We didn’t plan to spend much time in Nassau. A day or two to check in and catch up on sleep. However, several days of an east wind pinned us up, so we made the most of the Bahamas’ bustling capital city.
Scavenging the city for SIM cards, we were initially unsuccessful, but enjoyed the most mouthwatering meal we’ve had in a long time. Following the recommendation from the Immigration Officer from the day before, we walked to a string of food shacks perched above neon blue water under the bridge on Potter’s Cay. Opposite of the tourist driven cruise ship port from our location. We stopped in at Juss Grill and ordered two heaping plates of conch and grits with jerked shrimp and conch on top, with a side of roasted plantains. I still dream about that delicious meal. My only regret, I didn’t snap a photo of its glory before we destroyed it.
For the next few days, the sounds of a local band (I need to find their name again) rang in our ears with a Caribbean street flair and an eccentric grandpa scrapping a saw. I would only butcher a further explanation, but a short video is on our instagram you should definitely see haha! They were the best and it brings a wide smile to my face every time.
We of course had to hunt down the famous Fish Fry spot, another string of food shacks and restaurants slinging Sky Juice, local fare, and big smiles. There was even a classic car show next door that we had to check out. Talking to one of our servers, a Nassau born-and-raised man who peaked an interest in us after we explained we didn’t stumble off the cruise ship, we had experienced one of our first true moments of Bahamian hospitality.
“You’re sailing to the Exumas?? One of my buddies own a restaurant there, I’ll call him and tell him to hook you up!… my uncle is also owns a fishing company there, I’ll give you his contact too so if you need anything at all, hit him up!” He was legit, we talked to his buddy and his uncle on his phone before we left, and everyone was so nice and helpful. I hope we see them!
Decent weather was ahead, but we still never found a SIM card. It was the end of our final day in town. We picked up some extra coffee from a wholesale shop as we walked back to the dinghy dock. Happy, but objectively defeated. Then we saw a road sign for a craft brewery off our path a few blocks up, so we figured why not check it out.
We walked in, first spotting a beautiful mural behind a bar atop of an interesting worn boat, with big silver brewing tanks adjacent to it. We were greeted with a warm smile, ordered our tasty beverages, and started a game of Connect Four.
Then, in perfect timing to save Brendan from an embarrassing game loss (hah!), the friendly bartender, who turned out to be the owner, addressed the room.
Wishing us welcome, he picked up a book off a shelf. “I would like to tell you a story…” inside the book were beautiful photographs of the Exumas (our next stop) and told us a story of a hops farmer with a daughter who was a skilled sailor… we were immediately hooked…
A girl who won every sailing regatta in the Exumas she ever competed in, capsized from her vessel one fateful day, and disappeared. When the farmer was approached about the loss of his daughter, he knew she had not perished. Instead, he said, she had finally transformed into a mermaid. Her boat was all that was ever found. It sits here, at the Rip Ty’d Bahamian Craft Brewery.
We were enthralled, and continued to chat with Mr. Bruce, the amazing owner, about his native-Nassau roots, life in the Bahamas, and his super interesting new book (a psych thriller, coming out soon! Click here for his instagram page). He asked about our story. We summed it up as best we could, shrugging about our recent predicament.
With true kindness, Bruce was not only incredibly generous to give us a ride an Aliv store (one of the bigger cell providers here), but he even offered to wait for us and give us a ride back. That walk would’ve taken us 2/3 hours. We are still so appreciative and grateful!
Overall our Nassau experience was great; the locals are awesome, the chow and sips are tasty, and of course, the water is beautiful.
The only words of caution we would have for fellow sailors about Nassau is:
- 1. The groceries are super expensive (however we’ve heard still cheaper than the rest of the islands) so provision in Florida as much as you can.
- 2. This massive cruise ship port can be a massive tourist trap right by the cruise terminal. If that’s the vibe you’re searching for (which hey we ain’t hating) it’s at your fingertips. However, we recommend adventuring past it, there’s so much more you can gain outside the comfort bubble. Just don’t forget to ring the doorbell going into shops and many establishments outside the main port. You’ll promptly be let in, but that may be a new concept for some.
- 3. We stayed at the West Nassau Anchorage. There are TONS of tour boats (dolphin tours, booze cruises, and even mock pirate ships) that seriously push personal bubble boundaries in the anchorage. Your boat will rock and roll, you’ll hear drunks yipping, and get pissed about how close some of these tour boats will get to you. However, at night, it is aaall good. Once the tour boats go home for the night, things smooth out.
We prepared to head out, and when the sun came up, we pulled up the anchor, and set our sails to the Exuma island chain.
~ Day 31
Sailing la Cosmica 
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