Carnival!

Cruiser getting into the swing of things

Several intrepid early risers boarded the van for J'Ouvert (jhoo-vay) at 4:30am on Monday bound for St. George's.  (Dave, considering them to be nuts, choose to stay behind in the peaceful realm of dreamland.)  The main road was crowded with Jab Jab (bands of "devils") from different parts of Grenada.  The Jab Jab, who traditionally covered themselves with molasses or tar, appear under the veil of early morning darkness to revel in the streets before the light of dawn.  Nowadays old motor oil or paints are used.  Needless to say, old clothes are the dress of the day. 




Early morning revelers



Jab Jab with horns



Another name for J'Ouvert is "Dirty Mas."  I think this implies two things:  one, the oil and paint and the other, the dancing.  A man will approach a woman from behind and the woman will start gyrating as the man slithers his hips against her.  It sounds nasty, but most men are not pushy about it and the woman has the choice to dance or not.  One guy came up from behind and, without touching me, asked me if I wanted to dance.  I told him thanks but I didn't know how.  He said OK and left with a smile.

Doing the dance, or "Winin" (wine-in)

Each Jab Jab band used either oil or a paint color to signify their town or region in Grenada.

Chartreuse Jab Jab

Silver Jab Jab

Plum Jab Jab

And oiled Jab Jab

Linda getting painted by a happy Jab Jab

In search of musical bands, we finally figured out that the "bands" were groups of people who banded together.  Often they were accompanied by a large flatbed truck with a DJ and a humongous set of speakers blaring rhythmic tunes.  I'll post a video clip that may or may not play.  If it doesn't, hopefully the still photos give a sense of the din. 

 

People do a shuffle walk to the beat that is called "chippin'."

Jab Jab band truck cruising by with LOUD music ablare

Lots and lots of people

Jab Jab in training

Back at the dock by 10:30am, Linda (on the way to the shower) and neighbor Wendy

And that was just the morning!  Stay tuned for our next installment where Dave joins Linda for the merry yet subdued Pageant Mas that afternoon.

We're Fine

Ernesto turned out to be a non-event for us.  Some strong wind.  Some heavy rain.  That's it.  Better to be over-prepared.  And now we're ready for anything else that comes this way.  As I mentioned, most storms turn north well before Grenada.  It's interesting to see satellite images of disturbances coming off the coast of Africa and observe them over the days as they cruise west over the Atlantic toward the Caribbean.  It's one after the other.  Sort of like a bowling ball, you wonder (at least, I wonder) which way the thing will veer. 

After the preparation and storm, the past couple of days we've been working with Darrell on the boat.  Right now we're repairing stanchions and life lines and yesterday, the autopilot, which will need a technician.  Lots to learn and do.  Also I've been emailing Garmin about our chartplotter and trying various fixes all to no avail.  So will wrap it up today to send with Darrell and Ann who fly to Florida tomorrow who will mail it to Garmin.  Fortunately it's still under warranty. 

I'm going to come home for a short visit to see my family and to pick up boat parts.  Hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in a few friend visits, too.  Dates are TBD.

The big news around here is that the day before yesterday, Kirani James won the Grenada's first ever Olympic medal -- a gold -- in the 400 meter race.  The government declared yesterday a half holiday, so all businesses closed for the afternoon.  Great day for Grenada.


Wayward Wind on her way to Grenada (borrowed from Alibi's blog, thanks!)

Tropical Storm Ernesto

We just finished prepping the boat for Tropical Storm Ernesto.  Yesterday the storm was directly west of us, but it has moved a bit north, which is the normal path.  So unless it takes an unusual jog south, we won't be blown away.  We should get some strong winds and a lot of rain, but nothing too bad.  Still we lashed the sail, removed the bimini, and cleared the deck of all loose items.  Better to over-prepare.  Tomorrow we should have the calm before the storm.  On Saturday is when it will hit Grenada in earnest.  Or should I say, Ernesto. 

Rollin'. Rollin'. Rollin'.

Written 8/1/12

After a rolly day and an extremely rolly night, we are eager to go to another bay.  On Monday, all six of us took local buses to St. George’s and St. David’s Bay to investigate marinas.  Celtic Rover and Alibi are interested in mooring balls and Wayward Wind is interested in a slip for two months because we need to have a lot of work done and it will be much more convenient to be at a slip with ample power and easy access.  Also, admittedly, we’re treating ourselves a bit.  The marina in St. George’s is too funky (even by our standards) and urban and right next to the main road so exposed to anyone walking by.  The boat yard in St. David’s is quite remote in a lovely natural environment, which would be nice if you were writing a book and needing isolation, but a bit too far from markets and such for us.  It is great for leaving a boat on the hard for hurricane season, which is what our friends on Manatee did. 

