Kiwis and Fairy Bread

18 May 2026

Mike and I have made gloriously few plans for this trip. And that is unusual for us. This is a vacation away from Mike’s demanding project at work and my busy schedule of volunteering, fixing up my mother’s house and helping her.

We are happy to take this trip hour by hour, day by day.

The weather is perfect. Blue skies. Fluffy white clouds. Cool, mild breezes. Highs in the mid 20’s Celsius (that’s mid 70’s for you Fahrenheit folks. I speak both now) We’ve been told by numerous people how fortunate we are to be here this week. Last week there were gale force winds, pelting rain and a rare tornado.

We started off our day by having breakfast out on the dock. The bright sun shone white off the water as a few small boats went to and fro in the harbor. We began reading aloud our book for the trip: If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler, which we are thoroughly enjoying.

Mike was not quite ready for a day in the sun, so we decided to take the ferry from St George’s to The Royal Naval Dockyard and then another ferry from there to Hamilton. This is one of our favorite things to do while we are here. The ferry gives you a fantastic view of almost the entire north side of the island. It is a windy, beautiful ride.

The St George’s Ferry Station is just a five minute walk from our rental, ten minutes from downtown. There are two types of ferries: those operated by the cruise ships, and the public ones. We took the latter, using our 7 day public transit pass. As we approached the station the town crier was in full voice and full colonial costume (with the addition of sneakers and Bermuda knee-high socks). He was doing photo ops and perhaps selling some kind of historic tour.

On the ferry we sat back and enjoyed the view, going out of St Georges Harbor, into the ocean and past St Catherine’s Beach and Tobacco Bay. Then straight for the dockyard.

During the journey we got talking to some sailing crews on the Bermuda leg of the ARC European Sailing Rally. Starting in Saint Martin, sailboats of various sizes sail to Bermuda, then The Azores to end in mainland Portugal. It is not a race, but an opportunity to cross the Atlantic in a convoy of sail boats. It is meant to be an event of learning and support. We were told that there are about thirty boats total this time around. A crew of three I spoke to had had a difficult first leg in some very bad weather. A woman on a crew of eight had fared much better. She was getting off at The Azores and another person would replace her. It is pretty common to change crews at different stages.

This woman and her fellow crew mates were so athletic that upon exiting the ferry they were cycling back to St Georges, a distance of twenty four miles (which also happens to be the entire length of the country). Impressive!

The Royal Naval Dockyard was once home to the British Navy and is now the port of entry for cruise ships. Most of the tourism industry, and indeed the Bermuda economy, depends on the thousands of passengers who disembark here nearly every day. The old naval buildings have been converted to shops and restaurants. On the seaside of the tall sandstone walls are a few small beaches and a mini golf course with a great ocean view (which is a nice option on a cloudy day, as we did on our last trip here). On a sunny day it is very hot, and the bustle of the mostly-clueless tourists can be a bit annoying, Still, we strolled through the shops and had our picnic lunch under one of the few palm trees. A mother hen and chicks entertained us (chickens here run rampant everywhere).

We then hopped on the ferry to Hamilton where I made friends with a little girl who had decided her name was Sarah that day (her mother said her name was Elle, I think). I admired her Little Mermaid sunglasses. She allowed me to pet her new little stuffed dolphin. We talked about what color house we would have if we lived here (I want pink, of course. She would like purple, a rare and beautiful choice)

A goodbye by to Sarah (or was it Elle?) and we headed out for a walk to The Arboretum, which is on every Top 10 Bermuda list. It was supposedly a short walk outside the city. What we did not realize until halfway there is that the walk was uphill in an area with few sidewalks and fewer shade trees. When we finally arrived to what was actually a lonely ordinary town park, we were so tired we immediately left. Mike lead us on a fast walk passed the football stadium to catch a just-passing bus. Phew!

The bus ride was lovely. Along the north shore, we passed the aquarium and locals chatted about their day. Back at Hard a Lee I immediately lay down for a nap. Ahhhh. Don’t you just love vacation naps?

In the evening we were to do the one thing we had planned: dinner with our friends Nicole and Warren.

Now the most wonderful thing about Bermuda is not the warm sun, the blue waters, the pink sand, the incredible sunrises and sun sets, the pastel colored homes, or the cute shops. It is without a doubt the Bermudian people.

They are friendly, helpful, polite, welcoming, interesting, beautiful. If you take the time to engage with them you will be richly rewarded. You will be the best of friends for fifteen minutes or a life time. Nicole and Warren are two such people.

On our trip in 2022, Mike and I had gone on our daily evening stroll down to the St George’s Customs House (where sail boats check in) which has a great view of the harbor and a little park. Nicole and Warren had driven in from the central part of the islands on a date. (When the country you live in is so small you go where you can). We greeted each other and were soon deep in friendly conversation. We exchanged email and postal addresses and promised to keep in touch. On our next trip, we would all go out to dinner.

Well, four years of post cards and Christmas cards later, here we were. Nicole had made reservations at a restaurant called The Wharf, just a few minutes walk from our rental. We greeted each other like life long friends and enjoyed hours of conversation over a great meal of seafood (with crème brûlée for dessert). I took out a gift for Nicole, one of the knitted wash clothes I make, this one in Bermuda pink and blue. At the very same time, she took out a gift for me: some local honey from her neighbor’s hives. Nicole is SO nice!

Warren is superintendent/grounds keeper for a condo complex and Nicole works for the Bermuda Health Ministry. We spoke of our travels, both of the past and future. About the states of the US and Bermuda, and oh, lots of things. The evening went by far too fast and before I knew it the staff was clearing up and ready to close. It reminded us of another time we closed out a restaurant with friends in Queenstown, (see post 03 January 2024.). Warm night, good people, great conversation. It all felt so good.

As the night was dark, Warren and Nicole kindly insisted on driving us back to Hard a Lee. And as walked to the car, a stunning golden sliver of a moon was setting next to a bright star. My smile was as wide as that moon.

Big hugs, invitations to visit each other, and the evening was over. Well, not quite.

Mike and I walked onto our dock to watch the moon set. And this story came into my head….

There was once a princess who lived by herself on a an island. All around her was beautiful. But she could never sleep at night, for the nights were dark and quiet. She stayed awake until the orange orb of the sun rose to make the sky and waters bright blue. One night, she lay on her back counting the stars, wishing she could grab them and wear them in her hair. One was especially large and sparkling. It was being chased across the sky by a golden crescent, which the princess wished could be a ring on her finger.

So the princess called out: “who can bring me that sparking star and golden crescent?”

“I will!” Called the yellow kisskadee. She flew deep into the sky, but could not grab them.

“I will” called the green skink. And he shivered up the tallest hill of rock and jumped! But he could not grab them.

“I will” called the tiny tree frog. And he climbed up a tree and grabbed a white frangipani flower and a banana. He slipped them next to the princess and began, for the first time in his life, to sing. The princess fell asleep to the song, the first time she had ever slept at night. When she awoke she inhaled the sweet scent of the frangipani flower and put it in her hair. Her fingers peeled the banana and she tasted the sweet flesh. She looked for the giver of the gifts. The tiny frog could not be found. But when the sun began to set, he sang again. And the princess was happy.

Now, when visitors come to the island the princess shares with them the frangipani flowers, the bananas and the many other delights of this beautiful island. And when night comes, all fall asleep to the song of the tiny tree frog who remains hidden to this very day.