La Bougie Travels

A site for the traveler whose tastes are a little bougie

Tag: international

  • the end of the island

    the end of the island

    On our last day in Dominica, we headed south again… all the way south this time. We returned to Roseau, where we visited the botanical gardens. This was on the wishlist of my travel companion, and we had run out of time to visit on Wednesday, our previous day in the south. the capital, roseau… Read more

  • the best $2 we’d ever spent

    the best $2 we’d ever spent

    When we looked out from our house in Calibishie, and from various points around town, we could see an expanse of red rocks beside the ocean. We had not yet found an obvious way to get to them, so after a restful morning, we set out to explore the sights closer to home. calibishie’s red… Read more

  • the waters of dominica

    the waters of dominica

    Our tour books said that as long as no cruise ships were in port in Roseau, we would not encounter large crowds, even at the larger tourist attractions like Trafalgar Falls. (Tip: cruise ships stop calling in May and don’t return till October. Yes, it’s hurricane season, live a little!) Wednesday of the first week… Read more

  • the one where nothing goes as planned

    the one where nothing goes as planned

    In my experience, on every trip, you’re almost guaranteed to have at least one day that doesn’t go as planned. Where everything is harder than it should be. On this trip, that day was Tuesday. We knew many things would be closed on Sunday, and Labor Day on Monday, and we planned accordingly. We expected… Read more

  • a journey into caribbean history

    a journey into caribbean history

    Before we left, I had a vague game plan that on the days we ventured away from our immediate environs, one day we would head east, one day we would head south, and one day we would head west. The main draw in the east was the Kalinago territory, which is the only reservation in… Read more

  • dimanche à dominica

    dimanche à dominica

    The sky was alive with color when we picked up our rental car—a older model Honda HRV—at the Avis rental place a short walk from the terminal. I’ve owned Hondas for over a decade, so the car was pretty familiar to me, aside from the fact that the driver’s seat was on the opposite side.… Read more

  • where the hell is dominica?

    where the hell is dominica?

    Upon our approach to Dominica’s Douglas-Charles Airport (DOM) in the golden light before sundown, my first impression was of elevation—multiple thickly forested peaks plunged down towards roiling cobalt seas, sometimes with a gentle decline, but more often with a sheer black cliff. An isle of luxurious sand beaches this was not. But let me back… Read more

  • how to stop worrying and love a layover in san juan

    how to stop worrying and love a layover in san juan

    Everything was brightly colored, from the paint on the multihued townhomes, to the turquoise waters of the Atlantic on the north side and the Caribbean on the south side, to the fuchsia bougainvillea that spilled over terraces, to the tiny little mosaics that marked the street numbers of houses or depicted the patron saints of… Read more

  • bonjour, mes amis!

    bonjour, mes amis!

    I’ve been writing stuff since I was old enough to hold a crayon. When I was a child, I would staple together sheets of white paper and write and illustrate my own “books”. In 4th grade through middle school, I attended a school for the creative and performing arts, where I was a creative writing… Read more