Our car was dropped off this morning - $40 day day including taxes and insurance - a Toyota Rav 4. The kids were amazed to see we had to drive on the left. We're back from getting our driver's licenses ($20 US) and stopping at a foodstore. I'm sure we'll recover from the sticker shock of food soon. The roads are twisty but no one seems to drive fast and they beep a greeting at other cars. The driving, at least on a Sunday, isn't intimidating at all so far.

It's pouring now so it seems to be a good time to describe Montserrat Breezes. It's the most gorgeous place I've ever seen. 5 well-appointed large bedrooms, I think 4 of them have king size beds and one with 2 twins, each with a private bathroom. When you drive in, there is a beautiful vaulted car port. Descend about a dozen steps to a covered walkway along the back of the living room/dining room. The opposite side of this long room opens up entirely to a verandah and view out over the water out towards overlooking Nevis. On one end of this room, across a walkway, is the master bedroom with closets galore, TV and a private covered balcony overlooking the pool and view. There is a pass-through from the balcony into the kitchen. At the other end of the living room, across another walkway, there is the yellow bedroom with another private balcony and view. Two staircases lead downstairs at either end of the home. There are 3 bedrooms, one with twins beds and one with a king are connected, 3 bathrooms, a kitchenette, a laundry room and garage with ping pong table. Everything is tiled and in muted colors. And of course the pool. And everything with that view. Ahhhhhh! It's actually fun to watch the clouds coming across the ocean towards us - it all changes minute to minute despite the overcast conditions and rain. The rain is keeping us in today, but to be honest, it's just what we wanted. Nothing to do and a spectacular place to do it in!

I don't represent this property so I can tell you to see it at Montserratbreezes.com
It's even more beautiful than the pictures.

We are going to go out for BBQ later, but for now...maybe I'll go read or take a nap!

Off to a rocky start, but I'm glad you're settling in (with the whole family, now that your son made it!) and finding your Montserrat stride. Looking forward to the rest of your report on an island that doesn't get much coverage here.

For lunch today we went to Ponteen's Beach View Restaurant for his Sunday lunch barbeque, just to the left and slightly above the Green Monkey Dive Shop. It was hard to find it as it was partially camouflaged with plants, but once the Dive shop pointed it out, we climbed up the narrow path and were transported into a tiny Caribbean oasis. There were all sort of artifacts hanging from the ceiling and "walls" and most of the table tops were made from huge slabs of mahogany. Everyone receives a small bowl of baked coconut chips. Wow! They were yummy! (Baked in a bit of oil and salted) The restaurant was out of fish by the time we arrived mid-afternoon, so we had the rib and chicken meals. They make their own sauce and it was delicious. It was served with bread-fruit, similar to a potato, and rice with pumpkin flecks. Carrot cake was brought after the meal. It was all delicious and my kids once again enjoyed it all.

The best part though was talking to Pont! He shared the story of the building. In a nutshell, he started building this hut (at the time) by himself many years ago. His friends laughed at him and told him he was crazy to do this in an isolated area. He worked by himself and dragged all the materials in by hand. It took 10 years. The volcano erupted, people moved north, roads were built and now business is booming. He also spent time showing us some of his artifacts, which he has collected from small villages throughout the island. I'm hoping to fit in a trip back to try his pumpkin soup during the week.

Back at the house, we spent the rest of the day swimming and having wine with the sunset while the kids tried to knock coconuts out of a tree.

Good to see a trip report on Montserrat.Keep the updates coming.

Question: What time did you arrive on Antiqua and when did you land on Montserrat?

Glad there is interest in Montserrat! We love it here!

We landed in Antigua about 3:00 and our flight was scheduled for 5:30, but didn't leave until 6:00. After we got our luggage we had to go through customs. The line to the right stretched most of the way across the room so we were happy to be in the connecting flight line, until... we noticed that the agents in our line were searching through every suitcase with a fine-toothed comb while the people "with nothing to declare" in the long line were whipping through with barely a glance from their agents. When we got up to the agent I started to put my suitcases up and the agent said "you don't put them up until I tell you to put them up"! Then he just waved us through. Very funny mister!

Hello there..I really enjoyed your reports. Hubby and I are looking at Montserrat as a possible spot next summer for our kids free vacation. We really want nice beaches to lounge at and enjoy each other's company. We don't need fancy places to eat or fancy hotels...does this sound like Montserrat would fit the bill?

Hi Jenifer - We haven't been to the beaches yet, but what I've read is that they are not what you would get on some of the other islands. I've read that the beaches are small, but you are most likely going to be the only ones on them...could be good for a kid-free vacation! All are black sand (due to the volcano) except for one white sand beach which you can get to by either strenuous hike or kayak. We're going to kayak over and do some snorkeling. This is a really laid-back island, no vegas-style shows, no night life except maybe some tiny local bars. If you want to just relax away from it all, eat good food at little local restaurants (which so far all look like dives), think volcanoes are interesting, want to be away from tourists, hang out at a villa with a good view just the two of you, this might be for you. If you want a fancy resort, street full of typical Caribbean souvenir and jewelry shops, discos, and chain restaurants, mile long beaches, hundreds of tourists, a lot of them drunk, you won't find it here. It's all according to what you want. I'll post pictures when I get back. I discovered Montserrat in an Internet article about the 10 least touristy islands in the Caribbean and it was spot on.

Monday, July 19

So my thoughts on Montserrat are this - the roads are terrible! The people are wonderful! If you saw restaurants like the ones here back home, you'd never go in. The worst looking restaurants here serve the best food! Wine makes any enormous thunder storm a party!

So, Monday was spent going to different offices and shops before going on a hike. The tourism bureau in Brades was helpful in answering our questions. They have unlimited numbers pamphlets and maps for free, but when it came to a hiking guide, we had to buy it for 10EC (about $4 US). It's just one page but it describes every hike on the island so we thought it was a worthwhile purchase. Just nearby is the Stationery Store which does sell stationery, but moreso a variety of other items from cards to soap to toys to computer ink, all at outrageous prices. Next we went to Arrows Manshop for Montserrat T-shirts (25 EC each). They mostly sell clothes, but for some unknown reason, they also sell humungous boxes of cereal and cases of 50 packs of snack-size chips (which we bought since we have 3 ravenous kids with us)

We were still on our way to our chosen hike, but decided we needed ice cream to boost our energy supply so stopped at the Softee Freeze (to the left of the BBC complex in Brades). The owner John was there and he told us he makes everything himself. We started with some pastries filled with chicken, veggies, beef or cheese and they were tasty. The ice cream was wonderful, made in his home. But best of all, we ended up talking to John for over an hour and hearing what it was like to live in Plymouth just before the volcano became active in 1995 and erupted in 1997. He really has had quite a life from sleeping in his car once he had to evacuate his home, to watching his home burn from the pyroclastic flow, to starting up his new business in Brades. He's leaving on vacation Thursday so we're sad we can't go back to visit some more.