Beautiful Manatee all buttoned up awaiting her crews' return on November 2.

At 7:30 every Monday through Saturday morning, the local cruisers net is broadcast.  I’ve mentioned that these nets provide a wealth of information of local events and services.  One section, “Treasures of the Bilge,” is where folks can offer up anything that they want to get rid of.  The moderator or other cruisers are happy to answer any questions a newbie might have.  In St. Martin, we asked about a good refrigeration service.  A local cruiser who specializes in refrigeration chimed in and later came by saving us a trip to a marina and a bundle of money.  In fact, he didn’t charge us anything (“I didn’t fix anything.”) because he determined it was an electrical problem, so we contacted his cruiser electrician friend to come by later. 

Cruisers are the most helpful people I’ve ever met.  Actually, regarding the refrigeration issue, (I may have mentioned this) both Bruce and Scott almost seemed upset (bless their hearts!) that we didn’t go to them first before we got a “professional.”  Scott called us to find out what was going on then gave us suggestions.  Bruce simply showed up, started trouble shooting (which I’d done to my limited ability) and the darn thing started working again so the electrician did not need to come after all.  Time to clean the contacts.   Both Scott and Bruce made it clear that we should at least ask them when we need help.  We are acutely aware of our mechanical limitations and do not want to constantly burden our buddies with our problems.

Back to Grenada.  Grenada is fringed with several deep, well-protected bays along its south coast each sporting one or two marinas, which we’d planned to investigate for our potential new “home.”  The day before yesterday, my interest was piqued by an announcement on the cruisers net about a yoga class at Secret Harbour Marina in Mt. Hartman Bay, the next bay to the east.  Someone else there was organizing a hike.  Yoga and hiking, “Like.”  Yesterday Dave and I went to Mt. Hartman Bay and visited Secret Harbour Marina.  It seems to be what we’re looking for – close to bus stops and markets yet somewhat rural and somewhere between funky and fancy.  http://www.secretharbourgrenada.com/  The entrance of the bay is edged by swell-quelling reefs so little roll.  Yes!  While visiting the little restaurant, we met a cruising couple on Tiger Lily who are anchored out and gave us the lowdown on the area.  We walked the docks and met a couple who’d returned to the marina for their second season and gave it a good recommendation.  We spoke with Marlene (“like Marlene Dietrich”), a friendly French woman who runs the office.  Of course, it’s not perfect, but we’re planning on heading over today and staying for two months.  Again, anyone who wants to visit lush, humid, relaxed, green, hot, beautiful, intriguing Grenada, please come. 

Must mention two “interesting” encounters.  First, yesterday morning while I used the ladies room at Prickly Bay Marina, Dave began chatting with a British fellow having coffee.  He invited us to sit down, so I ordered a coffee, too.  Quickly it became clear that his opinions on the state of the world and religion were stronger than the coffee.  He spoke of “the illuminati” (which another friend had mentioned) who are a super wealthy elite bent on controlling the world by controlling water and food sources and putting two thirds of the world’s population into slavery.  And they follow Lucifer.  He spoke of his belief in the Almighty ad nauseum.  I don’t mean to offend anyone, and I’m an equal opportunity believer, but there are Christians and then there are Christians who give Christians a bad name.  I’ll say no more other than I can see why he is a single-hander. 

As we walked over the hill toward Secret Harbour Marina, a young guy in an SUV pulled up and asked us if we were going to the marina as he’d give us a lift.  We hopped in and he raced off, driving like a madman on the narrow hilly lanes.  Holding one Chihuahua on his lap and two more in the back with Dave, he rat-a-tatted out like a machine-gun, “I’m in a hurry because someone just stole my baby Chihuahua when I was in the parking lot and the dogs were near me and I turn to pick up the “sheet” and throw the bag in the bin and a truck drove away fast and I thought ‘Why he going fast with the dogs there?’ then the baby was gone and I try to find him but I know who he is I cannot believe he took the baby Chihuahua…”  We screeched into the parking lot, hopped out, and he looked again for the puppy.   There, in a little drain pipe, the tiny pup peered out.  “Oh, there he is!  Sorry I drive so fast.”

