Bahamas People to People Program

[scubagirrl]

I think there is some disconnect regarding this program.

 

This is a cultural immersion program, the person you are set up with is your HOST.. he/she is not your tour guide or driver..

 

Your host is meant to show you interesting cultural or familiar venues that may be of interest to you and that you may have in common.

Sometimes it's visiting a church service or family dinner, an orphanage, fire house, animal shelter or slave ruins if that's your interest.

 

He/She is not your private free tour guide. If all you want to do is sight see, or get a ride to a private beach or restaurant, then hire a driver or cab and do so.

 

Most people in the US would bring their Host a gift when visiting their home. The same holds true in the Bahamas. Some bring jams and jellies or things from their regions like honey, syrups etc. I know a man who brought a beautiful "cowboy" hat. Thoughtful gift.

 

Please don't treat your host like a tour guide, or we won't sustain an interest in this program and we won't get volunteers.

[movingimages]

I think there is some disconnect regarding this program.

 

This is a cultural immersion program, the person you are set up with is your HOST.. he/she is not your tour guide or driver..

 

Your host is meant to show you interesting cultural or familiar venues that may be of interest to you and that you may have in common.

Sometimes it's visiting a church service or family dinner, an orphanage, fire house, animal shelter or slave ruins if that's your interest.

 

He/She is not your private free tour guide. If all you want to do is sight see, or get a ride to a private beach or restaurant, then hire a driver or cab and do so.

 

Most people in the US would bring their Host a gift when visiting their home. The same holds true in the Bahamas. Some bring jams and jellies or things from their regions like honey, syrups etc. I know a man who brought a beautiful "cowboy" hat. Thoughtful gift.

 

Please don't treat your host like a tour guide, or we won't sustain an interest in this program and we won't get volunteers.

 

Our "host" was a professional driver, a career of which he was very proud. Thus, my choice to refer to him as a driver. Our "host" chose to give us a very long tour of the island, not take us on a cultural immersion experience. We were not asked what we would like to see; he made the decisions.

 

In my part of the world, it is common practice to take a host out for a meal and also to give that person money for gas after they cart you all around their city. Our family's cash "gift" to him was to thank his wife for letting us use her car for 6 hours by providing gas money and, perhaps, for him to take her out for dinner or drinks.

 

As I stated in my post, I was in no way suggesting that what we did was the "appropriate amount." I was simply sharing our experience, which is what the OP requested.

 

Our host invited us to stay with his family next time we visit the Bahamas overnight, and we reciprocated by inviting him to visit us in Atlanta when he comes to visit his children, who attend college in the U.S. Please don't insinuate that we treated our host as a "tour guide" or in any but a respectful and friendly manner.

[rrraydon]

When my friends and family visit the beach area where I live, I give them a guided tour of the area and all that we have to offer.

[scubagirrl]

Our "host" was a professional driver, a career of which he was very proud. Thus, my choice to refer to him as a driver. Our "host" chose to give us a very long tour of the island, not take us on a cultural immersion experience. We were not asked what we would like to see; he made the decisions.

 

In my part of the world, it is common practice to take a host out for a meal and also to give that person money for gas after they cart you all around their city. Our family's cash "gift" to him was to thank his wife for letting us use her car for 6 hours by providing gas money and, perhaps, for him to take her out for dinner or drinks.

 

As I stated in my post, I was in no way suggesting that what we did was the "appropriate amount." I was simply sharing our experience, which is what the OP requested.

 

Our host invited us to stay with his family next time we visit the Bahamas overnight, and we reciprocated by inviting him to visit us in Atlanta when he comes to visit his children, who attend college in the U.S. Please don't insinuate that we treated our host as a "tour guide" or in any but a respectful and friendly manner.

 

 

I wasn't insinuating anything.. I just want to make sure that folks understand that this program is not a tour guide. It wasn't particularly pointed at you.. that's why I didn't post as an answer to yours.

 

Had I directed it to you.. that would be a different thing all together.

 

Giving your host gas money and paying for lunch is indeed the right thing to do. A small hostess give of "friendship" would be nice as well. And appreciated.