Next, since we were in Brades and knew we'd be hungry later, we finally found Ashoks food store. (we've passed it about 4 times since yesterday and missed it each time). Turns out they make Indian food there so we ordered some for later tonight (and we highly recommend it - it was delicious). We had been told that this store has fresher food than some of the other stores. They told us how they've lived in Montserrat for a long time and built and expanded the store over the years. On the way back, we stocked up on ice cream for the freezer.

I have to add here that it's been raining since I started writing this and it has gotten louder and louder!!! I can feel the thunder now and we just lost electricity. Better get more wine!

Back to the report...

On the way back, we decided to try to find the restaurant Ziggy's because we want to go there later this week. We drove way up a hill dotted with potholes and hairpin curves and had a lovely conversation with the owner. They won't open for just 2 people so tomorrow and Wednesday aren't looking good, but they do have some reservations for Thursday.

We took the food home and finally time for the hike! This part of our day deserves its own title...

"NOW I KNOW WHY THEY CALL IT A RAIN FOREST!"

We've been wanting to go on the 'easy' hike to the Cot. This path goes up a long hill and through a banana plantation and to the ruins of a cottage. We stopped at the National Trust for directions and they mentioned that it might rain. It had already misted a bit so we thought we'd be OK under the trees and set off. We drove up part way and it was amazing how many ruts were in that road. Finally we parked and set off. We met a man carrying a machete on the way up. You have to imagine that back home, we'd be scared to death, but here it was just another way to have a discussion. He turned off into a field to unleash his goat and took off. We started out across the field when we noticed a few rain drops. We looked the dark grey clouds coming in and decided to start back, but too late! The rain started...in buckets. We were soaked through by the time we got back to the car! Driving back down the hill, those ruts were filled with torrential waves of water. Moral - what a Montserratian tells you it might rain...TAKE THEIR ADVICE!

So we are back and having wine ( good in any weather!) and the rain during our hike seems like nothing compared to what is happening now...wave after wave of ever increasing torrential rain, the worst rain storm I have even seen in my life. Seriously, constant lightning, thunder shaking the house and hungry kids (don't they ever think of anything else??!!) Our Indian food was eaten at RT - no microwave. But you know, we wanted a vacation without pressures of being somewhere all the time, without schedules and this is affording us the time to sit at home and relax! We all ate dinner and played games by candle light tonight and sat on the verandah watching two distant lightening storms battle it out. Beautiful!

So signing off for now! I’ll post when the electricity comes back on!

Oh Karen,It sounds so sceary on the plane in to Antigua,I hope our's is ok.Looking forward to the rest of your Report & thanks for putting me on to this site found out alot about Canada that I did'nt know.

Ok Karen. Im getting all the news from you Its Great to hear all about Monserrat,must be strange for you driving on the other side of the road,your son is very good taking the ferry that was a good idea.looking forward to hearing all the rest of your report.Christine.

Thanks for your help! Can't wait to see your pictures and read more. Yes, we want a place where there is nobody else around...I don't like sharing my beach...haha...

Jenifer - We stopped by Lime Kilm Beach today - black sand, small waves, no one there but us!

Hi Christine - we meet again! More report to come later. Had a great lunch today...and my first rum punch of the trip!

Oh Christine - I lived in Scotland for a year and we've been to Bermuda so driving on the other side isn't too bad for me! The worst part is the holes in the roads. My son just got home from a month in China and has done a lot of traveling with us so he took it all in stride. We talked about various scenarios (altho not that one) before we separated from him at the airport. At least he didn't have to go through the clouds. I'm sure your plane will be OK - that was just a (scary) fluke. The pilot had been trying to skirt some rain storms, but I guess eventually he had to go right through them.

Tuesday July 20

We decided to take a ride south today. We stopped at Lime Kiln Beach, a black sand beach with small waves at which we were the only people. We played in the water a bit and headed on south into Zone B.

The southern half of the island is called the Exclusion Zone and is permanently closed off due to the eruption in 1997. At the edges of this area are smaller areas denoted with letters: Zone A, Zone B, etc. There are big signs indicating which Zone you are entering. If there is serious volcanic activity, there may be evacuations of some of these various areas for safety of the inhabitants. All these areas are open now, and since we have reserved our villa, all have been open - we have been watching! Our villa is just outside of any of these zones; the closest food store is just within Zone A as are some restaurants we will be going to and many many other villas. For a more detailed explanation look up the Montserrat Volcano Observatory, www.mvo.ms

Anyway, as we entered Zone B and went further south we eventually encountered the Belham River Valley. The landscape became a bit more scrubby in places and the area seemed to be more isolated as we went further south. The Belham Valley is a wide swath of grey ash with dead trees in the middle. A sign at the side of the road stated that if the river was running, do not cross as serious flooding is possible. We turned around, not knowing if our car would get stuck in the mud or not after the tremendous rains of yesterday. It was our first taste of the fury of the volcano, especially when we noticed a seemingly pretty house across the other side of the valley. When we looked closer, we could see that the level of the ash flow was to the top of the roof of the verandah, with only the second floor visible. Reality set in. There was such devastation here and it was a sobering sight to see. It doesn't really hit you until you actually see it or talk to a resident, as the rest of the island seems so remote to this. I can't imagine what it would feel like to see the old capital, Plymouth, now covered with ash in the Exclusion Zone, or watch a house be engulfed by the pyroclastic flow. Anyway, we never did see a sign for Zone C.

We drove around this southern area for a bit, exploring, looking at other villas we had considered for our stay. Everyone we saw waved at us. Even other cars beeped out a greeting. Finally we headed for The Attic for lunch. It was wonderful as reviews promised. We had Roti, a curried chicken mixture in a folded up sort of thin tortilla, and a Quesidilla. Both were really good. My son had met someone on the ferry who recommended the Attic Burger and he spent the rest of the day raving about it. It was a burger with an egg, cucumber, bacon and it was big! If you are in Montserrat, try this place for lunch - you won't regret it!

