August 2005 ~ Bermuda!, Fire Fighting Training
September 2005 ~ Bermuda Highways, Gone Fishing, John Smith Beach, Hurricane
October 2005~ Imagery, Visiting Bermuda
November 2005 ~ Hello - We are still Here, Our Place, What do I Do?
December 2005 ~ "All I want to do is Catch a Big fIsh"!, Our First Visitor, Peugeot Cabriolet
January 2006 ~ Happy New Year!, Sonesta Beach
February 2006 ~ Winter in Bermuda
March 2006 ~ BRrrrrrr!
April 2006 ~ April Showers?
May 2006 ~ May Daze
June 2006 ~ June Joining
July 2006 ~ July Joy
August ~ One Year!
January 13, 2006
Friday the Thirteenth
Some or the images were taken by Lori and of course the shots of her were taken by me. Then we played with them a bit in Photoshop. Can you believe that we were the only ones on the beach that day? If you are thinking that we've got it just too good here in Bermuda then consider that as I write this, I'm sitting in a garbage dump at 4:00 am.
So here we all are, starting another year. Wishing all of the readers of this web site a great year with good health.
Personally, I would wish for a somewhat less eventful year than the last one. I'm looking forward to lazy days and the acquiring of the Bermudian "lay back" attitude.
In this "January" posting, I'm going to display various images of the last couple of months and say a few words about each. As always, you can click on most of the pictures to see a much larger view of them. Just click the "Back" button at the top left of your browser to get back to the previous page.
One of Lori and my favorite activities is to take a ride on the scooter and explore for potential interesting photographic opportunities.
From where we live, we have the choice of going to the West (Dockyard) or to the East (St. Georges). Our favorite is heading West. The image to the left is of a typical entranceway to a private estate of which there are many in Bermuda. This is surprising considering the amount of people inhabiting each square kilometer. The combination of lush tropical vegetation and very old architecture (from the 1600s) gives the photographer lots of material to work with.
Mouse over the picture (move your mouse pointer over the picture)
One of our favorite pastimes here is of course eating seafood and trying to catch it. On our bike or car expeditions, we always carry at least a hand line and some bait.
At right, Lori tries her luck under the Somerset Draw Bridge, which is billed as the shortest "drawbridge" in the world. Her usual uncanny luck at catching fish eluded her this time, and we bought our Wahoo steaks form a local fisherman on the side of the road on the way home that day.
Bermuda is all about beaches. Just down the road from us is "Church Bay" famous for it's snorkeling because of the proximity of the outlying reefs. This is located on the South Shore of Bermuda.
Below is a picture of John Smith Beach. We've already done a posting about John Smith but this was such a pretty image, I thought I would share it.
At left is a beach with no name. Often we explore the coast and come up with deserted scenes like this. Access is often via an obscure trail or through the jungle. "Did you bring the hand line Lori?"
This image is worth clicking on to see a larger version.
So enough with the Beaches already! I'm just trying to make you people in rainy BC feel envious!
This will be my last beach image for a while I promise! To the right is "our" beach, just across the road from where we live. It is actually part of the Wyndham Hotel's beaches but the locals in our area are welcome to use it. It has thatched palapas, lounge chairs, showers and washrooms. All the privileges of a hotel guest! So when you visit, this is what awaits you just a short walk down to the shore.
As you can see, it is very private and spacious. Another "plus" that we didn't realize at first is that it is very much protected from the winds. The whole house sits on a giant cistern which stores the water that is collected off the roof. It is very clean and tastes excellent. In the background you can see our deck which is surrounded by a tropical jungle.
The Bermudian Toads are huge! Lori took this guy's picture in our back yard. They only come out at night and are valued for their prowess at catching and eating cockroaches, their main food of choice. They are also known for their poisonous skin secretions which will have a dog frothing at the mouth after licking the backside of one of these.
Lori was wondering if they might be similar to the "Cane Toadies" of Australia, where the adventurous receive a psychedelic "high" after licking the backside of the toad. She has yet to try.
Early Bermudian Weather Stone
Way back in the 1600's, the only way to predict the vicarious weather on this island was the "Weather Stone." To see how it worked, click on the stone in the picture....
Cruise Ships come to Bermuda from all over the world. The main terminal is downtown Hamilton where two ships can tie up end to end and the berths are full eight months out of the year. Front Street runs right alongside the ships which are taller than the buildings on the other side of the street. A favorite pastime is to sit at "The Beach" and watch the tourists. (See below for a picture of The Beach)
The image to the left is of the other cruise ship terminal in Dockyard to the west. This picture was taken from one of our favorite spots at Spanish Point. The other terminal for the big boats is in St. Georges. So you can imagine, at the height of tourist season, the Island is teeming with boat people.
At left you see a picture of the lobster we have here in Bermuda. I haven't caught one myself yet but plan to in the near future. This little one was bought for $30 from a local fisherman. Very fresh in that it's still jerking about. You see that we don't have to worry about the pincers as there are none. Actually there are long antennae that we've broken off in order to get it into our bike carryall.
This lob was barbequed with garlic butter for a short time and was delicious. Click on the picture to see how I prepared it
