The GypsyNesters

An Eerie Day in Halifax

Join us on an eerie, foggy day as we experience the seafaring ways of the Canadian Maritime Provinces in their biggest city, Halifax.

Take a stroll with us as we pay our respects in the cemetery of the unknown victims of the Titanic disaster and though the amazing Victorian Public Gardens.

See the boardwalk with its weird and wonderful art installations, view the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic with its Titanic and Halifax Explosion exhibits, and Pier 21 – Canada’s Ellis Island. Get a sample of the Canadian street foods poutine and donair. And watch ghost ships in the mist… CONTINUE READING >>

It would hardly be fitting to tour the Canadian Maritime Provinces and not make a stop in its biggest city, Halifax.

The site, on one of the world’s best natural harbours, was picked by the British as a strategic foothold during their struggle with the Acadian French for control of Nova Scotia. Once that was settled, the town grew in both military and maritime standing as the English became the dominant force in North America.

Even on a typically misty, grey day the summit of Citadel Hill offered us a panoramic overview of that outstanding harbor.

The high ground also provides a natural defence, so a fortress named for King George II was built on the spot in 1749. It was then fortified in 1776 when Nova Scotia, the 14th American colony, chose to stay loyal to the crown. Unlike any intruders from the south back then, we were welcomed and allowed to poke around.

This current fort is much different than what we would have found during the revolution, what stands now is a reconstruction of the Victorian Era version from the mid 1800s, ceremonially guarded by re-enactors of the famous 78th Highlanders Regiment.

View of Halifax from Citadel Hill — The view from Citadel Hill

A Garden Fit for a Queen, a Victorian One

Speaking of Queen Victoria’s reign, the nearby Public Gardens also harken back to that era. Typical of a Victorian garden, flowers and plants from many varied climates and exotic locales line the walkways.

We found all sorts of plant life thriving in this unlikely climate, from desert cactus and yucca, to towering trees from all over the globe, to roses that smelled so sweet it was like walking in a cake.

Gazebos, fountains, archways and seating are also fundamental to a Victorian garden, and they are well represented here. So while the term Victorian may get overused, this park, and in fact a great deal of Halifax, certainly deserves the title.

See more of Halifax’s Public Gardens

The Titanic and Paying our Respects at the Fairview Lawn

Halifax also has a deep connection to the sea, including history’s worst maritime tragedy ever, the sinking of The Titanic.

When news of the disaster reached the mainland, three ships were sent out from here to recover as many of the victims as possible.

In all, three hundred and twenty-eight bodies were found, and of those, two hundred and nine were brought to Halifax to be claimed by relatives, or buried should no one come forward.

Three quarters of those were never spoken for and are buried in three of the city’s cemeteries, most in Fairview Lawn.

See our entire journey through the Canadian Maritimes

The melancholy weather matched our somber hearts as we walked through the Fairview Lawn Cemetery to the gravesites of the one-hundred-twenty-one casualties and paid our respects.

Many of the headstones are marked only by numbers, as the identities of the victims remain unknown.

Perhaps the most poignant was the unknown grave of a two year old child brought back aboard The MacKay-Bennett, one of ships sent out from Halifax to retrieve the deceased from the site of the disaster.

Just recently the boy was identified through DNA samples, but his family prefers that his gravestone remain nameless as a remembrance for all of the other unknown victims.

See more information and photos of the Titanic Cemetery

The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic

Shipwrecks are a big part of Halifax history and our next stop, the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, chronicles hundreds of them.

Salvaged artifacts from dozens of incidents are on display, including a few from the most famous, the Titanic. Once again we are reminded of the unknown child victim of the disaster when we come upon his little shoes in one of the cases.

See more Maritime Museum of the Atlantic

The museum also documents another catastrophe that struck the city just a few years after the sinking of the Titanic, the Halifax Explosion.

On December 6, 1917 the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship filled with wartime explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in the harbor. The Mont-Blanc caught fire and the resulting blast was the largest ever until the atom bomb.

At least two thousand people perished, with thousands more injured or left homeless. Aid poured in from all around, but Boston stood out in the relief effort, sending many ship loads of supplies.

