September 1, 2010
Les Saintes
The Saints are a small chain of islets part of the archipelago of Guadeloupe
The islands are known as “Los Santos” by Christopher Columbus in honor of the feast of All Saints.
Les Saintes Overview
* Location : Terre-de-Bas is situated approximately three kilometres from Terre-de-Haut. It is a round-shaped island, smaller and richer in flora and fauna than neighbouring Terre-de-Haut.
* Surface area : : Terre-de-Haut is six kilometres long and three kilometres wide at its largest point. An irregularly shaped island, rendered uneven by coves, sharp points and extinct volcanoes ranging from 40 to 300 meters. Its earth is unfertile.
* Highest point : le Chameau (the Camel), whose “hump” culminates at 308m.
* Climate : the same as that of Guadeloupe. The dry season between January and April is followed by a more humid and showery “winter” from July to November. Rains are scarce and average temperatures remain around 25 ° C, ensured by trade winds.
* Population : The total number of inhabitants on Terre-de-Haut and Terre-de-Bar is 3260.
The first settlers came in 1648. The islands are of military significance, because of their strategic position and August 15, 1666, the French fleet was victorious English. It has since become the day of commemoration of the Holy.
On April 12, 1782, the English took possession of the islands, after a naval battle in the channel of Saintes, the islands remain British until 1816 when they finally become French.
On December 7, 2003, the Saints, integrated department of Guadeloupe, participate in the referendum on the institutional evolution of the overseas territories and reject it by a “no” vast majority. The small archipelago aspires to a statutory evolution of islands like St. Martin and St. Barthelemy in the overseas community to better take into account its geographical and economic.
On November 21, 2004, the islands of Saintes are hit by an earthquake reaching 6.3 on the Richter scale that will cause substantial damage to property. No casualties counted. In 2009 the archipelago of the Saintes is not affected by 44 days of paralysis resulting socio-economic claims and blockades led by LKP (Lyannaj kont pwofitacyon) in Guadeloupe. In April, Nicolas Sarkozy opened the States General of the Overseas Territories in Guadeloupe, many workshops, including workshop governance is proposing a statutory autonomous evolution of the island and its dependencies last. In parallel, the Saints have themselves expressed their draft statutory evolution in overseas collectivity (COM) in Article 74 of the constitution separate from Guadeloupe. Like former outbuildings north of St. Barthelemy and St. Martin, Les Saintes want to leave this “archipelago administrative” Guadeloupe composed by the State. These projects are on hold referendums referendums by the peoples concerned.
Marie-Galante
Marie-Galante is an island of the Caribbean Sea located in the Guadeloupean archipelago. Marie-Galante is constitutionally part of France, as Guadeloupe is an overseas région and département.
The island of Marie-Galante has a land area of 158 km² (61 sq. miles), and a population of 12,009 inhabitants at the 2006 census (down from 16,341 inhabitants at the 1961 census). The population density in 2006 was 76 inh. per km².
Marie-Galante is divided in three communes: Grand-Bourg (5,707 inhabitants), Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante (3,469 inhabitants), and Saint-Louis (2,833 inhabitants).
With an area of 158.01 km² (61.01 sq mi), the island comprises three communes with a combined 1999 census population of 12,488 inhabitants. The island is more commonly known as “La grande galette” (Big Cookie) due to its round shape and almost flat surface (its highest peak, the hill Morne Constant, rises to 670 ft). Once counting over 106 sugar mills, it is also called the “Island of a hundred windmills”, or the “Grande dependence” (the biggest island depending on Guadeloupe). The island is undulating substrate calcareous, fanned by the trade winds and subject to cyclones and earthquakes.
The northern coast is characterized by a high cliff. A fault called the “Bar” separates the northern quarter from the remainder of the island. To the west beaches and mangroves extend along the Caribbean Sea. The rivers of Saint-Louis and the Vieux-Fort run out there after having crossed the insular plate originating at the center of Marie-Galante. In the east and the south, the plate becomes dull to rock inclined towards a littoral plain. This one skirts the Atlantic from which it is protected by a coral barrier.
