Grenada - The spice isle

We are at the halfway point of the cruise. One more night and it will be a week since we boarded the Grand Princess. We can do nothing but accept the march of time and make sure we enjoy the rest of our time in the Caribbean at least as much as we have the days gone by. Today was Grenada - the largest spice-producing island in the Western Hemisphere. Shortly after 8:00 am we walked off the ship and into "the sauna". At least that's how hot and steamy it felt as we walked down the pier.

Fort George

We climbed the hill to Fort George and in a moment of weakness and feeling the heat and humidity, we succumbed to the offer of David, a taxi driver, to give us a 2-hour tour of the island. First time we have not had a tour guide or excursion prearranged and just winged it after arriving at the port. We have been to Grenada before on a cruise with our kids in 2007. At that time we did a ship's tour--river tubing. That was a lot of fun. We thought this time to just explore the port city of St. George a bit on foot and perhaps go to a beach later in the day. Plans changed when we opted for the taxi tour. Another couple from Toronto joined us on the tour. Grenada is one of the world's major producers of nutmeg, mace, clove, cinnamon and cocoa. Our guide pointed out the various spice trees on our drive. We drove through the hills and saw the impoverished living conditions of most of the residents of the island. We stopped at Annandale Falls, where local divers were stationed to jump off the top of the falls into the water below....securing $10-20 (their suggestion) a jump from anyone wanting to take a photo.

At Annandale Falls (a free photo!)

A drawback to this island is that all the locals are out to make a buck when a cruise ship is in port. Whenever we stopped, we were bombarded with ladies selling spices, men singing songs, and young ladies dressed in native clothes with baskets of fruit balancing on their heads--perfect for a photo, all with a price attached to it. It's their chance to make money, but all the selling got real old and when the tour ended at the local spice market near the port, we decided we had enough and worked our way back to the ship. The taxi tour was okay and gave us a glimpse of the outskirts of the city, but we didn't come back wowed by anything we saw.

Typical family home

While we were docked, another ship joined us at the port. A small ship called The World. According to what we heard, the cabins on this ship are privately owned. For a mere $1 million+, one can own their own cabin on the ship and sail around the world. Interesting concept for the rich, I guess.

The World ship

It's perfect weather for the MUTS....that's Movies Under The Stars. On Deck 14, a movie is shown throughout the day and evening. In the evenings special lounge chair covers and blankets are laid out to keep one comfortable watching the movie under the stars. We haven't done this yet but perhaps will before the end of the cruise. I hear popcorn is also available!

Next port--Barbados!