Montserrat is the Caribbean’s hidden secret. The small pear-shaped nation lies in the Lesser Antilles chain of islands. Montserrat embodies the spirit of the Caribbean people. After the Soufrière Hills volcano erupted in 1995, Caribbean nationals from all over – Dominica, Jamaica, Haiti, and more – emigrated to the nation to rebuild it. To this day you’ll hear English radio broadcasts repeated in Haitian Creole and sometimes Spanish.
Tiny Population
With just over 5000 people on the entire island, there’s an intimacy to staying in Montserrat. It feels like everyone knows everyone. It’s not uncommon for Montserratians to have nicknames for each other – a name you’d only know if you were born there.
The Volcano
For visitors, there’s a lot to see and explore in Montserrat. Firstly, visitors will notice its big smoking hill, which is the island’s active volcano, called the Soufrière Hills. This volcano continues to churn to this day. But, don’t let that put you off from visiting; many precautions have been put in place to not only ensure the safety of tourists, but of Montserratians as well. The Montserrat Volcano Observatory monitors all volcanic activity and leads the Mountain A Glow project.
Tying in Culture
The Mountain Aglow project celebrates the wit, warmth, and wisdom the eruption and earlier experiences of disaster have generated in Montserrat, and commemorates the hardships they brought. The Soufrière Hills is not a looming threat, but part of Montserratian culture. Poetry, music, and art have all been made about the volcano.
While the volcano is technically at risk for eruption, stringent protocol and monitoring set the risk factor at virtually zero. Montserrat possesses a robust alert system and local life has adapted to the presence of the temperamental mountain. It’s possible to schedule not only tours of the area devastated in the 1995 and 1997 eruptions that remain uninhabitable to this day, but to tour around the volcano itself. Note, it’s only possible to visit these areas under the accompaniment of a licensed guide and often with a police escort.
Montserrat, for many, is a country that exists off the beaten path, but its cultural makeup – a mashup of various Caribbean cultures – and its unique relationship with disaster, make it a Caribbean country like no other.
