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| .: FEBRUARY - MARCH 2005 | |
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The gecko is checking out as I'm checking in. Fortunately, the doorman spots his tiny reptilian guest and courteously opens the door. The lizard scurries out, and a hazy metaphor - something about the complex relationship between man and nature - hits me as I sling my luggage down in front of the check-in desk. It's October 14, 2004, and I'm in the busy lobby of The Sheraton at Our Lucaya. The resort is full up this weekend so the staff is too busy to bide by traditionally slow 'island time'; instead, everyone is racing about. Indeed, today's reopening comes just weeks after Hurricane Jeanne's 115 mph winds put the Grand Bahama airport underwater, and toppled power and phone lines, knocking out electricity and phone service to many areas - this just three weeks after Hurricane Frances did pretty much the same thing. But the occasional Category 3 storm is the price the island's 50,000 inhabitants pay to live in paradise. Not that this popular destination is everyone's idea of nirvana. Less refined by comparison, Grand Bahama (the name comes from the Spanish gran bajamar, meaning "great shallows") is often overshadowed by other Bahamian destinations like Paradise Island and Nassau. It lacks their strong cultural identities, relying instead upon its affordability, proximity to the Florida coast (a mere 52 miles) and considerable natural beauty to attract visitors. But the enjoyment of that beauty seems always to be mediated by the island's reputation - deserved or no - as a tourist trap. This, then, becomes my challenge: to find a heart beating beneath Grand Bahama's professional, polished and sun-dappled exterior.
THE LAST RESORT I've been invited to The Bahama's fourth largest island on the pretext of covering its first annual Jazz, Rhythm & Blues Festival, headlined by smooth crooner Peabo Bryson. Now, Peabo isn't exactly an Access artist, but a press trip is a press trip, and I'm not about to turn down three days of sun and sand, especially as temperatures plummet in my home country. Besides, the festival is a great symbol of the inhabitants' resilience, coinciding as it does with the re-opening of the island's tourist industry. (Tourism makes up an estimated 70 to 80% of Grand Bahama's income and accounts for more than half the jobs.) Our first-night dinner at Barracudas, the resort restaurant, is attended by a number of government officials, who are grateful for the media attention in the wake of the recent meteorological hiccups. Our Lucaya shares its seven-and-a-half acres with the Isle of Capri casino (over 400 slot machines and 21 game tables) and the adjoining Westin (closed at this point due to hurricane damage but since reopened). Besides a number of pools, facilities includes the 25,000-square foot Senses Spa and Fitness Centre, world-class golf courses, and extensive water sports, including snorkelling, sea kayaking and scuba diving. Online reviews are mixed, with many complaining about lax or brusque service and exorbitant food prices. I find the staff friendly and generally helpful, especially under the circumstances. Food, especially at the beachfront Prop Club, is pricey for the quality, although some nearby restaurants ’Äî including The Ferry House and Luciano's - justify the expense. Cheaper eats can be found at the Port Lucaya Marketplace, a collection of restaurants, bars and duty free shops located across the street right next to the marina. The Marketplace is depressingly similar to American strip malls, albeit staffed by Bahamians in a sub-tropical climate. Live entertainment in the marketplace's Count Basie Square occurs almost daily. A similar but larger facility, the International Bazaar, is a brief bus ride away. The resort is located, not surprisingly, in Lucaya, the southeastern extension of Freeport, a "planned city" (read contrived tourist community) built in the '50s by American lumber baron Wallace Groves and British developer Sir Charles Hayward. My fellow guests are middle aged, middle class and mostly American, as are many of the stores and fast food restaurants. In fact, over the island's 96-mile length, there are five Subways, four Burger Kings, as well as Pizza Hut, Domino's and Dunkin' Donuts. Local cuisine invariably involves conch, the most abundant fishing catch.
Our guide regales us with dolphin facts - their top speed is 20 mph, dolphins are actually a kind of whale, they can live into their 30s and 40s. We're also told that the recent storms breached the facility's containment walls but no dolphins - ten of whom were born here - left the facility. It's a surreal experience but a tad rushed. I feel closer to piercing the carefully constructed veneer of professional fun, but I'm not there yet. NATURE CALL Chad dislikes spiders. Other than this bit of arachnophobia, our guide seems completely at ease. Day Three is mostly taken up with a Kayak Nature Tour. I share the 25-mile ride east to the 40-acre Lucayan National Park with the trip publicist, Keri, and a clutch of elderly Israeli and German tourists. Chad offers insight into Bahamian culture, explaining how if a resident says he'll 'soon come' then he's not coming at all. Bahamians also like to fry everything, hence their, um, generous proportions. (Let's just say that the Atkins Diet hasn't got a toehold here yet.) Chad also explains a bit about the island's natural history; how Grand Bahama is flat, made of limestone, has no significant hunting, and that the soil is too poor to farm. Hence its reliance on trade and the high prices of even the most basic items. This being an eco tour, Chad tells us that the ocean is Grand Bahama Island's most valuable asset, which is why the government does its best to control commercial shipping traffic, especially oil, which could cause massive environmental damage if there was ever a spill. Further confirmation of this attitude comes in the form of a newspaper editorial I read in opposition to Vancouver businessman Michael R. Henderson's proposed US$4.5-billion MOON project. (Henderson's idea is to create the world's largest marina with ten cruise ship terminals.) Its proposed location on the island's north shore is "all banks and mango swamps," and many Bahamians consider this lucrative investment unsafe given that Hurricane Frances came in from the north. Ready to go, we slather ourselves in insect repellent (there's been an unusual fly outbreak in the wake of Jeanne and Frances), board our canoes, and spend the next 90 minutes leisurely negotiating the creek system's circuitous length. Along the way we watch tiny crabs scuttle along overhanging mango tree branches and see tiny silver fish dart through the shallow water. Joining us for lunch, besides countless pesky flies, is Raquel the racoon. Apparently the critters made the trip over on the ships of bootleggers hundreds of years ago. Afterwards, we loll in the warm turquoise waters off the secluded and beautiful Gold Rock Beach. (Warning: don't step on the translucent jellyfish minding their own business just offshore.)
SUNSET SENTIMENT I will never disparage the simple beauty of a tropical paradise, nor the soul-enhancing benefits of simply lying in the sun. Grand Bahama is a beautiful place with enough North American-style amenities to reassure the homesick (including the March break masses planning their descent as you read this). Those looking to explore a foreign culture will be disappointed, but any island good enough for Johnny Depp (who keeps a home here) is good enough for me... the Baha Men notwithstanding.
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Chad then takes us on a nature walk, pointing out the avian population for the benefit of the bird-watchers among us; unique locals include the Red-legged Thrush (also known as Drunken Suzie) and the Stripe-headed Tanager. We also explore the Lucayan Caves, a vast underwater system which is the second longest in the world. This is as close to unguarded as Grand Bahama gets.
