Sure, Sarah and I had a wonderful afternoon once fleeing the Atlantis Resort in a cab driven by a crazy guy trying to sell us weed while picking up girls on the sidewalk and introducing us by saying, "No they be cool Mon. They be like
And the girl got in!
There are four cruise ships today and the Government here has butchered the downtown area.
The Straw Market has been replaced by a large garage with vendors who grab you be the throat.
Storefronts are exact replicas of those on Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Half Moon Cay and St. Martin, all resemble outdoor shopping malls with the lone redeemable attraction of publicly drinking.
Now Nassau has ripped down buildings to build an exact replica of the welcome areas in ... Grand Cayman, Jamaica, Half Moon Cay, St. Martin and Disney World.
The uniqueness of a grand place is no more.
The El Grekco motel is a tiny sliver of the way things used to be and Sarah and her girls are loving it!
Across the street from Junkaroo Beach, a nice but overpriced escape from cruise ships, the hotel remains as it was.
"Hello Sarah," she says as we wander in for the first time in our lives.
What's not to like ... though the towels are thread bare, there's no restaurant or bar, and if you want ice you have to go to the front desk so they can get it for you to cart back to your room.
BUT ... the place is old time elegance.
The pool is 8 feet deep surrounded by a Spanish tile patio and only 40 rooms.
Somehow Sarah got us in the "Presidential Sweet" which overlooks the pool with a terrific balcony, a large room with two beds and a bathtub with stuff on the bottom none of us can identify.
A pack of Christians in matching orange shirts are also here to save someone from something though the chaperons seem to be going through the motions while the kids apparently text God's love without ceasing.
We celebrate the time here by feasting on a last meal of overpriced American food before leaving for San Salvador where the choices are mostly conch and fish, although Sarah learned of a roadside hamburger shack.
I talk to my kids one last time and call my Mom to say I love them, something I believe you can never do enough in life.
I take one last look at the crazy things going on at home where I apparently made news without even trying.
I look over my shoulder for a brief moment at all the things that got me to this point in my life, leaving me here in Nassau with a thirst for something more and a passion for life that's not done yet.
I stare through the window at the girls, already in bed, and Sarah gives me a wink and a tired smile.
"Alright God," I say to the warm Bahamian night, "thanks for getting us here. Take care of everybody back home. Let's get this party started and see where you're taking me next."
Amen.
