When I was doing an interview for wanderingeducators.com with Jason deCaires Taylor, artist and sculptor of the Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada, I just fell in love with the beauty of Grenada. I love its history, as the Spice Island. I love the scenes - gorgeous coastline, blue blue waters, and the green of the island's interiors. As well, I have met some very friendly people!

Let me introduce you to two of them, our Grenada Editors, Suzanne and Howard Clarke. The Clarkes have a fantastic business in Grenada, called Grenada Seafaris. This is the type of business that we love to support, that of the small business owner who is passionate about their business and making a positive impact on their community and environment.

Here's their story:

SC: We left the UK in August 2004 and spent a few months in Fort Lauderdale getting our catamaran 'Leadership' (a Lagoon 410) ready for our voyage to the Bahamas and the rest of the caribbean in December 2004.

When we left England we had already travelled extensively and had decided that we wanted to live somewhere that had a better climate, a slower pace of life and somewhere that we could raise a family. We wanted to run our own business but we weren't entirely sure what we would actually do. Losing Howard's parents made us re-evaluate what was important in our life and decided to make some dramatic changes to our lifestyle. The fast cars and motorbikes got sold and replaced by an inflatable dingy and snorkel gear.

It took about 2 years of planning and preparation to make the change and leave our lives in the UK. We spent two and a half years sailing in Eastern Caribbean from the Bahamas down to Venezuela, had Sam en route in Puerto Rico and once he started to toddle at 9 months decided that it was time to set foot back on shore. We visited some fabulous places but Grenada was a unanimous vote for our future home.

When we first sailed to St George's in Grenada, Howard and I both found the island and its' people to be incredibly friendly and welcoming . The Grenadians are a hugely hospitable people who are incredibly proud of their heritage. It's a safe and hugely family oriented island which is great now that we have Sam. Unlike other places we've been to when Sam says 'Hello' or 'morning' to adults here they all smile and say hello back. Grenadians are also extremely welcoming to those that arrive with business ideas that enhance those already present on the island and Grenada Seafaris has been strongly supported and has been seen as a positive step towards increasing the tourist offering on the island. Hopefully you will take a trip with us in the future!

Here is some basic tour information:

Grenada Seafaris provides educational tours that focus on the picturesque and sheltered west coast of Grenada, which offer historical, geographical, and ecological information, coupled with an exhilarating dash between each site of interest. The tours take in some of Grenada's most spectacular landmarks and sites, including the Underwater Sculpture Park.

We offer a variety of tours to suit different types of people - short tours for cruise line passengers, longer tours for longer stay visitors, event tours (weddings, etc.), and special school tours for Grenadian students. By increasing awareness of environmental and historical issues, we hope to teach the next generation the importance of stewardship of our island.

WE: Thank you so much, Suzanne! We can't wait to visit Grenada and take a Seafaris tour. Grenada is so full of history and natural beauty.

For more information on Grenada Seafaris, please see:
http://www.grenadaseafaris.com/