Position: N23 30.868 W075 44.725
We finally made it. George Town is a real Bahamian cruising destination. There are boats here that
arrived in November and have spent the entire winter here. Others stay for a day or a week or a month and move on. There are a lot of social things to do here. One cruiser described it to us as “adult daycare”, others as “summer camp”.The daily cruiser’s net takes place at 8am every morning on VHF channel 72. People announce volleyball, softball, pilates, beach church, dominoes, bridge, poker, etc., and all the happy hour gatherings one could possibly want.
Many of the liesure activities take place on Volleyball Beach near a beach bar / restaurant named the Chat n' Chill. Here's a photo of their menu:
Cruisers ask for help and nearly always find someone with the expertise they need. Need a part? Ask and someone is more than likely to be able to help – either with the part required or a local source. Or, as happened to us, a friend will have a guest arriving so you can have your mail sent to that guest’s address and they’ll bring it along with them on the plane.
We can’t possibly tell you everything we’ve done but we’ll share some of the highlights.
Our first night here we attended the first ever
Cruisers Rock n’ Roll Raftup. A catamaran anchored from it’s stern in the middle of the harbour and a band made up of cruisers set up on the bow to play. The audience arrived in dinghies and tied off in front of the band. We were a little late getting started and weren’t really sure where to go. As we headed out into the harbour Mark said “Is that an island? I don’t remember there being an island here”. As we got closer we realized it was the rafted up dinghies! There must have been almost a hundred floating out in front of the band! Everyone brought drinks and snacks which they passed and shared around the crowd. People were dancing and singing along – it turned out to be a great party and was a lot of fun.
Our first night here we attended the first ever
Cruisers Rock n’ Roll Raftup. A catamaran anchored from it’s stern in the middle of the harbour and a band made up of cruisers set up on the bow to play. The audience arrived in dinghies and tied off in front of the band. We were a little late getting started and weren’t really sure where to go. As we headed out into the harbour Mark said “Is that an island? I don’t remember there being an island here”. As we got closer we realized it was the rafted up dinghies! There must have been almost a hundred floating out in front of the band! Everyone brought drinks and snacks which they passed and shared around the crowd. People were dancing and singing along – it turned out to be a great party and was a lot of fun.Once we settled in, we turned on the computer and picked up a WiFi signal. It was a pay to use internet access. The login page said to call on VHF 
channel 69 to get connected. We tried over the course of a day to contact them but never got a response so we decided to go into town and pay. We had received general directions to the place but after wandering around for a while we couldn’t find it. We met another couple who were on the same mission but they had talked to the guy on the phone and got better directions. The four of us walked up a back street to a yellow house which was surrounded by chickens and dog kennels. The fellow with us said this was the house so Mark knocked on the door. No answer. Mark knocked on the door and shouted “Hello”. No answer. We all looked at each other, we could tell it was the right place as it had a big WiFi antennae on the roof. So our partner in the quest pulls out his cell phone and calls the guy. “Hello” “We’re standing outside your house!!” The door opens just a crack and a hand pokes out. We dutifully lay $15 into it, it disappears, the door closes, then a few seconds later out comes the hand with a card with a username and password on it. We’ve never had to work so hard to give someone our business. We wended our way back through the chickens and dogs back into town. The Internet access, while not stellar by any stretch of the imagination has actually been okay for the price. Our best time to connect is in the middle of the night when the other cruisers are asleep.
As some of you know, in Mark’s deep dark past he used to be quite musical, playing bass in a blues
band and picking bluegrass on a mandolin and a dobro, among other things. Well, when we took off cruising Mark thought he may pick back up on his musical endeavors and he bought a backpackers mandolin. Just a little something to keep him occupied if he got bored. It’s smaller than usual but has a lovely sound. He still had not really played it that much but on our way down through the Exumas he’s sat in with some other musicians and had fun beginning to relearn some songs. After our arrival in George Town he was hailed on the radio. Turns out someone had heard that he played and wondered if he’d like to play with a band in the Talent Night. Mark says well ok when is it? Tomorrow night, we’re having our first practice this afternoon on the beach. Yikes! They ended up having 2 practices and were the last band billed for Talent Night, their name? ‘The Last Minute Band’, seemed appropriate. They were a big hit and Mark is now nursing sore fingers from playing more in 2 days than he’s played in 10 years. We’re looking forward to learning some sing-a-long tunes that will be welcomed at happy hours on our cruising travels.
We’ve been in George Town for a week now and had planned on leaving but another weather front is coming through so we’ll be hanging out here for a little while longer. The wind is picking up and the VHF is beginning to come alive with “Hey! You’re dragging!” calls.
Chillin’ in George Town
channel 69 to get connected. We tried over the course of a day to contact them but never got a response so we decided to go into town and pay. We had received general directions to the place but after wandering around for a while we couldn’t find it. We met another couple who were on the same mission but they had talked to the guy on the phone and got better directions. The four of us walked up a back street to a yellow house which was surrounded by chickens and dog kennels. The fellow with us said this was the house so Mark knocked on the door. No answer. Mark knocked on the door and shouted “Hello”. No answer. We all looked at each other, we could tell it was the right place as it had a big WiFi antennae on the roof. So our partner in the quest pulls out his cell phone and calls the guy. “Hello” “We’re standing outside your house!!” The door opens just a crack and a hand pokes out. We dutifully lay $15 into it, it disappears, the door closes, then a few seconds later out comes the hand with a card with a username and password on it. We’ve never had to work so hard to give someone our business. We wended our way back through the chickens and dogs back into town. The Internet access, while not stellar by any stretch of the imagination has actually been okay for the price. Our best time to connect is in the middle of the night when the other cruisers are asleep.As some of you know, in Mark’s deep dark past he used to be quite musical, playing bass in a blues
band and picking bluegrass on a mandolin and a dobro, among other things. Well, when we took off cruising Mark thought he may pick back up on his musical endeavors and he bought a backpackers mandolin. Just a little something to keep him occupied if he got bored. It’s smaller than usual but has a lovely sound. He still had not really played it that much but on our way down through the Exumas he’s sat in with some other musicians and had fun beginning to relearn some songs. After our arrival in George Town he was hailed on the radio. Turns out someone had heard that he played and wondered if he’d like to play with a band in the Talent Night. Mark says well ok when is it? Tomorrow night, we’re having our first practice this afternoon on the beach. Yikes! They ended up having 2 practices and were the last band billed for Talent Night, their name? ‘The Last Minute Band’, seemed appropriate. They were a big hit and Mark is now nursing sore fingers from playing more in 2 days than he’s played in 10 years. We’re looking forward to learning some sing-a-long tunes that will be welcomed at happy hours on our cruising travels.We’ve been in George Town for a week now and had planned on leaving but another weather front is coming through so we’ll be hanging out here for a little while longer. The wind is picking up and the VHF is beginning to come alive with “Hey! You’re dragging!” calls.
Chillin’ in George Town