We went back to the villa, spent the afternoon swimming (yea! a day with no rain), made dinner 'at home' and played games in the evening. As I drifted off to sleep, I was aware of a downpour once again, but it didn't drown out the crickets!

Thanks for to day's report.Remember the Guy from Ireland that gave me all the info on Monserrat?well he also gave me a map & I am following you round on this map.Lime Kiln Bay is near where we are staying,sounds like my sort of place,How was your First Rum punch? also did you buy your wine in Monserrat or did you bring it with you?The food sounds yummmmmmmmmmmy.I better start my diet tomorrow hhaha.well enjoy the rest of the hols.have fun.

Great report kwren, you're enjoying some serious limin'!

I 'fondly' remember the one and only time that I ate mountain chicken was on Monserrat.
If I'd realised at the time it was a large frog I'd have been horrified but I didn't find out exactly what I'd eaten until the next day.
Have you seen it on any menus? It's popular in Dominica too.

oops Montserrat.

Thanks Sassy - glad you're enjoying my report!

I haven't seen mountain chicken on a menu yet, but not every place has a menu! Ignoring the fact that it is frog, did you like it? I was thinking I would order it...and not tell the kids what it is! I'm on the lookout for goat water and found a place today that will serve it Friday or Saturday. (My husband made the mistake of telling the kids it was goat, but only one seemed to balk at that idea)

Christine - I thought you might be near there, but didn't see the house yesterday. I hope you are getting a car. No matter where you are, you'll need it. If your villa info page says you are near shops, it won't be what you are imagining.

I brought a couple of bottles of wine with me. We bought crackers here but they were almost inedible. Maybe you'd like to throw a box in when you come. The rum punch at the Attic was delicious. We were all set to make pina coladas at the villa - everything was in the blender - but it didn't work! The one appliance I talked about ahead of time! I just shook the heck out of it all and they were great anyway.

>>I just shook the heck out of it all and they were great anyway.<< Ha! You have the Caribbean vibe.

The mountain chicken tasted well, like chicken hence the name I guess...but there was only a tiny bit of it (yeah, once you know it's frog's legs you understand why!).
They were deep fried and served with dasheen and other island starch/veggies.
I really believed we'd been served a tiny chicken (not much bigger than a chick!).

Wed July 21

Not much going on today...just relaxing and eating!

Lunch: People's Place - no menu. the server just told us there was fish, chicken, a rice dish and roti, so we ordered one of each. The chicken and fish came with potato salad, salad, cole slaw and rice and beans. The roti was much bigger than the one yesterday at the Attic. Everything was delicious. They serve goat water on Fri and Sat so we may be back

Dinner: Ziggy's - the highlight of the day! If you want a fancy dinner, this is the place. Marcias and John own it and are as nice as can be. To make it romantic, request the voodoo room. It's surrounded on 3 sides by open walls, but completely surrounded by the outside plants. Add many tiny candles and what atmosphere. I had butterfly shrimp, steak in a sauce with roasted potatoes and veg, and chocolate sludge (a rich choc tort with choc ice cream and choc sauce. Yum!) While the chocolate dessert was absolutely delicious, my husband's ginger honey ice cream was to die for. If anyone goes, and if you like the flavor of real ginger, you HAVE to have this if it's available. (The boat bringing cream only arrives every other week so they don't always have ice cream) I never tasted anything like it. As a matter of fact, they gave me a big container to go!!!! I'll eat a bit every day for the rest of the trip. The best anniversary dinner!

Thurs, July 22

We woked up early today so we walked over to Runaway Ghaut and walked up the short path through the palms and other Caribbean foliage. We drank some of the water since the legend is that if you do so you will return to Montserrat. Once we got back, and since the kids were still asleep, we decided to drive to check out some other villas in the area which we had considered. We saw Nice Diggs and Inis Ealu and they both looked beautiful. Nice Diggs appears to be out of the Zones and Inis in Zone A. We could imagine coming back without kids and if so, would need a smaller place, although I would give anythihng to stay here again - can't get much better than this villa. If anyone would like info on either, let me know.

All that driving makes one thirsty so we went on our first official "limin' " stop at Desert Storm. Limin' = drinkin' and chattin' with the locals. I had to twist my husband's arm since it was 9:30 am (!) I asked if we were the first drinkers of the day and Miga, the owner, laughed and said no way. He gave us some island tips, we bought a watermelon next door, which was more expensive than the drinks, stopped at the food store - no more milk coming in until next week - and went back to the villa.

The weather is improving - lots of blue sky for the first time!!!
More later.

Thanks for the Tip on the crackers,Im glad you had a happy Anniversary,I remember you telling me it was in July.The food all sounds lovely.Im not mad into deserts but for anyone that is they sound devine.I won't have to twist my Husband's arm to go Limin at 9.30am haha it must be the Irish in us,some things just naver change.What price are the drinks & food,?glad the weather is improving.I won't be back on to you till Monday so enjoy.

Thurs July 22 cont

We went to the Woodlands Beach to go snorkeling before lunch. It wasn't the best snorkeling, but we did see lots of small colorful fish anywhere where the coral was yellow. Guess why we left...it started pouring! We went to the villa, got changed and went for lunch at Wilson's Chicken. I don't know if they served anything but fried chicken and fries ("chips"), but it was fresh and delicious. (15 EC per plate, 5EC for a big glass of fruit punch or tamarind punch) The rain intensified so much that on the way back we noticed wash-outs, mud and rocks covering the roads. Be careful driving here - seeing large rocks on the edges of the roads is not unusual.

Christine - to answer the question about cost of food...Ziggy's was the most expensive place here so far. The steak was the most expensive meal at 90 EC, appetizers 20-30, desserts 20 EC and a glass of wine 20 EC. The meals at People's Place were 25 EC. At the Attic, burgers were about 12 - 16 EC, the quesadilla was the most expensive at 40. In the food stores, a box of cereal is about 12-15 EC, a loaf of bread is 5 EC , a small jar of PB is almost 11 EC. We're going through our money like water (excuse the pun!)

Have a good weekend Christine - I'll miss you!

Excellent trip report. Never been to Montserrat & always wanted to go. Thanks for sharing your trip.

Hi Carrybean - thanks! Go if you can - it's really beautiful and so relaxing!

Friday, July 23

FINALLY! A sunny day! Give us some sun and we’ll make the most of it.

