When we arrived at the airport,we were immediately greeted by the ship's personnel who transported us to our cruise ship, standing majestically in the harbor.

After being processed at the ship's terminal, we were shown to our spacious cabin where we gratefully fell asleep...We were exhausted after a long flight from California. Later that evening, we got up refreshed and readied ourselves for dinner on board.

I need to mention that if you want to be pampered, surrounded by sheer opulence, this is IT!. The interior of the ship is truly magnificent. It's personnel is comprised of diverse nationalities, impeccably dressed and ready to take care of your every (reasonable) wish.

The next morning, we arrived in Fort De France, capital of Martinique. Standing on the floor of the thirteenth deck,I watched the island come through the early light of dawn, and felt like I was entering another world of ancient time.

French, his English totally disappeared. He maneuvered adroitly through the narrow and congested streets of Fort De France, where you can find almost anything. You can shop for fine jewelry, gold and precious stones, crystal, perfumes of all kinds, and more, much more... If you prefer, you can take the ferry across the bay to other shops and beach front resorts, such as Le Club Med and Le Meridien.

As we went through the bustling town, I noticed tropical fruit and vegetable stalls of all kind. Fruit like the Anananas du pauvre ( poor man's pineapple,) fresh cocoanuts, many varieties of bananas, fruit a pain (breadfruit,)and raisinier bord de mer , which is a sea grape. (very sweet) Much too many to mention...

The hillsides are studded with houses of vibrant colors, as lush as everything else on the island: pinks, purples, greens, yellows, all surrounded by luxuriant greenery and blooms of unimaginable brilliance

We took the road north to St. Pierre, which was totally destroyed in 1902,when the volcano, Mt. Pelee, erupted killing thirty thousand people.It's the most notorious volcano in the Caribbeans.

Our driver drove as if the road belonged to him only, absolutely and seemingly unaware of other vehicles that might be approaching us around the treacherous bends.He simply announced his arrival on the twisty road ,by leaning on the horn... I must admit that we were sitting on the edge of the seat for the greatest part of the trip! Besides that fact, we were in for a special treat.

Our driver took us to one of his friend's private gardens. He made a sharp right turn unto an overgrown, rutted path, to a level spot where he turned the car around with some difficulty, and let us out.

An unimaginable sight greeted us: Rows of Anthuriums of all colors, Allamandas Cathartica, Golden trumpets, Heliconias, flourished everywhere, not to mention plants and flowers that I had never seen before now.

We "courageously" got back in the car and drove to several banana plantations and sugar cane fields.We stopped at a fruit stand to buy some of the sweetest , bananas that you ever want to taste....

We went on and admired the rain forest, with tree size ferns, tall mahogany trees and a myriad of lush vines and trailing blossoms. As we drove around a bend, Mt.Pelee came into view, it's sharp peaks crowned by dark, billowy clouds.An awesome sight that one can never forget...

We continued on and finally arrived in the town of St. Pierre, where the eruption took place, in 1902.What a calamity! Only one survivor; a prisoner kept in a stone cell and buried in ashes.

You must visit the Museum,which displays historical photographs and artifacts as a reminder of Mt. Pelee's tragedy.Shattered plates and cups, melted cutlery, and the church's melted cross, are grim reminders of destruction. After the eruption, St. Pierre tried to rebuild on the old foundations, but it can never be as it once were, the capital of Martinique.

Just below the museum, you can access a beach of pure white sand , fringed by a clear jade ocean, with palm trees leaning precariously while two native children run back and forth in the warm surf...

That colorful sight reminded me of the French artist, Gauguin. It must have been the same people and the same landscape that he saw, when he first came to the island...Martinique inspired him with it's color and innocence.

In Carbet, you can visit the Gauguin museum, and the house where he resided.

We reluctantly left St.Pierre and returned "unscathed" to Fort De France and to our cruise ship.

That same night, we left Martinique for another island :Barbados. But, that's another story....

By : Maryvonne C.M.Martin

Caribbean cruise and travel magazine