Bermuda: Day 4 - Island-Trekkin

Rain was predicted again for Day 4. We planned accordingly.

We got on a boat.

The rain hit while Carrie and I were riding the ferry from Hamilton to Dockyard.

I wanted to ride the ferry for two reasons: 1) I did not want to putter back and forth across the entire nation, and 2) you have to get on a boat at least once when you visit an island nation. Boats are a part of everyday life!

Despite the rain, the views were beautiful. Bermuda is very green and there are lots of small islands decorating the Great Sound.

Carrie got the most excited when she saw the cruise ships. She has a soft spot for Celebrity X ships.

I don't have a lot of pictures from the dockyard. We were too busy looking around! There was a glass making demonstration, rum cake samples, and a 1,000+ line of people waiting for a cab. Cruise ships carry a lot of people.

The dockyard was much changed from Carrie's last trip to Bermuda. It was swimming with tourists and tourist attractions. The beach was $5 admittance, stores were everywhere, and the National Museum charged an arm and a leg to visit. We declined.

The picture was free.

We enjoyed walking around the mall and looking at everything. The fort walls surrounded the area and lent a sense of history.

From dockyard, we began our trip to trace the island. Our first stop was the Pompano Beach club.

It was a trip down memory lane for Carrie. Her family stayed at the Pompano when she was a kid.

We went inside to eat lunch at the resort and hide me from the sun. My skin had begun to tighten and remind me clouds don't stop sunburns (we passed on paying $15 for lotion in dockyard...oops).

After lunch we climbed the lighthouse at Gibb's Hill.

I can't recommend our method for everyone.

Burns the calories, though.

We had some fun stopping for pictures to make up for the lack of digital memories from Dockyard.

In case you don't know me, I'm all about trying to turn something normal into something memorable.

It's more fun that way. Try it.

But don't do anything you wouldn't want to be caught doing. You never know who's watching.

Two-hundred steps later we hit the top.

Rule #1 if you don't like heights: Don't go onto any heights.

Rule #2: Don't look down.

If you're afraid you're going to drop your cell phone and it will smash into a million pieces or kill an innocent bystander: take a few quick picks and then pocket it in a hurry.

After the lighthouse, Carrie and I cruised along South Road. We diverted north to pass the hospital, the first (and only) dentist I saw on the island, and back into Hamilton. There was one stop I had asked to see since Day 1 that we kept missing.

The Blackwatch Well.

There was not much to see.

It was a small, capped and overgrown well in the middle of an intersection. We walked across the street to look. Carrie and I had to stand in the street to take the next picture.

The Black Watch was the first Independent Highland Company to be raised to join the regular British Army. It started as an irregular militia in the 18th century and served with distinction all around the globe. They dug a well in Bermuda, too.

I like history and I've been on a Scottish binge lately.

I would also be lying if I didn't add that the first time I heard about them was as a teenager in a science-fiction novel where the Black Watch was a name given to a battalion tasked with protecting the Star Lord before the collapse of the Star League.

After a day of riding all over the island, Carrie needed her ice cream fix.

I know she loves me, because she shared.

With the last light of day, we gassed up the moped and explored the Cooper's Island Nature Preserve past Clearwater Beach. St. David's used to be a US Military base. Carrie, being a Carrie and military brat, was able to point out different buildings from the old base that had been re-purposed. We saw some more derelict buildings while on the nature preserve. There's a lot of history on Bermuda for such a small island. 

We made some more memories and then returned to the cottage for our last night in Bermuda.

PS - I had my nerd moment in the morning. Carrie and I tracked down the island comic shop while we waited for the ferry.

Q'plah!

Bermuda: Day 3 - The Sunburn Begins

After breakfast, Carrie and I moped-ed in to Flatt's Village to the Bermuda Zoo, Museum and Aquarium. We parked across the street and headed over to start the adventure.

Flatt's Village

The entrance lead into the aquarium. The hallway was full of tanks of different atlantic fish found around Bermuda and/or the Caribbean. 

Carrie became very hungry when she saw the lobsters.

More rain was predicted, so we decided to move along and try the outdoor exhibits first. Carrie made friends with the peacock wandering about.

The rain caught us fairly quickly, though. We took shelter in a tunnel of the Madagascar exhibit.

Carrie hung out with the boa.

A Canadian family braved the drizzle while we were in shelter. Their passage helped me spur Carrie to move to our next bit of shelter.

After I read everything in the room (and Carrie had a power nap) we ran to the museum. Carrie immediately started to play "Look what Shane would like!"

Across from the museum was a hands-on but indoors exhibit. I held an urchin.

Carrie grabbed a sea pudding.

We learned that the weird mollusks we found at the beach on Day 2 were called suckrocks. Yes, there was a more scientific name. No, I don't care. Suckrock, suckrock, suckrock. The name is accurate and funny.

The rain was gone when we left the building. Carrie became the official animal ambassador. She greeted the wallaby.