We left fairly early to go to the Green Monkey Dive Shop to rent kayaks for the 5 of us: 15 EC per hour for a double and 10 for a single. As promised, it took about 15 minutes to paddle around the promontory to Rendezvous Beach, the only white sand beach on the island. We were the only people on this beautiful long stretch of beach. We had brought enough snorkeling gear for 2 of us and rented for the 3rd (10 EC for the day) and set out for the rocks at the base of the cliffs. While our 2 youngest stayed on the beach to build wonderful coral and shell-decorated sand castles, the other 3 of us went snorkeling. We saw lots of pretty fish in yellow, black and /or white stripes, bright blues, aquas, dotted cube-shaped fish, and more. I saw a few clumps of coral just covered with sea urchins, but the most unusual for me was the huge loggerhead sea turtle. He watched me warily, then took off faster than I would have imagined possible. A great snorkel trip.

After that, of course we needed a drink so it was sodas for everyone at the Monkey Bar…except me. I had to try the rum punch – yum! Little Bay is where the new government buildings are being erected and the bad news is that the Green Monkey is being evicted January of next year to make way for more modern buildings. They are so upset about this and may just move back to the US as so far there is no where else for them to go. If so, what a loss for the island! They organize all sorts of water sports including boat trips to see the devastation of Plymouth, the old capital covered by volcanic ash, and dive trips.

Next it was lunch time, so we headed for the Food Fair of the Calabesh Festival held at the Lyme (a large bar). Island music and food booths around the bar were crowded with island people, kids hoola-hooping and some people dressed in some sort of old Montserrat dress covered with long bright ribbons. The kids got some chicken lunches, mango-banana smoothies and a coconut; my husband and I had pina coladas. We hoped to see some sort of dance demo, but other than them milling around for a long time, nothing seemed to be imminent so we finally left in search of some goat water, the national dish, which we finally found at the People’s Place.

Goat water is a goat meat stew in gravy. We couldn’t place the seasoning and were surprised to hear that it was clove and thyme along with what we would consider more typical ingredients. The goat meat was very good, while the sauce took some getting used to, but we’re glad we tried it.

After that, we went to the ATM and then took the long bumpy ride to Jack Boy Hill, a high point of the island perfect for viewing the old airport and surrounding area, all covered with ash, and the volcano. It was amazing that we saw so many goats on the way up – no houses, no people, just lots of goats mostly running around free, but on occasion tied up. Once at the viewing facility (amazingly modern and well-tended in the middle of all those broken up roads), the lush foliage around us was a stark contrast to the ash covered distant fields of what we thought were huge rocks in a field of grey. When we looked closer, we determined that most of the “rocks” were actually buildings. What a great loss for so many people. The old airport was covered up as well, but we had trouble making that out. We waited there for a while hoping that the clouds would move on and uncover the top of the volcano, but that was not to be. We could however, see many vents from which steam was exiting the volcano in bursts. The ride up had been rough with many enormous potholes and some small rock slides covering small parts of the roads in desolate terrain with some great views of the ocean (luckily we were the only car around as we weaved back and forth across the road to avoid destroying the car!), but the ride back was even more harrowing. We took the main road going through the center of the island instead of the northern road, wrapping around hills and through valleys and wondered how we could be on a two-way road when it was only about the width of our car. Thankfully we didn’t meet another car while winding through the jungle, as the right side of the road often plunged straight down from the road side. We finally got to “our’ side of the island and back on the road to our villa.

We sat on the verandah with wine and cheese, took a nap, and were called outside by our 20 year old who was intent on finding wildlife with his flashlight. And find it he did! We were called to witness his tarantula and 1 inch frog! (Guess which I preferred…ewwwww!) It was enough to drive my husband and me back to Little Bay for some limin’!

We went to Soca Cabana to listen to the music. It turned out to be a local band who played Calypso music to the (extremely loud) beat played by a keyboard. Despite not being able to hear what anyone was saying, and getting tequila shooters instead of the ordered rum punch (I told you it was loud!) we enjoyed ourselves. We tried to go to the Monkey Bar for a quieter drink, but it had just closed. Driving home on these dark, rock-strewn, twisty roads was something else!

Saturday, July 24

Wow! Another beautiful day (defined as partly cloudy with 30% chance of rain on 3 weather sites)

We've been wanting to go on a boat ride past Plymouth all week, but now that the weather has improved it seems that everyone else here has had the same idea. The Green Monkey trips were full for today, and we didn't want to chance waiting for Monday when they had room, but luckily, a couple of locals recommended a guy named Hubert (cell 492-1570 or 491-7585 in case anyone else is in this predicament). We contacted him and he said to be at the dock at 10:00. That must have been Caribbean time because at 10:20, he drove by in the front part of an 18-wheeler and said he'd be right back with the boat. We waited, a bit nervously I have to admit, but he came back with nice speed boat and quickly backed it down the boat ramp and off we went. "Buffy" (pronounced Boo-fee) and his 2 sons were very nice, told us all sorts of anecdotes about life on the island, and told us we could do whatever we liked for our tour...stop at any sight, swim, fish, go all the way around the island, whatever, for the same price as the Green Monkey trip. We went down the coast, passing our villa, and when we rounded the promontory at Plymouth, we could smell the sulfur from the vapors being vented from the volcano. Everything was a soft grey and he pointed out that a 3 story building we were looking at had actually been 5 stories. He also told us that an ice cream shop he used to work in was completely covered over. There were hundreds of homes on the hillsides on either side of the lahars (hot mudflows/pyroclastic flows) - all terrible losses for the previous owners. His father used to live in one of them that had been covered. We had no idea that it had been such a developed area.

We continued on to the southernmost point of the island, but the wind whipped up and the waves were huge so we couldn't go around the island. He did let out the lines to see if we could catch a barricuda, but no luck. (He was bummed!) We sped back up along the coast throwing up huge spray along the boat and bouncing across the tops of the waves until we approached a small fishing boat with 2 men fishing. They showed us the red snapper they had been catching and Buffy let out the lines again to see if we could catch anything. No luck again. We continued on to the northernmost point of the island where again it was too windy to go on around. The landscape up here was just ragged cliffs, but still pretty. We tried some more fishing to no avail and headed back south to Rendezvous Beach (no on was on the beautiful stretch of white sand), but we didn't have our bathing suits (terrible oversight) so we didn't swim.

