Known to generations of visitors as the Out Islands, situated “out” and away from the glitter of Nassau and Freeport. They are secluded, peaceful and beautiful, where endless, nearly empty beaches are a trademark and water sports are a way of life. There are no all night discos or casinos. Entertainment is local. Each island is unique and has its own history and character.

One of Nassau’s oldest neighborhoods comprised of Bains, Grants and Delaney Towns. This area has been known for generations because of its location just over the ridge from Downtown, Nassau. These country villages within the city were also settled by rescued slaves, along with emancipated blacks who had worked the Bahamian plantations. The villages today are poor, but picturesque, with tiny wooden houses painted in bright tropical colors, often surrounded by bougainvillea and tropical greenery. There are many Baptist and Fundamentalist churches in the area and even more bars, shops and small mom and pop grocery stores serving the local population. This area was laid out in the 1820’s by then Governor Lewis Grant.

This is a refreshing drink of coconut water, gin and sweet cream.

Known as Heritage Village, this hot spot for locals and visitors alike is located just north of Fort Charlotte and Hanes Oval Cricket Pitch on West Bay Street. Originally it was the Ministry of Tourism’s vision to develop an authentic village atmosphere for Bahamians and visitors. The site has a police station, a story telling porch, and a “rock-oven” commonly used on the Family Islands for baking. There is a village green where festivals, cultural events and concerts are held. A Junkanoo rush-out is held during the month June, the purpose of which is to give visitors who are unable to attend during the Christmas and New Year’s celebrations a taste of what it is like. Heritage Village also the home of a lively, culturally rich seafood vendor village with a number of Bahamian clap-board vernacular style homes that house a colorful mix of eateries offering typical local dishes prepared to order. Conch salad, conch fritters, fried fish, grilled fish or conch, cracked lobster, and coconut water with rum – “Sky Juice” and mouth watering guava duff are just a few of the tantalizing dishes being offered. Behind the village is a cay, an artificial island which built from sand dredged from the Nassau Harbor in the 1960’s. This cay is called Arawak Cay, however, the locals have taken to calling the Heritage Village Fish Fry, Arawak Cay.

What is Junkanoo?

It is an energetic cultural, colorful parade of brightly costumed people gyrating and dancing to the rhythmic accompaniment of cowbells, drums, whistles and horns. Junkanoo is distinctly Bahamian it can be compared to New Orleans’ – Mardigra and Rio De Janeiro's Carnival. Parade participants arranged in groups of up to one thousand (1000) are organized around a particular theme.

Origin of Junkanoo

The origin of the word is unclear, however it is accepted that it dates back to slavery, somewhere between the 16th and 17th century. Many have it that it comes from the French (L’INCONNU) meaning unknown people as it related to the masks worn by the paraders.

Another theory is that a West African Tribal Chief named John Canoe who captured a salve trade fort from Europeans in 1720 demanded the right to celebrate with his people even after being brought to the West Indies in slavery. As a gesture of good will, salves were allowed time off at Christmas form the plantations to be with their families. During which time they celebrated with an African Grand Dance. This it is believed was an outlet to vent anger and frustration from being in captivity. There is evidence that the dances occurred on or the day after Christmas. Over the years the traditions was continued and has become an integral part of our cultural fabric.

In the early years Junkanooers wore grotesque masks and walked on stilts. Sea Sponges, Leaves, Fabric and Shredded Paper were also used in the construction of costumes. Costumes today are made out of Crepe Paper that is meticulously glued to fabric, cardboard or wood. They usually consist of a head dress, shoulder piece and skirt which are elaborate and brilliantly colored. Group member makes their own costumes and it can take them up to one full year to complete the intricate creations. We showcase this part of our culture in three forms, music, art and dance. Costume designs are tied to a theme and are a closely guarded secret. Themes vary greatly. They can be contempary, based on the past or anything the group chooses.

Music and Instruments of Junkanoo

The most important part of Junkanoo is the music. This spectacular street parade is punctuated by the rhythmic sounds of Goat Skin Drums, Cow Bells and Whistles accompanied by a separate Brass section creating an infectious beat that is too strong to resist.

Slaves that originally made their musical instruments from cast off items, fashioned rum or food containers into drums or scrape metal into bells. Today’s musicians use similar methods like their ancestors, they stretched goat skin across the drum opening and (tune) by burning a candle under the skin to tighten it to the right pitch. The groups now have special choreographed dancers apart from the main Junkanooers and music sections.

