Culture Shock
The hike to the waterfall...
Grenada is well known for it's beautiful scenery, including the famous Seven Sisters waterfall. Of course, it was no easy task getting to the waterfall. First we had to hike about thirty minutes downhill, and when I say hike I certainly mean true hiking. I was surprised to see many of the older native Grenadians making the treacherous descent with us. It seemed that the elderly here remained active unlike their counterparts in the United States. Once we reached the bottom, the site I saw made every step, stumble, and scrape down worth it. The waterfall was wonderful, and we were even able to swim in it to cool down. The water was nice and cold. Some of the younger Grenadian teenagers were even brave enough to dive down into the water from the top of the falls.
If I thought the hike down was bad, the hike back up was even worse. I had to stop and take breaks quite a few times. Luckily, our driver Trevor hung back with me. Even with the workout, the experience was well worth it.
The animals of Grenada...
One aspect of Grenada that was particularly shocking to me was the large amount of stray animals that I saw in every place we travelled to. While we would drive through the streets I would see many dogs just meandering around, a sight I was not used to in the United States. Many of the animals were starving, but they seemed to be largely ignored by most of the population.
Grenada during the election...
By some insane coincidence, we just so happened to be travelling in Grenada the week before their election cycle, which occurs every five years.
You thought politics in the United States were heated? Try politics in Grenada! I have never seen such rampant advertising for an election as I did in Grenada. On every single square foot of possible space a political poster was displayed, and this is no exaggeration. People swarmed the streets in mobs to campaign for their candidate, dressed in the colors for one of the two main parties, green or yellow for NNP and NDC respectively. Citizens drove through the streets with megaphones strapped to the tops of their vehicles to loudly proclaim the platform for their party. I have never seen anything like it, and I'm certain that I probably never will again until I return to Grenada.
