Grenada the Spice Island 2013 and 2015

Friday Dec 11th, we were tired and didn't do much. I was up until about 2 a.m. organizing the photos (there were 680 of the cemetery photos - most of them Bob's but some cell phone).

But I did want to go in to Market Square to see the spice market which is only on Friday and Saturday and that was one of the reasons which I extended the trip past Saturday instead of going home today. And I also wanted to go to the Grenada Museum. Bob did not want to go into town. So he sat and watched TV and I sat and did photos until he finally said that we could get a taxi into town (I asked the front desk and they said it would be about $20 US each way.) The cab driver they got was helpful.

Driving through the tunnel - Saint George's

We went through the tunnel again, and He parked and waited while I scootered around the market and took photos. I had been told not to take photos of the people directly without asking permission.

Sign about the market - Saint George's

Stalls of food - Saint George's

Stalls in the St. George's Market - Saint George's

Ginger roots, bananas, and another root that I DK - Saint George's

I think these are plantains and not bananas - Saint George's

Nuts, jellys and spices - Saint George's

Two restaurant windows side by side - Saint George's

Baskets hand around the Grenada flag - Saint George's

bowls from gourds - Saint George's

Driving in a taxi in St. George's - Grenada

Then he drove us to the museum

Grenada National Museum

Sign in the museum window - opening soon

and parked and went in to see if I could take the scooter in. I did

Admission Sign

, although I could not go upstairs or down the steps to this area

Down some steps from the main floor - Saint George's

The museum is not quite back in operation after the hurricanes, but it was interesting none-the-less.

Small diorama of original inhabitants - Saint George's

Part of the audio-visual timeline - Saint George's

Ceramics at the Grenada Museum

Frog sculpture in Grenada Museum

Written explanation - Saint George's

Blue bottles in the window

Woven wall hanging in the sales area - Saint George's

Art work- prints and ceramics - Saint George's

And then he drove us back to the hotel past the Careenage.



I had thought that our flight on Monday left at 8:15 and Bob did not trust the wake-up call from the hotel - they aren't automated and they said that before the front desk was open that the security guy would do it. But Bob forgot to pack an alarm clock so he wanted to go buy one, and also get some more KFC. But I'm tired of KFC. So we went into the Spice Island Mall and he got some KFC for himself and then got an alarm clock, and then we went to Subway and I got a roast beef sub.

Alternative Fast Food to KFC

Saturday, 12 December - I had an additional intestinal event that night. So today (Saturday the 12th) we have just stayed in the room and watched TV and I have been working on photos and stuff.

I did check our flight time and found that they have changed the flights for the home-coming flight (after they changed the outgoing flight) and I did not remember the change - the flight is not until 9. So I called Edwin (the guy who drove us around on Thursday) and explained that we didn't need to be picked up at 6 - at 7 would be OK.

But when I looked at the actual flight times on the AA website, I found that 8:15 was indeed the correct time. The other time was two time changes ago. Bob is very annoyed at me and I had to call Edwin back and cancel the other call. Not sure we will get through customs in Miami in time as we have only about 3 hours and 45 minutes

Sunday 13 December
Sunday morning I was thinking that I could print out the boarding passes at the hotel althought they would charge for it. So I went up to have breakfast there for the first time - the set breakfast was $30 EC ($11.21 US) and up until then I had not eaten breakfast there. I had some eggs and fruit, and toast.

I took one piece of toast back with me for tomorrow so I will have something to eat before I take my pills. I tried to print out the boarding passes, but couldn't.

I thought we would go to the Dove Sanctuary and the La Sagesse Nature Center and get something for dinner and then get gas in the car and turn it in but Bob didn't want to do it. But we decided to go to the airport

road to the airport

Maurice Bishop Highway to the airport - Grenada -note horse

and get the boarding passes and then get something for lunch and get gas in the car. But we got to the airport and they said they couldn't print out boarding passes yet, but there would be no problem as there weren't that many people flying Business class. Bob got the 50 cents change from parking all in nickles

I was still a little uneasy in the digestive tract. So we went back to Subway and I got an egg and cheese sub for lunch and a roast beef sub for dinner. Then we got fuel in the car

gas station

and went back to the hotel.

