Pitons
18 July 2008 | St. Lucia/Bequia
Redemption, Ahhhh, Sweet Redemption
St. Lucia has been redeemed. Rodney Bay is too be avoided at all costs, however, the Pitons are just as majestic as I remember.
We arrived here on Friday after a nice sail down the island. The Pitons are two huge mountains that shoot dramatically out of the water and we are moored right between them. You have to pick up a mooring because it is volcanic therefore deep. The moorings are 20$ for two nights or forty for the week. We have been here three days enjoying ourselves.
There is a four star resort Jalousie Plantation has kept us well entertained. If you are looking for a cool getaway check out their website. We feel very secluded and the real world seems years away.. The resort is being revamped but it is still stunning and first class.
We have been hanging out on beach or by the pool at the resort while the kids play at their 'kids camp' They get all the kids together and do things like an egg toss, sack races etc.. The staff don't seem to mind if Ben and Sam join because the season is slow, the more kids the better. The snorkeling right off the beach is some of the best we have seen thus far. There are also fresh water showers, a fantastic pool or beach set up where they give you a red flag to put up if you need service.... I am in heaven. The prices at the resort are pretty expensive for a cruisers budget, thus I have not had a chance to hoist the flag as much as I would like, but we make sure to spend something everyday to 'earn our keep'. I would have loved to have dinner by candlelight at one of the restaurants....36$ for a chicken entree...hmmm....how about beers and burgers back on Indy and watch people have dinner!
Being here reminds me of our Carmac days. In particular, when we were working on Carmac, Angie(a fellow crew member) and I snuck off the boat and went to the newly opened bar(shocking, yes, I know), Bang Between the Pitons, which was owned by Collin Tenant, THE BEST FRIEND OF PRINCESS ANNE. As Ang and I were having drinks, Collin showed up, sat down at our table, bought us drinks and essentially hit on Angie. I had no idea who he was but Ang filled me in and I was, of course, suddenly impressed with our much older eccentric companion. Seven degrees of separation....... essentially we were having drinks with the Windsor family!
Not to mention the fact that coupled with that, I went for a helicopter ride here(yes, I got to wear the head set with mic).
We went to Souffireire, a town about a fifteen minute dinghy ride around the corner from the Pitons, on Sunday for a few provisions and found the town and people pleasant. We walked through the town without hassle and the prices were very reasonable. However, O has made two other pilgrimages to town and things were not so cool, he was hassled, followed, threatened..'I can watch your dinghy because something VERY BAD could happen to it unless you pay me to watch it' which O did not take kindly too and then threatened them for threatening him.
Anyway, bottom line is the Pitons are one of my favorite places thus far. I found it relaxing, stunningly, breathtakingly beautiful and peaceful. O claims that Piton beer is the best beer he has had thus far. However, we were receiving reports that a tropical storm is brewing down south so we have to leave our little sanctuary for points south. I hope to return there someday..maybe as a guest!
We are currently in Bequia. We arrived yesterday afternoon. The front is upon us and it is raining buckets. Sam is asleep, Ben is painting, O stressing and I am writing. The harbor is quite full which is an unusual site these days. It seems to be mostly French bareboat charters which is a little scary considering we are going to have high winds. No offense but a lot of the bareboat charterers we have encountered CANNOT ANCHOR and tend to drag all over the place. With forty kt winds predicted it should be an interesting......sleepless night.
Our new motto as quoted from Rachael, my sister " I know, I know, welcome to paradise"
Glossary:
Bareboat: a boat that is rented for a week without a captain or crew. The people can rent it without proving their knowledge etc. They also don't care about the boat because it is not theirs...the rental car of boats.