I always feel melancholy when it's time to leave a beautiful place, especially a beautiful island. Today is no exception. It's almost time to gather our things and make our way to the Carriacou airport. We'll fly first to Grenada and then to Trinidad, where we'll overnight before returning to New York tomorrow.
Yesterday we took a water taxi to Sandy Island, an arc of perfect beach not far offshore from Hillsborough. The sea has been turbulent these last few days and our six hours on Sandy Island were a bit wild. To begin with, the waves were hyperactive and unpredictable. In addition, the sloped beach was covered with rocks that moved violently with each wave. This made getting into the water a bruising affair. We soon mastered the art of careful entries and quick exits in order to avoid foot and ankle injuries, but the whole thing was a bit more extreme than we'd expected.
On Thursday we journeyed to Petite Martinique, an island presented by guidebooks as an idyllic backwater. In truth, it's not the most interesting place for a day trip from Carriacou. The beach is a working one, devoted to boatbuilding, and the town is very small. If we had a few weeks on Carriacou, Petite Martinique would have been an obvious excursion. But given the five nights we had here, it was probably not the best use of our time. It's all relative, of course.
Forgive the lack of organization in this post. We've eaten well here on Carriacou. At a shack along the beach near the Hillsborough jetty, Cuthbert Snagg served us lobster one night and kingfish on another night, both incredible, and in a gorgeous lantern-lighted setting, to boot. (Snagg also ferried us to both Anse La Roche and Sandy Island.) Sea Wave Restaurant in the heart of Hillsborough also served us some good hearty meals, including roti, and delicious nutmeg ice cream. At Green Roof Inn, where we've been staying, the breakfasts have been lovely, the coffee strong, and the dinners delicate and wonderful. Last night's gravad kingfish in dill mustard sauce was especially delicious. And I can't neglect to mention Patty's Deli. The deli packed us a great picnic lunch yesterday for our Sandy Island adventure.