She would have greeted the giant tortoises. They smelled to high heaven.

Carrie made great friends with the tree kangaroo. She spotted him pulling grass shoots through the cage and decided to help. If there wasn't a barrier I'd probably be stuck with a new pet.

The canopied room held sleeping bats...

..., and a pair of sleeping owls. Shane was not around and we saw owls everywhere. God loves irony.

Carrie's eagle eyes spotted lemurs running along the netting separating their enclosure from the one we were in.

On the way out, we caught the scent of a binturong. They really do smell like popcorn.

There were signs everywhere that said, "Don't touch the animals."

We didn't, but Carrie was clearly open to saying "Hi" if the animals offered.

I took pictures and read whatever I could.

We returned to the aquarium on our way out.

On the way home, we went to a supermarket for lunch.

I like to visit the non-tourist/normal places. I want to know what life is like for the locals. What would life be like if we lived there?

Our next stop was a return to Fort St. Catherine. This time, they were open. The fort has a small museum up top. Then you can descend into the tunnels below.

When the fort was operational soldiers operated by dim candlelight in the tunnels. They also had to change their clothes and remove all metal for fear of a spark near the gunpowder.

Times have changed.

There were some neat factoids hanging up all through the fort. It made me want to read through the Sharpe books again.

Fort St. Catherine is not a big place, but it was a fun stop for a history buff.

Carrie asked me to stop when the history buff took a backseat to the impulsive inner child. It's hard to see, but I found an unmanned cart that rolled very smoothly!

Carrie and I moved on to inspect the batteries.

Wait a minute....the Bofors was a placeholder while a period gun was being restored. I think that it may have been installed during WW2.

Carrie and I went home for dinner. We'd bought supplies at a grocery store in Hamilton the day before.

After eating, we went swimming.

There was a beach a short drive from the cottage on St. David's. We found something moving in the water. It looked like a snake. The local who shared the beach with us said Bermuda did not have snakes. Maybe it was an eel? It moved away when I inched closer to investigate.

Darkness was approaching, so we headed home shortly thereafter.

Top Gun was on. Carrie played "Danger Zone" in her head whenever we hopped on the moped, so it was the perfect movie to end the night on!

Happy Birthday, Carrie!

Happy Birthday, Carrie! I love you!

When we first got back from Bermuda, I found some Gosling's Diet Ginger Beer for Carrie as a treat.

Lo and behold she became addicted.

And, of course, the source dried up. I drove to at least six different stores looking for Gosling's. I tried to substitute different brands, but nothing tastes quite like a Gosling's.

Today, I drove out to the initial find and bought the only stock on the shelves. I'll have to keep checking back and buying whatever they put out. Otherwise our source could dry up!

Happy Birthday, Love! You're worth it!

For Carrie

This is for my wife...... explanation to follow....

Bermuda: Day 2 - Adventure is Out There!

A beautiful morning kicked off Day 2. Carrie and I hopped on the moped and buzzed off towards Hamilton, the capital city of Bermuda.

Traffic

Rush hour was a joke compared to Northern VA standards. We passed through a traffic circle where a man sat on a bench shouting "Welcome!" and waving and greeting everyone on the southern road. From there (or soon?) the road expanded from two to three lanes to accommodate the extra traffic. It was widest road I saw on the whole island and it could not have lasted more than a kilometer. 

It would have been incidence free if not for the abandoned car in the middle of the road. Traffic backed up. Other people on mopeds zipped down the center between cars without a care, but Carrie and I weren't that confident yet. We waited our turn in lane. Someone else didn't. They cut off the van in front of us. The van stopped short; shorter than us. Our front wheel nudged the van's bumper. I bounced up on the back of the moped but didn't go anywhere. Then the van drove off. I doubt they even noticed.

Carrie and I carried on. 

Hamilton

Hamilton was like the rest of Bermuda: Clean and Friendly. The buildings were taller and we were clearly in a city, but there was nowhere near the foot or road traffic I expected. It was calm and quiet.

And very pretty.

We found a moon gate behind the main drag. In Bermuda, it is considered good luck for newlyweds to pass through a gate together.

So we played newly weds.

The moon gate was part of a garden commemorating a visit by Queen Elizabeth. The path had pages of a local children's story for kids to read as they walked and chickens. Wild chickens that my wife had to chase.

None of the chickens let Carrie catch them. She had fun trying!

We walked across the entire front drag. We saw government buildings, stores, docks, and lots of water. 

I don't even like Bacardi, but that is a cool design for a building.

We turned around when the road bent and turned residential. It may have been the city limits for all I know. Our phones (and hence maps) were off.

We walked all the way back across Hamilton to the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (BUEI).

The name is accurate. The BUEI was a museum/exhibit about exploring the waters around Bermuda (or really anywhere).

There were plenty of things for kids (or in this case kid-minded adults) to do.

I was tired from all of the walking,...

