5 Things Darius The Donkey Can Teach Us About Enjoying Grenada

Darius our hotel donkey hasn’t always lived in Grenada. In fact, he was born on the neighbouring island of Carriacou and arrived here by ferry about 7 years ago.

When he arrived, he really was a little wired. He was very wilful and wanted his own way about pretty much everything. You could say he was highly strung. Maybe it was his “mule-ness” that had him caught up in his determination to do it the “donkey way” or no way.

Over the years, Darius has chilled out. He has settled into his life here in the beautiful parish of St Patrick’s. Most of his days are spent working, standing by the roadside munching on grass verges and on occasion he will visit us at home or at the hotel. He ignores the dogs when they harass him. He knows he is bigger both physically and emotionally and carries on doing whatever it is that he has set his mind to in his own determined manner.

It’s not just Darius that can teach us different things. If we are open to their message, it’s all animals that can teach us new things from watching the way that they live their lives. From the patience of the lizard waiting to catch a fly to the birdsong of the bananaquit. They don’t have so many of those petty ways that us humans can have, and they know how to live in the moment.

Here are a few things that Darius teaches us:

1. Do what you enjoy. There’s no doubt that Darius has calmed down a lot since he’s been in Grenada. At first, he was a bit bucky, a bit bitey and a little bit rambunctious. Over time it became apparent to us that Darius needed something to do. Something to occupy him. Something that would make him happy. So, he got a job with a local man by the name of Jimmy and he loves it. Darius has calmed down, he’s happy and he spends time with Jimmy carrying cocoa and nutmeg down from the mountains. Darius is doing what he enjoys and he is happy.

The lesson? If you love walking, do walk here in Grenada, there are plenty of routes around the hotel, it’s all very safe and we have maps for you. If you love chatting to people, then you’ll find plenty of people to chat to. If spending time reading your books or watching movies really does it for you, then you’ll have plenty of space to do that and our internet is very good.

2.  Spend time with others. Darius doesn’t always want to spend time with others, but when he does he has the best time. He lets the little children ride him, he gets a cuddle from Mr Philip and he loves his dog friends. When he’s had enough, he goes off into his favourite spot to munch on some grass.

Mingle with the other guests as much or as little as you like. We are also here to chat to and all of our staff are very friendly.

3. Eat what you like. Of course, we’re known for good food and we grow a lot of our own. We recommend that you make the best of it. As for Darius, he loves bread and we’ll often give him some as we know when he comes to the hotel that he’s doing so because he has the day off and he wants some enjoyment. Eat what you like and enjoy it.

We change our menu every day. On Sundays we offer a BBQ buffet.

4. Do some exercise. Darius keeps in great shape as he is always up and down the mountains.

We don’t want you to go back home more out of shape than when you arrived, or your family and friends will be very annoyed with us! There are plenty of ways you can fit some exercise into your days at Petite Anse. Swimming, walking (on Sundays we have an organised walk, otherwise there are plenty of route maps in the office) and even doing some daily stretches on the beach can help.

5. Greet people. Darius will always say ‘hello’. The only time he won’t is if he sees Annie and he feels compelled to rush over to see her and ignore everybody and everything. He is even more keen to do so if bread or crackers are involved. Grenadians are very polite and will always respond if you bid them good morning, good afternoon or good night (which is used as an evening greeting more than a final goodbye).

Overall you can see for yourself that Darius has pretty much got things down to an art. He’s not our hotel donkey without reason!

Coming back to us humans, life can get hectic for us. It can be about rushing around achieving goals, meeting targets or even just trying to make the best of every moment to meet the demands of modern life. If we could all live a little more like Darius, then I’m sure we’d be more relaxed, and we’d enjoy ourselves in the way that is healthy for us both physically and mentally.

To find out more about staying with us, check out our availability page.