R. Doug Wicker's Blog, page 55

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Dominica; Reaching Roseau

The above panoramic is of Roseau, the capital city of the Southern Caribbean island nation of Dominica. Dominica was not on our original Grandeur of the Seas itinerary, but that’s okay. We were originally slated to hit Trinidad before heading back to Barbados, but we’d stayed on both Trinidad and Tobago before. And, as you would expect, this last-minute substitution was related to the pandemic.

Bahamian “Courtesy Flag” on Grandeur of the Seas

We didn’t spend any real time in Roseau, as ...

Fun Photo Friday — Southern Caribbean; Puerto Limón, Costa Rica Favorites 2

Puerto Limón

Today concludes Puerto Limón’s visit. Next week we head to… well, let’s just wait for the surprise, shall we?

“The best of lemon is its people” Vargas Park Color Balconies and Colorful Doors Wappin Man (What’s Happenin’, Man); Welcome to Pto. Limón Costa Rica

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Puerto Limón, Stained Glass and Other Colors

The stained glass and interior design elements of Limón’s cathedral were totally unexpected. Below is a gallery/slide show of these features:

But now it’s time to start heading back to the cruise port and our awaiting yacht, Grandeur of the Seas. Along the way we ran across this old second-generation “Type 2” VW Microbus now used as a sales prop:

VW Type 2 (second generation)

We left Limón with the feeling that we’d taken in the important highlights. I hope you agree. Next week I...

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Puerto Limón, Catedral Sagrado Corazon de Jesus

One block north and one block west of the post office is Limón Catedral Sagrado Corazón de Jesús (Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus). The 151-foot/46-meter modernist spire will guide you. That spire (pictured above, right) is a striking contrast to the traditional bell tower. I suspect the older bell tower dates back to a previous onsite cathedral. Let us compare Old:

Old cathedral bell tower

To new:

New cathedral spire

Make sure you check out the back of the cathedral from Ca...

Fun Photo Friday — Southern Caribbean; Puerto Limón, Costa Rica Favorites 1

Hard at Work on Grandeur of the Seas

Time for the first to two Limón Fun Photo Friday favorites:

Слава Україні! (Slava Ukraini!)

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Puerto Limón; Setting out on foot

Vargas Park, Limón, Costa Rica

Before we leave Vargas Park, let’s take a quick gander at a colorful local vender of refreshments:

Vargas Park vender

Looking for something a bit chillier? How about this for a treat:

Ice cream, sweetened condensed milk, fruit and chocolate syrups

We left behind the park and started heading west, I believe on Ángel Miquel Velázquez. About three blocks west of Vargas Park this becomes a pedestrian shopping street:

Heading into Limón

The vendors in ...

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Puerto Limón, Costa Rica

Welcome to Puerto Limón

Our destination aboard Grandeur of the Seas on 28 February this year was Puerto Limón, the capital city of Limón Province in the Central American country of Costa Rica. Limón is the seventh largest Costa Rican city with a population just barely over 61,000.

Grandeur of the Seas moored in Limón

While there’s a lot to take in visually here in Limón, there’s not a lot to discuss in such a small city. As such, this week and next will be heavy on the photos and light o...

Fun Photo Friday — Southern Caribbean; Grenada Favorites 2

The Spice Vendor

Today concludes our view of Grenada. Next week we move on to another Southern Caribbean destination. Until then:

Tropical Flower Inner Harbour Colors Selling to Tourists at Grand Etang How Do You Hear Me Now? Red on Green with Yellow in Between Rusty

Слава Україні! (Slava Ukraini!)

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Grenada; the Inner Harbour

Garfield St. Louis offered to drop us off closer to port, but Ursula and I wanted to see more of St. George’s before we headed back. So, Garfield dropped us off at a suitable location with plenty of directions to get us started. We began with a quick trip to Market Square (see above), which had a very few items of interest. We didn’t spend much time here. But, if you’re looking for spices, you might want to give Market Square a try. We already had ours from a vendor to which Garfield took us...

Southern Caribbean Cruising — Grenada; View of St. George’s from Richmond Hill

On the way back into St. George’s, our wonderful guide Garfield St. Louis detoured us to Richmond Hill for some great views from high above the capital city. We parked adjacent to Her Majesty’s Prison. Perched above us was Fort Frederick, which you see above. But the interesting features lay below us, such as this view of Grenada’s House of Parliament located east of St. George’s:

Grenada’s new House of Parliament

In the upper left corner of this next photo you can make out Fort George....