While searching the Internet for a true quiet island holiday, I survived across Long Island, the Bahamas, a small island eighty miles long and only three miles wide, aptly named "Long Island", one of the most southerly islands in the Bahamas .
When I started reading about the lack of tourism, beautiful stretched and secluded beaches on both the Atlantic and the Caribbean sides of the island, I began to relax and thought that I spent hours walking on an incredibly beautiful beach without concern in the world ...
Continuing my education, I began to absorb the relaxed lifestyle. I felt a serious desire to get to this island, and the sooner the better.
Like a dream, when I start writing this, I'm sitting on the porch of a wonderful, romantic cottage, The Whistling Duck, located south of Clarence Town.
Our little 20 seats or so aircraft landed at Keith Deadman Airport (Cay pronounced "key" in the Bahamas) at the southern tip of the island. We were blessed by Nancy, the caretaker for the owners or our private cottage, who drove us to The Whistling Duck.
She was friendly, had a hearty Bahamian laugh, and offered to help us (including car rental, which we used on our second day). She said she telephoned if we had any questions.
On our flight from Nassau to Kate Deadman, we already wondered what could be the best thing about what we ultimately call "Another Long Island" ...
This can certainly be incredible water. There are the most beautiful shades of Caribbean and Atlantic blues from clear to light blue to aqua to turquoise to deep bluish-purple to various oceanic shades of green that I have ever seen.
And again it can be surprisingly secluded beaches with soft sands, a good hunt for shells and a constant soothing rhythm of thundering waves. Wait, it's likely that the worst people on the planet on Long Island.
If you have a quiet adventure, there are many small roads leading from the only northern and southern main road, the Queen’s Highway. Each of the small, mostly mud or sand "highways" should lead to a new head, trembling "Wow!". view and experience.
No, in fact it should be water sports from scuba diving, diving, sailing, boating, fishing, to kayaking.
Looking back, the best that can be said about Other Long Island can be one of the sights or activities that we didn’t aspire to, such as a collapse or who knows!
The most attractive aspect may be a combination of any of the above, or maybe just completely relaxing, away from all the stress of work and city life.
This island takes your imagination back in time to what the Bahamas were like. Amenities are few. The food is great. Supplies are limited, but are available if you know where and when to go. Bahamian and US dollars are interchangeable. People are warm, always seem to have a friendly smile on their friendly faces and more than hospitable and helpful.
Whistling Duck Cottage was everything he looked at, on the website and more. Our Persian greenhouse cottage had a perfect covered porch with a double wicker swing, a gas barbecue grill and two teakwood chairs and canvas to sit and soak up the Atlantic view and harbor in Clarence Town.
We quickly discovered that it was the perfect place to sip your morning coffee or tea, read our hearts, or just relax.
The bedroom has another deck with two sun loungers and an outdoor shower that I used all week. Ceiling fans in the living room, kitchen and bedroom help the comfort of the interior with constant artificial breezes.
At the edge of the water there is a gazebo, where we hung out, absorbing the looks and sounds of water, and spent reading time during the week. The room rate includes a bath and beach towels. Kayak is available for a small deposit. Laundry facilities are located at Flying Fish Marina, if necessary. For an additional fee you can spend Nancy every day in the cottage.
The cottage included two bicycles that provided exercise and transportation for our first days. adventure on the island to check out Clarence Town.
We filled our backpack with materials from one of two small stores and made friends with the little boy Horace in the True Value store and in the other store. Horace seemed truly intrigued by my Asics silver and blue sneakers, which showed trepidation in his big eyes when he touched them.
We quickly discovered that the car was a must if we really wanted to explore the island. It was just too much to ride eighty miles on bicycles to get to the northern tip of our peaceful holiday on the island.
By the way, do not forget to take enough money, as some of the rental car operators do not accept credit cards. (If you think gas is expensive in the US, check out $ 6.10 per gallon in the Bahamas, and this is in 2008!).
The Long Island tourist map looks like a cartoon and makes it look like all the roads on the island are paved. If you have an adventurous spirit, don’t be surprised if you take one of the many off-road roads from the Queen’s Highway to suddenly find yourself on a small, rocky, car-width path that looks like it’s worthless.
