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(Sorry for the delay on publishing this one... I just realized I had started this a few weeks ago, but forgot to post it!)
Today was a dreary, rainy, windy day here in Grenada! We had planned to go 
out to visit friends, but ended 
up lounging around the house all day. It was actually quite cool!
Yesterday we attended another hash... this one a twilight hash under the full moon. I was really looking forward to this one because it was going to be in the city of St. George's, and I'm scoping out areas in town to do some photography. We started at the new marina at Port Louis. The trail this time even included a brief "ferry" ride in a small boat to get across the lagoon to the streets in town. The views were spectacular (as usual)! They called this one the Hash of 1000 steps, 
as there are a LOT of steps to maneuver as you weave through the streets in town. (By the way... the tunnel in the photo is in town. It's one way for vehicles, but pedestrians use it as well. Notice the maximum height?) For fun, they also asked that everyone wear an ugly tie... since we were in the city!
Last weekend I attended a Dance Festival with my neighbors. (One of them teaches ballet and had her group in this show.) It was interesting to see all the different dance troups. I believe 3 or 4 of them were from Grenada, but there were also groups from Trinidad, Cuba, St. Vincent, and Martinique. I thought it was a very good show... just a little long though because it started a bit late.
This past Monday was another holiday (Whit Monday), so the stores were all closed. We were out on Sunday getting groceries
and we saw a truck with sofas in the back... arranged for the families to sit in while being transported to a beach for the day I suppose.
This past weekend we had a chance to go sailing with our friends, Barb & Dave. They recently acquired their sailboat (of which I'm not very good at remembering details, other than the name of it!), and have been spending most of their weekends aboard since. Since our only experience on sailboats has been on Windjammer's tall ships, we consider ourselves complete "boobs" when it comes to assistance in 
getting us from point A to point B! So although we are happy to help with the work required aboard, most times we're probably just in the way. (But it was really fun to have the chance to learn a little about it!)
Our plan was to sail around the southwestern tip of the island, up along the west coast to a place called Flamingo Bay... where the snorkeling is considered to be 
quite good. This was actually the first time Scott & I have been on a small sailboat, so when the wind really got us going, I was a bit nervous about how much the boat was leaning (heeling) to the side. Of course, I had visions of the mast falling over and landing in the sea... but I'm sure that really wasn't about to happen! As long as Barb & Dave were still looking calm... no worries, mon! (They even entrusted each of us with the wheel for awhile!)
It took us a few hours to get there, and since we didn't really get going till around noon it turned out that we only had time enough to take a quick dip in the water & have 
a bite to eat. We came upon a few little rain showers during the day, but nothing that didn't pass by quickly. They wanted to get the boat back before dark... easier to see the markers in the shallow waters to the bay, so after cooling off in the water we headed back.
It was such a beautiful day for sailing! We were so happy they invited us along with them... especially since we hadn't been away from the house much in the past few weeks. We noticed how much drier the land is in the southern part of the island. And it's a lot hotter! We are getting near the end of the dry season, and the grass is really brown down there. (We still get a few rain showers 
here at the house, so things are a bit greener because of that.) The cruise ships have stopped for the summer, and next month begins the hurricane season... hopefully, it will be a quiet one.
(The photo to the right is a house that's built into the side of a hill... with that fancy boat out front, I guess you could call it the "bat cave" with the "bat mobile"!)
Last Saturday was another hash day. Our neighbor didn't go this week, so we had room to give others a lift. We stopped by the designated place for hashers to catch a ride & picked up a couple of cruisers from Canada (Vancouver)... Eileen & Peter. Then we continued north along the west coast to Clozier, noticing along the way that it looked like we would get some rain on this hash. Sure enough, it rained a little just when we arrived... but there had been quite a hard rain shower earlier. So this makes the trail very muddy... and the rivers high & fast! The notes we received for this hash said to "bring cameras" because the views are fantastic. Usually I take my little point-n-shoot, in its own waterproof housing for these things. But today I was in the mood to haul out my SLR, and carried it in a small backpack to protect it from getting wet if necessary. It's a good thing I had the backpack... because between the rain and the treacherous crossings on the trail, there wasn't much opportunity for me to actually take any photos! Very soon after we started out, Scott & I split up... he & Peter took a path that would take them across a river, and because I had my camera Eileen & I went in a different direction (at the suggestion of the guy who set the trail). I don't think it really mattered though because we still ended up crossing a "river" where the water was up to my knees!
