Cuckoos, chocolate and Creole in paradise
Aswedroveaway from Hewanorra airport, George warned there were no straight roads on St Lucia.There are hardly any level ones either.
Volcanic mountains rise to over three thousand feet and the winding roads have an Alpinelike appearance. It takes two hours to get from one end of the 26-mile long island to the other.
Earlier that day I had boarded my British Airways flight for the eight-hour journey and decided that justified an upgrade to World Traveller Plus.
“Glass of Champagne?” asked a member of the cabin crew as I settled into my seat. It was only breakfast time but it seemed impolite to say no. The service, food, extra leg room and the ability to recline your seat without disturbing the
passenger behind you, was well worthit.
St Lucia, said to be the only country named after a woman, was originally settled by the French in 1660, but as a result of battles with the British, it swapped hands 14 times until 1814 when the British took control. As a result, the official language is English but Frenchbased Creole is widely spoken, the cars drive on the left but the town names are in French.
Home for my stay was Windjammer Landing, comprising hotel rooms and villas built up a steep hill that led down to a sheltered sandy beach.The hotel offered a choice of self catering with breakfast, or all-inclusive.
I had chosen all-inclusive and been allocated a luxurious two bedroom villa at the top of the hill. Outside there was a neat patio with recliners, and a pool with stunning views over the sea. A fleet of air-conditioned shuttle vehicles were available to ferry guests up and down the hill.
Several restaurants at the beach offered a wide selection of food and it would have been easy to stay put but I wanted to explore this unusual island.
Cocoa trees abound and I was amazed to discover that the fresh beans in the pod were white and sickly sweet, changing colour and taste as they dried. No surprise then that the most popular attraction is chocolate making, and I gave it a try.