The Road to Roseau

We finally got out of town last Saturday and took a public bus to the capital Roseau - about 30 miles and 1 hour drive from Portsmouth.  There was a highway put in along the western coast connecting these towns that was heavily damaged in Tropical Storm Erica.  There were at least three bridges washed out that we saw - there are bypass bridges installed now, called bailey bridged, that allow passage of traffic but do slow the trip down a bit.

Roseau is much bigger than Portsmouth and has more shopping options, so many folks here travel there 1-2 times per month to get supplies.  There are also business in Roseau that deliver items up here - Malcolm's Meats for example, imports meat from the States and delivers to restaurants and individuals in Picard/Portsmouth.

Roseau also has the Dominican Museum, which was closed when we got there, a cruise ship dock and some nice hotels, a Botanical Garden and a highly regarded French bakery.  We look forward to exploring more as we get time to visit!

Collapsed bridge caused by TS Erika

Bailey bridges and dirt roads bypass the collapsed bridges

Some of the TS Erika destruction and clean up along the coastal road

Hundreds of rivers overflowed during TS Erika and sometimes destroyed roads by breaking away the foundation

The original road & bridge directly on the coast just washed away during the storm

A picturesque village along the way.  You can see how mudslides could devastate these hillside towns.

Our first stop was the museum, but unfortunately it was closed.

Across from the museum are the docks with a beautiful view of the mountains

We made it!

Fort young Hotel is very nice - right next to the cruise ship docks & museum

The local "home depot"

I love the architecture, old buildings and magnificent paint jobs!

The famous Ruin Rock Bar & restaurant  

Love this tiny home

Second floor juice & smoothie cafe - with a great balcony.  We saw friends from school here as we were walking & they recommended it.

View from the smoothie balcony.  One of many Chinese restaurants here

Another view from the smoothie balcony

Patty Shack fast food restaurant

This was our meal.  Fantastic fish soup with a awesome sour base and provisions (yams, green banana, okra, carrots, etc.)  Passion fruit juice & Kabuli on a balcony made this perfect!  Thanks to Gaelle's uncle for this meal!!

Looks like an upscale restaurant across from where we ate

Another view down the street.  Most of the vans are taxis.

We all got to sit together on the ride back!  We had 17 passengers on the way down and were in 3 separate rows.

We were exhausted on the way home!