Devil's Island

March 18, 2016 - Another day of cruising in the morning with an afternoon in port after about 2:00 P.M.. Or that was the plan. Although it was cloudy with scattered showers, the seas didn't seem to be too imposing, but once we dropped anchor, lowered the gangway and tenders, there was still a delay. Quite a delay in fact, it was well over an hour while the tenders cruised around the ship. They worked the port side, then the starboard side and continued to cruise their way around the ship for well over an hour while we watched from our balconies and waited to hear it was time to proceed to the gangway to disembark and board the tenders. The call never came, however there was an announcement about 4:00 P.M. from Captain Serena.  She had determined that the swells were just too high for passengers to board the tenders safely so although we could take pictures of Ile Royale, Iles Saint-Joseph and Ile du Diable they would be from afar.

There were no organized shore excursions, but simply the opportunity to go ashore and explore on your own. I was disappointed on one hand, but on the other, there was so much pain and suffering lingering on the island, it was almost palpable.  As strange as that may sound, I was glad not to have to deal with that.

The ship had shown the movie Papillion the previous evening, with Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen - the story of Henri Cahrriere's successful escape from the island so everyone was very sharp on Devil's Island. Terry Breen had given a talk on Devil's Island the day before and discussed what there was to see. We were actually going to visit Ile Royale, the arrival/reception island where all prisoners disembarked their ship, were processed into the system and began  their prison time. Each of the three Islands served a different purpose. Ile Royale was the administrative center, Ile Joseph held the most troublesome convicts and the almost inaccessible Devil's Island held the political prisoners, such as Albert Dreyfus, in isolation.

The penal colony was first opened in 1852 by Napoleon III and it went on to become one of the most notorious prisons in history. Once a prisoner completed his sentence, if it was less than eight years, they were forced to stay in French Guiana for the length of time matching their forced labor; any sentence exceeding eight years, they had to stay in French Guiana for the rest of their lives.

On Ile Royale there is the church, prison cells, solitary confinement, death row and the site of the guillotine remain for your perusal. The bars on the cells and the irons for chaining the prisoners to their beds indicates the harshness of the prison routine. I can't imagine you wouldn't quickly realize what a hellish existence life was for a prisoner: the oppressive heat, forced labor, cruelty from the guards and appalling living conditions, even though set among magnificent tropical flora and fauna.

On a lighter note, I am sorry I missed the gift shop, my favorite part of any excursion! According to Terry, you can send postcards postmarked from Devil's Island, however they are then shipped to France and from there sent on to their final destinations. So don't expect a post card anytime soon!  Oh, and the gift shop also carries French underwear of all things!

Lovely dinner in Signatures followed by a couple of excellent Cosmopolitans crafted by Peter, head bartender in Horizons... His secret is Citron Vodka and Cointreau! Ever so tasty!