Next day we woke up after 2 hours nap to catch a morning bus to Vinales. Arriving at the bus station 40 min before the buses scheduled departure, we got stuck in a queue to buy tickets for our touristy expensive bus waiting for locals to buy tickets for their locals bus. By the time we reached the cashier, she spontaneously stood up and went away to solve another passenger’s problem. 20 min until bus…15…10 min…She returns just to let us know that there are no more seats on the bus…Very rudely. What a b…! Never mind, we went out of the station, found two germans and caught a taxi for 2 cuc more and got there at least an hour before our full bus got there, which gave us more time and opportunities to shop around for a casa. Our casa in Vinales cost us 20 cuc per night for a room. The cassa owner would advertise it as a very friendly place with a pool, where you cn relax in hot weather. Sure thing you can, but it doesn’t mean the pool will save you from the heat, since there is no water in it. Eventually the pool would get filled with dodgy soapy non transparent water. Not very inviting. Anyhow, we didn’t have much time for a leisurely sit in a pool, because beautiful Vinales waited to be explored.

On the day of arrival we didn’t do much, because we were pretty tired after a pretty active previous night. So we strolled up and down the main street, checking out local peso pizzas, local people and other casas for comparison. Nothing exciting, except for an enormous amount of rocking chairs that Vinales town posseses and an enormous amount of tourists. The pizzas turned out quite bad and Vinales didn’t offer any cheaper or better casas.

Next day, after a proper 10 hour sleep in we started our hike late. Trying to find a 16km track that has been described in the latest Lonely Planet, we went up to a fancy hotel up the hill with a nice pool and brilliant views over the valley. There we found out that the track used to start there, but not anymore and that of course it is better to go with a guide. Not sure for what reason- just better. Lonely Planet for Cuba in terms of giving good advice for an independent traveler has been really disappointing. We went back into town and started from there on our own. With some help of a rather useless LP map of the area and with the help of friendly locals we managed to find our way through tobacco farms, dry orange dusty roads and paddocks to two caves, both of them mentioned in LP.

First was just a tourist rip of, where we didn’t even bother to go in. Next cave was about 5 km more up the road. By the time we made it there it was some time past five and the cave was closed for visitors. Nevertheless for a small fee workers are quite happy to let you in  to see the whole cave by yourself without 100’s of tourists that come here daily. Lovely. We did miss out on the boat ride, which turns out to be a 2 min ride anyway. We were thinking over pina colada in a nearby bar how to get back home, because it started to get late and then..sie Germans, of course, saved us again. This time a couple of them had a rental car and they were happy to give us a ride into the town.

Evening went by quick with a good chat and rum with our room neighbours. Next day we took off earlier in the morning to explore the remaining part of the national park (judging by LP map) towards Dos Hermanos campismo and Los Aquaticos. It was a nice start to the day. Clear skies, not too hot in the morning, amazing colours and friendly locals, who spoke spanish so quick and with a specific accent that we just smiled and nodded in response.

On the way to campismo we found a pina farm, horses, turkeys and other bits. Campismo looked quite decent and I would probably prefer to stay here right in the national park in a private cabin for half the price. Next time. From Dos Hermanas we continued on to Los Aquaticos.

As already mentioned, LP map is totally useless, so only with help of locals we got to a village that we thought probably is Los Aquaticos. By the legend, Los Aquaticos were people who discovered the healing abilities of the local underground water, that comes up through caves in surrounding mogotes. Since about 10 years no one is left in the village who is still practicing medicinal water drinking, because the last true Aquatico died- maybe the water wasn’t that healing after all?… The guy who we met on the way proposed to take us to the cave and swim in the healing waters instead. We did that and it was the greatest experience in Vinales. The cave is 26m deep and 4km long. After descending 5 or 6  meters down, our guide pulled out some previously prepared bottles filled with kerosine, lit them up and down we went. Nice and spooky. Eventually the track would stop and continue through a corridor filled with water. We jumped in our swim wear and continued on until we reached a wide opening with pool. Apparently in raining season the corridors are filled with twice as much water, which makes it impossible to walk. Also gushing water brings in a lot of logs and pieces of wood, which makes it tricky to walk through the cave. To go all the way through the cave and get out on the other side it is necessary to have scuba diving equipment. We didn’t have it, but were pretty happy with the experience of swimming in total darkness 26 m below the ground, in a still and silent cave.

We went back, tipped our guide, his wife showed us junta (I think that’s how it is called)- a local animal that they hunt with the help of little dogs and started our way back. After 10 or so minutes walking I realised that I had left my watch in the cave at the very bottom. Back we went. Now I think I can be a tour guide, because I know where the cave is and where the kerosine  bottles are. This is the best of all three caves that we have seen in Vinales. It’s name is Cuave de Palamerito.

The rest of the pictures are here.

We weren’t sad about leaving Antigua. From sailors and people we had spoken to, a little island nation called Dominica, very often confused with the Dominican Republic, sounded much more like our kind of paradise.

