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Upon arrival in Bermuda, the first hurdle to get over was Immigration. As I was coming in on a work permit, I was detained there quite a while longer than the other passengers were and my suitcases were searched thoroughly by stern-faced officials. Finally, I got through and was picked up by the contact from the agency. Driving through Bermuda to my “host-landlady” setup, my first impressions of Bermuda were how colorful and bright the houses are; the colour of the sea (which I’d heard about and seen in magazines but which really is still quite a stunning shock to the system); the vegetation and how exotic it all seemed. It struck me that Bermuda is not unlike Key West in Florida – think it’s the colouring – pastels, pinks \ blues \ yellows. The house in which I’m staying has a beautiful garden with tall palm trees. During the next couple of weeks, my one repetitive question to my landlady – “what’s that noise?" - turned out to be either frogs (can best describe their sounds as Road Runner on valium – BEEP ten minutes later BEEP ten minutes later BEEP...) or the Kiskadee Bird (so named because of it’s call – kiss-ka-dee – kiss-kiss-ka-dee), a pretty little yellow bird but then, seems as if everything in Bermuda is of a definitive striking shade. Hamilton is a very, very pretty town. Hamilton Harbour is where the large cruise ships dock in the summer. Still find myself on the way to work, gaping up at the massive cruise liners and invariably, bumping into something (or someone), sophisticate that I am... “Front Street” is the main street, with colorful storefronts (orange, yellow, wine, blue, pink, and green, to name but a few). I was quite taken aback to see the “Irish Linen Shop”; Marks & Spencer’s; “The Scottish Wool Shop”; “The English Sports Shop” – guess I had been expecting more American-influenced stores. As you walk down the street, it’s quite the norm for people to nod good morning or good afternoon, or whatever. I did go to the public library in Hamilton and was saddened (but not totally surprised) to see homeless people lying on benches outside. I’m used to that in, say, Dublin or London, but I guess the contrast was more pronounced in affluent Bermuda. People I find the Bermudian people generally to be very pleasant cordial and polite. They smile a lot, and are more relaxed than “city folk”. I’m normally quite good at pinpointing accents but the Bermudian accent is a tough one to get a handle on. It sounds to me like mixture of African; Boston; upper class English; Jamaican sing-song; and “Noo Yawk”. Was in the General Post Office in
Hamilton one day and was more than slightly taken aback by a couple of
women walking around singing hymns (loudly). Well, religious ‘though
the Irish purport to be, I couldn’t really see that happening in the GPO
“back home”... unless, maybe the nuns...
The cost for me was $253 (+ the $253 to be paid by the agency I was coming over here through), then the cost of my Medical, x-ray and sending by courier to Bermuda, together with flight from Dublin (IR£700), all told, about IR£1,000. The initial application \ Immigration process \ work permit approval took about three to four months to complete). You also need to take plenty of money with you, alternatively, a few credit cards – probably both would be more appropriate. Secretaries over here all get paid the same rate until you get a permanent position, so there are no delusions of grandeur as regards who gets what pay initially (not really accustomed to discussing my earnings so openly with practically everyone I meet but that’s what happens here!). We also get no holiday entitlement for six months. Bit of a shock to me, as the average holiday allowance in Europe is 4-6 weeks annually. The agency sets you up to stay with a “host family \ landlady” initially, until you find your feet. Once you get over the somewhat demoralising realisation that your whole life is now 100% completely out of your control, it’s time to get with the programme and get on with things... Cost of Living Well, Bermuda is the singularly most expensive place I have ever been to. Everyone told me this before I came here but I still wasn’t quite prepared for my first day’s grocery shopping, when a few items (which would cost about Stg£20 in the UK) amounted to $46 – still recovering from the shock of that particular jaunt. Dress Code Dress code in Bermuda generally is more formal than I had expected. Beginning to see more and more of those Bermuda shorts about now – nice for us gals to be able to have a look at some (not bad!) gams for a change... suppose I shouldn’t say that really as next I’ll be accused of being sexist.. ah well... Banking I had gotten my bank account set up about six weeks prior to my arrival in Bermuda. I’d had the documents prepared and sent over so that I only had to pick up my chequebook and card – otherwise, I’m told it’s an arduous process to get it done in Bermuda. There are quite a few ATMs and most places accept major credit cards anyway. Industry Main industries in Bermuda - Finance \ Insurance \ Accountancy \ Law firms \ e-Commerce. Some Oil \ Telecommunications. Internet There are two Internet computers
in the local library, usage on both is free (one can be used for half an
hour, the other for fifteen minutes). Alternatively, there are a
couple of other Internet Cafes, one of which charges $5 per half hour,
haven’t tried the other.
