Les Saintes 法属勒桑特斯

Jan 11, 2024: Today, the cruise ship anchored in the bay off Les Saintes, and we were taken ashore by small tender boats. Les Saintes is an archipelago that belongs to Guadeloupe, a French overseas territory. The main street along the coastline is lined with restaurants and shops, giving an immediate impression of a picturesque French town, with red rooftops harmonizing beautifully with the blue ocean.

We embarked on a self-guided tour today, spending the morning hiking to the island's highest observation point, which involved a nearly continuous uphill climb. Our original plan was to ascend from the west and descend from the east, but upon reaching the summit, we found the eastern descent to be much steeper, requiring us to use both hands and feet. After attempting a few steps, we decided to turn back and retrace our route. The round trip covered 1,000 feet in elevation over 4.5 miles and took us three hours.

Once back in town, we decided that taking the tender boat back and forth to the cruise ship would be too cumbersome. Instead, we chose a random restaurant on the street for lunch and took a rest. Afterward, we headed to another attraction on the island – the old military barracks.

The Napoleonic barracks are situated on a small hill over 300 feet high, with no shade along the way, making the sun unbearably hot. However, the higher we climbed, the better the view became, and we were often accompanied by chickens and goats along the way. After more than a mile of walking, we finally reached the top only to find that the barracks are only open in the morning, and the gate was closed. This instantly dampened our spirits, especially since we still had to brave the scorching sun to walk back down the hill, leaving us quite disappointed.

Back on the ship, we first went to the Bistro for a latte, some fruit, and snacks, then returned to our room for a long nap. Today felt like the most exhausting day of the trip so far. We had dinner at the Waterside restaurant.

一月十一日：今天游轮抛锚在勒桑特斯岛外海湾， 由小船送我们上岸。勒桑特斯岛是法国属地瓜德罗普的群岛。沿着海岸线的主街两旁有餐厅和商店，一上岸就有法国美丽小镇的感觉，红的房顶和蓝的海洋相呼相依。我们俩今天自由活动，上午徒步上山去岛上最高的观光台，几乎就是不停地上坡走。原本准备从西边上东边下，到山顶上时发现东边下山是坡度更陡，必须手脚并用，走了几步后就打退堂鼓，原路返回。上下1千英尺走了4．5英哩，整整三个小时。

回到镇上后，因为嫌坐小船回邮轮来回太麻烦，就随便在街上找了一家餐厅吃个午饭，休息一会儿。然后又走去岛的另一景点-古军营。

拿破仑军营在三百多英尺高的小山上，一路往上一点遮阳的地方都没有，太阳晒得好厉害，不过越往上走风景就越好，沿途还时常有鸡，羊陪伴。结果走了一英哩多终于来到山顶却发现军营只在上午开放，门已关。一下子把我们剩下的热情全部打消掉了，关键是我们还要冒着酷暑走下山，别提有多失望了。

回到船上后先去咖啡厅喝杯拿铁，来点水果和点心，然后回房睡了个大午觉。感觉今天是这次行程到目前为止最累的一天。