Birthday Cruise: 3rd Stop- Nassau, Bahamas

The fifth day brought us to Nassau, Bahamas. We came off the ship into an indoor market with souvenirs and then we got stopped by a couple people trying to give us tours. We decided to give one a go and wen to join a group of people who were already "signed up". It was a "pay after the tour" kinda deal so we felt pretty good about not getting ripped off. Once in the van we began the tour with an older gentleman as our driver/tour director. He took us away from the port and the city was very congested for a little bit. They were getting ready for a parade that would take place through this area that evening. So I am not sure if it is always so busy & trafficky or if it is due to the parade.

This is the Governor's house.

An interesting eatery.

Very interesting Christmas decorations... are they American or just striving to overdecorate like some do?

The first stop we got out was the Queen's Staircase. This is the info I found online about it: 

The Queen's Staircase, in the Bahamas, was built by slaves in the late 18th Century, between 1793 and 1794. The slaves used axes and other sharp hand tools to carve the 65 steps that make up this 102ft staircase. It was named in honor of the 65 yrs of Queen Victoria's Reign. The Staircase is made of solid limestone.

However, when we got to the staircase, at the top is a guy who is a volunteer who will tell you all about the staircase. He said that the passageway was created by the slaves as an escape route for the people at the fort (we didn't get a chance to view but you can pay to go into the fort). He said it was really hard labor and many slaves died in the making of the passageway. He then said that after Queen Victoria freed the slaves, freed slaves came and chiseled the 65 stairs to pay tribute to her for her reign.

Next we traveled through the city and then across a bridge to Atlantis, which is a large hotel/casino that can be seen from pretty far off. I'd seen it in various vacation emails but hadn't paid too much attention to it. Our tour guide told us that Michael Jackson stayed in the room that bridges over between the two parts and apparently it wasn't cheap. Oh and speaking of stars, we also passed the hospital where Anna Nicole Smith's son died and her baby was born. (I had forgotten that even had taken place, much less in the Bahamas but our tour guide reminded us.) So anyway, not sure why the tours take you to view Atlantis... I guess it is a popular thing to want to do? I dunno. We don't gamble and you can't walk into the hotel part itself so we just walked where we could and then waited to leave to head to the beach.

Lastly, we had our tour guide/driver take us to a beach that was within walking distance of where the boat was docked (he dropped everyone else off at another beach and I think took some back to the boat area). We were starving so this beach was a good spot with a few food stands on the beach. I think Mike got some jerk chicken. I cannot remember what the kids got! I ordered the fish... which took a while longer (he pulled the foil packet out of the fridge of the fresh fish and then stuck it on the grill right then) but it was really yummy. I only opened a little bit of the foil as I started eating but then I opened a bit further and saw my fish staring at me. It was a surprise since we don't often receive our fish this way here but it didn't deter me from finishing it. (I will say I did go back to eating it a bit covered. My Dad ate some of his cheek. yum. ;o) )

The beach was pretty nice. A bit rocky but the kids didn't seem to mind. The water was too cold for me... but again, the kids didn't mind! The weather was mild and pleasant. There was a group of drunk younger people partying it up, but they weren't too annoying. (I feel old!)

We packed it up after a bit of playing and headed out for the walk back to the ship.