Jardin Botanique Deshaies

Le Jardin Botanique Deshaies.

The Deshaies Botanical Garden.

This is one of the most beautiful gardens we've toured in the Caribbean, not to be missed if you are visiting Guadeloupe.

The welcome center opens on to a beautiful Koi Pond.

Even the fretwork on the building has been designed to reflect the garden's name, Le Papilion, the Butterfly.

Feeding the Koi.  It's a feeding frenzy when the food shows up!

What you looking at!

A beautiful old tree with a trunk that looked like a sculpture.

The photographer at work.

There is an aviary where you can feed the Swainson loriquets.

Quit hogging the syrup!

Magnificent colors!

This visitor was surprised and delighted when the loriquet decided to ride on top!

These three were rolling around on the ground.  Love the one on the right with his feet in the air....

...and holding a red flower in his beak.

Now say with a Pepe Le Pew French accent, "Baby, I pick zee flower for you."

Banyan Tree

Flowers and air ferns grow on the branches of trees.

Here's a small sample of the flowers in the garden.

Red Ginger

Ornamental Pink Bananas

Water Lily

Begonia

Shrimp plant

The Kashmir Bouquet

Torch Ginger

The Torch Ginger towers over my head!

Walking the grounds...

Restaurant above the waterfall.

Flamingos catch a one-footed nap.

Yawn, stretch, boy that feels good!

Au revoir de Guadeloupe!

Leaving St. Kitt's

It is time to leave St. Kitt's.  After a week of cloudy and rainy weather it looks like we will have a 2 day weather window to make it to Guadeloupe before another tropical wave moves through bringing wind and big seas.  Mike and Renee came down to the marina where we've been staying to hang out with us while we finished getting ready to leave in the morning.

A few hours on a rocking boat made Renee a little queasy.  We set her up on the dock with a chair and some shade provided by her personal boat boat Miguel. 

Dinner was Chinese take-out served dockside.  We are really going to miss hanging out with these very good friends.  Thank you Mike and Renee for welcoming us into your home, letting us do laundry, cooking for us, driving us to restaurants and grocery stores, laughing with us and at us.  We had a great time!

The Domino Duel!

The Domino Duel has finally arrived!  It's been more then a year since Mike, Renee, Jim and I played together.  Jim lost that game and the Dunce Hat moved from Jacumba to Merengue.  We played at Mike and Renee's house.  Renee said if we lost we'd probably use the excuse that we couldn't play if we weren't on a boat.  Hmmmm.....she might be right.

Each new loser has to add some decoration to the hat.  Jim added a tassel made from beer caps collected from Caribbean bears.  Very festive and it jingles!

Jim jumped out to an early lead.  Maybe the beer caps are lucky?

Here's Mike putting a double-twelve curse on Jim.

Everyone was gunning for me as I was the only one who hadn't lost up until now.  Just look at all the points they stuck me with this time!

Jim jingling the caps for luck and Renee plugging her ears.

Yes, I lost!  Actually they murdered me!  I had 561 points.  Jim only had 188.  The Dunce Hat stays on Merengue.

Jack & Zura watched the action.  I think they think we're nuts!  Animals are very wise!