Woke up early but didn’t do anything for breakfast as we knew we would be having lunch, so we just made some tea. We thought Marc was picking us up again, but it was a busy day for the taxi service (Travel St. Lucia) because of the Jazz festival so the owner of the company, Tage, came instead. I think Jade was being extra protective of us because we told them it would be Marc and that’s not who showed up. Anyways we take off about 15 minutes late but ended up getting to Sugar Beach just a few minutes late. Tage was quite a talker and kept us informed and entertained at the same time.
Once at Sugar Beach, Armin started us off in the Rainforest Spa. There are seven traditionally built tree house treatment rooms at the Rainforest Spa, manicure and pedicure facilities, a relaxation pavilion, and an earthen Amerindian steam dome, known as a temascal, which reconnects the spa to the island’s earliest settlers. Really interesting and would love to check out the spa on a return visit.
They have luxury guestrooms, beachfront bungalows and villas all with plunge pools and butler service. Our favorite was the beachfront bungalow. This resort definitely had an upscale vibe about it. Eclectic art, fancy bars and dining venues and an adorable high end kids club. It’s located on a beautiful beach nestled in between Grand Piton and Petite Piton.
Next we are off to Ladera. We were greeted by Obi with cold water. The resort has only 37 rooms and suits and with its eco-friendly philosophy, crafts each from locally harvested tropical hardwoods, stone and tile. Furniture is made on site by St. Lucian artists. The suites here also have the open wall concepts with private plunge pool and magnificent views.
The gardens and trees are filled with hummingbirds and frogs and overall was quite charming. We had a lovely lunch with Obi at Dasheen. Danny had a burger and I had chicken satay and we shared his fries. I think I would like to stay here just to be around all the flowers and the humming birds.
Last stop was at Hotel Chocolat. I wanted to see this resort to see what kind of chocolate type things they would offer, but all we got was a 10 minute tour of the property. There wasn’t a room available to show and just looking at the outside of the lodges, didn’t peak our interest at all. So this was the only disappointment of the trip. Tage was surprised when we got done so quickly, he wanted to bring us to some more “local” type resorts, but we were toured out by now and just wanted to get back to Jade.
When we got back a little earlier than expected, our Domos had made up the bed with flowers, swans and hearts and had run a bubble bath and left a nice note. All we wanted was to jump in the pool and have a couple of cold beers. We debated heading down to the beach but then decided to just stay in the room and relaxed for the rest of the day.
There was a manager’s cocktail reception before dinner tonight at the rooftop bar. We were basically the first (and almost only) couple to attend. We met several managers, and I am so sorry I can’t remember everyone’s name. But everyone we met was so nice! They had chefs cooking appetizers, the wine sommelier providing wine and champagne, and chocolate sampling. I tried chocolate with blue cheese and pistachio but would not try the chocolate covered foie gras experiment. The executive chef Juan Bochenski did try it though. (I didn’t know that was him until I saw him on the website after we returned home.)
We were talking to one of the other managers and I mentioned that I would have liked to see the chocolate lab but we were checking out tomorrow and he said, no problem, he was taking care of it. He called over Katarina from the front desk and they said they would let us check out at 12:30 so we could partake in the chocolate sensory tasting and the Discover Chocolate experience. She also took care of adding a tip for the wait staff on our room charge as we were running low on cash!
We were just about to leave for our dinner reservation when Sherick came up to us to ask if we could go do a 6:30 couples massage. Danny isn’t a fan and I had just had two glasses of wine so I just wasn’t up to spending my last night in the spa. In hindsight, I should have taken him up on it, but either way, I wanted so spend the last night with Danny.
Off to our last dinner. Danny requested another specialty cocktail with Bounty Spiced Rum and the bartender brought him The Hulk and I had a dirty martini. Since we had a couple of appetizers at the party we choose to skip the bread course.
I started with the Crispy Fresh Water Shrimp with Marinated Avocado, Pineapple Salsa and Charred Asparagus. Danny had the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio with Toasted Pine Nuts, Shaved Radish and Mustard Dressing. Next was a Safron and Leek Risotto with a Seared Scallop, Spiced Cashew and Truffle Sauce. I could have stopped eating at this point! Danny had the Braised Short Rib Dumpling with Slow Cooked Rainforest Mushrooms, Miso Broth and Sweet Basil. Our main course (which I barely touched) was Cumin Spiced Grilled Dorado, with Couscous Tubbouleh, Organic Baby Carrots and Lemongrass Foam. And Danny had Pan Roasted Atlantic Wahoo with House Made Spaghetti, Sautéed Green Beans and Seafood Bisque. Everything (except the Couscous which I am not a big fan of) was delicious.
The band, well woman singer and guy saxophonist, was terrific tonight. One thing I would like to try when we return is to go on the Sunset Jazz Cruise as I believe they are on that. We actually hung out for a while after dinner listening to them. Gus brought Danny over another glass of rum, this time it was Chairman’s Reserve, I had had enough at this point.
Back at the room and an obnoxious couple next door was being pretty loud. Ended up calling to complain at 11:45 and we think someone went and talked to them. Got woken up again around 2:00 but they ended up quieting down.
The next morning we woke up early and had room service for breakfast. I just had a ham and cheese omelet and Danny had a full 2 eggs over easy with hash browns and sausage. We had issues checking in online, saying we have some issues with our passports. After breakfast the woman manager was at our door apologizing for the noisy neighbors.
Tony then walked us down to the Chocolate Tasting which was just a short introduction to how they make chocolate and we got to taste various samples. My favorite was the cinnamon. After that, just us and a newlywed couple got a ride to the Chocolate Lab. How fun was this! We had to put on aprons and she showed us how she melted the chocolate in the microwave and then she poured it out on the table and we had to spread it and fold it to cool it down.
We then had to scoop it into a mold and add any toppings, like fruit and nuts and crunchy things. They then went into the freezer and then she made us mint bonbons. She then wrapped our chocolate bars, bagged up our bonbons and we were on our way! It was fun and definitely an awesome experience. Thank you Jade Mountain for arranging this as it was a great way to end our trip.
Back to the room to take one last dip and then shower and to finish packing up. So sad to have to leave but I know we will be back. Knock on our door from Tony and the manager that originally had greeted us at “check in.” He hands us a pass to use the Executive lounge at the airport. How nice was that?
We walk down to the car pick-up and say our last goodbyes. Man, I don’t want to leave, they took such good care of us. Got to the airport in about 1 ½ hours, much nicer, wider roads this way. Check in was pretty easy and there was no issue at all with our passports. We bought some Bounty Spiced Rum and some Admiral Rodney HMS Formidable Rum in the duty-free shop to bring home for us and our dog sitters. We check into the lounge and have a quick drink and some snacks. Not a bad way to have to wait for the flight.
Flights home were uneventful, and I finally got to watch A Star is Born. We got home after midnight and very happy to be home with Samson and to sleep in our own bed.
Thank you St Lucia, you have definitely inspired us and we will be back someday soon. #letherinspireyou
Kathy's Korner 