To this day, every year the city of Halifax sends a Christmas tree to Boston as a continuing thank you gift. The connection is so strong that people here generally refer to the New England area as “The Boston States.”

Read about Vincent Coleman, an amazing hero of the Halifax Explosion

The Ellis Island of Canada

Just down the waterfront from the museum we checked out Pier 21, sometimes called Canada’s Ellis Island.

Touring the facility we learned how over one million immigrants entered the country through this port.

Many were fleeing wars or oppression, others seeking economic opportunity, and still another group reuniting with spouses they met during World War II. These were known as war brides, and nearly 50,000 arrived here to enter their new home.

Street Food and Ghost Ships

Afterwards we were ready for a bite, and set out to find some quintessentially Canadian street food. Score! Good old poutine, the north of the border classic french fries covered with gravy and cheese curds.

It is more common inland, around Quebec and Ontario, and typically doesn’t include bacon, but bacon is always good.

Then we discovered a new item for us, donair, which is like a pita wrap of gyro meat served with a sweetened condensed milk sauce.

It is definitely a descendent of the Turkish döner kebab, but the sweet sauce (actually a tad too sweet for our tastes) is unique to the Halifax area.

See our entire journey through the Canadian Maritimes

We ate in the shadow of the CSS Acadia and watched the fog dance around the harbor. At times the mist was so thick we could only hear the boats even though they were only a few dozen feet away. It was quite a sight to watch them materialize out of the grey just in time to tie off at the dock.

An Impromptu (and necessary!) Art Walk

Poutine cannot be allowed to sit on the stomach, so a stroll down the waterfront boardwalk was in order. As we made our way it was getting difficult to distinguish objects until we were right up on them.

What in the world was going on with the street lights?

Drunken streetlight art entitled The Way Things Are in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada — Drunken streetlight art entitled “The Way Things Are”

The surreal overcast had us doubting our own eyes, but then we realized they were real, and they were spectacular. In an artistic way.

In fact, we noticed there were many interesting works of art along the walkway.

A few of them looked to be major undertakings.

As the daylight dimmed we watched a few more ghost ships emerge to become tangible, while others receded into the vapor on their way to destinations unknown.

Our immediate destination was no mystery – some place dry.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Delve Deeper:
The Titanic Cemetery
The Victorian Public Gardens of Halifax
The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic
Having a Merry Time in the Maritimes (Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick)
The Cajun, Canadian, Acadian Connection

Thanks to Road Scholar for providing this lifelong learning adventure through the Canadian Maritimes! As always, all opinions are our own.

Train-ing Day

With the summer travel season fast approaching, once again we would like to sing the praises of riding the rails. Enjoying the scenery passing by our window, without the hassles of airports or worries of the road, makes train travel our favorite way of getting from here to there. CONTINUE READING >>

With the summer travel season fast approaching, once again we would like to sing the praises of riding the rails.

Enjoying the scenery passing by our window, without the hassles of airports or worries of the road, makes train travel our favorite way of getting from here to there.

As a bonus, sometimes we find views that can only be seen from the railroad as the tracks pass through countryside far from the nearest roads.

Our globetrotting Gypsynester wanderings have afforded us the opportunity to explore by rail all over the world.

In Asia, we discovered that sometimes the train doesn’t really ride on rails at all, as is the case with the fastest train in the world.

The Maglev, in Shanghai, travels suspended on a magnetic field at speeds up to 300 miles per hour.

In Peru, we rode through the incredible Sacred Valley of the Incas aboard the famed Expedition Train.

The narrow gauge route along the Urubamba River travels on the second highest railroad in the world.

After passing through spectacular Andes mountain scenery, we arrived at Aguas Calientes, the town that serves as the basecamp for Machu Picchu.

For those of us past our backpacking prime, it sure beat four days of hiking on the Inca Trail.

Across Europe trains are our first choice for getting from here to there at ground level.

The famous Flåm railway, a scenic and engineering marvel.

We have seen sunny Spain, all the way to above the Arctic Circle, pass by as we relaxed aboard some of the finest trains anywhere in the world.