Rest assured that slow motion and patience will pay off with spectacular rewards, as the launching, beautiful ocean views provide stimulating visual overload, especially on the Caribbean side of the island.
Throughout our first week of July there was a constant breeze. Every morning, various kinds of birds sang fun. We quickly found out why the cottage was called “Whistling duck! The island is really such a flying feather friend!
Hummingbirds were busy moving from flower to flower during the day. My best half unknowingly imitated a flower one afternoon, when I was wearing a bright yellow peak, and she had to gently worry to get a hummingbird to leave her alone.
The humidity was very high and sweaty. The combination of presence in the shade and breeze was a very pleasant and best place to be without us in the water. Every morning on the front deck I was soaked for several minutes. Ocean view definitely inspired me!
On the second day, Nancy came down from a rented car, which we organized the day before, and we set off on our first adventure. Using the tourist map, we headed south to Hard Bargain, one of about thirty villages located up and down the island.
We entertained ourselves by pretending to find out how Hard Bargain got its name and came up with many possibilities. Turning east on a small gravel road, we headed to the Caribbean side of the island and found ourselves in the abandoned salt fields of the Diamond Crystal Salt Company.
In the days before cooling, salt was used to preserve meat and fish for ships sailing to the sea, and was a huge business. We thought we were lost when we rounded a curve on the road and at the same time suffocated from the incredible, stunning spectrum of blue Caribbean waters. This may have been the most beautiful view of the ocean water that one of us ever saw!
Following a sandy and gravel road, we returned to the Queen’s highway (a rather small, two-lane black road that runs almost the entire northern and southern length of the island) and headed north. For the most part, the disc is not very exciting. On the one hand or on the other hand there are ocean views. Almost any side path is likely to lead to a beautiful view of the ocean, a deserted beach and a new adventure.
Wanting to see the Stella Maris Resort, built in the 1960s, we found ourselves on a hill in the middle of a resort, where we saw that the deep, almost purple-blue waters of the Atlantic look one way, and the star, blue and rainbow-colored waters of the Caribbean, just turning their heads 180 degrees, which was pretty amazing.
The resort of Stella Maris is large and is the only place on the island with tennis courts. We noticed several signs for sale in front of several houses located in the resort, and found that we want ... sigh.
Lunch at the resort overlooking the beach, we found the food and service were ok, but could have improved the quality. We have not reached the point that, apparently, one of the best plantation ruins on the island, which are located in the resort.
We hoped to reach the northern tip of the island to see one of the two other resorts, the cape of Santa Maria and the monument to Christopher Columbus, but we decided that we would not have enough time. We will make sure that we see both on our next visit.
Wonderful, a reminder that we had no plans, and usually determined every morning what we would do in the next few hours. No stress, no phones, no technology, no traffic, no hurry. Just the constant gentle breeze and soothing sounds of the waves of the Atlantic relax us, stimulate our senses and soothe our souls.
We enjoyed walking on Lochabar beach. We quickly realized that getting to the beach from the gazebo was much easier at low tide, which should have been lower than the tide, at least three to four feet.
We found a lot of small shells and two large shells with the most beautiful dark pink inside, sand dollars and lots of small shells during the week.
Walking to the right for about 30 minutes on Lochabar beach, we rounded a bend and faced a huge blue hole. Blue holes immediately depart from the surrounding shallow sandy waters to fairly deep depths.
One of our coolest adventures was to see the deepest blue hole in the world. Dean's blue hole is located on Long Island and goes to a depth of about 660 feet! We were told that the second largest underwater cave in the world is located at the bottom of the Blue Hole Dean.
One afternoon we had a wonderful picnic, only two of us. I was pretty nervous thinking about scuba diving in Dean's Blue Hole, and I decided that this must have been a very unknown thing that lies in the depths below. Locals dive from low rocks on the back side of the hole and constantly swim in its waters.
My best and much more beautiful half, there were no problems that came up in the middle of Dean Dina ... and love to worry about being a chicken to this day!
