Guadeloupe

I spent a good week in Guadeloupe now. First, we visited the center of Pointe-à-Pitre. Lots of street art, many dilapidated houses, and many small stalls where people sell everything from fruit to vegetables, as well as homemade Punch Coco and other spirits. Lots of movement. Punch Coco is like Pina Colada, but without pineapple juice.

Chickens with their chicks are walking around every corner. They also look very healthy, not like they just broke out, but more like they have a comfortable life. I also saw a rooster from time to time. Actually, when I slept in Pointe-à-Pitre, I was woken up a lot by their crowing.

Well, of course, we also enjoyed the nature. Waterfalls with lots of greenery and beautiful beaches. I think parkour or something like that would have been great for me. Or maybe it will be. I really enjoy jumping around on big rocks in rivers with strong currents. At this river that we visited, there were lots of wooden pavilions/tents with built-in grills, one of these pavilions is wheelchair accessible, a plus. Overall, a very simple and pleasant design, so that groups or families could make a weekend trip.

Even more nature. In the zoo. I'm not a big fan of zoos. But the zoo in Guadeloupe was described as quite species-appropriate. In hindsight, the semantics of the word 'species-appropriate' are a very wide field. But it was still very impressive to see a jaguar, it's actually quite okay that they're not seen in the wild. It was 1.80m tall. That's big for a cat. Well, lemurs, raccoons, toucans, pumas, just a zoo.

Considering that the price level on the island matches that of France and is more expensive, a rental car is very cheap. It's already possible for about 20-30€ per day. There are buses that can take you somewhere, but not everywhere.

The Creole cuisine is unfortunately very meat-heavy. It's not always easy to find something vegetarian or even vegan.

Recommended by many and very close to me, I visited the 'Memorial ACTe' (MACTe) on the last day. A very new museum. The permanent exhibition deals chronologically with the beginnings of slavery, intensifying the focus on the discovery of the new world and its colonization. This also includes a lot of information about Guadeloupe and the Caribbean islands. Actually, I thought that I could support the project with the entrance fee, but the entrance is free. That's also good, it lowers the hurdle for visits. It was very intense, to be confronted with the history and the very brutal structural discrimination in an unfiltered way. Recommended. Also a topic that is very important and current, but that I hardly learned anything about in school.

There was an audio guide, but mainly the playing on screens was in French, I do understand some, but not everything. No photos were allowed to be taken in the exhibition.

There are tensions between Guadeloupe and France. For me, it felt like the state of France sees Guadeloupe as a holiday resort, as long as there are beautiful beaches. Several flights to Paris depart every day. Also, this structure of "I come to Europe" or "I come to the USA". But there is no direct flight to Costa Rica. I have to go to the Dominican Republic first, then to Colombia, then to Panama, and then I arrive in Costa Rica. Or I just fly to the USA, but for the transit, I also need a visa. Not all people in the world have it that easy. It's still easy for me as a German citizen.

Okay, next stop Santo Domingo.