Posted by David Porter on August 7, 2010 · 3 Comments
Jade Mountain Resort, St. Lucia – it is day #12 of our romantic 25th wedding anniversary tour of the Caribbean, and day #4 of our stay at the Jade Mountain Resort.
St. Lucia’s famous Pitons present us with a completely different interpretation of their grandeur each day, and their reflection in Jade Mountain’s many infinity pools adds a most beautiful echo to their beauty.
Today was a day of intermittent clouds, haze, and showers. Therefore, we opted to do what lovers are greatly tempted to do at Jade Mountain … spend a great deal of the day in your sanctuary enjoying each other’s company.
One of the reasons, among a great many, that Jade Mountain has earned its AAA Five-Diamond award in record time is the attention lavished upon you by having your own major-domo (butler) at your beck and call.
I suppose an inferior resort might claim to have butler service, but these three (left to right – Teddy, Alain, and Okeda) were trained by the British Guild of Butlers.
As the sunset approached, we scurried down to the beach bar at Anse Chastanet (Jade Mountain’s sister resort) to enjoy a local rum punch and this spectacular view.
For dinner, we simply walked across the beach bar to the resort’s Apsara at Trou au Diable Restaurant.
Evidently, when slavery was abolished here in 1858, hundreds of thousands of indentured workers came here from India. Subsequently, St. Lucian cuisine is influenced by this influx of East Indians, and Apsara is a culinary fusion of St. Lucia and India.
We enjoyed Murge Ki Khurchan (Shredded Chicken Tikka Stir-Fried with Coriander Seeds, Onion and Bell Peppers served with a Baby Garlic Naan), and Ajwaini Bhed (Ajwain Crushed Lamb Cutlet with Spiced Chick Peas and Garlic Pickle) as our appetizer.
For our entrees we explored Jugal Bandhi (A mixed platter of Fire Roasted Lamb Chop, Cumin-Mustard King Prawn, Cajun Tandoori Chicken with Lime Rice) and Haryali Batakh (Tamarind Roasted Duck Breast, Cumin Crushed Breadfruit and Curried Soya, Coriander).
We took great pleasure in this experience, and the gastronomical exploration of this East Indian influenced cuisine was greatly enjoyed. YUM!
Another pleasure of a stay at Jade Mountain is that the female staff at Anse Chastanet are costumed in St. Lucia’s National Dress, the Madras.
The Madras is a three piece outfit consisting of a white blouse known in French creole as (Chemise decoltee) made of cotton or poplin and trimmed with borderie anglaise and red ribbon, an outer skirt that is made of Madras material (made in Madras, India) and can be long or short. This outer skirt is worn over a long white cotton slip which is trimmed at the bottom with rows of insertion lace through which red ribbon is weaved, and a head piece called the Tête en l’air made of Madras material and tied in peaks at the top. (via the United Nations Website)
The number of peaks in the Tête en l’air (head piece) have the following connotations:
- one peak – single
- two peaks – engaged
- three peaks – happily married
- four peaks – married but looking? We saw none of these at Jade Mountain.
Jade Mountain is quite famous for creating intimate hideaways for its guests. After our wonderful dinner at Apsara, we were invited to come take a quick photograph of Marsha Hornberger and Michael Magro who were enjoying an intimate dinner at Kai Mer (Creole for House of the Sea) tucked away in the cliffs overlooking the ocean.
It is our understanding that Jade Mountain is quite willing to create a romantic dining experience for you nearly anywhere on their property. While we were having our dinner, we noticed another couple enjoying a dining tent set up right on the beach surrounded by tiki torches and candlelight.
Well, that was our beautiful day at Jade Mountain. It is now time to head back to our sanctuary, hop in our private endless pool, and watch the stunning display of the milky way in the dark, dark St. Lucian skies.
Good night!
Posted by David Porter on August 6, 2010 · 2 Comments
Jade Mountain Resort, St. Lucia – it is day #11 of our romantic 25th wedding anniversary tour of the Caribbean, and day #3 of our stay at the Jade Mountain Resort.
After having another delicious breakfast on our patio, overlooking St. Lucia’s famous Pitons, and delivered by our major-domo we ventured down the mountain to the ocean to go out snorkeling.
Here is a shot of the snorkeling area that I photographed on the way down to the beach.
As you can see, it is breathtaking. We spent a couple hours snorkeling, saw scores of various species of colorful fish, and then enjoyed lunch on the beach at the Trou au Diable Beach Grill, which is located right on the Anse Chastanet beach (Jade Mountain’s sister resort).
After spending a lazy afternoon in our Jade Mountain sanctuary, we hiked back down the mountain to enjoy a “Jazzy Sunset Cruise” aboard Jade Mountain’s double-decker catamaran.
On our sunset cruise we enjoyed rum punch, and a host of tasty delights all catered by Jade Mountain’s friendly staff. We also greatly enjoyed the jazz saxophone stylings of Rob “Zi” Taylor as we cruised the island’s shoreline.
Here is a photo I shot while Zi was jamming on his sax.
To our great delight, about a hour into our 2 1/2 hour cruise, we happened across a very large pod of dolphin. Everyone on the boat was screaming with pleasure as we watched these delightful creatures frolic alongside our catamaran.
Here is a peek of Jade Mountain Resort from sea.
At sunset, the champagne corks popped as we marveled at the view.
After our sunset cruise, we scurried back up the mountain to enjoy a wonderful dinner with Jade Mountain owners Nick and Karolin Troubetzkoy atop the resort in the Jade Mountain Club.
