Before we begin, make sure you read our latest blog on “10 Interesting Facts About Botswana” for some insightful information.
1. Bermuda is a British island territory in the North Atlantic Ocean known for its pink-sand beaches such as Elbow Beach and Horseshoe Bay.
2. If you hear someone saying ‘onion’, it actually means they are referring it to a Bermudian. You’d be amazed to know that this weird nickname dates from 19th century when onion were the islands’ one of the main exports.
3. Did you know? There are no restaurant franchises on Bermuda, no McDonalds, no Subway, no Pizza Hut. The reason behind it is that the restaurants must be Bermudian-owned. You’ll only find one single branch of KFC that also is owned by a Bermudian.
4. As a tourist, you would not be allowed to rent a car. Rather you will have to use the public transport which includes a super-efficient system of ferries and buses. The logic behind it is that it limits road congestion on the islands.
5. Did you know? There is no public water system on Bermuda, as the island has no natural source of fresh water. The Bermudians rely on the rainfall to fill up their water tanks, greatly helped by the shape of their limestone roofs.
6. In 1609, the Sea Venture was en route to Jamestown when it sailed into a storm, possibly a hurricane. The vessel, damaged and leaking, was deliberately ran aground on the reefs off Bermuda. The birds were thought to have been extinct as a breeding species for 330 years (except for a handful of possible sightings). But in 1951, a scientific expedition went to the islets around Castle Harbor, where seven burrows were finally found.
7. On the ground, you don’t notice the individual islets much because of the bridges linking them seamlessly together. You can see the ocean from almost any vantage point (the highest point in Bermuda is just 69 meters [225 ft] above sea level), and no more than a 1.6-kilometre (1 mi) walk will bring you within toe-dipping distance of the deep blue.
8. Did you know that there were no native people on Bermuda, so the wreck of the Sea Venture marked the beginning of human colonization? However, most of the settlers left as soon as they had cobbled some new ships together. Just three stayed behind.
9. the legend of the onion lives on at New Year’s, where, upon the stroke of midnight, a giant onion, fully decked out in lights and topped with palm tree fronds, is “dropped” from the Town Hall in St. George’s Town Square. If a Bermudian can’t make it to the St. George’s celebrations, they will rifle through the fridge on December 31 to reenact this tradition with a real (albeit smaller) onion. Sounds intriguing, right?
10. The Bermuda fireworm is unremarkable during the day. It is small, reddish, and covered in little bristles that sting if you touch them. When it gets revved up, however, something remarkable happens. In the summer months, on the third night after the full Moon, 56 minutes after sunset (yes, it really is that exact), the worms go bonkers.
