Grenada 2018 - Nature's Lawnmower

January 2018

The first stop on the shopping bus is the bank so everyone can hit the ATM.  This bank has lovely manicured grounds.

No doubt their lawn mowing machine plays a big part in keep things looking good.

Interesting, because we have seen first hand the damage goats can do to an island if left unchecked.  However, this goat seemed well trained.  He/she munched along for a bit and then moved on, as if carefully trimming here and there.

It was funny to see. 

Grenada 2018 Nimrod's

Tom sitting in at Nimrod's

January 2018

Nimrod's Rum shop is a well know gathering spot in Grenada.  It is nothing fancy.  But those are often the best.  They serve burgers and ribs.....slowly, as in takes forever to get your food.  But cruisers don't go to Nimrod's for the food.  They go for the rum, beer, smoke and music.

sv Margret Ann - Tracey and Wayne and Sabrina

On Thursday nights there is cruisers jam.  However, it is not like the Trinidad jam where anyone is welcome.  No, you sort of have to earn your way into this one.  I am not sure exactly how.  Anyway, Tom showed up with his bongos and they were happy to have him.  After he played along for the first set, he was told "Hey man, you can come again anytime." so I guess he is in.

sv Wild Cat - Jan and George

The cheap rum, beers and smoke are another draw.  $5 rum, $5 beers and $5 joints.  Yep, big draw.

See the fallen breadfruit?

There is a big breadfruit tree right in the middle of the stage a Nimrod's.  The roof is an old sail.  At one point when Tom was drumming, a breadfruit dropped off the tree and landed right next to Tom, just missing him.  Whew!  A bonk on the head by a falling breadfruit would certainly fall under the "suffering for your art" category, right?   

Nimrod's breadfruit tree

Grenada 2018 Street Meat

Please see the link to Beyond Burgoo -  or click Grenada Street Meat

Grenada 2018 Mini Music Fest

January 2018

Grenada has a music fest each spring called Pure Grenada Music Fest.  We have never been around for it.  However, this year we were able to catch a preview when they had a mini music fest in a park....for free.  We love music, and we love free, so we went.

Many talented musicians.  I am sorry I don't remember who played. 

One of the highlights was spotting our dear friend Farro.  We weren't sure what island he was on and then I saw him here.  I took him back to where Tom was for a joyous reunion.

Tom and Farro - a surprise 

Tom and Farro reunited

SO good to see Farro again

Grenada 2018 River Tubing

Tom sitting across the tube, not in

January 2018

River tubing in Grenada....who knew?  We didn't.  But sv Blue Blaze and sv Freedom had gone before we arrived in Grenada and said it was really fun.

Off he goes

Shademan - taxi driver and tour guide was the guy to take us.  However we needed a bus full.  He did not want to go for only a few.  We asked around and made an announcement on the morning VHF net and soon we had enough for the trip.

Tammy and Bruce getting ready

Shademan picked us up at the car park at Secret Harbor Marina and we were off.  He made one additional stop to pick up four more people.  Land people, not cruiser on boats.  Weird.  Actually, it was two young South African couples visiting their parents who sailed here on a boat.  And yes, there are a lot of South Africans around this season in Grenada.  

Bronwyn laughing already

Shademan drove us up the east side of the island, pointing out various things as we went along.  We chatted as well getting to know the others we didn't know.  Soon we were to the tubing area.  We met the lady in charge and she explained how things would work.  We would get ready and start from there.  Guides would be accompanying us down the river.  Then Shademan would pick us back up and bring us back up there for lunch.  She asked that we order lunch now;  pork, chicken, fish or veggie.  Tom ordered pork and I ordered chicken.

And we are off

Soon the guides were back from the last group.  They outfitted us up;  tubes, helmets (YES), and life jackets.  They instructed us on the proper way to sit in the tubes - across it vs butt down in the hole.  We all picked up our tubes, waded in and set off.

Debra drifting along

It was a hoot.  We bobbed along through some mini rapids, whirling this way and that.  The three guides spread out among us to keep us going the right way.  At times, people would get hung up on a rock or off to the side.  They kept us out of trouble.

One of the South African girls

I laughed most of the way.  I am not sure why other than it was really fun and pretty funny as well.  I usually ended up going down the little rapids backwards, swirling and laughing as I went.