The Huecoids is the oldest known civilization to have occupied Marie Galante. The Arawak tribe followed them. Then around AD 850 the Carib Indians arrived. Among the islands of the Guadeloupe archipelago, Marie Galante was the first one reached by Christopher Columbus during his second voyage. He arrived at the place called Anse Ballet in Grand-Bourg on November 3, 1493. He named the island after his flagship, Maria Galante. It was previously called “Aichi” by the Carib Indians and “Touloukaera” by the Arawaks.
On November 8, 1648, Governor Houel organized the settlement of the first French colonists, they were about fifty men near the site of Vieux-Fort in Saint Louis. Jacques de Boisseret bought the island back from the French Company of the Islands of America on September 4, 1649. In 1653 the Carib Indians slaughtered the few remaining colonists, who had not given into the harsh living conditions, as reprisal for rapes committed on the island of Dominica by sailors on a barge coming from Martinique.
Sugar cane most probably originated from India and had been imported to the French West Indies by Christopher Columbus. In light of its industrialization, it was cultivated in Guadeloupe in the beginning of 1654 thanks to deported Brazilian colonists who incited the creation of the first sugar plantations equipped with small oxen-powered mills to crush the cane.
In 1660, at Basse-Terre Chateau, a peace treaty was signed between the Carib Indians and the French and British who authorized them to settle on the islands of Dominica and Saint Vincent. The Island was now at peace leaving way for human and technological means to unite, developing the economic market based on plantations as the center of production and labor by imported African slaves.
In 1664, Madame de Boisseret gave up her rights to Marie-Galante to the Company of the West Indies, and the Island then had its first four (oxen-powered) mills. In 1665, her son, Monsieur de Boisseret de Temericourt became governor. The map of the island he established carries his coat of arms. The Island was plundered by both the Dutch in 1676, and by the British in 1690 and 1691. These raids, which resulted in the destruction of the mills, the refineries and the depopulation of the Island, caused the Governor-General of Martinique to forbid the re-population of the Island until 1696. The British took over the Island again from 1759 to 1763.
Windmills were first seen in 1780. By 1830, 105 mills existed, half of which were still oxen- drawn. Today 72 mill towers are still standing. From November 1792 to 1794, Marie Galante, which was Republican, separated itself from the royalist government of Guadeloupe. Slavery, first abolished in 1794 then reinstated in 1802, finally came to an end in 1848, thanks to the combined efforts of abolitionists, such as Victor Schoelcher, and repeated Negro slaves revolts.
The legislative elections of June 24 and June 25, 1849, the first time former slaves were permitted to vote, were marred by bloody suppression of protesting groups. These groups rose up out of the black majority of the population in response to ballot-rigging orchestrated by wealthy white plantation owners. Many black people were killed during these uprisings which lead to the dumping of rum and sugar from the Pirogue plantation into a nearby pond. Today this pond is known as “la mare au punch” (Punch pond) in memory of these tragic events.
The Guadeloupe archipelago is made up, principally, of the islands of Grande-Terre, Basse-Terre, Marie-Galante, Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthelemy, Terre de Haut, Terre de Bas and Desirade. It has been an overseas French department since 1946 and a single-department region since 1982. (In 2007 Saint Barthelemy and the French part of Saint Martin both became separate administrative units, however it is expected that until 2012 they will be represented in the French Parliament by Guadeloupe.) The three administrative counties of Marie Galante are Capesterre, Grand-Bourg and Saint Louis. These were designated a county community (Communeauté des Communes) on January 8, 1994, the first to be created in a French Overseas department.
Grande-Terre
The main part of Guadeloupe consists of two islands separated by a salt river and whose combined shape resembles a butterfly. The western island is Basse-Terre Island and the eastern island is Grande-Terre. Grande-Terre’s northernmost point, Pointe de la Grande Vigie, is also the northernmost point in Guadeloupe.
