Camp Grenada

 Today is our last day on the island of Grenada.  They say time flies when you're having fun, but still it's hard to believe that it has been almost 3 months since we first got here.
Before we came our friends told us about 'Camp Grenada' with endless activities, a strong community and hurricane-safe anchorages, it sounded too good to be true, and the fact that we were robbed the very first night we got here made us very skeptic about just how real those promises were.
But guess what? it was all true.

Following Perry we set our base at the cruiser-friendly Prickly Bay. Ever since our boat was broken in to we have been sleeping with the hand held radio in our room, standing by on channel  68, and thus, every morning at 7:30 our day would start with the VHF announcing:"good morning Grenada, good morning cruisers, The Grenada cruisers net is starting in 2 minutes on channel 66" and so, every morning, kind of like in ground hog day, we would listen to Cruisers just like us, who volunteer to run the cruisers net, 6 days a week, and provide every possible piece of information you can possibly need, from local weather, to cruisers social activities, to help with parts and services you might need or want to sell or trade, and finally a slot for local businesses (ones with access to VHF radio) with a chance to blow their own horn.

Cruisers social activities anyone?
In Prickly bay alone you have to choose from the following activities, all provided by volunteer fellow cruisers, who want to make their stay here in Grenada a better one:
Mondays and Thursdays 8:30: Yoga with a smile provided by Pier-Ives from S/V umido at the very same time, Gabi from S/V cool change is teaching Yoga to kids 16 and younger.  seeing Gur and Arbel practicing Yoga poses and challenging each other to extreme combinations is simply priceless! ("while doing a tree pose, touch your toes and make a candle. Can you do this Gur?")
Tuesdays and fridays 8:30: Tai Chi, again by Umido
On Sundays and Wednesdays 2pm: Grenedian train Dominos winner gets the fame of being announced last week's champion on the morning net
Then there's chess twice a week at 3pm, volleyball you can play and shopping buses that will be happy to oblige you, and take you anywhere you want to go.
Every Saturday there's a HASH, a hike/run followed by beer consumption, a great experience where locals and guests explore different parts of the island.

Book Club
of course morning are dedicated to school work and then in the afternoon the kids want to get together at the pool or on the beach, either way they coordinate their rendezvous in the sweetest VHF calls you would ever hear...
On Friday morning the kids had a book club.where they would discuss books they have read,  read poems, play games and learn about different countries.
I was amazed to see how serious the kids take the activities at the book club. here are some shots:

One book club sessio was dedicated to geography and every kid presented a country

All pieces were then connected into two big global balls

Every family brought a tipical dish to share - what a feast!
I am so moving on board 4 coconuts as soon as I get a chance

Learning Kapuera from Regina and Helena

Tomorrow is a long day, as we plan to start our journey north. and so I think I will stop now.
I will post more Grenada stories later.
The last few days were filled with goodbyes and left me very sad and yet very happy and feeling really blessed. The friends we have made here, and the memories will stay with us long after we say goodbye.

Thank you Camp Grenada, and thank you to all our new friends who made this Hurricane season such a special one
fair winds, where ever you might head - we hope to see you soon
Darya and the Del-Max crew