Banana Thief

Back in July I moved into my own place. Just a small one bedroom, but good enough for me. The rent was within my price range, and it's a 15 minute walk to work. This makes it a very convenient location. From the street, the property is quite impressive with a front lawn that looks like you could play golf on. My place is an addition tucked away at the back.

One thing that I noticed after I moved in was that there was a banana tree right where we park our bikes (there's another apartment next to mine). Let me tell you, bananas take forever to ripen! I've been watching their progress over these past months. They came out in June/July, and have not seemed to ripen. I was worried that there was something wrong, but I've been told this is normal.

When I got home this evening, my neighbour pointed out that someone has stolen our bananas. Our single bunch of small, green, unripe bananas. Who would do such a thing?! How unfair is that?! We will probably never find out who has done this as the building next door is a cancer centre.

Whoever you are, how mean of you! (As if they might be reading this...)

However, what I'm really looking forward to is for the avocados on the tree down the drive-way to start ripening – this should be in about a month. I adore avocados, and have dreamed of having a tree where I live so you can imagine how happy I was to see this. We had better keep an eye on this, in case the fruit bandits come for these!

Cup Match Weekend

Cricket is so big here that at the beginning of August, we get a Thursday and Friday off for the big game - called Cup Match. This is Bermuda's cricket version of the Stanley Cup (sorry, don't know of the cricket equivalent). As well as it being for the cricket game, the weekend is a 4 day celebration as big as Christmas. This year was my first Cup Match weekend, and I'd say it was a pretty good time.

Tuesday, 4:45, I get a call from Bank of Bermuda to say that I'd won 2 tickets for the Bank's VIP tent at the game on Thursday. Food, drinks, and a shaded place to watch the game. Wednesday was the new Friday on this week. Everyone went out after work for a drink, followed by a last minute party/bbq at my co-worker's place. On the way there, I made sure to stop by the grocery store in case the warnings of the whole island being shut down for 2 days were true.

Thursday, was of course my day at the match. I brought a friend from BMDS with me who is Bermudian. Thank goodness for these tickets. The day was a scorcher, and being up there provided some relief from the sun as well as a nice breeze. We used it as a base between trips to the Crown & Anchor tent.

What's Crown & Anchor, you ask? Well, Bermuda, being a traditionally conservative country, does not allow gambling. Even cruise ship casinos must close down their casinos on board when in Bermuda waters. There's been some effort to change this law, but that story is for another day. Anyway, I digress... the 2 days a year that gambling is permitted is at Cup Match in the form of the game "Crown & Anchor". The table is divided in to the 4 card suits, plus a crown and an anchor. You put your bet down on to which ever suit you want, the person running the table throws 3 dice. If the suit that you bet on comes up on any of the dice, then you win. The winnings go up, the more dice with your suit. Imagine a tent full of these tables, surrounded by crowds of people - a great place for people watching, as it brings out ALL sorts. Each table has a guy and a megaphone, making the calls, and the tent is insanely hot from the sun and from the hundreds of people. The atmosphere was definitely uniquely Bermudian. I bet a little, won some and lost some. However, my friend took it much more seriously. On 6 rolls of the dice, he was up $550 and was smart enough to walk away.

The rest of the weekend was spent on the beach and in the water, and bbqs and dinners with friends. All in all, a very nice 4 day weekend.

Some photos:
http://www.cup-match.com/cup_match_photos.htm

Lizards and critters

My friend Jeannette sent this email today and thought it perfect for the theme of Bermuda experiences.

Dear People:

Unbeknownst to me, in addition to my pet cat and pet dog, I also had a pet lizard living under my dresser!

MIMI YOU MAY NOT BRING FRIENDS HOME!

At least it wasn't a CRAB like my friend Sandy woke up to one morning, which had apparently let itself in through the screen door it slid open all by itself as they slept, and it wasn't a little palm sized one either...it was a regular size crab that people EAT...EW I HATE CRABS!

My secret houseguest was probably the reason why I haven't seen any icky roaches around in a long while...well, save for last weekend's standoff between Cheems and Mr. Now-Dead-Roach...yes I screamed like a girl but only because Chimo followed it into my room and was sniffing at it and now I had this MONSTER in the doorway in between me and my saving-grace-banned-in-the-U.S.-so-potent-it-can-probably-kill-crabs-but-I-hope-I-never-have-to-test-that-theory-BAYGONE! What's a girl to do? THROW SHOES CLOSE YOUR EYES AND RUN....that's my only advice! I think I stunned the sucker so badly with my display of displeasure beause it was still in the exact same spot when I returned...
TO.
MURDER.
IT.

