Day 65 - 12/10/23 - Devil's Island

 We arrived at our anchorage location shortly after 7am and the first tenders were dispatched by 7:40am.  We, however, stayed in bed until after 8am and then enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before catching a 9am tender.  

Once on shore, we decided to walk the circular path that circles the island counter clockwise which is the opposite direction that most people take.  We passed by the former boat house and workshop until we finally could see the actual Devil's Island come into sight.  The island that we land on is actually called, Île Royale, and it was the reception island for the 'convicts'.  Devil's Island was the location where the real hardcore prisoners were sent to and most never returned.  We then encountered several different groups of monkeys.  They were super cute.  Farther down the path, we observed some very large turtles in the water which I was able to photograph.  At the end of this counter clockwise trail, it joined the paved driveway that winds its way up the hill to the former prison grounds.  Along the way we encountered more groups of monkeys including some spider monkeys.  




Walking track


Sea Turtle

As a parenthesis, as I am writing this, I've sighted multiple groups of dolphins who approached the ship to ride the bow waves.  It was pretty cool to watch and hard to photograph.  


At the former prison site, we went to the hotel and bar and ordered a large bottle of sparkling water and relaxed in the shade and consumed our water.  About 12:20 we spotted a couple of peacocks and an egret before we headed back for the tender platform. Along the way, we encountered an agouti (a large rodent) which was very cute and very large!  Spotting the agouti completed my list of what I wanted to see on this trip.  We could hear other birds including what sounded like an owl but they were not to be seen.  

Agouti walking (large rodent)

Closeup 

Back at a the tender platform we watched more sea turtles feeding along the shoreline (difficult to photograph as they just came up for air and immediately dove back down) while we waited for what would be the last tender.  After it arrived, all of the operational gear was loaded as well as our last group of passengers.  When we scanned back on the Zaandam, Angela was next to last and Rebecca from Australia was last to board the ship.  


It was a good day at Devil's Island and at 3pm I collected our passports before updating my blog while sipping cold water enhanced with a non sugar powder.  It's a. really tasty treat and has helped reduce my desire for soft drinks during this cruise.  I also was able to eat a small portion of meatloaf for a late lunch so as to not totally spoil dinner.


I should add that we were never asked for and I didn't volunteer to provide evidence of a yellow fever vaccination for French Guiana or Brazil despite the requirements we found online prior to the cruise.   


We ate a very light dinner before attending the interdenominational Sunday church service.  Afterwards we were entertained by a very funny comedian, Buddy Fitzpatrick.  He interacted with the audience very well and it was so good we returned for the 9pm show and while the core of his comedy was the same, it was funny to experience the audience interaction with a smaller and different group. It really changed the dynamics.


Tonight HAL held a Pajama Party in the Crow's Nest.  While the decorations were cute and the string duo were excellent playing lullabyes, it seemed like a lame excuse for a party and only lasted one hour.


Fortunately, we gain another back tonight, so we get an extra hour of sleep.  Tomorrow is a sea day  with not a lot of activities in the morning as there is a second Mariner Society awards presentation.   

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