 

I have friends and acquaintances who have done this on the Bahamian side. Some complain that folks want no more than a free tour. That's a shame.

[packedandready]

I wasn't insinuating anything.. I just want to make sure that folks understand that this program is not a tour guide. It wasn't particularly pointed at you.. that's why I didn't post as an answer to yours.

 

Had I directed it to you.. that would be a different thing all together.

 

Giving your host gas money and paying for lunch is indeed the right thing to do. A small hostess give of "friendship" would be nice as well. And appreciated.

 

I have friends and acquaintances who have done this on the Bahamian side. Some complain that folks want no more than a free tour. That's a shame.

 

 

Scubagirl....now you have me worried. Dh and I have signed up for this program. My intention is NOT to use the host as a tour guide, but I thought it would be a good way to see the island through the eyes of a local resident.

 

Our plans were to compensate them for gas and buy lunch etc and I really like your idea of a gift. Is this the right attitude? What would you suggest? I, by no means, want them to feel taken advantage of. Thanks

[scubagirrl]

Scubagirl....now you have me worried. Dh and I have signed up for this program. My intention is NOT to use the host as a tour guide, but I thought it would be a good way to see the island through the eyes of a local resident.

 

Our plans were to compensate them for gas and buy lunch etc and I really like your idea of a gift. Is this the right attitude? What would you suggest? I, by no means, want them to feel taken advantage of. Thanks

 

Don't be worried. You will have the opportunity to talk to your host and discuss what your interests are. Like meeting a friend. Not hiring a driver.

 

I think you'll do fine. As for a gift.. it depends on where you live and who your guide is. (and your interest). Maybe something cultural or historical from your neck of the woods. A cookbook, spices, History of your local.

 

I was once given a book of totem poles from a group visiting from northern plains. Still on my coffee table.

[cruisecritic2]

Thank you movingimages and scubagirrl. I appreciate your input. I too want them to feel appreciated and not used. I am excited and looking forward to my visit to the Bahamas and wanted a great experience for my parents. I was thinking of this instead of a tour because my father can't get around well and most of the tours seemed to have a good bit of walking. I think this would be the best option for him. Thank you again for you suggestions. :)

[cruisecritic2]

Movingimages & scubagirrl, Do you suggest Freeport or Nassau for this program? Thank you!

[scubagirrl]

Movingimages & scubagirrl, Do you suggest Freeport or Nassau for this program? Thank you!

 

I think Nassau has more volunteers and has been doing this longer.

It also is rich in history and government and is "compact" .

 

Freeport is more spread out and I'm not sure what I would suggest unless you are interested in churches, hospital or schools etc.

 

I think either would be a great experience ..

[kate61880]

Has anyone else done this program recently?

[Michellelhs]

I signed up long ago and never heard from them then last week I got an email asking me to confirm the trip and yesterday got our host's name. Very excited to find out what we will learn about and experience next month in Nassau!!

[gizmo911]

I booked last minute cruise for Sept. 7th and registered online this Saturday to participate. This would only be a two week window but I am hoping that they will accommodate me. I have been to Nassau (land and sea) many, many times and think this would be the absolute best experience. I signed up on the website. Is there anyone I can call or e-mail to see if I can be accommodated.

 

For those that have done this can you please share what some of your activities have been and for those that are participating, what activities have your chosen to participate in. Also, what gift are you presenting to your host.

 

Thank you for sharing and I just wanted to bump this back up.

Edited August 26, 2013 by gizmo911

[gizmo911]

Hi..I just got back from my Bahamas cruise on the Carnival Glory and I wanted to give my opinion of my "people to people" experience.

 

We learned of the program on these boards and filled out the application on the Bahamas website under the People to People tab. We began receiving emails from Bridgette, a representative of the Ministry of Tourism, about 2 weeks prior to our sailing. She in turn gave us the email address and telephone number of Barbara, the ambassador assigned to us. Barbara touched base with us 2 or 3 times prior to our arrival to get an idea of the things we were interested in doing while we were in Nassau. We explained that we had been to Nassau a half a dozen times and visited the "touristy" area and loved it, but this time we wanted to go further inland and see the true way of life in the Bahamas and their culture..pretty much day to day living. We also wanted to have a dinner at a local place for true bahamian eats...wherever they would normally eat. She said she would have no problem arranging that for us.