...but Carrie was thrilled to be there!

We had fun playing around and taking pictures before we went upstairs to get our learn on.

The first room had information about the waters of Bermuda and the Lionfish epidemic. I was ready to join the "Eat it, to Beat it" campaign by the time we found the seashell art.

Even though Shane was with Grandma and Grandpa, we always noticed things we thought Shane would like.

Like owl sea-shells.

The highlight (for us) of the other exhibit was the story of the Odyssey recovering the lost silver of the SS Gairsoppa from WW2. Carrie pegged Mike Rowe as the narrator of the video.

We rode an interactive elevator down to the lower floor exhibits.

Carrie played Uhura.

There were lots of cool things to look at downstairs.

I was amused looking at the old cobs and the pieces of eight. We don't make them like we used to (thank God!). There were other replicas and items found in shipwrecks in the Bermuda Triangle and Caribbean.

Carrie had me pose next to an exhibit that showed the effects of pressure as divers go down.

There was an mock shark cage, too.

My wife showed no fear.

The rain came while we ate our lunch. We hunkered down after we finished and tried to rest. Rain does not bother me, but Carrie wanted nothing to do with it. It was as if the drops drained her of all energy.

It poured and time passed. I don't know how long. When it slackened up enough I convinced Carrie to brave the drizzle with me. She was not a happy camper! We looked into a store or two before the sun came up.

Then we were on our way again!

Saint David's
Carrie drove us out of Hamilton and followed the North road back to Saint David's, the island our cottage was on. Instead of going home, we puttered past our turn and went to see where the road ended.

We found a beautiful cove and empty beach. Bermuda is full of people, but somehow full of little areas like these.

We had fun taking pictures and poking around. Carrie found some cool creatures and shells we would learn more about the next day.

My wife also found a trail to an old fort. The clouds were threatening to rain again, but we forged ahead.

I hope the pictures show the contradiction. Bermuda is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, but I never felt it. Carrie and I ended up on a gorgeous stretch of rocky shore with no one else to be seen.

The trail was overgrown and disappeared at times. There were probably houses on the other side of a ridge if we had cared to climb it, but none visible from where we were.

Another perk of Bermuda: few bugs.

If we had been at home, I would have worried that walking through tall grass would lead towards ticks, fleas, and all sorts of critters crawling all over us. Bermuda has a lot of plant and fish life, but few animals. There are barely even any mosquitoes. It made me much more willing to chase after any trail we saw.

The rain started halfway through our trail walk. Carrie asked me if we should turn back.

She made the mistake of telling me the name of the fort, though.

 

We are children of the 80's! I didn't want to turn back when something cool could be right around the corner either. Too often great stories are missed by turning back too early!

The fort was not what I would call a fort so much as a pair of caves on the side of a cliff. There was raised earth with divots cut for a pair of cannons in a battery, but it was otherwise overgrown.

And totally cool.

Some people would not have been impressed, but I had fun. There were some empty bottles in the small rooms cut into the rock-side. I'm sure some Bermudan teens had a party at one point.

Carrie spotted another battery on the cliff on the opposite side of the cove. I posed and pointed.

Mission accomplished!

We had the choice of continuing the path or retracing our steps to get back to the moped. My first thought was to take the path we knew, but Carrie suggested we keep going forward. She was right.

We'd walked 90% around the coast back near to where we started. We went down the path and came out on the back end of a cricket field attached to a primary school. We walked to the road, followed it, and came back to where we had parked in less time than it took to trek to the fort.

The drizzle abated and we were on our way again. Daylight was a-wasting!

Carrie checked the map and we followed a road we had passed up to another old fort.

Once again, we were the only people on the hill. Several of the locals smiled and waved at us from their houses on our way up (Have I mentioned Bermudans are some of the most friendly people I've ever met?).

This fort still had guns.

Big guns.

Fort Popple was a much older fort. St. David's Battery was built before World War I (1910) and is now derelict.

I checked. None of the guns were loaded.

In front of the batteries was a memorial for all Bermudans ever lost at sea.

We tried to visit the lighthouse on St. David's, too. It was closed by the time we arrived, so we decided to cruise onto St. George's to explore there.

St. George's
Once again, places were closed. Carrie wanted to visit an ice cream shop she remembered. Closed.

St. Peter's church's door were barred.

Fort St. Catherine was shut down for the night, too.

Historical St. George's was mostly empty when we cruised back through in the waning light.

We saw the most locals when we took a turn on our way back from Fort St. Catherine's. Carrie saw cows and wanted to drive by. Down the road there was a primary school and a lot of people hanging out on the fields behind it. There was a community center nearby where we saw a movie playing through a big window as we zipped by. A group of teens saw us as we came to a T-intersection and smiled and pointed the way back into the town proper without being asked. We smiled a thanks and Carrie scooted us by.

We made it back to the cottage without further incident. We watched some TV, rested, and went to bed for the night.

It was an adventure filled day!