OUR PASSPORTS are stamped with a shamrock, posters advertise St Patrick's Day celebrations and the green, orange and white of Ireland are everywhere.

My partner Richard and I are on the Emerald Isle but not the one across the Irish Sea. This one is Montserrat, thousands of miles away in the Caribbean, the only other place on Earth where March 17 is a national holiday, thanks to the Irish ancestry of some of its inhabitants.

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This British Overseas Territory in the Leeward Islands is also possibly the only other place in the world where you can get close to an active volcano, see unique animal, bird and plant species and stay at a hotel where Mick Jagger and Sting have slept.

The 3,000ft volcano has been causing trouble ever since the unexpected eruption of Chances Peak in the Soufrière Hills in 1995.

Ash and pyroclastic flows (the deadly, inescapable mix of gas and rock that can travel at up to 400mph) cover much of the 39 square mile island, including the abandoned Georgian former capital Plymouth, a modern-day Pompeii.

We could see the volcano brooding under its thick cloud on our short flight from Antigua.

Despite its ever-present menace or perhaps because of it, Montserrat is a surprisingly cheerful place.
"Life hands you lemons? Make lemonade, " as they say.

The hiking trails on the lush, forested Centre Hills are still open. Guides (recommended because it's easy to get lost on the centuries-old paths) point out rare and exclusive flora and fauna including the Montserrat oriole (the island's national bird) and the "mountain chicken", the world's second-largest frog. Diving and snorkelling on the coral reefs are popular, too.

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For now, we are volcano-curious and drive to the Jack Boy Hill visitor centre, strategically placed in the north-east of the island, to view the Soufrière Hills.

The grassy area is beautifully landscaped and boasts exquisite oleanders and ginger lilies, picnic tables and a telescope. Looking across the rainforest plumes of smoke emerge from the upper slopes of the volcano and rocks skitter down.

Below, the former airport, some villages and an old sugar mill are buried under a sandy brown mantle of pyroclastic flow. The mill chimney, like a finger pointing heavenward, is the only remaining evidence of human existence.

Luckily, Montserratians are survivors. A new capital is planned at Little Bay on the north-west coast, businesses have relocated to nearby Brades and the airport has been replaced.

Montserrat Volcano Observatory at Flemmings overlooking the Soufrière Hills is purpose-built for scientific monitoring. It has a viewing platform, an informative exhibition and a fascinating documentary on the volcano and the aftermath of the eruption, with old news footage, radio recordings and dramatic photographs.

We are staying at Olveston House, owned by former Beatles producer Sir George Martin. His nearby AIR Studios attracted such artists as Dire Straits, The Police, Sir Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and The Rolling Stones until it closed in 1989 when Hurricane Hugo destroyed much of the island.

When subsequent volcano damage and evacuations ruined the respective hotel and restaurant businesses of Carol Osborne and Margaret Wilson, Sir George allowed them to rent colonial Olveston House with its wrap-around porch. It is elegant, relaxed and welcoming.
"Come on in, " Carol greets us.

"Now, it's a rule here: first drink on the house. Rum punch?" Yes please. Delicious. It's been a long day. Our room is lovely: light and bright with cool, tiled floors, louvre windows and a door on to the verandah where we sit as night falls. Egrets and wild chickens, which roam all over the island, peck at the lawn. The air thrums with noisy birds and insects.

Fireflies weave incandescent patterns in the dark.

WE'RE LUCKY to get a table at Olveston, also a popular restaurant.

Margaret's cooking is terrific: grilled fresh fish, traditional roasts and barbecues. No wonder it's packed.

A night in this big, comfy bed, I mused, drifting off contentedly to the nocturnal chorus, is the nearest thing you're going to get to sleeping with Mick Jagger or Sting. Rock stars, shamrocks and volcanos. What an amazing place.

GETTING THERE:
MotMot Travel (01327 830918/ motmottravel.com) offers four nights at Olveston House, Montserrat, and three nights at Siboney Beach Club, Antigua from £1,195pp (two sharing), room only. Price includes return BA flights from Gatwick to Antigua and transfers.
Montserrat Tourist Board 020 7928 1600/visitmontserrat.com Antigua & Barbuda Tourist Office: 01245 707471/ antigua-barbuda.com