My Adventures on the Isle of Saba
Life of a Nomad
Once upon a time, I lived on the beautiful isle of Saba.
If you haven’t heard of Saba, that’s okay. I suspect a lot of people haven’t. The island of Saba is located 28 miles to the Southwest of the international hub of St. Maarten/St. Marten.
On a clear day, you can see the islands of St. Maarten, St. Barthelemy (St. Barths), St. Eustatius (Statia), St. Kitts, Nevis, and even Montserrat.
That was my view for 90 days from the windows of a house on Saba that I took care of while it was going through probate. The estate sat cliffside on the highest point of the island. From the swimming pool, my view was expansive.
It’s a long story, but a fun one, I think. One of many, many international adventures that I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing.
For almost four years, my husband and I lived everywhere but nowhere.
We were nomads. I started an international housesitting business. We traded our services for the amenities of a nice home in an exotic location. Usually, the homeowners were expats who needed someone to take care of their homes, pets, and pools while they went back to visit family. Taking care of the Pyramid House was one of the most unusual housesitting opportunities that came our way.
Oh yes, the house really was shaped like a pyramid.
For three months, we lived in the clouds. We enjoyed a free show as cloud formations took center stage. Rain over there, sun over here. Sometimes clouds swept across the pyramid property, shrouding us in moist air as they swallowed the magnificent view. There were rainbows in the sky and pure sunshine to celebrate, thunder-storm clouds and blue skies.
Living on Saba is like living in Jurassic Park.
Time was captured in a bottle. There are wild, indigenous orchids and giant iguanas on Saba. The iguanas sometimes measure over six feet.
There’s only one road on the island.
It climbs, twists, and turns precariously. It’s called The Road. The population is just under 2000 people, consisting of Dutch and English speakers.
Saba is a little volcano adrift at sea.
Scuba divers are trained on the island and there’s a small medical school as well. You can dip your toe in the ocean, but the beaches disappear for part of each year.
The Pyramid House was once a meditation yoga retreat.
By the time we were there, it belonged to an elderly gentleman from the US who used it as a getaway for part of each year. We never met him, but after corresponding with him for well over six months, he hired us to look after his estate. We replaced another American couple who were completing a 90-day stay. Unfortunately, a few weeks before we were to arrive, the gentleman passed away rather unexpectedly.
His lawyer asked us to consider taking the assignment anyway while the estate went through probate. We agreed.
We arrived on the island by ferry, a precarious ride on rough seas that even the locals said was wilder than usual. I’d chosen the ferry because the only other way to get to Saba was in a small prop plane. A short flight to the island where the plane lands on the shortest landing strip in the world. That made me hesitant, so I took the long ferry ride instead. What a mistake. I was seasick even though I’d taken medication. The ride was so rough that a good part of the time the ship was practically lying on one side or another.
I gripped the arms of the seat I occupied, squeezed my eyes shut, and didn’t open them again until we arrived.
It was dark when we disembarked. A hired car was waiting for us. We were told to come back tomorrow with passports and check in properly. So, off we went in the dark, following the twisting, winding road until suddenly we stopped.
A woman was standing at the side of the road with a wheelbarrow.
She urged us to put our luggage in it and follow her. We passed through a gate and walked across an open field, through a second set of gates, and down a narrow path in the dark following the stream of light from her flashlight.
We were exhausted. So as soon as she installed us in the house, leaving us alone, we fell into bed.
The next morning, we were awakened by bright sunlight streaming through the sliding glass doors to the balcony. I got out of bed, opened the doors, and stepped outside. What met my eyes was paradise. I was like Dorothy after her house crashed in the land of Oz. I went from a black and white world to a world of unbelievable colors, contours, and vistas.
Thus began three months of adventures.
I don’t have time to write about every adventure we had while on the island but I will try to touch on some of the things about life on Saba that were unusual.
Food
There were a few restaurants, bars, and grocery stores on the island. We had to walk the half mile through the woods to The Road where the car was parked and drive to one of four villages to shop.
The four villages included The Bottom, Windwardside, St. John’s, and Zion’s Hill( aka Hell’s Gate).
Most of the food and other supplies were imported so usually by the end of the week the shelves could look a bit bare. We purchased whatever we could manage to stuff in our backpacks and then walked the half mile back through the woods to the house.
Wildlife
Besides the giant iguanas, there were herds of wild goats roaming the island. The Pyramid House was built on a 1700-foot cliff. Often, a herd of goats would gather close to the edge of the property to graze. People from town told us we should shoo them away because it would just be a matter of time and they would be eating our decorative plants.
One day, I caught a group of four or five goats standing not far from the swimming pool.
I ran out of the house waving my arms and yelling at them. Before I knew it, they turned and jumped off the edge of the cliff. I was horrified! I ran to the edge of the cliff and peered down. There they were, down below, standing on tiny, little ledges looking up at me.
Our Location and Job Description
I’ve already said that the Pyramid House stood on a 1700-foot cliff with a spectacular view. There was no driveway leading to the house, so we were somewhat isolated. The gentleman who owned the property had an old car. He saw no reason to upgrade to a better vehicle as things rusted so easily on the island. We had to get it fitted with new brakes before we felt safe driving it beyond the closest little village, however. The Road was very twisting and winding and steep with unforgettable views of the sea.
Driving The Road was a bit of a tense adventure in and of itself, but once we got the brakes replaced, we felt safer.
We didn’t have a lot of tasks to perform. Mostly, we were a presence on the property. We did, however, mow, tend the pool, keep the patios cleared of debris, and feed the cats. Setai and Cleo were two lovely resident cats who appreciated our attention almost as much as we enjoyed their company.
There were some flowers in the gardens but mostly the property was surrounded by a natural setting. If a person loved nature, and I do, then it was sometimes hard to leave the place even for a few hours.
The Locals
We got to know our neighbors. People were friendly and helpful. I’m not much of a partier but on a few occasions, we went out for the evening to listen to music and mix and mingle. Saba is a municipality of the Netherlands. Dutch is spoken on the island as well as English.
Our Departure
Ninety days sounds like a long time, but it always flies by. We’ve done numerous house sits throughout the world, but it was always a treat to get to stay in one spot for as long as three months. It takes time to get to know people, find your way around a new place, develop a routine, and familiarize yourself with customs and social practices.
You can’t do that as a tourist.
Ninety days is just scratching the surface, but you do leave a housesit of that duration with a feeling of familiarity that only comes with spending extended time somewhere as an “untourist”.
Before the day came for our departure, I knew well in advance that we’d be returning to Saint Maarten via prop plane.
It was a gorgeous day with plenty of sunshine when we reluctantly said goodbye to Setai and Cleo. A hired car picked us up at almost the exact spot that they’d dropped us off on the night of our arrival. We enjoyed the drive to the tiny airport with the shortest landing strip in the world. This time, I didn’t close my eyes as we took off down the runway heading straight for the edge of the cliff.
I kept my eyes wide open, because I didn’t want to miss a thing. I wanted to look at Saba through the windows of the plane for as long as possible.
Teresa is a retired educator, author, world traveler, and professional myth buster. You can find her books on Amazon.
