Adios St Lucia

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Hello everyone. This is Delphine for a change. We are the 10th October and I am writing from a hostel {une auberge de jeunesse}in San Jose, Costa Rica. You are not going to believe it but we are actually so relieved we are out of the Carribean. St Lucia was a big disappointment. I know, sea, sun and no work should pretty much be haven {le paradis} but on this occasion it was not enough. We spent 5 days confined in a small holiday resort, which once again, sounds great but actually, it felt like we were held hostage, bound to spend money there and there only.
As soon as we got out of the resort, we were hasseled by beggers and locals asking for money, trying to sell us things or performing petty services in exchange for a few coins. A man offered us local craft, then drugs... Then another one offered to climb up a coconut tree in 3 minutes for us to take a picture! I said no, Matt was so tempted!!!! May I add that he was bearfoot and owner of a small worn off machetta for only tool... The beach was not even something to consider, our possessions would not have been safe. All in all, we were dying to get out.

However, we are leaving with one good experience as Matt got to do something he really wanted to do, that climbing one of the Pitons in the south of the town called Soufriere. It is the stiffest hill you've ever seen and do not count on the government here for signs, steps, ramps, rest stops or any human friendly help. Anyway, as you may guess, I stayed by the pool and Matt started a two hour assent to the top with a Rasta guide and his faithful dog. Supportive pictures below...
Five hours later, a wet, muddy, smelly, worn out, and very proud Matt came back to me as he had made it to the top and back. The top was not even nice! It was cloudy, no visibility and the orange tree had very bitter fruit that you could not even eat! I do not understand the motivation of this man but see the smile on his face, that is what you call a hero.

Well, that was St Lucia. A shame as it is a beautiful island with obvious natural resources that is really poorly exploited as far as we have seen. May I however nuance my judgement by saying that we did not visit the north of the island. As it is the most touristic part, we thought we would miss out on local flocklore. This decision did not turn out to be the best though!!!!! I shall finish this entry now and add pictures to it. Lot's of love to you all and please comment on the entries so that we see you are thinking of us. Bisoussssssssssssssssssssssss Delphine
Just to add my two pennies worth, the saving grace of our time in St Lucia was meeting a really lovely American couple, John and Donna. What great people! They made our stay bearable and we enjoyed many good conversations and not too few piton beers. Apart from them and a few nice employees of the resort and elsewhere, St Lucia left me thinking of it as a mosquito infested dump populated by people who deserved it.

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