Saint Lucia Vacation 2017 (page 1 of 10)

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Greta's blog (Day 1, February 16th 2017):

We had a flight leaving at 5:23 am, so we got up in time to get ready & catch the 3:30 shuttle to the airport. We'd not been able to park in the "correct" area of the parking lot this morning, so we were lucky to move the truck that morning before leaving so that it will STILL be there when we get home.

We got to the airport quickly (no stopping at the HHH terminal helps!) and checked a couple of bags. The 1st security line was closed of course until we'd stood in line for the other security checkpoint for 10 minutes, and then they announced that there was no waiting at the 1st checkpoint, so back we went across the front of the airport. It still was labeled as "closed" but they were letting folks through, so we got through rather quickly & without any issues.

Once we got through, we found our gate & had some time to spare, so we headed back to the only place that was open and ordered breakfast. The food wasn't going to be ready for 7 minutes but at least we had that time to spare. Breakfast was 2 sausage/egg paninis and two diet Cokes for $28! Holy airport prices! Greta's parents had given them $25 for Valentine's Day for breakfast that morning --- I guess they knew better than we did about the prices at that time of day.

The flight to Atlanta was almost delayed due to "cleaning crew" issues but left more or less on time and was uneventful . We were in Atlanta for a little over an hour, and then back on a plane. There was some turbulence for most of the way over the water, but not too bad. We each got in a movie or two on the plane-provided entertainment systems and a little bit of reading. When we landed in Saint Lucia, there was a plane at our gate so they re-routed us somewhere else, brought a set of steps to the plane and we "deplaned" out on the tarmac (maybe that's how it's always done). PLUS - they put the steps at the back of the plane - where we were seated - so we were some of the first on the plane and some of the first off - NICE! Mike was going to take a pic of Greta getting off the plane (she was a row ahead of him) but apparently that is not allowed.

Inside the terminal, we stood in the heat (A/C was running but only doing so well) for a while, did the run through with two checkpoints (our luggage made it through quickly & unscathed) and then off to get a rental car. While Mike was filling out the rental docs, Greta was probably asked a dozen times "do you need transportation?" and had to keep saying "no, we have a rental car". And then she'd point to her husband, and he was wearing a black t-shirt from a 3-gun competition with a white outline of a guy shooting a long-gun was. So then she just stopped pointing and said her husband was getting a rental car. One note - you have to STRESS the "Rental" part of it or everyone says "Oh - but I can drive you!".

Once we were in the car, we found out it only "spoke" Japanese, so attempting to use the navigation system was impossible .. all Japanese characters, and some sort of odd yipping sound when we'd try to press the buttons. It also was not the car we'd reserved, so they'll be bringing us a new one to replace the mini-van style vehicle we had tomorrow. Driving on the left-hand side of the road is an adventure in itself. The streets are very narrow and windy, plus they are full of hills and speeding traffic. The mini-bus drivers are CRAZY; driving in the middle of lanes and honking away. Plus there are people walking on the sides of the road everywhere - there is no real shoulder - and dogs wandering about. How this all works is amazing, but it did. We relied on Google maps on Mike's phone to direct us to the resort. We missed one turn, and that brought us through the capital of Castries City, and extra traffic but at least there, the Google maps were excellent, even directing us which spot to exit the round-abouts. We saw a little of everything, including kids walking home from school in their uniforms, a guy working with a machete on tree branches, another guy walking alongside the road with a black-plastic-wrapped bundle balanced on his head and lots of workers riding around in the back of trucks.

By the time we got to the resort, in heavy traffic, we were exhausted, but we were THERE. Check in when smoothly and we were presented with a little fruity pink drink to welcome us. Most people have a car bring them from the airport (about 90 minutes) or a helicopter, but I'm thinking everyone experienced enough traffic that a little pink drink was well appreciated by all.

Our place was described as a "Cliffside villa" and that was the truth - super steep hills and narrow winding roads. You leave your vehicle at the "bottom" by the check-in desk and have a shuttle drive you up. Our Villa is beautiful - the whole resort (Windjammer Cliffside Villa Resort) is on a steep slope & all the villas resemble a Mediterranean village - white stone walls, red-tile roofs, lots of foliage & everything was beautiful. Our villa has a small, fully-equipped kitchen, sitting area, bathroom & bedroom, plus a balcony looking over the resort and the sea. The bed was decorated with "WELCOME" spelled pit in evergreen fronds and there were flower petals arranged on the bed in a beautiful array. A towel was wrapped in a swan shape and the tissue box even had tissues "blooming" out of it. GORGEOUS. We are definitely in paradise.

After that, we headed down to the resort mini mart to get a few provisions... a dozen eggs, a large can of OJ, some hard salami and some cheese came to $42! Back to the room to drop off breakfast and then we headed back down to Jammer's, the casual sea-side restaurant, for supper that night. It was very busy & we had to wait about 40 minutes for a table. We didn't get to eat until 9 pm but we were relaxing with a fruity drink (the Mamacita drink was WONDERFUL) and the ocean in the background... how can you go wrong? Greta had the Cajun-spiced mahi-mahi with rice & veggies and Mike had a Bacon/Egg/Cheeseburger with fries. The fish was great but the burger was a little over-done but still juicy. Then we headed up to our villa again (STEEP WALK) and sacked out for the night after attempting to comprehend West Indies television.

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