Roseau, Dominica

Dominica, the Nature Isle. Not many people know much about Dominica, not to be confused with the Dominican Republic, Dominica sits in the middle between the French islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe. Dominica’s appearance has changed the least of all the Caribbean islands and pretty much looks the same now as when Columbus “discovered” it in 1493. Since hardly any of the island is flat, they didn’t clear-cut any land for sugar cane, like some of the neighbouring islands. When the Spanish king and queen Ferdinand and Isabella asked Columbus what Dominica looked like, he famously crumbled up a piece of paper, threw it on the table, and said, “like that”, in reference to its mountains that resemble Hawaii.

Dominica is almost 100% volcanic and up in the mountains there is a boiling lake. One of only two in the world, the other in New Zealand. We hiked to see the Emerald Pool and Trafalgar Falls as well as walking around the capital of Roseau. There isn’t much tourism here, as they don’t have any resorts, sandy beaches, and no international flights and they receive the most rainfall in the Caribbean, averaging an inch or 25mm of rain a day! They are also prone to hurricanes, many recent and historical hurricanes have caused incredible damage here. I have a picture of the school bus that was crushed under a tree in a 1960s storm. (Nobody was in it)

The purple on the flag is on the national bird the Sisserou parrot. You can see them only in Dominica and are often seen within the botanical gardens in Roseau. Dominica is home to the most Carib Indians, the indigenous people of the Caribbean who settled many of the islands long before Columbus. Most of the Caribs live in the northeast of Dominica today. The message from people on the island is for people to tell others about Dominica so more people will come to enjoy its outdoor nature. Come just for the flag, it’s one of the world’s best, one of only three flags that feature the colour purple. (Nicaragua, El Salvador)