Grenada!

Celtic Rover



and Alibi cruising the coast of Grenada

We had a WONDERFUL beam reach sail to Grenada on Friday along with Celtic Rover and Alibi.  As Darrel said, "This is the ride we paid for." 






That evening we celebrated at the local marina and watched some of the Olympics opening ceremony.  Dave and I had grilled mahi mahi (unfortunately we haven't been catching a thing lately) while we enjoyed an amazing steel drum band perform. 

Steep hill rivaling those of San Francisco

Yesterday Dave and I took a local bus into St. George's, the capital of Grenada.  We hoofed it up a steep hill upon which a church was perched, then climbed higher. 

Green lawn mower

Interestingly, a huge cemetery was near the top with an outstanding view of the bay.  The "green lawn mowers" were white goats trimming the grounds.  We heard loud reggae music coming from a tiny shop where a man was weaving a belt from colorful yarn.  His cute little boy beamed, "HI!"  As we sat on the brick wall and cooled off with "Bottled in Grenada" Fanta cream sodas, we heard a familiar song, "You got to know when to hold 'em. Know when to fold 'em.  Know when to walk away.  Know when to run"  The difference was that it was reggae-ized!  We sang along with a couple of local guys also sitting on the wall. 



There was a crooked house...

Walking down the hill, we passed a melange of small shops and homes -- some, very modest dwellings.  We found our way into the local Saturday market, which was starting to close up for the day.  One vendor asked me what I'm looking for.  I said, "I don't know?"  She said, "Well, I'll sell you some 'I don't know' then."  She ended up selling me a decoration of nutmeg, mace, turmeric root, ginger root, bay leaf, and cloves strung together in a loop.  The fragrance is spicy.  Grenada is known as the Spice Island.
 

Saturday market


Now the work begins. We are scouting out the best boat yard for us to have work done and to stay for awhile.  We hope to explore Grenada -- its waterfalls and parks, rum and nutmeg factories, and, of course, the people and their culture.



St. George's Bay

St. George's Harbour

Carriacou

Internet connection still not great for adding photos.  Soon.

We had a good sail to the Tobago Cays.  "Beautiful" is an understatement.  Simply a few small green islands with sandy white beaches and a double reef surrounded by watery bands of vivid colors from turquoise to deep blue.  Normally we anchor in a bay or in the lee of of a large island to have protection from ocean swells without a long fetch for wind chop to develop.  Here we anchored behind Horseshoe reef where, as Scott says, the next stop is Africa.  It is actually a double reef where the top of the reef lies at the water's surface and gives protection from the ocean swell and wind chop.  It was blowing around 20 knots so actually there was a moderate swell but not too uncomfortable.  Abeam of us was tiny Baradel Island where a turtle sanctuary is located.  Many turtles, large and small, swam by as we watched from our cockpit.  The reef made for wonderful snorkeling.  Because it was so shallow, the colors were bright with many shades of lavender.

We left the Tobago Cays on Monday.  I discovered right after we lifted the anchor and were wending our way through the reefs that though the chartplotter was on, it was only showing our route over the base chart, not the detailed chart that shows depth.  After some scrambling to pinpoint the problem, we discovered that the chartplotter was not reading the SD card which contains the detailed chart.  Fortunately we were able to follow our buddy boats whom we alerted to the problem and made it without a problem.  We do use paper charts and plot points along the way as we go, but in such close quarters where the underwater reefs are hard to read in early morning light, it was a little tricky.  We checked out of St. Vincent and the Grenadines at Clifton, Union Island, where we stopped just for an hour to do so.  We then motored on to Tyrell Bay, Carriacou, which is part of Grenada.  The wind was in the mid-twenties with squalls and gusts to 30.  Not the most relaxing trip, especially since our sail was drooping all over the bimini.  I will contact Garmin about the chartplotter when we get to Grenada later this week.  Our handheld GPS works and my old chartplotter sort of works.  Also we use paper charts as well, so we'll be fine. 

We are only 30 miles from St. George's in Grenada.  This will be our first major stop where we will check out the services available for the many boat projects that need to be done, both by us and by professionals.  We will most likely rent a slip for at least one month.  We will find out about other marinas and boat yards on the south coast as well.  We will have boat projects but we hope to do a lot of sight-seeing.  This is a good place for visitors as we'll be staying put for a couple of months and the island of Grenada is supposed to be lovely.  Hint.  Hint.