As we were coming in to land, the sparsely populated mountainous island, smothered in green, gave a powerful feeling of natural beauty and an inner connection.

The plane came to a halt and people started disembarking on to the tarmac. It started raining, so they closed the door and we waited for it to pass – pretty funny. Outside the airport, taxi drivers hassled us. Dasha, Tina and I walked up the road in search of a bus, apparently only a few times a day. A car pulled over and offered us a free lift. We were blown away, this place was too good.

We found Mario in Roseau, the capital city. It’s not a big city, but with thousands of people arriving daily on the cruise ships, the harbour is chaotic and unpleasant. People are trying desperately to obtain a piece of the westerner’s wallets, mainly offering tours to the most popular destinations. We got out of there quickly. I found it ironic that as you drove away from the town, the harbour in particular, it was obvious that the wealth was decreasing, yet the natural beauty was increasing dramatically. We were driving through a huge valley, with steep mountains on both sides, trees clinging on to every surface. It was overwhelming.

It was only a 10 or 15 minute drive to Le Petit Paradis in Wotten Waven, but it felt like a different world. We got ourselves a bamboo shack with a gas cooker. The living space was open with a beautiful view over the trees. Humming birds often buzzed around the flowers. Other cheeky birds would fly in and start eating our bananas, telling us that they are ripe. Geckos jumped and ran around everywhere, catching flies and mosquitoes for us.

Our first couple of days we didn’t do a lot. It was such a friendly little village and just relaxing felt really good. We wandered down a street and found the local shop, with local guys playing dominoes. Dominoes in Dominica – gold. The guys play with serious intensity, slamming the dominoes on the table, the snake like chain bouncing all over the place. After about 20 minutes, when they finished their game, we got to play with a couple of guys. Although the rules seem incredibly simple, the guys have some tactics and a bloody good idea of what pieces everybody else has in their hand.

We went hiking to Trafalgar falls. It was crazy how busy it was with all of the cruise ship tourists. We waited a while and they left, leaving the big waterfall just for us, swimming into the flow of the water as close as we could to the turbulent water. It was funny climbing over the rocks in my undies. Just 100 metres downstream there was a hot spring feeding in from the side. We found a rock pool to ourselves and sat there in serenity, gazing out to the incredible mountains, feeling quite blissful for about half an hour.

We continued our hike to Laudat. Along the way we stopped to pick grapefruit, bananas, papayas and some flowers for making tea. This is a true paradise. In Laudat we were eyeing off someone’s orange tree, when an old guy came out mumbling croakily at us. Of course we thought he was yelling at us, but it was quite the opposite. He was very friendly, we just couldn’t understand him. After a good 5 minutes of some sort of conversation we left with another 4 grapefruit in our backpack.

At the end of the road after Laudat is Titou Gorge. This is a spectacular narrow river gorge that you can swim up in the super chilly water to the waterfall. It’s only a metre wide in some places, a couple of metres the rest, and about 10 metres high. Really cool. On the way out, we sat under a hot water fall spouting out from a piece of bamboo

On Sunday we hiked the opposite direction to Morne Prosper, with a few hundred metres higher elevation, it was hard going in the hot humidity with slippery ground under foot. We stopped to chat with a farmer, Elijah. He was 26 and started farming just a year or two ago. He showed us around his vegetables and big pigs. He picked some fresh coconuts for us using a 10 metre bamboo poking stick. Never did he ask for any money, just a genuine, friendly dude.

We wandered into the town. It was very quiet, apart from church, because it was Sunday. We asked people if there were any shops to buy lunch. They didn’t seem to think so. We walked down further and saw ‘variety shop’ so called in. They were selling clothes and stuff. I considered eating a delicious looking leather belt, until the lady next door overheard and offered us food, ‘Would you accept food if I offered?’

‘Ummmm, yes!’ She brought us out chicken and rice and yams and bits and pieces and an unopened bottle of sparkling grape juice. It went down very well. When we offered to contribute towards the cost of the food she declined. As we were taking our plates up to the house to say thankyou and goodbye, she brought out fruit cake! Brilliant. On the way home we visited another farm, Elijah’s neighbour. He was more of an opportunist, gave us a bag full of vegies which we gave a small contribution for. An excellent day.

Dominica is a geologically new volcanic island. It has steep rocky mountains which cause it to rain and being tropical, creates a rainforest. It rained at some stage every day we were there, even though we were told it was the dry season. Some mornings we had planned to go hiking, but woke to heavy rain and knew there was no point getting out of bed. We had a couple of days during which we hardly left the shack. That wasn’t a bad thing. We kept ourselves entertained. We also made lots of friends during our stay. People somehow gravitated towards our little shack. Kai from Holland became our local tour guide/tourist information. We bumped into Sebastian, a German dude we met in Antigua. He joined us in the shack for a few days. Others also joined us in the shack during our stay. Our most notable guest, however, was Joey “The King Courager” Magloire, a 68 year old Calypso singer. He has 6 children to 6 different women, possibly in 6 different countries from what I could gather. He also has 6 grandchildren. This seems to be a fairly typical attitude in Dominica. I met another man who was proud to have 9 children to 3 women, and 26 brothers and sisters from his father. The rumour that there are 7 women to every man helps explain this situation. But back to The King, he is one of the hustlers that greets the cruise ship tourists, trying to get them on to his mates buses for a set commission. He does well, especially with his sign that reads “Ich sprechen sie Deutch”, which gets a few smiles. But at the end of the day, the man that was born on the 6^th day of the month is lonely. We met him when he was dropping off someone to stay at the guesthouse (and of course collecting his commission). He didn’t try to hustle us, or sell us anything, he wanted to be our friend. He came every night and we cooked him dinner and he told us stories and jokes:

