Anyone up for Fond Doux?

Needing a break from work and winter weather, we escaped to the Fond Doux Resort & Plantation on St. Lucia for a long weekend. Located just outside Soufriere on the southern part of the island, we felt like we had stumbled onto our own bit of Eden.

Fond Doux offers a wonderful alternative to the giant all-inclusive resorts found elsewhere on the island. It is a working cocoa plantation in the jungle with 10 or so cottages spread throughout the property. Trails meander around the grounds among lush plants, herbs, and fruit trees. The jungle is dense so your cottage is secluded from the other guests and feels very tranquil and private. Most of the produce served in the open-air restaurant is grown on the property. There is also a chicken coop on site for fresh eggs each morning.

Friday

On our first full day, we took the hotel shuttle to Jalousie Beach situated on the Hilton Resort Property between the Gros and Petit Pitons. The beaches on St. Lucia are very rocky but Jalousie has a man-made sand beach that was nice.

I couldn't resist buying a baby coconut from the Coconut Man walking the beach.

Saturday

Today, we went ziplining in Dennery and then did a short hike to Errand Falls. At the time we were there, the island was experiencing drought conditions so the water levels at the falls were very low.

After the hike, our tour guide, Spencer Ambrose, surprised us and took us to his home where his lovely wife, Nemfeh, had cooked a feast for lunch. Chicken, fried fish, macaroni casserole, ground provisions (root vegetables), and rum punch were just some of the offerings. There was so much food! The hospitality of Spencer and his family was incredible.

Later in the day, our new friend, Phillip, gave us an official tour of the Fond Doux plantation. Along the way, we sampled jungle M&M's and hiked the Chateaubelair Trail on the estate grounds for breathtaking views of the Pitons.

Sunday

Today was a lazy day. Eric napped and I lounged around the cottage and pool just reading and relaxing.

Monday

Today we went on a tour of the rum distillery. It wasn't really a tour but rather a tasting . You could sample any of the rums...as much as you wanted for $3.00 per person. Not a bad deal except that at 10:00 am I couldn't stomach very many shots. There weren't any mixers so we were drinking straight rum.

Our guide, Curtis, was fantastic. In addition to sharing his knowledge of St. Lucia with us, he made several stops so we could sample fresh bananas, salt fish, and cassava bread. He also drove us through the volcano and we stopped for a quick look. There wasn't much to see. Mainly some bubbling pools of water.

Afterward, we had lunch at Ladera which offered more great views of the Pitons.

After a couple of adventurous days and a much needed mental break from work, our time on St. Lucia was coming to an end. We were headed back home in the morning.