Hey friends! I’m posting this a day early, but I’ve finished my flying for the month and I’ll be in Madrid this weekend. So I thought I’d get ahead rather than get behind. 😉
Here’s the final tally from February: 12 cities flown through, 110 hours spent in the sky, and 6 different layovers (4 for work, 2 for fun). I did a lot of the same cities this month (or rather cities I’ve already visited); so this month’s Layover of the Month is going to cover my trip to Nassau, the Bahamas! I went with my roommates for a much needed, fun-in-the-sun birthday celebration.
For me, the trickiest part with any trip is getting there and back, because this is typically where cost, time and availability all seem to compete. Since I was traveling standby, I knew I would have to make some concessions. I took an early (so early, it should be illegal) flight to JFK. I was too excited to sleep the night before, so I felt like a zombie by the time I boarded my flight to Nassau.
We stayed at a resort called the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar. We spent most of our time either at the resort or island hopping. Fortunately, most places in the Bahamas accept American dollars. The exchange rate is 1 to 1 so it was easy for us to purchase things and pay for food.
I definitely recommend the resort, although it is not all inclusive… however, our island tour with Powerboat Adventures was all-inclusive and I c-a-n-n-o-t recommend it enough! I was so impressed with the organization, the friendliness of the boat staff, and the quality of the activities that were offered to us!
The island excursion started with us traveling 45 minutes outside of Nassau by boat to an island where we fed wild iguanas. From there, we hopped over to a private island where the rest of the day unfolded.
Between trips to the open bar, we played with wild pigs, fed stingrays, grappled with sharks (well, the staff did), snorkeled with sea turtles and enjoyed a delicious buffet. The staff even showed us how to make fresh conch salad: a mixture of diced conch, celery, bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes; doused in herbs and citrus juices. Yum!
Beach time was a daily ritual. Growing up in Utah, I never quite knew / understood the whole “beach day” concept. But my roommates are from California and Florida and they’ve helped me become a fan. 😉
To celebrate the birthday girl, we dressed up and went to a club called Bond. The drinks were RIDICULOUSLY overpriced (more expensive than London or NYC…) and the music was just okay. I would suggest something different if you come to the Bahamas… 🙂
And that’s about it! The Bahamas was a weekend getaway squeezed between work trips. But I love the Caribbean, and I hope to go back soon. I’m currently in Berlin on vacation, so I will post about that later on as well.
Miss you all and hope you’re doing well,
-Paul