Seven Sisters and Grenada Organic Chocolate

3/09/2011

In an effort to visit the rest of the island before Jim’s departure north, we decided to brave the act of driving on the left and take a tour of the island.

Grenada is not only known for its spices but also as a leader in ecotourism. One sixth of its landmass is set aside as national park with tropical rainforest, numerous waterfalls, wildlife sanctuaries, and excellent wreck diving. 

I will have to save up for that as I already blew the diving budget in Carriacou!

We headed into the Grand Etang National Forest for the trek to the remote Seven Sisters Falls, high in the central mountains of the island. 

 

A two hour hike roundtrip, fairly steep and requiring a $5EC admission price across private farmland, this spot was Garden of Eden beautiful. 

The owner of the farm access handed out walking sticks with the price of admission and they came in very handy especially on the return uphill trail.

Next stop was the Belmont Estate on the north end of the island. A former colonial sugar cane plantation, Belmont Estate dates back 300 years and is now the site of the Grenada Organic Chocolate Factory production. 

Cocoa beans are brought here from surrounding farms and processed by hand. 

The estate is still owned privately with the owner’s home on site, a restaurant serving local Creole cooking, a goat dairy, museum, and orchid farm.

The tour starts with a visit to the plantation bell, used originally to call slaves in from the fields, it hangs from a centuries old tamarind tree. 

This ancient tree was said to be the “hanging” tree and each tamarind seed, unique in size and shape, a mournful representation of those who met their end from its limbs. 

Cocoa seeds are foot polished in the sun to protect the fragile oils, a practice known as “dancing with the beans”. 

Nutmeg and mace are also dried and processed on site. 

Restored ruins and beautiful gardens invited walking and roaming. 

We ended our island tour with a stop at Leaper’s Hill in the town of Sauteurs on the north coast. 

This is the site where hundreds of Caribe Indians voluntarily jumped to their deaths rather than submit to the French invaders in 1650. 

A beautiful view for an ancient Catholic cemetery with one surprising tenant. 

For Jim and I this was especially interesting as we both had numerous experience with patients afflicted with the devastating and painful disease of sickle cell anemia. 

Heading back to the boat on the deserted west coast road in time for a cold beer, we had completely circumnavigated this interesting island with rich history, beautiful landscapes and good company. 

Cruising, the Cure for Hypertension

3/2/2011

Our good friend Dr. Jim has come for a short visit between his world travels and ER assignments.  The last time Jim was aboard the Starship was anchored in foggy, soggy Maine, so the humidity and warm climate of Grenada are a welcome change. 

Bringing us boat parts, mail, taxes, and numerous books, Christmas has come early depending on one’s point of view.

A visit to the colorful downtown market was in order, with Don and Jim buying up all the grapefruits, sapodillas, bananas, and other fresh goodies that we could carry on the local bus for a week’s visit. 

Spying nutmeg in its freshly picked state, I learned that nutmeg and mace come from the same tree. 

Mace is the red, spider web like outer covering over the nutmeg seed. It is used mainly in Indian dishes, as a food coloring, and is the dominant flavor in donuts.

Jim spent some initial cool down time in the official Starship relaxation floatie and was surprised and slightly alarmed at his amazing drop in blood pressure. Don and he spent considerable time comparing readings, causes, and effects. 

As our mutual friend Captain George Smith would say “We use to compare how much beer we could drink, how deep we could dive, and how many women we had, now it’s who takes the most medications, how long it takes us to get the “sails” up, and who has the lowest blood pressure!”  We lifted a glass in your honor George.

 A mini onboard medical conference ensued and it was determined that cruising has some clinical applications in addition to the obvious fun factor. With no TV, no traffic, no phone, we don’t care who is on American Idol, what gas prices are, or if Charlie Sheen still has a job.  A very nice side effect of our lifestyle! 

Between the three of us we solved ALL of the world’s problems with healthy doses of Jack Iron thrown in for taste. Definitely an educating, enlightening, and productive visit, thanks for everything Jim!

Grenada........Island of Spice

2/28/11

The Starship is now in Grenada, busy with boat projects, awaiting company, and behind on the blog as usual. I can’t seem to get into the habit of an everyday journal/blog entry, bad blog etiquette as I understand it, but since my computer dictionary doesn’t even recognize the term “blog” I suppose there are no rules. 

The island of Grenada is located at the bottom of the Windward Islands and is yet another major cruise ship stop and yachting mecca due to its location below the normal hurricane paths. Known as the Spice Island of the Caribbean, Grenada produces 1/3 of the world’s nutmeg and mace, as well as cinnamon, bay leaves, ginger and cloves. Market days are filled with wonderful aromas and all forms of spices and produce are available.

St. Georges’s is the capital, originally French but awarded to Britain in 1783 under the Treaty of Versailles. Many of the villages and place names are decidedly French in origin, Grand Etang, Sauteurs, Fontainebleau, yet the British influence is detectable as well.

Built on numerous hills, the winding, steep and narrow streets overlook an almost completely enclosed harbor known as the Carnage. Other than being known as the Island of Spice, Grenada is most famous as the site of a United States military invasion in 1983.

After receiving its independence from Britain in 1974 the second Prime Minister Maurice Bishop was deposed and executed by a splinter faction of the People’s Revolutionary Government which Bishop had helped to establish post British rule. 

Improving healthcare and education made Bishop a favorite of the people but his socialist leanings and ties with Cuba did not sit well with the United States during the cold war era. At the behest of Grenada’s more conservative neighboring islands who feared a communist government takeover after Bishop’s death, President Reagan sent in the troops.

Built in 1706 Fort George overlooks the harbor entrance and was the central target of the invasion. However, military error missed the intended target of the fort and destroyed the nearby mental institution instead so the fort remains largely intact.

Open for sightseeing and with a decided air of neglect, Fort George is now the headquarters of the Royal Grenada Police Force.

Directed at the outside of the harbor, the remaining cannons still give off the air of protecting the city from potential invaders. 

But this open bay is now more frequented by the life’s blood of the island, a much more welcome and vital form of invasion for the Grenada of today. Despite up to three ships a day, almost everyday that we have been here, Grenada still retains its old world charm.