Caribbean and Central America Travel

Named after Saint Lucy of Syracuse, Saint Lucia is dubbed as the “Helen of the Caribbean.” Likened to Helen of Troy, control over St. Lucia has switched between the British and the French so many times throughout the island’s history.

Unlike most of the other Caribbean islands, it wasn’t Columbus who was the first European who sighted the island. Due to the island’s location, which is outside Columbus’ route, historians deduce that discovery of the island didn’t happen until the early 1500s by the Spanish. It was approximately a hundred years later that the English attempted to colonize the island. They were met, however, with strong and aggressive resistance from the Caribs, the natives of the island.

It was the French who was able to successfully claim the island. The town of Soufrière, the island’s first, was established by the French in 1746. Shortly after, they start developing sugar plantations in Saint Lucia. The British overthrown the French in 1778, quickly establishing their naval base in the island, making it a strategic part of the United Kingdom’s attack against the French in neighboring islands. Since then, St. Lucia has been passed back and forth between the two conquering countries.
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The Netherlands Antilles is composed of several islands, grouped into two. Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten make up the Leeward Islands. Bonaire and Curaçao make up the Windward Islands located north of Venezuela.

Both group of islands were discovered for Spain: the leeward islands by Alonso de Ojeda in 1499, and the windward islands by Christopher Columbus in 1493. When they first arrived in the islands, it was inhabited by the Arawak Indians.

The Dutch came in and colonized the islands during the 17th century. The slave trade in the Netherlands Antilles flourished, but quickly floundered when slavery was abolished in 1863. It was the burgeoning oil industry in Curaçao that saved the Netherlands Antilles’ economy.
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Home to red sunsets, reggae and Bob Marley, Jamaica is the place for tourists who just want to relax and lay back during the day, and party all night.

Though it was Christopher Columbus who first claimed the island for Spain, it was the Arawak Indians from South America who were the first settlers. In 1655, the British, led by Admiral William Penn, seized the colony from the Spaniards. Under the British rule, Jamaica became the one of the leading sugar exporter in the world, owing to the huge amount of African slaves working the plantations.

Jamaica was able to gain its independence from the Britain in 1947, and became fully independent when it broke free from the short-lived Federation of the West Indies in 1962. Though it’s now free from the United Kingdom, Jamaica still remains one of the most populous English-speaking country in the Americas.
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The Turks & Caicos Islands in the Caribbean are the best beach holiday destination. Enjoying up to 320 days of uninterrupted sunshine a year, these two islands offers pristine beaches and one of the best dive sites in the Caribbean.

The first inhabitants of the islands were the Carib Indians. However, after it was discovered by the Europeans (some say Christopher Columbus, others say Juan Ponce de Leon), these two islands had been under control of various European and Caribbean countries. Today, Turk and Caicos islands are Non-sovereign, Overseas territory of the British crown.

The Turks and Caicos Islands are composed of about a dozen islands and cays. The biggest and most populous island group, the Caicos Islands lays southeast of the Bahamas, seperated by the Caicos Passage. Ninety-six percent of the total land area of the Turks & Caicos Islands are in the northern half, the Caicos group. The biggest population concentration, as well as the urban center of the island group is in the island of Providenciales. Out of the six main islands that make up the Caicos Islands, only four are inhabited.

Separated by the Turks Island Passage from the Caisos Islands, the Turks Islands are composed of two main islands (the only inhabited islands in the group), and several smaller islands.

The islands of the Turks and Caicos are mostly low land, flat limestone, with much marshes and swamps. Though the islands enjoy plenty of sunny days, it is still in the hurricane belt and is frequently affected by hurricanes in the region. Though the island has limited fresh water supply, they are bountiful in spiny lobster, conch and various shellfish.

The Turks and Caicos Islands are famous for the extensive coral reef system that surrounds the islands. Consistently voted as one of the top dive spots in the world, the islands promises divers of excellent visibility, unspoilt reefs, and exotic tropical fishes.

Saint Barts is known by many names: Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Barths, or Saint Barth. This French collective is composed of the island of Saint-Barthélemy proper and several offshore isles. The Collectivity of Saint-Barthélemy (Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), was established just last February 22, 2007.

Named after Christopher Columbus’ brother Bartolomeo, the first European settlers of the island were the French colonist who came in from the nearby St. Kitts. The settlement didn’t last, however. The island was sold off to the Knights of Malta. They too, never stayed long in the islands. The fierce Carib Indians wrecked havoc in the colony, and killed off all the settlers.

A hundred years pass before the island was inhabited once more by European settlers. It was the French mariners from Normandy and Brittany who were able to successfully establish a colony. The community and economy of the small island began to flourish. Though unlike their Caribbean neighbors, St. Barts was too small an island, too rocky and dry; they were never part of the sugar economy.
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