Another wonderful day in Jade Mountain’s St. Lucian paradise!
Posted by David Porter on August 5, 2010 · 2 Comments
We will soon be luxuriating at the beautiful Royal Palms Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona. We’re looking forward to it! (Photo courtesy of Royal Palms Resort and Spa)
Posted by David Porter on August 5, 2010 · 4 Comments
Jade Mountain Resort, St. Lucia – it is day #10 of our romantic 25th wedding anniversary tour of the Caribbean.
We have now been married 25 years, and one day! This was the view from our Jade Mountain Resort “sanctuary” as we awakened.
When we checked into the Jade Mountain Resort, we were given a firefly phone. Generally speaking, these are very simple cell phones designed to connect small children directly to mom and dad. In this case, the firefly phones connect you directly to three major-domos who are here 24/7 to wait on you hand and foot.
How cool is that? Your own butler!
Anyway, one of the major-domos told us that the record for staying in a Jade Mountain Resort sanctuary, and not coming out, was five days. I am very, very confident I could break that record. But I received one of “those” looks when I made the suggestion. My socially wired wife couldn’t imagine a day without meeting someone new.
I have shown you photographs from inside our room. Let me now take you on a journey out our front door.
Escher's Relativity
When I first gazed upon this menagerie of steps, sidewalks, and bridges, I immediately thought of M.C. Escher’s famous lithograph Relativity.
As it turns out, each “sanctuary” possesses its own private bridge that leads to your front door, and the gentle curve of the building assures that you will find nothing but incredible beauty combined with complete privacy inside.
If you choose to sunbath au natural on your patio, no one will be the wiser.
Sweet!
Here is a view from the restaurant level bridge to give you a perspective looking towards the building of sanctuaries.
Here is a view from the observation deck.
After exploring the Jade Mountain Resort, we decided to hike down the mountain and explore Jade Mountain’s sister resort Anse Chastanet, and have lunch in the Tree House restaurant.
We enjoyed a wonderful plate of fresh tuna, and decided to head back to our room to further enjoy our sanctuary.
Later in the afternoon, as I was reading a historical novel, the wind picked up, and in blew this tropical rainstorm complete with a double rainbow.
I went out and stood on our patio to enjoy the gentle St. Lucian rain. It seems to me that rain is somehow different in a rain forest. It’s like…well…the only thing that comes to mind is God showering the earth with a large watering can like my grandmother used to use. Gentle. Soaking. Refreshing.
One of the other great joys of staying at the Jade Mountain Resort is that they have in their kitchen, Chef Allen Susser, a James Beard Award winning chef. I sampled marlin, barracuda, and a local ceviche, all created with local St. Lucian compliments, while Carol went with a more traditional jumbo prawn dish.
I find it completely delightful to explore new cuisine, and this cuisine, with this setting, was out of this world.
It was a wonderful day at the Jade Mountain Resort. Tomorrow we hope to do a little snorkeling, spend some time on one of their beaches, and then a “Jazzy Sunset Cruise” on the resort’s catamaran.
How fun is that?
Posted by David Porter on August 4, 2010 · 8 Comments
Jade Mountain Resort, St. Lucia – it is day #9 of our romantic 25th wedding anniversary tour of the Caribbean.
Due to some unexpected travel hiccups, we arrived at the Jade Mountain Resort, on the island of St. Lucia, a day later than planned, and missing one of our bags of luggage. Stuff happens, right?
Nonetheless, we arrived to Jade Mountain on the day of our 25th wedding anniversary, and boy did they roll out the red carpet for our special day.
First of all, look at this sanctuary (that’s what they call the rooms at Jade Mountain)!
In all of our years of traveling, never before have we witnessed such an awe-inspiring room. It truly is a sanctuary.
As you can see, our room has no fourth wall, and unbelievably that is an infinity pool. In our room! And this incredible arrangement isn’t just for their best rooms. No sirree. All of their rooms have a similar setup.
We were hoping that Jade Mountain might be the best place in the world to cap off our 25th wedding anniversary tour, and as you can clearly see, I think we hit the mother-lode of luxury lodging.
Here is a photograph looking into our sanctuary:
Absolutely every amenity in this sanctuary is of the finest quality. The shower is amazing with a rain shower head, and six jets to massage your worries away. And to top it all off, there is a two person whirlpool tub complete with Chromatherapy lights to aid in your ultimate relaxation.
After receiving our instructions on how to work all the amenities of our room, we immediately donned our swimsuits (well…maybe we really didn’t bother with our suits), and starred in muted awe of our view of St. Lucia’s world famous Pitons while sipping Prosecco from the chilled bottle provided to us from Jade Mountain.
The sun was about to set, so we made our way down to Jade Mountain’s sister resort, Anse Chastanet, to enjoy the sunset.
We enjoyed a fabulous meal at the Trou Au Diable beach restaurant, and then made our way back up the mountain to our sanctuary.
When we arrived, we were once again blown away as the Jade Mountain team had prepared our room to make for a very special celebration. The lights were dimmed, colored lights bejeweled the infinity pool and the whirlpool tub. There was another bottle of wine, and a decadent dark chocolate cake prepared for our special day.
Take a look at our transformed sanctuary.
And rose petals for our bed.
Thank you Jade Mountain! You made our 25th wedding anniversary a very, very memorable event.
Best of all, it isn’t done yet. We have 6 nights here at Jade Mountain.
Stay tuned!
The Roaming Boomers