Climate: Am being warned of humidity – can reach 90º. It has been quite sunny and hot, although, changeable, while I’ve been here. For about one week, we had really bad storms, thunder and lightening. At the end of the day, waiting at the bus stop in the rain, is still waiting at the bus stop in the rain, no matter what country you’re in (albeit in prettier surroundings). Like I say, if I can get used to the weather in Ireland, I can get used to anything... Insects Won’t go into this in too much detail as it kind of feels like I’d be tempting fate a bit, but have come across thus far (noisy crickets and frogs aside), one enormous spider’s web – minus the spider mind you and as his web is just outside my bedroom, I have more than a passing interest in his whereabouts... Also - little lizards, which I was psyching myself up for getting accustomed to until I was told that they can jump, and a friend of mine had two of them jump onto her, one into her hair (!). Then there are the cockroaches... I can’t actually go on now on this topic because my heart rate has just tripled and I’m freaking myself out a bit... Boy, there are some ugly critters in this world (see now, my friends would have expected me into put that sentence in the Social Life category...). Medical Trust me on this but you really should have medical insurance before coming to Bermuda (or going anywhere for that matter, I guess). I had sunburned my eyelids (long story) on one of my first days here – I went to the doctor’s and was prescribed some eye drops ($19) and am eagerly awaiting his invoice... My two options for Medical Insurance are Hip or Major. The Hip Insurance is a very basic insurance and costs $14.25 per week. The Major Insurance offers more extensive coverage, includes dental and costs $25.50 per week. Restaurants Lots of international cuisine in Hamilton – Chinese; English; French; German; Irish; Italian; Mexican; Portuguese; Thai; West Indian; and of course local seafood restaurants. You are, for the most part, expected to dress up a little bit – ie, no trainers; shorts; t-shirts. Shopping Plenty of souvenir shops, where almost
everything has “BERMUDA” emblazoned across it. Shoes? Not a great
deal for below $60. There are some European stores – Benetton and
Stefanel and some English – Marks & Spencers.
My friends pick me up on Sundays now and about six of us take off to the beach to play volleyball. Rather, they play volleyball and I read or listen to music – not that I can’t play, I’m actually quite good but still a little bit shell-shocked and spend quite a lot of time just gazing at the colour of the sea... The summer “booze cruises” are starting now – they’re self-explanatory I should hope. Basically, a ferry ride around the island for a couple of hours and people eat, drink and be merry... We went down to the Harbour last Friday to try one for the first time but unfortunately, the “music” was heavy Techno. Not sure that we would have lasted two hours of listening to (suffering through) that, so we gave it a miss this time. Must be gettin’ old... I do notice the passage of time in Bermuda – I can do about 20 things, then I’ll look at watch, and only five minutes will have gone by. Tourist Attractions
For me, I’ll be bussing it for a while, which is no great hardship as the bus stop is not far from where I live and, intrepid explorer that I am, I have a seriously, chronically bad sense of direction, so, I’m far safer, for the moment, on the bus rather than on the other alternative – the scooter (having gotten lost on at least five occasions just coming home from work, someone asked me how I would find my way around if I got a scooter. My idea actually was that I would just follow the masses). The local buses are pink with air conditioning and have panoramic views. The bus drivers in Bermuda are quite helpful and friendly. Also, people on the bus are very polite and will turn to each other and say Good Morning and smile (in big cities, it would more likely be “Good Morning”, smile, “Wallet”). Friendliness, like unfriendliness, I guess, takes a little getting used to! The bus stops themselves are nothing to write home about – shelters with no seats typically, or just a blue or pink pole by the side of the road (pink means the bus is going toward Hamilton, blue means the bus is going away from Hamilton). What would happen if you were colour blind?? Most people ‘though travel on scooters, these will cost about $55 per day to rent. The other alternative is to buy one, which would cost anything from $700 upwards. You also need to take a test and have a medical done for that. There’s also the ferries, which are reliable and are a picturesque method of transport around the island. Taxis are relatively expensive – no surprise there, but the taxi drivers that I’ve come across, like the bus drivers, have been helpful and friendly (one of them offered to introduce me to the local brew – the “Dark and Stormy” – lovely ‘though that sounded (!), I declined). I actually, probably will try the “Dark and Stormy” on one occasion at least, but might just be safer to have my friends around me when I do so (actually, now that I think about it, not sure my friends would be the best advisers on alcohol...). One taxi driver took me home one night and when I said I would walk up the lane to the house I was staying at, he said “uh uh, no ma’am – I take you to your door”, even though it was difficult for him to get the car there. Sweet. More Resources http://www.accessbda.bm/gazette.htm
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