JUNE GRENADA/BEQUIA VACATION, 2008

Part One:: June 11 – 13 - TRAVEL TO GRENADA – A CHALLENGE…

Well, going to the Caribbean from Alaska is not an easy task! Routing is always tricky, especially when using FF miles – but after various phone calls with AA we managed to complete the trip both ways (with all segments finally available – after numerous calls weekly). We left Juneau on Wed. afternoon, arriving in Los Angeles that night. My son met us at the airport as he was going along for part of our trip. We spent the night, and got started the next morning on day 2 of travel – LAX-JFK.

After arriving in JFK (no delays), we were hoping we might just have time to go into Manhattan for dinner. Well, our bags took forever to arrive at the luggage carousel, and after the Skytrain ride – we weren’t so sure we would have time. Luckily, the airport shuttle was right there – we checked in and decided we had to take advantage of this evening as a chance at dinner in New York, (our first time in New York). I believe we ate at an Italian restaurant called Carmines, just a block or so from the W Hotel. It was quite tasty, and we are very glad we went into the city for the evening. What a great city!

On Friday, we did not leave New York until around 11am. I have heard such horror stories of JFK that we made sure we arrived 2 hours early. What a breeze to get checked in, and through security! I was pleasantly surprised, and we had time for a nice lunch as well as lots of walking around since we were so early.

All in all, travel went smoothly – flights on time – no problems with bags – everything was perfect! The travel gods were with us to be sure.

We arrived in Grenada on the only American flight – arriving about 9pm (actually about 15 minutes early). We got through customs easily, went outside to find whom Mandoo had sent for our transfer to Lance Aux Epines Cottages. Well, we couldn’t find anyone waiting for us, so since we had a reservation with Red Crab grabbed a taxi. (The flight was early, he got there and sadly we had already left.) LAE has a security guard there to assist with evening check-ins. We knew we needed to get into our cottage and drop off the bags, then walk to Red Crab as they stop taking orders at 10pm – yes, we were cutting it close. Once we arrived at LAE, we could not find the security guard. We walked the property, looked around, waited, and finally called the emergency numbers for the owner that is listed on the door. The owner was there in about 15 minutes to help us get checked in. We left our cottage after dropping off our bags, and who do you suppose was there to pick us up? The manager of the Red Crab! He was worried about us, so thought he would come and give us a ride. I know it was late, and that they were waiting for us, but it was very much appreciated (and reflected in our tip)!! The Red Crab is one of our favorite restaurants… there is just one reason why! Can you imagine that happening in the states?

So, lots of travel, lots of different experiences, and everything went perfectly until we arrived in Grenada – oh well, it was Friday the 13th after all, and just a minor glitch! No worries, mon… we are on vacation!


PART TWO – June 14 – 22 & June 25 - TEN NIGHTS IN GRENADA

This is our 3rd year in a row that we have returned to Grenada in June. We love this island and the people. Everyone is so very friendly and helpful. Since we were in a 2-bedroom cottage, we planned on doing some cooking of dinners and breakfasts, (as well as eating out of course). We started our vacation with a trip to Grand Anse, wandered the gorgeous beach, and had lunch at Spice Island Resort (very tasty lunch). We then walked over to the Spiceland Mall and did our grocery shopping at the IGA Real Value supermarket. This is a very large store, and usually has a good selection. Unlike our trip last year, this year it was well stocked and we found nearly everything on our list, plus some extras that were not on our list, yes – a little impulse buying.

On June 22, Sunday, our little group of three went in different directions. My son flew back to his home in California. Hubby and I continued our vacation by flying from Gnd to St. Vincent (Liat nonstop flight), and then catching the ferry to Bequia for 4 peaceful nights at the Sugarapple Inn. I’ll get to the Bequia section later…

GRENADA…
Our Grenada Activities:

Beaches Visited: Grand Anse; La Sagesse (two times); Lance Aux Epines

Hotels:
*Lance Aux Epines Cottages. We were in Gaulin Cottage – 2 bdrm, 1 bath. http://www.laecottages.com/ LAE does a nice job at what I believe to be a reasonable price. This is our 2nd year in a row staying at LAE, so that tells you we are sold and repeat customers.

*Coyoba Hotel. We just spent one night at the Coyoba. It was our last night on the island. After our Bequia trip, we came back to Grenada for one night to fly out on the American Eagle morning flight. I really wanted to stay at Coyoba, as it has seemed like a very nice resort, it was on the beautiful Grand Anse beach, and near the airport. My hubby was less excited about my choice of hotel for the night, but went along with me as he often does. Well, our flight from St. Vincent got in early, approximately 9:30. I had partly expected the room to not be ready at that hour of the day. We checked in, and as expected the room was not ready. We were told it would be ready at 1pm. That was no problem, as we wanted to go into town, do our last day in Grenada souvenir shopping, and have lunch at the Nutmeg. We got back around 2:30pm. We were told the room was not ready; they were in the process of cleaning it at that time. Give them about 15 minutes. OK, no problem – we were used to island time… so we went to the bar and had a drink. Well, you can guess the rest – we heard that they were “cleaning the room” and to “give them 15 more minutes” MANY times. Finally about 5pm we got into our room, not being in the best of moods at that point. Lesson Learned: Don’t stay in a big impersonal hotel in Grenada. There are so many cute, smaller hotels that try so very hard to make your stay memorable and pleasant, and they put lots of effort forth to do that (many are cheaper too…)! (Ie: Bel Air; La Sagesse; Lance Aux Epines) So, our last day in Grenada was spent becoming frustrated trying to get into our room. Remember, this is low season – I can’t imagine that they were completely sold out and had no other room to give us. It was sad and very disappointing, and at that moment we wished we were staying at True Blue (near the airport, as I hear they are focused on customer service).

