The Morne, St Lucia

There are lots of "mornes" here in St Lucia, but when referring to "the" Morne, people know you are talking about Morne Fortune just south of the capital city of Castries. Morne is Patois for mountain, where Patois, pronounced Patwa, is the local language spoken by the locals. They call it Creole and it is mostly French in origin even though the official language is English. Here is a view from the lookout just down from the top of the Morne. As you can see, the cruise ships, love to come here.

Now, the reason why this particular mound is so important, is historical. The English and French used to fight over St Lucia, way back when, and in fact the island's sovereignty switched 14 times. If you look at the photo that I took from Morne Fortune, you can see that it overlooks the city, so the French and English had a gentleman's agreement, that whoever won the battle for the Morne, also won the sovereignty of the island.

Today, there are lots of leftover armaments gracing the steep hill.

I am not sure if I would want this cannon pointed at my house.

The Governor general's residence is near the outlook just down from the top.

A military man in a spotless white uniform, shooed me away from the back entrance to the front.