Hamilton, Bermuda

Monday, April 14. Hamilton, Bermuda. We enjoyed a leisurely day at sea and arrived in Hamilton, Bermuda, on a sunny and brisk morning. We have had surprisingly strong winds on this cruise, and today in Hamilton was no exception. They kept us cool, so that wasn’t all bad, but it would have been cool anyway since Bermuda is pretty far north. Hamilton is clean and spiffy with pretty pale pastel buildings and a decidedly British influence in the orderliness of the islands, of which there are 150, with 8 of them being big enough to acknowledge. These are connected by bridges and causeways and form the main part of what we know as Bermuda. 

We soon set out on a minivan tour with several other passengers from our ship and a knowledgeable guide who enjoyed showing us the sights. We drove out along one shoreline and came back along another. The first featured some of Bermuda’s famous pale pink sand beaches. 

Our tour eventually arrived at the former dockyard where the British and US ships were berthed during WWII. The main buildings there are now a shopping mall, but it is so far out of the way that it seems to be primarily devoted to tourist goods and seemed pretty pitiful to us. 

The marina near the Dockyard Mall

On the way back we passed barrack buildings that have been turned into affordable housing units for the local people. It may be a bit of a coup to live there, but again, it all seemed pretty far from the action, not to mention jobs and real shopping. There IS a nice marina there where sailboats dominate. The big cruise ships come here, they told us, because they can’t get in to where we were docked near downtown Hamilton. Another reason to be happy with our smaller boat.

Our guide pointed out many examples of the distinctive Bermuda-style roofs. The settlers quickly learned to cover their steeply pitched roofs with stepped rows of limestone, whitewashed with more limestone. Channels direct the rain runoff into holding tanks, providing each dwelling with lime-purified water for all the needs of daily life. Pretty amazing, actually, and the roofs give this part of the world a distinctive appearance as well, especially when coupled with the attractive pastel colors we saw everywhere.

Very typical roof--fresh and white

We toured the Anglican cathedral in Hamilton, an impressive old building. We also saw the houses of parliament. 

The Lower House, I think

From there we drove to the town hall, now a museum, where we saw relics of the early British settlers as well as some current art and a row of portraits of the town mayors. 

Eventually we arrived back where we started and set out on a walking tour of historic sites in the downtown area, including some quaint older buildings, so modern office buildings, and ending in Queen Elizabeth Park, which was low key but nice. Everything here is clean and well maintained—a very pleasant place to visit. 

Is he homeless or just tired? He's certainly the best kept homeless person I've ever seen.

I eventually went back to the ship while John went on a hunt for ANYONE wearing the famous but elusive “native” costume—Bermuda shorts. He finally found someone at the Princess Hotel. We were told that local business men and government workers do wear these, but they must have all been indoors working!

Our last activity for the day was another glass bottom boat ride to see the fish and coral that abound here. Along the way, we were also able to see Bermuda from the water. 

Lots of nice homes here!

A famous wreck posted with warnings to stay away

They feed the fish so we can see them.

Tonight on board we were treated to a huge barbecue buffet, the most interesting feature of which was the wind on the open deck where it was held. It was so fierce that food, baskets and bottles were continuously blowing over!