I can’t think of a nicer place to while away a few days waiting for the weather to come right. Eventually it becomes frustrating the hanging around but I don’t think we have reached that stage yet.

 

Bermuda is a beautiful place albeit expensive. They try to tell us its expensive because everything is imported. That’s true but that is the case with most of the Caribbean islands particularly those in the Lesser Antilles and they are not that expensive. My theory is that Bermuda is stuffed full of some very rich people so they seem to be able to charge what they like. I do feel sorry for the locals who have to struggle with the outrageous prices. 

 

One interesting feature of Bermuda is that every roof and I mean every roof even on bus shelters and dog kennels is the same design and colour. Each roof is constructed of limestone slate which are then rendered and painted with lime wash. One reason is to make them hurricane proof and also rain water collection from roofs and other designated areas is the primary source of water on the island. The water is purified by the lime wash. Water is stored in underground tanks associated with each dwelling. There are no rivers, streams or lakes in Bermuda.

 

You don’t feel that crime here is a problem. The police are conspicuous by there absence. However they do have a thing about ‘Loitering’. Everywhere in every nock and cranny there are notices ‘No Loitering’. As an experiment I got Norm to do some loitering, nothing happened. I don’t think he was doing it hard enough.

 

The other day I went diving, I dived or as they say in this part of the World dove (the US influence) on the wreck of the Pelinaion. This was an ore carrier that went down on the reef in 1939. It was quite broken up but the stern section was intact and propped up against the reef such that you could swim right under the hull. Next dive was a reef called Cathedral. That had a cavernous swim through. Very impressive but not so many fish.

 

Yesterday Norm and I got our bus passes and headed off for the day. Firstly to St David’s and the lighthouse just overlooking where I had diven!  Then off to Hamilton. Hamilton is now the capital and has a neat and tidy and business like feel about it. There was no high rise development and it had a good colonial small town feel about it. Bermuda shorts were much in evidence for the business man population. This comprises linen shorts of very pastel colours, long socks usually white or navy and leather shoes, shirt and tie and maybe a sports jacket. Very smart. I would loved to have worn that outfit for work. We got our lunch from the deli counter at local supermarket and sat with the locals in the park having their break from work.

 

Next it was off to the Royal Naval Dockyard. This has now been developed as the cruise liner port for Bermuda. Even though there were two liner docked most of the punters had been bused off around the island. We spent a couple of hours looking around the National Museum which is housed in the fortifications on the north western tip of the island. We managed to take in the first half of the Brazil v Croatia match. Doesn’t Norm go on about the beautiful game, anyone would reckon it was the work of the devil. Thank goodness we will be at sea for the next few weeks so I don’t have to listen to him wining on about it. Onwards, our bus pass allowed us to use the ferries as well so we took the ferry back to Hamilton and bus to St George. There we heard that Croatia had lost 3 1. Looks like we could be at sea when Engerland play.

 

We are back on board RT. Nearly all of our jobs are done and we are only wait a provisioning shop and the off. We are hoping to make a move on Saturday but that depends on what the forecast says today. The chart shows three options for routing to the Azores. The southern line, this is a rhumb line and is the shortest distance, 1680 nm, the middle route curves north and is 1690 nm and the northern route which is 1740 nm. The more northerly the route the more likely you are to get wind in the right direction and in the case of the southern route any wind. The northern route reaches the southern limits of ice believe it or not and so there is a possibility, a very small possibility of what are called growlers, remnants of icebergs. We are planning on being somewherebetwwn the middle and northern route in order to increase the possibility of fair winds.

 

Off Diving, St David’s Lighthouse in the distance

 

US Research vessel

 

View from St David’s

 

Standard Roof Design with collector V, in the background an outdoor rain water collection area

 

Endless creeks like this stuffed full of boats, St David’s

 

Our bus arrives

 

Assembly House, Hamilton

 

Norm’s first attempt at Loitering

 

Doesn’t it make you feel at Home, by the way Hamilton is motorbike City and Bermuda is motorbike island

 

At it again

 

Hamilton Cathedral

 

You are not trying hard enough Norm

 

In the Park, note the fellas in their Bermudas in the background

 

Hamilton City Hall and Arts Centre, interestingly the clock is not a clock but a wind direction indicator

 

A few Spare Cannon on the Dockyard Ramparts

 

Cruise Ships from the Ramparts