Read all about our journey from Amsterdam to the Arctic with Eurail.

Many times the routes have taken us to amazing destinations that are only reachable by rail.

Funicular railway a thousand feet above Bergen, Norway.

Norway may have been best for this as we were delivered to the top of a ski jump by cog railway, and a mountain top with the assistance of a cable funicular.

These specially designed trains can climb incredibly steep grades that no other mode of transportation could possibly handle.

In the good ole U.S. of A. we have been from coast to coast in spacious style aboard some of Amtrak‘s iconic long distance routes.

The Southwest Chief, Coast Starlight, and California Zephyr were all part of a fifteen day excursion we made from Chicago to the west coast and back several years ago.

That wild adventure had a huge impact on us, helping to give us the wanderlust, and the guts, to take on our life as Gypsynester vagabonds.

Read about our crazy two-week adventure across America.

One of our favorite things about train travel is the ability to enjoy real food.

Meals are prepared made to order, and served on real china with real silverware.

It’s like having a rolling restaurant at our beck and call.

When we want to feel particularly spoiled, meals can even be delivered to our room.

Amtrak has taken us to some of America’s most historic cities as we hopped from Washington DC, to Philadelphia, to New York, to Boston on a patriotic adventure exploring the origins of our country.

See our journey to America’s founding cities.

Or when we were feeling like getting away from it all, we took the Empire Builder through Glacier National Park.

For us, it is the only way to roll.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Picture This: Florida’s Coral Castle

This remarkable place is mysterious, romantic AND a feat of engineering. How a heartbroken man spent twenty-eight years building this monument to his lost love… SEE MORE > >

Before we crossed the first of the forty-two bridges we would encounter through The Florida Keys, we made a stop at the incredible Coral Castle.

The story of this remarkable place is both mysterious and romantic. According to legend, Edward Leedskalnin was jilted by his bride-to-be the day before his wedding.

Heartbroken, he came to America from his native Latvia in 1923 and spent the next twenty-eight years building this monument to his lost love.

The mystery comes into play with the fact that he made his masterpiece single handed, somehow moving and placing giant stones weighing up to thirty tons.

There was all kinds of speculation that he had harnessed some sort of power, most likely magnetic. But when he was asked about his feat his reply was that he had “discovered the secrets of the pyramids” and that he “understood the laws of weight and leverage well.”

However he did it, we found it quite impressive. Beginning at the nine ton, perfectly balanced front gate, we wandered among the coral creations, towers and rooms, all held in place only by gravity. Leedskalnin managed this by precise cutting, without the use of any mortar.

He also made furniture, including a heart-shaped table and one in the shape of Florida, twenty-five rocking chairs, beds and a even a throne to preside over his castle, all carved in solid stone.

The more we examined his handiwork, the more amazed we became. Even more amazing, after thirteen years of secret construction at his home in Florida City, he decided to move the entire structure ten miles north to its present location in Homestead.

It took him three years to move it, and then he continued to add on to it until his death in 1951.

Click here to see our full story on the Florida Keys!

The dining table shaped like Florida at the Coral Castle — The dining table shaped like Florida.

Click here to see our full story on the Florida Keys!

The bell made from a steering column of a Model T Ford at Coral Castle — The castle bell is made from a steering column of a Model T Ford.

David tries out a rocking chair! — David relaxes in a rocking chair.

Click here to see our full story on the Florida Keys!

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Want more Florida? Click here to see our adventures now!

Norway’s Harbor, Bergen & Bryggen

Locals say, “There’s Norway, and then there’s Bergen” – and we quickly learned why.

Join your GypsyNesters as we tour this rich-with-unusual-history town on Norway’s harbor.

AND enter Bryggen – a city within the city… CONTINUE READING >>

At the end of our Norway in a Nutshell tour we found ourselves in Bergen, the country’s second largest city.

With over a thousand-years of history that has always been connected to trading on the sea, it seemed like the best place to begin our exploration of the town was at the harbor.

We made the easy walk from our home base, the sleek and stylish Scandic Hotel Ørnen, to the busiest port in Norway in just a few minutes.

There’s Norway, and then there’s Bergen (or so the locals told us!)

