Tag: festival

A Week in Ua Pou Marquesas

As often happens in our sailing lives, plans changed when we visited our second Marquesan island. We thought we’d stay for a few days but we were having so much fun we spent a week in Ua Pou!

About Ua Pou

Ua Pou (pronounced Wah Poe) is another mountainous Marquesan island. We were told the name means “two pillars” for the twin peaks rising above the other mountains, dominating the island’s landscape. Located south of Nuku Hiva in the northern Marquesas, we made it our second stop in French Polynesia.

Week in Ua Pou map Marquesas
Ua Pou and The Marquesas Islands map

The third largest Marquesan island with 5 towns and over 2,000 people, Ua Pou covers over 40 square miles.

The defining pillars of Ua Pou
The defining pillars of Ua Pou

We happily anchored in the main port of Hakahau, with stunning views of the mountains and near the conveniences of town.

Culture

One of the highlights of our week in Ua Pou was culture day. The islanders took advantage of shutdowns for a Catholic holiday and had a big cultural celebration.

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Carnival in Grenada

Carnival is the biggest event of the year in Grenada. Over 4 days, locals and visitors drink, dance, parade and people-watch in the streets of St. George. 2019 Carnival in Grenada was exhilarating and it was exhausting!

Carnival, or Spicemas, is an annual festival following Emancipation Day in Grenada. A nationwide holiday, it is celebrated by everyone in the country, and is sometimes declared to be bigger than Christmas.

Grenada’s Carnival encompasses several different events during the long weekend, and we went to a few of them! Carnival events we attended and or participated in included Panorama, Jouvert (pronounced JuVAY), Monday Mas and Pretty Mas. Here’s a breakdown of the different events we attended at Carnival in Grenada.

Panorama

Steel drums are huge in Grenada, and the annual competition of the Steel Drum (or Pan) bands was a must-see for us this year! We were surprised how small the turnout and venue were for it on Saturday night at the stadium.

One of the steel drum, or Pan, bands at Panorama in Grenada’s Carnival

10 bands compete in Panorama, and some of the bands have more than 70 members and more drums than members! As a result, the Panorama competition goes on all night, and we stayed for a couple of hours. I loved the music, costumes and energy of the performers.

J’ouvert

Jouvert is the traditional early morning street party where you can get doused with motor oil and colorful paint. It sounds crazy, it is crazy, and it’s also the most fun time I had at Carnival!

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How to Spend A Week in Martinique

Martinique ranks at the top of the list of islands we’d love to revisit. We spent a week in Martinique, enjoyed the crystal clear waters, delicious French cuisine, and fun culture, and we will be happy to return. Here are my recommendations on how to spend a week in Martinique.

Grand Anse Martinique
Grand Anse view
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