Earlier we had noticed a man with a large video camera (protected from the rain). Someone mentioned they thought he was German, but they didn't know why he was filming the hash. Throughout the trail, we would occasionally come across him and his assistants. (Apparently they knew the shortcuts to get ahead of us!) At one point, after climbing up a very long steep hill, we found him filming us as we reached the top. They asked us a few questions as to how often we come to the hashes. Anyway, I was tired (& out of breath) from climbing the hill, so I was grateful for the little chat we were having. They told us they were filming a documentary about life in Grenada for France 5 TV. When they found out I was a photographer living here, they asked if they could call me later to schedule a time for an interview... probably Monday. They asked if I might be available Sunday, but I had already scheduled to go out photographing with a local guy who wants to 
learn more about photography. They seemed excited about that but unsure of their schedule. I told them they were welcome to come along. They took my number & said they'd call either late Saturday night or Sunday morning. (I wasn't holding my breath!)
Well, they called me Monday morning, and we made arrangements to meet on the beach at lunch. I was to bring my camera gear. Scott & I met them at a restaurant where we ordered some lunch, then they wired me with a mic and
we went out on the beach to film (while we waited for the food to arrive). Basically, they just had me walk along the beach photographing (anything), then out onto a jetty where we stopped and they filmed the 
interview. The camera guy didn't speak much English, but he had a French assistant who lives here and could translate everything. So he would tell her what he wanted me to do, then she would relay that to me. It was pretty cool! The show is scheduled to air in France on June 13, but it can also be viewed on line. (Click on the title above to go to their website!) But REMEMBER... it's all in French! When we finished our lunch, we exchanged emails... then Scott & I went to get our groceries!
My Sunday afternoon with the local amateur photographer was a lot of fun as well! He took me to a beautiful waterfall at Mt. Carmel. He had a friend with him (not a girlfriend, he says)... so we used her as a model. We're planning to get together again soon. I have some ideas on where I want to go next time.
We've reached another milestone! Scott got the washer & dryer hooked up and I did my first load of machine wash last week! ... no more hand washing my clothes!
It was a lot of work for him, but he's done a great job of it. He had to run new wiring for it... from the large transformers in the basement, which meant drilling through the concrete walls. Since they are outside (in the carport), he also built a cabinet to protect them somewhat. I'm planning to stencil some green lizards on it... but first I have to make the stencil. It looks great & I'm SOOOO happy about it!
He also just finished building a set of double screen doors for the front veranda. There's a wonderful breeze that comes in those doors, but we don't usually have them open because of the bugs. We just hung the doors this past weekend and it's really nice to be able to enjoy the great breeze... as a matter of fact it's a bit too windy today to have them open! Now we can work on refinishing the glass doors.
I've been doing a few smaller jobs inside... like sanding & painting the door frames. (I know... it's not much compared to what Scott's been getting done!) I've also been doing a few small sewing repair jobs. And I've used some of this free time to work on some of my Grenada photographs.