A bit of a jam up

It started to mist very lightly but we were protected by the surrounding trees and bamboo so no one cared.  Plus we were already wet.

Tom floating along

Too soon it was over - probably 45 mins on the river.  Shademan was there waiting to take us back to the start.  We all changed out of our wet things and had a nice, leasurley lunch with all the fixings.  YUM!

Sabrina's river look

As we left the river tubing place, South African cruiser Bronwyn directed Shademan to a small detour so we could drive by land she had purchased along the river.  She is very excited about it and Tom and I had visited with her about it previously.  Way kewl for her!

The Bumpy Corner Bar - literally at a sharp, bumpy corner in the road

On the drive home, Shademan continued to play tour guide pointing out interesting things.  We also made a few stops at rum shacks along the way.  Most of us just had beers vs rum but it was fun to experience these hangouts and chat with the locals.  Shademan himself was in no hurry.  He had lost a dear friend overnight, a fellow driver, and he was feeling meloncally.  Chatting with us over rum helped him forget or remember his friend.  I am not sure which.

Oscar's Bar -Paul vs Tom

Paul showing off his skills

We got back home around sunset.  Such a fun day.

Tom showing off his skills

NOTE - Nearly a month later, we spotted one of the young South African couples in Bequia as they dinghied by our boat.  They had sailed up with her parents.  Small world.


 

Grenada 2017 New Years Eve

Patrick, Luci and Laura

December 31, 2017

sv Freedom is the lovely 44 ft CSY center cockpit sailboat.  They were anchored in Mt Hartman with us as well.  John and Roberta invited "The gang" over to their boat for New Years Eve.  Sv Blue Blaze - Laura and Jason, sv Illusions with Patrick and Luci, sv Kelly Nicole with Debra and Paul and us.

Roberta and Laura - the chefs

Roberta and Laura cooked all day and so we had round after yummy round of heavy apps.

Patrick show the pig....dice?

They taught us two new games.  Some pig game, I forget the name but you basically have two tiny rubber pigs you roll instead of dice.  Based on the way the pigs lands - right side up, upside down, on the side....is how you earn points.  It was ok.  We also learned to play Left, Right, Center, a dice game.  That was a fun game.  Very exciting.  As you know may know, Tom and I are not really game people but LRC is fun, especially with this crazy group.  NOTE - we had since played it again in Bequia.  And we will probably be getting our own set of LRC dice this summer.

John rolling the dice while Luci hopes for right and Roberta hopes for left

We even had a little cruisers jam.....it was a tad rough as none of us sings but oh well.

Paul doubting whatever Jason it telling him

More drinks, more food, chatting, laughing.  It was a perfect evening.  Midnight came and then the fireworks started.  We could see the fireworks from over the hill at Prickly Bay.  AND the super, exclusive resort ashore had some self-important mucky mucky there who paid for their own fireworks display.  And we were front and center to see it.  The best seat in the house.  Even better than their view ashore.  Rich people have nice fireworks.  Thanks to whoever you are for sharing those with us.

Tom and Jason jamming

Paul plugs in for the jam

Laura on the recorder

Immediately after the fireworks, the rain came.  sv Blue Blaze dashed away as it was lightly raining.  sv Kelly Nicole tried to do the same but mis-communication left Deb in the dinghy in the rain and Paul said good night.  D-oh!  Roberta played hostess extraordinaire casting everyone off and getting completely soaked doing it.  We waited a bit but it didn't let up.  Our boat was fairly close, we knew we wouldn't melt and quite frankly, we can always use a rinse so we made a dash for it.  We got soaked but so what.  Patrick and Luci had further to go so they waited it out for 30 mins and didn't get wet.

Debra and Luci - rhythm nation

Patrick - part of the rhythm nation

It was such a nice evening.  Other cruisers went ashore for New Years Eve which would meant dinghy ride, taxi, reservations, $$, and so on and so forth.  Ugh - not our type of NYE.   We had the best time, with the best company.  Thank you Roberta and John!!!

Grenada 2017 - BINGO

December 2017

OMG - I cannot believe I forgot to tell you about BINGO.  To be specific, about THE Bingo game.