Q. You’re in the jungle, you see a lion, a beer and a baby horse. You have a gun with one bullet. What do you do?

A. Shoot the lion, drink the beer and ride off on the horse.

Pretty simple, but he was so proud of it that he told it to everyone. It made us laugh. We never figured out why it was a baby horse.

A man was hitch hiking along the road. A truck with a cow in the back pulled over and gave him a lift. When the hitch hiker got out, the driver looked back and saw the cow wasn’t there. “What happened to the cow?” he asked. “It fell out when you stopped to pick me up,” replied the hitcher. “Why didn’t you tell me?” asked the driver. To which the hitcher simply replied, “If I fell out the cow wouldn’t have said anything!”

Now again, not that funny, but the passion, repetitiveness and laughter that he told it with was hilarious – laughing to himself, “and it’s true, the cow wouldn’t have said anything!”

When The King didn’t work on one Sunday, he cooked duck neck soup and brought it up along with a fresh loaf of bread for all of us. He gave us a copy of a CD he recently recorded for the governments campaign. It had the same song on it 3 times. He really was a sweet old man. If anyone ever goes to visit, say hello to him from all of us.

We met a Canadian couple, Alex and Zoe (or A to Z for short) who had a hire car. I can tell you first hand that there is not much room for a suitcase in a RAV4. We went snorkelling at Champagne Bay, where bubbles come up from under the sea. We wanted to go to Victoria falls, but when we reached the Rasta shack at the start of the trail, it was raining too much, which would make the hike dangerous as well as uncomfortable. It was fun hanging out with the Rastas for a while anyway.

He recommended going to a point near Rosalie, so we did. I wasn’t expecting such a big hike, which meant we got stuck in one of the downpours, trying to keep dry with banana leaves, but the reward at the end was brilliant. There were rock cliffs facing directly on to the Atlantic Ocean, with big waves smashing in. A huge turtle was floating around to keep us company. There were a couple of rock pools. The water flowing in from the mountains was actually significantly colder than the ocean water splashing in. We sat in the furthest out pool, waves crashing and splashing around us, looking back up to the cliffs with Tarzan vines hanging down. A couple of bigger waves rumbled in, almost washing us out of the pool. Zoe made a run for it over the pointy rocks in between waves. Alex and I decided to duck under water in our rock pool as the waves pummelled the surface. Newspaper headlines were flashing through my mind, the most common and repeated words being “Australian”, “idiots”, “tourists” and “drown”. We kept our calm, knowing that a break in the set would come. Of course, it did. Really lovely place, I recommend it to everyone.

Another day we went hiking up a river. This is the first time I have ever done something like this and I loved it. We started off walking along the edge, jumping from rock to rock when needed to keep our feet dry, but soon this wasn’t possible. Once our feet were wet, there were no limits. We were waist deep, crossing through gushing water, climbing up small waterfalls. It really was quite challenging at times. Along the way we found some natural geothermal activity. The colours were amazing – red, orange, blue, yellow, green, brown – all coming from different minerals in the water.

A highlight of exploring Dominica and its natural beauty is the Waitukubuli trail (the easy way to remember the name is Way-To-Kubuli, Kubuli being the local beer). When completed, it will run from one end of the island to the other, divided into 14 segments, or days hiking. Although not yet completed, some sections are well signed and perfect for hiking. Other hikes on the island are less well sign posted. Some it is highly recommended that you take a guide, others it is compulsory. One such hike is to the Boiling Lake. A French dude got himself lost for three days up there. He called France to send a helicopter from Guadeloupe. Normally you think, ‘I won’t need a guide, I’ll be right’ but on this occasion, a 6 hour round trip, even with our local mate Kai, we decided to take it a bit more serious.

It was a great hike, through the forest, which was different to the fruit filled rainforests we had seen previously, then up to a peak for a magnificent view, looking out over the sea.

We continued down, up and down again into the Valley of Desolation. Here there is a whole heap of sulphur springs going on. Just a little further and we reached the Boiling Lake, the second largest of its kind in the world. I wasn’t expecting too much after reading other peoples comments, but I would like to take this opportunity to say it was brilliant. I believe it is often difficult to see due to clouds, but we were extremely lucky with the sunny weather. When the wind blew the steam away, we got a clear view of the lake, bubbling ferociously from the Earth’s core. The lake must have been about 100 metres across, while we stood about 30 or 40 metres above. Apparently the water temperature is 90 degrees on the edge of the lake and has caused a few injuries to people who have dropped a hat or something near the edge. The overall hike was moderately difficult, but not like what I have read from other people’s opinions. It is a must for anyone visiting the country with a small base level of fitness.