 

We arrived at the Ministry of Tourism, which is within walking distance from the dock, at about noon time and met with Bridgette first. She was a very pleasant young lady and immediately made us feel very welcome. She then introduced us to our guide Barbara and Barbara's friend Brielle who she had brought along for the guided tour. Barbara said that Brielle had a larger vehicle than she did and Brielle's vehicle could better accomodate all of us since we had a party of 4. Our party included myself, my friend Kathleen, my daughter McKenzie (15) and my granddaughter Aniya (5), making it a grand total of 6. She had a trailblazer sort of vehicle that could accomodate 5 , so Aniya had to ride on McKenzie's lap...I wasn't entirely happy about that.

 

After leaving the ministry we went directly to a gas station and waited a few minutes for the attendant to arrive to put gas in the vehicle. Then we drove a few blocks to a convenience store and there was an attendant there who put air in all the tires..LOL..seriously. FINALLY, we rode over the bridge to Paradise Island and drove around there for about 45 minutes where they pointed out different areas of interest. Along the ride Kathleen quizzed them on their lives and on the people to people program..she does that alot..quizzes people..lol. Anyway, it turns out that this was their first people to people guided tour :eek:. We kinda figured that because after a few minutes of driving it was apparant that there was not really a set plan or schedule. The People to People Program itself is very new for the Bahamas as well.

 

We did learn a little in the 45 minutes of driving around Paradise Island about their lives, where they used to work before their retirement and about their family life. It was all pretty interesting actually. I think they caught on to the fact that we weren't interested in Atlantis or its surrounding area so they drove back over to town to the Queen's Staircase (another area attraction).

 

During all of our talking we learned that Brielle was a retired cook and worked for Atlantis for a number of years. Most all of her family were also cooks in some fashion. Brielle agreed to take us through the area where she and her family grew up. We made a stop at her son's home and met a few of her family members. I loved that part of our tour...this was what I was really interested in. It turns out that Brielle's sister ran a restaurant locally and she agreed to take us over there for lunch. When we first pulled up it looked like an old run down 2 story cement house in the inner city. There was only a 2 car parking spot in front of the place. It sort of looked like the inner city homes that were sort of run down and unkept. The surrounding homes were in poor shape as well. The patrons usually just walk up to the restaurant/home. The front door was locked on the inside and you had to wait for it to be opened first before you went in..I know, I know, your thinking "what the hell?!"...Well, I LOVED this place right off!..LOL. Once you went inside the place was older yes, but VERY clean and had a small bar area and about 5 or 6 tables with linens and candles in the center and 2 large flat screen televisions on the walls.

 

Now, about the food...it was AWESOME!...did I say AWESOME??..lol..really it was. We asked her sister to surprise us...and she did. She brought our plates out mounded with food!. I had fried conch, rice, coleslaw and fried plantains. I have had fried conch before, but none tasted as good as this. The rice was absolutely delicious!...Now, I have never been a fan of fried plantain and the ones I've had were usually smothered in some sort of sauce that is gross...not the case here! They did have a seasoning of sorts on them and I don't even care what it was cuz it was damn good!! :p. My friend Kathleen, who loves fish, had a loaded up plate of fresh, fried grouper and the same sides as I did. Her food was out of this world also! The 2 children both had fried chicken wings and french fries. The chicken wings were a bit spicy for them but I thought they were perfect. This was by far the best food I've had in a long time....just goes to show, never judge a book by its cover!! This stop was EXACTLY what I was looking for.

