Martinique in a Day

Dear lilioftheworld.com reader, here is Lili, your co-editor. Today I will take you to another beautiful island in the Caribbean and another French overseas territory- Martinique. We visited Martinique during a two-week cruise across the Lesser Antilles in the beginning of 2020 (yes, back then when travelling was smooth and easy). We docked three different days in Martinique. The first one was on our arrival, the second- after a week of sailing, and the last- on the day of departure. After all, we just had only one full day to explore the main town Fort-de-France and the surrounding area. Just like all the other islands we visited during the cruise. 

The article about Martinique is part of the series of posts about the islands during this cruise. We try to give you tips on what to see and do “in a day”. The other islands we visited were:

• Antigua and Barbuda
• Barbados
• British Virgin Islands
• Dominica
• Grenada
• Guadeloupe
• St Kitts & Nevis
• St Maarten
• Saint Lucia
• St Vincent & The Grenadines
• Trinidad & Tobago

In order to read our recommendations for each island, just follow the links. We also shared our overall cruise experience and tips when going on a cruise for the first time.

Martinique

Locals believe that the name of the island comes from two words. On one side, from the name Christopher Columbus gave it when he saw it- Madiana/Madinina, meaning ‘island of flowers’. The other name is “Jouanacaëra” – the one the Caribs used, which means “the island of iguanas”. During our stay we could not explore anything else besides Fort-de-France, so we saw neither flowers, not iguanas. Moreover, the weather was not nice, so this partly ruined the overall impression.

Fort-de-France

Until 1918, when its commercial growth began, Fort-de-France had a tough situation- it had an inadequate water supply, was partly surrounded by swamps, and was notorious for yellow fever. In 1839 an earthquake partially destroyed it and in 1890 a fire did the same. Nowadays, the swamps have been drained and extensive suburbs have spread. 

The interesting streets of Fort-de-France

The cruise port is located around 15-20 minutes walk from downtown, so we advise you to have a stroll. Here are the main things we recommend you to visit while walking through Fort-de-France old town:

• Bibliothèque Schoelcher

The building honors the island’s second main historical figure, Victor Schoelcher, who worked to free the slaves in the late 19th century. Functioning today as the island’s central government-funded library, the elaborate structure was first displayed at the Paris Exposition of 1889. The locals imported everything piece by piece from Paris and reassembled it here- the Romanesque portal, the Egyptian lotus-petal columns, even the turquoise tiles. The Fort-de-France’s bibliotheque has very strange working hours (which unfortunately we learnt post-factum). The opening hours are as follows: Monday 1 to 5:30 pm, Tuesday to Friday 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, and Saturday 8:30 am to noon. 

• La Savane

Opposite the Bibliotheque you will find a broad garden with many palms and mangos; playing fields, walks, and benches. This is La Savane. There are also a lot of shops and cafes lining its sides. In the middle of this grand square stands a white marble statue of Joséphine, “Napoleon’s little Creole”. Joséphine poses in a Regency gown and looks toward Les Trois-Ilets, where she was born. The statue was decapitated in 1991, probably because islanders felt she championed slavery. At the end of the article you will find a quite interesting story about Joséphine.

• Just walk the small streets of downtown

While heading towards our next point of interest, we just walked along the tiny streets of Fort-de-France downtown. This was quite nice as we could see the mixture of colonial architecture and some European impact. You can see street art on many buildings which made the tour also exciting. We were eager to find the next graffiti masterpiece. The ones here cannot be compared to those in Point-a-Pitre, but they are still nice. 

Colorful street art across the old part of Fort-de-France

• Cathedrale Saint-Louis

The religious centerpiece of the island, it’s an extraordinary iron building, which has been likened to “a sort of Catholic railway station.” A number of the island’s former governors are buried beneath the choir loft. 

• Victor Schoelcher Square and Palais de Justice

The Palais de Justice, a neoclassical courthouse built in 1906, is two blocks northeast of the cathedral and can only be viewed from the outside- you cannot even visit the yard. The design resembles a French railroad station, as the plaque in front explains. The square fronting the courthouse has a statue of French abolitionist Victor Schoelcher.

• Grand Marche market 

It officially started operation in the end of the 19th century and has the name Marché aux Epices (Spice Market). This is the largest market on the island. No need to say that this is the place where the majority of the tourists are coming to buy souvenirs and spices to bring back home. The vendors wear the same vividly colored dresses like in Point-a-Pitre, but here they were not very friendly. So we decided not to bother taking photos of them.

Grand Marche with its local goods and vendors

• Théâtre Aimé Césaire

This excellent theater, housed in Fort-de-France’s old city hall, offers an interesting program of French drama, dance and musical performances. We did not have time for this, but at least the door of the inner yard was slightly open, so we could take a look.

• Visit one of the nearest beaches

We have chosen to visit one of the most popular beaches- Anse-a-l’Ane. For this purpose we took the ferry from the waterfront which takes 20 minutes each way. The only disadvantage was that the ferries are not very often, so check the timetable before departing. 

The atmosphere on the opposite shore is replete with plentiful cafes, shops and the walkable plaza of charming Village Creole — recalls the South of France.

We went to Anse-a-l’Ane beach which consisted of several smaller bays. People with families were coming to enjoy the Saturday on the beach. BBQ smell, creole music and children’s laughter could be experienced around. Still, we could find a nice, peaceful location where to enjoy a couple of hours in the sun.

• Attend the yearly Martinique carnival

This is something you can experience just a limited part of the year, so we were extremely lucky. They close the boulevards around la Savane for the dancing groups to walk on the parade. 

During Dimanche Gras or Fat Sunday- the peak of the festival, the island enjoys daytime parades, costumed marchers strumming strings, strutting to a Carnival beat. Puppets, with the name bwa bwa, in fantastic dress, are carried about, while nègres-gros-sirop – revelers whose bodies are covered with coal tar and sugarcane syrup – break through the crowds playfully frightening children. In 2020, Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday is February 25th, but Carnival itself begins in January, with parties and Carnival queens parade taking place every weekend! The fête is getting bigger and more intense, week after week, with a merry madness in the bigger towns and cities. The video below can help you get an impression of Martinique’s carnival spirit. 

So, this was everything from the island of Martinique. As said in the beginning, not the most exciting of all the islands we have seen during the cruise, that is why it will be given a second try some time in the future. I hope you enjoyed traveling with us. Do not miss the other Caribbean stories. 

The story of Joséphine de Beauharnais (Source: discoverwalks.com)

The statue of Joséphine de Beauharnais is located in the Savane park in Fort-de-France, opposite from the Schoelcher library. Joséphine de Beauharnais was born Marie-Josèphe-Rose de Tascher in 1763 in Martinique. She was the first wife of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte from 1796 to 1809. Therefore, she became empress of France and queen of Italy.

Daughter of a rich colonist, the family had a sugar plantation with more than 300 slaves. Joséphine married Alexandre de Beauharnais in 1779 who ended up beheaded in 1794. Two years later she married Napoleon Bonaparte but a divorced followed on the 16th of December 1809. Napoleon gave her the Elysée and the Malmaison castle in which she lived until her death on the 29th of May 1814.

Her statue (approximately five meters high) was erected on the 29th of August 1856. Then, in September 1991, the statue got her head chopped off by members of an anarchist group. Indeed, Joséphine de Beauharnais is not really liked by Martinican people. If some people may consider her to be a famous ancestor born on the island, others remember that she was the one who advised Napoleon to re-establish slavery on the island. Indeed, slavery was re-establish in 1802 even though it had been abolished by the French Revolution in 1794.