We got back to the port after being out for 4 1/2 hours. I think the trip lasted longer than usual - he does take tourists out on a regular basis - because it was a matter of pride that he catch a fish, embarrassing in front of friends and family if he didn't. We could have stopped the fishing at any time, but didn't since we were enjoying the day on the boat. Even though we didn't catch any fish, this trip was quite the bargain. I had researched deep sea fishing trips out of Montserrat and they were about $400 for the day. We got that for free with our Plymouth trip (although we didn't go out as far out as the fishing trip would have). When we got back, Hubert said he'd arrange for us to get some of the fish from the fishermen, but we didn't think too much about that at that time.

For lunch, we stopped at Tina's for sandwiches, which were good, and yummy pumpkin soup - really delicious - and ordered some pizza to be picked up in the evening. Tina's seems to be known for her pizza so we looked forward to that. We went home, swam, rested, and then we were off to the Music Festival finishing up the Calabash Festival of this week. This concert turned out to be a talent show for the locals. There were some unprofessional acts, shall we say, in the beginning, but later some excellent acts took the stage. We particularly liked the steel drum band of about 20 people, and some singers, and other acts. We left after 2 hours, picked up our pizza and headed home.

The pizza was all I had hoped for - delicious crust, homemade sauce and a variety of toppings!

Random thoughts - there are goats, chickens, roosters, and lizards, some huge, everywhere on this island. The roosters cock-a-doodle-doo to each other all day. Each time that we get home, there is a big frog sitting in the middle of our driveway. My son has a little gecko who visits his patio each evening. Little green lizards sometimes visit us in our bedroom. Cats chase lizards for fun, boys chase iguanas! There are lots of hairpin curves here. The sides of the roads sometimes have deep cement gullies running along them to channel the torrents of rainwater - be careful driving so you don't run into one of them. You'd need a tow truck to get out! The tiniest shack selling vegetables could surprise you and have a computerized inventory system inside (we saw that once today and is shocked us) Flowers are everywhere, and the locals will always stop to chat if you are so inclined.

I love these stories...I think my hubby and I have decided on Montserrat for our vacation next summer...there are some great values, it seems, on villas. Can you get me an email on yours...the email attached to the website doesn't work.

It seems perfect to us...a few nice beaches, remote and isolated. Just what we like...

You won't be disappointed as long as you know it could be cloudy (it didn't matter to us in this gorgeous villa as you may have gathered) and don't need night life or shopping. For info on our villa, write to Mike at mfcav01@verizon.net
Please tell him you read about it in my trip report on the Internet - he'll be happy!
If you decide to book it, I can give you even more info than I'm putting in here!

Sunday, July 26

I just realized we leave in 2 days so it's time for some serious down time.

However, we woke to honking outside so we went to see what the commotion was. It was Hubert from yesterday's boat trip bringing us the fresh red snapper he promised! Not only did he bring us fish, but he scaled, gutted and cut off the sharp fins for us. Hmmm...does this mean I have to cook???

Oh wait, laundry first! *sarcasm intended* (If I have to do laundry, I might as well do it in the Caribbean!) Clothing in, soap in, pull out the button, and...nothing! Power out again.

The kids were still asleep so my husband and I went on a run for money and Cokes. We found out that the electricity was scheduled to go out for a few hours for some maintenance. It was announced on the radio, but we're tourists - we swim and drink - no radio for us! Anyway, getting into our daily a.m. rum and Coke routine on our balcony wasn't too hard to do. A bit of swimming after that and the troops were hungry, so off we went to Gourmet Gardens .

We've tried to eat at Gourmet Gardens a few times because quite a few people have recommended it, but it's always been closed. Today we hit the jackpot, but since the power was out, the owner (from Holland) was a bit limited in what she could do for us because she couldn't defrost things quickly. We ordered salads and not only were they out of this world, they were beautiful. They had some slaw, potato salad, grapes, brie (!) and other things. I also ordered some pumpkin soup and it was the best I've ever had. We asked her about her wiener schnitzel - I had read some rave reviews about that too - and she said she sold her last one last night. She said that she only gets the ingredients in every so often and when the locals hear she has it, they all come buy it up. If anyone tries it, please leave me a comment about how it is!

If I had time, I would definitely go back to this restaurant, just south of the Attic on the other side of the road. It's a pretty pink building with a big porch set back off the street. If you go on a Sunday for lunch, be prepared to wait - the owner is the only one working there in the low season, but it was worth the wait. The kids were entertained by all the chickens, roosters and chicks running around, but it's there that we saw the biggest iguana of the trip saunter by. Cool striped tail!

More swimming, did the laundry (couldn't they leave the electricity off a bit longer?) and just relaxed until our red snapper dinner on the verandah.

*Oops, make that Sunday, July 25 up above!

I used that email to ask questions and it came back to me...it said "remote host said not our customer." Maybe it's something on his end - I used the link off the website. I've tried twice and both times got the same message...I don't know if you have any way of letting him know..

Your trip sounds amazing...nope, we could care less about the nightlife. We use these vacations during the summer (while the kids are at camp) to just be together..haha...

I can't wait to see the pictures when you get back. I am interested in the beaches mostly. I don't need a bunch - just a few nice ones..

We went to St. Barth three years ago and it was wonderful. We rented a villa and were on the beaches most of the time, all alone. I wouldn't want to travel there in the busy season. June is great...

The beaches here are not the gorgeous beaches you might find where there are huge resorts (there's a reason the resorts are near those beaches), but they are sandy - black or white sand - and you will probably be alone. The white sand one is the best one we have seen here, but we haven't been to them all.
Here are notes I gathered from my research:
Lime Kiln Beach - secluded, has a faucet to wash the sand off your feet,
Woodland Beach has a changing room (although I didn't go in), outdoor shower, picnic area, water can be rough, has some snorkeling and it looks like it has a food stand, but it was boarded up. (maybe open high season???)
Rendezvous - white sand beach, hike or kayak to it, no facilities, very good snorkeling
Bunkum Bay Beach (we didn't make it there) - beach bar with great wahoo and pizza
I did take pictures of the ones we went to so you can be the judge.

If you like pools, you can't beat this one...and the view!

I've emailed Mike at that address all along, so it's probably his server. Are you in the US? He lives near Phildelphia - I got this number off a rental site: 215 643-3423 I think it must be his home number. He won't mind you calling - I did and he was willing to answer all my questions.
Some of the things are different here now than in some of the pictures...better now! You'll see my pix and decide.