 

After we finished eating we said goodbye to our new friends, left a big tip and headed out to the car where we shooed a few dingos out from under the vehicle! Seriously, those poor dogs looked like they came straight off the discovery channel! Anyway, after lunch we took a drive around the area to check the neighborhoods out. We passed a few schools, hospitals and a college. I thoroughly enjoyed our tour through here. On our way back to Bay Street we rode through a local beach area where they built a new bathhouse and a playground for the local kids; which cost an astounding quarter million dollars and they were pretty basic facilities. Our ladies were not happy about!...the price that is..(we all came to the conclusion that the contractor must have been related to the mayor or something!) :eek:

 

Our awesome Bahamian Ambassadors dropped us off back on Bay Street after our wonderful 4 hour tour of the inner area of Nassau...which we absolutely loved and would do again in a heartbeat! Although there is no charge for this excursion through the Ministry of Tourism, it's obvious the Ambassadors need to be tipped. Therefore, we treated them to their lunch (they had the fried conch platter like myself with a standard style salad) and left them with a hefty tip as well!

 

It's important to keep in mind that each tour is unique to each group!

 

 

I don't know if I would be contacted in time before cruise (in 2 weeks). I still plan to do some less touristy stuff. Do you remember the name of the place you had lunch?

[Mamasboy80]

We are booked for early October. Haven't talked to our host yet.

Can't wait. We have been to Nassau several times, but never knew about this program. Will post when I return.

 

We have two Nassau cruises coming up. Anything else of interest to do outside the norm. We don't like crowds, won't step foot in Atlantis, love the outdoors.

[lindastravels]

would totally like to do this??? whats the way to sign up, will be in freeport and Nassau march 31 and april 1 2014 and would like to get a real feel of what local life is, not the touristy things but real local day to day living.

Thanks:)

Edited August 29, 2013 by lindastravels
more info

[Michellelhs]

I have had 2 emails and one phone conversation with our host. She seems great and I think she truly got a grasp of the things my husband and I are interested in. She seemed genuinely pleased that we were interested in the real island beyond the tourist things and I know she will be a great host. One thing in our phone conversation did kind of bother me. She mentioned more than once how she is going to take a whole day off work to spend with us. She kept interjecting that into the conversation and I kind of got the impression that she wants us to compensate her for that. It could have been something I inferred and she did not mean at all... but I have no idea. We were planning on bringing her a small gift from our hometown (was thinking some spices and a recipe book of local favorites) and then paying for things on the visit (gas, food) and then giving her a small cash tip (like 20 or 30 bucks). Now I am not sure If I should just give her cash or what.... I want to believe that I misunderstood her.... so I guess we will see next week. I will post how our day in Nassau went once we are back.

[scubagirrl]

I have had 2 emails and one phone conversation with our host. She seems great and I think she truly got a grasp of the things my husband and I are interested in. She seemed genuinely pleased that we were interested in the real island beyond the tourist things and I know she will be a great host. One thing in our phone conversation did kind of bother me. She mentioned more than once how she is going to take a whole day off work to spend with us. She kept interjecting that into the conversation and I kind of got the impression that she wants us to compensate her for that. It could have been something I inferred and she did not mean at all... but I have no idea. We were planning on bringing her a small gift from our hometown (was thinking some spices and a recipe book of local favorites) and then paying for things on the visit (gas, food) and then giving her a small cash tip (like 20 or 30 bucks). Now I am not sure If I should just give her cash or what.... I want to believe that I misunderstood her.... so I guess we will see next week. I will post how our day in Nassau went once we are back.

 

What you are planning should suffice. Something personal, pay for all food and gas and a tip. Gas is over $5 a gallon, so be prepared if you are doing alot of driving.

Enjoy your day.

[packedandready]

We submitted our request a couple of months ago and received a reply pretty quickly. Received another email a few weeks later about a rep contacting us closer to date. We leave tomorrow and have never heard anything more. I emailed them last week and never received a reply. :(

 

We were really looking forward to this.....

[Michellelhs]

Thanks for the advice scuba girl and packedandready that sucks you never heard back :(

I hope you have a great time in Nassau anyway!

[migirl23]

I just registered for my dad and I to do this first weekend in october. Its his first time to nassau. Me 37, him 62. I would love to see more of the island and experience where the locals eat and do on their weekends. Hope I hear something back.

