Getting to Grenada

Travelling to Grenada is not for the faint of heart.  Of course a regular person would fly direct from Vancouver to Miami and then direct to St. George’s, Grenada.  It would take about nine and a half hours of flying time.  On the other hand, a retired person with lots of time, airline points to spend, might decide to stretch the trip out and maximize the airports visited and hours spent travelling.   Deborah and I chose the latter, not the former.

We started in Vancouver.  The airport was very busy with holiday travelers returning home.  Thank goodness for the Nexus cards as we sauntered by the long line at airport security and then breezed through US Customs.  We had a fabulous Alaska Airlines person who took one look at our convoluted itinerary, felt sorry for us, and gave our bags a free upgrade to “Priority Baggage”, to ensure it made all our connections.

Two and half hours later, we were in Los Angeles.  We were surprised that our second leg First Class American-Eagle tickets didn’t qualify us for the American Airlines Lounge.  Our long faces and puppy dog pleading eyes eventually turned the tide and we were soon partaking in free beers and wine.  Three hours later we were fed and recharged (Kobo, Ipad and laptop) for the next leg.

LAX

The LA airport was full of college football fans.  Michigan and Stanford had played in the Rose Bowl the previous day and folks were headed home.  I am always surprised by the wide spectrum of college football fans in the US, men, women, boys, girls, young, old, and ethnicities of all kinds.  They all sported their college colours and shouts of “Go Green” or “Go Red” were everywhere.

We managed a few naps on the three-hour trip to Houston.  We arrived to an empty George Bush International airport, too late for the First Class Lounge and a four-hour layover.  It was weird walking around a completely empty airport.  We eventually settled into a couple of chairs and watched a Bruce Willis movie, “Red 2” on the laptop to pass the time.

At 6 am we were off to Miami for a two-hour flight.  We had a great breakfast and a nap on the plane and arrived at Miami to blue sky and sunshine at 9 am.  It was off for a sleep and a shower before enjoying cappuccinos in the Admirals Lounge.

Arriving Miami

At 4 pm we boarded the plane for the three and a half hour final leg to Grenada.  We arrived at 8:20 pm to 28 degrees and clear sky.  We literally walked through immigration and were pleasantly surprised to see our bags patiently waiting for us beside the carousal.  We stepped outside, grabbed a taxi and arrived at Le Phare Bleu Marina.  It turned out the Blue Pearl was not anchored in St. George’s but Petite Calivigny Bay, about a two-hour boat ride from St. George’s.  Glen and Pam were there to meet us and we ended the day sipping beers and catching up.

Grenada Reunion - Pam & Glen

Blue Pearl - Our Home For Two Weeks

Our Home For Two Days

Paradise

Through the Channel - 100 kms Venezuela