Castries, Saint Lucia.... Happy New Year!!!!

On this last day of 2022, I was up very early to get my sail in photos on approach to Castries. These early mornings are killing me, need more rest…  We are in port with two other ships today,the Viking Sea and the Saga, Spirit of Adventure. Cathy and I were off first thing and headed to downtown Castries. Stopping at the fishing boat dock we encountered a gentleman named Abba who accompanied us to town. To get a true sense of life in St. Lucia, you need to visit the Central Market, where locals meet to purchase fresh products. This being a Saturday morning, the busiest day at the market, to receive the full experience we went to the market…for no reason, a local vender did not want someone with a camera near her and flipped out shouting profanities at us…not a pleasant welcome to this island…her poor attitude soured our day and we returned to the ship. On our way back to the ship we encountered rain showers and scattered showers were with us on and off for most of the day. In the late afternoon, as I thought I was finished with my blog photos, the Captain announced when we would arrive at Soufrière Bay to view the Pitons, Gros Piton and Petit Piton, the two giant volcanic plugs located south of Soufrière which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And a symbol of St Lucia.  That certainly set my schedule back because there I went, back out for more photos…  Like a junky! Tonight, we had our New Year’s Eve dinner at Rudi’s Sel de Mer, with our friend, Patrick Crean.  It was a great dinner to finish up 2022!  Wishing all our family, friends and followers a happy and healthy 2023.