On the third morning, I called Nancy to find out where to get fresh fish, thinking that there should be a lot in the Bahamas. She mentioned Nick the fisherman and ventured from us. I left a message and he called us a few hours later.
Nick, the fisherman, said that he had a perch and a red grip that he had the day before. It turned out that Nick, his wife and six children lived at the end of our sandy gravel road. Five minutes passed to walk up to the hill to his house, where we were greeted by a welcome version of a man’s best friend, who ran up to us with a worriedly excited tail and definitely received our close attention.
There were many different underwater sonar and three fishing vessels in the yard. It was obvious that this family spent a lot of time, on, under water, or under water.
Nick greeted us and invited us.
On the wall were attracted the attention of the shark-jaws, so that they looked small and harmless, "in any case do not want one of them to be in the water", holy sh_ _! large maxillary, teeth-filled specimens.
Nick talked a little about how they ended up on Long Island. We learned that he is from Nassau. Nick and his wife Fiona have four boys and two girls.
Twenty-three years ago, he came up with the idea of creating a native Bahamian calendar, to which the whole family now belongs. It is sold through the Bahamas. The piece is original, and every month there are local Bahamian tidbits, including history and recipes for such things as soup and conch.
We bought two copies at one of the local stores to get home with us. We are planning to take advantage of some local recipes and use them for our next gastronomic dinner in the style of Bahamian lunch!
Nick began to talk about several wrecks of the ship, which he explored, and showed us a few items of interest, such as century-old antique denim bottles, four-year-old olive jars and much more.
One of the debris he mentioned was a ship called Southampton, which prompted me to share with the fact that my godson was visiting the University of Southampton in the south of England to get his masters in marine archeology.
Five days later, when we went to the airport to leave the island, I noticed that Nick’s royal blue pickup came up to us. His wife did not go out of the window, weaved her hands and tried to lower us.
We got down, and Nick ran to our car. He said, "I have something for your god-son," and rolled out a little white pipe. He explained that he recovered the pipe from the ship, which was allegedly set on fire by the Black Beard Pirate. Nick thought my godson, Tim, would love it. No doubt Tim will like it!
I have never experienced such a level of friendship, excitement, abundance and generosity on vacation. What an island! Maybe we should keep it a secret. In no case, this is a story that can be told as an example of how the world was in some cases, and, of course, as it should be!
Outer Edge Grill, located at Flying Fish Marina in Clarence Town, turned out to be one of our favorite places. It is located right on the water and is a great place where you can try a simple, local flavor for lunch or dinner, or have a drink and lovingly watch boats, waterfowl and other creatures.
We had lunch at The Outer Edge Grill several times, enjoying each visit very much. After one bite, we concluded that their shells would likely be the best on the island. Cracked shells and fried perch made for savory dishes.
Everyone at The Outer Edge was very friendly. We enjoyed talking with Germi and, in particular, with Stanlick. After I mentioned all the fried food on the island, Stan recommended a special order anywhere to cook our food on the grill, which was a great delicacy for the rest of our trip.
It was fun to check the boat coming in and out of the small jetty during the week. There were several fishing boats and several large, luxurious ships. Some of the names were Les Belles, Carcharia, Island Hope, Liquid Gold, Island Dream and Endless Adventure. Dominant ports included Miami, Coral Gables and Nassau and others.
The Rowdy Boys in Clarence Town’s Winter Haven Resort is by the water on the other side of a small peninsula near the pier. The food was very good and the family that belonged to her was very friendly.
We met Grandma Chloe and her husband, Granddaughter Justine, who was waiting for us and one of the sons. One afternoon we offered to drink Chloe. She chose SkyJuice, a mixture of gin and very sweet coconut milk. Soon she began to share her family history. She also shared the fact that her son Ben took the owners of the yacht Les Belles (see above paragraph) deep-sea fishing. Ben learned that they had no plans, and planned their casual adventure every day. What a wonderful way to travel by sea!
Chloe and her husband owned and exploited pineapple and a banana farm, which was destroyed by a hurricane a few years ago. She had tears in her eyes when she shared some of the difficulties experienced by her family. Their three boys had something loud during their young years, and he was given the nickname “Road-boys”.
