In Chris Doyle’s Cruising Guide to the Leeward Islands he speculates, “If Columbus came back today, Dominica is the only island he would recognize.” I can’t speak for the old explorer but on our recent, visit. that’s how we found it…unchanged, undeveloped, unspoiled. It was literally the same as the first time we visited some thirty years ago.

With great effort, some major steps forward have been taken for the island: cruise ship piers in Roseau and Portsmouth; new and greatly improved roads; a hand full of small bungalows and hotels catering to eco tourism. Mother nature, though, is in charge of the island’s fate and corrects those efforts by hammering the place with a hurricane now and then or, as happened last fall, shaking it up with a whopper earthquake that leveled numerous structures including Portsmouth’s ancient stone catholic church.




Dominica is in a time warp that feels, in this economic turmoil, downright refreshing. It has it’s share of poverty. Many live in mere shacks without proper sanitation, yet no one lacks food or water. Farm and jungle fresh food costs little to nothing and the islands many rivers feed community stand pipes in towns and villages.

On a trip to the weekly market I filled two canvas bags with papayas, each $1 EC each ($.37 US,) a hand of bananas, ($1EC,) 2 pounds of huge tomatoes ($5 EC,) and on it went with plantain, mangoes, passion fruits, peppers, lettuce, onions, sweet potatoes and yams until $30 EC (11.10 US) was spent and I could carry no more.




The little bakery, a closet sized space, sold their products at such a low price , I couldn’t figure out how they stay in business. Inside the grocery stores, a loose term in Dominica, it was the same. Simple foods at minimal prices for people with down-to-earth needs.




It was so very third world yet, oddly, almost every house had a cable TV, blaring the West Indies cricket match that was in full swing. And, I swear, everyone had a cell phone and was on it, talking, texting and checking for messages. Those who had cars had nice ones and the school busses were top notch, leading me to wonder…what would Columbus think of that??