Bermuda: Day of Exploring

We headed out of Hamilton on the ferry to Dockyard, the principal base of the Royal Navy in the American independence war. After its closure as a naval base it has been restored as a tourist site with the arrival of cruise ships. Several of the buildings in the area, which have served as warehouses have been converted to promoting craft works. Our first stop was at a former food storage, which now housed a crafts market where I purchased a cute necklace and a few souvenirs.

We decided to visit the Bermuda Maritime Museum which is largest museum in Bermuda. It's entrance fee was very reasonable at $10pp. Located in the old fortress, the museum stretched over a large area with several buildings. We were greeted by a flock of sheep as we entered the complex. We spent a few hours learning about Bermuda's colonial history and immigration. We were also treated to spectacular view of the city and the ocean. The museum was also home to a dolphin interactive facility. We had lunch a light sushi lunch at Freeport Seafood Restaurant, and walked around the clock tower mall and a few other artistic shops catered towards tourist. Then we took the bus back to Hamilton taking in the different sites Bermuda.

Early evening we headed to tea at the hotel's restaurant, Heritage Court. Despite the steep price (~$40pp), we decided to indulge in what is marketed one of the ten best afternoon tea experiences in the world. We each picked one of the two types of tea menus available. Each was slightly different in terms of the savory and sweet snacks offered. The food was really good, and we enjoyed the tea. As there were too many desserts in the assortment, we had some leftovers for later.


After tea we took the hotel ferry to the sister hotel at Hamilton Southampton. From the ferry we transfered to a shuttle bus which took us upto the hotel and then we walked down to the beach. First we visited the public Horseshoe beach. The landscape was beautiful, though the sand wasn't really pink. But the hues of pink due to the coral was clear. The creations of the annual sand castle building competition were entertaining and showcased some good talent. Then we headed next door to the private beach owned by the hotel. I was surprised by the size and discontinuity of beach area due to the large rocks and reef. I'm used to expansive beaches that stretch for miles at end in Sri Lanka. After walking around the beach for a while we headed back to Fairmont Southampton and explored the hotel. It was much bigger than Hamilton Princess and had a separate entertainment area/arcade for kids. The golf course was picturesque just as I seen in photos. We had dinner at Bacci, an Italian themed restaurant at the hotel. The pasta dishes were great and we headed back feeling satisfied. Though the ferry service between the hotels had stopped were able to make use of our two day transportation pass and take the bus back. In the distance we saw the famed Gibb's light house shining in the distance.