EXPLORING ST LUCIA - Part 2

As I mentioned in part 1 of my visit to St Lucia, we visited a banana plantation, stopped at breathtaking lookout points, ate local food, took a water taxi to the Pitons, ate some of the best homemade bread, and played in mud.

Breakfast was included with the tour but it was close to lunch time when we arrived.  We pulled up to a building where several other tour vans were pulling in.  There were tables set up with an assortment of food.   We tasted a variety of fruits along with some local specialties.

This was my first taste of Jackfruit.  The taste was great but had a weird texture. 

Before heading back to the ship, we stopped at the same place we had breakfast and were given fresh baked bread and cheese.  

We had unlimited coke, water, and rum punch throughout the day.

AROUND THE ISLAND

In part 1 of my visit to St Lucia, I talked about our visit to Sugar Beach, the drive-in volcano, and the Pitons.  In this part I'm covering the food and some of what we saw on our drive around the island.

This natural rock Bridge has a few names; the "tunnel of love" or the "lady's slipper" or the “lady’s Shoe”. Featured in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean.

We stopped at a roadside stand where we had the chance to try banana ketchup.  It tasted just like regular ketchup with a hint of banana.

We made several stops at banana plantations.  

We were told that the bananas are wrapped in blue plastic to keep the as pretty as possible. The market demands perfect fruit and as you know, bananas bruise easy. It also helps keep animals from making any marks on the fruit.

I never realized how labor intensive it was to grow bananas until I saw miles and miles of bananas wrapped in these blue bags.

This was the first time I got to see a cashew tree and a cashew (seed) still on the apple.

SAYING GOOD BYE TO ST LUCIA

We arrived back in port and made it back to the ship with only 40 minutes to spare.  You definitely get your money's worth with this tour.

Travel Tips

• At the top of the list of things to know is that St Lucia roads are curvy and winding.  I'm talking serious motion sickness so be sure to carry some Dramamine with you.

• If you receive exceptional service from your taxi driver or tour guide, give them a tip.  Most of the people of the island rely on tourism for the income.

• Many islands you visit, including St Lucia, have beaches that are open to the public. This means that though there is a beautiful resort near the water, they don't have exclusive access to the shore.  They can restrict non-guest from using their sun loungers and beach bars but not the beach itself.

• Not all beaches in St Lucia have white sand.  Remember that this island is a huge mass of volcanic action so the sand it a mix of orange and black.  The exception is Sugar Beach but only because they imported the sand.

CURRENCY
The currency of St Lucia is the Eastern Caribbean Dollar though the US dollar is readily accepted throughout the island.

LANGUAGE
St. Lucia's principal language is English, but a French-based patois is widely spoken.


TOUR INFORMATION
Cosol Tours
Reservation Information: http://cosol-tours.com/contact.html
Cost: $65 because we booked with a large group.  
Website: http://cosol-tours.com/index.html