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Caribbean Cruise 2017

Caribbean Cruise 2017 Day 4: St. Lucia

Tuesday December 5, 2017

Up early for the day tour of the island. It’s our first shore excursion and we didn’t want to be late. We had enough time for a quick breakfast and then all ashore for the tour. We chose the volcano tour which took us to Soufriere Drive in Volcano. This 5 hour tour took us from the capital of Castries in a Toyota Coaster (this minivan/bus combo was the same model that we used in Shanghai at work and I was having serious flashbacks) all the way to the scenic area of Soufriere and the two Pitons, the iconic UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

We made a few stops along the way including a quaint fishing village and a garden/prayer walk. It was raining pretty good at the garden tour but some interesting flora and an education on local fruits and products from Candy our tour guide. The rain was still coming down when we made it to the Sulfer Springs Visitor Center where we watched a 5 minute video and then saw a quick exhibit about the volcanism of the area. We then headed to the actual sulfer springs and boiling mud pits where we were given a quick overview by another guide. Once we were full of sulfur and facts, it was time to head up to the Beacon Restaurant for some light refreshments. Thankfully the rain stopped and we got some great view of the Pitons. We then snoozed back to the capital city with a quick overlook photo stop of the place where Dr Doolittle was filmed. 

Back in the city we bid adieu to our tour guide and driver and headed back to the ship. Getting onboard the ship I have discovered is an experience. Guests enter the ship from the lower decks and must either take the stairs to the upper decks or wait for one of the super slow elevators. You can imagine how long it takes when everyone is arriving or departing. Once onboard we grabbed a quick lunch at O’Sheehan’s (badum ding) and then dropped into play Win Lose or Draw in one of the lounges. Our team won 10 activity points for our efforts although for the life of me I do not know what activity points are redeemable for… We then headed back to the room to relax before we departed the port and headed to dinner. While we were heading back to the room, it looks like the ship got damaged on the starboard side mid to aft area. Not sure if something broke loose but the railing on the promenade deck had seen better days.

Tonight’s dinner was at the Cagney’s steakhouse for Gary’s Birthday. The steak was good although the cosmo was so so. They had decent low- sugar chocolate cake that reminded me of the ones I used to get in China. I’m starting to figure out the food on the ship is catered to an international audience which means low seasoning levels. Most of the food has been OK but I’ve yet to have a meal that’s been over the top awesome. 

After some late night strolling we called it a night. We don’t have to be up early tomorrow for Martinique so we will just let the sun wake us up and play it by ear.