Thursday, November 15, 2012

Share the road!

I ended up doing all the driving in Tobago, because I don't mind twisty, hair-raising roads with obstacles every 200 metres. It's like being in a giant car-based video game! Gordon prefers city driving, which is just fine, because city driving irritates me to the marrow of my bones.

Not a day passed that we didn't see one of more of these in the road...


Often they were tethered. Often they were not.


We saw plenty of goats in the road, not to mention napping dogs and sauntering human beings. But the   roads are so steep and twisty that it's tough to get going much faster than 40 kmph at best. Every time I got the car in fourth or fifth gear, I cheered. It was that rare an occurrence!



And they drive on the left in Tobago (but park pointing with or against traffic. In Canada, I would only park at the side of the road pointing in the direction of traffic. To do otherwise would get me a ticket!)  For reasons I don't understand, I never have a problem transitioning to driving on the left. I've driven in England and it has always been fine.


One of our guides did ask Gordon was his wife was driving him everywhere! He said something about enjoying having a personal chauffeur.


One day, we drove all the way up to Speyside to take a glass-bottomed boat tour. That drive had some interesting moments involving backing all the way down a steep, twisting hill between a dump truck and an SUV. There was road paving going on and let's just say my knuckles were a little white but we all survived nicely!

We relaxed with lunch at a nearby hotel before our boat trip. Gordon had something called a Caribbean Fold, which sounds more like a cat than a seafood-filled tortilla...



I had a flying fish burger which was very tasty.



The hotel had hummingbird feeders everywhere, and the Copper-rumped hummingbirds were going crazy over them:




Beautiful little jewels in the sun! Here's a short video of them in action:





After lunch, we walked down to the dock to wait for our boat.



The beach was very pretty. Speyside is a popular place for divers.



We sat on top of the boat on the way out!






First we headed over to Little Tobago Island. Later we snorkeled in these waters and we saw a sea turtle! That was one of the highlights of my trip. 


The island is a bit of a birders' paradise. We saw many beautiful birds here, including Red-billed Tropicbirds, Brown Boobies, Magnificent Frigatebirds, and a Broad-winged hawk.



And this Red-billed Tropicbird crash-landed right near us! Apparently they are used to humans and do this regularly. He was tired and needed a break from flying.


More Tobago pics tomorrow!

25 comments:

  1. When I was younger I used to drive on the left all the time, not because it was legal, but because I was drunk.

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    1. Hahaha! You'd do well in Tobago!

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  2. Breathtaking. I envy you. And I would prefer driving on straight roads, too.

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  3. For a minute, I thought you had come to Grenada! Our calf gets together with other calves and they run up and down the road while their mamas forage. So much fun to see. I'm looking forward to more pics. Keep enjoying your trip!!

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    1. I went to Grenada in 1997, and I'm yearning to go back. We agreed it would be our next Caribbean destination!

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  4. It looks as though you were the only people in paradise!
    Jane x

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    1. It was NOT crowded! The end of the rainy season, too, but I don't think Tobago ever gets that many tourists. Most of them are Brits!

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  5. I love all the tropic scenery and animals. The red-billed bird was a great catch!

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    1. It was quite startling when she landed at our feet!

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  6. So, does their cattle just go home at night or do they have go hunting for them? You are much braver than I with the driving! ~ Maureen

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    1. Mostly they are tethered and we saw them being gathered together at night. That said, I also saw them sitting in the road at night....

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  7. I agree with Jane...did you have this island paradise to yourself??LOL! I love seeing the hummingbirds; we have a pair that have visited all summer and into fall for the fuschia hanging on my porch. They're amazing to watch. BTW, I had to drive in Ireland because my husband couldn't get use to the steering wheel and roads on the opposite side:-D XOXO

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    1. Susan, the beaches were DESERTED. It definitely felt like we had paradise to ourselves, although we weren't at one of the beach resorts!

      I LOVE hummingbirds. And you know, I think some people just aren't capable of wrapping their heads around driving on the wrong side. :)

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  8. So beautiful!!! I wish those animal weren't so skinny though :(
    Than red-billed bird seemed to be dehydrated, such a beautiful birdie :)

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    1. The skinniness seems par for the course when we visit countries like this. That said, these cows all did look quite healthy otherwise!

      The bird was okay, just needed a break! They fly and fly around the cliffs and water. So neat!

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  9. Your photos are unbelievable! I could do without the driving... You're a better man than I (Gunga Din?)...

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  10. What a beautiful place. I like snorkeling so I'd have fun there.

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    1. The snorkelling was magnificent. It's one of my favourite things to do and I wish I could do it more often.

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  11. Anonymous9:58 pm

    What a wonderful vacation. Stupendous photos - particularly enjoyed the hummers.

    janet

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    1. It was so easy to stand really close to them and get lots of photos!

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  12. It looks lovely, and how cute are those hummingbirds?

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  13. Your photos are stunning. All of them. So much so that I didn't even know which post to comment on. I picked this one because of the hummingbird. But...you have BEES. I'm so intrigued by your entire life.

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    1. Thank you Stephanie! I just loved all those hummingbirds.

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Thank you for all your comments, which I love to read!