BigWeather's Blog

I was able to get a better night’s sleep and work up a bit later, about 8a.  Showered and ready to eat by 9a at which time I got Michelle and Addison up.  Breakfast was at 9:30a and consisted of fruit, muffins, pancakes with syrup, three sausage links, and some unknown juice.  Excellent, as always.

Beautiful flower at Caille Blanc

Lush hillside foliage

One last view of the Pitons from Caille Blanc (I promise!)

Poolside area at Caille Blanc

We enjoyed the view a bit then very reluctantly packed.  I checked out with Jeremy at 10:45a and we left with James at 11:15a on to our second destination, Windjammer Landing.  We were really sad to go — Caille Blanc far exceeded my lofty expectations.  I hope to get back there someday for sure.  So beautiful and relaxing!  On the way north along the Caribbean coast of St. Lucia we saw some great things.  First up was a very nice view of Soufriere and its valley from the road, followed by seeing a handful of tiny villages like Canaries as we traced the winding route.

Soufriere’s gorgeous valley location can’t be beat!

A small seaside village (Canaries) in St. Lucia

Planters doing double duty as road markings

Glimpse of a St. Lucia beach

We saw a number of banana plants, many on farms developed with assistance from Taiwan.  Blue plastic bags protected the bunches of bananas from insects and other pests.  We talked about hurricanes, a fairly frequent occurrence in St. Lucia but mostly affecting the Atlantic coast.  James and I also talked about their government which, like many nations in the British Commonwealth, is parliamentary with elections every five years.  Also discussed the school system on St. Lucia, which sounded pretty much Commonwealth standard, again.  There aren’t many colleges on St. Lucia, however, with many students going to other islands to continue their education.

Another small village

Banana farm, note the blue plastic bags protecting the bananas

James went a small distance out of the way to take us to an overlook of Marigot Bay, a gorgeous deep water harbor (very rare in the Caribbean) frequented by pirates in the 1700s.  A guy there walked up to me and tried to sell a fish sculpture made from a coconut palm leaf.  It was impressive but James warned me against purchasing it since it would not be allowed back in the United States due to rules against bringing in plant life.

Marigot Bay, deep water harbor and former pirate haven

In short order we made it to Castries, the capital of St. Lucia.  There was pretty heavy traffic, especially since it was mid-afternoon on a Tuesday.  We also saw our first stop light but it was turned off.  Traffic still managed regardless, albeit a bit slowly.  James pointed out a rum distillery (made with molasses from Barbados and Guyana since sugar isn’t grown much on the island) as well as the harbor.  Be-suited professionals milled about among office buildings and parks, some with walls painted with the state colors — blue, yellow, and black.  Castries also had a number of familiar names — Payless, Home Depot, Radio Shack, and similar car dealers to home.  On the far side of the airport’s runway we saw a cemetery similar to those in New Orleans with above ground white stone crypts.

Castries harbor with rocks painted in St. Lucia’s colors

We missed the turn into Windjammer Landing due to a lack of decent signage (an epidemic on the island, it seemed) but he handled it like a champ and dropped us off at Windjammer around 1:30p.  The northern part of the island and the resort itself had a very Mediterranean feel — steep hillsides dotted with smaller trees than farther south and the buildings themselves were white washed with red tile roofs.  A bit of a pity, in my mind, to go for a Mediterranean feel when the local buildings had so much flavor.  As we couldn’t check in yet we went to one of the resort’s restaurants, Jammers, for a late lunch.  Michelle had a BLT and fries, Addison and I had sirloin paninis with cheese and fries.  It was OK but a bit pricey.

After lunch we sat in the lobby and waited on check-in from 2:30p to just shy of 4p.  Michelle and I took the time to do a little shopping and got some magnets, duty free.  Finally checked in and took a shuttle to our room, way up the hill.  Nice enough, I guess, but honestly so soon after Caille Blanc it couldn’t compare.  Two stories, Addison taking the lower for some privacy and Michelle and I the upper.  Above and outside was a sun deck with a couple of recliners.  On the plus side, it did have air conditioning!  Our view looked to the north where we could see a couple of small bays and even Martinique several miles away.

