Welcome to Saint Lucia, my 138th Visit and 133rd Run UN Country out of a UN total of 193. After my blog photos below are the key statistics, brief history and interesting facts about this destination.
A special mention to my Koumbara Lucy Braoudakis that I dedicate this Saint Lucia post given her name Lucia in Italian !!!
Off the ship first at 806am for three days in a row. Saint Lucia is covered in lush jungle and even from the harbour looks like you have arrived at one of the Northern Marquesas islands of French Polynesia or one of the outer islands of Hawaii.
Our Suzuki 4WD Jeep-shaped hire car was just outside the ship cruise terminal making it easy for me to prepare for my first 10km run in 2 months since recovering from a groin injury. Set off at 830am. It was tough. My quads were on fire but I managed to finish at my cut-off pace. I was happy and relieved to be running again but the quad pain had me nervous about running tomorrow.
Bundy and I set out for the famous Sulphur Springs at around 10am. The drive was simply stunning !!! Thick jungle rainforest just like the Amazon !!! On our 50km drive to the hot sulphur pits we passed two beautifully coloured towns that were EXACTLY the same as towns on the Northern Marquesas islands of French Polynesia. In fact, I thought I was back on my cruise through these islands back in 2023 instead of being here. Amazing. The two famous volcanic peaks and icons of Saint Lucia, Gros Piton and Petit Piton featured heavily on our drive as you will see below. These peaks are so iconic and symbolic of this country that UNESCO has protected them. There are only two dozen peaks in the world that UNESCO has bothered to protect. The villages of Canaries and Soufriere are colourful injections of local life in this otherwise stunning coastline. To top off our southern drive we endured a back-shacking 4km broken concrete narrow trail road to Anse Chastanet, a small beach connected to an exclusive resort. It is here that Mini 4 went mad and we enjoyed a warm Caribbean salt-bath. The road to these places is newly surfaced with hair-pin bends that are too many to count !!! For me a wonderfully engaging drive with no time to be bored. On our return we checked into a supermarket to re-fill our one of our empty yoghurt containers with our first Rose Wine from Chile !!! Walked onto the boat at 4pm and we set sail at 430pm. A pure vego dinner tonight with more VEEP – the comedy sitcom starring Julie Dreyfuss Lewis (who played Elaine in Seinfeld) as the Vice-President of the United States. These posts and preparations for the next day do not allow us enough time to watch movies any more !!!
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SAINT LUCIA IN A NUTSHELL:
Saint Lucia is an independent island nation known for its volcanic landscape and tourism-based economy.
• Official Name: Saint Lucia.
• Capital & Largest City: Castries.
• Area: Approximately 617 sq km.
• Population: 184,100 (mid-2023).
• Official Language: English & French Creole.
• Ethnic Groups (2010): Black/African descent (85.3%), Mixed (10.9%) & East Indian (2.2%).
• Median Age: 39 years (2023).
• Life Expectancy at Birth: 79.2 years (2023).
• Currency: Eastern Caribbean dollar (XCD), pegged to the US dollar at 2.7 XCD to 1 USD.
• GDP: $USD2.262 billion (2023).
• GDP per Capita: $USD12,264 (2023).
• Main Economic Sectors (2020): Services at 86.9%, industrial at 10.9% & agriculture at 2.2%.
• Primary Economic Driver: Tourism is the main source of jobs and income (65% of GDP). The island received over one million visitors in 2023.
• Unemployment Rate: 14.7% in 2023. Youth unemployment is 25% in 2023.
• Form of Government: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy, with King Charles III as the head of state, represented by a Governor-General.
BRIEF HISTORY OF SAINT LUCIA:
The history of Saint Lucia is marked by frequent changes in colonial possession between the British and French, earning it the nickname "Helen of the West Indies”.
• Pre-Colonial Era: First inhabited by the Arawaks around 200-400 AD. They were later displaced by the more aggressive Caribs (Kalinago) around 800 AD.
• European Arrival: Sighted by Christopher Columbus around 1502.
• Colonial Rivalry: The British and French began colonization attempts in the early 17th century. For over a century and a half, the two powers fought over the island, with control changing hands 14 times.
• British Rule: Saint Lucia was finally ceded to Britain in 1814 after the Treaty of Paris, becoming a British crown colony.
• Abolition of Slavery: The institution of slavery was abolished in 1834 throughout the British Empire.
• Move to Self-Governance: The 20th century saw a gradual move toward self-rule.
• Independence: Saint Lucia became a fully self-governing associated state of the UK in 1967 with full independence in 1979.
• Post-Independence: The economy shifted from a focus on bananas to tourism. The island has produced two Nobel Prize winners: economist Arthur Lewis and poet Derek Walcott.
INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT SAINT LUCIA:
1. It is the world's only country named after a woman (specifically, Saint Lucy of Syracuse, a Christian martyr). The other is Ireland, named after Ériu, a mother goddess in Irish mythology.
2. It is home to the world's only "drive-in" volcano (Sulphur Springs Park), where visitors can drive a vehicle into the edge of the dormant volcanic crater and visit the boiling mud baths.
3. The island is famous for the Pitons, two majestic, pointy volcanic spires (Gros Piton and Petit Piton) that are a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and iconic national symbol.
4. Saint Lucia has produced two Nobel Prize laureates, Sir Arthur Lewis (Economics, 1979) and Derek Walcott (Literature, 1992), giving it one of the highest per capita rates of Nobel laureates in the world.
5. Control of the island changed hands 14 times between the French and the British during a 150-year period of conflict, earning it the nickname the "Helen of the West Indies" (after Helen of Troy).
6. The island has a unique and vibrant Saint Lucian French Creole language (Kwéyòl), which is widely spoken alongside the official language of English, and is celebrated annually.
7. Its national bird is the brightly coloured Saint Lucia parrot (known locally as the Jacquot), an endangered species found exclusively in the island's rainforests.
8. Over 70% of the island is covered in lush rainforest, offering a diverse landscape of mountains, waterfalls, and dense jungle, not just beaches.
9. The traditional national dish is "green figs and saltfish", which is actually made using unripe bananas (referred to as "figs") and salted codfish.
10. The island has its own locally brewed pilsner beer, aptly named "Piton" after the famous twin peaks.
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