The southern coast of Grande-Terre, with its reef-protected waters, is Guadeloupe’s main resort area. The eastern side of the island is largely open Atlantic, with crashing surf, and in comparison to the southern coast is barely touched by tourism. Northern Grande-Terre doesn’t have much in the way of accommodations but it’s probably the best place to spend a day driving around – sea cliffs on one side and swaying fields of sugarcane on the other. Pointe-à-Pitre, the island’s biggest city, is in the southeastern corner of Grande-Terre.
Despite its name, Grande-Terre (literally “Large Land” in French) is smaller than its sister island Basse-Terre Island. This is because its name was given in contrast with the much smaller Petite Terre Islands (“Small Land” Islands), two very small islands located about 10 km (6 miles) south-east of the Grande-Terre (see map to the left).
Grande-Terre’s indented coastline is surrounded by coral reefs and the island itself is a limestone plateau. Its surface is a series of rolling hills, white sand beaches and cliffs. The island’s beaches consist of both white and black sands, as well as beaches of golden sand. Of the two islands, Grande-Terre is home to the majority of Guadeloupe’s farmlands and tourist resorts.
Grande-Terre Island (upper right) from space, September 1994. North is to the upper left in this view.
The island has a land area of 586.68 km² (226.52 sq mi). At the 2006 census the population of Grande-Terre was 197,603 inhabitants living in 10 communes (municipalities). The population density was 337 inhabitants per km² (872 inh. per sq. miles). The most populated communes are, in descending order of population, Les Abymes (part of the Pointe-à-Pitre urban area), Le Gosier (part of the Pointe-à-Pitre urban area), Pointe-à-Pitre (part of the Pointe-à-Pitre urban area), Le Moule, Sainte-Anne, and Morne-à-l’Eau.
Grande-Terre is a limestone plateau perfectly suited to growing sugar cane, which covers most of the island. You will realize the importance of this agricultural activity if you visit the GARDEL sugar factory or the Bellevue distillery, located in the town of Le Moule, the former colonial capital. The magnificent shaded beaches of white sand along its coastline provide brilliant sunbathing places if you want to laze about. Calm lagoons of turquoise sea as well as wave sports are a joy for surfers and windsurfers. Lots of restaurants and hotels will guarantee you a taste of the best Creole cuisine, balmy Guadeloupean nights and the range of night time activities (casinos, discos, revues). With its natural beauty spots (Pointe des Cheaux, the cliffs of la Grande Vigie, the Grands Fonds), Pointe–Pitre, the economic capital with its historical monuments, museums, spice and flower markets with intoxicating smells, and the sugar cane landscapes of Port-Louis, Grande-Terre offers a wide range of choice to suit every visitor.
Basse-Terre
Basse-Terre is the capital city of Guadeloupe, an overseas region and department of France located in the Lesser Antilles.The city of Basse-Terre is located on Basse-Terre Island, the western-half of Guadeloupe.
Although it is the administrative capital of Guadeloupe, Basse-Terre is only the second largest city in Guadeloupe behind Pointe-à-Pitre with its urban area, with 44,864 inhabitants in 1999 (12,400 of whom lived in the city of Basse-Terre proper).
The city was founded in 1643, in the mountainous section of Basse-Terre, one of the two islands which compose Guadeloupe. It was destroyed many times as a consequence of the Anglo-French wars. Today the town is quiet due to the eruption of La Grande Soufriere in 1976, with its French provincial atmosphere and colourful port life.
In town is the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul, a 19th century building which has a notable grey stone highlighted by white statues; many other colonial buildings; La place du Champ d’Arbaud, the main square and Le Jardin Pichon, the park adjoining to the south & the Zoological and Botanical Park lies on a 1,500-foot (460 m) hilltop garden on the banks of La Rivière-aux-Herbes. This is a reserve of the plants and animals of Guadeloupe.
