English Tea

This past week I had my mom and aunt in town to visit. Ryan went for a guys weekend to State College and had a grand old time taking advantage of the conveniences of the states. It was fun to have guests again. We did some of the same things we have done before such as the Gibbs Lighthouse, Tobacco Bay snorkeling, and the zoo (we did witness two mating giant tortoises, which was well....unique). We did do one thing that I had been wanting to do. We had afternoon English tea at the Elbow Beach resort. We all tried a different kind of tea while sharing plates of quick breads, scones, and tea sandwiches. I loved it! While it is still too hot outside for tea, I still enjoyed my cup in the air conditioned resort!

I have been very busy planning a big event at the Centre on Philanthropy where I volunteer two days a week. The event is tomorrow and is called the Give Back Games. Nine re-insurance companies will compete in beach games. Nine charities were chosen to run the games and be recipients to the charity donations. Over the course of the day $54,000 will be awarded! I have really enjoyed event planning and have seen how generous Bermudian companies and people can be. I have enjoyed learning more about the charity sector here and hope to continue to give my efforts to charities on the island. Volunteer work can be just as rewarding as a paying job, so for now my time is wisely used!

Until next time....

Fall is here and I must admit that I miss jean/sweatshirt weather already. I think my favorite time of the year is fall in Pennsylvania or Minnesota. I love the changing colors of the trees, warm apple cider, pumpkins, and being comfortable in your favorite pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. It will be hard for me as September and October still bring in the 80 degree temperatures. We are excited that it will still be warm for our fall guests as we have three sets of visitors coming starting this week. We had about 2 months off from visitors and I am excited to share Bermuda with guests again as Ryan and I now know the island like the back of our hand. It isn't too hard when the island is only 21 square miles! Bermuda is actually one of the smallest territories in the world. Monaco and Gibraltar are the only notable islands smaller in size. Through all of the excitement we have had over the past 7 months, we realized this weekend that Bermuda can be boring. While we still enjoy doing touristy things, it is easy to try it all and feel lost for new ideas. I think that may happen anywhere you live, but on a rainy weekend such as this past one it was particularity true. I feel that Bermuda is focused on the family and Sunday is a day to attend church and relax/eat with relatives. Almost everything on Sunday is closed or open limited hours. The grocery store is only open from 12pm-5pm, and many cafe's and restaurants are closed. Most coffee shops aren't open so you can't even grab a cup of coffee. On weekdays boutiques, hardware stores, and cafe's are only open until 5pm or 6pm. While I think this is a good thing, it is hard to adjust when I am used to 24 hour supermarkets and shopping malls being open until 9:00pm.

Ryan kept busy this weekend by diving with his scuba club, the BSAC. Ryan has been taking classes for the past two weeks, but was finally able to go out and try diving. Right now lessons are focusing on safety techniques, but Ryan said being underwater is amazing. For some reason, it doesn't sound appealing to me, and I will continue to be happy floating on top with my mask and snorkel!

Until next time...

PS the picture is an old picture I took of a cemetery in Bermuda.

We're Driving Now

Our new Daihatsu Terios has been wonderful. Thanks to Jack we have been cruising around Bermuda listening to some old Grateful Dead cassettes. Life is good. Life is good for Limerick too as our car has allowed us to take her more places on the island. We even discovered a great underground dog park. The Botanical Gardens in Bermuda are a wonderful area to walk your dog. You can walk the dogs through paths of flowers, wildlife, and wonderful gardens. This week we even discover a secret society of dog lovers! There is a ring in the garden which I have been told is for horses, but Monday-Thursday people bring their dogs to this fenced in ring for a romp session at 6:30pm. The reason this is shady is due to the large sign that says, "NO DOGS ALLOWED!" We are all respectful dog owners and pick up poo, but still the off-leashing of dogs in this area is not encouraged. Limerick had an initiation Wednesday, but passed with flying colors. The other owners don't want aggressive dogs to join this play session.

Last night we went out for a curry buffet at the Elbow Beach Resort with some friends. Curry is big here as there is a strong influence from the English. I didn't know that the Brit's enjoyed their curry, but I guess that is true and there are many places on the island that have extensive curry menus. Bermuda's expanding Indian population is also a reason for curry being added to many menus. Good old Erie, PA didn't have that cultural influence, so Ryan and I are now discovering this new food. A buffet was the way to go, as you could try many different dishes. The buffet was $18 and beer/wine was $6 a glass. It was quite a reasonable meal for Bermuda.

We are excited for a long Labor Day weekend! I hope you enjoy yours.

Until next time...