On our third and final day, we stayed close to the ship and explored the Dockyard. The Bermuda Maritime Museum looked interesting but was exceedingly expensive so we took a pass on the tour. Some buildings and courtyards outside of The Keep proper can be walked through. It was interesting imagining the Dockyard as the military outpost it once was. But the re-purposing of the buildings for tourism took me out of the moment.
The shops in the dockyard were decidedly tourist trash but of the highest echelon thereof. Some shops catered towards expensive hand crafted products. But a local flair was decidedly missing from the Dockyard. The military base had been singularly reworked into a tourist welcoming center. And while it functions very well in its designed purpose, it fails as a point of cultural initiation and transfer.
We completed our tour of the Dockyard in short order leaving us with more than half the day without a plan. Too late to travel far away from the dockyard but too early to retire to the ship, we alternatively walked around and sat down enjoying another fine and beautiful Bermuda day. Since food on board the ship was complimentary, we didn’t bother sampling the tourist oriented restaurants. We soon retired to the ship and took a nap, barely waking up in time to watch the ship sail away.
The cruise shipped repeated in reverse its sail past the northern end of the island. The channel is extremely narrow and seemed to have shallows and reefs nearby in many places. No surprise that the island is home to dozens of major shipwrecks. We trailed the Explorer of the Seas by an hour and watched it leave the channel and sail away towards New York into the sunset.
Sharon was still recovering from her cold but she was a trooper when I dragged her up to the top deck for the sunset. Cloud conditions were ideal for a great show which was delivered. While Sharon and I would have preferred rougher seas, the next day would certainly be a sailor’s delight. With two days at sea to go, the ship was in no rush and the calm seas were at least welcome for the sunset.
The next two days at sea were extremely relaxing if not a little boring at times. I alternated between reading on the Lido and circumnavigating the ship; strutting to James Brown and reflecting to Mike Doughty. Sharon was in paradise with her Kindle. I was in prime relaxation and de-stress modes alternating with boots of boredom and restlessness, particularly on the second and final day at sea. But it was just what I needed. The restlessness was a welcome sign, a harbinger of renewed vigor and engagement.
Activities on the ship, especially in the afternoon, trended towards the lowest common denominator. Announcements for gambling were just short of obnoxious and the hourly call for “It’s Bingo, Baby!!” was laughably stupid enough to be welcoming rather than offensive. Shows on the final evening were definitely the best of the week with a big band, crew talent show, and Second City improv. The Second City show was packed and standing room only and was funny for all the wrong reasons and not enough of the right ones.
I woke up at 5am to catch the sunrise in Boston Harbor. Sharon begrudgingly obliged but not without some grumbling. I was wired and ready to go. I am a big fan of sunsets. But sunrises usually require too much effort. I’d much rather sleep in, but not this morning. It was a great show and the view of the skyline certainly made me miss Boston.
I was ready for the cruise to be over after seven days. I wanted to get home, take my dog for a long walk, and get back to being human again after a year or two of feeling much less. But no sooner did we get home than ask each other when we were going back. Which we are in late October. Bermuda is an amazing little island with weather and beaches that even an obsessive skiing and winter fanatic can love. A full week to unplug without internet or email or electronic devices worked its magic. This was a vacation with a purpose of rehabilitating me and it worked. And we can’t wait to go back and do it again.
