It's been cold and drizzly here all week. It's no wonder my mind keeps drifting back to Bequia and Mayreau and....

Part 4: Highlights of our week on Grenada

Gouyave
At first, I was ambivalent about Fish Friday. It was a long drive and hiring a driver for the entire evening seemed expensive. But I was outvoted. It turned out to be a fun and worthwhile outing since we left early enough to make the drive in daylight and see the countryside. It’s an interesting drive and I enjoyed every minute of it-- even getting stuck in traffic in St. George. We arrived in Gouyave with enough light to walk around the village before the food stalls opened.

Fish Friday is a very festive event attended by locals and tourists. Music was provided by a DJ and a live steel drum “orchestra”. If you go, be sure to have the fish cakes and fry bakes. Delicious.




Belmont Estate and Grand Etang
We drove through the interior of Grenada to Belmont Estate via Annendale Falls and Grand Etang. Grenada is a lush and mountainous island with waterfalls, tropical rain forests, monkeys, mongoose, and flowers everywhere. At Belmont Estate we learned how premium organic cocoa beans are grown and processed, and ate in the restaurant which features a prix fixe lunch of traditional Grenadian dishes in an elegant country setting.




The Carenage and Market Hill
Grenada’s colonial architectural history is on display on the Carenage in St. George. This is a bustling, picturesque town. A walk through a short tunnel takes you to the very colorful outdoor market.




And the Beaches, of course

Grand Anse – and the best “true Grenadian” lunch

Said to be Grenada’s premier beach and tourist destination, although gorgeous and seemingly endless, it was not my personal favorite. I like a more intimate setting. It was not crowded, however. It did get my vote for best Grenadian lunch, at this place about at the midpoint of the beach next to the Coyaba Hotel, a place with no name or sign, and just referred to as the “the Ladies at the Medical School” by the locals who recommended it. It’s an industrial-looking building, open-air with a view of the ocean. Turns out it’s the former medical school campus. Inside you will find a large cafeteria-style kitchen with several women cooking and serving up tasty local dishes and cold Caribs at very reasonable prices. The food here was like the expensive “true”Grenadian meal we had at Belmont Estate, but even better. It’s an excellent alternative to the hotel bars which dot this beach. But go there for the food and fun of it, not the décor.

Morne Rouge –the best swimming beach

At the end of Grand Anse Beach is the Flamboyant Hotel. From there, a road takes you over the headland to Morne Rouge. It is a short walk. Morne Rouge is more my kind of beach. However, while the sand and ocean are beautiful, the backdrop of construction sites and chain link fencing was not so attractive. There was a bar right on the beach serving the best flying fish sandwiches (Sur La Mer, I think). This was the best swimming beach. We spent an idyllic afternoon here.




La Sagesse – the most secluded

It was recommended that we go to Magazine Beach on Sunday as there’s a big beach BBQ put on by the Aquarium Restaurant that everyone goes to. But we are crowd-averse, so went to La Sagesse, and saved Magazine for a weekday. There was a slight problem finding a driver on Sunday as Grenadians take the “day of rest” seriously, and the bus wasn’t running either.

This beach is on the Atlantic Ocean side, so there are breaking waves on the beach and gentle swells out past the breakers – nothing big. We had fun playing in the water here too. It got my vote for best beach chairs and shady palm trees. Lunch at the resort was fine, but rather ordinary. The resort grounds are lovely. This is a very pretty spot.




Magazine Beach –most beautiful

Visually stunning beach. But its rocky bottom strewn with coral gave it low marks for user-friendliness. The snorkeling, however, was fun. And the lunch at Aquarium was very good, getting my vote for best and most expensive bowl of Callaloo soup.




Except for the usual flight delays, everything went smoothly on this trip, unprecedented in my experience. It was a fabulous vacation from beginning to end.