French Guiana

 ( Nov - Dec 2016 )

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If you like mosquitos, snakes, muddy waters, alligators, rain ... French Guyana is for you !!!!!

Just kidding, of course!!!

It's an amazing rainforest with some of the most diverse plant and animal life, a colonial architecture ,Salvation islands, Kourou and its Guiana space center, the indian tribes, the colourful markets aso....

But first of all, let's have a walk in Suriname ....

On the river Maroni

                                                                                               A small village by the river Maroni

Back to French Guiana . Back to St Laurent du Maroni

The camp de la transportation ( with its most famous prisoner Papillon )where prisoners arrived for processing, was the largest prison in French Guiana

The rain forest

Discovering swamp at St Laurent du Maroni

Sailing on the river Maroni

                      A P A T O U

A typical wooden painted door in Apatou

Bruno and the schoolboys waiting for the boats to bring them back home on the  river Maroni. Apatou

Mana .  1 PM  .  It is very hot .  Streets are empty ( nearly )... All is dry.  Found a snake on the road. So boring .

Just saw the snake ... Mosquitos all around .

AWALA - YALIMAPO     An ameridian village, famous for turtles laying on the beach in summertime .  End of the road, end of the world !

Awala - Yalimapo ... Some old houses ... An old woman is sweeping her yard.... A Parrot in a cage... so unreal .

The main beach of Kourou

Kourou, the amerindian village

Approaching the Salvation islands

Devil island,  the most famous island due to the political imprisonment there of Captain Dreyfus,is one of the 3 Salvation islands .These islands were part of a notorious penal colony from 1852 onwards for only the worst criminals of France.

The Ile Royale housed prison guards, administrators, and the death row inmates. The entire complex included a hospital, meat market, bakery, church, and a small cemetery for children and wives of the guards. Few prisoners lived more than a short time in the dark and forbidding environment of harsh conditions, prevalent disease, hard labor, and severe punishment. Death by guillotine was the fate for many, and burial rites were non existent, as the dead were tossed to the hungry sharks circling the island. Five to eight year sentences were the minimum, and these were doubled, as prisoners had to serve an equal amount of time by remaining on French Guiana even after release. Many would never leave, as those with sentences over 8 years were forced to stay on French Guiana

I enjoy the warm sea in the only place to swim  in the island

                                                         Enjoying the beautiful landscape of the island

The track around the island... some monkeys, some iguanas , some birds

Bye bye Salvation islands .It's time to comeback to Kourou and then to Cayenne

Cayenne, seen from a hill overviewing the town

                                                                     NO COMMENT ( hope you can speak french !)

Not far from Cayenne

                                                                                My watermelons are for you!!

Let's have a walk to Cayenne Marketplace.... Colourful, crowdy, noisy and full of delicious exotic fruits

OYAPOCK RIVER .....Between Brazil and French Guiana . It just takes 10 minutes to cross the river. The french side is sleepy and boring and the brazilian side is , how to say , so so living

Oiapoque ....  Brazil....... Market day

I am waiting for a boat to bring me back to St George de l'Oyapock, in French Guiana. 

Yes, i like watermelons

Which boat would you like to cross the river Oyapock ?

The bridge between French Guiana and Brazil . Finished in 2011 and still not opened!!!

ST GEORGES DE L'OYAPOCK

                                                           ( below )

End of the trip in French Guiana.... Time to come back to France ...  Time to meet winter.... Time to think about a new journey ........  TO BE CONTINUED .....