Paradise Lost: The Price of Beauty

"Tourists see paradise. We live the bills," says Marie-Laure Pindard, watching cruise ships discharge thousands onto Pointe-à-Pitre's docks. As a small business owner, she depends on tourist dollars while resenting the industry's dominance. "They spend four hours here, buy made-in-China souvenirs, eat on the ship. Meanwhile, we import 90% of our food because land grows hotels instead of vegetables."

This paradox—breathtaking beauty masking economic fragility—defines the French Caribbean's contemporary reality. Islands that once fed Europe's sweet tooth now struggle to feed themselves, while rising seas threaten the very ground beneath their feet.