17 May 2011

Bermuda is truly a beautiful tropical island with pastel houses with white roofs dotting the hillsides.

Yesterday morning we were off bright and early and decided to visit the British Maritime museum. The museum really gives you the perspective of how it was in the 1500-1600’s here in Bermuda. It was interesting to learn the history of the island in addition to how Bermuda became the place to go to relax in the sun.

After touring the museum we walked through the “Dockyard” shops. There are many shop that feature local artists and local products. I purchased some jams and as I was asking for help choosing, I met the woman who makes the jams. What a wonderful way to purchase a product by talking to the maker and getting suggestions helpful hints.

From the dockyard we took a ferry across to Hamilton, the capitol of Bermuda. Hamilton is just a perfectly wonderfully tidy town. There are shops galore and they all have beautiful things to admire and buy. I purchased a great “wool” related tea towel that I will have in the shop. It should give you quite a laugh.

Walking through the town you notice that there is a scale to the buildings that gives it a personable feel. The buildings new and old are in a colonial style with Bermuda Shutters, verandas and the stepped tile roofs.

The white stepped tiled roofs called (wait for it) Bermuda Roofs, are made from large pieces of limestone tiles and painted white. This roof is designed to catch water and channel it down to the cistern that is usually located under the house. Bermuda has always been a bit short of fresh water and the catchments are in integral part of living here.

When shopping was done we caught a cab and had a tour ride back to the ship. Our driver/tour guide showed us the beautiful sites around the island from the large private homes in the “desired” areas of the island to the beautiful pink sand beaches and turquoise waters lapping at their edges. The water is a bit cool, so a quick entry was suggested by our guide.

I think that we were shown sites that the normal tours don’t show, but that is what made the ride fun. We were delivered back to the ship safe and sound with many stories to share with fellow knitters. We sat in the Schooner Lounge until 11 pm sharing out experiences and showing each other the treasures we found.

More as soon as I have time. Off to do some more sightseeing!