CARIBBEAN CALLING

It's that time of year when white-sand beaches, palm-studded resorts, and cruise ships that gleam against turquoise waters start to sound pretty damn fine. We've got all that for you here, plus a few surprises, to inspire your next vacation to the world's best place for soaking up the winter sun.

THE HEAT OF THE MOMENT

Thanks to local chefs and entrepreneurs, Grenada's famous spices are more accessible than ever

IN GRENADA the air smells of cinnamon and cloves. Whenever I step off the plane in the aptly named Spice Isle, the country where much of my family is from, the first waft of that beautiful aroma tells me I am home. My childhood was shaped by the savory and piquant flavors of Grenadian cuisine: a cake called cassava pone; curried lambi (not lamb, but stewed conch); and buss up shut, colloquially named after the "busted-up shirt" appearance of Caribbeanmade roti. This island country is the size of Detroit yet manages to be the world's second largest exporter of nutmeg. Between the spices and its panoply of cultural influences-West African, British, French, Indigenous, and Indian- it's no surprise that the food here is so memorable.