From Providence to Paradise
Flying to Nassau, on New Providence Island in the Bahamas after Christmas week with my husband’s family, I was looking forward to a week of sun, fun, sight-seeing, and shopping in Bahamas. I had heard about the New Year’s Junkanoo and how it is different from the Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans or the Carnival in Rio. Having stood for hours to watch the parade the year before, our friends recommended that we book seats online so that we could watch in comfort.
The festival was everything that they said it was and then some. What a riot of color! The music and the dances were a treat - the whole of Nassau and New Providence Island seemed to reverberate to the beat of those goatskin drums right from 2 am. We sampled some of the street food on Bay Street and we quite liked it, so we decided to go back for seconds after a couple of hours.
So what did we do in Nassau after New Year’s Day? There’s plenty to do and see on New Providence Island and the week seemed to fly! This city has a unique old world charm of an English town with all its Colonial buildings and friendly people, despite the modern glass and chrome décor that one sees in upscale hotels and banks here. Our hotel on Cable Beach had a variety of water sports like scuba diving and snorkeling as well as rides on glass-bottom boats. One day, we took a walking tour from Rawson Square to the wharf and what I enjoyed most was the view from the tower at Fort Fincastle after climbing the Queen’s staircase. The Straw Market on Bay Street, was a delight to stroll around, and you bet I bought a lot of beautiful handmade stuff there.
New Providence Island is linked to Paradise Island by two bridges, but we took the ferry, just for the fun of it. The market under the Paradise Island Bridge bustles with activity all through the day. The Versailles Garden in Paradise Island lives up to its name and we spent a quiet evening strolling around the Cloisters and in the garden. The statue called “Silence” held me spellbound for a while, before my restless husband dragged me off to dinner. The holiday was so great that we are definitely going back to the Bahamas next year”
