VLOG Post #2

Can you guess the location based on the "attributes" and images below?

Known for...

1. Celebrity mansions and private islands.

2. Exuma chain of islands and pink sand beaches.

3. Conch is a large sea snail and the national dish.

4. The birth place of Bahamian evangelist Myles Monroe.

5. American singer-songwriter and instrumentalist Lenny Kravitz lives on the 112 mile-long island of Eleuthera.

25.059999, -77.345001 - What if these numbers matter? Being at this very location on God’s green earth at this specific time was written in my book.

I knew I needed to post up on a proper beach this weekend; all I could think about was washing away the restlessness and stress that had accumulated in me over the past several months. A ‘proper’ beach was nowhere to be found in my local area. So, I started to search for last-minute flights on Friday as I was closing out my work day and had gone through the options between South Florida and the Caribbean for the past few days. I found a decent price leaving for Nassau, Bahamas in two days with United Airlines so I was ready to be out. I could feel that gentle Bahama breeze luring me.

            Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama

            (Beach Boys, 1988, Stanza 1)

Where do I begin? It was a MUCH-NEEDED excursion for the mind and body to venture onto new international waters. It’s my goal to explore the best bodies of water all over the world, including reefs, grottos, waterfalls, and all that is #good.of.the.earth (IG). I was long overdue for ‘melanin activation’ activities and needed to head as close to the equator to find my center and empty my cup. I arrived early Sunday morning after a short 2.5-hour flight to Nassau, Bahamas, which is located only 25 degrees north of the equator. I was so-so excited to hear about the several archipelago islands- 700 coral islands, cays, and islets accessible by boat or plane that await.

As someone who has always admired Myles Monroes’ ministry, I was hoping to attend service at his church, but my arrival time didn’t mesh with the service schedule. With only 4 days on the island, I had to stick to what I knew how to do best, which was snorkeling and being on and around the water. As soon as I landed, I was greeted by a representative from the Ministry of Tourism, and as I walked through the airport advertisements about an upcoming Africa-Caribbean trade event taking place in June immediately caught my attention. When I travel, I always have my global merchant hat on always trying to see what opportunities are waiting to be discovered.

 When I stepped out of the airport, I decided I’d be better off driving, so I grabbed a small vehicle and started on my adventure. I had never driven in left-hand traffic (LHT) and was a little reluctant, but I quickly got over it and arrived at my hotel after a 20-minute ride. I was on a mission to make it to Dune’s restaurant for Sunday brunch before it ended at 3 pm, but first I had to check in to my hotel, British Colonial, which is a beachfront property on Junkanoo Beach. This was a fair spot for the location, standard, and cost. Of course, there are many lodging options nearby as well as on Paradise Island depending on your pre-planning and personal needs.  So, knock yourself out searching. I stopped into Ocean Club, Rui, and Baha Mar for one thing or another and caught a different vibe from each. I never made it on time for brunch so I ended up going to the Cabbage Beach Bistro, and their food was decent.

That evening, I stayed close to my hotel, everything closed so early so I just watched the sunset on the beach and made friends with other travelers who happened to be stuck in paradise for a couple of days waiting for their party to head to the next island. I was so jealous; they were flying around in their chartered plane. GOALS!

I had an early morning Rose Island tour with the Exuma Escapes Bahamas crew, which included access to Atholl Island, Rose Island, Snorkeling, Turtle watching, lunch, rum-punch, and pig feeding. The beachfront luxury homes along our route were lavish and among the owners mentioned were, Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, and Elon Musk. That and the many super yachts with custom slides that are mounted on the side of their yacht littered the beautiful turquoise water. As we made our way into the turquoise water, wrapping up my adventure without turning into a meal was always a blessing. I could feel the tension from my shoulders dissolve into the sea. A great place to unwind. Interesting conversations happen at the beach. I happened to run into a traveler who explained that she was in charge of putting the curriculum together for an entire state. The state is known for a controversial debate around critical race theory in schools, so I just went ahead and asked what her thoughts were about it. Her husband jumped in before she could answer, and said it was a local decision. They went from boasting about having the power to decide for the entire state to pleading the fifth. I like to catch people off guard sometimes. LOL

I’m drinking Rum and Fruit Punch

            Bahama let me heart full.

            (Beanie Man, 2010, Stanza 1, edited )

Later that evening I went to the Piano Bar at Baha Mar, which was so DOPE. The vocalist and all the musicians were so LIVE. My friend from the Ministry of Tourism showed me around this beautiful property and shared some interesting things about the island. He knew Myles Monroe personally, and so it was cool to hear about what he was like and how his community saw him. Also, I didn’t know Lenny Kravitz was from the Bahamas too.

On the following day, I went with a new crew and group of people on a Pearl Island tour. Unfortunately, we just rode by the island, and from several yards away the two-man crew explained that it was formerly owned by Eddie Murphy. One snorkeler kept saying she was so eager to see a shark. SMH…I was like HELL NaH! I don’t even want to be around this energy. She had tattoos of sharks on her hands and her body. I was concerned that her energy was going to attract unwanted marine life, but luckily, we had another snorkeler on board. A young and brave 1-year-old who was there with his parents and sibling, and I believe the angels who were assigned to watch him probably revoked that girls' marine spirit pollution who was trying to get us chewed up. God is good! The captain dropped us off on Hawthorne Island and said he would be back to pick us up with a different boat. As we were making our way onto land there was this girl who I came to know, named China who looked like a daredevil on the jet ski. She was doing donuts like she was on Jersey Drive. The jet-ski owners put her on timeout because of her rambunctious driving, but then her father got on the jet-ski and did the same thing. They were so-so funny!! Once we made it to shore, I saw China beating one of the pigs because they kept drinking her rum punch and running off with her chips. What a scene. I had been entertained by many of the travelers I came across but she topped the list.

On my next trip to the Bahamas, I will probably stay a little longer, and perhaps at a resort with PADI scuba instructors so I can start earning credits toward my scuba certification. Before my arrival, I did see one, but the only one with availability had classes in Freeport for the dates that I was in Nassau, and that would require a flight to get out there. I’d also like to do some research about the real estate market in the Bahamas. Visit other islands like Eleuthera and Exuma. In Nassau, I need to check out the art museums, tour John Waitling’s Rum distillery, do the lazy river at the Atlantis resort and have Sunday brunch at the Ocean Club. I always have my ears and eyes open for an interesting conspiracy theory and the one about Bimini Road stands out—leading to the lost underwater city of Atlantis is an interesting one that I’ve put on my list for my next visit. In the meantime, I’m going to work on getting an underwater camera and a scuba certification for when I come back.

stay tuned for the full video.