Q: What is the situation on electricity? A: There is excellent power service at 220 volts. You can leave the hair dryer at home because the breeze on the deck will dry it for you. Bella Vista has a small transformer which allows you to recharge your camera and PDA batteries. We also have DSL access if you wish to send emails on your computer. Q: Do I need a passport? A: Passports are required. In addition, make sure that your passport doesn't expire within six months of the day of arrival or you can't enter the country. Q: How far away is the beach? A: First, all of the beaches in St. Lucia are public. Because of the volcanic nature of the island, there are not as many beaches as there would be on flat islands. Most of the major resorts are on the beaches and have to provide access to all comers. Bella Vista is about fifteen minutes walking time from Le Sport, one of the top resorts which is on Cariblue beach. Reduit (pronounced red-wee) Beach is a ten minute drive away and is the major tourist beach. Q: How far is Bella Vista from the airport? A: It depends on which airport. St. Lucia has two airports. The smaller one (commonly called Vigie) takes props and small jets from San Juan and is twenty minutes from Bella Vista. Hewanorra is the major jet port and is an hour and a half away. Your cab driver will meet you at the airport and take you directly to Bella Vista. He will also stop for drinks and food if you are in need of refreshment. On your first day, you want to sit back and leave the driving to us. Another alternative is to take the helicopter from Hewanorra to Vigie. This is a true thrill and very popular. Q: What is the currency of St. Lucia? Do I need to get that currency at the airport? A: The official currency of St. Lucia is the EC or Eastern Caribbean currency. The exchange rate is approximately 2.65 EC to each US dollar. US$ are accepted just like ECs. You might want to have some EC for small purchases like a Piton beer. You can change the US dollars for EC just about anywhere but the best exchange rates are at the banks. Q: What about hurricanes? A: Because St. Lucia is very far south, hurricanes rarely hit the island. As a further protection, we have purchased an insurance policy from the Weather Channel protecting us from hurricanes during your stay. :) Q: So what is the story on the volcano? A: Well, the volcano is dormant but it puts up steam and sulphur. It's an interesting trip but I would only do it once. It is billed as the world's only drive-in volcano. Q: Are the St. Lucians friendly? A: This is about as nice a bunch of folks as you would ever want to meet. They seem to have a gentle and friendly nature and are really interested in you as a person. Their laid-back nature automatically takes the edge off of your demeanor. And, they speak English. Q: I heard the roads are bad? A: They can be. If you are going to the major areas, they are actually quite good. When we first came to St. Lucia in 1987, they were awful. The roads are good to Bella Vista until the last quarter of a mile. But don't worry, you will have few problems in the developed areas. Q: What about animals and bugs? A: Bella Vista is in the tropics, so get ready to meet some fascinating critters. Topping the list are the fantastic birds that frequent the decks, yard, and, at times, even the house! Two types of hummingbirds, the purple-throated carib and the tiny doctorbird (or Antillean crested hummingbird) love to sip from the feeder on the deck or from the blossoms of the geranium tree in the back yard. Zenaida doves strut and coo in the front and back yards. Tiny Lesser Antillean bullfinches, the red throated black male and the brownish female, love to eat bread crumbs on the back deck and, if you are patient, will even eat from your hand. "Nervous Nellie" is our pet name for the brown or gray tremblers. See if you can pick out these unique birds. The grackles and shiny cow birds are plentiful and not so great looking, but their calls and antics can be amusing. Our favorite is one with only one leg, whom we have nicknamed Jambe de Bois, after the famous peg-legged French pirate of the same name who inhabited Pigeon Island years ago. Beautiful black and yellow bananaquits share the feeder with the hummingbirds. Caribbean mockingbirds are less frequent but still regular visitors to the decks. Looking out and up, you are likely to see chicken hawks, swifts and egrets. If you are a bird lover, this is the place to be. It wouldn't be the Caribbean without reptiles, amphibians and others. Our favorites are the night geckos. These nearly translucent, fat-toed, big-eyed lizards come out on the deck at night to chase bugs. We have been entertained many evenings watching their antics, as they try to get dinner. The tree frogs serenade us each evening. Their cousins, the toads, can sometimes be seen hopping on the front patio or, unfortunately, flattened in the road. African snails are recent emigrants to Saint Lucia. They are beautiful in their large brown shells, but, regrettably, they are very damaging to the native flora, so the Lucians kill them with salt or bleach. The brown blur you see flying by at night is probably one of our bug-eating bats. Don't worry, they won't come near you--just be glad they are eating the mosquitoes. Q: I want everything done immediately...I am a type A personality. Am I going to enjoy my trip or am I going to be perpetually agitated? A: First of all, you need a different state of mind. If you need everything immediately you should have vacationed in New York where everthing is double-time, twice as expensive, and loaded with attitude. This is the Caribbean. Lay back... Limber up.... Relax... Chill. You'll be a better person and you'll really enjoy the situation. Call your friends from the pool.. make them eat their hearts out! Tell them that you didn't do a darn thing today and you didn't care that you accomplished nothing. It will drive them crazy!