I have never been one who could overcome the excitement of a trip. I woke up at 1:30 this morning and just couldn't get back to sleep. After spending some time turning and tossing, I finally gave up and got out of bed. It was not a bad call as I was able to take a nice and long shower and get everything ready. The limo driver, Mo, arrived at 4:30 and we were still scrambling. Finally we headed out shortly after 5.
The roads were deserted at that time of the morning and we got to the airport with tons of time to spare - for security checks. Surprisingly what took the longest to examine was the golf bag. The security lady must have spent a good 15 minutes, going through the entire bag with a small piece of swab. I think it took her longer to examine the bag than it did for me to pack it! Going through security is always an unnerving experience and poor Kenny is particularly fazed by it. It is always amusing to watch him agonizing over all the stuff he needs to take off and set aside: belt, watch, pen, coins, shoes... In a fluster, he put his belongings in the top bin and started to move the entire stack forward, at which the guard snarled:"Sir, you only need one!" It took Kenny a full minute to understand what the guard meant! We all had a good laugh.
Our plane had to be de-iced as there was some precipitation the night before but it didn't delay us too much. We arrived in Toronto at 8:27. The airport is bustling on this Saturday morning and the long march to our destination gate was invigorating. Conveniently Kenny has a Maple Leaf card that gives us access to the lounge. I couldn't believe how packed the lounge was! The place was filled with traveling families this particular morning. After a nice yogurt and a hot cup of green tea, we felt rejuvenated. By 9:30, we were comfortably seated on the plane to St Lucia.
The flight is only 4 and 1/2 hours, one hour shorter than the flight to Barbados. The journey was smooth and I took the opportunity to watch The American - a very depressing film, not one of Clooney's best. In-flight refreshments were available for purchase for economy passengers. I must admit for paid food, the quality is not much better than what Air Canada used to offer for free. But then I guess the airlines are being squeezed by rising fuel prices. I secretly imagine the money they save from not serving free food would go towards fuelling the big birds.
We arrived at 3:48, 3 minutes past the scheduled landing time. We must have landed after a few other planes because there was a huge line-up at the immigration checkpoint. I checked time constantly for fear of missing our helicopter ride. The immigration agents were very efficient and the line moved forward swiftly. I did a quick scan of the friendliness of the agents. I think you can always tell how friendly a nation is by looking at the attitudes of their immigration officers - the first local people to greet you at the country's door. If the agents are surly and bad-tempered, it is probably a bad sign. But I saw friendly faces and smiles, which was reassuring. Not all Caribbean countries feature friendly people.
We went through in 20 minutes and by that time, our luggage had been unloaded and was waiting for us. We didn't miss the helicopter! I have never taken a helicopter before so when we were driven with two other couples to an open field, I wondered what they were planning to do with us in this large grassy open space that seemed to be deserted. Then I spotted a circle of dirt patch in the grass and realized that I was looking at the landing pad! In less than 5 minutes a white helicopter rose from behind the tall mountain peaks and came towards us. It certainly generated an astoundingly loud noise and a lot of wind. The 6 of us crowded into the bird and Kenny and I were lucky enough to get the front seats. We were given a headset each to protect our ears and enable us to hear what the pilot was saying. The bird lifted vertically into the air like a dragonfly and darted towards the looming clouds.
Riding on a helicopter is a very different experience than sitting on a plane. The heli is much smaller and therefore much nimbler. Turns and other manoeuvres are almost instant and can be felt so strong and clear. When it banks, it feels like one would drop out of the heli but for the door holding us in. There was a strong weather system that evening and our heli weaved in and out of thick rain clouds. Large drops of water pelted against the windshield as we flew through patches of showers.
From the air, we had a good glimpse of the island. The first word that came to mind was "mountainous". St Lucia looks like a large collection of peaks and gorges clothed in lush rain forests. Most houses sit on tall stilts sunk into steep slopes and flat land is a rare sight. The mountains look like they had been chiseled out of something, with their pointy peaks reaching towards the sky. Flanked by the Atlantic on the east and the Caribbean on the west, it looks like a beautiful emerald placed a piece of blue silk. The heli ride only took 15 minutes, by which time my guts were starting to churn from the drastic movements.
Sandals Grande at dusk, from the Concierge balcony
The roads were deserted at that time of the morning and we got to the airport with tons of time to spare - for security checks. Surprisingly what took the longest to examine was the golf bag. The security lady must have spent a good 15 minutes, going through the entire bag with a small piece of swab. I think it took her longer to examine the bag than it did for me to pack it! Going through security is always an unnerving experience and poor Kenny is particularly fazed by it. It is always amusing to watch him agonizing over all the stuff he needs to take off and set aside: belt, watch, pen, coins, shoes... In a fluster, he put his belongings in the top bin and started to move the entire stack forward, at which the guard snarled:"Sir, you only need one!" It took Kenny a full minute to understand what the guard meant! We all had a good laugh.
