What to do if you come to Grenada

If you like to read books on vacation:


Grand Anse

Grand Anse or La Sagesse is the beach for you. Both beaches have great views; Grand Anse the Caribbean, La Sagesse the Atlantic Ocean. You can rent beach chairs at both beaches. Both beaches have a restaurant. Grand Anse has a more central location and is closer to the capital and is great for a short stay(also its close to a library). La Sagesse is more out in the country but has spectacular views and a more tropical islandy feel. If its your first time in Grenada I would go to any hotel on (or close to) Grand Anse.

If you like history:

If you like history you should go to the forts. There are three forts in St George and two museums, also you could ask around and listen to stories.

The main fort is Fort George, it is near the Carenage. Maurice Bishop and his entire cabinet were executed inside the Fort. This fort has some neat tunnels. The cannons are epic how they all face out towards the Caribbean sea. The views of Grand Anse, Port Louis the city are amazing.

Tunnels at Fort Matthew

Fort Mathew & Fredrick are the forts I like best, they are more interesting. I was told that they think there are tunnels that lead all the way to the Carenage. These forts are on a really high mountain about the prison. The tunnels there are really cool and they have an underground bar. The bar area has a sign that says no urinating in this area! Fort Matthew accidentally bombed when the American's "liberated" Grenada. At the time the fort was being used as a mental hospital and patients were killed in the attack.

The museum is one of the oldest building in Grenada. If you head toward the Sendall tunnel from the Carenage, the building is brick and has a rusted balcony. There is a small fee for going into the museum. In the museum they have artifacts from the Caribs and Arawaks; information on the revolution; information on the slaves and on the sinking of the Bianca C.

The museum at the Spice Basket was a lot more informative. They had displays on the animals, the
terrain, and maps of Grenada. Then had the records of the slaves who were brought in. They had a huge display of the Revolution, it was interesting. Then they had a large display of the history of Cricket in the Caribbean.

I would recommend the Spice Basket, Fort Fredrick & Mathew.

If you like nature:

If you like nature you should go on a "hash" its a great way to see parts of the country you would never see. Hashes are every Saturday, you should acclimatize to the heat before you try a hash. There are two trails:1 hour for walkers (about 3-4 km) and an 8-10 km trail for runners. To find out where a hash is look up Grenada Hash House Harriers on Facebook.

You could also go on hikes though there are very few trails and you could get lost.

You may also want to go to Belmont Estates. At Belmont Estates they have lots of animals and many different types of plants. You learn about cocoa production.

If you like food:

If  you like food your in luck there are many different places to eat and many local foods to try
e.g. breadfruit, "Oildown", fig (green banana) and callaloo to name a few.

Le Phare Bleu - Friday nights are my favourite

The restaurants I have eaten at are Le Phare Bleu, Umbrellas, Dodgy Dock & Belmont Estate. All of them are a good place to eat- we don't eat out much :-).   

I would highly recommend trying KFC's Spicy Chicken which you can only get in the Caribbean!

If you have young kids:

If you have young kids you should hit as many beaches and attractions as possible. If they're older than seven you should try a hash. If everyone likes to snorkel there is the underwater sculpture park and is definitely worth it.

There is a story time at the Mt. Zion Library in St. George's, Friday afternoon at 3:00. Local authors and volunteers read children's stories. I got to hear The Nutmeg Princess & La Diabless read by the author Richardo Keens-Douglas! Who knows who will read to your kids! A benefit of going to this library is kids get to see what a library looks like in a developing country. Maybe bring a book to donate.

Technical Drawing

Here in Grenada I am in high school (Form 1) and you can take many different classes, but because I am in Form 1 I don’t get to choose what classes I take.

Mr. Dominique and me

One day in late September I took a drawing I did of a house to school. Some kids in Form 3 (grade 9) told me I should take technical drawing (TD). I talked to the teacher, Mr. Dominque, and he said he teaches private classes on Saturdays and Wednesdays (and sometimes Mondays).

My teacher Mr. Dominique also teaches me social studies and geography.

I have been taking TD for 7 months after school and on weekends. I am now and at a Form 4 level (grade 10) and almost Form 5 level (Form Five is the last form).  Mr. Dominique tells me that I am the best student he has ever had at my age. He is really proud of what I have been able to do and so am I.

This week I got moved into Form two.

My drawings

When my mom first asked me about changing grades I was nervous about it. I was worried about what the kids in Form 1 would think.

But my dad just went to the school and made it happen. I had wanted to ask my teachers if they thought I could do the From 2 work, but I didn't get the chance to.

Now that I am in Form 2 I get to take Technical Drawing as a subject. That means an extra three periods of Technical Drawing each week!

I like the kids a lot more in Form 2 and they like me too. It has been going really well the last couple of days and I am happier to go to school.

 My mom works as a career counsellor and I am lucky because she really helps me to think about my career, even if it is a long time from now. 

Cricket Rules

On Friday I didn’t go to school because the West Indies cricket team was playing England and we were never going to a cricket game in Canada so we decided to go.

 

Seeing as this was our first time watching cricket we knew very little about the game (and rules). Our plan was to take someone who knew how cricket is played, but no one was around.

 

When we got to the stadium the cricket game had been going on for 3 and a half hours (it starts at 10 o’clock). The game is pretty self-explanatory and we got the hang of what was going on (with a little help from the people around us). Once we started to understand what was going on the game was alot more exciting and we stayed until around 5 o’clock.

 

I had a really good time and learned a new sport. Sadly England won by nine wickets (don’t really know what that means).

Back to school

On Tuesday my brother and I started school again. I was kinda happy to be back but mainly because I like my teachers.

The subjects I have here that I don't have in Canada are:

• Spanish
• Technical Drawing (extra classes)
• Home Economics
• Geography
• Caribbean History
• Religious Studies

Everyday at school we have an assembly talking about God (this is a "non-religious" school) this is only supposed  to take 30 minutes but can last up to a hour and a half in +30 degree weather everyday. The assembly starts and ends with praying.

After the assembly we wait 20 + minutes for the teacher to arrive sometimes they don't even come! Sometimes when they come  they just  give work and leave and don't come back until the end of the class (only two teachers stay). Then we pray and it is time to have lunch for an hour. I usually read or draw and the class gets very loud.



Even though it says 3rd I really am 2nd

At the end of the day we pray again and go home. I go get Owen. When I get to him they are usually praying

I have been doing really well at school. I like having different teachers for different subjects.

Here they rank students and it gets put on your report card. So I am number 2 in my class. Yesterday I told Senior Rene that we don't do that in Canada. He was really surprised! I think rating kids is a bad idea because even if you did well you could still come last and it would make you feel badly about what you accomplished instead of feeling proud for trying hard.

I am looking forward to being back to school in Canada with my friends in September.