Jan 19 we bid farewell to BlackPoint and Feb 19 we returned… this place has the BEST laundry around- by far. Granted, Laundromats are in short supply, and this one is worth the wait.

The Lady Frances came in Saturday so we had a bit of luck at the market. To give you some idea: I wanted butter, milk and eggs. They had eggs. (well, to be honest they did have milk and butter, but the milk was whole and we prefer 1% and the butter is Anchor brand, a product of New Zealand and it has an off taste to me.) I needed fruit, carrots and bananas. They had grapefruit, loose carrots and bananas. Not bad. I wanted a box of tissues; zilch. We opened the large chest freezer to assess the meats, but most of the items I didn’t recognize or wasn’t sure if I was looking at a pork rib or a steak. And you know, when I say “milk” we’re not talking fresh milk, it’s UTH all the way; mostly Parmalat, sometimes Borden, or the scarce Presidente brand that looks more like a bottle of milk with a twist cap that keeps the milk in the bottle should it topple over.

Our second best find (after the eggs) was Canada Dry canned tonic water. The next time you disparage the selection in your local Publix or Stop & Shop, close your eyes and place yourself in a corner market such as you might have had in your local neighborhood growing up… and then cut that selection in half;  now, how would you like to shop there for three months?  Yes, we still are a bit fussy about some items, but after a few tries I sigh and give in to what I can get and am happy to have something, at least. Like the butter. At Exuma Market I had several choices and finally settled on the Irish Kelly unsalted butter. Doubt I’ll have that range of choice until Marsh Harbor (she says hopefully).

Now for the tonic water tale of woe. We left Florida loaded with paper towels, cashews, almonds, cereal, wine and tonic water. Polar brand of tonic is very inexpensive and we usually buy that or the store brand.  Packed enough to go with the large bottle of cheap gin (last year we gave up Tangueray) we had, figuring if gin was too pricey here, we’d skip it. Of course, it was affordable and then came the tough part of the tonic water. Other than rum punch-type drinks, we keep it simple; wine, G&Ts or the occasional beer for Russ. Many cruising couples we’ve met keep it very simple: they don’t drink; how budget friendly and healthy is that?

Our first few forays into Exuma Market in GT netted us an empty space where the non-diet quart bottles of Polar tonic might usually reside. Okay then, let’s try what we could find; Schweppes in cans. Canned beverages of all types and flavors abound here. Our taste buds revolted, our eyes read the label and our minds wondered if bottling in Nassau produced a heavier, sicky-sweeter tonic preferred by Bahamians, or was the difference between cans and bottles really that great?  A few days later, the Polar tonic appeared on the shelf and we nabbed 3 to mix with the Schweppes- phew. When we saw Canada Dry (we almost always have noticed Schweppes) at Adderley’s in Black Point we grabbed a test can and am relieved to report that… we like it! Not bottled in Nassau, but in Texas and not at all like the Schweppes. Now if we can only get a few more….

Now you can enjoy a good laugh when I tell you some other items on my list: buttermilk, sour cream, spareribs, cucumber. I can dream can’t I? Next stop is Staniel Cay with 3 small markets!

January- no bldg visible next to pink house

One month later...