Lush Tropical Beauty of St. Lucia
During the night, sailing from St. Barths, we passed St. Christopher, Guadaloupe and St. Martinique. By 9:00 am we were docked at Castries in St. Lucia (pronounced "Loosha").
At the dock, Al quickly negotiated a taxi for the full day ($70 USD per person). Our driver, Julian, was a gentle soul, with a fun wit. The main language in English, but the local people speak a French-based Creole. "Sa ou fe? Mwen la." (How are you doing? I'm alright.) Driving is on the left side.
Another beautifully sunny day. The 238 square mile island has some of the finest natural harbors in the Caribbean, which is why the French and British fought endlessly for possession. St. Lucia changed hands fourteen times between the two colonial powers. The island now has its own democratic government, as part of the British Commonwealth. We saw the governor's residence, from the outside. An impressive white mansion. The governor is a single woman. You go, girl!
Steve had instructed me to search for local "witch doctors", to help us with our cures. I wasn't going to find that on St. Lucia. The people are 85% Catholic, and they aren't really into any sort of ancient rituals. Oh, and they are all rooting for Obama.
We headed south from Castries, stopping to take pictures at various colorful fishing villages -- Anse la Raye, Canaries, Soufriere. At Canaries, Julian made a quick stop to put in his order for "the island's best bread". He explained that drivers get in big trouble with their families if they pass through Canaries and don't bring back the bread, which looks like a long baguette. Of course, he insisted we sample it, and it was fabulous!
We met several characters along the way, vendors. I bought a few trinkets from "Sugar Ray" and from "Steve McQueen". Julian introduced us to "Farine", which is a hockey-puck-shaped bread/cake made from Casava root. We visited a bakery where this local delicacy is made, and saw the entire process, starting with the guy who is grinding the root into a fine meal. Farine is then baked with a wide variety of flavors. We chose the cinnamon and coconut. It was dense, but moist and amazingly tasty. The puck is about 5" in diameter. It was so filling that we could not finish it between the two of us.
The island is a lush tropical jungle. The terrain reminded me of Granada, which we enjoyed a couple of years ago. Soufriere is nestled at the base of Petit Piton. The Pitons are a duo of cone shaped, dramatic peaks. Supposedly Oprah has said they are one of the top five places one must see!
Our destination to the south was the "Drive-In Volcano", a few miles inland from Soufriere. The Caribs called the the place "Qualibou", meaning "place of death". The last lava flow erruption was in 1780. The Sulphur Springs are a bit smelly. As we approached the area, Julian proclaimed, "It wasn't me!". He had a fun sense of humor. We took a tour of the bubbling mud pools and watched the steam. They used to let tourists wander around, right close to the hydrothermal activity, but after a guide was showing off and fell in, the area is viewed from behind a fence. It's much safer this way. It was very interesting, and worth the drive south.
Now we were headed to the north of the island. Julian had determined that the ideal beach for us to spend a couple of hours was at Rodney Bay, Reduit Beach. We were not disappointed! It's a gorgeous stretch of white sand. Lounge chairs are available for a few dollars. We lunched at Spinnakers, on the beach. After our expensive lunch experience at Shell Beach on St. Barths, we were carefully trying to figure out the prices. It appeared that the prices here were astronomical as well. I would have liked the Jumbo Shrimp, but not at $65! Al opted for a cup of soup, and I had a shrimp pasta salad. This time we had another good laugh. Our meal, including Piton Beer (the local beer), was only $23 USD. Even though the prices on the chalkboard indicated they were USD, they were actually in the Eastern Caribbean Dollar.
The island's primary export is the sugar banana, which is very tasty. We purchased a bunch from a young girl, at a roadside stand. We learned from Julian that St. Lucia's bananas are exported to the Commonwealth, and sold under the name "Five Stars". Did you know that a banana tree only produces one crop? They chop the tree down after it has produced, but by then, a new sprout has grown. It will take the new sprout nine months to produce the next crop. While the bananas are maturing, the bunch is wrapped in blue plastic, to protect them from bugs and birds. Speaking of "agriculture", the Rastofarians (is that how it is spelled?) live in the hills of the jungle. They are the marijuana farmers. It's legal for an individual to have "two sticks" for personal use.
