Category Archives: Culture

Information about the current culture of a location we visit.

Lunch and Groceries in New Providence Island (Nassau), The Bahamas

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Sunrise on Thursday, March 26

This morning, the anchorage was rolly and uncomfortable. We did our morning routine of school and chores, but Christi and Keith had to stop school work early because they were both getting nauseated from trying to read with all the motion (as an FYI, we generally did not do school work when Kosmos was in transit because of the propensity to get seasick). 

We decided that we needed to escape the rocking and spend the day onshore. Other than the public park, there was nothing open to the public that was within walking distance. Since we were low on “passage foods,” we wanted to go to the grocery store. We also wanted to eat out for lunch. Eric looked up prices and found that it would cost $35 – $40 each way to take a taxi to the closest grocery store. We knew it would cost the same or less to rent a car for the day. The first two rental agencies that we called had no cars available, but the third place did. They said it would cost $60 for the car for the day, plus a $30 fee to pick us up and drop us back off. We agreed to the terms. We arranged to be picked up at noon at the public beach.

At the beach, there were pylons that looked like they were the remains of what was once a dock. A couple of dinghies were tied to the pylons, but we decided that, with the tide swing while we were gone, it would be safer to beach the dinghy. This was looking northwest from the beach.

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Visiting Duncan Town, Ragged Island in Ragged Islands, The Bahamas

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Sunrise on Tuesday, February 24

Last night, there was a big storm with strong, cold wind. However, our anchorage was very protected from that direction and we had a calm night. This morning, the wind was so cold that Christi couldn’t sit outside to watch the sunrise.  

Also this morning, Eric realized that the AGM battery shared by the wing engine and generator was starting to die. The last few times he’d started the generator, the voltage had dropped and it didn’t sound right. Today, when he exercised the wing engine, it had trouble starting. Knowing that both the wing engine and the generator were having a hard time with start up, he deduced the problem was the battery. He checked the voltage and it had dropped. The battery was only four years old. Usually they last five years, but that battery didn’t get discharged very often, which shortens its life. 

After Keith and Christi finished school, we decided to walk to town to get groceries and lunch. Yesterday, we’d noticed an airplane in the bushes a bit west of where we’d landed the dinghy, but we hadn’t investigated it. We’d read on the No Foreign Land app that it had been a restaurant, but was out of business now. Today, Christi walked over to get a better look, curious about a restaurant made out of a plane. It was actually a building with a plane built into the roof. It looked like it was once a super cool place for the cruisers to hang out!

Big pieces of what was probably once a ship were scattered along the shore near the airplane-house.

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The Annual Valentine’s Day Fundraiser on Hog Cay, Ragged Islands, The Bahamas

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Dawn on Saturday, February 21

The anchorage had been fine with the last few days with both flopper stoppers out, but today the wind shifted back to its prevailing direction from the east, and the anchorage became super calm and very pleasant. In the early morning, we heard goats bleating from the shore. 

Every year, the cruisers and locals in Duncan Town (located on Ragged Island, the island directly south of Hog) worked together to put on a fundraiser for the community. We guess it was normally done near Valentine’s Day, but there had been a big event in Georgetown Valentine’s Day weekend that many cruisers attended, so they’d pushed the date back. A lot of boats had arrived in the anchorage over the last few days in anticipation of the fundraiser. This event was the reason that the locals had repaired the hut and the cruisers had created more shade.

Ever since we’d arrived, there’s been a daily announcement asking the cruisers to donate anything on our boats that we may not want. They emphasized that the locals have very limited access to goods, and that we’d be surprised at what they’d want. Things that we took for granted were valuable to them. One of the cruisers was in charge of the collection.

The event consisted of a buffet meal followed by an auction of the goods donated by the cruisers. The locals provided all the food for the meal, but they asked each cruiser to bring a side dish or dessert to help supplement the meal. The buffet was $25 per person, which was amazing value for the money in the Bahamas. You can’t even get an a la carte hamburger for $25! We were told that the food was abundant and really yummy.

Christi made cookies in the morning. We’d been told food service would start between 1200 and 1230. We went to shore a little after 1200 and they were already serving. Eric and Keith got in line.

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Christmas with the Ranger at Warderick Wells Cay, Exuma Islands, The Bahamas

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On Thursday, December 25, 2025, Christi woke up at 0500, before first light. Warderick Wells basically has zero lights and it was cloudless (which was rare), making the stars especially vibrant. She sat outside for a few minutes and saw a shooting star! This was the dawn.

Early in the morning, the park ranger’s wife sang to us about the rules of the park. We’d forgotten about her morning announcements!

Some of the other parents organized a scavenger hunt around the island for the kids. in the morning, Keith went on the scavenger hunt. Here was a shot of the group.

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