View from our villa towards the north

Another view, a bit more west from the previous one

While not as luxurious as Caille Blanc the upper room was nice enough

Small road with the entrance to our villa to the left

A small pool near Papa Don’s, the restaurant near our villa

While they relaxed I went down hill back to the lobby to sign up for tours.  Addison wanted to do some zip lining in the rain forest and, despite a bit of fear on my part, we decided to do that for Wednesday.  I had wanted to do the day trip to Martinique on Thursday but the tour wasn’t on because the boat was still in for its yearly maintenance.  Bummer, missed it by just a week!  Went back up to the room whereupon (whenupon?) I realized I forgot to ask about whether shorts or long pants were recommended for the zip line.  So I headed back down.  After that I stayed to watch the sunset from the beach.  Gorgeous!  The beach was nice and clean, a long sweeping stretch of sand with an area for swimming including a platform and a pier for boating beyond.  There was a small rock breakwater protecting the beach from the wave action from the Caribbean.  A party boat in the form of a faux pirate ship sailed by playing the ubiquitous island music — a poppy reggae, often covers of other pop songs.  I also spotted a cat slinking about the chairs and stools scattered about the dunes.

The beach at Windjammer Landing

Looking across to the far side of the small bay

Another view of the beach

Photo courtesy of the letter S — sunset, sailboat, and sea spray

Hillside villas bathed in the setting sunlight

Sunset, at last!

Yet another view of the beach

Hillside villas illuminated at night

The beach was quite peaceful — and deserted — at night

I walked back up to the unit about 7p and woke up Michelle and Addison.  At 8p we walked the very short distance to Papa Don’s, Windjammer’s Italian restaurant.  Michelle had a veggie pizza; Addison a meat lover’s pizza; myself spaghetti and meatballs.  Bread and olive oil was ehhh but the dessert — chocolate cake for Michelle and three (!) scoops of coffee ice cream with a cinnamon stick for me — was fantastic.

Headed back to the room, talked with Genetta a bit on the phone, fought the computer for awhile, offloaded and uploaded photos, and hit the sack at 1:30a — way later than intended.

Route for April 3rd, 2018

I woke up throughout the night, likely due to being in a strange environment with different night sounds.  I finally got up just before 7a, well before Michelle and Addison.  I took the opportunity to offload pics from the day before and write some blog entries.  We all headed just outside our door to breakfast at 9:30a.  It consisted of fruit, muffins, eggs with onions, bacon, and orange juice — very tasty!  We met both Marilyn and Pauline, cooks for the villa.

The Pitons at Dawn

Looking west out to sea

Pitons in the morning

Caille Blanc’s common dining area

Beautiful foliage near Caille Blanc

A group of snorkelers just below the villa

About 11a Addison and I walked down the very steep and pock-marked almost-paved road to Anse Castanet beach, a gorgeous beach open to the public as well as guests to the exclusive resort.  We checked in with the small dive shop then headed left to the roped in area near the pier and beach intended for providing a safe place for snorkelers.  We went in the water for 15 or 20 minutes.  It was really neat but I’m afraid I wasn’t very good at it — I kept seeing something neat (like brain or fan coral, a small fish, or even an eel looking thing) and diving below the reach of the snorkel yet still trying to breath.  We had fins and prescription goggles which helped a bit.  I kept trying to snap pictures with the GoPro but honestly wasn’t too great at it — it was hard to see if I was capturing anything neat on the small viewfinder.  Ah, well.

Looking back at Anse Chastanet beach from the water

Amazing clear water distracts from the crazy crooked horizon!

Rocky headland near Anse Chastanet beach

Addison snorkeling

Some coral and fish at Anse Chastanet

One negative is there were tons of little (quarter sized) jellyfish that took delight in stinging us.  It wasn’t that painful, more annoying really.  We ended up cutting our swimming a little short and sat on the sand a bit.  Not wanting to give up so easily I walked out the pier and got in the water via the ladder.  Despite a British national warning me of the jellyfish once I got in they were all gone!  Had another fantastic swim for a bit before joining Addison on the beach and taking off my fins.

