The Island Life of Clare from C Squared W (I'm Jealous!)

Hello friends of Paige and Artsy Anthropology!  I'm Clare from C Squared W, where I write about and share photos of life with my husband in the Caribbean.  

We moved to the islands nearly two years ago so that my husband could attend medical school here.  We live on the beautiful nature isle of Dominica {pronounced dom-in-eeka} where everyday is an adventure.  Today I'm excited to share with you my five favorite things about island life:

1. The tight-knit community.  Dominica is a small island, about 290 square miles with a total population of about 71,000.  I volunteer at several local schools and community organizations, and I love the small community here.  On any given day, I see a handful of friends, neighbors, students, and other familiar faces, and this is one of my favorite things about the island.  I love knowing the cashiers at the grocery store, and then seeing them on weekends when I go to town or spend and afternoon at the beach.  These familiar, smiling faces are what make Dominica feel like home! 

2.  We have fresh fruit here everywhere, all the time.  These papayas are from my neighbor's tree across the street.  Our garden is laden with grapefruit, star fruit, guava, passion fruit, banana, and plantain trees.  During mango and avocado {locally called pear} season, my husband and I collect fruits that have fallen off nearby trees, or climb a tree up the street for some fresh fruit.  You can buy all of these treats at the store or the market, as well, but you can't ignore the fresh goodies straight from the tree, either! {Also, the fruits and veggies here are abnormally large.  Sometimes I yell at them...}

3.  Dominica boasts 365 rivers, one for every day of the year.  There is no better way to spend a hot summer day than by hiking in the rainforest to one of the many rivers and waterfalls for a refreshing swim.  Some of my favorites are Bense Pool {pictured above} and the Seven Waterfalls Hike. 

4.  Island Hopping by plane or ferry to one of many nearby islands makes for an easy adventure and an exotic vacation.  Ferries travel from Dominica to nearby islands like St. Lucia, Guadaloupe, and Martinique on a daily basis.  It's also easy to hop a quick plane to other nearby islands like St. Maarten, Barbados, or St. Vincent {above}.

5.  The laid back, island lifestyle and attitude is one of my favorite things about the island.  This photo of happy carefree Rastafarian dancing on the beach at sunset sums this up perfectly.  Life here is simple.  People here are happy and they live with much, much less.  This is one of the greatest lessons that we have learned living here, and I hope that we continue to appreciate this simple lifestyle even when we return to the U.S.

So there you have it, my five favorite things about life in Dominica.  If you're interested in reading more about Dominica and our adventures here check out C Squared W.  I'd love to hear from you!  You can also find me here:

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Thanks for reading!  Paige, thanks again for letting me share a little bit about island life today!