Revisiting Saint Lucia, 30 Years Later

Day 6, Grand World Voyage 2020

Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020; Castries, Saint Lucia

As we sailed away from Saint Lucia this evening, I felt a twinge of guilt. I wasn’t a very energetic tourist.

Rather than make an effort to see more of this beautiful island and bustling city, I simply walked off the ship and spent an hour in the tourist shopping center by the pier. I could have been on almost any Caribbean island. Diamonds International and its companion Tanzanite International anchored the outdoor mall. In between were small shops selling t-shirts, sundresses, rum cakes and tourist souvenirs. I didn’t need a coffee mug, shot glass or magnet.

We spent an hour admiring the jewelry designs, which frequently are different than I see in the states. A decade or so ago I did buy some sapphires, rubies and diamonds in the Caribbean. But I seldom wear them now (other than cruise gala nights) and don’t need more, regardless of how pretty they are.

My first visit to Saint Lucia was when I was a sailor, not a cruiser. We flew in and bareboat chartered three 50-foot sailboats in Marigot Bay, heading south to the Grenadines. During the drive from the airport we passed through large banana plantations with blue plastic bags tied around each bunch. We anchored at the base of the Pitons, the two large mountains jutting up from the southwest corner of the island. I still have a few photos of that trip (and one of my companions who is a faithful reader of the blog):

Today many of our fellow passengers took tours in the area around Castries, the city in northwest Saint Lucia where we docked.

The tours traditionally stop in a fishing village and at a local crafts market before stopping for a view from above of the beautiful Marigot Bay. I hear it has become quite a resort destination since I visited there 30 years ago.

So this makes two islands in a row that we have put forth minimal effort to see. Is that a bad thing? I debate with myself. I’ve been to these islands before and don’t have the budget to take pricey excursions in every port. But a $5 water taxi ride or a 30-minute walk would have taken us to see the city square and cathedral. Oh well, what’s done is done.

I did return ashore in the afternoon with my three-legged sketch stool to capture a café scene by the pier. Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas, with a passenger capacity of about 3,500, dwarfed the Amsterdam at our pier. The Carnival Fascination, an older ship with only a handful of balcony cabins, docked across the harbor. I wonder when we will next see three cruise ships in a port on this long journey.

A quick downpour abruptly ended the sail away party by the aft pool, and I feared it would be too dark to see the Pitons. But we just made it and I saw their outline against the evening sky.

The problem with going to happy hour in the late afternoon is that I cannot resist the peanuts and thus am in danger of spoiling my appetite for dinner. I did just that today, so Elaine and I decided we would get a light meal in the Lido rather than dress for dinner in the dining room. By 8:30 p.m. I was dozing off while reading. I turned my clock ahead for the overnight time change and declared that 9:30 wasn’t too early to go to bed.

We are leaving the Caribbean Sea and entering the Atlantic Ocean on our way to Devil’s Island off the coast of French Guiana, our next port.