At the end of the Junkanoo procession judges award cash prizes the three (3) main categories are Best Music, Best Costume and Best Overall Group Presentation. Today, Junkanoo is perhaps the only aspect of island life that stands out as being totally Bahamian.

Goat Skin Drum – Known locally as Goombay drums, they were made from old wooden barrels or kegs with the skin of a goat stretched over the opening.

Cowbells – This instrument is used mostly for Junkanoo festivals; with or without the clapper removed and struck from the outside. The bell is usually shaken by the hands during the festival.

The official beer of The Bahamas which got its name from the sound made by the cowbells, a key instrument used by Junkanoo groups during parades. Kalik has not always been synonymous with: “the beer of The Bahamas”. Rather, it’s the sound associated with cowbells shaking and Junkanoo. Kalik, kalik, kalikking, kalik is a popular rhythm of the bells and Junkanoo is simply the opportunity for the islanders to their bells, beat their goat skin drums, blow their horns and use other junkanoo music instruments to have a party of a parade.

Houses made of clapboard, a long, thin board, thicker along one edge than the other, used in covering the outer walls of buildings, being laid horizontally, the thick edge of each board overlapping the thin edge of the board below it. These houses were very common before the 1970’s and mainly found in old slave settlements such of Bain’s Town, Grant’s Town and Delancy Town. These homes were normally characterized with push-out windows held up by a stick and normally seen in over-the-hill and low income areas.

Pronounced ‘konk’ is a muscular meat, a sea dwelling mollusk that lives in a spirally constructed shell. It is a staple of the Bahamian diet that may not be exported and is served many ways. It is prepared and enjoyed in multiple fashion by the natives such as Conch Salad where the conch is chopped raw and marinated in lime juice and spices (similar to serviche), Scorched Conch which is fresh and raw conch, scorched sprinkled with lime juice and hot pepper sauce, Conch Chowder where the conch is diced with potatoes, carrots, tomatoes and simmered into a thick soup seasoned by spices and then there is Cracked Conch (fried conch) in which the conch is beaten with a tenderizer, covered in flour then dipped in an egg batter and fried until golden brown.

The most popular of all the dishes is Conch Fritters. The conch is diced and combined with flour and eggs and then deep fried into crispy, chewy, bite-sized hors d’oeuvres.

Local fishermen selling the fruits of their labor at Montague shores.

A guava is the sweet fruit of the guava tree, which grows in tropical regions of America and Asia. The guava fruit can be eaten raw or used to flavor drinks, desserts, and sauces. The guava is believed to have originated in an area extending from southern Mexico into Central America. Since 1526, it has been common throughout all warm areas of tropical America, the West Indies, the Bahamas, and Bermuda.

Guava Duff Recipe
Guava Duff is a steamed pudding made from dough with guava slices jelly rolled, wrapped in cloth and steamed for several hours to give a light, fluffy texture. The finishing touch is a sauce made from the strained guava pulp and flavored to taste with rum, vanilla or confectionary sugar. The guava fruit is available year round, but is most plentiful during the summer months.

The Commonwealth of Nations, usually known as the Commonwealth and formally as the British Commonwealth, is a voluntary association of 53 independent Sovereign states all of which are former British colonies. The Commonwealth is an international organization through which countries with diverse social, political and economic backgrounds cooperate with a framework of common values and goals, outlined in the Singapore Declaration.

Import duty has been removed on eleven categories of luxury goods including liquor, leather goods, watches, perfumes and photographic equipment.

It was during the period 1739-1732 that the straw work industry was started in The Bahamas by the wife of George Phenny, a former Royal Governor. Straw vending as we know it today in The Bahamas, began following the death of the sponge industry in the 1940’s. Bahamian women started painstakingly plaiting, weaving and decorating dried indigenous palm and sisal plant leaves to create items such as baskets, bags, dolls and hats. After World War II, with increased visitor arrivals, the straw craft souvenirs grew in popularity. Other handcrafted items found in the straw market are wood and coconut carvings, reminders of the Bahamian-African heritage. Additionally, you can find African print dashikis, the seven way calypso dress in matching fabric and prints all fashioned and sewn by the island women. Bargaining is a way of life in the straw market. All prices are negotiable. The straw vendors enjoy it nearly as much as the visitors do, and they rarely, if ever expect to receive the first price quoted for their work. Straw vending is considered one of the country’s oldest industries.