Cayenne, French Guiana: "Wait, they speak French in South America??"

To escape the cold of winter in France metropole, I traveled south to French Guiana, a French territory in South America. I was especially excited to discover not only a new place but a new continent:) 

Three words: rain, humidity, heat. December is rain season, but we actually had quite a few good days full of sun and breeze!

We started out the voyage by spending the night in the marais de Kaw, or swamp/wetlands of Kaw. We coasted the water by narrow, green boats and then slept in hammocks in a shelter off of the water! The wetlands area was truly serene and gorgeous.
I know we often think of a green, algae-infested pit of water, when we hear "swamp," but this was the exact opposite. Clear green-blue water, lots of wildlife and their sounds. In the evening we went back out to look for caiman (crocodiles) and we got to hold a baby one, but the poor thing just wanted to be left alone!

Our crib for the night

One of my favorite parts was our beach afternoon. The sand was almost a golden rust color; too cool. It was rather hot so a nice breeze, bubbly white waves waving hello with a sky specked with colorful kite surfing...it was a peaceful afternoon and one of my favorites.

Pretty Cayenne sand

Watching the at ease kite surfers reminded me of my goal to learn to paraglide:) It looks so fun!

We also visited a couple of markets -- one in Cayenne and another in a small village called Cacao. It was here that made me realize how much French Guiana is far from a touristy destination! It was filled with locals, and I was able to find exotic, local fruits and specialties.

Saturday marché in Cayenne

View of the forest from Cacao village

Another day trip was our visit to îles du Salut (Salvation islands). We took an hour boat ride to access two of the small islands: île Royale et St. Joseph. I got pretty sea sick on the way there, but the islands' palm trees, breeze and history was pretty great. Ile Royale actually used to be a prison where French mainland prisoners were sent starting during Napoleon III reign. We saw the ruins of these prisons, visited a museum, picnicked by the coast, saw many monkeys, agoutis and local animals, and swam on the white, sandy beach on St. Joseph. 

View of St. Joseph from île Royale

A beautiful stone path found while walking along île St. Joseph. 

I didn't bring my phone to the second island, but it looked this beautiful!
Source: Getty images

We tried local cuisine and a large part of Cayennais speak the Créole language; so reading menus was always fun. Some of our favorites were maracuja (passion fruit), mango salad, curried and fricassee meats, local fish..it was delicious!

Tip: You definitely need to rent a car to get around French Guiana! The public transport is not yet well developed, and plan on driving at least an hour to access really anything: Kourou (space center is located here), zoo, Cacao village, islands, etc.

It was a jam packed trip; we saw lots and had some truly wonderful experiences.

bisous,
Lyndi



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