Top: Rawson Square, the starting point for your downtown sightseeing or shopping expedition. Directly in front of the Main Post Office is a statue of Queen Victoria and facing her on two sides are the Government Buildings, where elected representatives meet to carry on the business of governing in a tradition and manner that reflects the British heritage so ably carried on by today's self-governing Bahamians. (I am quoting the postcard, of course.)Middle: The Water Tower. After climbing the Queen's staircase (65 steps) visitors can ride the elevator to the top of the water tower to see a spectacular view of Nassau. The tower is built next to Fort Fincastle which was built in 1787, by Lord Dunmore, then Governor of the Bahamas.
Bottom: At the top of George Street, one can see the official residence of the Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Bahamas. The Governor is the representative of Her Majesty, the Queen. On the steps leading up to the house is a statue of Christopher Columbus, who made the first landfall in the New World in 1492, in the Bahamas at what is now Salvador Island.
Part 2:
In a post below, I recalled our trip to the Bahamas by cruise ship. The night we went into town to gamble, we attended a show, in the style of a Las Vegas Revue, complete with topless showgirls. Our daughter and the other couple's son had never seen anything like it, and we wondered what their reaction would be at the tender ages of 12 and 14. There were red faces and giggles, but funny enough, after about 5 minutes it was as old hat to them as it was to us.
Far more exciting to all of us were the sights and sounds of the large casino; as bright and noisy as if it were the middle of the day in traffic. Bells and ding-ding-dings of slot-machines in the process of paying out were everywhere, and fueled our hopes of winning a small fortune, if not a large one. It was not to be; we went home with far less moolah than we entered with. No matter, we all had a nice time, and celebrated the good fortune of unexpectedly meeting up in such an interesting place.
I remember the first time my ex and I went to Las Vegas. We were there only because of a six hour layover on the way to a meeting in Lake Tahoe. Then the airport was out in the desert. We got a car and drove the road to town and for a long time I wondered where the famous strip was. This was before all the new and huge hotels were built. We suddenly hit the strip. It seemed like two miles of tacky and gaudy, pink and multi-colored buildings with flashing lights and dinging bells and then it was desert again. Very very strange place. Nassau sounds a lot like the newer version of Vegas..except maybe the topless showgirls.
ReplyDeleteWait, seems that somewhere in the back of my slowly deteriorating mind I recall that Lord Dunmore was possibly a governor of the Virginia Colony before the revolutionary war. I will have to look that up.
ReplyDeleteHi there... Michele sent me.. I love the pics of The Bahamas. When I was six years old my family did a seven month sailing trip from Canada to the Bahamas. I have very fond memories of the trip and seeing pics always brings them back. Hope you are having a great weekend. I'll drop by to say hello to Hoss.
ReplyDeleteAt least you came home with your shirts didn't you?
ReplyDeleteYour pictures and post about the Bahamas choked me up! I was there in April of 2004 and adored it. We stayed at the Atlantis on Paradise Island, but did lots of sight-seeing on Nassau, so your pictures were so fun for me to see!
ReplyDeleteHere via Michele's...
I went to Nassau this summer. God, it was hot. Never again, at least not in August.
ReplyDeleteVia Michele's.
Nassau looks just Gorgeous...don;t know why I never got there... but with your blog, I'm getting there now! Hooray, Judy...Thanks for all this...How long were you there, in Nassau?
ReplyDeleteThe muse just finished. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful place. That water tower - I think I might have just been satisfied to enjoy it from the ground. :) That's a LOT of steps!
ReplyDeleteThe photos are gorgeous... where would we be without our pictured-past to look back on?
Nice pics!
ReplyDeleteJust stop by to say Hi, via Michele's.
Oh wow. wish i was there.
ReplyDeletemichele sent me today
I wanna goooo!!!
ReplyDeleteMmmmm hot climate....
ReplyDeleteFreezing here in th UK
Michelle sent me
Sounds fantastic....
ReplyDeletecold here :-(
cq
Judy, I love your postcards! Also I want you to know I went to Old Horsetail Snake's site today. This is very sad.
ReplyDelete