Piecing back together paradise

It's now four day since the lovely Hurricane Igor paid us a visit and it's almost as if it never happened. We were pretty lucky in the end as it was downgraded to a Category 1 rather than a Category 3 storm as original forecast. It was still a pretty harrowing experience. 


From Saturday evening until Monday morning Igor had us under house arrest and with all the shutters closed it felt like a bunker. Me and my housemates took turns sitting on the front step just to get a breath of freedom. I cooked up enough complex carbs to last me a month, although it was over within 36 hrs. Igor was doing his worst in the wee small hours of Monday and that's when we lost power, not such a hardship at bedtime. It was pretty intense watching it from my window, although it was dark there was a strange rusty haze in the air (probably all the sand it had picked up en route) and it was bending palm trees back like unloaded sling shots. 


By morning the main casualty of the storm had already been identified as the Government ferry, Bermudian, which has been grounded on rocks off St. Georges ever since despite so far unsuccessful attempts to refloat her. The main concern here being the economic effects of this boat being out of action as it is used to ferry cruise passengers ashore. Get well soon!

We had power back by 9am so after a few hours of crisis PR for my cable TV and home insurance clients I was off to survey the damage to my little world. I almost cried when I saw my beloved Elbow beach but refrained so to avoid looking like a lone depressive walking the sands of a Nicholas Sparks novel. Some pics here of the extensive beach erosion, which forced the Government to close Elbow to the public until further notice, as well as the breathtaking Cooper's Island Nature Reserve. 


I've always boasted about the natural beauty of Bermuda but it's at times like these you appreciate why even supermodels need a bit of botox help to achieve perfection. The beaches have been undergoing some airbrushing of their own this week with the help of a few tractors. As this picture from Bernews shows they are literally rebuilding paradise.

The locals have seemed fairly non-plused about the whole thing as really this is nothing if you lived through Hurricane Fabian or Emily. At the end of the day, no one died. As an outsider it was impressive to see the way everyone really pulled together at a time of crisis. You couldn't fail to walk ten paces without being told by a stranger to "stay safe". 


The stars of the show had to be local electricity company, BELCO, who has managed to restore all but 1,000 of, at one stage, 25,000 outages in just a few days. They also pulled off a PR coup by taking to twitter as @BELCOBERMUDA to provide regular updates, highlighting the speed of the recovery mission and all the time apologising profoundly to those without power. To date there has been no backlash just understanding, patience and thanks, even from those left in the dark without water. The Government also needs a shout out for getting the roads cleared within hours of Igor passing. 


Then there's the astounding Patricia Burchall of Bernews, who kept the community updated throughout with news, photos, videos and opinions. 


I can imagine surviving Igor being a far more daunting experience without social media. Facebook and Twitter were a hive of activity as members of the public checked in on each other, swapped anecdotes and kept each other company virtually. Throughout the storm I knew what was happening at the other end of the island so the aftermath was less shocking with the sting of the element surprise removed from its tail. And there is less hearsay when you've seen the pictures and video footage first hand.


But alas where there is light, there is always shady. There has been five gun incidents in the wake of Igor so if nature trying to reek havoc wasn't enough, people are trying to finish each other off. Shocking. There has also been reports of looting and the Premier condemned bus drivers for halting services on Tuesday despite it being obvious to the untrained eye that all that stood in their way really was a few piles of leaves and broken branches. Tut tut.


Any hoo, 'survive hurricane' is one I can cross of my list of things to do before I am 30. Along with 'receive jelly fish sting', which I begrudgingly ticked off this evening. Clearly the universe realises that time is running out before my deadline. Grrrr.

T minus not very long...

The rock is now just hours away from feeling the brunt of Hurricane Igor and boredom has well and truly set in. As this is my first hurricane, I wasn't sure what to expect, but I did expect a little more excitement but I guess it is still over 200 miles away yet so the white knuckle ride is to come. 


At the moment, we are all just confined to our homes and there's a bit of a strong breeze out there. With all the shutters closed though, it feels a bit like a bunker. But then again I am a bit more sheltered than most, what with living in the 'city'. Just read on Twitter that over 3,650 homes have lost power so it's getting a little challenging for some of us already.  

It's been a waiting game the whole week, with Stormpulse getting more hits in Bermuda than Facebook this week I'm sure. It's a pretty cool tracking device, you can see the various paths that the storm forecast to take and even turn the clouds on/off - nice touch. 


At one stage, it was looking pretty hairy for us as it was potentially going to be a direct hit for Bermuda from a Category four hurricane but as of this morning it's been downgraded to Category one, so that's just 85mph winds, no problemo (apparently!). 