Basse-Terre lies at a transitional point between a tropical rainforest climate and a tropical monsoon climate. While Basse-Terre does feature a drier stretch from January through March, the town does not quite have a dry season month. The town’s driest month (February) sees on average roughly 60 mm of precipitation. A monthly precipitation average below 60 mm is considered dry season month. As is the norm with cities with these two climate types, Basse-Terre features relatively consistent temperatures throughout the year.
Basse-Terre is a mountainous massif, covered by a magnificent tropical forest of almost 66 square miles (17000 ha), which has been a designated National Park since 1989. It has lots of well marked hiking trails of varying degrees of difficulty. Its lush vegetation (over 3000 species of trees) provides shelter for an exotic wildlife, free from poisonous animals. With its waterfalls, cascades, basins, parks and different plantationst reveals all its natural charm ! Beaches of pebble and sand in shades of ochre, brown, black and pink line its coast, and it has a fantastic underwater reserve of world renown � the Jacques COUSTEAU Reserve (with a submerged bust of him). Basse-Terre provides ample evidence of the cultural diversity of the island � Catholic church and Hindu temple, archaeological remains of the first inhabitants and the 17th century military fort. The town of the same name, the administrative center of the Department, is a real history book
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe , sometimes known as the Butterfly Island (French: I’ile Papillon), on account of the shape of two of its major islands, is a group of islands in the eastern Caribbean, and is a French overseas department. It is located southeast of Puerto Rico.
Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres (629 sq. mi) and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe is also one of the twenty-six regions of France (being an overseas region) and an integral part of the Republic since 2007.
As part of France, Guadeloupe is part of the European Union; hence, as for most EU countries, its currency is the euro. However, Guadeloupe is not part of the Schengen Area. The prefecture and the capital of Guadeloupe is Basse-Terre. Christopher Colombus named the island Santa María de Guadalupe in 1493 after the Virgin Mary, venerated in the Spanish town of Guadalupe, in Extremadura.
Guadeloupe comprises the butterfly-shaped islands of Basse-Terre and Grande-Terre and the nearby smaller islands of La Desirade, Marie-Galante and Les Saintes.
The islands were discovered by Columbus in 1493, became a French colony in 1635 and, in 1946, were given the status of a French Overseas Department. As a result they retain their strong French influence, from the local flavours and ingredients to the currency.
Beaches and rainforest
The islands have lovely white sand beaches but also a wildlife-infested rainforest and the highest waterfall in the Caribbean. Basse-Terre has a rough volcanic terrain; Grande-Terre has rolling hills and flat plains. There are also lush mountainous areas with stunning and unspoiled tropical scenery.
The islands are a divers’ paradise, described by Jacques Cousteau as among the top 10 dive sites in the world.
Island nightlife
Guadeloupe boasts plenty of restaurants, bars and discos, with displays of local dancing and music. The famous dance of the island is called the biguine, where colorful and ornate Creole costumes are still worn. Don’t forget to try the famous rum punch cocktails – rum with lime, bitter and syrup.
Read more: http://www.worldtravelguide.net/country/105/country_guide/Caribbean/Guadeloupe.html#ixzz0yGi8waeO
Islands
* Basse Terre: green and lush vegetation, mountainous with a sulphuric volcano.
* Grande Terre: flat and dry with a lot of beaches, some of them very touristic.
* Marie Galante: the biggest island out of mainland Guadeloupe.
* Les Saintes: composed of Terre de Haut and Terre de Bas, one of the most beautiful bays.
* La Désirade: dry and cliffy.
* Petite Terre: uninhabited and untamed.
* Saint Martin: the French part of Saint Martin adjacent to Sint Maarten, the Dutch part.
* Saint Barthélemy: the jet set island.
