Immersing Yourself in Martinique

Originally published:

If you have ever read anything I have ever written about France, you know that I am a Francophile. And after careful thought, I think I understand why Josephine Baker and lots of other women of color expatriated to France. It’s not that there is no racism there (because there is). Instead, and based on my personal experience, I deduce that it is because these women weren’t made to feel as if they didn’t belong. As a person of color, it is refreshing to be in a country where people assume you are a part of the landscape and automatically speak French to you without using your skin color to determine whether or not you belong. I like that.

Not only do I have a fondness for France, but I have a serious love affair with Martinique, a beautiful French island in the Caribbean sea and one of four overseas region of France. In some ways, Martinique reminds me of a mini-Paris except with palm trees and lots of Brown people that look like me. *Grin*

I was on the island of Martinique a few months ago hanging out with my husband after a trip to Barbados. Martinique is lush and beautiful with plenty of things to do and see. Here is a sample list of things to do to if you ever decide to immerse yourself in Martinique:

Learn a little French before you go. But don’t panic; the basics will do. Bonjour (Hello), Bonsoir (Good evening), Au revoir (good-bye), Merci (thank you), S’il vous plait (please), Je ne parle pas francais (I don’t speak French), and Où sont les toilettes? (no translation necessary…LOL) will be enough French language skills for you to survive in this French island paradise. And if you find yourself in a pickle with no English-speakers in sight, the appropriate hand gestures and facial expressions will do just fine.

And since you’re there, you might as well try your hand at a little French Creole as well. There are a number of French and Creole street signs in Rivière Pilote. (Click here and here for photos.) But if you have a little Francophile thing going on like I do and you don’t mind a little studying while you’re on vacay, you might also consider improving your French language skills by enrolling in a French immersion program. I keep threatening to sign up for one, but I can’t seem to tear myself away from the beach.

Head to the beach. I don’t know how many beaches are in Martinique, but I’ve been to Martinique three times and never met a beach I didn’t like. Black sand, gray sand, white sand. All breathtaking. One of my favorites is the beach at Le Diamant (the diamond). Le Diamant is actually a famous rock that sticks out of the ocean and is a focal point in this area of Martinique. Every morning after breakfast I walked the stretch of beach beginning at my small cozy beachside bungalow at Hotel Diamant Les Bains, with Le Diamant in plain sight. On my 3rd or 4th day there, I decided to tear my eyes away from the sand and sea and venture into the area between the sand and road where there was a park-like atmosphere and a few people camping out. Warning for the modest: Going topless isn’t a big deal in Martinique (or anywhere in Europe for that matter), so if you’re sensitive to partial (respectful) nudity, it could be that European beaches (whether in the Caribbean or St. Tropez) might not be for you.

Stay in a bungalow or a gîte. Even though I recently won a national travel writing contest that will put me in several traditional hotel properties this year, I often enjoy staying in smaller more intimate digs when on holiday. My first time in Martinique was spent in the downstairs apartment of a hillside home of an American and his French wife in a super nice home in a relatively remote area of Martinique with black sand beaches right outside. I loved it. The second and third time were spent at Hotel Diamant Les Bains, a charming yet rustic 3-star property with bungalows mere yards from the surf with an on-site restaurant and bar with its very own jars of homemade liquor lining the bar. The good thing about Martinique is that there are a number of accommodation classes to chose from (from 1-star to 5-star), so your choices are endless.

Visit Fort-de-France. Fort-de-France is the capital of Martinique, looks very French, and has rows of cobblestone streets with shopping and eateries. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend that you stay there. It used to be a lot more quaint and populated with tourists, but the recession – in my humble opinion - has changed the vibe. Some of the stores and restaurants I remembered being great places to shop and eat have closed down and are boarded up much like here in the U.S. Do visit though. You never know what you might find.

Rent a car and drive the island. Martinique is 436 square miles and if you love nature and quaint little villages, it is spectacular to see. You can even visit Mount Pelée, a famous active volcano. This last trip was the first time I ever drove up Mount Pelée and it was a treat. The scenery on the way up is lush. Just so happens it was a little misty and overcast, but it added to the beauty of the environment. I saw an egret perched quietly on top of a cow and stopped to take a photo and both animals looked at me like as if I really didn’t matter in the least. Truth is, I probably didn’t.

Visit the La Mauny Rum Distillery. I like rum and always visit a local rum distillery wherever there is one. Not so much for the rum (yeah right), but mostly for the history lesson in rum-making (en français). The tour guide, a French-speaking woman of color, did a fabulous job leading the tour and spoke the most noticeably impeccably enunciated French I think I have ever heard. After the tour was over, I stopped off at the gift shop and loaded up on Martiniquan rum (some of the best rum in the world) along with vinegar made from sugar cane and some other rum-diddly-umptious trinkets. See also Habitation Clément and Distillerie Neisson.

Take a day sail. My absolute favorite thing to do on ANY island is to go on a full day catamaran sail. Dolphins swimming alongside, sea spray in my face, snorkeling, and the gliding of the boat over the magnificent sea keeps me at peace. I could sail for days. There are several to choose from; those that sail around Martinique and my favorite, those that sail to nearby St. Lucia. Visit the area known as Les Trois-Îlets or ask your hotel concierge or front desk person to help you choose which day sail is best for you. Keep in mind that most day sails are presented in French.

Other than eating French Caribbean food, shopping for typically local madras prints and enjoying the outdoors, you might want to take a day trip via ferry or small plane to St. Lucia, Guadeloupe or Dominica since they’re all so close. I ran out of time while I was there, so I didn’t get to leave the island, but as I sit here thinking about it, now I have another reason to go back.