Up next on the island tour was Belmont Estate in St. Patrick. In my opinion, this was the highlight of the trip. Maybe it's because we finally got to eat lunch! :)
Belmont Estate is a 300-year-old cocoa plantation in Grenada that is still fully functioning. They have a restaurant with Grenadian cusine ( not my favorite due to bones, bones, and more bones in the meat), a tour of how chocolate is made, an animal area, gift shop and lots more.
We ate lunch and then spent some time exploring the 400 acre estate. They had some of the most beautiful birds.
And a bell that they used long ago to call the slaves in at the end of the day.
Then we went on a tour of how the cocoa beans are processed. It still amazes me that somehow you can turn this...
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| Cocoa pod |
Into this.
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| Grenadian chocolate bar |
After the beans are fermented in these shed-like things, they are then placed on these large tables to dry out for about 8 days.
The roofs are on wheels and if it rains, they can quickly be rolled over the beans to protect them. The beans must be "walked" every half an hour while they are drying out. And what better way to have them turned, than to have the tourists do the work for you!
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| Walking the beans! |
It was actually pretty fun. Although I don't know if I would want to do it every half hour in the hot Grenadian sunshine. Even my sun-worshiper self wouldn't enjoy that.
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| Walking creates fun designs in the beans! |
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| Kelsey and I in the beans. |
I loved Belmont Estate and I want to go back soon. Anybody up for a second trip?!?
excuse me, are these pictures on facebook??
ReplyDeleteI didn't think so.