Our plane had to be de-iced as there was some precipitation the night before but it didn't delay us too much. We arrived in Toronto at 8:27. The airport is bustling on this Saturday morning and the long march to our destination gate was invigorating. Conveniently Kenny has a Maple Leaf card that gives us access to the lounge. I couldn't believe how packed the lounge was! The place was filled with traveling families this particular morning. After a nice yogurt and a hot cup of green tea, we felt rejuvenated. By 9:30, we were comfortably seated on the plane to St Lucia.
The flight is only 4 and 1/2 hours, one hour shorter than the flight to Barbados. The journey was smooth and I took the opportunity to watch The American - a very depressing film, not one of Clooney's best. In-flight refreshments were available for purchase for economy passengers. I must admit for paid food, the quality is not much better than what Air Canada used to offer for free. But then I guess the airlines are being squeezed by rising fuel prices. I secretly imagine the money they save from not serving free food would go towards fuelling the big birds.
We arrived at 3:48, 3 minutes past the scheduled landing time. We must have landed after a few other planes because there was a huge line-up at the immigration checkpoint. I checked time constantly for fear of missing our helicopter ride. The immigration agents were very efficient and the line moved forward swiftly. I did a quick scan of the friendliness of the agents. I think you can always tell how friendly a nation is by looking at the attitudes of their immigration officers - the first local people to greet you at the country's door. If the agents are surly and bad-tempered, it is probably a bad sign. But I saw friendly faces and smiles, which was reassuring. Not all Caribbean countries feature friendly people.
We went through in 20 minutes and by that time, our luggage had been unloaded and was waiting for us. We didn't miss the helicopter! I have never taken a helicopter before so when we were driven with two other couples to an open field, I wondered what they were planning to do with us in this large grassy open space that seemed to be deserted. Then I spotted a circle of dirt patch in the grass and realized that I was looking at the landing pad! In less than 5 minutes a white helicopter rose from behind the tall mountain peaks and came towards us. It certainly generated an astoundingly loud noise and a lot of wind. The 6 of us crowded into the bird and Kenny and I were lucky enough to get the front seats. We were given a headset each to protect our ears and enable us to hear what the pilot was saying. The bird lifted vertically into the air like a dragonfly and darted towards the looming clouds.
Riding on a helicopter is a very different experience than sitting on a plane. The heli is much smaller and therefore much nimbler. Turns and other manoeuvres are almost instant and can be felt so strong and clear. When it banks, it feels like one would drop out of the heli but for the door holding us in. There was a strong weather system that evening and our heli weaved in and out of thick rain clouds. Large drops of water pelted against the windshield as we flew through patches of showers.
From the air, we had a good glimpse of the island. The first word that came to mind was "mountainous". St Lucia looks like a large collection of peaks and gorges clothed in lush rain forests. Most houses sit on tall stilts sunk into steep slopes and flat land is a rare sight. The mountains look like they had been chiseled out of something, with their pointy peaks reaching towards the sky. Flanked by the Atlantic on the east and the Caribbean on the west, it looks like a beautiful emerald placed a piece of blue silk. The heli ride only took 15 minutes, by which time my guts were starting to churn from the drastic movements.
Happy to be off the helicopter at last!
From the smaller airport on the northern tip, the taxi ride to Sandals Grande is only 20 minutes. The cab driver told us his name is Peter. He was a cheerful local man who has spent 25 years in New York. He said he moved back to the island after the harsh NY winter in 95 and has never looked back. He was kind enough to stop by a local rum shop and got us each a local beer: Pitons - named after the famous twin peaks on the island. The beer tasted quite decent, not unlike the Banks beer we are so familiar with in Barbados.
Finally we arrived at Sandals Grande St Lucian around 5:40, located in Gros Islet. There was someone waiting for us to take us to the concierge office. We have booked an oceanview penthouse concierge room, which gave us access to concierge services. I have to say in all our travel experiences, we have found the extra money we pay to get to the concierge level rooms is always well worthwhile. We were greeted promptly and showed to our room by a nice young man named Lew.
Our room is located on the 3rd floor, overlooking the Atlantic shore and the beautiful tropical garden below. The room is spacious enough and has the Sandals-signature four-poster king-size bed with white linen sheers all around. We were horrified to feel the full air-conditioning in the room and rushed to turn it off. It has always been a mystery for me why anyone would travel to a tropical island and then stay in an air-conditioned room. As soon as we slid open the balcony doors, warm and sultry ocean air flooded in. Every time I come to a tropical place, I wonder why I live in Canada: I am just so happy in warmth and humidity.