It's a good thing I actualy LIKE lizards and this one can happily live in MY YARD....and eat all the roaches it wants out there!

Living arrangements

Over the last month, I've been sort of living between 3 places. Or rather, I've had my belongings spread between them.

Mid-June, I started a 2 week house-sit looking after Piper the cat. Bit by bit I'd bring a bag over from home. It was a challenge keeping track of it all. When my friend came to visit, she stayed with me there. Between the 2 of us, it started to look like a bomb site what with all our things everywhere. When the house-sit was extended for a few more days, another friend arrived, who also stayed there with us.

To add another factor into the equation, it all coincided with me moving to my own place just outside of town. It became mine on June 22nd, so I started moving things over there after that date.

When leaving the house-sit, we were running around cleaning up after ourselves up until just before the owners returned home. A few things were left, as expected, but not bad, considering.

Now I'm fully moved in at the new place – except for a few items still at the old place... and except for some items I bought from a girl leaving the island in August.

And to think, I arrived here with only 3 suitcases!

Tall Ships

When I was 10, I remember my mother taking us to see the Tall Ships in Southampton. I don't remember much except that we just saw a bunch of ships on the water. I don't think we went on any of them, or what they looked like.

Two weekends ago the Atlantic Tall Ships race stopped in Bermuda to celebrate the BDA 400, and let's say that this time was much different – much more of an event.

They started coming in to Hamilton Harbour from about Wednesday. I think that some were late because the week prior had an unusually little amount of wind. The race was actually temporarily stopped when the ships traveled a record low amount of distance covered in a day. So the larger ones continued here on their motors, and the smaller ones followed.

Hamilton traffic was mayhem all of a sudden. Even mid-afternoon was like rush-hour. Front Street was crowded with tourists and sailors. The Russian crew stood out quite a bit with their uniforms and funny hats that they always wore, not to mention the fact that they all looked about 18 years old and under. I think the others probably blended in.

Thursday lunch time I took a walk over to see what the fuss was about and saw that you could go on one of them. It was a replica of the Bounty (as in Mutiny on the Bounty). This particular boat was built in the 60's for the movie. I'm not really a ship person, so my observation of it was that there were lots of ropes and cannons and as you would expect, it was like the deck of an old boat.

However, I don't mean to sound unimpressed. They were all beautiful ships and quite amazing when you think about it. The number of crew that each one requires, a couple of hundred, I think (give or take, I'm sure). The sheer size of them and their sails is something to see.

Saturday morning I had to work in the morning. But once I was done I texted a friend I hadn't seen in a while. He replied that he couldn't do lunch because he was on his boat. Then texted right back asking if I was on my own, and if so, he had room for one more person. I had to meet them by the yacht club in 15 mins. I was completely unprepared for a boat trip, but decided to jump at the chance. We ended up touring all around the water side of the ships, getting a close look. Too bad I'd run out of pictures on my camera.

That evening I had a déja-vu when we did the same tour on a sunset booze cruise. That was a fun evening. Once off the boat we were all feeling quite merry. Most of the crowd was going to the Pickled Onion (a nearby bar). On our way there, my friend and I passed the Uraguay ship where the crew was having a party at the front of the deck. Then we saw the gang-plank on. My friend suggested that we passed the barrier and go on. I thought of a better idea. We went back to stand by the party. Within 10 seconds someone beckoned for us to come on board. We spent the next hour or so partying with them all. However, nobody spoke much English, and I was reminded of the fact that I don't speak ANY Spanish. I tried my best, and asked in earnest if they spoke French. Ahh well. My friend quite liked Carlos, and she knew more of the language, so they were chatting up a storm (or as much as they could). I danced a bit of salsa with someone on their dance floor, but decided it was time to go where I could converse. We all left to join the others at the beer tent. The evening ended with me and a friend ordering junk food from Jor-Jay's chip wagon.

Monday was a holiday, and all the ships were scheduled to start up the next leg of their race. At noon, they were scheduled, to pass along the north shore on their way to the start point at Fort St. Catherine (near St. Georges). I have friends with a balcony with a prime view, and they had invited some of us over. At 11:30 I got a frantic text saying that they had started coming early. I guess they were not on island time! Luckily, I was nearby and ready to go, so hopped on my bike to get there in good time.

This was something to see! The ships paraded past, surrounded by every small-craft owned in Bermuda. There were hundreds of them! The Tall Ships didn't really have their sails up, but it was still amazing to see them sailing by. I even saw a small Canadian one. Didn't know that we even had one there.

