OKAY, SO NOW A LITTLE ST. LUCIAN HISTORY
shoelessjourney
Tom & Colette McCorkindale
Sun 4 Feb 2007 20:26
do and the island has prospered since our last visit ten years ago. It's
strange to think that our two previous experiences of St Lucia and Rodney
Bay Marina were when the ARC arrived, so this time makes three! The marina
is a lot quieter now that the great majority of ARC boats have moved on -
north or south to cruising grounds further afield. The upcoming cricket
world cup has created a lot of work on the island, though "British" locals
say that the infrastructure can't cope with such an influx of barmy armies.
Water shortages for the residents are frequent and although the marina has
its own storage facility, you have to wonder if they will cope when the time
comes. There's a strange "tax" of an extra visa requirement for many
countries over the world cup and many of our cruising friends (eg from
Finland)have decided to move out of the area rather than pay it.
Anyway, back to the history lesson! St Lucia is the largest of the English
speaking Windwards. They were called the Windwards by the British as to get
here from other "conquests" it was a hard beat to windward. Over 200 years
aog the islands were colonized by the Kalinargo - great navigators, artists
and sportsmen. Those in residence when Columbus arrived were a warlike tribe
he called Caribs. The Kalinargo resisted the Europeans and refused to be
slaves. They were eventually driven out by European colonists and years of
colonisation followed as the islands were fought over by both the French and
British. Though Martinique is part of France and a member of the EC, St
Lucia, St Vincent and Grenada are now all independent nations with a strong
British tradition.
Hope that helps - got stir crazy waiting for the tooth fairy - still not
arrived. The Windward is living up to its "windy" reputation at present,
with strong winds through the marina and uncomfortable nights for those at
anchor in both the lagoon and bay. The weather is due to settle down.
However, sometime next week, so let's hope the tooth fairy has been by then!