The other hike we did which was amazing was around Freshwater Lake. It was very steep in many parts as it followed the ridges surrounding it. From the highest point we could see the Caribbean Sea on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other, with the Lake directly in the foreground. It really does feel like a place that Columbus should be exploring. It was a long hike to get there. I think we ended up walking about 20 km that day, a lot of it up hill.

We met an American along the way at his house. His house was originally a bus, which was well passed its driving days, which he had decked out. After that he extended off the side of the bus to create a massive outdoor living area. He was also working hard in the driveway and garden. He had some logs from a tree trunk placed aesthetically around. They had started sprouting! Everything grows so well here. They say if you stand still long enough you’ll grow roots. I believe it. This place really was fantastic. The view he had looking down the valley all the way to Roseau was astonishing. We stayed for a drink to watch the sunset, then rode in the back of his ute at uncomfortably high speeds back to our guesthaven.

Dominica was the scene for one of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Of course this creates some nice tourist traps. One of them is the Indian River. The King had called ahead for us, locking in his commission of 25%. We were hoping for more nice people, but these dudes were full on hustlers, trying to sell us accommodation that we really weren’t interested in. The set fee of $15 was negotiated down to 12.50 , which really is a rip off. He rowed us up the river for about 10 minutes to a bar, where the price was higher than at Victoria falls (which is very remote). We wandered around for 20 or 30 minutes then went back downstream. The scenery was spectacular. I can see why it has become so popular, yet it’s popularity is what spoils it. The trees on the side of the river have amazing root systems that twist and turn everywhere. The branches hang right over the river, creating a dark, mysterious tunnel. It feels like a place where crocodiles or piranhas or some sort of mythical serpent would consume you if you merely touched the water. There is a hiking trail from the highway down the river to the bar. I would try to find it rather than paying for the boat ride if I had my time again.

What else did we do in Dominica? There was Bob the snake man. He makes his money by looking like a freak and lurking in the bushes with a large boa wrapped over his shoulders. When tourists drive past, they stop for a photo and give him a dollar. One day Dasha and I were hitching down the hill in to Roseau. A proper Rasta picked us up in his beat up old ute, smoking all the way. Playing in his car was ‘Sharon want a hotdog in her mouth,’ which we heard about 5 times a day. If anyone ever finds this song please let me know where I can purchase it. He also stopped to give Bob a lift in the back, minus the snake. This same Rasta called in at our little haven one evening to give us a sample of some kind of locally grown herb that can be smoked and makes you feel funny.

We didn’t know how long we were going to stay in Dominica, maybe 10 days we thought, which was what was stamped in our visa. When we finally left after 20 days of serenity, immigration didn’t even blink. So, where to next???

Rest of the pictures here.

Передвод слова хаикинг я так и не придумала и не нашла, поэтому буду тупо писать “хаикинг”, пока не изобрету альтернативы.

Доминику называют островом природы на Карибах. И не зря. Остров вулканического происхождения с высокими пиками, которые создают свой микроклимат и и поэтому остров не страдает от недосдатка воды или засухи (Антига видимо страдала). Самый высокий пик на Доминике 1447 метра- Морн Диаблотин. Слышали что хаик туда просто зверски тяжёлый, но по прибытию наверх открывается умопомрачительный вид на остров и можно видеть оба берега- восточный и западный. Мы туда не дошли, нужно что-то оставить на следующий раз.

С этим мужчиной мы познакомились на обратном пути- он спрашивал не ищем ли мы случаяно жениха, т.к. он одинок и ему нужна жена. Очень милый ненавящивый дядя…:)

На следующий день мы пошли с нашими Канадскими друзьями в хаик вверх по реке. Этот хайк не является частью национальной тропы Waitukubuli, но это было очень здорово. Мы начали прыгая с камня на камень, но когда избежать воды уже было не возможно мы пошли в брод. В некоторых местах вода была нам по пояс, мы карабкались вверх по водопадам и скользским валунам. По пути мы видели очень много гейзеров, плюющих кипящей водой и много много красок- всё от разных веществ содержащийхся в воде.

После “мокрого” хайка мы поехали искать места по-мокрее, а именно на Champagne bay. Своё название залив берёт от тысячи маленьких пузырьков которые поднимаются со дна. Хорошее место для снорклинга. Много рыбы и кораллов. Там где пузыри, особенно приятно плавать, т.к. вода гораздо теплее и рыбы больше.