For much of its existence Bergen was a part of Denmark.

In fact, Norway has only been fully independent since 1905, before that the Scandinavian kingdoms formed alliances, and sometimes fought, while the seat of power was either Denmark or Sweden.

In the case of Bergen, much of its power and stature came from Germany, through the Hanseatic League that we first learned about on our Eurail adventure when we stopped in Lübeck.

This society of traders formed a city within a city along the waterfront that became known as Bryggen, meaning wharf, which has been restored and preserved as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site.

As we worked our way through the maze of tiny alleys and walkways among the storehouses, we began to get a feel for what it must have been like seven hundred years ago when all of the fish and humans were piled in here on top of each other.

Thousands of pounds of fish were processed and shipped south from these cramped and chaotic buildings every season.

Inside Bryggen in Bergen, Norway is a bit wonky. — It’s all a bit wonky!

For a look at the inside of one of these structures, we popped into the Hanseatic Museum.

The building has quite a history its own self.

It was built in 1702 after one of the many fires that have ravaged Bergen through the years, then in it 1872 became a museum.

David makes a wish on the wooden stock fish in Bryggen, Bergen, Norway — It’s a “tradition” to make a wish on the wooden stock fish – but our guide was a bit embarrassed for us that we felt the need to!

The ground floor still has dried fish hanging from the rafters, but we have no doubt that the aroma is nothing more than a hint of the reeking olfactory assault that took place back in the heyday of Bryggen.

Boiling out cod liver oil and pressing dried cod into barrels no doubt kicked up quite a stink.

The Hanseatic Museum in Bergen, Norway — Tiny, tiny room!

Climbing up the steep, narrow, and dark staircase we reached the second floor, which has bunks for the workers, offices for the managers, and trading space for the business at hand.

Up one more flight and we were in the nicer quarters, where the bosses stayed as far from the mess below as possible.

Protecting the harbor

Back outside we walked toward the open sea, past the rows of wooden warehouses, to the mouth of the port where the Bergenhus Fortress stands guard.

This was the site of the royal residence dating back nearly a thousand years, but the surviving buildings are slightly newer, from the middle of the thirteenth century.

The Håkonshallen, named for King Haakon, and the Rosenkrantz Tower are still standing after surviving severe damage during World War II.

Norway was occupied by Germany during the war, and Bergen became an important submarine base for the Nazis, but the damage was caused by an accident, not hostilities.

The statue of King Haakon looks out over the harbor in Bergen, Norway — The statue of King Haakon stands watch at the harbor.

On April 20th, 1944, the Dutch ship Voorbode, loaded with a quarter of a million pounds of explosives, caught fire in the harbor.

The resulting blast killed 158 people, wounded nearly five thousand more, and destroyed 131 buildings with hundreds more sustaining severe damage.

Sabotage by the Norwegian resistance forces was suspected, especially since it took place on Hitler’s birthday, but that was only a coincidence.

The view from the top

Heading back inland, we only had to walk a few blocks to get to one of Norway’s most popular attractions, the Fløibanen.

This funicular railway climbs a thousand feet up the side of Fløyen, one of the seven mountains that surround the city of Bergen.

The basic idea of a funicular is very similar to an elevator.

Two cars are attached to each other by a cable so that they counterbalance each other.

As one goes up, the other comes down.

All we know is that it worked just fine, and gave us an amazing panoramic view of the city, fjords, and surrounding mountains.

Even with the damp conditions we could see for miles.

Actually, considering that Bergen gets about seven feet of rain each year, we had to count ourselves as lucky that it wasn’t pouring on us.

See all of our adventures in Norway!

Awww… quit yer crying

Bergen is famous for more than rain, the city has also been known as a cultural center for centuries.

Several collectors have established museums over the years, including one of the largest collections of Edvard Munch paintings anywhere outside of Oslo, but the city is better known for its contribution to music.

In the main shopping area we came upon a statue of a man playing violin. Being curious, we inquired and discovered that this was Ole Bornemann Bull.

While something less than a household name these days, he was huge back in his day, the mid 1800s.

As a worldwide star he played everywhere, including the good ole U.S. of A.

