As I watched the waterfall on the hike towards Mont Pelée, I stood captivated by how the stream flowed so freely…formless and shapeless. Love is like water, we can fall in it, we can drown it; but we CANNOT survive without it. Martinique was the first island that I visited as my love for travel began to blossom. You never forget your first. Long before I traveled to Jamaica, Puerto Rico, St. Lucia, the Bahamas, Cuba and the Virgin Islands; it was flying over the lesser Antilles to the birthplace of Empress Joséphine that left me mesmerized by the vast turquoise blue ocean.
Water being my “happy place” goes all the way back to my mom putting the 3-year old version of me in a tube attached to a string and swimming the perimeter of the pool with me in tow. In those days, you couldn’t tell me that I wasn’t a mermaid. For many years, I dreamed of being a synchronized swimmer like the graceful ones that I would see in the old black & white Ethel Merman movies that I watched with my Aunt on Sunday afternoons.
Martinique is an enchanting little island that sits in the Caribbean Sea. An overseas department of France, the culture on this “Isle of Flowers” offers the perfect blend of French and West Indian influences. There is something nostalgic about being surrounded by water on calm and romantic oasis that is known for its breathtaking white-sand beaches. I’ll never forget how the sensory experience of the sand between my toes, the sounds of the waves crushing down on the shore and the saltiness in the air brought the kind of “joie de vivre” out of me where EVERYTHING seemed possible.
Me splashing in a waterfall
The crystal-clear water at St. Anne’s Les Salines Beach (at the southernmost tip of the rugged island) offered a place of sanctuary from the “corporate rat race” that helped restore and rejuvenate my spirit from the mounting stress that comes with starting a new chapter in your life. An aesthetic influence and spiritual symbol that reaches deep into the soul, it was during this visit that I started to gain a deeper understanding about how having a primal connection to water can run deeper than thirst. Pool, fountain or the ocean; water has always held a sacred place in my psyche. In between visiting the Anse Cafard Slave memorial, scooping up homemade coco ice cream along the side of the road and sipping on “ti punch” cocktails with local friends; I appreciated how quickly spending time in the ocean had the ability to just let the anxiety of long days slip away.
While my nights were spent swirling on the dance floor to the rapid Zouk music tempo, my days were spent exploring the positive healing benefits that can be gained through water. I enjoyed the weightlessness as I dove into our bungalow’s pool and took in each second of the peacefulness as my head slipped underwater….shutting out the noisiness of the world’s demands. Each stroke across the pool left me feeling inspired, empowered and rejuvenated. I live for the moments where floating on my back extends a calming effect over my mind that guides it into a meditative state. The poetry of Aimé Césaire drew me to the island, but it was Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Are Watching God” that briefly popped into my thoughts while gazing up at the clouds. Although I miss the colorful tapestry of tropical fish and the shade of the palm trees that towered over me as I laid on the beach sipping fresh coconut water from the shell, water continues to play a major role in my self-care. When is the last time that you spent your vacation next to or in the water? Did it shift your mood?
“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” – Loren Eiseley
Eating Ragou de Chatrou (fried octopus, red beans, lentils, rice and chopped yams) right before our favorite local restaurant turned into a dance club.