Some more sea life

Another look at Anse Chastanet beach

Amazing clear water made for great snorkeling!

After packing up our stuff in the duffel we walked down the beach, past a cliff with embedded rocks and even cacti, to another more secluded beach, Anse Mamin.  We saw a guy shimmied up a palm cutting down coconuts.  There was a neat sea stack as well as a small stream emptying out into the sea.  There was a burger stand here that we heard was quite good, but we were unprepared for the cost — $60 for a water, a Coke (we even sent one back as we realized it’d put us over the amount of cash we brought with us!), a single burger (bacon, bleu cheese, on an English muffin), and a small side of fries and onion rings.  It was good, and the shade welcome, but come on!  They had some interesting condiments like some yellow ketchup (not mustard!) thing, made from banana peppers or somesuch.  Also a West Indian hot sauce that was yellow with red and green bits.

Anse Chastanet beach

Umbrellas on Anse Chastanet beach

Road to Anse Mamin beach from Anse Chastanet

Anse Mamin beach

Funky West Indian Hot Sauce

After a grueling walk back (seriously, the road was steep!) we met back up with Michelle at Caille Blanc.  She had enjoyed a BLT for lunch and was taking a swim in the infinity pool.  Addison and I joined her for a couple of hours — it was seriously hard to exit the pool it was soooo pleasant and the views were world class.

Sea stack at Anse Mamin beach

Addison hauling our duffel bag

Anse Mamin beach

Anse Chastanet beach as seen from Anse Mamin beach

Cacti along the path from Mamin to Chastanet

Another look at Anse Chastanet’s palm umbrellas

Flat portion of the road from Anse Chastanet — much steeper later!

Relaxing back at Caille Blanc’s pool

Afternoon view of the Pitons

After exiting we dried off and relaxed a bit.  A family from Michigan had checked in and we enjoyed talking a bit with them and talking about our various travels.  A couple of hours later we enjoyed a gorgeous sunset with a couple from Switzerland (also newly arrived).  It is astonishing how early the sun sets down there, closer to the equator.

Yet another Pitons shot, this time in the late afternoon

Sunset with a impressive looking ship

The Pitons at sunset

Shortly after sunset we sat down for dinner in the common area.  It was the same menu as the prior night except a baked potato instead of rice.  The steak wasn’t quite as good — but still very tasty.  Dessert was vanilla ice cream on top of bananas — yummy!  After dinner we sat by the pool watching the Pitons and enjoying the gorgeous stars and moon, finally retiring about 11p.

Bed was inviting, but first had to enjoy the pleasant night!

The moon would sometimes peek from behind the wispy night cloud cover

As it was quite dark the stars were out over the Pitons

Route for Monday, April 2nd, 2018

[I know it is crazy to be doing an entry on a new trip when I still have to finish last summer’s romp, the honeymoon blog, and haven’t even started New Orleans ’17 nor our Florida trip this past December.  I’ll get to them, someday, but have to strike while the iron is hot on this trip.]

The day before a trip is always crazy hectic, even more so before a trip internationally.  In addition to all of the normal duties like packing, offloading pictures from my cameras, and lining up the pet stuff there are additional worries like ensuring we have all of our medicines, power adapters, currency, etc.  Can’t just run to Walmart or Walgreens in most places to make up for lack of planning.

So, I didn’t go to sleep Saturday night (mostly because I was busy getting ready but also a fear I wouldn’t wake us all up in time to go).  Michelle got a couple of hours and Addison, despite proclaiming he wasn’t going to sleep nor did he need sleep, slept from after dinner until midnight, then woke up and played computer games.  Yeah.

