Following my working visit to Venice, Italy, to show at the Grenada Pavilion of the Venice Biennale, I’ve ended up in Prague, Czech Republic—formerly part of Czechoslovakia—for a week.
Most of my travel writing in part connects Grenada to the world, and being in the Czech Republic I discovered a connection when I gifted my hosts nutmeg and nutmeg essential oil I bought from the Grenada Cooperative Nutmeg Association (GCNA). We were in Wenceslas Square—a pedestrian tourist shopping area known for public gatherings, celebrations and demonstrations—when I learned that Maurice Bishop was posthumously awarded the Czechoslovak Order of the White Lion in 1983, most likely on 28 October, Czech National Day.
Wenceslas Square, Prague, Czech Republic. Photo: SLCT
I suspect the Order of the White Lion, normally given to foreigners for outstanding services to the Czech Republic, was awarded to Bishop for the agreements that would have benefitted both nations. Czechoslovakia was a staunch supporter during Grenada’s short-lived Marxist era, and various agreements on cultural development, defence, education, economic development, and agricultural development were signed. In October 1983, an agricultural agreement stipulated that Grenada would send 80 tons of nutmeg and quantities of fresh vegetables per year to Czechoslovakia between 1984-1988. An air transportation agreement for bilateral scheduled air services from Prague to Grenada via Havana was also signed. Soon after Bishop’s return to Grenada, however, the 19 October events terminated that alliance.