Sights in Martinique

1. La Savane

   • Martinique
   • Sights › Outdoors

   This large central park sports grassy lawns, tall trees, clumps of bamboo and lots of benches. The harborside of La Savane has souvenir stalls, a newsstand and statues dedicated to early settlers and fallen soldiers. The park is the center of the action during Carnival and other major events.

   At the park's north side, near bustling Rue de la Liberté, is a statue of the Empress Josephine holding a locket with a portrait of Napoleon. You can't miss it - years ago the statue's head was lopped off and red paint splashed over it. No real efforts have been made to repair the damage. Evidently the empress is not highly regarded by islanders. Many believe she was directly…

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2. Musée de la Pagerie

   • Martinique
   • Sights › Museum

   This former sugar estate was the birthplace of Marie Joseph Rose Tascher de la Pagerie, the future Empress Josephine. A picturesque stone building, formerly the family kitchen, has been turned into a museum containing Josephine's childhood bed and other memorabilia. Other buildings contain such things as the Bonaparte family chart, old sugarcane equipment and love letters to Josephine from Napoleon.

   Multilingual interpreters relate anecdotal tidbits about Josephine's life, such as the doctoring of the marriage certificate to make Josephine, six years Napoleon's elder, appear to be the same age as her spouse. You can poke around in the ruins of the old mill directly…

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3. Les Ombrages

   • Martinique
   • Sights › Gardens

   Les Ombrages is a botanical garden situated at the site of what was once a rum distillery. Stopping here a short while makes for a refreshing break. A trail passes by stands of bamboo, tall trees with buttressed roots, torch gingers and the ruins of an old mill. It's a lush jungle walk.

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