Anyhow, after a mad final dash we headed out at 3:50a.  The flight was at 5:35a, plenty of time, right?  I knew I was perhaps cutting it a little close, but 4a at RDU on Easter morning, surely…

Parking was a breeze, good thing, since the baggage check line was massive.  The security line, likewise, was busy but briskly moved along.  The canine unit in particular was cute, scratching his/her sides along the barrier during a break.  The Wichita State Shockers baseball team was leaving town after playing one of the area schools.  Security didn’t require any de-bagging of electronics nor removal of coats and shoes.  Got to the gate with 10 minutes to spare before boarding.  Whew!

The two hour flight to Miami was uneventful though Addison and my ears hurt a bit.  American did a quick drink service and handed out some Biscoff, a sort of shortbread cookie, that was pretty tasty.  On the way into Miami got an incredible view of Miami Beach.  I need to go there some day!

Miami airport was a bit bigger than RDU.  Managed to grab some breakfast (Michelle a spinach and cheddar omelet, Addison a scrambled egg and bacon sandwich, myself two eggs over medium and bacon).  It was adequate.  Walked to our gate, Addison getting some headphones along the way.  Neat seeing a lot of Caribbean and South American destinations on the departure board that I normally don’t see, similar to seeing Kathmandu when I was India a couple of years ago.

Interesting decorations at Miami International

Our flight left just before 11a and, again, was uneventful.  Which I guess is a good thing when you are flying.  Jumanji was the in-flight movie, which I watched without earbuds as I had recently seen it.  Addison and Michelle mostly slept, Michelle less so.  Despite it being a four hour flight there was no free lunch service, just a drink (ginger ale for Michelle and I) and more Biscoff.  I mean, we could buy a turkey sandwich for $10, but just that we’re expected to pony up more money after spending $1,100 per ticket (and add on top of that a fee for every bag, the exit row fee, etc.) was downright insulting.  Golden age of flight is long gone.  However, they did the one thing I really, really want them to do — get us to St. Lucia safely.

On approach to St. Lucia we got a really good view of the two distinctive peaks of St. Lucia (though not the highest, that distinction belongs to the volcano at the center of the island), the Pitons.  Also got to see the remarkable blue water and lush trees — palms, banana trees, etc.  Landed at the single-strip airport and got to walk down stairs and across the tarmac to the immigration and customs area.  That’s always an unusual treat, and was a first for Addison.

Approach to St. Lucia’s southern airport

A rare stair exit onto the tarmac!

Immigration and customs went smoothly and we were soon disgorged upon the waiting area where our ride to Caille Blanc Villa near Soufriere awaited.  The driver, James, was holding a sign with our name and had a shirt with Caille Blanc on it so that turned out to be easy.  Addison and Michelle rode in the back of the white panel van while I squeezed into the front.

The trip to Caille Blanc took about an hour and was remarkable.  Small fishing villages of brightly painted houses tumbled from the side of the road down ravines to the sea.  Exotic trees and bushes, many awash with color from copious blooms, clung to the steep hillsides.  We passed local bars and restaurants, a high school, and some wooden clap-board churches.  People milled about, talking and visiting, and we saw a man walking up the road holding two foot-and-a-half long tuna by the tail.  James pointed out several fruits and nuts, including cashews, guava, avocado (not yet in season), cocoa, etc.

The roads were interesting.  Nearly devoid of road names and with steep (sometimes crumbling) shoulders and using one lane (particularly for steel plated bridges) where two were needed, we were very glad we didn’t try and rent a car and drive ourselves.  Throughout the route there were small and not-so-small speed bumps as well.  Soufriere in particular had very narrow lanes, hearkening back to its colonial French past.  St. Lucia, after changing colonial ownership many times — seven times French, seven times British, settled on British after Napoleon’s defeat in the early 1800s.  There are two main languages in St. Lucia as a result, English for most business with foreigners and a French-based patois.