Спустя несколько дней, выждав хорошей погоды мы отправились в наш самый большой и пожалуй лучший хайк в Доминике- к кипящему отрову. Дорога туда обратно занимает примерно 6 часов. Нужна неплохая физическая форма, старым/слабым я бы не рекомендовала, т.к. в 30-ти градусной жаре лезть то вверх, то вниз с горы в джунглях не легкое дело. Местные люди всем втирают, что для этого хайка обязательно нужен гид, всё потому что месяц назад на этой трапе заблудился один французишка и вызвал вертолёт из Франции. После трёх дней его нашли. Как он мог там заблудиться я ума не приложу! Тропа на столько понятна и ясна…Мы отправились в путь в четвером- я, Кёрли, Тина и Каи, который уже был на кипящем озере. Гида мы нашли по дороге. Он нам очень помог. Его звали Счастливчик. Вот и он:

После двух часов густые джунгли уступают открытой долине “Скорби” (Desolation valley). Название очень подходит под атмосферу. Долина наполнена дымом и запахом сульфата. Растительности почти нету. Только кипящая вода, и серо-оранжевый грунт.

И наконец- Кипящее озеро. Тропа заканчивается на платформе над самим озером. Озеро достаточно большое и когда ветер уносить пар, то можно разглядеть огромные пузыри, бурлящие кипящие на поверхности озера. Зрелище неописуемое. Какое-то апокалиптическое… Вода в озере 90 градусов. Можно варить яйца на пикник…

В один из дней мы сьездили в другой город, посмотреть на Индийскую реку. Это мека туристов- здесь снимали Карибских пиратов. Река красивая, но я бы не поехала ещё раз и уж тем более с местными гидами, которые прокатят вас по речке 10 минут и потом привезут вас в местный бар на полчаса, чтобы там вы тратили деньги. Лучше самому взять каяк и погребсти в одиночестве, впитывая мистически-уютную атмосферу реки.

Последний хайк, который мы осилили перед самым уездом с острова был на озеро пресной воды (Freshwater lake)- ещё один хайк после кипящего острова, который я очень рекомендую. Тропа идёт вокруг озера, вверх и вниз по хребтам окружающих гор. Флора здесь мне показалось отличающейся от того что я видела в других местах. Возможно потому что озеро расположено очень высоко и здесь прохладней. Мы даже немного замёрзли на обратном пути, когда шли через облака.

Последним была поездка на Scotts Head, поснорклить. Очень удачная. Здесь и начинается Waitukubuli trail. Начало очень красочное…

В следующем посте я напишу о людях которых мы встретили на Доминике, они тоже заслуживают отдельного внимания.

Я долго думала какую же фотографию выбрать заглавной…Думаю эта хорошо демонстрирует почему я влюблена в эту страну, в этот остров- необузданные красочные джунгли и необыкновенные очень гостеприимные люди..хоть они и не выглядят здесь очень уж гостеприимно с мачете в руках…тем не менее вам придётся поверить мне на слово.

Мы прилетели на Доминику, скрестив пальцы и не зная чего ожидать. Полёт от Антиги с короткой остановкой в Гуаделупе занял около часа. После посадки большинство пассажиров успели выйти из самолёта, как вдруг начался тропический ливень. Экипаж самолёта закрыл двери и оповестил нас, оставшихся пассажиров, что они откроют дверь как только закончится дождь and meanwhile, seat back and relax… Мило, не правда ли?…Доминика нас встретила беззаботностью, улыбками и простотой. Обещающее начало.

Аэропорт находиться примерно в часе езды от столицы Русо. От аэропорта ходят только такси- так вам скажут работники аэропорта и сами таксисты, которые берут 25$ американских в одну сторону. Мы сказали, спасибо не надо, и пошли к дороге ловить попутку. Не успели мы дойти до перекрёстка как тут же остановилась машина с улыбчивым местным, который предложил нас подвезти. Ему нужно было сьездить быстро домой и потом он собирался ехать в Русо. Договорившись подождать 15 мин, мы рассположились на скемеечке, вдыхая влажный тёплый воздух зелёных джунглей. Через 3 минуты к нам подъехал бусик с вопросом “А, это вы ждёте машину до Русо?…” …”Ну да…”. Мы подумали, что это тот самый мужичёк за нами послал, ну мы сели и поехали. По дороге мы поняли, что это просто обыкновенный автобус. Маршрутка по нашему. Нас довезли до Русо за 12$ местных, т.е. карибских долларов, что есть примерно 5$ американских…

Самое первое, что меня поразило- это запахи. Возможно от того, что воздух гораздо влажнее и запахи передаються легче. Запах травы, сырой земли, запах духов, запах кокоса на бархатной тёмной коже местной девушки… Доминиканцы необыкновенно красивые и приятные люди. Я просто не могла оторвать своих глаз от местного населения!….

