St. Lucia: THE Caribbean destination

St. Lucia has dramatic mountains; dense rain forests; refreshing waterfalls; black-sand beaches; white-sand beaches; a deep-blue ocean; clear, clean water; and even an active volcano that you can drive up to. For us, the lack of crowds, miles of unobstructed views, and friendly people were additional highlights.

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Taxis and vans are plentiful to go from village to village or attraction to attraction, but for the real locations, you do need private transport - and a tough vehicle with a high clearance at that.

If we had known about Ladera when we got married, that would have been our honeymoon destination. Situated between the Pitons on Piton Mitan Ridge at an elevation of 1,000 feet, it is the ultimate in Caribbean views and luxury. The rooms have only three walls, as the fourth side is open to the ocean. Because of the elevation, there is a constant breeze and literally no bugs or mosquitoes. With only 25 suites and villas, it is small and wildly romantic.

The food isn’t too shabby either. Their restaurant, Dasheene, has been voted the best on the island for years. The views from the restaurant are reason enough to go. The food is consistently good, and if you go for their Sunday brunch buffet, you get more than your money’s worth. The menu changes every 6 months, and the brunch buffet on Sunday (noon to 3pm) had a salad bar, a barbecue unit, carved meats, vegetables, and a dessert bar.

Note: If you are going to Dasheene for the views, try to go for dinner or an early lunch. From around 1pm, the glare from the water hurts your eyes, not to mention blocks the photo ops!

The road that leads up to Moule a Chique is narrow and steep, with lots of potholes and no signs anywhere. The road leads to a viewing point, and going on a hike takes you to a lighthouse. The lighthouse can also be reached from the shore up a narrow trail.

The view of the ocean from our elevated position was amazing. For miles, all you could see was this perfect deep-blue ocean blending into a blue sky with dreamy, puffy white clouds.

We saw a school of fish swimming in a straight line - we initially thought it was an oil slick left by a boat, but the line kept breaking up, forming clouds and swirls, and getting back into a straight line again.

Balenbouche is a popular 150-year-old estate (also has a B&B) situated on the southwestern side of the island between the villages of Laborie and Choiseul. There is a small sign at the entrance which is easy to miss. Visitors are welcome to wander around the property free of charge, and they also offer guided tours everyday.

Walking through the estate, we made a beeline for the ocean. The beach at Balenbouche is a small, completely isolated black-sand beach.

Heading back through the estate we saw various local varieties of plants & trees--Breadfruit, Christophene, Dasheene, Tamarind, and various ferns and flowering species. There are also some ruins of an 18th-century sugar factory with massive impressive machinery.

Picture-perfect Marigot Bay, with its white sandy beach and tall coconut palms, is the quintessential Caribbean holiday destination. It is 20 minutes south of Castries, the capital.

There is a resort and an inn there, along with a couple of restaurants--Doolittles, JJs, etc., that sell local fare, as well as typical American food.

Pigeon Island National Park is at the North end of St. Lucia. It was declared a national park in the 70s and joined to the mainland by a manmade causeway. It is about 45 acres and is open from 9am to 5pm for USD$4 per person.

There are quite a few ruins, as this was a strategic point during the 14+ times the island changed hands between the French and the British and even before that. From the top of the old fort, you can see Rodney Bay to the south, and on a clear day, the island of Martinique is also visible to the north.

It is quite a hike up to the fort, but the path is wide, and we actually saw a family with a stroller, slowly inching their way up.

Identified as one of the top 25 experiences in the Caribbean, the Diamond Botanical Gardens at Soufriere were originally built by King Louis XVI. The gardens are famed for their lush tropical vegetation, waterfalls, and mineral baths.

At the entrance are a few vendors selling their wares. Throughout the park are tables displaying indigenous island plant products, with the staff explaining about them to the visitors. The winding paths take you to various gardens, the Japanese water garden, the gazebo garden, etc., and Diamond Falls. Located in the center are the mineral baths. Some are open and some are private.

The Sulphur Springs, or the ‘world’s only drive-in volcano’ is a short distance from Soufriere. You pay, drive in, park and an official guide will take you around and give you a brief introduction. Although there are ample signs, if you still get lost, follow your nose--the smell of rotten eggs (hydrogen sulphide) is strong.