You're a huge help! Thanks!! Looking forward to pics...as long as there is some sand and that gorgeous Caribbean water, we are good....

Enjoy the rest of your trip!

We saw that gorgeous Caribbean water Saturday from the eastern side of the island when we went up Jack Boy Hill and at Rendezvous Beach from the boat. Boy, did I want to get out and swim! I don't know if the rains churning everything up on a daily basis are responsible for not seeing much of that Caribbean blue this week. We enjoyed it anyway!

The little island we see from our balcony is Redondo, not Nevis as I originally said. Redondo is uninhabited and I hear some people (not us) go there for snorkeling.

Hhoooooooooooooooooo What a lovely Monday morning read who wants morning papers when i have all this to read,well Karen you sound like you are realy enjoying yourselfs Im so glad the weather picked up for you's.Thanks for the prices it looks like your Dollar is worth less then our Euro.seems prices are like here in some things,could not figer what p/b was was till my husband told me thats some thing we dont use.I read something about the Green monkey closeing down that would be a sad thing if that happens.Your realy getting in to the swing of things with your Rum & Coke, Pina colada, We were in Cuba a few years ago & the Pina Colada was the best i ever had,I hope I can say Monserrat are better, What price would you pay for Rum & coke? Do you know how much Beer is?I have heard Tina's is lovely for food glad you approve,Have you been to the Royal Palm ? or Olveston House Sir George Martin has his Recording stidio, Its also a Restaurant,Can't belive your on the last few days of your holidays I hope you get to see the Volcano without cloud.looking forward to the photos.We have only 6 weeks left can't wait.Enjoy the rest of your time there.Christine

Off to the MVO now. It's my son's 21st B'day today so we're going to the Olveston House for dinner. I'll let you know how it is...English fare is what I'm told so maybe you've had enough of that!!! LOL

Tell your Son Kevin We wish him a very happy 21st Birthday,I hope he has a lovely day.21st Birthday's are a big affair here in Ireland,im not sure how much its ment in the states,except he can now drink legaley.so he can go Limin with you & his dad,lol.Enjoy you night.

Haha! We gave him a bottle of champagne already and it's gone...well, we helped. It's definitely a big deal for us in the US so we'll be buying him his first "official" drink tonight! I'll pass your good wishes along to him - thanks!

Karen,
Your trip report brings back lots of fond memories. My wife and daughter and I vacationed on Montserrat for 9 days in March of 1996, just before the first major eruption. We are now frequent visitors to Anguilla, who I always say are the friendliest people that I have ever encountered, with the exception being the warm, gentle people of Montserrat. We rented a cute litle 2 bedroom villa called Tropicasa on Lime Kiln Beach Road in Olveston. I've often wondered if it survived the devastation. Do you know which zone that would be in? It was near Gourmet Gardens. We made several trips there for some wonderful frozen gourmet dinners which we ate poolside at our villa. We also had lovely dinners at Ziggy's and the Belham Valley Hotel. I assume that Ziggy's has moved to a different location, since their original location was south of the Belham Valley Hotel. We are really beach people, but we knew going in that the Montserrat beaches were not the highlight, so we spent mornings exploring the island, including hiking up to the waterfall at the base of the volcano, and then afternoons lounging by our pool gazing at the Caribbean.

jenifer - I just remembered that Mike is coming down here Wednesday, just in case you want to talk to him quickly.

jmitch - I saw Tropicasa online before booking our villa and agree it's adorable. As a matter of fact, we drove around to see various villas we had considered and I may have seen Tropicasa, but wasn't sure. I never did find a map of that villa's location. We pass a Zone A sign before we get to Gourmet Gardens. There are signs for Zone B just south of Lime Kiln so Tropicasa could be in A or B. I did notice that when I was calling about various villas, the ones farther south advertise that they aren't in the Exclusion Zone, but that only means that they are not in the area which is off-limits to everyone. The question to ask is what Zone they are in, A, B or C - that affects the evacuation schedule if it were to happen. There were a couple of people who really didn't want to answer that one for me, so if you are looking to rent and if a certain Zone would bother you, be sure to get that info.

Ziggy's is now north of the Woodlands, up a hill reached by a road with those sharp turns. It's about 4 rooms in the jungle with an outdoor, but modern bathroom. Going south from Brades, we now say, turn left at the second mirror! and take the second right up the hill. It's at the second S-curve and the sign is hard to see in the daylight, but is slightly lit up at night. (I'm putting these directions since some people couldn't find it)

I guess you can't hike to the waterfall at the base of the volcano now! We briefly considered Anguilla - is it as expensive as I have read?

Sounds like your vacation was like ours. We've been in the pool all afternoon, not wanting to pack to leave tomorrow.

Christine - we paid 6EC for a small rum and coke at Desert Storm (a tiny rum shop/bar) on the way to the MVO. We aren't big beer drinkers so I'm not sure of those prices, but maybe I'll see tonight.

Didn't get to the Royal Palm and didn't see the volcano without clouds, but since it is venting steam, we are told it makes its own weather and usually has clouds under these conditions.

I'm so glad you're enjoying my trip report - I bet you can hardly wait till you get here in September now!!!

Monday, July 26

Our last day

We finally made the time to go to the MVO - Montserrat Volcano Observatory
It cost 10EC per person and I highly recommend going just to see the documentary. (I also recommend asking if the movie is being shown - someone we talked to paid the price, but the movie wasn't working and they wouldn't refund the money.) There are a few posters to look at, as well as a good view of the volcano from outside, but the movie is the best part - very informative!

Got home to start the birthday celebration with a bottle of champagne and a coconut tart (after all, my son did spend most of the vacation trying to get a coconut out of our tree!) Made lunch after that and spent the afternoon swimming and sunning.

We had reservations at the Olveston House for dinner and it was delicious. They remembered that we made the reservation not only to have a great last dinner, but also to celebrate #21 and they greeted my son with a rousing 'Happy Birthday' as soon as we arrived. I have to say the food was delicious! We had rum punches, pina colada, and margueritas, pumpkin soup and garlic shrimp cocktail, and for the main courses, tilapia with orange garlic sauce, steak with onions and mushrooms and chicken with creamy blue cheese sauce and fettucini. All was sooooo good. The big surprise was that they brought my son a chocolate cake on the house - enough for all of us. He was so pleased! Definite recommendation for a nice dinner!