Мы приехали в Русо, нашли Марио и поехали в Вотен Вэивен, где мы по интернету нашли дешёвые бунгало в самих джунглях- 35$US за три комнаты с кухней и верандой. Я была очень рада уехать из Русо тут же, т.к. туда каждый день причаливают большущие круизы и все белые туристы заполняют близлежащие улочки, а местные жители кидаются на всех подряд как на свежее мясо, предлагая туры и такси. Вот наш домик и вид с нашей веранды:

Это был рай. Мы не знали на сколько остановимся в Доминике, но как только мы приехали туда мы все вместе безгласно согласились остаться на максимум, т.е. на месяц. Вобще, как я уже говорила на Доминику влетать без билета на вылет не разрешают, но нам удалось убедить авиалинии, что нас ждёт псевдо-капитан с прекрасными алыми парусами, с которым мы через 10 дней уйдём с острова. Они нам поверили. Мы потом немного волновались когда решили остаться на 21 день вместо 10, но когда мы улетали с острова никто даже не посмотрел на наш пасспорт и что там написано. Ноу проблем.

Первые дни мы не делали ничего- мы сьездили в город купили еды и сидели на нашей веранде наслаждаясь видами или гуляли по окрестностям и знакомились с местными деревни. Столько цветов и цветов= разноцветных цветов! По утром птички калибри собирают нектар. Удивительно на сколько они быстрые и точные в движении, как меленкие вертолётики…Такая красота вокруг- просто голова кругом. Деревья грейпфрутов с фруктами, полными и спелыми, так что ветки ломятся…Руку протянул и вот тебе грейпфруктик на завтрак! ммм… Тут и манго дерево и апельсинчики.. Столько всего растёт! Как тут говорят- если стоять на одном месте достаточно долгое время, то и сам начнёшь врастать корнями в землю…

После двух дней дождя и валяния дурака мы решили размяться и пошли смотреть на водопады Трафалгар. Это примерно в получасе ходьбы от нашего дома. Красиво, но нужно выбирать правильное время чтобы избежать толпы туристов, которые приезжают в Доминику на один день. Нам повезло и к тому времени, как мы туда дошли, все туристы уже собирались обратно (who said sleeping in is bad?!). Трафалгарские водопады состоят из двух больших водопадов- водопад папа и водопад мама. В подножье водопада папы можно прыгнуть в воду и попытаться подплыть под падающую воду. Воды очень много и уносит тут же…Очень очень круто.

После того, как мы освежились в леденющей воде водопада, мы поползли по скользким камням вниз к горячим источникам, в которых мы проволялись наверное час. Это было божественно. Никого вокруг, сидишь в тёплой ванне, окруженной камнями и мхом, джунгли растут вокруг, стрекозки садятся то на плечо, то на коленку. Достал камушек со дна поскрёб пяточки…Рай. Вылезать очень не хотелось, но нужно было двигаться дальше. Мы сьели по греипфруту и двинулись дальше в сторону следующего посёлка- Лаудат. Пришлось пройти приличное растояние через джунгли и в гору. Дело не легкое признаюсь, но через полтора часа мы пришли в деревеньку, где познакомились вот с этим добрым старичком. Он говорил очень много и очень не понятно. Все мы активно кивали головой и улыбались, в надажде, что кто-то понимает о чём это он…Оказалось что никто ничего не просёк, кроме того что у него есть немецкий друг, который помог ему построить дом и что у него три кота и много грейпфрутов, которыми он нас и угостил…

Ещё по дороге мы набрали бабананов и папай. Всё дико растущее в джунглях. А вот кофе:

В Лаудат мы шли не просто так, а посмотреть на ущелье Титу. У меня не было слов…Вобще т.к. мы дошли до туда достаточно поздно, к концу дня, залезать в ледяную воду, от которой перехватывает дыхание, пришлось без особого энтузиазма, но оно того стоило. Ущелье длинной наверное в сотнью метров, как мне показалось. Мы смогли проплыть только 20 или 30, к водопаду. Каменные стены поднимаются вверх на 5 метров и между ними кристально чистая холоднющая вода, очень глубокая к тому же. Страшно, тяжело т.к. вода пресная, но проплыть можно и стоит. В попытке подплыть прям под бурлящую воду водопада, меня отнесло к стенкам и чуть не утащило под воду. Стрёмненько. Вроде как, когда воды меньше это возможно…

Мы вернулись к автобусной остановке достаточно поздно, уже начало темнеть. Темнело в Доминике около 6-ти вечера, к сожалению дни были короткие. После темноты мы обычно проводили время на веранде- ром, домино, музыка и разговоры…Что я ещё могу добавить?… Жизнь малина.

А это наш дружок ящерка-геко. Благодара ему и его другим ящеркам мы могли сидеть на веранде ночами, не потревоженные комарами и мошками, т.к. они их сьедали.

Следующие дни мы изучали карту острова и деревню. Знакомились с прекрасными людьми и дождавшись хорошей погоды отправлялись в походы, о чём я и напишу в следующем посте. Я думаю эта тема заслуживает специального внимания.

I loved every second of it. I was quiet happy and excited about going alone somewhere and spending time by myself. I got to Oslo late at night because our funny flight was delayed. Funny it was because drunken russian girls (who else?!) would smoke in the toilet and disturb everyone around, making me feel embarrassed to be russian, as always. Lucky my couch surfer was nice enough to meet me even late at night, even knowing that I am going away the next morning and share his lovely couch. Martin was his name. Thank you Martin!

