Bikes And Winding Roads

Yesterday was a fun day. The shipped docked in Dominica early in the morning and after breakfast, we went ashore for our Mountain Biking tour. We boarded a small bus that took us up a mountain through a very winding road. I sat at the front cause I thought I was gonna get car sick but I didn't. The weather at the bottom was perfect, warm, blue sky, white fluffy clouds, etc, however, it was a different story closer to the summit. When we got to our biking starting point, there was a big, black cloud which quickly let go and it started raining. I guess they call it the rain forest for a reason. The guide handed out the helmets, and by the time he was done, the rain had stopped. It was pretty cool up there, almost cold, and that was a welcomed relief.


We were given the bike that best suited each one of us and told to take it for a spin around the round-about. It was was a bit odd since I was going against the normal flow of traffic for me, they drive on the left side of the road, but the bike was fine. I hadn't ridden a bike in at least 3 years (spinning bikes don't count!) so I was a bit worried but it just came back to me. I guess what they say it's true, once you learn to ride a bicycle you never forget. We finally got going and it was great. The ride was mostly downhill with only one very step climb I just couldn't make so I walked up. As a matter of fact, only a few people actually made it up on their bikes, Matt was one of them. Going downhill on a bike on an empty road is fun, you pick up a lot of speed very quickly and you don't have to pedal, just hold on to the brakes. The temperature was nice, even when we got down to the hotter part. Well, down there it was nice when you were actually riding but it got hot as soon as you stopped. We stopped by a shack named "It's Nice To Be Nice" that is owned by a guy who gives people fruits free. He had bananas, pineapples, oranges, etc. He also had a delicious shredded coconut dessert that when eaten with a banana, according to him, you'd have an instant pina colada....LOL....


Just before that we stopped by a house where a Carib (indian) family lives and one of the kids was dressed in traditional Carib garb and had a basket full of cinnamon tree barks which he gave to us, free. It seems the people of Dominica are very nice and welcoming people. Towards the end of the ride (and just before the big climb), we stopped at the Layou River where we caught up with the river tubing tour group from the ship. The river and the landscape were beautiful and very peaceful and serene once the tubers had floated by. We went down for a swim, and for the fist time since I was a kid, I changed into my swimsuit behind a towel Matt held up LOL. The water was a bit cold, but not too bad and there was a natural jacuzzi on the other side of the river so I swam there. The water there was so warm and nice, which made it hard to get back into the river to swim to the other side.


After that we just rode past the big climb and to the coast where they took our bikes and gave us rum punch.....yummy! We still had some time left on the island but we decided we were too tired to do anything so we went back to the ship. The ship was having some sail away festivities I wanted to go to so I asked Matt to come along with me to the pool for a quick swim. I had to beg him until he said yes, then I grabbed my book and he asked surprised, "Are you gonna read???" I guess he thought it would just be a dunk in the pool and then back to the cabin so when I said "Yes!" he replied "I'm not coming then!" I said "fine!" and stormed out the door but not before having to go back into the room twice for things I kept forgetting. So much for my dramatic pissed off exit. I was out there for a little while but was feeling guilty for storming out like that so I went back to the cabin but I didn't say anything, except for "You want some?" referring to the plate of cheese I had in my hand. He said no and I made a bee line for the balcony where I laid down on a chair to get some sun. I didn't want to be the first one to give in so I stayed out there for a while hoping he'd come out and apologize or something but that didn't happen. I got tired of waiting and went back inside only to find him fast asleep. I guess he didn't take it as seriously as I did. We'd just had our first married fight and to be honest, I can't remember who said "I'm sorry" first but we made up and made out. That was the first out we had spent apart in 10 days, it was weird, but it made us both realize we are not attached at the hip. For dinner, we had made reservations at the Pinnacle Grill again and I barely made it through cause I was so sleepy. We crashed at 9:30 PM


Today we were woken up by the noise the ship makes when docking and by the overhead announcement about immigration. St Thomas, USVI, follows the same procedures as the United States when it comes to immigration so the whole ship had to be cleared before people could go ashore. Immigration officials came on board and we went into the theater or one of the bars, depending on what passport you carried. It was quick though. We were supposed to go on a sea trekking tour which would have taken us on a walk on the bottom of the sea but that got cancelled so we were left to fend for ourselves. At first we didn't know what to do but we ended up renting a car from Avis. The car was a Jeep Wrangler, and after seeing the roads, I had no doubt we needed 4 wheel drive! The island is mountainous so the roads are very steep.


We drove around till about 2:30 pm. We went to Coki Beach, which was very pretty, Magen's Bay Beach which was crowded and not as pretty, Hull Bay Beach and to a secluded beach called Dorothea Bay which we found thanks to a local who kindly helped us when we got lost and after directing us in the way we wanted to go, she said, pointing in the other direction, "There is a pretty little beach down there" There are small condos there so we had to park outside and walk in. It was beautiful but there was not a single person there.


After a bit more driving, we decided we'd had enough and returned the car. Right now we are sailing again and tomorrow is another day at sea, then it is Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, Holland America's private island.