A Week in Bermuda Part II

Tuesday 14 July 2015

I was up early this morning for a yummy breakfast by Von. Dad and Von are staying just a few hotels down the south shore, so Dad picked me up on the moped to enjoy breakfast with them. Preston slept in after enjoying himself a leeetttle bit more yesterday with beers on the boat. ;)

This is the best chocolate milk in the WORLD.

After breakfast, everyone sans Preston (and Greg and Sherry/Susan and Dale- who went shopping for the day) met in the lobby to head out for a day of tourist fun at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute or the BUEI. Bermuda is pretty much the best place ever...and I will NEVER get tired of just sitting on the beautiful beaches and staring out at the ocean, but some days...you just need a break from the sun. :) We try to alternate the various different non-sun involved touristy things every few years. It had been some time since we'd been to the BUEI, so off we went!

Nana graciously got us all tickets and we set out to explore the museum.

The exhibits were pretty cool. The first room was all about the evolution of diving and deep sea expeditions.

Headed to the bottom of the sea!

The next room had a display of the destructive Lionfish. These invasive fish have somehow (whether by purpose from people carelessly dumping them from aquariums or by accident) made their way to this side of the world from the Indo-Pacific and they are DESTROYING the coral reefs. Lionfish breed rapidly and have no natural predators in the Atlantic. These carnivorous fish are eating all the grazing fish that help to keep the coral reef free of algae so that the coral can grow. The introduction of the Lionfish is truly an ecological disaster. 

In Bermuda, they have Lionfish hunting tournaments to do what they can to remove this invasive species. More and more restaurants are offering Lionfish as a dish in an effort to combat this problem. 

Here is some more info about this terrible issue. 

From that catastrophe, we wandered around into the next room to learn more about how human effect and pollution are harming our oceans. It's all very sad. :( But, the BUEI did a good job of highlighting current conservation efforts too.

There was a computer there with Google Earth and we all got excited and found our houses like we'd never seen Google Earth before. :P

Next was the seashell room, which is just beautiful, but I took no pics. 

We gathered for lunch at the BUEI's yummy dockside restaurant for a break in our explorations.

After lunch, we took the 'deep sea dive' under the sea to the lower level of the museum. It was pretty cute and the 'submarine' was operated by my grandmother's friend Pat. :) 

Down we go

The lower level was pretty cool and discussed plate tectonics, had an interactive jellyfish screen, underwater sounds, and my favorite exhibit...finds from Bermuda's various shipwrecks!

Bermuda is surrounded by shallow waters and treacherous reefs. The entire island is surrounded by the wrecks of old ships...many of which were returning from the 'New World' to Spain and loaded with gold and treasure.

Teddy Tucker, one of Bermuda's most famous residents made a life exploring these wrecks in the 50s/60s/70s. His most valuable find was 'Tucker's Cross' a 22k gold cross inlayed with emeralds. This cross is the subject of a great mystery...as it was STOLEN! 

GONE.

When Queen Elizabeth visited Bermuda in 1975, the cross was moved to a new location for her to view it. Just before her arrival, the cross was checked and found to be a replica! The real cross was stolen and even after an International Investigation has never been found! It remains one of Bermuda's greatest mysteries. Maybe the triangle swallowed it up? :D

We finished up the museum and headed back to Coco Reef for some down time. I sat on the beach reading until a brief shower chased me inside!

Preston and I joined Dad and Von for another great dinner in Hamilton.

Wednesday 15 July 2015

After a giant breakfast to bid adieu to Susan and Dale, we decided to stick around the hotel today and relax.

Please don't make me eat any more :P

I'm reading 'The Goldfinch', which is pretty good and very long. That's my review so far. I hate the main character, but the story keeps me interested.

We had lunch at the hotel overlooking the ocean and spent the afternoon lounging on the beach.

Preston got ready early and headed into town to meet his friend Mike (Wojo), who just happens to live in Bermuda. Mike and Preston went to college together.

I rode in a taxi later with the rest of my fam and met Wojo, Pres, and Wojo's girlfriend for a drink before dinner.

Every Wednesday in the summertime, Hamilton hosts a Harbour Night, which is basically just a street fair with local vendors selling their wares, food, and entertainment. 

These are some really good pics of us standing around...to get a feel for the festival ;)

We left Wojo to join my family at our favorite Italian place-Portofinos. We had TONS of food until we were stuffed and could hardly move. Haha. This trip has been SO much about eating. My Uncle Greg said it feels like a neverending Thanksgiving. Lol. Truth.

Another perfect day in Bermuda. :)


Just a little more...