The next day, a short walk to the train station and I am on the train heading towards Eina, where the farm that I came to volunteer on was. Quiet Mogwai in my headphones and Norwegian wood out of the window. Grey comforting sky, amazing colourful leaves, lakes, farms…I felt good.

I got met by lovely Stina and Kaspar. Stina is a swedish girl who has been working on and off on the farm for a long time. She makes the best bread in the world and does carpentry like she has been doing it all her life (she hasn’t!). Also she is one of those brave ones from our “little” family who could get up at 6 and go running in the cold dark Norwegian woods. Kaspar is a permanent resident on the farm (dog).

I was expecting Zeyang (the guy who runs the boat project) to be of course Chinese, with such a name and Beijing all over the place. Upon arrival I discovered that Zeyang is not Chinese, but quite a typical tall blonde Norwegian guy.

I arrived to the farm just in time for lunch which was a great opportunity to meet everyone together at the dining table. In the team were:

Anka- from Poland. Very gentle, kind and sensitive person. One can only wonder and be amused by her skill of hitch-hiking and following intuition.

Charlotte- she was the funny/fun one. The smile and the laugh of the group. If it wasn’t for her I would probably laugh half as many times as I did.

Jonathan- Aussie traveler, who hitch hiked a fair bit of Europe and was a great person to chat away with while sitting on scaffold high above the ground, painting the wall and getting high on fumes of paint. Sometimes I think we laughed a lot, not because of Charlotte and her ability to be funny, but because all four of us got high on paint fumes. Jonathan was one of the brave ones to get up for running before sunrise too.

Sissy- from Germany, an amazing person, who travels a lot alone and has seen a lot and been to many places.:) She is the most open minded 19 year old girl I know.  She is also a very very passionate carpenter.

Karen- the most dedicated cat lover I’ve ever seen in my life. Pity I didn’t spend much time working with this special girl, but going hiking and sharing a few laughs was nice. She was the one who was getting up at dark hours, but not to go exercising, but to make porridge for the rest of us lazy sleepy bums. It was sad when she left, but not only because someone else had to get up and make porridge…

Beata- she was the one who arrived later, but fit in just perfect in our group. A gentle, quiet girl, playing sweet guitar next to the fire place.

Neil- pity we didn’t get to know each other, because Neil left pretty much straight after my arrival, but from what I know he keeps coming back to help building the beautiful boat.

Garet- let him have a carrot!

We really had an awesome team and I recall only good and joyful memories of the time spent together.

The work started straight away. I was lucky enough to get there in time for a delicious lunch and then had little time to quickly change into working clothes and here we go!…the white paint… After the first day of work I was proudly given a ‘tag’ of the white painter, because the rest were getting high on red paint.

I came to this semi-remote farm in Norway not for sniffing paint and socialising with great people, or should I say not ONLY for that, I came here to help a great man, Zeyang, to build his great boat. The project runs like wwoofing. Volunteers come to help building the magnificent sail vessel or do other work that is necessary in return for food and shelter and also for some other advantage in the near future. Zeyang is building a 12 meter double ender pilot cutter. More about the project you can find out on couch surfing groups or on wwoofing. If you want to be a sea gypsy and participate in an amazing environmentally aware inspiring fun project- you should!

Normally there would be 4 to 6 people on the farm. When I was there it was 10 to 11 of us, which was fun. There would be a roster for every day for who is on the kitchen duty and I can’t recall a single time when the meal would be bad or average. Actually I can’t recall a time when I wouldn’t be thinking to myself by the end of the meal “Ok, Dasha, you have to stop eating now. I know it is delicious, but you gotta know the limit.’ Stina would make delicious bread every three days or so, that went so well together with home made honey or home made apple jam…Not to mention Friday pancakes dinner or weekends waffles…mmm, just the memories make my mouth water. Cooking for a big team was a good experience too- kind of an improvisation of something that should be delicious, easy, quick and also different from what we had the previous days.

The first week went by quickly, while we were working on the barn, repainting it, renewing the roof and putting gravel on the road. It felt quite easy and natural to wake up earlyish, when the fog is disappearing above the fields, quickly have breakfast and keep working until it gets dark, with a lunch break. I realised how much I missed doing physical work, doing something with my hands, when I could observe the progress straight away, feel useful and capable.

Weekends came, which are from Friday afternoon to Monday lunch, and on Saturday we went for a short hike into the Norwegian woods, finding the remaining blueberries and mushrooms in lush green moss. How I love North-Eastern Europe’s nature and it’s woods. To me, it feels like there is some sort of mystical magic, a wonderland, like I have been taken on a tour to a forgotten fairy tale from my childhood. Pine trees, soft soft moss to step on, fog moves through the trees and valleys, wooden huts and my imagination extends to see a big moose with it’s horns looking up from behind a pine tree.

