On Monday we finally did some sightseeing and used the local bus system to visit the Royal Naval Dockyard and the Bermuda Maritime Museum on the other side of Bermuda. It was also a Bermuda holiday celebrating the Queen�s Birthday, and as we traveled along on the bus Bermudians could be seen enjoying the day at the beach and having picnics and BBQ�s.
After the American War of Independence, the Royal Navy needed a new dockyard on the western side of the Atlantic. English convicts and slaves were used in the early 1800�s to build this dockyard and fortress Keep. For 150 years until 1951, the Royal Navy�s main western Atlantic facility was located here in Bermuda. Now, the Bermuda Maritime Museum was housed inside the Dockyard Keep. We thoroughly enjoyed this museum with its many exhibits showing Bermuda�s rich maritime history. Especially interesting were the displays showing the changes and advances made in vessels and ordnance throughout 400 years and the importance that Bermuda played in both World Wars I and II.
On Tuesday we first took the ferry from St. George�s to the Dockyard and then traveled by bus. We first visited Gibb�s Hill Lighthouse, built in 1846 of cast iron. We climbed the 185 steps and had excellent views of the island from the top. From there we walked down to the waterfront and proceeded along the beaches and small coves that jutted this coastline from Horseshoe Bay to Warwick Long Bay. The beaches in Bermuda were few in number, but these beaches along the south shore with their beautiful pink sand, clear water, and limestone outcroppings carved by the sea were exquisite. Up close, the fine pink sand really consisted of many red flecks. These were actually the remains of a tiny organism known as the red foram which grew in abundance on the undersides of the rocks in Bermuda. In the evening we enjoyed �Market Night� in St. George�s town square put on by the local businesses and artists for the tourists. Besides the �nag� being ducked, we were entertained by the colorful, energetic Bermudian Gombey dancers. |
