT?! Yes, a fracture… heal fracture, that is. Shit! All these thoughts start going through my head: How am I gonna do this living on the boat? How am I going to get crutches? How am I going to shower? I mean, I wash myself by jumping off the back of the boat! How am I going to sail? How am I going to get to and from the dinghy? I’m overwhelmed with the news.

9:20pm

A cast for 6 weeks they tell me…

It’s finally time to get the cast, or should I say; time to go to art class with paper machete. Seriously. The 2 student doctors put this cast on and I’m pretty sure I could have done it better myself. This cast is from right below my knee down to the second joint in my toes. I’m alright with that part, because he said it will keep the joint in my ankle from bending, but I didn't get to pick the color! ;) It was soft in some spots until 48 hours later I was able to get it re-enforced at the local hospital back here in Portsmouth. No worries now!

1am

Yes, you read that correctly; we waited this long for the next available ambulance to take us back home. I’m still in pain and uncomfortable. The ambulance ride back home wasn’t very pleasant. The driver drove so recklessly that is scared us. The roads here are steep and narrow which is not a good combination for speed. In the back of the ambulance I’m bracing myself on the gurney wishing I was strapped to it! I don’t want to ruin the cast that hasn’t even cured all the way! Next to me, and extremely concerned, George is on the bench, holding on for dear life so he doesn’t crash into me!

1:45am

When we arrived, George again carried me down the dock to the dinghy. (Man! Good thing he's strong!) The moon wasn’t out so it was unusually dark and the ride back to the boat was cold and windy.

2am

Finally home. Exhausted and starving. What a day! I’ve never had a cast, so I don’t know what to expect, except that this is going to be an uncomfortable 1^st night. Even though I’m worn-out, I can’t sleep. The swelling in the cast was very uncomfortable and I toss and turn all night. I’m officially a cripple. I’ve always taken my 2 feet for granted. Now I truly appreciate the ability to walk naturally with both legs and feet, especially considering my “active lifestyle”.

After 3 days of careful consideration, George and I have decided it would be best for my recovery that I fly back home to Chicago. Firstmate Bailey will be departing early this season :(....

Minor Casualty Aboard - Part One

 

The last few days in Dominica have been great up until yesterday when there was an unfortunate incident. Kelly and Nico swam to shore to jump off the rope swing that  hangs from a tall palm tree on the beach. Kids and adults have been swinging back and forth on this swing since we’ve been here and attracted us for something fun to try. A few minutes after they were ashore, I went up on deck to take some pictures of them on the swing. We are anchored only 150 yards from the beach and from a distance I saw Kelly laying down surrounded by Mike, Rebecca, and Nico. It just didn’t look or feel right! I jumped into the dinghy and zoomed to shore. It was clear that she hurt herself. She had jumped off the swing into the water and landed on her feet on the hard sandy bottom. When I got there, she was in pain, but tried not to make a big deal out of it. We came back to the boat, iced down her foot, kept it elevated, and gave her 2g of Ibuprofen, that we later realized was expired and hadn’t even worked. Her foot was swelling up by the minute... we had to go to the hospital. Here we are in a small town (Portsmouth) in a foreign country and no insurance! Nico and I somehow got Kelly in the Dinghy, motored to the fisherman’s dock, and took a cab up the hill to the clinic.
We were the only people other than the one nurse, in the clinic. The doctor was called in to check on Kelly. He had good news and a bad news! The bad news was that she most likely had a fracture, but the doctor could not determine that since there were no x-ray machines in this location. We had to go to the capital, Roseau. The good news was, the ambulance would take us to Roseau and the medical system here in Dominica is free for everybody, even for non-national visitors.
It’s six o’clock in the evening and we have to travel approximately 50 miles away. I think to myself... How long is it going to take? How are we going to get back? I’m hoping that it’s just a sprain and she will be good and healed within the next few days. The ambulance driver said he will wait up to 45 minutes for us while we are getting the x-rays. He also said, if it takes longer, he has to leave back to Portsmouth since he is driving the only ambulance they have in town! While in the hospital in Roseau, they were very kind and tried to help us quickly so we could go back with the ambulance. But as you can imagine, we aren’t the only people that need an x-ray. Plus the doctor needs to look at them and determine what the problem is. It just didn’t seem like enough time in a hospital with people on each side of the hallway all needing assistance. There are no computers here for record keeping. They keep a few big file cabinets that holds all of the patient records. There was only one fee of $160EC ($60) for the x-ray and it had to be payed in advance. I didn’t have enough cash and the credit card machine at the cashier was out of order.  The gentleman at the cashier was so kind and accepted my assurance to pay the hospital within 7 days. He printed out a receipt for the x-ray department showing that the payment was received. They took four x-rays of Kelly’s foot. Now, all we had to do was wait for the doctor to look at them and hopefully tell us it was ok. At this point, we have been at the hospital for a little over 2 hours and the ambulance driver was waiting up until now. Sadly, he got a call and had to go back up to Portsmouth and pick up a patient. He said the ambulance would come back to the hospital in Roseau and could bring us back to where our boat is in Portsmouth.
Finally, the doctor came in the office for 1 min, looked at the x-ray, and said, her heel is broken. Luckily, everything is still in place so no surgery was needed, but she needs to be in a cast for 6 weeks!! In cast for 6 weeks on a small boat doesn’t sound convenient!
Two medical students from Ross University put the cast on Kelly’s leg from toes almost up to the knee. Ross University is an American Medical School and has a campus here in Dominica. Many of their students do their apprenticeship in Princess Margaret Hospital.

