Who Doesn’t Love The Caribbean?

Well following on from my last post I thought I would share some photos of St Lucia.  This has been my first trip to the Caribbean in fact it is the first time I’ve been on any kind of trip abroad for about 23 years.  So this excursion or vacation or work/vacation has been even more exciting for me. So today I thought I would share all my 22 photos of St Lucia so far.

Quarantine

The first two weeks were spent in quarantine, but I could have been in lockdown at a lot of worse places.  I’m at The Landings Hotel and Spa Resort which is at the Northern end of St Lucia close to Pigeon Island Causeway, Gros Islet.  During quarantine, you still have access to the beach, restaurant, coffee bar, marina, and swimming pools.  You are given a blue wristband until you get the results back from the PCR test then you get to have a white wristband following a further PCR test.    However, blue and white are not allowed to mix.

The Beach

The beach at The Landings is the best beach I’ve ever seen.  But saying that I have not been away for 23 years as I’ve said already.  However, it is beautiful, the sand is soft and clear of stones and lots of shells, very soft underfoot.  It gets hot so you will need flip-flops if you want to walk far on it so best to walk in the water on the shoreline.

Caribbean Sunset

I have been witness to some of the most amazing sunsets while here in St Lucia.  It is stunning anyway but the sun sets around 6.30 pm.  Once the sun goes down it turns dark extremely quickly within 20 minutes or so and then the nighttime animals start making their own kind of music.  It really is like an orchestra.

Animals

So far I haven’t seen many animals.  There are different types of birds, quite small actually, sparrow size.  One of which is a Bullfinch.  A little black bird with a red patch in the throat area.  There are pigeons that have a pink tinge to the feathers, cockroaches although I haven’t seen many of them, small lizard-type creatures, and no spiders yet.  Although when we were diverted on the way here via Antigua there was a tarantula a few feet away from my door.  I made sure it was kept closed!  I did take a photo of it but I couldn’t get close enough as I was too scared so I had to zoom in so it was a bit blurry.

The Sea

The sea here is amazing.  I have never seen anything like it.  Apart from the fact it is lovely and warm, you can see right down to the bottom even when the water is shoulder high.  There are so many types of fish you can see swimming around which don’t touch you.  You have to be careful of the sea urchins but they are usually in the rocky area.

The sea is crystal clear, soft underfoot, and very little debris on the sea bed.  It’s actually perfect!  Now I can’t swim but I’m not letting that stop me.  I borrowed one of the free snorkel kits and managed to put my head underwater for the first time in my life and that is no exaggeration.  I was scared at first but within a minute I couldn’t get enough of it.  The fish were amazing.  Yesterday while on the lounger looking out to see I witness a group of fish jumping out of the water.

Cocktails

This week I had my first strawberry Daiquiri which was amazing.  Last week I went to Marigot Bay beach and had my first coconut rum.  They take a coconut and chop the top off.  You then drink some of the coconut water out and they top it up with coconut run – It was incredible and very moreish.  I’ve now bought myself a bottle.  The next cocktail on the hit list is going to be a Pina Colada.

The Roads

The roads in St Lucia make Harrogate’s look brand new.  Potholes everywhere, dirt tracks, really sharp bends, inclines.  I don’t think I’ve found a straight road in St Lucia yet.  When doing a long journey it can actually make you feel a bit car sick.  Luckily on the way to the Villa Susanna last week we stopped off quite often at the most amazing smoothie hut, not far from Marigot Bay.  My favourite so far is orange, mango, pineapple, and ginger.  A really cold slushie; the best I’ve ever had.  They also had fruit that I’d never heard of.  I am definitely intending to go back again.

Cost Of Food

The cost of food in the supermarkets is astronomical.  This is because it is an island and all the supermarkets are owned by the same person or group.  A tin of Heinz baked beans is nearly £3, avocados can be up to £20 (good job I don’t like them).  You can buy strawberries here but they don’t grow them which I find rather strange.

The fresh fruit and vegetables are so much better though.  You can drive down the streets and there are tables along the route selling cold water, watermelon, etc.  I had a chat with an optician last week who was telling me the cases of type 2 diabetes on the island is huge.  I think this is partly due to the fresh food being so expensive so most people are eating crap.

I think for anyone considering living here it might be worth living in a property where you can maybe grow your own vegetables and fruit.  Here on the resort near the beach is a mango tree and I’m keeping my eye on it ready to grab one when it is time.  There are also palm trees everywhere and coconuts so you have to be careful when walking underneath one.

There are a lot of photos of St Lucia to share and hopefully, there will be a few more to come as it’s my daughter’s 21st very soon, and I feel a party on the beach is on the horizon.  Alka Seltzer at the ready.

Tracey xXx