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Larry's LogThere were some beautiful views along the road when it went near the coast, particularly at a high point on top of some cliffs near Maracas Bay, but soon after it turned south and we went back to Chaguaramas. We ran some minor errands and then went back to the boat. We asked Cary and Wally from Dazzler and Bill from Amadon Light if they wanted to go out to dinner and so we picked them up and went to TGI Friday's in Port-of-Spain. We figured as long as we had a car until tomorrow morning, we might as well take full advantage of easy transport. Over the next few days we did some boat chores and tried to decide when to move on. We had been in Trinidad, on and off, since July and we both felt it was getting time to move on. We still had several projects but thought we might be able to finish them by Thanksgiving, November 22. We talked about going back to Asa Wright and also going to the Wildfowl Trust, which is another excellent nature preserve. We had heard that the Caroni Swamp is a very good place to see Scarlet Ibis, Trinidad's national bird, but several people who had been there said that it wasn't worth visiting if you're really into birding since you can't get very close to the birds. They just fly over you going back at night to roost. This was confirmed by the Asa Wright guide who said it was nice but not as good as the Wildfowl Trust. Anyway, we decided to skip Caroni and see Asa Wright again and the Wildfowl Trust before we left. On Diane's birthday, we had a gathering at Joe's Pizza, with Cary and Wally from Dazzler, Lena and Ron from Jacobite, Dawn, Mike and Chuck from Just Dessert, and Bill from Amadon Light. We all really enjoyed it and we sang "Happy Birthday" to Diane VERY loudly. Actually, I think the entire restaurant sang, especially since we saw Eileen and David from Little Gidding and several other cruisers we knew. The next few days were just boat chores and projects until we went to the Devali Festival with Jesse James Maxi Taxi service. This is the Hindu holiday celebrating Truth and Light and is a wonderful festival with lighted candles, fireworks and displays of beautiful traditional Indian dress. It trip started at 4pm by going to a Hindu Temple and hearing a Swami explain the meaning of the festival and also give us a basic understanding of the basic tenets of Hinduism. He was very interesting, especially as we in the West had gone through a period when it was trendy to see Swamis, gurus and such, and there was a lot of misinformation about the Hindu religion. The temple was very pretty and the talk gave those of us who listened intently something to think about. We then went to a village in the central part of the island to see the festival and to have a traditional Hindu vegetarian meal. Trinidad has a large Hindu population from when East Indians were brought to the island as indentured servants to work in the fields after slavery was abolished. (Read Michener's "Caribbean.") The trip in the bus was long but as we got closer, we could see the small candles placed in front of the houses. There were literally hundreds in front of some houses, arranged in neat rows on the ground or on split bamboo poles arranged in traditional patterns. In some places, poles had been erected by the side of the road, wire strung between the poles and then lighted bottles suspended from the wire. At one point, this wire was on both sides of the road and went for at least a mile. Very impressive. This was all setup by the local people. It was partly as a celebration of the holiday and partly to attract tourists, but I believe that it was done primarily to make the scene as pretty as possible, done mostly because the local people enjoyed it. The meal we (and the other 150 cruisers who went on the tour) had was very good but we ate in shifts as there wasn't enough room for everyone at the tables. We finally ate on chairs with the meal on a chain in from of us, but it was pretty good. It was the traditional roti dough and several dishes put on a large banana leaf. The pumpkin dish was my favorite. After eating, we walked around the village of Felicity and thoroughly enjoyed the festival. The people were genuinely friendly and seemed really interested in welcoming us. There were also people from other parts of the island who came to enjoy the sights. We saw little street shows, people walking in traditional garb, fireworks and small temples. We finally left at around 8:30 and got back to the boat at around 10pm. The traffic was terrible but we did see more of the diyah candles, the traditional decoration for Devali, arranged in neat rows in from of the houses. Overall, we had a great time. The next day we had a dentist appointment at the West Mall. Several cruisers had recommended him and we both went for checkups and cleanings. We were both pleased with the facilities and with him; he seemed very competent and was very nice. Diane was fine but I had a small cavity and would have to come back. Unfortunately, the