It’s a little after 10 pm and now we have to wait for the ambulance to come back from Portsmouth. There are no buses at this time and a cab ride, even if we found one, would certainly exceed our budget.

Dominica has seven potentially active volcanos, so it is very mountainous. The ride from Portsmouth to Roseau is up and down several hills and usually takes 1.5 hours. In the ambulance ride to Roseau it took us 1 hour so I was trying to figure out when the next ambulance would be back, if he was just picking up a patient and coming back here. After an hour and a half of patiently waiting, we saw an ambulance dropping off a patient. I asked the driver, “Did you come from Portsmouth sir?”. He said, “Yes”. Then I asked, “Are you going back?”. He said, “No”. I mentioned for him that we have been waiting for an ambulance to drive us back to Portsmouth. Then he asked, “Are you with the lady with the broken foot?” He then explained that he had met the ambulance from Portsmouth half way to transfer a patient because in Portsmouth they had another call to bring another patient to Princess Margaret Hospital. So I asked, “When did the ambulance leave from Portsmouth?”. He said, “JUST NOW”. We’ve now learned that in the Caribbean, “just now” could be past, present or future. In this case, it could mean anywhere from an hour to three!
By this time, Kelly’s pain was starting to come back and we haven’t had anything to eat since lunch, 12 hours ago. She couldn’t take any Ibuprofen since her stomach was empty and there is no food available. During the time we were waiting among the sick patients in the emergency hallway, the nurse must have felt bad for us and called Portsmouth hospital to see where the ambulance was. Each time she asked, she was told the same thing... that the ambulance left “just now”!
We waited until 1 o’clock in the morning when ambulance #53 finally showed up. The story gets better! The ambulance driver may have been a race car driver in the past, although, we were not in a race car. He was driving this Hyundai minivan like there was no tomorrow. Shifting up and down on the automatic transmission, but manually! It’s as though he was mad at the vehicle and it needed to be punished! At some points he exceeded 85 MPH downhill through these small villages. I was holding on with both hands to not fall on Kelly, next to me on the gurney. The drive back to Portsmouth took only 35 minutes.
I had to carry her to the dinghy, since she didn’t have any crutches. We were finally back on the boat safe and sound a little after 2am.  

Love from Dominica

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