So judging by the length of this blog entry, this Tall Ships experience was much more eventful. And it's still continuing as 2 more arrived this past weekend. One from Spain, and one from Portugal. Apparently they're meeting up with the rest when they hit NYC.

Crisp Delicacies

If I were to make a list of my favourite foods, I would definitely include chips/crisps. I know that some people may argue that this is not a viable food to go on a favourite food list, but I definitely enjoy them as much as anything else I'd add to it. If there is a bag of plain Ruffles around, I have absolutely no will-power to stay away.

Every couple of years I make it over to England to see family. One of the things I like to do while I'm there is to find – and try – the weirdest crisp flavours that I can find. In the past I've had "Roast Lamb With Mint" (which really did taste like that), "Baked Ham With English Mustard" (also weird and good), "Roast Chicken With Thyme", and "Sweet Chilli Pepper" (which you see everywhere now).

I'm typing this blog having just arrived home from my latest U.K. trip. Overall, I found it hard to find weird and wonderful flavours. I noticed that a lot of them had exotic names, but they were just the usual flavours in disguise – "Strong English Cheddar And Spring Onion" sounds suspiciously like Cheese And Onion to me. However, I did manage to find 3 new ones.

First I found "Oriental Ribs". What can I say? They tasted like ribs with an oriental sauce. Quite good. Next I found some that were "Scottish Heather And BBQ". These were good, but as far as weirdness goes, they were ordinary. I thought the "Heather" in the name would give them a 'floral' hint (sounds like I'm talking about wine), but nope. When I arrived at Gatwick today I immediately scanned a store for crisps and hit jackpot. The strangest sounding flavour yet was "Builder's Breakfast", by Walkers. Amazingly they managed to recreate the taste of eggs and bacon. They were quite good.

Someone mentioned to me that the European Union has proposed that they stop the insanity with crisp flavours because of the high level of additives. I say, if you're eating crisps, you aren't going to be too worried about additives. I wish I'd seen the "Chili And Chocolate", or the "Fish And Chips" ones! If anyone's going to England soon and sees them – bring them back for me. I might even share...

Attack of the Portuguese Man O' War

My brother is visiting at the moment. The weather has cooperated, and is predicted to stay nice until he leaves on Tuesday. Last Sunday we headed up to St. Georges to look around the town and do a bit of snorkeling at Tobacco Bay. The water's still a bit on the cool side, but once you're in, it's quite nice. It just takes a bit longer to actually get in.

Once at the beach, we had our picnic and got ready to snorkel. On a closer look at the water I noticed a Portuguese Man O' War. Then saw more, and more. They are jelly fish type creatures that float on the water and have tenticles hanging down. They aren't actually jelly fish, but I don't care, they can give you a painful sting.

There was a kid that was throwing rocks at one that had floated close to shore. Next thing you hear is him screaming in agony because it had stung his hand. I think he must have lived nearby because he went running up the street.

We thought it best not to go in the water there and tried our luck at another beach. At Achilies Bay we did go in, but then saw a few, and quickly got out. Maybe we'll try again on the south shore today.

We must be very clean people

The Bermuda landscape is dotted with the white roofs of houses. When I first arrived, I wondered why nobody decided to do something different and have a red roof. The reason is that this is how fresh water is collected. The island has no source of fresh water except rainfall. So it all has to be collected from the roof. They are designed so that the water is directed down the pipe that leads to a water tank under the house.

Technically, as long as you aren't wasteful, there should be enough rain to give you enough water. However, that seems to be easier said than done. When we moved into this apartment last May, we asked about the size of the tank, and whether both units were drawing from the same one. We were told that our tank was so large that "we'd have to be very clean in order to run out". It is apparently 20 feet deep, and runs all the way to the back of the house (it's a long house).

The day after our Thanksgiving party I started doing the dishes and put a load of laundry in. Then I heard something turn on. It sounded like the fridge, but louder. I expected it to turn off, but an hour later, it was still going. Actually, it continued all day. I suspected it had something to do with our water supply because we kept losing pressure. I asked our plumber friend, turns out it was our water pump. When it doesn't turn itself off, you know you're out of water.

Luckily, the good news is that when you run out, there are companies that come and fill your tank. The bad news is that it isn't cheap. We ordered 3 truck loads that time. In about a month we were out again. So far we seem to run out every 6 weeks. Technically we should cough up and get as many loads as it takes to fill it up. It's a $ thing I guess.

You try to do what you can to not be wasteful – like not leave the tap running when you're brushing your teeth, taking shorter showers, making sure you only do full loads of laundry and dishes. But you've still got to do these things. Another possibility that people have suggested is whether we have a crack in our tank. I'd say this is unlikely though, because it's a brand new house.

