Last Trip Around Grenada

January 12 - 15, 2015

Our friends Bonnie and Jon were arriving in Grenada on January 12th, my birthday, to travel north with us.  Their flight was due to arrive at 7:30 PM.  We had reserved a car so we could pick them up at the airport.  It was supposed to arrive at 6:00 PM in order to allow a quick trip to the grocery before going to the airport.  At 6:20 the car had not arrived so I went to the marina office to call the car rental.  Luckily someone answered.  That’s where the lucky part ended ——  “Oh, Mrs Smillie, I’ve got some very bad news for you. The car that you were to rent was totaled today in an accident.”  So, I asked “are there any other cars?”  “No.”  Next question — do you have a personal car?  “No, I’m walking.”   End of that conversation.  A frantic series of calls followed to every rental car company I could find.  Most told me they had nothing available for ten days.  Finally, I found a car that could be delivered the next morning.  Good enough!  We grabbed a taxi and headed for the airport.  

The rental office.
Yes, those are cans of race fuel -- highly flammable!   

The next morning our car arrived on time.  Brian and Jon drove the delivery person back to the rental office only to find out that it was also the city junk yard!  Brian asked the girl that filled out the paperwork if we were going to get a whole car.  We did and it was great for a last minute substitute.    

Our rental in the midst of the rental lot!

Farmers loading cocoa beans on the
scale.

Our last day in Grenada was an island tour.  We went to the cocoa plantation for the third time.  A tour of the River Antoine Rum Distillery was a new stop.  It was fascinating to see this distillery making rum virtually the same way they did in 1785 when the company was founded. In fact, a lot of the equipment is original.  The rum is so strong it can’t be exported because of the flammability factor.  The alcohol content is between 75 and 88%.  Most rum is 40%.  They can’t keep up with the local demand which is the second reason they don’t export.  

Workers 'walking the beans'.  This turns the beans
and helps them dry evenly.  

Crushing the sugar cane.

The original aqueduct and water mill -- 1785.
This is Winfield our wonderful guide.  He put up
with a lot of nonsense from us including me
 hugging him without asking permission.

Scooping off some of the impurities.

One of five boiling pots where juice is processed
into syrup and purified. 

The rum used to be fermented in wooden barrels.
Now cement vats are used.

All of the rum eventually goes into this
jug for a final straining and the bottles
are filled from the spigot!  Can you
imagine....  

The remains of the crushed cane is used for compost
and fertilizer.  The cane is called baggus.  When our
sweet guide said it, it sounded like big ass.  I gave
him a bad time for saying I had a big ass.

Enjoying the scenery!

Gotta smile -- we're lovin the ride!

The Family Joins Us In Grenada

December 26, 2014 - January 6, 2015

Thanks to our son in law, Ian, we get to fly standby.  99% of the time we get on the flights.  Holidays are another story.  Because there would be five of us flying together, we had been monitoring the loads for several weeks. It looked like we would have no problem flying from St Louis to Grenada through Miami on December 27th.  However, the last week the flights started filling up and by Christmas we realized there was no way we were going to fly to Miami.  Our only option was to drive.  Just before noon on December 26th, we threw everything into Jennifer's mini van and began our 1200 mile trek south.  On Sunday we were at the airport in plenty of time for the 5:00 flight to Grenada. 

I had wanted to show Bequia to Jennifer, Christopher and JAC.  Not only is it one of our favorite islands, I knew the kids would love seeing the whale bones and swimming in that beautiful bay.  Unfortunately, we couldn't go.  The winds picked up to 45 mph and the waves were in the ten foot range.  It would not be comfortable traveling especially with an eight and five year old on board.  No problem, we'll use our eight days together to enjoy Grenada.  A rental car and the dingy got us to several beaches, historical sights and some beautiful scenery.  It was a great visit that Christopher proclaimed his best vacation ever!    

An hour before our flight took off I made a dash half
way through the airport to buy a purse that I had
seen three weeks earlier.  Everyone was a little
irritated because they didn't think I'd get back in time.
Luckily I talked myself onto a cart that delivered me
to the gate!

Put the kids near the pool or beach and
they are happy!

Looking for lizards.

Guy time in St Georges.

The view from Fort George.

Enjoying a view of the marina from the fort.

Cooling off with an ice cream drink.

Christopher learning to play the steel
drum.  Yes, he got one.  Yes, a big
mistake!  Lots of noise in a small space.

The bell tower and one wall is all that
is left of this church in St. Georges.

The Sendall Tunnel was built in 1895
to connect the two halves of St Georges.

A view of the fort on our way back to the marina.

We couldn't figure out what JAC was
doing in the pilot house.  No one was
allowed to go up.  She finally emerged
with a skirt, head piece, and bracelet
made of construction paper, staples
and lots of tape!

It really does rain in the rain forest.

A cocoa pod cut from the tree and
opened to taste and examine.

A cocoa pod on the tree.  They grow
mixed with other trees -- not isolated.

The largest New Year's Eve party was at our marina.
The fireworks at midnight were enhanced with a
brief shower.  The kids thought it was great to
dance in the rain and wish everyone a happy new
year.  The band played until 5 AM!  