Prickly Bay Marina is famous for their Bingo game for several reasons.  It is a really big deal.  Cruisers and locals alike turn out to play bingo on a Friday night.  I think it is on a Friday night.  Anyway..... The prizes are impressive.  In the past, we have heard the prizes listed when they advertised the game on the morning VHF net.  Past prizes have been;  a motorcycle, a dinghy, dinners, gift certificates, goats, a cow, bunnies.  No, really!  Now you are probably thinking "What the heck would a cruiser do with a motorcycle or cow if they won it anyway?"  Good questions.  That is where the locals come in.  They show up to play but they also show up to buy the winning items off cruisers should someone like me win a goat.  I will leave it up to you to figure out what happens to the cow, goat, bunnies after that.

Prizes aren't just won easy, peasy, thank you very much.  Nope.  You win BINGO and go up for your prize but after confirming your win, you must then dance for it.  Yep, dance for it up on the big stage at the tiki bar, in front of everyone.  Darrin, the previous marina manager and BINGO MC used to really make people work for their prizes, egging them on and making all sort of comments as they danced.  We could often hear it from the anchorage and tales are told.  The new marina manager isn't quite as bad but still, you gotta work it!

The BINGO is action packed, well attended - as in crowded, loud and runs very late.  Again, we often heard it from the Prickly Bay anchorage when we anchored there previously.  But that sort of thing does not bother us.

Anyway, we had never attended before.  I decided we had to go at least once just to say we had been and see what it was all about.  We went after our full day at the beach.  Woo hoo - we were in the zone from the get go.  We were going to win a goat.  Or bunny.  Or motorcycle....something big.  Yes indeed.  It turned out that the BINGO game we attended was the last one of the year and thus big prizes.  A large, house size fridge and a full size freezer.  These were hot items so ALL the locals turned out.  It was packed, not a seat in the place, standing room only as well.

Tom bought us each two BINGO cards - $25 EC I think, about $10US.  Of course some played with many more cards.  We also got two raffle tickets.  Every so often the MC would stop mid game and call out a raffle number.  You only had 5 seconds (slow counting) after ID'ing yourself as the raffle winner (by yelling out) to then sprint to the stage to claim your prize.  We sat with Jason and Laura (sv Blue Blaze) marking our cards, checking our raffle tickets, chatting and drinking.  It was a lot to keep track of.  All the while, we talked of winning the big prizes and even some of the really kewl raffle prizes.

Then it happened.  OMG - They called one of our raffle numbers.  "It's ours!  That's us.  HERE - We have that number!  Tom - Go, go, go.  Run."  Tom ran with the winning raffle ticket as fast as he could to the stage.  "Woo Hoo.  We won.  Oh boy, oh boy......just think, some awesome prize."  I told Laura and Jason.  We couldn't wait to see what we won.  The MC said "And you have won a double pack of Summers Eve Feminine Douche -Island Breeze scent."  "Wait, what?  What did he say we won?  Feminine Douche?  No."  Jason grinned and said "Yep, double pack." as Tom made his way back to the table crestfallen.  But we all burst into laughter that lasted for at least 15 mins.

Then a rain shower popped up.  We all ran for cover with our BINGO cards.  It was short lived but it screwed up many BINGO cards.  Our markers weren't working well before and basically stopped working at all after the rain.  We lost interested and started chatting with others.  One local got after me "Girl, you got to get a new marker and catch up.  You might be winning."  I gave her our cards and we went home, prize in hand.  We heard the next day that it ran really, really late and apparently there was some controversy over who won the fridge as two BINGO's were called.

We continued to laugh about our big BINGO prize, sharing the story with other cruising friends who laughed as well.  We turned our prize into a gag gift for the Xmas party gift exchange on Hog Island.

Gag Gift - changed hands a couple of times

Grenada 2017 Xmas

Xmas on Hog Island Grenada

December 24, 2017

The Mayor of Hog Island and his lovely wife

Holiday tunes

Roger's Beach Bar

Dinghy parking

Our little group of cruisers decided to celebrate Xmas on Hog Island.  We made it a potluck and gift exchange.  Mayor Patrick and his wife Luci went ashore early to reserve a picnic table.  Good thing too, we weren't the only ones with this idea.  Many cruisers decided to go to Hog for Xmas.

Tom and Jason

Laura, Roberta and John

We drank and ate, chatted and laughed, and then we exchanged gifts.  We laughed some more and watched the sunset.

Fun gifts - bubbles

Gag gifts

Mayor and grillmaster

Heavy meats for Xmas

It was lovely.

Roberta and John