We attended the funeral for our neighbor last week. His wife asked if we could give a few friends a lift to the church... so we were happy to help. We wondered if funerals here are different than in the states? The service was held at a church on Grand Anse Beach and started at 2:00 (but "tributes" would begin at 1:00). We arrived with 2 women from the neighborhood around 12:45. A few people got up & spoke about him and his life, then a local priest began the catholic service. We sang hymns, and they took a collection for the repair of hurricane damaged churches. There were a number of "influential" people there, and we learned so much about the deceased. He was quite a "gentle"-man, and we wish we would have gotten to know him better. Then around 4:00 we drove back here to St. Paul's for the burial. (The cemetery is just over the hill behind us.) At the cemetery, we noticed the hand-dug grave was somewhat shallow... there are no concrete vaults used. When the hearse arrived, the pallbearers removed the casket, and with a few heavy straps, lowered it directly into the grave. While everyone sang about a half-dozen hymns, the gravediggers then filled in the grave & very carefully mounded the dirt on top. All the flowers were then placed atop the mound, and then people slowly left... many going back to the family's home for a meal. A few days later I visited with his wife and took along a home-made shoo-fly pie. (Grenadians don't know what that is!) She's a very nice woman with whom I hope to become better friends. R.I.P... Dr. Alan St. Bernard
We finally have been harvesting tomatoes from our vines... but already, it's over! We really only got one crop from each of the 3 plants that survived this far. And then the tomatoes were pretty small. Not at all like back home! I still have plenty of 
seeds left to plant, but I'm wondering if it's worth the effort. I planted the seeds for these back at the end of October! (But I think it was February till they were big enough to put in the ground.) Maybe we'll try again one more time to see of the time of year makes a difference?
Well, I'm sorry it took so long for an update, but I was waiting to get photos of the projects! We went to another hash this past Saturday and I have another exciting to story to tell from that! ... stay tuned!
Except for making delivery of a ballet bar that Scott made for our neighbor, I hadn't been out of the house all week! Our cell phones here are the pre-paid type & the company was running a special which I thought was for today only. You get double the value of your dollar if you top-up on this day only. When I got the text message about the special, I thought it was odd that they'd do it on Good Friday, but I'm new here... what do I know? (Of course, I didn't save the message on my phone!)
So we ventured out this morning with that as our main mission for the day... secondary was filling the gas cans for lawn work. I decided to take my camera with me because I wanted to photograph someone selling the homemade kites that are all over the place during the Easter season.
It's not unusual to see things along the way that make us smile at the thought that you'd NEVER see that in the US! Well, it didn't take long for one of those moments to appear on this particular drive to town. There was a full-sized van (what the locals call a "bus") in front of us, in our lane, going in reverse down the road ahead of us! There we were... driving down the road (at regular speed) following this van that was facing us! And remember... none of the roads around here are straight! He was doing a nice job of it too... until he came to another bend in the road with a stopped vehicle on our side. A small pickup truck coming around the corner (from the other direction) had to stop suddenly so as not to hit the van. With everyone stopped, the van continued his backwards journey until he reached another road where he finally turned off... in forward motion!
So now we're getting closer to town, and I'm beginning to notice that all the stores we're passing are closed. Not surprising, as this IS a holiday, but I'm suspicious now that I may have the 
wrong day for the cell phone special. (Most of the gas stations were open though.) And I'm also thinking this is not a good day to try photographing a kite "salesman"... the streets were nearly empty! When we reached the phone company, they too were closed... but by this time I was not surprised. Now we might as well kill some time. We saw quite a few people walking along the street carrying the kite they either made themselves or purchased. Although it's not the shot I was looking for, maybe I can get something of someone flying their kite.
We found a few families with their children & kites at Quarantine Point, but I was still hoping to find someone with stacks of kites for sale. So we headed back into St. George's to see what we could find. That answer is (amazingly)... NOTHING! The town was so empty, it almost looked like a ghost town! There were no ships in port, no street vendors, no market vendors, no shops open, and no buses at the bus terminal! Actually, this is another reason why I wanted to move to Grenada... everything is close on a holiday (which forces you to kick back & RELAX)!
Now we might as well just get the gas cans filled and head home. So back through town we go, taking the back road home... so Scott can stop at the Texaco station he usually goes to for gas. When we get there, guess what? It's closed! (We must have passed 5 other stations that were open on this trip, but we're now almost home so we'll forget the gas today.)