Today Bella Blue will head for Grenada as their son is arriving for a week's visit in a few days.  We met up with "old friends" on Alibi here in Tyrell Bay.  Last night they and Celtic Rover stopped by for a sundowner and it was great to catch up.  As mentioned earlier, Darrell and Ann used to own a dive shop in Florida.  Darrell told a story of when he took a group of students down for a dive.  He had a little bit of bait fish in his vest pocket which he put out to entice a moray eel to leave its hole in the rock so the students could have a better look at its sleek form.  The bait worked so well that the moray not only swam out of it hole but continued toward Darrell who still had a little bait fish in his pocket.  In search of that last morsel, the moray swam inside Darrell's vest through the armholes and neckhole and out the waist and pecked at his pocket.  As the wide-eyed students gazed in awe at their daring dive instructor, Darrell was sweating bullets while trying to stay calm and cool and gently encourage the moray to keep moving.  Now THAT'S what I call becoming one with nature! 

We'll explore Carriacou for another day or two then head to Grenada.  Hope everyone is well. 

  

Highlights

We have traveled to many places since Dahaies so will try to capture some of the highlights. Unfortunately our internet connection is slow so no photos for now.

Guadalupe

In Guadalupe, we visited the Botanical Gardens. Jan, a florist who studied under a Dutch master, was a walking encyclopedia of flora facts, so we received a lesson in tropical botany. As you can imagine, the colors and shapes of some of the plants were unbelievable. Many, however, were familiar as "house plants" back home. And so many varieties of bananas.

One afternoon several of us snorkeled the nearby rocky point. Darrell and Ann are master divers who until recently owned a dive shop in Florida. They are naturals in the water and move calmly and gracefully. Darrell can hold his breath for what seems like an eternity. He showed us so many small critters that we would have normally overlooked. One was a crab that resembled a daddy long-leg spider with small purple claws. Later I noticed something long sticking out of a rock. It was a golden moray eel. When it saw us, it popped back into its hole so that only about the front six inches were sticking out. A nice find. Dave saw an octopus, but it scooted away by the time the rest of us came over. Darrell said that he enjoys showing people critters and we appreciate it.

We needed a little sail repair so Linda went just a little ways up the mast to sew some new webbing on one of the slides and replace a nut on another. Sat in the bosun's chair so I could use both hands. Kind of fun actually.

Iles des Saintes

Sailed to and took a mooring ball off of Ilet Cabrit near Bourge des Saintes on Iles des Saintes. What a quaint and artsy village. We read that because there was no agricultural potential on these small islands, that there were no slaves hence no slave descendents settling the islands as most of the others. Bourge des Saintes has evolved into an artist community. Wish we could have spent more time here.

We celebrated Dave's birthday with, what else, a sundowner on our boat. The treat was bananas sauteed in butter, brown sugar and rum. Yum!

Martinique

We sailed in brisk and bouncy conditions and motor-sailed behind the lee of Dominica where the winds all but died to Fort de France, Martinique. Celtic Rover and Bella Blue stopped over in Dominica for a few hours of sleep. My "rage de dent" was really bothering me so we opted to continue overnight so as to arrive in Fort de France on Friday morning, hoping to clear in and get to a dentist early. Didn't want to have to wait through the weekend, espcially as it was Bastille Day on Saturday. The night sail was glorious with perfect conditions. Scooted right along. Made it to the dentist, got treatment and meds and felt much better. We walked to the open air market where we bought bananas and treated ourselves to the creole chicken special for lunch washed down with a guava and passion fruit smoothie. It was delicious and a lot more expensive than we expected. Ah, well.

Fort de France is a bustling small city with a lovely boardwalk and park where families, swimming kids and smooching couples spend their time. It is alive. We shopped at the local Leader Price market where we were often the only white people in the busy store. Got some good deals. A favorite was Bibb lettuce with the little root ball still intact. So sweet and tender. One thing I noticed was that each of the three times we were there, at least one person dropped a glass bottle on the tile floor causing a big mess. Curious, that.

There were several "five and dime" stores with all sorts of plastic stuff usually run by a Chinese family. In one, we found some interesting potions -- Jinx Removing sprays and Do As I Say bath liquids. With the bath liquid, you are supposed to read a psalm whilst soaking. Wonder how they work?

On Sunday afternoon, Dave and I enjoyed a walk along the promenade where everyone was out enjoying the sun and rain shower. We heard what sounded like live Cajun music and found this human powered carousel. Wonderful.

