Bermuda - June 2003

I don't know if Ross Perot or Michael Bloomberg were on the island that weekend, but I'm pretty sure John Travolta was. That's his private 707 parked at the St. George's airport. The story behind the plane (and Travolta's love of flying) is worth checking out. Sure enough, my dad had a recent airline magazine featuring the retro liner.

The Bermuda Wildcat If you're up for a fast time we recommend the Bermuda Wildcat, a 1600-HP custom catamaran that blasts around the entire island in two hours. It's pretty entertaining, and on a windy day (like ours) it can liquefy the innards. The captain tried to get us airborne at a couple of points, but no go... much of the ride was spent wedging ourselves into our seats as hard as we could, but at no point did it really feel like things were getting out of hand. The commentary is barely audible over the wind and '80s hair metal, but what I could make out was playfully abusive. Good trip. I took my older camera (Canon S-10) along for this ride in case it got wet. I usually use the S-10 for indoor shots and forgot to turn the gain down, so all my shots of the coast got scorched in the bright sun. Oh well. I'd say live and learn, but this is about the tenth time this has happened.

Okay, freaks: leave the ponytail as it is. I set mine loose to fly free in the breeze (like on that jetboat ride a few years back - second from the left in the back row) and spent the better part of an hour at home trying to get the snarls out. Much worse than it looks.

I Don't Have to Go to Vegas to Lose All My Money There's some decent snorkeling on the north side of the island, particularly around Tobacco Bay where the algae collects and the colorful saltwater fish gather to chew on it. Tobacco Bay itself rents snorkeling gear for five bucks, ten if you want fins. If you stop splashing the fins for a second you can hear the parrot fish chomping on the coral. Very cool. Long story short: attach your money to yourself if you don't want to leave it on the beach. Don't safety-pin your pocket shut thinking that will keep everything secure. And if you find the little bag of money with the phone number and don't know what to do, here's the deal: first tell yourself you wouldn't even know what area code to dial, then note the Bermuda currency and try 441. When my mom answers mention the little bag with the bills and the phone number and the 45 cents in change. If you feel like you want to return it to the guy who lost it - half the cash is in US dollars, half is in Bermuda currency. Pick your favorite half and keep that. You'll feel better, and I'll have a better ending to this lousy story.

The Town Cut The channel leading from open water to St. George's harbor is short but narrow. Watching the giant cruise ships pass a few feet from shore is one of my folks' favorite things to do on the island, and on their recommendation I joined them early Monday morning to welcome the Horizon to port.

Skies were hazy but bright to the east as we parked at Gate's Fort by the head of the channel. As the ship lined up for its approach a sailboat quickly decided to head into port. We finished off a thermos of coffee, set up camera gear and were joined by a couple from Arizona hoping to catch the passage. No sign of Mike the town crier. Behind us to the west the skies turned aggressive.

Mike arrived as the harbor pilot hopped on board the cruise ship to guide it through the cut. Then the rain came. With the winds up we all headed to our cars, figuring the ship would wait out the squall. Just as soon as we were safe and dry Mike started back for the point, surprised that the captain had decided to make a run for it.

We greeted the pilot boat as the drenching started. It was entertaining to watch the crowd on the upper deck of the Horizon pause and then scatter for cover as the front hit them a minute after it got us.

The woman from Arizona got to set off the ceremonial blank.

Following the blast Mike picked his way to the water's edge in the rain, ringing the town bell and bellowing welcome to the bravedamp passengers still on deck as the big ship sped past.

We scrambled back to our cars for good this time. I tried wringing out my shirt in the back seat but gave up pretty quickly.

It's a really tight squeeze. Check out the photo about two-thirds of the way down this page to see a similar ship (likely the Horizon or sister ship Zenith) emerging from the cut into St. George's harbor.

Good Restaurants We tried a couple of new restaurants and were very happy. May we recommend L'Oriental for sushi and Monte Carlo for continental? Both are very good, with Monte Carlo getting the nod.

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