He liked the states so much that he decided to establish a New Norway in northern Pennsylvania.

He built a castle and founded cities, but before long his plan went bust. The land wasn’t very good for farming, so Ole Bull returned to Bergen and most of his citizens moved on to Minnesota and the Dakotas.

His legacy lives on though, since the one-time settlement has become Ole Bull State Park.

The Opera House in Bergen, Norway — The Opera House

Nearby we encountered another statue, this one depicting an upset-looking, naked boy crying in a pond.

This wonderfully expressive guy is called Grinegutten, which means Crying Boy in Norwegian, and we felt strongly that he has every right to be cranky.

After all, he’s been left stranded standing in the middle of a fountain in his birthday suit for over sixty-five years. The audacity of it all!

We also felt strongly that Norway’s second city left us feeling a whole lot happier than this little guy.

David and Veronica, GypsyNester.com

DELVE DEEPER:
See all of our adventures in Norway!
See our full journey through Norway by rail – spectacular!

A big thank you to Visit Norway for providing this historical adventure! As always, all opinions are our own.

Why Traveling Is the Best Thing You Can Do in Retirement

When you think of retirement, you may think of kicking up your feet and doing nothing. After all, you’ve been on the move for decades and now is your time to relax.
But there are several reasons why getting back onto your feet and traveling during your retirement years is good for you. CONTINUE READING >>

The many benefits of traveling for seniors.

When you think of retirement, you may think of kicking up your feet and doing nothing. After all, you’ve been on the move for decades and now is your time to relax. So congratulations on your retirement but there are several reasons why getting back onto your feet and traveling during your retirement years is good for you.

1. Healthy Aging

There are a number of physical benefits to traveling during your senior years. While traveling is usually associated with relaxation, visiting new places can actually be quite physically taxing. Lugging around suitcases, sightseeing, hiking and various other activities can all burn plenty of calories and really get the blood flowing.

Or better yet, get some exercise with the grandchildren by joining in the fun and excitement of family amusements like theme parks or a Wisconsin Dells Attraction.

Older adults who are physically active have been shown to be less susceptible to things like heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and even cancer.

2. Cognitive Maintenance

On top of all the physical benefits traveling can bring, there are also a number of cognitive advantages. Seeing new things, meeting new people and navigating new places all stimulate the mind, which promotes healthy cognitive function. Whether it’s trying to read a map or understand a foreign language, traveling brings plenty of mental challenges to keep your mind active and strong.

3. Social Benefits

There is a social aspect to traveling that can’t be overlooked. For one, it provides you the opportunity to visit relatives you don’t get to see often. Traveling is the link connecting generations of families and creating lifelong memories.

Additionally, traveling affords you the opportunity to meet people from different cultures and different parts of the world. In addition to learning new things, research has shown that an active social life can slow the decline of one’s health and create a higher quality of living later in life.

4. Stress Relief

There are certain parts of traveling that we all know can be stressful — airport lines, public transportation and jet lag to name a few. But travel as a whole has been found to improve people’s moods and relieve stress. In fact, a 2013 study revealed that 86 percent of travelers experienced an improved mood and outlook on life. More importantly, those effects are long lasting and continue long after your vacation is over.

5. Escape from the Weather

Seniors who live in certain climates may experience a little relief of their joint pain, muscle aches, arthritis and sinuses when visiting a new climate. Changes in temperature, humidity levels and air pressure can have dramatic effects on your body.

6. Spiritual Growth

There may also be some spiritual benefits to traveling for older adults. Discovering oneself, building a relationship with nature and putting the world into greater perspective are just some of the ways traveling can be beneficial to seniors.

7. Educational Benefits

Reading about another country or culture can only teach you so much. Traveling to a new location is the perfect opportunity to soak up some knowledge that you would never get sitting at home.

8. Senior Benefits

The best part about traveling when you’re older? The discounts! Retirees can often find discounts on airfare, hotels, meals and more. Financially speaking, there is perhaps no better time to leave the house.

Traveling offers a number of benefits for older adults, but it also brings a number of health and safety requirements. As a retiree, you should know what to pack and how to prepare for your trip to fully optimize your experience.

