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St.
Lucia is the sort of island that travellers
to the Caribbean dream about a small, lush tropical
gem that is still relatively unknown. One of
the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles,
it is located midway down the Eastern Caribbean
chain, between Martinique and St. Vincent, and
north of Barbados. St. Lucia is only 27 miles
long and 14 miles wide, with a shape that is
said to resemble either a mango or an avocado
(depending on your taste). The Atlantic Ocean
kisses its eastern shore, while the beaches
of the west coast owe their beauty to the calm
Caribbean Sea.
In
natural beauty, St. Lucia seems like an island
plucked from the South Pacific and set down
in the Caribbean. Its dramatic twin coastal
peaks, the Pitons, soar 2,000 feet up from the
sea, sheltering magnificent rain forests where
wild orchids, giant ferns, and birds of paradise
flourish. Brilliantly-plumed tropical birds
abound, including endangered species like the
indigenous St. Lucia parrot. The rainforest
is broken only by verdant fields and orchards
of banana, coconut, mango, and papaya trees.
St.
Lucia has been inhabited since long before colonial
times, and its cultural treasures are a fascinating
melange of its rich past and its many different
traditions. The island's people have earned
a well-deserved reputation for their warmth
and charm, and the island itself is dotted with
aged fortresses, small villages, and open-air
markets.
There
is a broad array of exciting and exotic activities
available on St. Lucia. The island's steep coastlines
and lovely reefs offer excellent snorkeling
and scuba diving. The rainforest preserves of
St. Lucia's mountainous interior are one of
the Caribbean's finest locales for hiking and
birdwatching. Of course, the island also possesses
excellent facilities for golf, tennis, sailing,
and a host of other leisure pursuits. Not to
be missed is St. Lucia's Soufriere volcano,
the world's only drive-in volcanic crater.
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