Martinique

Persephone sailed into Martinique on Wednesday after, again, enjoying a beautiful 20 nm sail from St. Lucia. The wind speed and direction was perfect for the sail, but the sea swells were still large at 8-10 feet...the seas prevented me from doing any fishing :(

When you are in Martinique, you are literally in France. Martinique is a Department of France (think of a State in US)where everything is as it would be in France, governmental offices use the same forms as Paris (try and fill out Customs/Immigration forms in French on a computer with a French keyboard....yes, the keyboards are different), the locals vote in French elections, and a phone call to continental France is a local phone call (but all phone numbers are 10 digits). The language is exclusively French, and 99 percent of products in the 'supermarche' are imported from France...I hope 'thon' is tuna !!?? I wish I applied myself a little harder in high school French classes....

The only issue is communication...the phones from the English islands (Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Antigua etc.) do not work in the French islands...so there is no cell phone service aboard. In addition, internet is scarce at best. Harbor coverage wifi in not available in Martinique....so, it is back to internet cafes or restaurants/bars which have complementary wifi service. It is like being plunged back into the dark ages !! This blog will have to be sent out by amateur (ham) radio from Persephone....back to 1930s technology !!

Just wanted to give you all a quick update...more when communication is better...