Location: Petit Piton, St Lucia
Seamester students aboard ocean star woke up bright and early to a swift granola breakfast and lunch packing in preparation for the island tour that span from the morning until mid-afternoon. Everyone was on land and in taxis by 9:00 AM. From a mile away, the rotten egg smell became prominent, and we see the steam billowing up from the mountains. Once there, a tour guide first introduced us to a hot spring waterfall next to what was a house, a very long time ago but has since been reduced to ruins. She then gave us the history of the hot springs and how they were formed, along with fun facts about the surrounding geography. She showed us the hot springs, which were encompassed by the gorgeous rim of the mountain tops, making it one of the most picturesque settings we had ever seen. She explained to us that it used to be a volcano but was last active lifetimes ago. We all piled back into the taxis and began our short journey to the nearby hot pools, where everyone did a mud treatment for their skin. We sat by the pools covered in the mud waiting for it to dry, coating us in a rough crust, and eagerly awaited getting back into the hot pools. We all got back into the dark, steamy water rid our bodies of the chalk-like substance that lined them. After the baths, we went to more hot pools (although this time with no skin treatment), but this time, there was a waterfall attached. We relaxed there for about 45 minutes before walking back to the beach for pickup. After a lentil dinner, everyone was able to go to bed without an evening class.
Picture1- waterfall at sulfur pits
Picture 2- sulfur pits
Picture 3 – mud treatments
Picture 4- mud treatments
picture 5- Mike and Riley in the stream for the hot pools post mud treatments
picture 6- waterfall at the gardens
Picture 7- flower at the gardens
Picture 8- Things that used to/ still do grow in the gardens
Picture 9- walking through the gardens
Picture 10- hanging out at the gardens
Picture 11- Riley, Jodie, and Kiara under the waterfall, all the hot pools
Picture 12- Luke and mike under the waterfall at the hot pools