The bathroom is not ultra modern but sufficient with granite counter top, double sinks and a clean tub and shower. Lew came in to check on us and I bombarded him with many questions about the resort and its amenities. Lew was most patient and only too eager to help. He answered all my tough questions and went off immediately to secure a romantic table for us at the Bayside restaurant for dinner that night.
The first thing Kenny wanted to do was not unpacking, but phoning the store to find out how business was for the day. There is a lot to be said about owning your own business - financial rewards, higher degree of control, freedom etc. But when you have your own business, you are NEVER off work. Thanks to Skype, we were able to talk to people in Canada for free. The wireless carrier market is highly monopolized in the Caribbeans and long distance phone calls are exorbitant at $3.25 per minute! A quick phone call quickly reassured Kenny that all business was still functioning properly without him - surprise, surprise!
The Bayside restaurant is a large open concept hall, beside the main pool. We got a great seat right beside the pool. The Sandals entertainment platform in the middle of the pool is romantically lit with neon lights and a guitar player was strumming love tunes on the platform. There was a light drizzle and warm droplets blew in from time to time. It was steak night and we ordered the couple's platter which was immensely satisfying - bee tenderloin grilled to perfection and melt-in-your- mouth tender, mahi-mahi, chicken breast, shrimp and scallops. What a great meal after eating plane food all day! The dessert buffet goes on forever - it was difficult for us to say no. After a wonderful meal, we were all satisfied and sleepy. We fell asleep quickly to the sound of the Atlantic waves and our favourite tree-frog songs, embraced by the moist and salty ocean air.
From the smaller airport on the northern tip, the taxi ride to Sandals Grande is only 20 minutes. The cab driver told us his name is Peter. He was a cheerful local man who has spent 25 years in New York. He said he moved back to the island after the harsh NY winter in 95 and has never looked back. He was kind enough to stop by a local rum shop and got us each a local beer: Pitons - named after the famous twin peaks on the island. The beer tasted quite decent, not unlike the Banks beer we are so familiar with in Barbados.
Finally we arrived at Sandals Grande St Lucian around 5:40, located in Gros Islet. There was someone waiting for us to take us to the concierge office. We have booked an oceanview penthouse concierge room, which gave us access to concierge services. I have to say in all our travel experiences, we have found the extra money we pay to get to the concierge level rooms is always well worthwhile. We were greeted promptly and showed to our room by a nice young man named Lew.
Our room is located on the 3rd floor, overlooking the Atlantic shore and the beautiful tropical garden below. The room is spacious enough and has the Sandals-signature four-poster king-size bed with white linen sheers all around. We were horrified to feel the full air-conditioning in the room and rushed to turn it off. It has always been a mystery for me why anyone would travel to a tropical island and then stay in an air-conditioned room. As soon as we slid open the balcony doors, warm and sultry ocean air flooded in. Every time I come to a tropical place, I wonder why I live in Canada: I am just so happy in warmth and humidity.
The bathroom is not ultra modern but sufficient with granite counter top, double sinks and a clean tub and shower. Lew came in to check on us and I bombarded him with many questions about the resort and its amenities. Lew was most patient and only too eager to help. He answered all my tough questions and went off immediately to secure a romantic table for us at the Bayside restaurant for dinner that night.
The first thing Kenny wanted to do was not unpacking, but phoning the store to find out how business was for the day. There is a lot to be said about owning your own business - financial rewards, higher degree of control, freedom etc. But when you have your own business, you are NEVER off work. Thanks to Skype, we were able to talk to people in Canada for free. The wireless carrier market is highly monopolized in the Caribbeans and long distance phone calls are exorbitant at $3.25 per minute! A quick phone call quickly reassured Kenny that all business was still functioning properly without him - surprise, surprise!
The Bayside restaurant is a large open concept hall, beside the main pool. We got a great seat right beside the pool. The Sandals entertainment platform in the middle of the pool is romantically lit with neon lights and a guitar player was strumming love tunes on the platform. There was a light drizzle and warm droplets blew in from time to time. It was steak night and we ordered the couple's platter which was immensely satisfying - bee tenderloin grilled to perfection and melt-in-your- mouth tender, mahi-mahi, chicken breast, shrimp and scallops. What a great meal after eating plane food all day! The dessert buffet goes on forever - it was difficult for us to say no. After a wonderful meal, we were all satisfied and sleepy. We fell asleep quickly to the sound of the Atlantic waves and our favourite tree-frog songs, embraced by the moist and salty ocean air.
Sandals Grande at dusk, from the Concierge balcony
2 comments:
St. Lucia is the most beautiful place in the Caribbean...glad you loved your experience. Next time down here, visit http://www.SkeeterzRumBar.com and you'll be pleasantly surprised and totally lost. And "Lost" in a good way!
Great review and hope to see you back soon!
Steve
What a great description! I live here, just north of Sandals Grande - it's always interesting to hear about how visitors see my home island :-)
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