S/V Koinonia Weekly Sailing Log - Grenada Week 2 and Tragic News (Wed Sep 13 - Tue Sep 19, 2023)
Highlights this week, touring the island of Grenada; feeding and holding the wild Mona monkeys and hiking to 7 sisters waterfalls; lots of fresh fruit and spices; Amber’s mother celebrates her birthday; tragic news as we learn about the death of Amber’s middle brother, Daniel; mourning his loss and connecting with family and friends; Ben works on some boat projects; made new friends with boat families in St George’s.
Wed Sep 13 - Amber and the kids do school. Ben completed a consulting project and then discovered an issue with the floor in the shower and began the demolition work to repair it. Went ashore in the afternoon to dispose of trash and then hiked to the top of a very steep hill overlooking Grand Anse and St George’s Harbour with our friends on SV Bagia. Ben met with some brokerage clients for a consultation. Amber made "egg roll in a bowl" for dinner. Today was Amber’s Mom’s birthday; called to wish her a Happy Birthday.
Thu Sep 14 - Amber and the kids do school. Ben made sandwich bread in the solar oven. Went ashore to Island Water World (marine store) to buy some materials and a couple of tools to repair the shower basin on the boat; went by Food Land to buy a few staples, then returned to the boat; Ben started the repairs on the shower basin.
Fri Sep 15 - Amber and the kids do school. Ben continued working on repairing the shower basin; made a baguette in the solar oven. Went to the cruise ship terminal to drop trash and then walked downtown to the market to explore. Wanted to find cilantro, but none available today. Tons of spices and fresh fruit of all kinds for cheap. Made Puerto Rican beans and rice for dinner.
Sat Sep 16 - took a taxi ride with two other boat families to the Grand Etang National Park to see the lake in the crater of the dormant volcano and feed the Mona monkeys; the monkeys are not indigenous but came over on slave ships from Africa during the 18th century. The kids had a blast feeding and holding the monkeys; they are surprisingly heavy! Next, we hiked to the Seven Sisters Waterfalls where we swam and played for an hour or two. Ate lunch at a local restaurant where we ordered the national dish called “oil down.” It was okay but we learned from our friends that the version we tried was very sub-par. Finally, we picked up some nice breadfruit and passionfruit from a produce stand on the roadside on the way back to the marina. Came back to the boat and ate leftovers for dinner.
Sun Sep 17 - got dressed and went ashore to go to worship. Afterward, we went to lunch at the West Indies Beer Company, which was very reasonably priced, serving a full English breakfast, fish and chips, hamburgers, pancakes, iced coffee, tons of craft beers and ciders, etc. Lunch cost our family $52 US, including drinks and tip. Returned to the marina and “Green Man” gifted a huge bag of guava, breadfruit, sugar apples, and a nice papaya. We let the kids play for a while at the marina, then returned to the boat. Started watching “War and Peace” with Audrey Hepburn.
Mon Sep 18 - the girls do school and Ben continues working on the shower floor. Filled the fuel tanks with diesel and then took the empty Jerry cans ashore to the yacht club to get them filled which cost $425 EC ($157 US). Came back to the boat and got the kettle grill out and polished it and cleaned the inside. Took the laundry ashore to the drop-off facility, then went for a walk to the beach on the west side of the marina where we discovered a massive fire pit surrounded by large stones and a perfect field for the kids to play with beautiful gardens and trees perfect for climbing. I put Amber on my shoulders and we harvested four nice coconuts. Bought two bags of ice at the marina, then returned to the boat. Ben cut open the coconuts and chilled the coconut water for tomorrow. Roasted a whole breadfruit to make an au gratin casserole of roasted breadfruit, butter, milk, onion, Gruyère, red pepper flakes, thyme, and sea salt. The breadfruit has almost the exact same consistency and taste as Yukon Gold potato when prepared this way. Amber pan fried chicken breasts to complete our dinner. Finished “War and Peace.”
Tue Sep 19 - a difficult day; it started when we awoke at 4am to the sound of our mooring ball banging into the hull due to lack of wind and slack current. At around 10am, Amber got a call from her parents and learned that her middle brother, Daniel, was found dead today in his home. Ben took care of lunch and the kids while Amber made and received calls from family. Emptied the forward head and continued working on the shower repairs. Took the trash ashore and picked up the laundry. Ben made dinner and fresh squeezed orange juice for tomorrow’s breakfast.
If you are so inclined, we ask you to join with us in prayer for Amber's parents, her family, and their friends at this time:
Lord Jesus, creator and sustainer of life and merciful author of our salvation, we pray for your peace and your presence to be felt by the McGowan family during their time of loss and grief. Your word says that you are near to the broken in heart. While the body of Daniel is with us no longer, we are thankful that his sufferings and the trials he knew in this short life are over and we pray that his soul might rest with you, where you make all things new, forever. Amen.
God Bless,
S/V Koinonia