Tartane
A Tartane or tartan was a small ship used both as a fishing ship and for coastal trading in the Mediterranean. They were in use for over 300 years until the late 19th century. A tartane had a single mast on which was rigged a large lateen sail, and with a bowsprit and fore-sail. When the wind was aft a square sail was generally hoisted like a cross jack.fishermans village where you’ll find the most consistent surfing.
I was in Martinique in November 2006 for a 2week trip.I Surfed Tartane almost everyday. The wind speed was still pretty high some days making the surf not so great the first week. But second was really nice. almost no wind (less than 15 knots) and 1 meter swell.Best season for surfing is definitely between Novemeber and March.What you have to know about Martinique is that most consistent spot is in Tartane and is actually unique on the island. So it sounds like crowded and it actually is. But the really good point about it is that surfing community is not so large and most of the people are just nice with each other.So it is not a world class surf destination like Guadeloupe or other places in the Carribean.But the place is really great and the surfing is so nice that anyone who’d been there would probably come back again and recommend it to friends.For people who do not know the island, I recommend you to rent an apparment close to Tartane and rent a car for the week to visit the island. There are really beautiful beaches in the south (Le Diamant and Les Salines) that you do not want to miss.There is a surf school close to Tartane : Bliss where you can rent surf board (referenced into World Stormrider guide volume 2)If you go there for only one week, it is not worth bringing your own board. Personnaly I brought mine (7’6 Takayama) and it was perfect but it cost me 120 euros to bring in aboard Air France flight. Most of people are surfing short boards (6’0 to 6’5). There are some bodyboarders and a few longboarders.Language on the line up is either French or Creole. I haven’t heard so much of english.Locals are not hostile as long as you pay attention to priorities.No sharks in the water. The only dangers that I am aware of are sun burns and mosquitoes (Dengue).Night life can be hot but you’ll need a car to go to Fort de France (main city ~ 45 minutes from Tartane).Beware that traffic is really crazy and jammed. So be patient and just enjoy zouk music !!And last but not least, local cuisine is just great.Conclusion: great surf, great weather, great culture …What are you waiting for ???
hi, i surf in the north ouest of france and i plan to go in martinique in the beginning of march. i would like to know if the swell is usually OK during this period ? and what type of board we should take ? are the waves quick or slow ? is there a surfshop that i can borrow a shortboard for one week ?can u let some adress and phone if you know please.thank you very much by advance
We went to honeymoon in martinique and then in guadeloupe.We surfed in tartane.Nice spot,beautiful place the sand is black and yellow.Everybody surfed on the leffr but no onr in the right!I understood really quick why nobody surfed on the right!!!Urchain!We werw there on september but the locals told me that the best months are october and november!And we will go again this year.You can find a nice surf school.The guys there are really cool the name was bliss!Nice trip and a so beautiful place!I you have the chance to go there don’t hesitate!
Presqu'île de la Caravelle
The Caravelle peninsula is a nature reserve as part of the Regional Natural Park of Martinique. This spit of land, 12km long, jutting into the Atlantic, which draws rugged coastlines. Many activities are available on the peninsula, widely considered one of the most beautiful sites on the island. These possibilities offered by the reserve are detailed below.
The Caravelle peninsula is one of the most prestigious of Martinique. True ship outpost on the Atlantic Ocean, it is a relic of the old arch, the first stage of volcanic building of Martinique.
Two marked trails allow the discovery of a large part of the peninsula.
These trails offer outstanding views, crossing the dry forests and savannas, the discovery of coastal cliffs or shredded mangroves.
This great diversity and its rich birdlife of the peninsula were the must trails in Martinique.
* After the work the fun: several beaches available to you.
The quietest is undoubtedly one of the Bay of Treasury.
Have a picnic, water (the walk is long).
* You can see the lights of La Caravelle, a leader prepared to face the ocean. Locate yourself with its orientation table and admire its stunning views.
* You can visit the ruins of the castle steeped in history Dubuc.
But do not leave the Caravelle peninsula without a swim off one of its beaches. In particular, we advise the Pond Cove, the most popular beach.