Enjoy your retirement, and safe travels!

We are happy to feature this collaborative post to offer valuable information for our readers.

St Martin: a Good Choice for your Winter and Spring Holidays

Whether it’s watching jumbo jets land just a few feet overhead on Maho Beach, or having some of the best French food ever in the beach town of Grand Case, both the French and Dutch sides of St, Martin have plenty to love… CONTINUE READING >>

Saint Martin has long been one of our favorite places for a Caribbean winter getaway or spring fling. We went for the first time almost twenty years ago. It was in January to celebrate our twenty-fifth anniversary, and we have been back several times since.

One thing that the island is famous for is its split personality. We say that because this little place is governed by both France and the Netherlands, making it the smallest island in the world to be occupied by two countries. Enjoying the differences between the two sides is one of our favorite things to do on St. Martin.

The Dutch side has a more night-life and active fun vibe, while the French area is a bit more laid back and well, French. But whether it’s watching jumbo jets land just a few feet overhead on Maho Beach, or having some of the best French food we ever ate in the quiet little beach town of Grand Case, both sides have plenty to love.

Now we’re thinking that it might just be time for another visit. The last time we were there we discovered that perhaps the perfect way to explore all sides of Saint Martin is from a catamaran out on the sea. So we looked again and this time found that PyratZ has just what we were looking for, ready and waiting to sail out on an adventure.

Just to be clear though, these aren’t party boats, but you will have a blast. They are private or shared boat charters with a luxury touch. Choose a sunset cruise, a half or full day, or even a week onboard and you will be pampered with amazing activities, cool cocktails, gourmet dining, and unbelievable views of the Leeward Islands. This is all a part of their three key pillars: Gastronomy, Discovery, and Sustainability.

Let’s take a closer look:

Gastronomy

Your authentic private dining experience onboard any PyratZ charter features a menu that expertly combines French and Caribbean flavors. Savor the flavors of French Cheeses and Charcuterie, Mushrooms Velouté with fresh local mushrooms, a tantalizing Tropical Salad, and top it off with a sizzling steak or grilled local lobster. It will be a meal to remember.

Discovery

We think the very best thing to discover around Saint Martin is the incredible world just below the surface of the sea. Perfect, because all PyratZ charters have top quality snorkels, masks, and fins on board and waiting for whenever you are ready to dive in and explore the undersea world of reefs and exotic sea life.

Each boat also has paddle boards and kayaks for those of us who might want to check out what’s going on above the waves. Or we think just a relaxing drift on a noodle or a floating mat is a pretty good way to spend an afternoon in the Caribbean too. Of course, all of this is done with an eye on safety and Responsible Tourism. Your captain will instruct everyone on the ins and outs of responsible yachting and respect for marine life and the coastal eco systems and communities. Which brings us to the third pillar:

Sustainability

PyratZ was started with the direct intention of supporting sustainable tourism and strives to minimize their footprint as much as possible. This can be seen in the fuel efficient fleet, their commitment to eliminate single-use plastics onboard and collaborate with local eco-friendly and ethically sourced businesses, artisans, and suppliers. They are also involved in partnerships with organizations dedicated to marine cleanup initiatives, and in keeping safe and fair working conditions, and career opportunities for the crews and staff. We are more than happy to be onboard with all of that.

We should certainly point out that all of these fantastic features are not only available on Saint Martin. No, there are many nearby islands worth discovering. We found that anguilla yacht charters is a great place to start any of those adventures if the British Virgin Islands, or maybe Saint Barths are calling out to you.

Of course you will find the same attention to detail and exceptional service as on Saint Martin.

So ahoy matey, let’s cast off for a vacation with memories that will last a lifetime.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

First Setting Eyes on Île Tintamarre

It’s not often that we find a place completely unknown to us, but Île Tintamarre is one we found hiding in plain sight. Join us as we explore the quirky history of this intriguing little land just off the Northeast coast of of Saint Martin… CONTINUE READING >>

We have been to Saint Martin several times over the past fifteen years or so, but when we visited with Dream Yacht Charters last November we were surprised by something totally unexpected… an entire island that we had never heard of.