St. Lucia was a lovely stop. Beautiful scenery, nice people, a very pleasant experience.
At the dock, Al quickly negotiated a taxi for the full day ($70 USD per person). Our driver, Julian, was a gentle soul, with a fun wit. The main language in English, but the local people speak a French-based Creole. "Sa ou fe? Mwen la." (How are you doing? I'm alright.) Driving is on the left side.
Another beautifully sunny day. The 238 square mile island has some of the finest natural harbors in the Caribbean, which is why the French and British fought endlessly for possession. St. Lucia changed hands fourteen times between the two colonial powers. The island now has its own democratic government, as part of the British Commonwealth. We saw the governor's residence, from the outside. An impressive white mansion. The governor is a single woman. You go, girl!
Steve had instructed me to search for local "witch doctors", to help us with our cures. I wasn't going to find that on St. Lucia. The people are 85% Catholic, and they aren't really into any sort of ancient rituals. Oh, and they are all rooting for Obama.
We headed south from Castries, stopping to take pictures at various colorful fishing villages -- Anse la Raye, Canaries, Soufriere. At Canaries, Julian made a quick stop to put in his order for "the island's best bread". He explained that drivers get in big trouble with their families if they pass through Canaries and don't bring back the bread, which looks like a long baguette. Of course, he insisted we sample it, and it was fabulous!
We met several characters along the way, vendors. I bought a few trinkets from "Sugar Ray" and from "Steve McQueen". Julian introduced us to "Farine", which is a hockey-puck-shaped bread/cake made from Casava root. We visited a bakery where this local delicacy is made, and saw the entire process, starting with the guy who is grinding the root into a fine meal. Farine is then baked with a wide variety of flavors. We chose the cinnamon and coconut. It was dense, but moist and amazingly tasty. The puck is about 5" in diameter. It was so filling that we could not finish it between the two of us.
The island is a lush tropical jungle. The terrain reminded me of Granada, which we enjoyed a couple of years ago. Soufriere is nestled at the base of Petit Piton. The Pitons are a duo of cone shaped, dramatic peaks. Supposedly Oprah has said they are one of the top five places one must see!
Our destination to the south was the "Drive-In Volcano", a few miles inland from Soufriere. The Caribs called the the place "Qualibou", meaning "place of death". The last lava flow erruption was in 1780. The Sulphur Springs are a bit smelly. As we approached the area, Julian proclaimed, "It wasn't me!". He had a fun sense of humor. We took a tour of the bubbling mud pools and watched the steam. They used to let tourists wander around, right close to the hydrothermal activity, but after a guide was showing off and fell in, the area is viewed from behind a fence. It's much safer this way. It was very interesting, and worth the drive south.
Now we were headed to the north of the island. Julian had determined that the ideal beach for us to spend a couple of hours was at Rodney Bay, Reduit Beach. We were not disappointed! It's a gorgeous stretch of white sand. Lounge chairs are available for a few dollars. We lunched at Spinnakers, on the beach. After our expensive lunch experience at Shell Beach on St. Barths, we were carefully trying to figure out the prices. It appeared that the prices here were astronomical as well. I would have liked the Jumbo Shrimp, but not at $65! Al opted for a cup of soup, and I had a shrimp pasta salad. This time we had another good laugh. Our meal, including Piton Beer (the local beer), was only $23 USD. Even though the prices on the chalkboard indicated they were USD, they were actually in the Eastern Caribbean Dollar.
The island's primary export is the sugar banana, which is very tasty. We purchased a bunch from a young girl, at a roadside stand. We learned from Julian that St. Lucia's bananas are exported to the Commonwealth, and sold under the name "Five Stars". Did you know that a banana tree only produces one crop? They chop the tree down after it has produced, but by then, a new sprout has grown. It will take the new sprout nine months to produce the next crop. While the bananas are maturing, the bunch is wrapped in blue plastic, to protect them from bugs and birds. Speaking of "agriculture", the Rastofarians (is that how it is spelled?) live in the hills of the jungle. They are the marijuana farmers. It's legal for an individual to have "two sticks" for personal use.
St. Lucia was a lovely stop. Beautiful scenery, nice people, a very pleasant experience.
posted by Sniglet's Mom @ 7:55 AM
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