Saturday, January 22, 2011

91 DAYS TO GO . . .

      SATURDAY JANUARY 22, 2011

      WHAT TO DO IN THE BAHAMAS.  MY CRUISE IS NOT ONLY GOING TO DISNEY'S PRIVATE ISLAND, CASTAWAY CAY, BUT TO NASSAU, BAHAMAS.  THE ISLANDS ARE LONG KNOWN FOR THEIR DUTY FREE SHOPPING AND THE DEBATES OVER WHETHER WHAT YOU BUY IS ACTUALLY A DEAL OR NOT.  I'VE HEARD MORE THAN A FEW PEOPLE THAT WERE WILLING TO HAVE LIQUOR AND CIGARETTES SHIPPED HOME CAUSE THEY THOUGHT THEY SAVED MORE THAN ENOUGH TO RATIONALIZE IT.  OTHERS SAY THAT'S CRAZY.  I KNEW A COUPLE THAT BOUGHT WHAT THEY THOUGHT WAS DIAMOND JEWELRY WORTH $4000 AT A GREAT PRICE, BUT REALLY BOUGHT $150 WORTH OF OVERPRICED CRAP.  SO LIKE ANYWHERE, IT'S BUYER BEWARE, OR EVEN MORE SO, BUYER DO YOUR HOMEWORK. 
      KNOW THE PRICES AT HOME, OR ON-LINE, IF YOU'RE CONSIDERING BUYING A HIGHER END ITEM WHILE SHOPPING IN THE ISLANDS, LIKE JEWELRY, WATCHES, CAMERAS, ETC.  NASSAU IS KNOWN FOR HAVING EXCELLENT KNOCK-OFF PURSES AND BAGS, LIKE NEW YORK CITY.  WHAT'S THE NAME OF THAT STREET?  MY SISTER WOULD KNOW.  ANYWAY, THE DEAL IS SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD, BUT YOU ALSO TAKE A RISK TRAVELING WITH SOMETHING THAT'S ILLEGAL.  LIQUOR IS BY FAR THE BEST DEAL, BUT MORE IF SO IF YOU'RE JUST BUYING IT FOR THE TRIP YOU'RE ALREADY ON, PLAN ON TAKING VERY LITTLE HOME, OR BUYING SO MUCH, SHIPPING MAKES SENSE AND PAYS IN BULK.  THEY SAY CIGARETTES ARE CONSIDERABLY CHEAPER BY THE CARTON THERE, BUT THE REAL SMOKING BOON IN NASSAU IS BEING ABLE TO LEGALLY BUY REAL CUBAN CIGARS.  BUT LIKE RISKING KNOCK OFF JEWELRY, YOU'RE ALSO RISKING A KNOCK OFF CUBAN.  PERSONALLY, AFTER DOING A LITTLE MORE RESEARCH BEFORE MY TRIP, I'LL KNOW WHERE TO GO AND I WILL FIND ONE.  TO ME, THAT'S WORTH THE RISK AND THE RESEARCH.  SO FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU MIGHT BE WILLING TO BUY.  YOU'LL BE ABLE TO BUY MARIJUANA ALL OVER THE PLACE, AND IF YOU'RE ASKED ABOUT SMOKE ON THE STREET, THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT.  ;-)   YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SMELL IT PLENTY ANYWAY EVEN THOUGH IT'S ILLEGAL THERE TOO.  JUST KEEP IN MIND THAT IF YOU GET ARRESTED, YOU MAY MISS THE BOAT, AND THEN YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN!
     EVERYONE RAVES ABOUT THE STRAW MARKET (WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=7DGR7QVTZYA) IN NASSAU, BUT I'M NOT THAT BIG A SHOPPER, AND THE MOST COMMON REFERENCE I HEAR TO THE STRAW MARKET IS A FLEA MARKET.  I'VE BEEN TO PLENTY OF THOSE AND I DON'T THINK I'M TAKING A CRUISE TO SEE ANOTHER, BUT IT'S ABOUT THE MEMORIES.  SHOPPING TOGETHER FOR SOME, OR JUST WHAT YOU MIGHT SURPRISINGLY FIND, MAKES IT ALL THE BETTER.  AND DON'T FORGET TO HAGGLE.  EVERYONE SAYS THE BAHAMIAN SALES PEOPLE ARE EXTREMELY PUSHY, SO BE FIRM WITH YOUR "NO's", BUT EVEN FIRMER WITH YOUR INSISTENCE ON THE PRICE YOU WANT TO  PAY.  THE MORE YOU WALK AWAY AFTER AN INQUIRY, THE MORE THEY'RE WILLING TO COME DOWN TO GET YOU TO BUY.  HAVE FUN WITH IT AND REMEMBER TO SAVE ENOUGH ROOM IN YOUR LUGGAGE FOR WHAT YOU BUY. 
     TOMORROW I'LL GET INTO SHORE EXCURSIONS AND THE MANY, MANY CHOICES YOU HAVE ON A DAY IN A FOREIGN PORT.  SEE YA REAL SOON!   ºOº

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