Back 'home' to start packing

Im SO glad you had a lovely day & Night for you Son's 21st & your last day,can't belive your going home & your 10 days are over,Im going to miss reading your Blog every day.Yes I Can't wait to go now listing to all thats going on,your Villa sounded lovely I hope our's will be as nice. One more thing did you get the Shamrock stamped on your passport? Thanks for all the TIPS,Please stay in touch through Face Book,& have a safe journey home to you & your Family.Christine.xxx

Christine - Don't forget to write your trip report in September! I'll want to follow along with you too! I'll have one more entry when I get home if anything interesting happens. Where should you and I go next year to follow along?! Haha!

If you like Indian food, Ashoks food store in Brades makes it up fresh and it's really good. If you can't find something open on Sunday night, they are. We had chicken saag, curry chicken, vegetable briyani and naan. Delicious! The fish meal wasn't as much of a favorite with my family, but it was like little fish roti or soft taco that you wrap up yourself.

The food store closest to you is Ram's, but just yesterday we found a nicer one called Norman's on the left just before the pharmacy and before you hit the banks going into Brades. Everything looked really clean and the owner had a computerized system. We wish we had noticed this one sooner - we would have done all our shopping there.

The pina coladas at Olveston House were 15EC, run punch 12EC.

Karen,
Anguilla is generally a pretty expensive island. However, after six trips, we have found some moderately priced places to stay, right on the beach, that run about 200 to 250 per night (off-season) for a one bedroom suite/condo type setup. To me that is pretty reasonable and the beaches are unbelievable. Lots of cool beach bars to go visit during the day, with bands playing on weekends. Restaurants are for the most part quite expensive and really excellent, but again there are moderate options, there are local, inexpensive bbq places and you can get prepated things to eat on you balcony, or pizza for tha matter. So it doesn't have to be a wallet buster. Not sure if I'm allowed to say this, but Trip Advisor has a great Anguilla forum.

Tuesday, July 27

Hard to believe that it's all over. The good news is that all 3 of our flight had NO problems! As a matter of fact, they were all early! The view of the island was beautiful as we left, and true to form, the volcano summit was covered with that steam/cloud mixture.

I'll try to figure out how to add pictures. I put pix on the Kodak site for a trip report from 2006, but when I went to give the site to someone who wanted to see them last month, they weren't there any more. I don't want to spend all that time downloading to have them disappear. If anyone has a suggestions for me, please let me know!

I'm glad you all enjoyed my report.

jenifer - were you able to reach Mike?

This report and discussion is a milestone in post-2000 tourism on Montserrat because, at last, we are getting away from the standard brief accounts offered every few months by professional travel writers, all saying essentially; “Not a bad little place for a brief drop-in, with about 3 places to eat/drink/stay and virtually nothing to do”. Monty is not about doing – it’s about being, and still harbours echoes of the Beatles, Stones, Sting, Ossie, Elton and the rest. Some of the locals who knew them (in both senses of that word!) are still around and happy to tell you things about them you never dreamed of. I’ll put a hot link to this discussion onto the “tourism” page of my website (last updated in June) about the volcano etc at http://www.montserratvolcano.org/Visitors1.htm
The alternatives next year to the Green Monkey boating setup is news to me but does not replace their superb snorkelling and scuba trips, culminating at Redonda where you can dive with sharks, if you’re good enough. Serious mountain hiking in the tropical forests is the main attraction on land and the new wildlife guidebook is a “must” from the tourism office. The only beach that’s really good is Rendezvous but this will become harder to visit if the kayaks go. The walk is only for those who like hiking but otherwise fine. No water or facilities of any kind there – just one local and his wife hidden away on the hillside. With luck you get it to yourselves and then it’s the ultimate place for skinny dipping, but beware of the tropical sun! Turtle tracks on the beach tell you who lay their eggs here sometimes.
Kwren’s comments about shopping, food etc prompt me to suggest that the perfect way to enjoy the place would be to forget everything imported (hence expensive and often in an iffy state) and try to live there like the old days. Therefore no cereals. Instead potato cakes/fish/goat/local green vegetables and fruit (both fantastic!!)/UHT milk as your sole concession to the outside world. Drink fruit juice, with or without rum, and smoke ganga or home-grown tobacco, if you must. There was never enough space for rice growing and remember that these people are almost all partly Irish (hence the spuds).
Here are some random thoughts: (1) See my website for photos in and from the small plane; (2) The global speed limit is only 20 MPH and so driving is easy for all, but beware of drunks and idiots as always; (4) A 4x4 is a necessity for transport because roads range up in difficulty to Garibaldi Hill, which is quite fierce; (5) There are botanical gems to see in the gardens behind the Natural Trust offices in Woodlands; (6) US folk are fine for local cellular phoning there but Europeans do best to buy a local PAYG phone from Lime’s office (a shack-like place near the airport) – Lime’s excellent coverage is a big new plus for visitors, as well as locals. (7) Probably forget crossing the Belham Valley in summer, when the rains come (see my website for what may greet you there!).(8) Visit Olveston House to see the heartbreakingly poignant photos on the corridor walls by young Linda Easton McCartney of John, George and her Paul.

Whoops! I forgot yesterday to explain that a fungal disease has recently reduced the mountain chicken frog to critically endangered status worldwide. It's as much off the menu on Monty as panda! Likewise in its only other island home, Dominica. Other culinary points are: (1) I forgot local cassava bread -- no maize for tortillas but amazonian cassava (manioca)instead. (2) Montserratians eat the relatively-small sea fish, such as kingfish, whilst Dominicans favour huge and very politically-incorrect "fish" like tuna, wahoo, marlin and dolphins (no, I haven't tried one but they are fellow carnivores and so maybe fair game where abundant ........ discuss!).

can't avoid everything imported when 3 kids are tagging along, but hey, the locals eat cereal too! The local fruit was delicious, but I didn't see goat for sale where I shopped! There are lots of goats running around free, but I think I'll not consider that for dinner - probably hard to catch

We were only offered a RAV 4 or Jeep as a rental and the RAV 4 did just fine everywhere we went - that thing was built like a tank. When renting, you might ask if you need the Jeep to go up Garibaldi Hill if you think you might do that. I don't know if the Rav would make that or not since we didn't go there. Jack Boy Hill and the MVO trips didn't need a jeep and gave fine views of the volcano.