Excuses

It's been a little while since my last post. I guess because I've been fairly busy heading up painting for the upcoming play Absurdities of the Season – 2 plays by the French playwright Eugene Ionesco. Luckily the set wasn't too complex as they both take place in an a residence. This meant that most of it was like painting a house. The most time consuming thing to paint was a backdrop scene to go behind the window. Last night I finally finished it. Just in time, because the play starts tonight!

Here's a picture of the backdrop. For the most part I was happy with it, but I got the perspective on the middle roof wrong, and it's all I can focus on. Oh well, you live and learn.



Also keeping me busy was the karaoke party that my friend and I hosted last Saturday. We rented out the theatre bar, so were able to take advantage of their A.V. system. I downloaded a player for the laptop along with a collection of karaoke song files. Then with the help of someone, we hooked it up to the projector and sound system. The result was a really fun evening. Our party has caused the people at BMDS to decide that they need to have karaoke there more often. Yay!

Here's an album of the karaoke party.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=218604&id=658425205&l=fa28eda49f

Our Canine Roommate

Last September, one of my roommates ended up having to leave Bermuda. Luckily, our friend Ashley was able to move in. With her, came a French Bulldog named Zoe.

I've never lived with a dog before, but she's a good dog – for the most part. Generally, she's pretty calm, and hardly ever barks. She also makes a great vacuum cleaner in the kitchen, as she's always there if you drop something.

What may be her downfall is catching toads. I took her out for a quick walk one night. When we approached the driveway, I saw that she had a massive toad between her jaws. She was doing her best to flatten this thing. But try as I may, I could not get her to drop it. Eventually I picked her up, and that caused her to lose her grip. When Ashley got home and I told her about it, she asked if Zoe was foaming at the mouth. Apparently, toads are quite poisonous to dogs. Luckily, this time she wasn't affected.

After yoga last Monday, I found out that she'd caught another one. Once back in the house, Zoe was walking in circles and then her legs started giving out. When she had a seizure, she was rushed to the emergency vet.

She's fine now, and on medication. However, whenever I walk her I can tell she's hunting for more toads. Silly dog.

January Weekend

My weekend was good – it was quite cold here though. I actually had to use the heat last night. The houses get so cold because there's no central heating with concrete walls, tiled floors, and no double glazed windows.

Went to a restaurant called Beau Rivage for someone's birthday on Friday evening. It was great, but a big splurge. My starter was the daily foie gras and was absolutely amazing. I ordered the lamb for a main, and wasn't too struck with it, mainly because it was over cooked. Still, I'd go back there again because the other mains looked good.

Saturday I met a friend in town for lunch and ran some errands in the afternoon. Then in the evening we had some friends over for a 'make-your-own-pizza' dinner. This is a great idea for a small party. You provide all the ingredients such as pre-cooked small pizza bases and sauce, mushrooms, sundried tomatoes, olives, meats and any thing you can think of and have the oven pre-heated. Put multiple pizzas on cookie sheets, and they're ready in 10 minutes. We followed this with a game of Cranium. If you got the question wrong, your team had to do a shot of coffee flavoured Patron (yum) – an added touch to make it more fun. My roommates got the brunt of that.

Yesterday we went to watch my roommate's boyfriend play rugby. Unfortunately, it was cut short when he injured his shoulder in a tackle and was taken to hospital in an ambulance. He was home by the evening, as I went over there for supper when his roommate cooked dinner for a bunch of us. A group of us have been doing an 'ethnic food night' each Sunday. Each person takes a turn to make a dish from where they're from. Although the ethnic element has kind of faded, and now it's just dinner.

Happy 400th Bday Bda

2009 marks the 400th year that Bermuda was settled. In 1609, a boat called the Sea Venture was sent from England to send help for a troubled settlement in Virginia. But the ship was wrecked on Bermuda's reefs. The people stayed in Bermuda for months while they repaired the ship. Once that was done, they continued onto Virginia, but 2 people stayed back as it was decided that Bermuda could be settled by the English. That's the story in an extremely condensed version. The island was spotted maybe 100 years before that by a Spanish sailor called Juan de Bermudez. Sailors used it as a landmark for navigation, but avoided getting close because of the dangerous reefs surrounding it. For a more accurate and complete history, visit the Bermuda 2009 website.

To kick off a year full of celebrations, a street party was held on Hamilton's Front Street. We headed down there, but eventually opted to celebrate in our own style and go for a drink.

In the second picture above, my friend is pointing to the lights on the palm trees (as mentioned in my previous blog).