Mélange Travel & Lifestyle Magazine January 2020 | Page 30

South Eastern and Central Bahamas
South Eastern and Central Bahamas
The Exumas
Swimming pigs, deep caves, turquoise water,
picture-perfect in every way - the Exumas are
simply divine. Located just 35 miles south of
Nassau, many airlines fly into George Town daily,
and with 365 cays and islands to explore, you will
certainly be kept busy during your stay. Water
sports are a sure thing - dive, kayak, fish, snorkel.
The adventurous divers and snorkelers can check
out the 400-foot deep-blue hole of Mystery Cave
and the Exuma Cays Land & Sea Park also makes
for interesting discoveries. Pelican Beach or
Tropical Cancer Beach as it is also called is a treat
and a definite must-vist. As you descend the stairs
to the beach, you will be crossing the imaginary
Tropic of Cancer line, suitably painted on the stairs
as a reminder of where you are.
If you are a golfer, Bahamas Great Exuma Classic
Golf Tournament will be taking place here on
January 8th to 15th, 2020.
Cat Island
Actor, Sir Sidney Poitier, grew up on Cat Island. History dots the pristine landscape of this
pristine,150 square mile island, which seems extraordinarily untouched. Visit the 18th-century
plantation at Deveaux House, the ruins of Armbrister Plantation, the small stone monastery
which sits at the top of Mount Alvernia the highest point on the island, and stop off too at
the area on the island where Sidney Poitier was raised. Check out the bubbles at the Boiling
Hole and visit the Mermaid Hole. Listen to the legends of monsters and mermaids who live
in these holes and caverns.
Rake and Scrape Music, indigenous to the Bahamas, is an integral part of Cat Island’s culture
and is heartily celebrated each year in June. This music dates back to the days of slavery,
when the African slaves would make music with anything they could find and this would
have included a saw, goat-skin covered barrels used as drums, wood, tubs, etc. - all perfectly
harmonized, and today the island echoes with the rhythmic sounds of this unique Rake and
Scrape music.
This is 150 square miles of discovery and every inch of it is beautiful.