Travel with Manfred

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Copyright © 2003 by Manfred P.. All rights reserved.

June 25-29, 2003

Turquoise Waters

A High-Class Getaway

by

Manfred P.

Keywords: Bermuda, Bermudas, St. George, Hamilton, Royal Navy Dockyards, Sommerset Village, South Coast Park, tourist, travel trip report, travel log, travelogue.

It was pitch-dark. The bus driver drove around dark corners, along narrow country roads and one bend followed the other. I felt like being in a black-and-white movie from the 50s. We were on the tiny island of Bermuda; on the way from the airport to the hotel. It was somewhere around 11 pm when we arrived. I was jet lagged and pooped. Yet the excitement of being in a new place, in a new country was stronger than anything else. I had to get out to stroll around and check out the neighborhood. Taking in the fresh night air and listening to the night birds I strolled to the neighboring beach.

Bermuda is a small island. It is some 20km (13 miles) long and only 1km (0.6m) in the widest spot. Hence, any house on the island is at most 500m (1500ft) from the coast. There are no large hills on the isle. Its highest point is at 270m (some 800ft) of elevation. The whole island is developed. There are no wild spots, no undiscovered corners left. Houses and properties cover the island up to the last square meter. Don't expect untouched or virgin forest or desert. Every square meter is owned by somebody. Also don't expect it to be cheap. It is a playground for the rich. The cheapest hotel on the island will set you back by US$100 per night and since everything is imported even in the supermarket everything is about twice the price as in the US. To compensate there is no income tax on the island.

Bermuda takes its name from the Spanish sea captain Juan de Bermúdez, who sighted the uninhabited islands around 1503. The Spanish however had no interest in establishing a permanent settlement on the island. Nearly exactly 100 years later the English came. They did build settlements. A friend of mine said that it's obvious. To the Spanish the island was nothing special, and the climate not more favorable than in Spain. To the British it was different. Bermuda with its warm weather was like paradise to the British used to the London drizzle. They stayed.

So while the name is Spanish, the history is all British. That is reflected in the language (English), architecture, traffic on the left side of the road, measure units and last but not least: Bermuda is actually British. Bermuda is not an independent country. It has autonomy but it is not an independent country.

Everything on the island is very civilized. There are no surprises; everything works like Swiss clockwork. I guess that is also part of the British legacy. While the history is British the culture is mostly American. The TV channels are from the US, the main imports are from the US and most of the tourism is coming from the US. This is not astonishing given the fact that New York, Atlanta and Miami are all less than 2h 30 min away from Bermuda. You can come here for the weekend. And from New York Bermuda is closer than Miami.

The locals are partially black based on their African heritage and white with English ancestors. Some 60,000 locals inhabit the islands. 18,000 of them in the capital Hamilton. Bermuda has an amazing number of churches: About 100. This makes it the country with the highest density of churches. One church for every 600 inhabitant. If New York City were to have the same amount it would have to have 17,000 churches! I was told that not only do they have this overdose of churches but that the vast majority (some 80%) actually goes to church on Sundays. Another unique element are the roofs. One quickly notices that the roofs are all identical and all a bit strange. They are white, with steps and without gutters, but with diagonally running beams. Local law requires that these roofs are used. The diagonal beams collect and channel the rain water toward tubes. These tubes run inside the walls into an underground depository underneath the house. The water is filtered and then used in the home. I heard that a single large house can collect up to 1,000,000 liters (260,000 gallons) per year. There are no rivers so catching and storing rain water is essential.

Besides the somewhat unusual roofs you will also notice the remarkable colors the houses sport. Most houses surprise through their bright pastel colors like lemon, lime, apricot and sky blue. It is pleasant to see such happy and joyful colors imitating nature's flower and fruit colors.

The island is small and just about everything can be visited and seen in one day, at most two. Public buses run down about every road of the island, not that there are too many. There are only 4 towns or villages: Hamilton, St. George, Royal Navy Dockyard and Sommerset Village. Hamilton is the new capital of the island, home of cruise ships, the neo-Gothic cathedral and a large mid-19th century English fortress.

