36th post - Weekend in St. Joseph

This weekend a small trip was planned among Erasmus people. We had booked a villa in the south, with 12 beds, a huge kitchen, and a pool - simply awesome!

On Friday after work at the school, we set off with packed bags. In my car were Nanou, Justine, and me, while the other nine people were distributed among three other cars, as not everyone left at the same time and from the same place.

We arrived around 5 p.m. and admired the house for the first time. It was really beautiful, very bright and modern, but still with charm.

Then we went shopping first, because on Saturday we each prepared a little something for an aperitif. Besides, we still needed something for dinner and breakfast, and of course, alcohol :D

After that was done, we enjoyed the phenomenal sunset and the pool while we waited for the others.

When finally everyone except for four people had arrived at the AirBnB, we started cooking. Even in a villa, you secretly remain a student, which is why we had pasta with sauce. After all, you don't have to go overboard with luxury :D

While we were cooking, we also started drinking and had a great time all evening. We played games, listened to music, told stories, jumped in the pool (everyone except me because I coughed like a chain smoker), and simply enjoyed the moment. When some had already gone to sleep, we played a bit on the Switch, etc. Suddenly it was 6 am and I decided it was time to go to bed as well.

After a short night with about 3 hours of sleep, I woke up and immediately started eating again, this time chocolate croissants and a banana :D

Today we wanted to explore the area a bit, but we had different levels of motivation to leave early, so me and three others left first. The rest joined later. First, we went to Cascade Jacqueline. We couldn't find this waterfall at first, but we found a really nice path along the coast instead.

Here we had a spectacle of water splashing high and the fantastic contrast between the black lava rock, the blue sea, and the green plants everywhere. It was really simply beautiful!

We also took a short break here and enjoyed the view until we finally found the waterfall.

Then we went to a small restaurant that looked really unassuming but surprised us completely when we entered: It was big, the view from the terrace was gigantic, there was a pool (???) and the service was really sweet. The food was authentic Kreole and really delicious, but also expensive, so I just ordered something to drink.

After the feast (for the others at least :D), we met the first group of latecomers and drove to another basin, the Trou Noir (not a particularly inviting name haha).

The way there is actually super easy, but you have to know that you definitely have to find a parking space BEFORE the third bridge. After the third bridge, the road that, in my opinion, is the most difficult road on the whole island begins. It's only a short distance, not even 500 m, but it's really tough to drive and there are often people who damage their cars here.

But once we arrived, it was really beautiful, although quite cold because there was no direct sunlight due to the high rock walls.

About an hour later, the rest of us also arrived, and we spent some more time taking photos, chatting, and watching a few guys jump into the water.

Next stop was the sunset at Ti Sable, which is a tiny beach with black volcanic sand. You're not allowed to swim here because the waves are really intense, but the sunset was sooooo beautiful *-*

Because the sand is black, it forms a kind of mirror in front of the water, which is really magical.

After that, we were all pretty exhausted (especially me with my two hours of sleep), so we drove back to the AirBnB and prepared the small snacks that we had planned for two people.

So in the end, we had nachos with homemade guacamole, bruschetta, salmon croissants, couscous salad, baguette, dips, and cider - in vast quantities, we probably could have invited all of Saint-Joseph. But everything tasted really delicious, and we had a great evening :)

Unfortunately, I can't tell you what other great things happened afterwards because I went to sleep around 10 pm to avoid becoming even more of a zombie.

The next morning it was pouring rain, so Nanou, Justine, and I got in the car after cleaning up together to drive to the west. Because there was bright blue sky there (the microclimates on the island are really amazing), and we enjoyed a few more hours at the beach. The others were too tired and wanted to go straight home, so they stayed a bit longer at the AirBnB to eat the remaining food (as much as possible) and then drove back to the north without any stops.

In the late afternoon, the three of us also drove back home. It was really a beautiful weekend full of fun, nature, food, music, and relaxation!