only appointment was for November 30 since we made a reservation at Asa Wright for the week before. Actually, the receptionist let Diane call since the Center since she knew already that rooms were taken. We made the reservation for 2 rooms (Ron and Lena from Jacobite wanted to go too) and then made my dental appointment for the following Friday, the first day the dentist would be back in the office. We went to the Pointe-a-Pierre Wildfowl Trust on Friday. We picked up Lena and Ron and went out to the Price Smart store that was on the way to the Wildfowl Trust. Its like a Sam's Club and has a good variety of items and pretty good prices. Naturally, we spent a good amount and between the 2 couples. We managed to load up the car pretty well. After shopping and eating, we went on to the Wildfowl Trust and had a nice tour by the same guide we had previously. We saw most of the same species but it's a very nice place to see the local wildlife. We got back to the boat after dark and had a quick dinner and then went to bed early so we could go to Asa Wright in the morning. The drive to Asa Wright was much quicker than the first time (I must be getting used to driving on the left) and we got there around 10am, in time to go on the 10:30 walk. We were very happy we did since we mentioned to the guide that we wanted to try to see the Ornate Hawk-Eagle. We had tried to find the nest site on our own the last time but were unable to find it. The guide said he would help us find the nest. We went down the trail and passed the Bellbirds and found the small trail off the main trail to the site. Walking down to the end, the guide pointed out a small hole through the forest canopy. At first I couldn't even find the nest but eventually saw the large mass of sticks through my binoculars at about 700 yards. The guide said that the hawk was on a limb just 2 feet above the nest but I couldn't see it. I bent my knees a little and then it came into view - wow. A really large hawk with eagle-like characteristics, it was really fantastic. It showed no signs of moving, as we were probably almost invisible to the bird at so great a distance through the trees. We passed around the binoculars so everyone could see it and then I took another look. It was a real privilege to see this magnificent bird in the wild, especially since we didn't need to trek into the forest for 2 days to do it. After lunch, we went on a guided hike to see the Oilbird colony, the only nocturnal fruit-eating bird in the world. The Center only lets people go there with a guide and we were lucky enough to be there on a day when a group was going. After a 60 minute hike, up and down the mountain, we got to a small stream going into a cave-like opening in a rock face. The colony was inside the opening and the guide went in to check on the birds and called in 3 people at a time to see them by the light of his flashlight. When it came my turn, I went in and climbed along the rocks sticking up in the stream so I wouldn't get too wet. They were there and very interesting, perched on the rock ledges. This was a unique sight that most people never see. This colony is the most accessible in the world and we all felt that the strenuous hike was worth it. Waiting outside for the rest of the group to see the birds, we also saw a Blue Morpho Butterfly, with electric blue wings on top and drab brown underneath and about 7 inches across. The Indians thought these were bad luck because the blue of the wings was supposed to be a piece of the sky falling. To us, it was really beautiful. After getting back to our rooms, relaxing, taking a shower, and after dinner, we then took a night walk with a guide. The group didn't see a lot that night although we did see a nocturnal tree frog, several bats, a gecko, and several large insects like a Walking Stick, Wolf Spider and others. We almost saw a Ferruginous Pigmy Owl but he was frightened off before we could see it well. Oh well. Birding in the dark with flashlights is tough. The next day, we went down the main trail to the side trail and found the spot to see the Hawk-Eagle again, saw the nest but nobody was home that time. As we walked back though, we got a great view of the Bearded Bellbird, a bird the size of a robin with the voice that sounded like a hammer hitting an anvil. To see a list of the birds we saw at Asa Wright, the Wildfowl Trust and Trinidad in general, take a look here. We left Asa Wright around 2 and the return trip was good except for some rain. We decided to visit Fort George on the way back since everyone had said it had a nice view of Port-of-Spain and the surrounding land and the Gulf of Paria. The road up to the fort was very bad, and at one point, it looked liked one part ended from the bottom and the other ended from the top and they didn't quite meet. We got up the steep grade OK though and the view from the top was great and the overcast sky made for some very dramatic panoramas. Strangely enough, we saw more parrots flying over the fort than we had seen at the Nature Center. |