Bob cleaned out the car so it would be ready for rental car pick up.

The cleaning lady came in and I went to move from one bed to the other so she could make the one I was sitting on and in the process I knocked the alarm clock that Bob had just bought off on the floor and broke the alarm part of it. He was very annoyed.

We called and asked for a wake-up call - it would be from the security guard. We watched football and we packed everything up. I tried to set the alarm on my watch but now I can't find how to turn it off. I packed up the computer and went to bed.

There are people in the room next to us now, and they leave their food packages out in the pathway.

Monday 14 Decembe
Bob was waking up every hour or so and using the flashlight to look at the clock. We got up at five and finished packing. We got the wake-up call at 5:20. We were out waiting for Edwin at 5:45. We saw a horse walking down to graze near the airport.

Edwin when he came said that the airport was a zoo as all the college students were going home for the holidays and it was so. We asked for a wheelchair and did get one. Then we checked the baggage and that was OK too. The wheelchair guy left me at the exit immigration window and said I would have to walk from there. He couldn't push me anymore. So Bob pushed. Someone opened the doors to security for us and we got in the security line.

Arrivals and Departures boards Dec 14th morning - Grenada

Here they made us both take off our shoes and Bob had to take off his belt. They had a problem with Bob's carry on which had the alarm clock in it (I made him take the batteries out before we left). But the alarm clock was in the original package so that was OK but they had a fit with the scooter battery. He carried it off and then came back and said he would have to talk to American and went off with it again. After half a hour, he came back with it and gave it back to Bob.

Waiting for the battery to be returned - Grenada

Bob then pushed me to where gate 2 was for priority boarding. There were at least 10 people with dogs outside the doors on the tarmac.

Dogs waiting to board - Grenada

Dogs waiting to board the plane - Grenada

It turns out that this was the end of the term and all the students from the vet school are going home - and some of them have dogs. Bob's in front of me next to a lady with a chihuahua and there's a dog (service dog) across the aisle from him.

Service dog?

Across from me there's a man with a child and his wife with a dog is behind me. The boy next to me is a med student. He does not like Grenada so he is glad to be leaving.

Taking off - Grenada

After some dilly dallying, they gave us breakfast. Cold cereal, a sticky bun, yogurt, a banana, some grapes and crackers and cheese. This flight crew is not on the ball. It wasn't until Bob reminded them that they passed out customs forms. I managed to plug in the computer and charge my Kindle and my phone.

Miami

We got an excellent wheelchair lady in Miami. Got through immigration, got our bags (paid $5 for the cart) and got to customs .... and the computers went down.

We sat there for about half an hour and I finally got out my Kindle and read about half a book. They finally got back on line. It didn't take long once they got started. Rechecked the suitcases. She took us to our new gate. Bob got a ham and cheese sandwich which was way too salty.

So I didn't eat much of it.When they started boarding they said to wait for the wheelchair, and I told Bob to go on and board. When a wheelchair pusher turned up, he took the other guy who had been standing around waiting. And then when he came back he said the jetway was crowded and as a result I was the last person on the plane. Not acceptable.

Christmas decorations at BWI

Got to Baltimore and there was a wheelchair guy right there, and the Country Inn and Suites van came very quickly. We stopped at McDonalds, and got down here about 8:00. Crunch was glad to see us and even the other cats came out briefly.

My original goals were:

• Buy some spices - to use and for gifts -CHECK
• Visit the farmer's market in St George's - CHECK
• Photograph the Grenada lighthouses -CHECK
• Document cemeteries - CHECK

• Snorkel at the Underwater Sculpture Park
• Visit Carriacou

I accomplished four of them.

In 2016, our first trip was a Tulip Riverboat Cruise