A week's gig in the West Indies

On Sept 11th both Paulie and Stephen headed for London Heathrow & then to Gatwick. Paulie flew off to Toulouse where she met up with long time pal Margo and daughter Rebecca. Stephen, on the other hand, flew on to the Caribbean to do a week's work at the Med School of Ross University on Dominica with pal Colin Lumsden. Stephen later travelled to St Antonin to spend some nights with Paulie at La Cachette.

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Sept 11th - Ready to go : Pauline Turnbull Stephen heads here via Gatwick. Paulie heads to France Monday 12th -Arriving late (via Barbados) at the apartment across the road from Stephen's work Fine architecture across the road with (overconfident) master builders in action
Tuesday night to himself... time for Stephen to acclimitise at Le Flambeau down the road The Pride of Dominica Acclimitised : Stephen Atherton Wednesday. Pal Colin arrives from UK and Stephen starts workshops on campus
As run down as some of the campus is, backs onto the sea IMG 3654 A morning walk before it gets too hot Which way?
Oh Oh... are those duelling banjos he hears? Pretty, but back he goes . View to Cabrits National Park & Prince Rupert Bluff past Portsmouth Morning of the 16th - with an 11:00 am setup, time to make that 5km walk to Portsmouth. A local home
Some shacks are rather cute. Fisherman HQ. Snapper and lobster it seems . Some breakfast on the way and these fine Haitian ladies happily sell this for 15 East Caribbean dollars. Tourist inflation?
Rusty knife and petit dejeneur is served Guided by new friends & energised by pineapple, the lads head to Fort Shirley . .
Time to head back. Stephen gets angsty about time as he has to set up for a 4 hour gig to 50 staff (it's an hour walk back) The big 4 hour session is delivered and time to relax Friday after work drinks at Sisters Beach Bar in Picard (a short walk from the Uni) Making a point to a Leeds pharmacology teacher
Home? Saturday. Our hostess, MaryAnne, takes us for an hour's drive to Trafalgar Falls near the big smoke of Roseau Stephen scampers over some slippery boulders to his private pool Very changed after last year's hurricane we are told (the drive was slow as many temporary bridges and diversions are still there)
Into the big smoke. Local diets, alas, are changing (Cuba beware) Although there is plenty of fresh food . District civil court
On the way home, Mero Beach And Colin and Stephen go for a dip..... ...before the French owner of Romance Cafe cooks up some Tuna and Shrimp. French/Carib fusion Sept 18th. A stowaway tried to hide in Stephen's luggage and seek assylum in Europe
The last morning walk. Some well off local homes are in contrast the shacks in Portsmouth Up a hill and picking breakfast - guava and orange. Then a quick face wash and a farewell to the Caribbean Sea
Before a 40 minute winding drive to Dominica's swish departure lounge ... and off he goes to Antigua . Only 15 mins out... Stephen flies over flat Guadelope. Infact the other islands all seemed flat and developed.
An 8+ hour flight & 2 hour bus ride later a quick stopover in Oxford before heading to France in the morning. : James Atherton, Stephen Atherton