The Dubuc Castle, or rather its ruins, occupies an outstanding site overlooking the sea is an old dwelling of the seventeenth century, which belonged to a wealthy sugar cane farmer, the family Dubuc Rivery. We discover the history of this family to the questionable practices of smuggling and trafficking in slaves, and we learn more heavily on the hard condition of slaves. This story is told using audio terminals scattered throughout the site. The visit is both informative, by the history of the place, but also soothing, thanks to the beauty of the park.
Balata Camp
Balata Camp is a Palestinian refugee camp established in the northern West Bank in 1950, adjacent to the city of Nablus. It currently houses 17,645 registered Palestinian refugees. Residents of the camp suggest that the number of residents is closer to 40,000. It is currently the largest refugee camp in the West Bank.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) funds a school in the Balata camp, with approximately 5,000 pupils.
Balata Camp is one of the most densely populated locations on Earth. Less than two square kilometers in size, 30,000 people live in its concrete block houses. The layout of the camp is a product of its creation. In 1950, the UN gave the refugees from the Jaffa area temporary housing. These people initially refused the UN’s offers, stating their eagerness to return to their homes. They desired no sense of permanence. After two years, these refugees accepted the UN’s offer and settled at Balata.
In 1956, the Jaffa refugees desired more permanent housing. The border with the recently created State of Israel having been sealed, the refugees accepted the UN’s offer to build concrete structures in place of the refugee’s tents. Balata camp today is so dense because these concrete structures were built on the actual plots families had been given for refugee’s tents. There are some alleyways in the camp that are so narrow that large people cannot traverse them.
Balata Camp residents took leading roles in both Palestinian Intifadas, the First Intifada in the late 1980s through the early 1990s and the Second Intifada in the first five years of the new millennium. In 1987, when people in the Gaza Strip ignited the First Intifada, Balata camp was the first community in the West Bank to engage in violence.[citation needed]
During the course of the al-Aqsa Intifada, the IDF has developed various tactics, like “traveling through walls”, that allow them to enter the camp without suffering many casualties. In the traveling through walls tactic, Israeli soldiers enter a home on the edge of the camp in cover of night, and proceed to blow holes through the walls of homes down a given street, using the homes as shields against Palestinian fire.
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Les Trois-Ilets
Les Trois-Ilets is a French commune, located in the overseas departments of Martinique. Its inhabitants are called Ileen. Arnaud René-Corail (born March 5, 1954) was mayor of the town since 1989.
Les Trois-Îlets is a commune in the French overseas department of Martinique.
It was the birthplace of Joséphine (1763–1814), who married Napoleon Bonaparte and became Empress of the French.
The original location of the village was first made around the Cul bag of cow with Pottery in the seventeenth century under the impulse of religious. The urban core was finally located next to the village of Trois Ilets in the eighteenth century. The village stretches along the road and not around the city. It is a characteristic of urban Caribbean. Economic activity in the past was mainly agricultural. Many homes sweets such as Little Guinea (birthplace of Josephine de Beauharnais) or those Vatable, Chateau Gaillard and Pottery produced products that were popular in mainland France and the origins in the Caribbean slave cocoa, tobacco, sugar, rum.
A set of batteries and forts guarding the bay from the attacks of English who are incessant incursions during the seventeenth century and eighteenth century. Two military buildings remain: the fort of Alet and that of the Pointe du Bout. Some Ileen participated in the First World War, set off like other dissidents in the English-speaking islands in the Second World War. Bunkers on the tip of the End was built in Tan Robet (1940/1945) to protect the bay and the gold reserves of the Bank of France stored on the heights of Fort de France.
Today, the foundation focused on tourism since the 1960s: the hotels are concentrated around the beaches of Pointe du Bout / Anse Mitan and Anse Beach Donkey. Pétrolette access to the capital that the town is very attractive. As a lot of people live and work in Fort-de-France on the other side of the bay.
