Sojourn in St. Lucia

Stlucia Jan 2024 We are in St. Lucia, an island nation in the Caribbean. We have been here for four or five days, I’ve lost count as one tends to do on islands on vacation. We chose this island because we were looking for an easy travel without connections, to a warm place of course, since it is January. I must admit that I have been loath, in the past, t visit a number of Caribbena locations, this one included, because of a somewhat false impression that they are overdeveloped, cruise port and all inclusive resort destinations. (which they are.) But what I haven’t realized until recent years that they are much more than that, and that it is possible to find wonderful locations far from the madding crowds. In recent years we have visited Puerto Rico, the Domincan Republic, and now here, and have been able to find locations that are away from the overtouristed places that we aren’t interested in. Our current abode is a place called Villa Beach Cottages in Choc, just north of the capital, Castries. Even though just down the beach from us is Sandals, one of the all inclusive resorts, we are harely aware of it. There are a few folks on the beach, but most seem to spend their time in the inner reaches of the resort. We have noticed folks sauntering down the beach past us, drinks in hand, sometimes in the water and can identify them as Sandals customers. But they apparently spend much if not most of their time elsewhere than on the beach. We have noticed that most people, not just at Sandals but at our cottages as well, do not spend much if any time in the water. It intrigues us that people go to ocean resorts but do not spend much, if any, time in the ocean. I guess it is just the view that appeals to many people. And the views are certainly spectacular. So, some words about our little resort. This is the first of three places we are staying on the island, here for the first nine days of our three weeks in St. Lucia. After poring over numerous listings on line, this was one of our final choices, and we chose well. There are 22 cottages here, all with kitchens. We like to find places where we can cook when we like, not having to eat every meal out. Sixteen, if I have counted right, directly face the ocean. Each building has two cottages, an upper and lower floor. We are on the first floor, which we highly rcommend if you choose to come here. We can walk out to the beach in a few steps. The upper apartments have the same view, but have to walk downstairs and around the building to get to the beach. Still nice but not quite as nice as ours. So if you are thinking of coming, do ask for one of the bottom level accomodations facing the ocean.There are a few rooms that face the parking lot and street, which I don’t recommend. Our time has been relaxed, with perhaps one “event” each day. Today we went to the aerial tram in the rainforest. We were a little concerned thaat it would be overtouristed and even tacky. But it was in fact a great excursion. Each gondola holds eight people. Although there were only six in ours. The trip over the forest canopy is leisurely, and lasts about an hour. During the trip our guide Tammi identified many plants for us. We were about 1200 feet above the forest floor for most of the trip. It is not a thrill type trip, but very calm, and recommended for anyone who doesn’t have a fear of heights. They also have a zipline which many visitors opt to do. But not us. Loring and the kids did one years ago in Nicaragua, and once was fine with him. And zero times was enough for me. I have never been a fan of thrill type experiences, not roller coasters or such, even when I was much younger. Strangely, of the six of us in our gondola, five were from Massachusetts. One couple was from Newton, another person was from the Cape, and just one was from one of the Carolinas. When we returned from the rainforest, a couple of hours lounging then offer dinner at a restaurant called a Flavors of the Grill, a more local place that was not in the water, that we hoped would be more casual and less expensive. It wasn’t, through. I've been astounded at the restaurant prices here, comparable to those at home. And we don’t eat out at home much because we don’t think it’s worth it. Plus we need to take a cab wherever we go, because we didn’t rent a car. The roads here are pretty winding, but the major factor is that they drive on the left side here. Some places we’ve stayed in the past are walking distance from beach restaurants, shops, etc. But that isn't the case here. The cabs are expensive too, it cost us $20, each way, to go too the restaurant (the Spinnaker ) a couple of nights ago. This afternoon we are having lunch at the Pink Plantation, a former plantation now a restaurant and small inn, having three rooms. They have spectaculare views of the capital city, Castries. And it looks like they have some interesting art work there too. I’ll report back later. Back for a minute to the Flavors of the Grill. The food was excellent, but the service was extremely slow. Not sure what the problem was. I had ordered conch, which I have rarely seen on a menu other than in the Bahamas, where we spent a lot of time eons ago. ( ie 50 years ago, yikes!) Those sojourns are a story in themselves, ask if you want to hear more. So I was really excited to see it on the menu. Conch, if you aren’t familiar, are the giant snail -like creatures that inhabit the beautiful large shells with bright pink interiors.But, as luck will not have it, they didn’t have any conch that night. So I had to settle for shrimp in curry sauce instead. Poor me, I know. Maybe I’ll find some elsewhere before we leave the island. I haven’t mentioned the beach yet. It is beautiful,although narrorw, and really just a few steps from our cottage. The water is quite calm, or rather has been until today. I will therefore most likely not go in today, but who knows. Until now the waves have been very gentle. The bottom is sandy. So I am content to float around and listen to music on my underwater mp3 player. This has been one of my favorite things to do in the water for years now. I can float around, or dance around in the water to Bruce, or Linda R. or bellydance music, and do so often in the Y pool at home. The only problem is that a few times lifeguards have wondered if I am drowning. That says a lot about how graceful I must look. The music is conducted thru your cheekbones, and the quality is surprisingly good when you are underwater, and pretty good when your head is out of the water once you have gotten it wet. While I float around Loring swims, way out and around. He is a big swimmer, and part of finding a place to go in the winter is someplace on the ocean where he can swim. This place certainly fits the bill. And hopefully our other two stops on the island will as well, for both of us. The money here is confusing because the use the same $ symbol we do. So looking at a menu you have to decide first if it is US dollars or EC, East Carribean, which is used by several countries in the area. One US dollar is worth about 2.7 EC dollars. There is a kitchen and small restaurant here, in addition to the ones in the cottages. They do serve breakfast, lunch and dinner, but you have to order it in advance. Our first day here they were able to make dinner for us, which was great. There were three choices, fish, or chicken cooked in curry, or creole. There are numerous sides, including mashed potatoes, plantains, rice, root vegetables, and salad, and you get your choice of four! I first saw the price on the menu as $50, and was shocked. But later on, when I saw menu prices elsewhere, I realized that it was EC dollars and that the food was just about a third of what I’d thought. However, when we had dinner here last night, I looked at the menu again, and it clearly said $50 US dollars. And since everything is being charged to the room, we don’t know which dollars we are being charged. We had breakfast here yesterday. Other than that we’ve been eating yogurt with “Rainforest Granola” and bananas. And we’v e been having cheese and crackers with cucumbers, and cookies for most lunches. Today we will have lunch at the aforementioned Pink Plantation, which only serves lunch, and will either have our usual cheese and crackers in the evening, or not have dinner at all. It has rained every day we are here, but intermittenly and briefly and has also created some beautiful rainbows. I don’t mind it at all, and it seems every time it’s rained we have been on or near our porch, so we don’t get very wet. If I got caught in a downpour away from the cottage, I might feel differently. Or not. TBC