Restaurants:
*Red Crab – consistently good. We had dinner there 2 times during our stay. Walking distance from Lance Aux Epines Cottages. http://www.grenadaexplorer.com/Red_Crab.htm
*Water’s Edge/Bel Air Plantation Resort – had lunch there this year. Very tasty, and it was fun to be back. Their grounds are beautiful and well maintained. The staff remembered us from 2 years ago when we got married! They do a nice job. http://www.belairplantation.com/
*Aquarium – Wow… what a beautiful restaurant for dinner. The food was excellent; service was good for our visit. We have been to the beach there during the day, but at night the restaurant looks magical. We made reservations, and I would highly recommend doing so. It was very busy – in June, when usually things are not busy at all. http://www.aquarium-grenada.com/
*Beach House – Wow… another wonderful restaurant for dinner. We had one of our dinners here 2 years ago, and wanted to try it again as it was excellent then. Well, it is still amazing! (One of the best meals of our trip to be sure.) You will want to make reservations here as well. http://www.cbt.cc/yellowphp/yellowresult-goal-Detail-ckey-34686.htm
*Choo Light Chinese – The food was very tasty. It was a casual, delicious meal.
*La Sagesse Nature Center – We only had lunch here, but two times again this year. The food is consistently good. Next time we visit Grenada, I think we are going to stay here a few days. I understand dinner is quite amazing. http://www.lasagesse.com/ The beach is the best!
*Nutmeg – We always enjoy having lunch at the Nutmeg and did so two times on this trip. It is consistently good, casual dining overlooking the Caranege. I probably would not select this restaurant for dinner, although they are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
*Spice Island – very good lunch.
*Mona Lisa – I had wanted to eat here on previous trips, but did not. So, this time we were making a point of having dinner at Mona Lisa. I’m sad to say we were disappointed in our dinner. As a side note, this is a June trip – slow season. We had looked at their advertisements, and based on their ad thought they would have an extensive menu that everyone would find something they enjoyed. Well, they were not using menus on our visit that evening. The waitress read a very limited selection of choices for starters and entrees. We all managed to find something that sounded tasty, and ordered – however probably the choices would not have been our preferred selection had they been using a menu. The food was fine, but not special, as we had hoped it would be. The setting was in a residential type area, out on a patio with a gorgeous view. We did see the sunset, and actually saw fireflies enjoying the gardens. I’m sure the slow season had much to do with our experience. We were one of two tables that evening, so I can only imagine how difficult that is to plan for as a restaurant. http://www.grenadacottages.com/photos/
*Dodgy Dock/True Blue: We stopped here for cocktails & appetizers before our dinner at the Aquarium. It is a beautiful setting overlooking the Horizon Yacht Charter Marina. We had a wonderful time, and decided we might like to stay there as part of our trip next time. They have a dive shop on premises, and have lots of options of dives (both in dive sites, and times available for diving). http://www.truebluebay.com/dining.html
*Grenada Grand Resort Pool Bar: This was an interesting experience. We had been into town on the $1 bus. On our return, we decided to go into the Grand, check out the gift shop and have a drink before we walked to the beach. Security stopped us at the front gate and asked the purpose of our visit. Hmmm – that seemed odd and unlike Grenada hospitality. So, I told him our purpose, and he let us pass. Well, when we got to the front desk to turn left to go to the bar, another security guard stopped us and inquired what we were doing. I said we were going to get a drink, at which point she said we had told the other guard we were going to the gift shop. She escorted us to the gift shop that happened to be closed, and then she escorted us to the bar. It was a very strange experience. I don’t think my husband; my son or myself look anything like criminals – just simply tourists (bags from tourist shops, camera, etc). The bartender was very nice however, and we did have a cool refreshing drink, but we probably won’t be visiting the Grand anytime soon. We definitely did not feel welcome. One would think in the low season, resorts would welcome people coming to have a drink at their bar.

ISLAND TOUR: We had a delightful day with Mandoo – tour guide extradonairre (and friend). I asked if we could visit some of the spice estates this trip since I have not done that before. We did go to a nutmeg station (very interesting); a Spice Estate; Concord Falls; Rivers Rum (had lunch there this trip – very good); drove into the country and through small villages; and finished with Grand Etang and visiting the monkeys (always a highlight for me). I highly recommend Mandoo for tours and transfers – he does an excellent job! What a pleasant day. http://www.grenadatours.com/

FISH FRIDAY: Sadly, we were rained out of Fish Friday. We had made arrangements to go with Mandoo. But Friday, it poured absolutely all day. Not just a little shower, but major rain – downpour. So, we cancelled our trip, as there is no shelter to get out of the rain. I think it would have been a miserable trip. Another time.

More to come later…