Driving is easy, but be careful of the locals on the hairpin curves - they sometimes were in the middle of the road bearing down on us and they had to swerve out of the way. (We were already hugging our side of the road)

Pictures coming soon!

Hi, My breakfast thoughts were strictly for ageing hippies and environmentalists, like me! The real world eats cereals and grumbles about the prices. Yes, no sign of goat meat in the shops but doubtless easily available by asking around. The only essential 4x4 track is the top part of Garibaldi Hill (no problem in a jeep etc) and crossing Belham River bed in wet weather (definitely NOT for people unused to canyon driving elsewhere -- I was a field geologist in SW USA, Brazil, Paraguay, Namibia etc). The track up into the Silver Hills also looks fierce from below but I've never tried it.

You could follow the MVO system and put your photos on Flickr

The river was only a trickle, but that mud looked deep, and the sign was scary! No way we would have tried crossing the river...especially after all those rains. We were told it could flood up very quickly!

Grumble we did about those prices!!!

The experts say that, after roads, water is the greatest cause of accidental death for geologists. I've had potentially fatal incidents with flash flooding in the deserts of southern New Mexico. It least Montserrat is small enough for the storm that triggers the flood to be within sight and/or earshot. But it's still best not to be there. Try the winter months next time but then the sea is a bit rough for months after the hurricane season.

By the way, big bags of frozen prawns are relatively cheap and delicious in a local-style sauce. Also the small shop with the super vedge at the top of Brades hill is Jamaican-owned and sells excellent Jamaican juices in cartons.

Here are my first photos - I hope they come up:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=188195&id=627765993

Part 2 of my photos:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4819919&id=627765993&ref=album

Those interested can see amazing photos by Greg Scott, the helicopter pilot who flys MVO staff, just after the huge 11 Feb eruption this year. http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=208850&id=595347673

Thank you for the tip on Super Vedge At top of Brades hill,Looking forward to our trip in Sept,.

What is a super vedge? what did we miss?

I'm old and English enough occasionally to use "super" to mean nice. Sometime soon I must try to enter the second half of last century! The shop I had in mind is on the left at the top of Brades Hill when coming from Woodlands etc and always has a tempting display of vedge outside, including green bananas, yams, sweet potato, dasheen, ocra and many more. Their interesting carton fruit juices are at the front on the right and deliceous cheap rum is very near. After that it's just a matter of trying to remember your way home!

I guess you can tell I'm from the US in that case! It would have been a good stop, but luckily we found lots of rum anyway, and the juice sounds good for another trip! thanks for explaining

kwren,
Glad you enjoyed Montserrat. I am from London Canada, and have been visiting Montserrat for 6 yrs. now. Min. twice a year. It is a very special place. I only tell friends about it. It is a very well kept secret! I'm moving there full time this fall. Hope you make it back soon. Next time you go check out Gary's Rum Shack. It's a favourite of the locals. Canadians, Americans, Brits, Aussies etc.

GREAT FUN!

I enjoyed reading all the entries about your trip and the comments that followed.. my partner and I are blessed to have a villa in Olveston (which is in the safe zone) and spend our winters there. It takes me two weeks to adjust to the "land of too much" when we return and I truly believe I always leave a piece of me back on island. Reading your blog put me right back home. Our first year there I kept a small blog of our trip which can be found at www.barefoot-villa.blogspot.com if anyone is interested.. Food can be a challenge, however, the longer we are there, the more I learned to create from very little. My recipe section helps me remember how creative I can be each time I return.

Montserrat is certainly for those who don't need a lot of entertainment and yet there is more than enough if you just know where to look. It makes the journey so much more interesting... and so much more to share...

Thanks so much for sharing your adventures ..

Karen, I was never able to get ahold of him. I keep getting that same reply back when I email him...

Your pictures were GREAT! I believe they made our decision - we will be heading ot Montserrat in June...I am so very excited. Now, to find a place to stay...

Wow! That's exciting! You will love it!

I've been writing to Mike for the past few days and haven't had any problem. If you want me to pass along any info, I'd be glad to do that.

Lindawojcik's comment reminds me that we were shown a copy of a book of Montserrat recipes when we visited in 2007. This was at least 50 pages long and showed how exclusively local ingredients could be used to make a wonderful selection of dishes. Incidentally, avocados are Amazonian forest trees and therefore grow wild on Montserrat. The joy of Caribbean island rain forests is that they contain both the south American wild fruit trees AND such treats as coconuts, mangos and breadfruit brought into the area to help the slaves get a decent diet. Captain Blight (of Mutiny on the Bounty fame) was one of the greatest of these food tree gatherers and the mutiny unjustifiably dominates his reputation as a major figure in European exploration of the SW Pacific.

Hi Jenifer - I have a few things to tell you, but think they will get off the track of this post and don't know how to find you otherwise. Probably neither of us want to post our email info here so if you are interested, you could go to tripadvisor's forum page (search for forum - I don't know the direct way to get to it), go to Europe, Switzerland, then Wengen and find me under the most recent rail pass question today at 8:20 am. You could send me a private message through that forum. I can't find a way to send a private message on Fodors. Talk to you later!

bobthompson's mention of avocados brings me back to hikes in the rainforests where we would collect bananas, mangos, lemons, cashews, papayas... never did we see an avocado tree... although we were told there was one on island that was known about, yet kept secret. Bill and I have planted an avocado tree on our property.. not sure when or if we will ever see the day that we may be able to harvest from it... and the mango tree on our property is from the finest of the crops... yet we never get to taste its fruit.. it ripens after we leave.. so sad...

I don't think I mentioned that you can also buy T-shirts at the Montserrat Volcano Observatory. They have the MVO logo on them, come in lots of bright colors and cost 40 EC. The only thing is that you have to ask to see them - they're in a back room.

By the way, don't think about getting carried away and cooking and eating the frog photographed by kwren; it's a cane toad and therefore poisonous! But, like all poisonous species, they are very relaxed around potential predators.

This photo of the real mountain chicken appeared today, as if we'd asked to see it! http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4898356&id=277881484759

I never did see mountain chicken on a menu while I was there! Anyone know where to get it (although it's too late for me!)?

See my August 1 post above, sad to say. They have build a small biosecure "arc" in the Roseau botanical garden on Dominica, in case the species is reduced to only a few members. It's a sad reminder of how vulnerable we ALL are to new diseases.

Oops: ark, as in Noah's ark! Double-shell surround with high wire-mesh fencing and barbed top strands etc.