St. George is the most romantic and charming town on the island. It was the former capital and has remained nearly unchanged. No modern buildings here. It is mostly a quiet place but occasionally waves of passengers wash ashore from the gigantic cruise ships. They periodically -- like the tide -- flood the small town. In town there is not much more than restaurants, tasteless souvenir shops, St. Peter's church, and unfinished church without a roof and three smaller fortresses at walking distance. At 12-o'clock they put up a show where they dunk a woman accused of gossiping and drinking on a century-old dunking chair right at the pier.

Royal Naval Dockyard is the third biggest village on the island even though it only consists of a pier for cruise ships, a dolphin pool inside the old naval dockyards, a warehouse turned into a small mall and a glassblowers' workshop. Add a couple of restaurants and you have seen everything man-made there is to see.

Sommerset Village is the fourth and last village on the island. There is not much to be said about it other than it is tiny.

A set of caves with the better known being Crystal Caves form a major attraction. The caves are unique through their turquoise water in them. On steps one descends in half darkness to sea level. The caves are connected to the ocean through underwater tunnels. At high tide the salt water comes in. From the ceilings filtered rain water drops into the pools. As sweet water is lighter than salt water they don't mix and the sweet water floats on top and forms a separate thin layer. Stalactites hang from the ceilings like petrified icicles. These images of the stalactites are reflected in the water surface. Flood lights are mounted under the water revealing its clear light green or turquoise color. The interaction of the white ceilings with formations formed over centuries and the green-blue still water make the cave unique.

You can read it between the lines. There is not much to see on Bermuda. Bermuda is not a destination for cultural vacation. It is not the place for sight seeing. It is not an island for adventure vacations. It is not the surroundings for 3rd world surprises like late buses. Don't come if you search wilderness.

But do come if you like to take tea at 5pm like civilized people. Do come if you like to play golf. There are 8 golf courses on the 20 km of the island. Do come if you like to be lazy at the hotel swimming pool. Above all come if you like beaches. Come if like the color pink. They say that the beaches in the south are made of pink sand. It is slightly exaggerated, but there are pink coral pieces in the sand giving it a slight pink touch. Pink is the national color it seems. All the public buses are pink. A gay (read: carefree, cheerful, gleeful, happy, jolly, joyful, merry, playful) color. Just imagine an island of big pink buses.

Come to Bermuda if you like lying on the beaches. There are not vastly many given the size of the island; but enough to spend a few days on different beaches. There are only two or three longer beaches. Most are small and some are private hotel beaches. If you prefer tiny coves, don't worry you can find those too. Most of the coast line however consists of rocks and sharp volcanic material. So don't expect this never ending limitless beach. The South Shore Park beaches are the better ones. If you come early enough in the morning you will even find a cove all for yourself. Since the water is usually shallow as the whole island is surrounded by corals there are no high waves. Bermuda is not known for surfing.

Come (during summer) if you like sunbathing. During summer it is nicely hot, somewhat humid. The sun is strong enough to tan you intensely in a short number of days. Come if you like water sports like yachting, sailing, diving or snorkeling. Just meters from the shore you can find colorful fish. Not in grand masses but enough to give you a taste of what Mother Nature has to offer. For divers a great number of sunken ships await to be explored. You know, this is Bermuda, the Bermuda triangle that swallows ships for centuries. The seafloor is littered so-to-speak with old Spanish and British vessels.

Above all, the top reason to come to Bermuda is the incredible color of the water at the beaches and the coastline. It is difficult not to be impressed and delighted by the turquoise crystal clear water. It fills your heart with joy and wanderlust. It conveys tranquility and peace. Being so transparent the water and its turquoise color represent purity. You realize that you are in a tropical idyll. Standing on the beach and looking out onto the clear light blue and light green openness stirs awe and admiration of nature. Who can create such a wonder?