Snorkelling paradise

In the morning we went snorkelling the other end of the island. We swam there from Pole Pole for a good bit of exercise which has been desperately missing from our lives the last few weeks. We had hardly gone any distance when we spotted some sting rays. One just kept swishing sand over himself, not sure if he was trying to hide or that a sand bathing is something they do for a reason. Luckily going there was against the current so we knew it would be an easy swim back. We quickly arrived at huge coral beds, really dramatically different from what we had seen before, big cliffs of elephant ear coral and loads of round headed coral that looked like huge collections of smooth round colourful spongy pebbles. Lots of interesting and different fish. We saw a huge ray swimming on our return, not the spotted ones we had seen in T&C’s but equally big with very bulbous eyes. It all looks stunning in the sunlight, and was just my kind of perfect snorkelling. We haven’t seen a shark since the Bahamas so I’m definitely feeling more confident.

Bedroom view…

What a view for breakfast!

The great snorkelling spot

The rain and cloud comes and goes which is a bit of a relief in the heat, but the solar panels are charging like fury so we must be getting a lot of sun too. So wonderful to make water every day without having to switch an engine on.

In the afternoon we went across to Paradise beach to have a walk along the beach and do some exploring. We moored out in the water in front of Alison’s Paradise bar. We had a lovely walk along the beach, passing a number of bars all looking forlornly empty. One had some locals at it, playing an interesting game which looked a bit like dominoes, but otherwise everything was very closed. Heading in the other direction to the end of the beach, we came to the end of the airstrip for small planes on the island. We have seen no planes landing since we arrived, which makes you realise how quiet it is. We came across an area on the beach with lovely colourful little buildings. One was a container with a lady selling tasteful touristy stuff, we arrived a minute before closing time at 4:30pm. I made it worthwhile for her! Adding more when she said times were so tough, she hadn’t had a sale in days. Grenada is famous for its nutmeg so I stocked up on some, it will make nice pressies to take home.

Looking back to Sandy island, colourful local boats at the beach. You can just see Pole Pole’s mast above the tree line, the other boat is the creepy Austrian!

Gorgeous vegetation on the cliffs at the beach

I love the colourful buildings as well as the boats.

My mega purchase at this shop

We returned to the bar for a sundowner, I opted for a G&T after our knockout rum punches from a few days ago! Oh my I wish I had stuck to the rum punch! We were the only people there and felt very guilty leaving after only one drink.

Sandy island in the distance

Mozzies and G&T were too much for me!!!