Guadeloupe > On board the Costa Fortuna

I slept well last night. Around seven o’clock, I wake up. Outside, I can already hear the first activity at the quay. The apartment is quite noisy. We take it easy this morning. Today we have time to explore Pointe-à-Pitre. Using the kettle, we make tea and eat a currant bun. We have to check out of the room by noon, but we are allowed to leave our luggage in the common area. For this, we only need the front door key. We can get the key from a locker using a code, provided no one else has checked into our room. To be safe, we place our luggage downstairs in the hall at the bottom of the stairs. This seems like a secure option. The sun is shining brightly as we walk into the city. The streets are immediately more cheerful compared to yesterday. At the quay lies the Costa Fortuna, the cruise ship we will be traveling on for the next two weeks. Some passengers are just disembarking to explore the city. A female pedicab driver explains that this afternoon we have to be at the boarding point at the end. The entrance we are currently at is only for passengers with an access pass. We’ll see about that this afternoon. We walk towards the Spice Market. Where last night there were only empty tables, now numerous stalls are set up under the historic canopy. Most cater to tourists. In the side streets, vendors try to sell souvenirs to passersby. Along the quay, fishermen bring their freshly caught fish ashore. Pelicans wait nearby to pick up scraps. From the harbor, we reach the Place de la Victoire.

Guadeloupe - Fishermen bring the freshly caught fish ashore

Place de la Victoire is an important historic square named after the victory of French troops during the Battle of Pointe-à-Pitre in 1802. This battle took place during the Napoleonic Wars when Guadeloupe was claimed by both France and the United Kingdom. After the French victory, Guadeloupe became part of the French empire again. Today, the square is laid out with grass and palm trees. On the other side of the square, a small festival is taking place. The area is fenced off and seems to be a local, private event. There is music and dancing. Before we realize it, we are standing by the cathedral. The Église Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul is colloquially known as the “Iron Cathedral.” The church’s interior is reinforced with a steel frame to make it resistant to hurricanes and earthquakes. The steel construction gives the church a unique appearance. While we admire the church, a funeral begins. We leave the church. We had planned to order coffee and a sandwich somewhere for breakfast, but so far, we haven’t found any terraces. We enter a restaurant. The television is loud in the somewhat chilly room with white tile flooring. It’s an Asian restaurant, and judging by the smell, much of the food is fried. From the kitchen, we hear “bonjour” over the TV noise. We order two coffees. Via Place de la Victoire, we walk to the Église Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes of Massabielle.

Guadeloupe - glise SaintPierreetSaintPaul

We follow an uphill road. The climb makes it clear how warm it is in the sun. The church is simple, but behind it lies the Grotte de Massabielle. This replica of the Lourdes grotto is a pilgrimage site on the island. From the church, we want to walk to the Memorial ACTe museum, a museum about the history of the slave trade. Slavery is an important part of the history on all the islands we visit. We ask several times for the shortest route to the museum. Along the way, we pass a bakery where we buy a sandwich and a cola. On a bench in the shade in front of the museum, we eat our sandwiches. The museum appears to be closed. It’s not entirely clear why, but it seems to be for an extended period. From the museum, we have a view of the old town of Pointe-à-Pitre on the other side of the bay. That’s where we slept last night. Behind the old town, the cruise ship Costa Fortuna towers over the houses. At a leisurely pace, we walk back to Place de la Victoire. At a terrace, we order a beer. Then we pick up our luggage at the apartment and head toward the ship. Boarding starts at 3:30 PM. We are a bit early, but there is already a long line of passengers. We join at the back. The entrance path is still closed. When boarding starts, the line slowly moves forward. The customs officer carefully checks boarding passes against passports. A bit further on, a Costa staff member checks the details again. We hand over our luggage, which is scanned by security. The suitcases are then delivered to our cabin. When we board the ship ourselves, we are warmly welcomed by the English-speaking host. We enter cabin 6278, a room with a balcony. On the bed lies a welcome package and our Costa card.

Guadeloupe - Our cabin aboard the Costa Fortuna

The Costa card is important. Everything on board is done with it. It’s the key to the room, payment for drinks, and even scanned during emergencies to confirm presence. We order a drink and sit on our balcony. We look out over Pointe-à-Pitre. From the ship, we see all the places we visited today. The Costa Fortuna is almost 300 meters long and 35 meters wide. The ship has thirteen decks in total. The pool is on the ninth deck, surrounded by sunbeds. At the back of the ship are several restaurants. At the front is a large theater. Over the loudspeaker, an announcement is made that the safety briefing is mandatory. After watching the video, we must put on our life jackets and go to the assembly point in case of emergency. The Costa card is scanned there to show that we have completed the training successfully. It’s time to go. A table is reserved for us in the Michelangelo restaurant. We can choose from various dishes per course. It looks great. We strike up a conversation with a Dutchman at the table next to us. He’s traveling alone and has been on board for a week. He gives us some tips about staying on the Costa Fortuna. After dinner, we order coffee at the bar on deck five. Then we return to our balcony with a glass of wine. At eleven o’clock, the ropes are cast off and the Costa Fortuna departs. In the dark, Pointe-à-Pitre and Guadeloupe pass by.

Guadeloupe - The first drink onboard the cruise