Morne Rouge Beach -- the softest sand imaginable.  

Concord Waterfall  -- We saw nutmeg,
cocoa, bananas and papaya growing
wild along the road.

Wading in the ice cold water.

Time to climb the steep stairs back to
the car.

This darling little boy wanted to show us
his pet iguana.  Such nice people live
on this island.

Every marina must have a huge anchor for families
to pose on.

A dingy ride to Grand Anse Beach for a picnic.
We filled a sandwich bag with sea glass.

And, of course, some castle building.

Thanks for indulging me as I shared 
another family album.  No more family visits until the middle of March.







Gotta smile -- we're lovin the ride!

Home For The Holidays!

December 9 - 28, 2014     

A quick trip back to the States for Christmas was packed to the gills!  We flew from Grenada to St Louis.  After six days with our daughter and family, we drove to Minnesota for a brief visit with our son and his family.  Then we were off to Rochester, Minnesota for our annual exams at Mayo.  The various doctors kept saying, “that’s to be expected at your age”!  We left Rochester at noon on the 19th and met Bonnie and Jon in Iowa City, Iowa.  They will join us on January 12th in Grenada for the trip north. The next day we were on our way to St Louis to help with the Christmas preparations.  Steve and his family arrived on the 22nd for four days of total bedlam as the four cousins — ages 5 to 8 — enjoyed uninterrupted chaos.  It was a great family Christmas! 

I am so thankful for my daughter, Jennifer, and daughter-in-law, Erin.  They have taken over the huge task of hosting our family’s Christmas gatherings.  My biggest fear when we sold our house was that we wouldn’t spend Christmas together.  We are blessed!  Thanks to both of them we are together for this special holiday!

A visit to the St Louis Science Museum and Omni 

Every year I buy the girls matching outfits.  

Time for the annual reading of The Night Before
Christmas.  The kids used to easily fit on this
chair and Grandpa's lap.

An original play with costumes performed on
Christmas Eve.

A quieter moment on
Christmas morning.

Erin and Niko returning from a walk.

Gotta smile we're lovin the ride!

Limin (Relaxing) in Grenada

November 17 - December 6, 2014

A - Marina, B - St Georges Bay, C - Woburn Bay, Clark's Court

Time for John and Gail to fly home to Minnesota.

As a boating friend down here likes to say, "boaters plans are made in jello".  She is right.  They wiggle and jiggle and never seem to stand up.  And so it goes with our plan to travel to Tobago and Trinidad.  After completing our provisioning on Friday, the four of us sat down to discuss the weather and schedule.  We all agreed that going to Tobago and Trinidad was putting us in a box that might be a mistake for several reasons.  The weather is stormy and the Christmas winds have started early this year.  Nine foot waves are predicted.  When Brian loaded the course from Grenada to Tobago, it was 100 miles.  That is a long trip in questionable weather and big waves.  Our daughter and grandchildren (8 & 5) are coming back with us after Christmas.  We don't want to subject them to a trip that long in what could be equally bad conditions.  And, two days after they leave friends are arriving in Grenada to join us on board.  We vowed, when we began this trip, we would never knowingly put ourselves in a dangerous position in order to meet a schedule.  Soooo, all of that boils down to a month and a half in Grenada and no trip to Tobago and Trinidad.  Hey, no problem -- life is good in the islands!    

Pulling out of Port Louis Marina on our way to an
anchorage.

After six nights in the marina, we left the comfort of electricity, bus service, the bakery and the IGA and headed to the local anchorages.  The south end of Grenada is a series of bays that are well protected from waves and wind.  Protection is what we were looking for.  The hot humid air and frequent rain storms are a constant reminder that we are in the tropics.  

The local fishing fleet in front of downtown St Georges.

Brian has spent every free minute for the past four weeks making repairs, fixing and replacing parts and systems.  We think leaving Gotta Smile on the hard for four months in this heat took it's toll on her.  It looks like everything is under control again.  Now if he would just put his feet up and relax!     

Before we could drop our anchor the sky went from
bright blue to stormy gray.  We could see the wall
of pounding rain quickly moving towards us.  A few
minutes later the sky was blue again.
Life in the tropics.  

A dingy ride into the town of St Georges:

To get into town we walked through
this narrow tunnel that pedestrians
 share with cars.

No trip into town is complete without a bakery stop!

Walking the commercial fishing docks

We left St Georges Bay and headed to Clark's Court, Woburn Bay. It is a quieter location with very little commercial traffic.  

Thanksgiving dinner 'island style'.
Baked chicken breasts with stuffing
and gravy in one pan. A simplified
 rendition of our traditional dinner.
Another beautiful sunset......

Touring our anchorage.

This private island (in our bay) can be rented for
$500,000 a week.  You can bring 49 of your best
friends along for no additional cost!

A huge fireworks display at the
resort and right off our bow.
Thank you, wealthy people!!!

 --

Happy Birthday, Brian!
A chocolate cheese cake that tasted
much better than it photographed.

Gotta smile -- We're lovin the ride!