On Island Time ;)

Lots of Nothing – Just Chilling

We certainly have been laying low …. it’s been over a week since our last blog post.  

A contributing factor, however, has been our camera, which decided to die L …. I can’t blog without pictures! As it happened, Jorge & Kim have returned from their visit home, and they brought with them our repaired underwater camera (which our son had taken home), so we can use that one J.

We are now on the island of Grenada, having passed by several very small islands (or rocks) and an underwater volcano (yellow alert – stay minimum 1.5 nm away) between Carriacou and here.

 .... are we there yet?

 ....'lots of big rocks

'big one! .... 'thought maybe the volcano was erupting!

Gil & I stayed for several nights by ourselves at Halifax Harbour, a very small anchorage enclosed by hills, about 4nm north of St. George’s.  The snorkeling was great – the best corals, sponges, and sea plants we’ve seen anywhere. I saw my first lion fish (poisonous), but missed seeing the spotted drum that Gil saw. On shore, we  chatted with and watched a local guy who was snaring crabs – pretty big guys too. At one point his whole arm was down a crab hole. He told us he sold them at market for 10EC (Eastern Caribbean dollars) for 4 crabs … about $1 each. What a way to earn a living?!  We also chanced upon a couple of other guys returning to the beach from a half day of spear fishing. They each brought in a string of varied fish, not all of which we could identify. Our luck continued at this anchorage, as while we were here, a group of fishermen rowed out on their boat and fanned out a huge net, which they then pulled into shore. We dinghied in to see their ‘catch of the day,’ and purchased a couple of yellow jacks for dinner. Great spot, and one we’ll return too.

Unfortunately, I have no pictures of all that, as the camera was kaput :-(

Our next stop was St. George's harbour, outside Grenada's largest city; where we are currently anchored. We are not the smallest boat here! Our neighbour (who's even older than Gil ;-) ) has come from England on his 22 footer! Unbelievable. He tells us that he's been at sea for decades and has circumnavigated the globe; though we're not sure if he's done all that on this boat?! He has helped with many yacht deliveries, and perhaps that's how he's come to circumnavigate. He certainly has an adventurous spirit.

across the Atlantic in a 22' sailboat!

(he gets alot of points for that)

While in the city of St. George, I chose to see a doctor (another contributing factor to my lack of blogging). I've had some strange symptoms that were concerning me, ever since Gil & I cleaned the boat's bottom while we were in Bequia, about two weeks ago. I slept for 2+ days afterwards, following which my hands and wrists had morning stiffness and lingering numbness/tingling during the day. I also had discomfort at the base of my neck and between the shoulders. At night, my upper arms ached? Weird. After persisting for a couple of weeks, I thought I'd better have it looked into. So, the doctor here (who did her undergrad at York University) ordered a series of blood tests, to check for things like auto-immune disease, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. The results came back, and I look good on paper! That was reassuring for me. She prescribed some anti-inflammatory meds, and they've been helping. I've also been taking it easy and resting alot. I'm definitely a 'listen to your body' vs. 'mind over matter' girl.

This past Monday, Jorge & Kim returned from their visit home. They are here at Port Louis Marina, and it was GREAT reuniting with them! Happy hour on their boat, followed by dinner out; and now we can hang about with each other while we're all enjoying 'island time.' I see many soccer matches in our future.