Basically, our journey to town today just ended up as a little sight-seeing tour. So as we got nearer to home, we decided to venture down a new road that they've been working on (since our arrival here last July). With this "little" detour, we actually ended up back in town... where we stopped at an open Texaco station for the gas.
In Grenada, there are only 2 brands of gas... Texaco and Shell. And it doesn't matter where you go because the price is regulated by the government... it's the same price everywhere. You also cannot pump your own... they have attendants that do it for you. While I sat in the car, Scott got the gas cans out of the back & had them filled. While this was happening, I watched (actually heard it first!) a motorcycle pull in. (This particular station was very much like our convenience stores back in the 
US.) A guy came out of the store carrying 2 open beer bottles & gave one to his friend on the motorcycle. In about 2 minutes, they were finished drinking the beer, so the guy got back on his bike & drove off! Apparently, no one else seemed to think this was odd. (Once again, I'm shaking my head & smiling.)
So we finally made it back home, having achieved nothing but getting the gas... and collecting a few more stories to tell our friends. I turned on the computer to begin writing this blog, but after about 10 minutes... the power went off. Probably a kite in the electric wires nearby! Guess I'll get out the pen & paper.
... just another great day in Paradise!
(NOTE: After a few hours, the power was back on & I was able to copy the notes I had written.)
A neighbor of ours... who also does the hashes... works for the electric company here and invited us to join her department on an outing to Hog Island. So last Saturday morning we gave them a lift (Roslyn, her young daughter, and her mother Janice) to the Woburn jetty, where we would meet with the rest of the group for a water taxi ride to the island. (Apparently, Hog Island has been sold for development and will probably become a private island, restricting access to the locals in the future.)
Although it had been raining off & on all morning, we were all hoping the weather would clear to give us a good beach day. Unfortunately, it didn't appear that would happen as it began to rain again while we waited at the jetty. When the water taxi arrived, we gathered ourselves and proceeded to board for the quick trip to the island... less than 5 minutes! For some of the children, it was their first water taxi ride and they were a bit fearful! The boat had to make about 5 or 6 trips back and forth to get everyone over there... along with all the food for the day. And the weather improved! We only had one or 2 very light showers the rest of the day!
The first thing they did was to set up the food and drink area, and light the grill for the chicken. Meanwhile, everyone settled into playing 
games or exploring. We taught one couple how to play our dice game, and later in the day we got out the beach bocci balls. The young boys were playing cricket on the beach, and the smaller children played in the sand. We just hung out chatting and watching all the activities.
Soon enough, lunch was ready... chicken BBQ, rice & peas, and a salad (similar to potato salad, but with more vegetables and maybe some green bananas?). It was all very good. After lunch, Scott & I took a walk along the top of the island on the new road that was started. Along the way, we could see the markers for the lots for sale. I didn't notice any construction going on, but we didn't make it all the way to the other end... which is closer to the bridge they built recently.
When we got back to the beach, we saw that a few of the guys had just come back with some fish they caught... caribbean lobster, lambi, and a couple of fish (but I'm not sure what kind). They had a big pot of water on a charcoal fire, which would soon become what they called "fish water" (a fish soup with dumplings). It had very good flavor... but I was never a big fan of dumplings.
By 5:00 (or 5:30) we were ready to head back home. So we said good-bye to our new friends, thanked them for including us, and boarded the third boat back to the jetty. All in all, we really lucked out with the weather, so it was another great day in paradise!
(Click for more photos of the trip!)
(Sorry for the delay on publishing this one... I just realized I had started this a few weeks ago, but forgot to post it!)
out to visit friends, but ended 
up lounging around the house all day. It was actually quite cool!
as there are a LOT of steps to maneuver as you weave through the streets in town. (By the way... the tunnel in the photo is in town. It's one way for vehicles, but pedestrians use it as well. Notice the maximum height?) For fun, they also asked that everyone wear an ugly tie... since we were in the city!
and we saw a truck with sofas in the back... arranged for the families to sit in while being transported to a beach for the day I suppose.
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