We left Saint Pierre, and sadly left the wonderful French islands with their gorgeous language, crisp baggettes, chocolate croissants, amazing grocery stores, and laid-back laissez-faire attitude - especially about checking in and out. Martinique was beautiful and a place we want to come back to and spend much more time.

On the way across the channel between Martinique and Saint Lucia, we had a very interesting experience�... we were boarded by the French Coast Guard for a routine check. Most likely random and for training - or whatever - it got our adrenaline flowing!!! They were completely professional, very polite, beautifully French (from France), and interested in us and our lifestyle. Roberta chatted away, making them smile, while one recorded all of our info. It was a very spicy day, so getting them off and back on their inflatable while the Mother ship hovered was rather exciting. A pretty woman and two men checked us out. Cost us two miles of easting though, as we had pointed high to get a better angle south and then they had us turn directly downwind. RATS!

The motorsail across the channel was one of those sails up sails down motor on motor off experiences - again! Flukey wind, current, squalls, we had it all. Got up to 34k. And down to 16.

St Lucia's Rodney Bay, described by Captain Rodney in the 19th century, is �"the best anchorage in the Caribbean.�" It has a huge protected bay, a great lagoon, and forts on the two pitons guarding the entrance - a very strategic location to protect St Lucia from the French - who once had it and lost it to the British. All the place names are still French. However, the bread is NOT. We are already missing our French islands...

At Rodney, we dinghied over to the park where Fort Rodney guards the bay, and walked all the trails around the old Fort. It felt a little like being in a Hornblower movie. Jambe du Bois, a restaurant and art bar in the park, with internet, but too slow to do our photo blog transfer, has FABULOUS food. We visited for dinner one night and lunch the next day. Thank you Dave and Helen on Jammin' for the recommendation! We tried to go in to Sandals, just to see what it was like and have a drink at the bar, but found that we would have to pay a $100 day use fee (Are they kidding???) just to walk in (and that day, they did not want us anyway as they were having a Caribbean Development Bank Board Meeting there)!!! Actually, Roberta did NOT really want to go there, as all-inclusive, non-locally-owned resorts were everything she was working AGAINST with sustainable tourism development at USAID.

After a lazy motorsail (no wind this day) from Rodney Bay to Soufriere, St Lucia (sounds French but is not any more) we were assisted in tying up to a mooring ball (no way around it at all) by the very helpful and enterprising boat boy Eddy, who charged $10EC for the service, and $40 EC for a water taxi ride in to town and back. Michael did not want to take down the dinghy as we were leaving early in the morning for Bequia and only stopping to check out of the country and overnighting to shorten the mileage making it a day trip to Bequia, so the fees were worth it to him.

Soufriere is in a stunningly gorgeous bay with steep, steep mountains (pitons) all around. We were the only cruisers on the �"bat cave�" side of the bay, which frankly, felt a little uncomfortable and lonely. Only two others were on the other side, near Harmony Yacht Services. After walking the town, we can understand why. We were approached over and over for funds. We can understand why people would rather anchor in Rodney Bay and rent a car to see the Pitons near here.

In Soufriere, we checked out at customs and found our second check-out point at Immigration to be closed, even during posted office hours (oh take me back to a French island!). So we wandered a bit and went back. Still closed. BUT, as the Immigration office was in the Police Station, a frustrated Roberta decided to go there to ask how to check out if the office was closed when it was supposed to be open, and a very nice man escorted us over to Immigration and checked us out (because they had left their door open and he could!). YEESH!!!

Then we walked down to the very pretty Hummingbird restaurant/bar/resort (LOCALLY OWNED!) and had a couple of drinks and managed to get online, although still could not post blog photos�... As we sit on Celilo in the late afternoon, rainstorms are pouring over the pitons, but not on us, the late afternoon sun is shining, surf is washing against the cliffs, and kites are fishing all around the boat. Big happy sigh�... life is good. The screens will be closed tonight against the bats from the nearby bat cave - we've already had one bat in the boat, don't need another. (Roberta says, �"no, not her and that's not funny!).

Tomorrow, we head for Bequia, and will spend some time there, as we have learned (by re-reading our insurance policy) we only need to be south of 12 degrees 40 minutes N by June first, not 12 degrees 10 minutes�... so will go visit the Tobago Cays too before heading for Grenada.

We have met some great people, but are missing family and friends�... We send love to you all.