Downtown Soufriere, built by the French, in western St. Lucia

The traffic wasn’t too bad but James assured us that since it was Easter Sunday it was uncharacteristically light — and would be the next day as well as that is a holiday.  James pointed out some potential excursions — hiking up Gros Piton, hiking to a vantage point between the Pitons, walking through the botanical gardens and to a waterfall that was featured in the first Superman movie, bathing in mud and washing off in the hot springs of the volcano, and visiting a resort that features chocolate prominently on its menu.

Once through Soufriere we took a hard left and up onto a very rough concrete road that was a little slick from the recent rain.  At times I didn’t think we’d make it up but James handled it expertly.  He pointed to two ruts going off the side of the road, a place where a Jeep had gone off but luckily didn’t plunge all the way down.  We arrived safely at Caille Blanc at about 4p and, once through a gate, introduced to Jeremy, the manager.

The road to Caille Blanc Villa was a bit rough…

Soufriere as seen from the road to Caille Blanc Villa

Petit Piton with Gros Piton hiding behind it

Simply an amazing, gorgeous place.  Tile floors and patios, an 65′ infinity pool with an edge that cut right below the Pitons, and dark wood throughout.  Our suite, the Pool Suite, had five slatted doors on a track that open to the Pitons directly.  Magnificent!  There were two beds, a king (I think, at least a queen) and a side smaller bed.  Both with mosquito netting, though we didn’t need it at least this first night.  In addition to AC there were five large fans that kept the air moving.  The bathroom was open to the Pitons as well, but behind a painted metal divide and Lucite blocks protected our privacy.

Pool area of Caille Blanc Villa

View from our room, the Pool Suite

Looking down the length of the infinity pool at Caille Blanc

A relaxing, if a bit complex, shower

Fancy sinks in our bathroom — and check out that door!

Michelle and Addison relaxing after a long day of travel

Another view from our room — mesmerizing

Addison and I spoke at some length with Jeremy about the place, St. Lucia, snorkeling, his family, etc.  Jeremy was recently engaged and looking forward to marriage in December as well as excited about visiting some friends in Houston in July (I warned him about the heat, he laughed).  Jeremy had worked at several of the resorts around the island (including Windjammer Landing and Sandals) but needed to be closer to Soufriere to care for his ailing mother.  At Sandals he assisted the scuba instructors with cleaning up their gear and eventually found himself getting into Scuba and certified for night diving, rescue, etc.

He told us a neat story about his grandfather giving all of his grandchildren a farm animal as a way of teaching responsibility.  Jeremy got a goat, and has since increased his herd to five and is looking to grow larger.  He also raised chickens for eggs but found little money in it so got out of the chicken business.  He also talked about the owners some, and the difficulty in building the villa — most places turned it down but one guy took on the challenge.  The pool alone (and the room beneath it) took three years and tons of concrete.  The Temple Suite contains objects from India and Afghanistan as well.

At about 5p or so I headed back to the room to relax and freshen up, before we headed to dinner under the gazebo at 6p.  Addison and I had steak while Michelle had grilled shrimp.  Accompanying it was rum punch, water, a salad (heavy on tomatoes and cucumbers), rice pilaf, steamed wax beans and carrots, and some small sweet potato-like food.  Dessert was a pineapple cake like thing, tasty — but I was stuffed.  In all a very excellent meal with the darkening sky (gets darker here earlier than at home) and the Pitons as our backdrop.

View from the Pitons beyond the edge of the infinity pool

Staircase entrance to the villa

Poolside at the villa

Gorgeous sunset reflected in the pool

Caille Blanc Villa dining area lit up for the evening

Tasty dinner at Caille Blanc!

After dinner Michelle and I went swimming while Addison relaxed.  Though the water was a bit chilly we acclimated pretty quickly and had an enjoyable swim.  We could see a dinner cruise boat light up the water as well as smaller sailboats and lights (and music) from Soufriere.  A gentle breeze upped the awesome even more.  Coming in from the pool I got a quick tutorial on the shower from Michelle (it is kind of cool, having a rain shower head, four or so jets, AND a hand sprayer).  Settled in to bed and sleep around 9:30p, utterly exhausted.

Route for Sunday, April 1st, 2018