On Sunday we decided that we hadn’t had enough, so we packed up and went for a camp on the lake. On the way to finding a camp site we found Santa and as soon as we reached the lake we put him on a boat for a long journey around Norway. Not knowing where to pitch our tent, we went along the lake until we hit a perfect opening with benches and convenient access to a lake. Of course it was a private property, but nevertheless we stayed there. Kind owners of the place let us camp there and also provisioned us with fire wood, paper and matches. Good people!

One has to admire our courage because it was getting quite cold in Norway in late October. Karen, Beata, Charlotte and Anka only joined us for a hike and returned to a warm home for overnight and as for us – me, Sissy and Jonathan – after sitting next to a fire and roasting our wet socks and feet, we drank what we had of vodka and crawled into our sleeping bags in the tent. It was cold. I kept waking up all night thinking wild pigs or moose were sniffing around our camp site, also trying to cuddle up closer to the body laying next to me to warm up. In the end all of it was worth it, when morning glory welcomed us into a new day. The view of thick fog sitting like a layer of frothy milk on cold blue waters, sparkly frozen grass and leaves and layers of white frost all over the camp site – it was magic!

Next week went by as quickly as the first one in work and getting to know people. I got upgraded from a white painter to a red one and also learnt to use the electric saw along with other cool tools.

It was very tempting to stay in the house for a weekend and watch movies and cuddle up with the cat on the sofa, but there are places to see and places to be, so in a team of 5 we took off to check out some Fjords and mountains. We found a couch surfer near Molde, who could accommodate all of us, which is a rare thing for a large group and went on a hitch hiking mission – 400km of windy road starting at 1pm. The aim was to reach the couch surfer by midnight, who was kind enough to meet us with his car and drive us for the price of petrol to his place. Since it is impossible to hitch in a group of 5 we split into three groups- Anka, Charlotte, me+Sissy+Jonathan. Three of us had the least chance to get there in time, because it isn’t easy to hitch in threesomes, but there are some bonds you can’t break after freezing in one tent overnight. =)) Low chances became even lower after our first ‘car’ that we managed to stop and hitch turned out to be a bus finishing his shift and being kind enough to take us for free. The whole trip was an adventure for all us, but it was marvellous. When by 10 o’clock or so we were ready to give up and spend the night in the next petrol station, we found a ride straight to Molde and were the first to make it to the couch surfers place! Charlotte ended up spending the night in a hacker’s place and Anka with a Kurdish family.

Our couch surfer was a rare one. He is about 60 with a very outstanding personality. Born in Norway, he spent most of his life in England, where he acquired a British accent and other peculiar habits and passions. His house is full of interesting objects, which he was proud to show us and explain everything about, himself included. There is no doubt one can never be bored with a person like Bertram.

After a long breakfast and a long talk we finally gathered ourselves, took bicycles provided by the couch surfer and not willing to wait for our missing team members any longer, we took off to check out the coast line. On the way out we met Anka who we left with Bertram to keep him company. The ride was very pleasant and good exercise (not that we lacked it working every day on the farm) with spectacular views and a cheeky cup of hot chocolate at the end of it.

The next evening was spent reunited eating dinner and playing marbles with our host, only to wake up earlyish in the morning to hitch hike back to Eina, to our farm. This time Jonathan and Sissy went to Bergen, since they finished their volunteering on the farm and us three ladies towards Oslo. Anka, following her magic intuition separated from us and me and Charlotte were extremely lucky to find a ride with a very lovely person, Magnu, who was returning home to Oslo, right outside of Molde. It is not easy to hitch hike in Norway (unless you are Anka =) ), so we were very lucky to find a ride like this with a person like Magnu. We shared some nice conversation, some chocolate and coffee. Also his dog was lovely and kept on cheekily licking Charlottes ears while she slept on the back seat.

The third and final week for me was exciting in terms of working. I got to help Stina to build the scaffold for painting and repairing the barn and then continued building it with other lady helpers. I am very proud of our efforts and the scaffold that we built. Here is our creation! An artwork!

Pity one day later, after we finished with painting we had to take the beautiful creation down…but that’s how we learn to let go, isn’t it? I have to admit that destroying something is a lot quicker than building it…and at least as much fun!

Unfortunately, during those three weeks I didn’t get to work on the boat, but I never regret going to the farm and I know whatever work I have done, it all goes towards one goal.

Not willing to leave the cosy house I stayed for my last weekend with Anka and Charlotte. We made some pancakes, watched some movies and even (!!!) went to visit local French nuns. We participated in their evening prayer and continued on straight to a local pub! – to finally enjoy our first glass of wine in three weeks.

Sad, but it was time for me to leave as well, to see some of Oslo before I flew back to Spain. I really enjoyed it! – maybe because I love wandering around the unknown streets of a new city, listening to music, getting cold hands from taking pictures, having coffees and cheap food in alternative places and smiling to foreign strangers. One of the places I recommend visiting is Vigeland sculpture park (Frogner Park), which has a lot of very bizarre sculptures.

Other than that Oslo was full of autumn colours and just a nice mood and atmosphere around it.

The rest of pictures are here.