We were in Alicetown, Bimini. On January 21st, a Friday morning, we hopped on the Wifi to check weather and devised a plan to catch the light breeze to Highbourne Cay the following morning. We had one day to explore Bimini and get our next COVID test. When you arrive to the Bahamas, right now, you have to get another negative test on your second day if you plan to stay in the country more than 48 hours.
Per the usual, we started aimlessly walking. We considered pulling the bikes out but the roads were narrow and cars, motorcycles, and golf carts were ripping up and down the streets. I don’t have a helmet yet and we don’t have health insurance anymore, so no thank you. As we wandered the streets of what appears to be a town that has been ravaged by hurricanes and, in certain areas, unable to rebuild. There were several abandoned buildings and trash lined the streets. It was sometimes difficult to determine what was a functional building and what was not, for instance, the library pictured below.
With that said, I don't want to paint a picture like Bimini is a dump. It has vibrantly colored and well maintained homes with a buzzing local community.
We turned on a small street and stumbled upon a massive three-story structure called the Dolphin House, built by Ashley Saunders. As we approached, we read it was a museum and artistic structure described as a “bridge between human and dolphin consciousness,” and a “work in progress since 1993.” A man approaches us on a bicycle from the street and introduces himself as Ashley and said that tours start at 10am if we are interested. I mean, is that even a question, he had me at dolphin consciousness.
Mr. Saunders said that he built this structure as a tribute of gratitude for what he learned and gained from “swimming with wild dolphins,” and that all materials were used were collected from nature, like the conch shells, or discarded by humans. He said that a tour requires a $10 donation per person and to take and share as many pictures as I want. This tour included the artistic structure, the museum/library and the shop. He also lives there but his private residence was not included in the tour. I’m not sure I have the words to describe what I witnessed so I will let the pictures below do the talking.
He shared that he would burn down shells and use that with some kind of mixture to create the white concrete like material used. Mr. Saunders collected license plates from all 50 states and said Alaska was the toughest one to get. Apparently, tourists would send him license plates when they got back home which I thought was really neat. He had several from Texas…way to be, Texans!
We asked if he had workers that help him and he said he used to have local volunteers but that ended a long time ago and most of the volunteers he has now are visiting sailors. He said that sailors are a special kind of people and I think that’s because many sailors realize that giving is receiving. You help just to help and hope with the expectation of nothing in return other than that you hope the generosity is passed forward.
The second floor was the work in progress portion. Below the ceiling, he has “Welcome to Dolphin House,” in many languages. He said that he wants everyone to feel welcome and had people who came to tour write welcome to dolphin house in their native language.
The rooftop had structure built on it called the Beacon of Hope that he constructed in 2020. Mr. Saunders said that the Bahamas did not have the COVID vaccine and people were getting sick and dying and he created this structure as a beacon of hope that the Bahamas would get through this. The view surrounding this beacon was absolutely breathtaking. Even if you aren’t impressed by the structure and lifework of Mr. Saunders, the view is worth it.
We went back down and ended the tour in the museum, that included other collections and a tribute to Ernest Hemingway. Is Mr. Ashley Saunders a madman or a visionary? Was it all true? Was any of it true? I don’t know. What I observed is that he repurposes the discarded which is needed in Bimini. He creates things that are intended to be inclusive and uplifting and those things, and people that create them, will always be worth my time and money.
With full hearts we continued on our journey and this cute dog walked with us for about an hour. It was the happiest dog and you can tell it was loved. I don’t why it attached itself to us but it was a great tour guide. Afterwards we stopped by the Javon Clinic, got some negative tests and took one more walk down Radio Beach before continuing our journey South-ish.
