St. Vincent 2004

carriacou.html

Click on any image for an larger rendition

What an adventure....When we heard the price of the hotel ($38 per night) we should've been wary. The universal diver's theorem proved once more. "The quality of diving is inversely proportional to the creature comforts found.." And the diving was pristine. The dive operation was superb, run by Werner "Max" Engel (the locals can't pronounce Werner). The reefs had some of the most beautiful corals (hard and soft) anywhere in the Caribbean.
	Given that subsistence fishing is a way of life there, Max has made a deal with local fishermen: don't fish my dive sites and I will fill your tanks for spear and lobster fishing. As a result, the fish life is abundant. Lots of great little critters. See pix below.
When it came to eating however, food was non-existent. Choices were always chicken, fish and maybe pasta. And published menus meant nothing. The modus operandi was to scout 1 to 2 meals ahead, find a spot (2 or 3 in Hillsborough) and pre-order. For breakfast, the only option was to do it yourself from the grocery. Typical meals were hard boiled eggs, cheese, peanut butter, and whatever else we could "score". Then there was Kate's place....same drill but she was an ex-NY restaurant owner. Food preparation was great and the place was charming (see pic at right)
	The island was very poor and the rastas played their music day and night. On top of that 8-10" of rain on our tin roof of Ade's (pic left) the first 3 days. At least we had kitchenettes and plenty of good, cheap beer, wine and spirits (e.g., Absolut at ~US $5).
Here is an example of a store front on Main Street. Note that it has only 3 walls with an open vista facing the ocean. A local vendor set up shop each day in the "facade."
	Here is a view from the North end of Main Street looking south through the heart of Hillsborough.
Below are some pictures I took underwater with my new digital camera (Nikon D100) and housing...quite an advantage to be able to see your mistakes, erase them, and readjust before your subject swims away.
Feedback?