I’m back from the Bahamas, back from a vacation that, frankly, was too short. But it’s always too short, isn’t it? Being in the Bahamas was an experience of sorts for me. I’ve been there once before but I stayed at a resort which had mainly Italian tourists. This time around I was able to stay with a friend and mingle a little with the locals. I guess it’s no shocker that island life is different from American life. Knowing it and being in it are two different things however, as it is with most things in life.
Doing things in the Bahamas, or really any Caribbean island, is heavily dependent on the weather. Because you must be outside for the majority of things you do. This wouldn’t have been as noticable if it weren’t raining so much, but that’s how it is. I found myself getting restless after a couple of days and even irritated in spurts. I like the kind of vacations where I am up and about, doing things to fill up a whole day. Meaning I do not like flying somewhere else to do …. well, NOTHING. I can do that at home! Why would I pay for an overpriced ticket to do nothing? So for me, big cities and an abundance of historical sites and entertainment, yes. Beaches and lounging around, not so much. Hell, I live in Florida and I can’t convince myself to go to a beach more than two or three times a year. There is a culture of lounging around in Florida, if anything I need to get away from that! But that is besides the point. I was there mainly to visit my good friend rather than to play tourist. It was cheap, I missed my friend, I need a break from work, what can I say?
Nonetheless, being there made me think about how, for the lack of a better word, spoiled American life can make us. We have 24-hour convenience stores and most other stores are open seven days a week during sunlight hours. Great roads and transportation access. Even I complain about construction going on near my house and the traffic going to work, but it all seems minor now. Great internet and telephone access almost 24/7. Yea, we sure love to hate Comcast but I get the feeling that Comcast would start looking like godsend compared to the reliability of services in the Bahamas. Am I making excuses for Comcast? Absolutely not, because I don’t believe in making promises you can’t keep.
I did have fun and I don’t want to give off the impression that I didn’t, but even I occasionally caught myself silently cursing about how slow everything was. ”Crap, what else is there to DO here??” and “Man, why are these people always so LATE?” and my personal favorite: “Holy mother, is it so hard for these people to stay open for ONE more hour, GEEZ!!!” You get my point.
I felt guilty. I am not an anal person who thinks the world revovles around them (at least, I don’t think so) and yet I was complaining to myself. I can also be a big procrastinator, so why am I being so impatient? Do I really need an ice cream at 11 p.m. at night? Why does everything have to be done now, now, now? Island life isn’t for everyone. It’s definitely not for me: I didn’t grow up on an island. But I definitely had to let go and try to go with the flow. You don’t really have any choice. And once you get to that point, you realize it isn’t so bad.
I can see why island life is appealing to a lot of people. The people here don’t seem to stress out too much, especially about things that aren’t a big deal. Too much of anything is bad of course, but I like to think I took home a piece of the Bahamas with me. Choose your priorities and for the rest, live and let live.
**If you’re new here and enjoyed this post, be sure to subscribe for future posts and updates. And feel free to share this post … I’d really appreciate it! Don’t forget to introduce yourself in the comments. Don’t be shy … I don’t bite. 
You can also add me on Twitter (@valeriemondesir).**
Related posts:
