Murphy's Law, 29 November 2007

So now, I would ask what next, but afraid of the answer. This is not your average Master Card commercial I assure you.

We planned a wonderfully romantic Caribbean cruise on a tall ship, cost lost over $2000.00 lost due to almost a bankruptcy but lost none the less, we had to fly to Grenada so as not risk the loss of an extra $1200.00 in air plane tickets. Plan B is implemented, have to find a place to stay for 10 nights, that cost approximately $600.00, and rental car around $500.00. We smile see a silver lining. Vacation saved right? Wrong, last night Kenny got sick, this morning we had to find a Doctor, surprise he has Strep Throat, visit and medication to the tune of $165.00.

We get back to hotel, relax, he takes nap and awakes to have early dinner, Boom, 7.3 earthquake. Can you believe this is not a sitcom yet? At least no tsunami warnings are being sounded as of yet.

Kids, if I get home with no other problems I will probably kiss the ground and my RV. Oh forget that, start praying that I return. Maybe God doesn't think I deserve a vacation, or at least not a dream one. I hope this nightmare ends soon, running out of money and humor. Gotta go, Kenny is sick, you know what that means, a working vacation.

Oh well, I just wanted a cruise, I could have cared less if it was a foo-foo cruise or on a Tall Ship. I see people do it all the time, why am I not allowed to be pampered? I still want my cruise, but I will have to make the next plans, as I am sure Kenny doesn't want to be held responsible for two cruise fiascoes.

Love and Kisses Barbie

Wednesday 28 November 2007 Grenada Still lol

I know that our avid fans are wondering why we didn't post yesterday. We simply forgot last night. We met a very nice couple (John and Lynn) from Liverpool, England and spent the afternoon and early evening with them. They are on holiday and we were able to share our views of not only our own countries but the stereotypes we have of each others country. We are not so far apart on our views, Of course we both have a patriotic feel for our homes, and was evidenced in the conversation. They have travelled quite a lot, and John has had the opportunity to live in the states also. We shared a couple of drinks and dinner at a local restaurant. We took them up to Fort Frederick to view the sunset. The clouds have been rolling in early evening so as not to get a great view, but a beautiful one none the less. Kenny is getting much better at driving on the left hand side of the road, but still drives like Kenny, anyone who has ridden with him when he is frustrated knows what I mean.

Around midnight last night Kenny awoke complaining of a sore throat and the chills. He said the a/c was too cold. I have it set at 16 degrees Celsius, don't have a clue how cool that is, but it won't go any lower. I need a cool room when i sleep, guess next vacation will be Alaska in the winter ha ha.

Today we went to the pharmacy, and got hydrocortisone for my mosquito bites, and throat spray for Kenny. To bad they didn't have any NyQuil, I know he could use that to sleep better. He hasn't gotten a fever, and we are drinking plenty of fluids and watching our health. Surprisingly, my sugars have been in the normal range so far, I must admit i have been cheating. Food is great, and when you are thirsty, and juice is more readily available, then you know what I mean.

Josepha, our housekeeper, is preparing the evening's meal, and we are eating a Lambi dish. Lambi is a seafood like conch. It smells delicious and I am looking forward to it. Oh well, that is it for now. I will write again later. May God bless you and yours, and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

Love Barbie

Fort Frederick, Grenada, WI

We've made arrangements with our housekeeper to cook some traditional Caribbean meals for us the next 3 nights, so after she finished her work at the cottages today, we took her the the market to select the food that she'll need. Afterwards we told her we would take her to her home so she wouldn't have to ride the local buses. Not far from her home, she took us to Fort Frederick to view the sunset. Well, with all the clouds, there wasn't much of a sunset, but I was able to take lots of pictures from the fort, which is on top of the highest mountain overlooking the St. George's area.

Instead of me trying to write down the history of Fort Frederick, I took pictures of the plaques around the fort so you could read first hand what I read. Some of the words on the plaques are hard to read due to damage to the plaques. Just click on the plaques and it will enlarge well enough to read.

The following pictures are views taken of the surrounding area looking from the fort. From these views, you will be able to see how this fort was an advantage point to protect the St. George's area.

Good Morning 26 November 2007

Let me start off by saying happy Birthday to my little sister Linda. I'll bet she woke up half the night waiting for my midnight call. Sorry, sis not at these prices. I sent you an email singing the song. I hope your birthday is great. We feasted on peanut butter toast with guava jam mm mm good. The day started out gorgeous don't you know. Kenny and I had our first bank experience in Grenada, If you think the lines are slow back home, there is no express lane, and everyone is on island time. I took 45 minutes and we were third in line. On customer said they were moving rather fast today.

Kenny and I hit 4 malls. Not American size malls, strip malls kind of. The prices are outrageous. I looked for Emily a Littlest Pet shop and it was 7 dollars compared to 4 in Wal-Mart. There were just a few, and mostly old ones that Emily already had. So toys will be bought in the states obviously. We looked at clothes and island gifts. They are of course at island prices too.

Off to lunch. There is a place called Carib Sushi, it too was high, but we ate anyway. A girl has to have her standards. LOL The sushi consisted of fresh red snapper and tuna with a Caribbean spice that added to the experience.. To say the least, Kenny didn't complain about the price due to the great quality of the meal. Upon our return to our cottage, Kenny decided to take a kayak trip around the cove to drool over some of the nice boats in the water. Either he hasn't seen the pictures of us, or didn't realize we were older and heavier, but the wind took control and took him down. I was relieved not to have gone, I would have panicked for sure. He had trouble getting back in the kayak, and a kind yachter came to his rescue. He brought out his dinghy and saved my husband. Brought him back to shore, and we live to sail another day thank God. When he returned to the cottage, he took a quick shower, and off to shopping again. Our maid, Josepha, is going to prepare some traditional meals for us for the next few days. I am looking forward to the meals, as the ingredients look interesting. But I will bet the food is great. Tomorrow we are planning to lay in the sun and just enjoy the water. I know it is amazing that I have enjoyed the water, but yes, I do look for fish and creatures, and if and when I see one, it may be my last venture in the waters. I hope they stay away. We are taking Josepha home via a fort that promises to have a picturesque view. Kenny will give you the information on this evening's adventure. Love and Kisses to those back home. Will write again tomorrow. Barb sends.

Driving around the Island in pictures

So far we have taken over a hundred pictures since we've been here. Here I've posted some pictures we took while driving around the island.

Coming into St. George's, the capital city of Grenada.

The village of Gouyave, French for Guave.
"Fishing Capital of Grenada"
There is a Fish Festival here every Friday night.

This is the super highway around the island.
Here people drive on the left side of the road - mostly.

When we came upon this spot in the road,
we had to make a couple of U-turns to get back to it.
I'm sure the Sallee family will enjoy it.
Click HERE to read about this place.

Boating is big business in Grenada.




There are miles and miles of coast line here in Grenada.



Here is Barbie with our "Jeep."



Here I am waiting for the sunset.



Sunset in Grenada near the Cruise Ship Terminal.

Sunday Evening 25 November 2007

Ok, so we swam, the water was nice and warm. Kenny took pictures of me, Dagnabit I hate pictures of me. We took a drive and watched the sunset. Beautiful skies and water. Of course we drove around and got lost a few times. Oh Well, life be's that way. Upon our return, Kenny had the task of cooking dinner (code word: dining out). We went to Choo Lights for Chinese dinner. The food was reasonably priced, and we were given a pitcher of water with a refill on the pitcher. We are drinking lots of water, unfortunately it is bottled, the tap water here is not too good and certainly not recommended. Kenny should be posting pictures soon, but just in case, check back in a week. It seems strange not talking on the phone or watching television, who knew there was other things to do??? Not me. There is a movie theater here, and maybe I will partake of a movie. We are going to the mall tomorrow. Hopefully will do some shopping. I have been really enjoying this trip. Kenny has too. We are relaxing and having much fun together. Enclosed is a picture taken of the sunset tonight. Hope you enjoy. Love Barbie and Ken.

Sunday in Grenada

Good Morning,

A beautiful morning it is too. We awoke to the sound of birds singing and the gentle rain on the roof. The rain has stopped and a nice cool breeze is waving through the apartment. It is amazing how the beauty of this country captivates you. I should be having a bloody Mary right now, but alas, I cooked bacon and eggs with toast and Guava Jam. Kenny did the dishes, after all this is my vacation too. We have enjoyed so far, but the prices are a bit higher than the states. The economy is almost equivalent to that of California lifestyle. We went to an IGA yesterday and bought some food to prepare ourselves. I think we will be taking advantage of the maid cooking during this next week. She is a very nice lady, Josepha, and has 4 children. Her oldest lives in the Atlanta area.

Most of the people here walk and take taxi's. The driving has been to say the least a bit scary. It reminded me of driving in the Philippines. The front bumper rule, "He whose bumper is in front has the rule" You need to be aware of the drivers more than the road. It makes no difference where you stop or park obviously. We may need a vacation when we get home (ha ha). I'll bet Kenny doesn't complain about Florida drivers upon our return. It has been scary and funny watching him drive. It is almost like a deer in the headlights.

The ocean is calling, and we must check it out. Will post this evening about today's adventure. May the Good Lord bless and keep you well. This is Barbie signing off till later. Love and Kisses to all the ones back home.

Lance Aux Epines Cottages

After we were notified that our Windjammer cruise was canceled, Barb and I said we are going to Grenada anyway and we'll have a great time. Our original plans were to stay a couple of night in a hotel before the cruise then 3 more after the cruise. Well because of the extra lodging expense we had to rethink our plans. An individual on another board told us about bidding on our accommodations at www.skyauction.com. We found an interesting place and decided to place on it. Our bid was for $26 a night plus $32 a night for taxes and services charges totaling $58 a night for 10 nights. When we arrived, we were both astounded with what a beautiful place we had. The following pictures will tell it all.

Lance Aux Epines Cottages, St. George's, Grenada, West Indies

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