St. Lucia

We expected 6-foot seas and instead found 2-foot seas and 12 knot winds for a beautiful sail.  Dave caught a small Jack along the way.  We sailed to Marigot, St. Lucia where we picked up a mooring ball in the protected inner harbor.  Bella Blue and Wayward Wind shared a mooring ball and Celtic Rover got her own mooring ball nearby.  All three rafted together which was fun as we could just hop aboard each other’s boats, if needed.  Kim offered to cook up some chicken curry, Jan made a salad and I made rice and brought chocolate chip cookies, so we had a delightful dinner aboard Bella Blue.  Bags of books were brought out for sharing, and we planned our next moves. 

Men paddle over in small boats to sell fruit, bread and woven baskets.  One was sporting a Latitude 38 T-shirt.  Latitude 38 is the SF Bay Area boating magazine, so we got a chuckle out of that.  

As the weather was still good before the next tropical wave, we decided to press on.  On the south coast of St. Lucia lie the striking Pitons.  Stunning!

Wallilabou, St. Vincent

Had another lovely sail to St. Vincent.  Dave tried to outrun a squall but we were caught by the tail end of it.  Had a gust or two up to 30 knots but not a problem. 

We’d read about the “boat boys,” actually men who approach you in their small boats to “help” you to a mooring and handle your lines.  There is always a fee and you never know the condition of these private moorings.  We’d seen the photo and recommendation of Bagga, a dread-locked guy, so went with him.  Since the anchorage is tight, we had to stern tie to the dock piers as well, so Bagga helped with that.  We paid $8 US for his service.  I also bought a beaded bracelet and an enormous avocado each for $4 US.

Part of the deal with the moorings is that thet cost $8 US but if you eat at the restaurant (owner of the mooring balls), you don’t have to pay for the mooring balls.  We enjoyed mahi mahi, plantains, a fried vegetable that was good but I don’t remember what it was called, along with rice and carrots.  Everything was delicious.  I also had the strongest rum punch I ever had and was smashed after only drinking half.  (Probable cause of aforementioned memory lapse.)  The view was beautiful as we watched the setting sun. 

The film Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed in Wallilabou.  The film company built a building set which now houses a gallery of glossy photos and artifacts – coffins and such – from the film. 

In the morning, we intended to have Bagga take us for a hike to the waterfalls, but it rained all morning so we decided we needed to bag Bagga’s hike and head south.  I hope that we can return to these lovely islands to do more exploring.  Alas, hurricane season is nigh.

Bequia

After the rains stopped, we traveled the 15 miles to Port Elizabeth, Bequia where we anchored in Admiralty Bay, a slightly rolly anchorage.  Post Elizabeth is a small town where local boat builders ply their trade on the beach. 

Needing to get some exercise, yesterday we went for a walk up Mt. Pleasant and had a sweeping view of the bay.  Treated ourselves at the top to the local ginger ale.  Lots of lovely flowers along the way including the fiery flamboyant tree and the fragrant frangipani used in Hawaiian leis.  

After lunch we snorkeled Devil’s Table, the reef off of the nearby point.  It was especially nice because it was rocky with various depth levels and little canyons.  Saw a bulbous balloon fish.  Other than that, many small reef fish and abundant coral.  Afterwards, Kim and Scott who have been sailing these parts over the past 23 years and Dave commented on how few large edible fish there are such as groupers and flounders compared to years ago when they were here.  Twenty-three years ago, Scott had visited a local hardware store here and been sold a lure with which he successfully caught many fish.  It was pink.  He said that within thirty minutes, he’d have a fish on the line.  The day before yesterday, Scott visited the same hardware store which had changed locations and spoke with the very same proprietor.  They discussed this lure and the man said that the pink lure doesn’t work anymore.  He also said that there are no more big fish.  At another dock, Scott had seen the locals cleaning an eel and we’d heard that they’d been cleaning rays which supposedly taste like scallops.  It is sad to know that the fisheries are being depleted.  Fortunately many countries are setting up marine parks with no fish zones.  These are wonderful places to explore by snorkeling.  In many, you must take a mooring ball because anchoring chains scour the bottom as the boat swings.  We have seen evidence of this.  Most likely the problem lies with the large commercial fishing vessels.  It is a dilemma. 

Today we will head for the Tobago Cays.  It is a favorite spot of Scott and Kim as it is remote and the snorkeling is incredible.  We’re looking forward to this.  Better get ready.