Rowdy Boys Construction has now been built through the Bahamas, and more than a year ago has finished The Winter Haven Resort and Rowdy Boys Bar and Restaurant for its parents and family. We look forward to visiting the Rowdy Boys and this family again.
Forest Restaurant is located three miles south of The Whistling Duck. One night we had a wonderful dinner of cracked lobster, chopped shell, peas and rice and mashed potatoes. The owners, Dudley and Patty, were great.
One afternoon, we called a special order for grilled perch and chicken sandwiches, which, by the way, were amazing. When we stopped to pick up our picnic lunch, Dudley was waiting for us. I shared the fact that I had my entire stomach in the morning. He wrote down that he made me a club soda and blueberry brandy to fix me. They were out of club soda, so he used ginger ale. I told Dudley that I didn’t want any alcohol to help me, as he advised me to drink it straight. I did it reluctantly and was pleasantly surprised by the taste. Thirty minutes later, my stomach felt good. Ничего хорошего, как хороший багамский лекарственный напиток, чтобы исправить вас!
Мы остановились в нескольких небольших придорожных магазинах, чтобы купить воду и кучу продуктов питания в течение недели. Повсюду мы шли, люди были искренне дружелюбны. Всю неделю у нас не было ничего, кроме необыкновенно прекрасных «встреч» с людьми Лонг-Айленда.
В пекарне Oasis за пределами Кларенс-Таун есть замечательный домашний хлеб, включая целую пшеницу и мучные зерна, куки и декадентские местные десерты. Вы можете заказать бутерброды для вывоза (островной термин «пойти») или съесть на улице в пекарне. Мы наблюдали, что для небольших учреждений было обычным иметь небольшой бар на месте, и Оазис не стал исключением.
Наш любимый день закончился тем, что он был импровизированной остановкой в баре «Конк» в «Мертвеке» Кей. Вы не можете пропустить Макс, так как на каждой стороне дороги ходят международные флажки, а несколько автомобилей-мусоров, одна из которых была окрашена распылителем «Макс-Конк-бар» с обеих сторон.
Мы пошли за тропическим напитком и обедом. Мы поставили заказ на белое вино и тропический удар с Лиз. Лиз и ее муж Гэри, собственный Макс. Казалось, она действительно счастлива увидеть нас и встретиться с нами.
Сидя и потягивая наши коктейли, жаждущие жажды, мы наблюдали, как ингредиенты были измельчены из-за того, что оказалось свежим, самодельным салатом из говядины, не кем иным, как Гэри, который вел мачете с острым острым острым ножом так же ловко и быстро, как и все, кого я когда-либо видел ,
Мы знали, что нам просто нужно иметь некоторые из этих свежих деликатесов острова и разместили два ордера. Раньше у Кэти никогда не было салата. Она любила его так же, как и я, и это было лучшее, что я когда-либо пробовал.
Один из нас спросил, как появился Макс. Лиз сказала нам, что Гэри часто использовал копье, когда он был рыбаком. Когда он пропустил свою цель, он достал свое копье, часто плавая прямо акулами. Его товарищи по дайвингу подумали, что он сумасшедший и прозвали его «Безумный Макс» после фильма Мела Гибсона. Таким образом, макс-бар Conch, названный в честь сумасшедшего рыбака!
Люди постоянно приходили и уходили, пока мы потребляли наш восхитительный обед. Мы полагали, что Макс должен быть одним из мест для общения, еды и напитков. Декор примерно такой же родной, как и он. В круглой деревянной хижине есть многочисленные плакаты разных Каликов и других островных пивных девушек, демонстрирующих свои здоровые, пышные тела. Раковины, кораллы, яркие цвета и контрольные доски с колпачками для бутылок, как игровые куски, разбросаны по островной дизайнерской моде. Бар - это даже редкая интернет-горячая точка, и для входа в нее бесплатно.
Во время нашего последнего дня мы остановились, чтобы проверить библиотеку и музей Лонг-Айленда. Мы наслаждались просмотром различных альбомов, рассказывающих и объясняющих различные аспекты истории, культуры и традиций острова на протяжении многих лет. Есть примеры некоторых местных мастеров, исторических новостных статей для Багамских островов и даже некоторых домашних приправ для продажи возле выхода. Это, безусловно, стоило $ 3,00 за учебный и веселый опыт.