It's been a crazy weather week in the Atlantic basin, it's the first time since 1926 that two category four hurricane have existed simultaneously, with Igor's buddy Julia joining in the fun. Meanwhile Karl has been taking on Mexico.


Jim Cantore, the Weather Channel's living legend, arrived on the island on Friday and I'm told that a sure sign things are getting serious. 


There's been a run on batteries, flashlights, candles, radios, island-wide. I picked up AA, AAA, C and D batteries just to be on the safe side. Not quite sure I have anything to put the C batteries into but at least I'm prepared. Then I've also bought a whole range of canned goods, if it comes in a tin I've probably got it. In my research, I've stumbled across a whole host of no cook recipes to use my store cupboard contents in. Yum. 


Yesterday it was just plain eerie on the island. The sky was white, the harbour looked like plate glass but was ominously bulging. We took the obligatory trip to the south shore to check out the storm surge. Considering this was 36 hours in advance it was pretty awesome to see.

Then it was off to the video store to pick up a few things to entertain myself. I settled for an eclectic mix of Mamma Mia (lighthearted musical fun), Abfab Series 1 (timeless comedy) and then The Ring (to really take me over the edge when the storm hits). 

Front Street was like a ghost town with shopfronts boarded up ready. 

The airport closed early evening and with that went the last chance to flee the island . Gulp!


So now we wait... as does UK Royal Navy’s HMS Manchester, a Type-42 Destroyer, sitting just outside Bermuda waters in case of emergencies. Reassuring.


See you on the other side, world!


More photos and a video here.

EAT, PRAY, LOVE

I went to see the eagerly anticipated (by the female contingent of the world anyway) EAT, PRAY, LOVE this evening. For the less informed guys, it's the latest Julia Roberts film based on the New York Times bestselling book of the same name. Based on a true story, it's about Elizabeth Gilbert, an unhappily married woman in her early 30s who decides her life isn't what she wants it to be and checks out for a year and travels the world to reconnect with the simple pleasures in life: food in Italy, spirituality in India and sweet lovin' in Bali, hence EAT, PRAY, LOVE.





Watching it got me drawing parallels with my own expat experience in Bermuda and what I have learnt along the way.


EAT


So firstly... food. Well given Bermuda is a UK territory, there was never really going to be a culture shock when it comes to eating and drinking but there has definitely been a few surprises. For example, putting mayonnaise on everything leads to higher rates of obesity and diabetes. Who'd have thunked it?!! Particularly when it comes to mayo on a Bermuda Fish Sandwich. I made the mistake of asking for this local delicacy in a cafe during my first week on the island. I'd pictured grilled fish just hooked from the nearest bay, drizzled with a little lemon oil, vine tomatoes, rocket on freshly baked, seeded bread. Was this what I got? NOooooo. The Bermuda Fish Sandwich is unidentifiable white fish, fried in batter, smeared in mayo, maybe an iceberg lettuce leaf if you're lucky on white toast. A heart attack on a plate (and also a mighty fine hangover cure). 

Then there's the traditional Bermudian codfish breakfast... salt cod, boiled potatoes, sliced bananas, avocado, stewed tinned tomatoes, a little thyme, hard boiled eggs and a some bacon. Think I'll stick to my Shreddies - they keep hunger locked up to lunchtime without the urge to projectile vom in my own lap.


Fish is a reoccurring theme you see... there's the curried fish cakes on hot cross buns at Easter, fish chowder served with dark rum and sherry peppers (just yum). I have certainly had my fish horizons broadened - common local catches include: wahoo, amberjack, tilapia, rockfish. 


Can't remember if I've mentioned dark N stormies (rum and ginger beer) before??!! Well my undying love for this local delight has led me to try dark n stormy inspired dishes. Rockfish with D n S flavoured foam at Hog Penny (delish) and the D n S souffle at Fourways (devine decadence).There's a lot of rum flavoured delights to be had, the Bermuda Rum Cakes are faaaabulous. 


Other traditional Bermudian food includes cassava pie (made with grated Cassava root) and mussel pie, enjoyed alongside more well-known favourites like mac n cheese, fried chicken, rice and peas. And sushi is BIG here and mighty fine. Virtually every restaurant has a sushi bar on the side.


All in all, dining in Bermuda is a fantastic, although expensive, experience. There is a lot of fine dining to be had with some of the best views ever. Mickey's on Elbow Beach and Blu overlooking the harbour are two of the best in my humble opinion.


