Well, Grenada is just as gorgeous as I had hoped, as you can see in the photo above of Grand Anse beach, which is right where I'm staying. Grand Anse is like a vacation advertisement come to life: two miles of white sand surrounding a sheltered cove. It has that calm, warm water that lure people to the Caribbean and keep them coming back. And the island's lush, hilly terrain makes the scenery spectacular.

I arrived in Grenada at 5:15am this morning (on an overnight flight from JFK on Air Jamaica), and my first observation was that it was quite humid, which I hadn't expected it to be so early in the morning. My second observation was that the island smells really good — there's an omnipresent yet subtle floral scent. I had read that Grenada would be fragrant, but I didn't really believe it. But it appears to be true. Flowers seem to be growing everywhere, and I think the thick air must help hold the scent.

My third observation is that the name is pronounced Gre-nay-da not Gre-nah-da. This new-found knowledge will not only be useful while I'm here but also when I'm back home because people will know that I'm talking about the Caribbean island and not the city in Spain.

My fourth observation is that the sun sets surprisingly early here. I observed this after I missed the sunset, which must have been around 5:30pm. I heard that the sun goes down very quickly because of the proximity to the equator. Hopefully I'll get to witness that tomorrow.