Hiding in plain sight, just off the Northeast coast of the French side of the main island, we discovered, or more correctly our exceptional captain Serge brought us to, the uninhabited yet indubitably captivating Île Tintamarre.

Our limited fluency in French linguistics led us to speculate on the name had something to do with the color of the sea, but we were way off. For no apparent reason the island seems to have been named for an old Acadian French word concerning making loud noise.

After going ashore, we learned that was only one of several oddities about this island.

Being so close to one of the Caribbean’s most modern islands meant that we had flawless cell service, so we could whip out our phones and Google on the go while exploring… so Google we did.

After some brief spelunking in a seaside cave on the beach where we made landfall, and an encounter with several of the island’s seemingly infinite population of hermit crabs, we made our way inland to see if we could find some traces of the stories we had found online.

The island’s history could best be described as quirky, which pairs perfectly with its topographic peculiarities. Unlike its much larger and mountainous nearby neighbor, Tintamarre is virtually flat. This feature influenced two unusual periods in the island’s past.

The first began in 1902 when Diederik Christian, a Dutch noble who owned the island, came to establish a plantation. Although his main motivation seems to have been to escape taxation, he did manage to build an operation that included some 150 workers and had some success growing cotton and raising livestock.

We found a few ruins left behind from the farming activity, mainly a gate and stone fences, but there are still the remnants of a few buildings too.

He also might have been a little loco, because before long he established his own currency and ruled the island as a self- appointed monarch. Either imperial ruling, or perhaps the seclusion, must not have agreed with him, because by 1931 he sold the island to L. C. Fleming and returned to his estate on Saint Martin.

Guess he figured paying the taxes was worth it.

At this point France reclaimed the territory, which led to another unusual occurrence. Since the French Caribbean islands fell under control of the Vichy government during World War II, Tintamarre became a safe haven for Nazi submarines.

Seems the U-boats would rest on the shallow bottom just off shore while recharging their batteries and stocking up on fuel and provisions.

Not long after the war the second flat land inspired era began. An eccentric aviator by the name of Remy de Haenen rented the island and created an air traffic hub of sorts. He also may or may not have been involved with selling supplies to the German subs.

Once again the level ground contributed to the project by making the clearing of an airstrip an easy undertaking. After picking up some surplus military planes and a flying boat from PanAm, by 1946 Remy had his airline, Compagnie Aerienne Antillaise, up and flying.

Unfortunately, the pioneering flight service encountered three severe accidents in 1947, setting it back drastically. Then a huge hurricane in 1950 did it in once and for all.

While nearly no trace remains of the airport, we had very little trouble visualizing the runway cutting through the overgrown island bush as we walked across the Western end of the strip.

There is one last oddity that Île Tintamarre has been known for, mud baths. Somehow rumors spread that the messy muck along the southern shore had healing powers and folks began to flock to it. Adding to its fame was the fact that most chose to shed all of their clothing for the experience.

However, a few years ago the French authorities proclaimed the goop poisonous and banned the public from partaking in its dubious health benefits. While many ignore the directive, we chose to heed the warning and head back to the boat.

We felt quite confident that an evening aboard would be every bit, if not more beneficial than wallowing in the mud.

That, and dinner was waiting.

David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com

Read more about our sailing adventure across the Caribbean here:

Look out below! Holding Our Breath Beneath the BVI

The British Isles… Virgin That Is

Catamaran Cruising the Caribbean

A big thank you to Dream Yacht Charter for providing this adventure. As always, all opinions are our own.

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A Garden Fit for a Queen, a Victorian One

The Titanic and Paying our Respects at the Fairview Lawn

The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic

The Ellis Island of Canada

Street Food and Ghost Ships

An Impromptu (and necessary!) Art Walk

There’s Norway, and then there’s Bergen (or so the locals told us!)

Protecting the harbor

The view from the top

Awww… quit yer crying

1. Healthy Aging

2. Cognitive Maintenance

3. Social Benefits

4. Stress Relief

5. Escape from the Weather

6. Spiritual Growth

7. Educational Benefits

8. Senior Benefits

Gastronomy

Discovery

Sustainability