Мы решили, что мы должны были вернуться к Максу за ужином нашей прошлой ночью на Лонг-Айленде. Это, без сомнения, наша лучшая еда на острове. Гриль-раковина и маринованная баранина были предложениями Лиз, и они были невероятными. На Багамах баранины - овцы или козы.
Баттоном в эту ночь была коза, которая была первой для меня, и это был полив. Гэри взвесил манго-дайкири, сделанный с тайной смесью из пяти рома и свежего манго, которые были абсолютно лучшими дайкири, которые я когда-либо пробовал. Четверо из нас прекрасно провели время, узнав друг друга. Мы говорили о самых разных темах с Багамских островов в США, о напитках, еде, семье и друзьям и даже рассказывали несколько личных забавных историй о наших предыдущих жизнях. Нам было грустно говорить спокойной ночи, хотя это было почти в 11 вечера
Несмотря на то, что наш визит состоялся всего на одну неделю, есть, по-видимому, бесконечные истории, которые мы могли бы поделиться с нашей неделей на «The Other Long Island», поистине невероятный тихий отдых на острове.
Хотя остров отложен и мирный, на самом деле есть много дел. Четыре мероприятия Мы не могли сделать, это подводное плавание, глубоководная рыбалка, подводное плавание на одном из коралловых рифов и посещение одной из многочисленных островных пещер. Они уже находятся в нашем списке «сделать» для нашей следующей поездки на остров.
Во время нашего краткого брифинга мы совершили прогулки по нескольким пляжам, включая пляж Лочабар, пляж Галловей, пляж от Синей дыры Дина и несколько имен, которых мы не знаем.
Невероятно, мы увидели в общей сложности двух человек и собаку, идя по этим пляжам. Они были самым мягким песком и самыми живописными участками пляжа, в комплекте с различными типами скальных образований, которые я когда-либо видел.
Чувствуя, что плюшевый песок под нашими ногами и между нашими пальцами, цвета воды, видя морские черепахи, охоту на скорлупу, декорации вверх и вниз по побережью и чудо никого, заставили наш пляж испытать тот, который не мог быть более расслабляющим, успокаивающим и бодрящим.
Если участки уединенных, тихих пляжей являются одним из ваших предпосылок, пляжи Лонг-Айленда делают его одним из лучших романтических островов, которые я могу себе представить.
Если вам нужна покупка, верхние удобства, постоянное обслуживание и проживание в роскоши, вы, вероятно, захотите найти курорт Four Seasons или Ritz Carlton. Их нельзя найти на тихом острове Лонг-Айленд.
Если вы предпочитаете тихое приключенческое путешествие и мечтаете почувствовать, что вы вернулись вовремя, не заботитесь об обновленной или высокотехнологичной инфраструктуре, любите красивые пустынные пляжи, хотите общаться с настоящими, дружелюбными и непритязательными людьми и просто хотите расслабиться больше, чем вы когда-либо считали возможным, вы захотите проверить Лонг-Айленд на Багамах.
Тихие и раздельные - это описательные термины для Лонг-Айленда, Багамы. Имейте это в виду, если вы рассматриваете семейный отдых.
Я никогда не чувствовал себя так полностью расслабленным и наполненным таким внутренним миром, каким я был на Лонг-Айленде. Это чувство было поддержано моей милой помощницей. Мы с Кэти не можем дождаться возвращения в «Другой Лонг-Айленд», невероятно прекрасного и прекрасного тихого отдыха на острове.
Note. Если вы ищете уединенный и романтичный тихий остров, начните планировать свою поездку на Лонг-Айленд сейчас! (См. Ниже, чтобы заказать Уполномоченное путешествие!).
(Код для аэропорта Deadman в Кей на южной оконечности Лонг-Айленда, Багамы - это LGI. Код аэропорта Stella Maris на северной оконечности Лонг-Айленда, Багамские острова - MYLS).
