Second Day in Bermuda
Psalm 144:1-2
A Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD my Rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle— My lovingkindness and my fortress, My high tower and my deliverer, My shield and the One in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.
Today, we spent the day exploring two of the fifteen forts that are on this small island that is two miles by twenty-three miles. Obviously, from the first British colony in Bermuda in 1612 until after WWII, they have felt very threatened. First from the Spanish, then the Americans. Once Britian lost the American War for Independence, they heavily fortified Bermuda since it and Halifax were the only ports that they had to protect their shipping lanes to the new world.
A view of the lighthouse from the ferry.
First, we took a hotel ferry to Hamilton, the capital of Bermuda, where the sister hotel of the hotel we are staying at is located. From the ferry dock, we walked up to the fort that overlooks the city, Fort Hamilton. It was built in response to the new American iron-clad warships, i.e. the Monitor class ship, which ended the British dominion of the seas. The fort had a complete moat around it which has now been planted to be a botanical garden. The moat walls are approximately thirty feet high. It was a dry moat, so it was protected by gun ports that are accessible via tunnels that are open to the public.
A view of inside the dry moat.
We then took a ferry from Hamilton to Dockyard. Bermuda has one of the highest population densities in the world, so rather than using roads it is frequently faster to get to your destination by ferry which is the same cost as a bus. The Dockyard Keep is also from the nineteenth century and is the largest fort in Bermuda. It houses the Bermuda Maritime Museum which covers many aspects of the history of Bermuda. Most of the museum exhibits are located in the restored commisioner's house, which is a very large three story building with a beautiful view over the harbor toward Hamilton.
Bermuda was a significant island during WWII, primarily because it was the staging area for convoys to cross the Atlantic to supply Europe. They would gather in Bermuda and then cross under the protection of battleships. Also, it was where much of the mail crossing the Atlantic to the United States was censored. At the peak, there were about a thousand women, called censorettes, busy examining the flow of mail. Also, a German u-boat was captured and brought to Bermuda. It contained two Enigma machines along with the German code books allowing the Allies to decipher the German missives. Because of the importance of hiding the breaking of the code from Germany, it was never leaked that the u-boat was captured even though over a thousand people knew about it. The capture was finally announced nine days after the surrender of Germany. After the war, the u-boat was repaired and is now on display in Illinois.
A Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD my Rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle— My lovingkindness and my fortress, My high tower and my deliverer, My shield and the One in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.
Today, we spent the day exploring two of the fifteen forts that are on this small island that is two miles by twenty-three miles. Obviously, from the first British colony in Bermuda in 1612 until after WWII, they have felt very threatened. First from the Spanish, then the Americans. Once Britian lost the American War for Independence, they heavily fortified Bermuda since it and Halifax were the only ports that they had to protect their shipping lanes to the new world.
A view of the lighthouse from the ferry.First, we took a hotel ferry to Hamilton, the capital of Bermuda, where the sister hotel of the hotel we are staying at is located. From the ferry dock, we walked up to the fort that overlooks the city, Fort Hamilton. It was built in response to the new American iron-clad warships, i.e. the Monitor class ship, which ended the British dominion of the seas. The fort had a complete moat around it which has now been planted to be a botanical garden. The moat walls are approximately thirty feet high. It was a dry moat, so it was protected by gun ports that are accessible via tunnels that are open to the public.
A view of the dry moat from a gun port.
A view of inside the dry moat.We then took a ferry from Hamilton to Dockyard. Bermuda has one of the highest population densities in the world, so rather than using roads it is frequently faster to get to your destination by ferry which is the same cost as a bus. The Dockyard Keep is also from the nineteenth century and is the largest fort in Bermuda. It houses the Bermuda Maritime Museum which covers many aspects of the history of Bermuda. Most of the museum exhibits are located in the restored commisioner's house, which is a very large three story building with a beautiful view over the harbor toward Hamilton.
A cannon at the dockyard.
Bermuda was a significant island during WWII, primarily because it was the staging area for convoys to cross the Atlantic to supply Europe. They would gather in Bermuda and then cross under the protection of battleships. Also, it was where much of the mail crossing the Atlantic to the United States was censored. At the peak, there were about a thousand women, called censorettes, busy examining the flow of mail. Also, a German u-boat was captured and brought to Bermuda. It contained two Enigma machines along with the German code books allowing the Allies to decipher the German missives. Because of the importance of hiding the breaking of the code from Germany, it was never leaked that the u-boat was captured even though over a thousand people knew about it. The capture was finally announced nine days after the surrender of Germany. After the war, the u-boat was repaired and is now on display in Illinois.
First Day in Bermuda
This was our first full day in Bermuda. We have left the children behind for a long weekend. The first time since the birth of Stephen, who is now nine and a half years old. It is an early celebration of our twenty years of blessed marriage, which will occur this fall, but this seemed like a better time of the year to go to a beach location. Kendra has been wanting to see the pink sand of Bermuda (and her birthday is Saturday.)
Psalm 98:7-9
"Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it; Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD, For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity."
We began and ended the day with a walk on the beach. The first walk was along the hotel's private beach. It was small, but nice and secluded with umbrellas and chairs neatly arranged. Also, the sand was well groomed.
This is the beach at our resort.
This is the view from the beach club restaurant.
Psalm 119:105
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
From the shore, we walked up to the Gibbs' Hill Lighthouse. It is on the highest point of the island and was the second cast iron lighthouse ever built. It was casted and setup in an iron works in London, before being sent over in pieces and reassembled here. It was made of cast iron, a relatively new building material at the time, because of the soft rock of Bermuda was unable to hold the weight of the tower and lamp. It was built because of the number of shipwrecks on the reefs to the west of the island, which extend twelve miles out to sea. There had been a lookout on that hill since the mid-seventeenth century when they were on the lookout for Spanish galleys that might conquer the island.
Our hotel from the lighthouse.
A view of the island from the lighthouse.
In the afternoon, we took a long hike on a series of public beaches. This was probably about a three mile hike round trip and required climbing over the rocks to get from beach to beach. It was a pleasant day with beautiful weather. Then we found a spot to watch the sunset before heading back for a gourmet Italian dinner.
Psalm 98:7-9
"Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it; Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD, For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity."
We began and ended the day with a walk on the beach. The first walk was along the hotel's private beach. It was small, but nice and secluded with umbrellas and chairs neatly arranged. Also, the sand was well groomed.
This is the beach at our resort.
This is the view from the beach club restaurant."Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
From the shore, we walked up to the Gibbs' Hill Lighthouse. It is on the highest point of the island and was the second cast iron lighthouse ever built. It was casted and setup in an iron works in London, before being sent over in pieces and reassembled here. It was made of cast iron, a relatively new building material at the time, because of the soft rock of Bermuda was unable to hold the weight of the tower and lamp. It was built because of the number of shipwrecks on the reefs to the west of the island, which extend twelve miles out to sea. There had been a lookout on that hill since the mid-seventeenth century when they were on the lookout for Spanish galleys that might conquer the island.
Our hotel from the lighthouse.
A view of the island from the lighthouse.In the afternoon, we took a long hike on a series of public beaches. This was probably about a three mile hike round trip and required climbing over the rocks to get from beach to beach. It was a pleasant day with beautiful weather. Then we found a spot to watch the sunset before heading back for a gourmet Italian dinner.
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