There were about 20 or so steaming vents with bubbling water, and the guide explained that during full moon with high tides, the vents actually form geysers. The area is filled with ash that has subtle colors, depending on the specific mineral deposits present in it. Apparently, this is classified as an active volcano, and there are four monitoring stations around it.

While we were walking around, exploring the area, we heard some children at play. When we finally saw them, it was unreal–-about four to six kids were splashing in a little natural pool made by a waterfall, tucked away in an area surrounded by the thick rainforest. We saw the sight from a bridge, and with the late afternoon sun streaming through the tree canopy, it was a scene straight out of childhood fantasies.

Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, the Pitons are towering symbols of St. Lucia and represented on its national flag. At over 2,500 feet each, these primeval mountains rise out of the ocean, dominating the southwestern part of the island.

The Gros Piton is the larger of the two, and the slightly smaller Petit Piton is more conical and picturesque. The Pitons are linked by the Piton Mitan Ridge

Travelling south from Castries, the capital, you get a really dramatic view of the Pitons. Ladera resort and The Hilton are situated between the two, and the views from both of them, especially Ladera, are inspiring. Another soaring view of them is from a boat on the water - there are many water taxis in the town of Soufriere (at the base of Petit Piton) for that.

Although there was an abundance of vegetables and chicken, we were surprised by the lack of variety of seafood. Sure, there was lots of fish, but we had shrimp only once during our entire stay. We stayed with friends, so I don’t know if the resorts have a lot of crab, lobster, etc. Even the local markets all had an abundance of fish but little other seafood.

Breadfruit is used in a variety of ways – one of the best dishes we had was deep-fried balls of breadfruit and fish flakes. Another surprisingly delicious dish we had at the jump-up in Gros Islet was a dal-puri, a chickpea powder-filled, deep-fried concoction. Christophen is a kind of sweet squash, and Dasheene is a root that is great in stews and curries.

Although the cuisine is said to be heavily influenced by Creole, we actually saw a lot of roti and curry on the menus of smaller eating places. The roti is a kind of tortilla wrapped around curried meat and/or vegetables. At most local places, a "plate" will consist of a meat curry, rice and/or beans with gravy, and one or two vegetables. The accompaniments vary from fried potatoes to mac and cheese to globs of wilted salad.

A must when on the island is a trip to any one of the Morne bakeries. These sell a variety of really, really cheap baked goods like coconut bun, lababad, rock cake, coconut pie… all taste wonderful, but the trick is to make sure they are FRESH. Our friends took us right to a source, the backyard of Popo’s house, where we sat around waiting for them to come out of the oven.

Also, there are vendors selling fresh, young coconuts on the roadside. Do try one, and once you are done, the vendor will slice open the coconut and give you a piece of husk to scoop up the tender inside. Talking of something to drink, don’t forget to try the local beer, Piton.

The northern half of the island has more people and is touristy. The capital, Castries, is a big cruise ship stop. From there, the busloads of day trippers head either north to Rodney Bay and Pigeon Point or south to Marigot Bay and Soufriere and The Pitons.

My experience with lush, dense jungle is the monotonous green–-not so in St. Lucia. The island is overrun with bougainvillea and all kinds of colorful flowers. Since there are very few industries and even fewer rivers, the water remains clear and is great for snorkeling and scuba diving.

All beaches in St. Lucia are public beaches, so don’t hesitate--you won’t be trespassing. Once you get away from the touristy northwestern part of the island, the beaches are completely deserted. Also, because of the hills and mountains rising out of the sea, there are many isolated little coves and inlets.

Always have a camera handy. One morning, it was raining when we started out, and our camera was in the trunk. What do you know–-in 10 minutes, the sun was out, and Gros Piton was bathed in a brilliant rainbow. By the time we stopped, got the camera out and going, the rainbow had faded. Also, I saw hummingbirds four times in six days–-there was never a camera around.

Also, if you can, go beyond the tourist recommendations. Before we went, I had read so much about the views from Morne Fortune in Castries. When we finally got to Morne Fortune, the views were nothing compared to some we saw in other parts of the island.

The jump-up at Gros Islet (pronounced ‘grosle’) on Friday night was a little bit of a let-down. To start with, it is not really close to the beach, the food was atrocious, the drinks were expensive... and in general, we felt it was very touristy. Also, while we were there, we saw some young women being followed by some local guys–-they didn’t do much, just stood really close and stared them down. The food starts around 8pm, but the party doesn't pick up speed and strength till around 11pm.