Eco trek in the rainforest

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Our ship docked in St.George's which is the capital of Grenada referred to as the Island of Spice. It is a busy town selling agricultural produce as well as all the spices.They grow nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves and many others here. At one point the island produced 90% of the world market of nutmeg but a hurricane decimated the crops and they have never really recovered back to where they were. We went to the top of the island which is volcanic and now covered in rainforest. We trekked through the Grand Etang National Park with a guide who was extremely knowledgeable about all the local plants and trees. As we walked through he showed us the nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger ,papaya, banana and cashew trees to name but a few. All have good medicinal properties. Eventually we came to a river with a rope across and had to walk across it. Fortunately I had rubber shoes on so I was OK but others had to either take shoes off or get them wet. At the end of the trek we came to the Bamboo Waterfall and some brave souls went in for a dousing but we did not. Had to recross the river to get back and a cool drink at the end was well received as it was very hot. On the way back we had a brief stop at the Grand Etang Lake which is fed by rainwater and lies in what was a volcanic crater. We also saw a couple of Mona monkeys which are very cute. Unfortunately the ship was only docked for the morning as I would have liked to see more of the town but it was not to be, so it was back for a very pleasant lunch.

All we have now is the Trivia team quiz this afternoon. We came second yesterday. Later there is the Captains welcome cocktail party followed by dinner with one of the Officers- all go - no time to relax!

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