Article by Christele
Albert
Photos © Te-Hsin Tsai
Hi, I am Christele and I
have been a tour guide for over 14 years attached to the Forestry Department
and I can say it has been a great experience; especially since I have the
opportunity of meeting new people every day and interacting with them. Being a
tour guide is fun for I have learnt a lot like speaking different languages
such as German, French and a little Spanish.
As a tour guide, walking through the Tropical
rainforest makes me feel contented. I have the privilege on enjoying the sounds
of the different birds like Bullfinches, Banana quits, Grackles , Zanaida doves
and others. Also, the fresh cool breeze is very rejuvenating along with the spectacular
fragrances coming from the different
trees such as Gomier, Lansan and
Caribbean pines just to mention a few.
I love my job, it’s the bomb as some
would say because it doesn’t just entail walking the forest trail but also the
selling of souvenirs to visitors for them to take back home; example bird cards,
posters, post cards and lots more. I am happy to think that they are taking a
piece of St. Lucia back home with them and attached to these souvenirs are fond
memories of which I am a part.
There is also an interpretation center where
one can find good information where also many schools would come to view puppet
shows on the many environmental issues we are challenged with today.This includes all types of schools; pre-schools, primary, secondary,
and colleges. There at the Forestry
Department you can find a beautiful dry forest along with the Medicinal Garden
and amazingly the only zoo found in St Lucia where one has an opportunity to
see the national bird of St Lucia (Amazona
versicolor) and some exotic animals like the Macaw parrots, green monkeys
and more.