PRAY 


As I've mentioned in previous blogs, Bermuda has more churches per square mile than anywhere else in the world but my experience hasn't been a spiritual one in a religious sense. I have worshipped at the church of the glorious sun, pink sands and turquoise seas. I've been firmly reconnected with an appreciation of outstanding, no photoshop required, natural beauty and I have been spoilt forever. No beaches will ever compare... you can keep your Bondis and Copacabanas and bore off with your Bora Boras. I'd rather stay in Bermuda :-)

LOVE


And then there's love. The Bermuda Department of Tourism's slogan is "Feel the love" and you certainly do feel the love of Bermudian men, everywhere you go. The gas station, the supermarket, the street, they have a lot of love to give. So I leave you with my all time favourite tales of love/lust/like/mild interest from the island...


1. Bartender to me: "So you work in public relations, I'm the public, how about some relations?" Me: "How about no chance."


2. Old man to my friend in the Esso garage: "See that slush puppy machine there, I'd like to cover you in slush puppy". A chilling offer.


3. Bag packer to me in the supermarket: "Baby, do you need me to come home with you and help you unpack these... and maybe more?" Buy one, get one sleaze free.


4. A scene over lunch with my girlfriends. Text received by girl no.1 "Hi X, how about lunch on Saturday?" Two seconds later, text received by girl no.2 "Hi X, how about lunch on Saturday?" Yup you've guessed it, same guy. It's a small, small island, yes it really is!


5. The next JayZ to me: "You walked in and I was just about to call my mama and tell her I'd found the one. We can go shopping tomorrow and I'll buy you some Louis Vuitton." And maybe we can pick you up some decent chat while we are there.


And that's just the tip of the iceberg of a whole lotta love... 

Then there's Johnny Barnes, he has a lot of love to give all on his own. He is a national treasure who stands at the same place on a roundabout (known now as the Johnny Barnes Roundabout) blowing kisses and calling "I love you... I will always love you" to the passing traffic. 

Love is all around and so the feeling grows... till next time peeps xxx

What is a hotspot not?

A very interesting report (or as we like to call it in PR, a thought leadership platform!) called "Expat Economies" came out last week from the mighty banking machine that is HSBC. Full report available here. 


It named Bermuda as the number two global expat wealth hotspot, second only to Russia. You see that flaming red hot dot in the middle of the Atlantic, yeah baby that's us...

What has ickle Bermuda done to deserve this accolade then? Well, apparently over a quarter of expats that live here earn over a quarter of a million dollars a year. Sadly I'm not one of them. Nor are the many expats I befriended here, or at least that is what they lead me to believe. Relatively speaking, I'm earning a lot more than I did in London but you need to as Bermuda is also one of the most expensive places n the world, as well as the richest, so the bar of luxurious living is set MUCH higher. 


As a rough estimate, I reckon the average expat here, most like to be an auditor with a year's experience prior to relocating here or maybe even just qualified, is earning in the region of $85,000 a year. Not bad eh! But then when you consider that you'd be pushed to find the average habitable room in a flatshare for less that $1,400 a month, a jar of Sacla pesto (a modern day essential) will set you back $6 and a tin of Heinz beans somewhere around $2.50, you begin to realise that on a typical London wage here you would be homeless and bankrupt. 


The HSBC report for this reason us in third place in the income rankings and back to fifth position in terms of disposable income. However, when it comes to luxuries we fall back into 16th in the global chart and rightly so I think. The report metrics for luxurious living were respondents positively responding to the following statements:

Live in a nicer / bigger property

Have domestic helper / staff (e.g. cleaner/nanny) 

Own more than one property

Own nicer and more cars

Own a boat / yacht

Go on more luxurious holidays

Better healthcare

Own a swimming pool

Despite being financial better off, these status symbols are way out of reach for the average expat. There are restrictions governing home/car ownership by expats but these aside, a basic house and a car are a distant dream. A quick look on the website of local estate agent, Coldwell Banker, reveals an entry point of at least $750,000 on the housing market. When it comes to cars, no one has a particularly flashy car here. You won't see Bentleys, Lamborghinis or Aston Martins here. The 35kph speed limit would be more than frustrating if you were behind a set of those kinda wheels anyway. Just to get on the road in a crappy tin can type affair will set you back over $5,000. 

Although I'd like to add a column to the right of the table to gauge our 'it's a wonderful life though' rating as I would bet that when it comes to quality of life Bermuda would trump the rest of the hotspots by a mile or more. A laid back island life combined with a hefty pay cheque while the rest of the top quartile in the rankings are sophisticated (stressy) infrastructures. Where else in the top of the leader board would you have a commute of sub-three minutes, be able to pop for a quick swim in the ocean after work and spend the weekend either on a yacht or one of the best beaches in the world?! That, my friends, is my definition of ultimate wealth :-)