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Saint Lucia Celebrates National Day; plus a Turkish Coincidence



Despite some overnight showers and squalls, Saturday morning dawned bright and clear on December 13, Saint Lucia’s National Day. In Rodney Bay Marina the locals had set up a farmer’s market in the lawn near I dock, while the rest of the island takes the day off to celebrate the holiday.

“We celebrate National Day as the day that Christopher Columbus discovered the island,” says Marie-Ange of the Saint Lucia Tourist Board. “It’s documented that he sailed here on this day in 1492, so we celebrate!”

Unfortunately for the locals, National Day falls on a Saturday this year, which is normally an ‘off’ day anyway, so no extra holiday in 2014! Lately, however, Saint Lucia’s consumer culture has taken over the holiday to an extent, with certain retail shops and of course bars and restaurants remaining open on the holiday, many with special discounts and prices.

“If December 13 falls on a Sunday,” says Marie-Ange – like it does in 2015 – “then we get the Monday off. So everyone can party late into the night to celebrate and not have to get up for work!”

Saint Lucia also celebrates its independence day, which happens on February 22, when the island nation began self-governance and separated from UK rule.

A Turkish Coincidence

While the locals celebrate, the arrivals continue. Last evening was a particularly busy period, with five yachts arriving into Rodney Bay marina in less than an hour, and just after it had gotten dark.

As the week progresses, the ‘puzzle’ of putting together the berthing plan gets more and more complicated, with yachts rafting on to one another to create more space. When Soulmate came in, the last of the five boats to arrive during that evening rush yesterday, they were assigned to raft onto Theta.

“That’s perfect!” exclaimed Theta’s crew when they were informed of Soulmate’s arrival. “They’re another Turkish boat like us, we’d love to welcome them in!”

By pure coincidence, the two Turkish boats now share the same berth. As Soulmate rounded E pontoon, Theta’s crew were on the dock with flashlights in one hand and rum in the other, hooting and hollering at their countrymen’s arrival. With Theta’s help, Soulmate easily slipped alongside. Their crew were literally kissing the ground as they received their rum punch welcome from the Tourist Board, and exchanged hugs with Theta’s crew.

Silver Slipper’s Hectic 24-hours on the Finish Line

The arrivals unabated continued throughout the night. Every twenty-four hours the finish boats trade places on the line out in Rodney Bay proper. It’s a chance for the volunteers – mostly former ARC participants from previous years, or ARC+ participants from this year – to come into Rodney Bay Marina, top up on power and fresh water, and attend some of the functions ashore that make up the heart of the ARC festivities here in Saint Lucia.


This morning, Silver Slipper were heard on the radio exchanging information with Satika, next on the line from 1000 on Saturday.

“We had a record 31 yachts since yesterday at 1000!” exclaimed Silver Slipper. With yet another arrival due prior to 1000 today, Silver Slipper’s 32 arrivals in 24 hours easily eclipsed Satika’s previous best of 24.

So now 112 yachts have safely crossed the finish line and have made their way into Rodney Bay Marina (161 including ARC+). We expect another dozen or more today. While the major rush appears to be over, the arrivals continue at a steady pace. With each new yacht, the cheers on the dock get louder and louder.

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