 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Forums mobile app

[snackie444]

I submitted an application for myself and my husband about 2-3 weeks ago. Haven't heard anything yet. Our ship is in port on Oct. 17. So there is still time. How long does it usually take to get a response? Really looking forward to this.

[wendyc78]

This is exactly what we've been looking for!! We try to make 1 cruise stop in every vacation a "give back" stop. We love all of these beautiful destinations, but it is important for us to teach our kids about other cultures, way of life, and the hard work that goes on behind the scenes. I have requested a host, and we hope to be able to visit some areas with children near our kids ages and give gifts!!

 

Thank you so much for posting!

 

scubagirrl, a gift for our host, a monetary donation to cover expenses (not calling it a tip), and the meal. Why are these hosts so willing to do this? Do they really enjoy meeting people from other places or showing off their island/way of life?

[scubagirrl]

This is exactly what we've been looking for!! We try to make 1 cruise stop in every vacation a "give back" stop. We love all of these beautiful destinations, but it is important for us to teach our kids about other cultures, way of life, and the hard work that goes on behind the scenes. I have requested a host, and we hope to be able to visit some areas with children near our kids ages and give gifts!!

 

Thank you so much for posting!

 

scubagirrl, a gift for our host, a monetary donation to cover expenses (not calling it a tip), and the meal. Why are these hosts so willing to do this? Do they really enjoy meeting people from other places or showing off their island/way of life?

 

They volunteer their time because they are proud of thier country and thier culture and want to share it with others.

 

Many bahamians are happy to talk to visitiors and tell stories of their culture and background.

[Amy from Delaware]

I would love to hear how it went! I've signed up for January, 2014. Still waiting to hear something, but I know it won't be for a while.

 

I have had 2 emails and one phone conversation with our host. She seems great and I think she truly got a grasp of the things my husband and I are interested in. She seemed genuinely pleased that we were interested in the real island beyond the tourist things and I know she will be a great host. One thing in our phone conversation did kind of bother me. She mentioned more than once how she is going to take a whole day off work to spend with us. She kept interjecting that into the conversation and I kind of got the impression that she wants us to compensate her for that. It could have been something I inferred and she did not mean at all... but I have no idea. We were planning on bringing her a small gift from our hometown (was thinking some spices and a recipe book of local favorites) and then paying for things on the visit (gas, food) and then giving her a small cash tip (like 20 or 30 bucks). Now I am not sure If I should just give her cash or what.... I want to believe that I misunderstood her.... so I guess we will see next week. I will post how our day in Nassau went once we are back.

[Michellelhs]

Sorry it took a few weeks to write this up... life has just been hectic...

So we did the people to people exchange program and it was amazing!

Ms. Unetha Sherman was our host. She was fantastic! We met her across the street at the ministry building and left right away for a great day. We had sent her a picture in email so she knew what we looked like beforehand and the meet up part was easy.

Unetha had prepared a little booklet for us welcoming is to the Bahamas and with pics and info about all the places we woudl visit and she even included places for us to tape in our pictures. This was such a fantastic memento she made for us! She also gave is a pin and button from the 40th anniversary independence celebration which was this year. We presented her with a book about Charleston SC which is where we are from.

As we drove around Unetha told us about her life, her family, the small island where she grew up and so much more. She was a fascinating person to speak with!

We visited Fort Montague first. My husband is a big history buf so this was so cool for him!

After this we drove around a little then went to the Queen's Staircase and walked up them then to Fort Fincastle. This was quite a hike to be honet but it was so beautiful! While the hubby explored Fort Fincastle more Unetha and I sat and chatted more about the island and her life and about mine and Aarons.

We drove over to Fort Charlotte next and took a tour. There were about a dozen Disney cruise people there so it was fun to compare notes with them :)

After this we drove around and she pointed out many buildings to us then we arrived at the National Gallery of the Bahamas. Let me tell you what a surprising gem this is!

Aaron paid for us all to get in then we walked around downstairs and up. There are some amazing pieces from Bahamian artists here. On the top floor there is also a room where you can watch a video of many of the artists talking about thier history and the Bahamas and their inspirations etc. This was really cool to see them talking about their works then seeing the works hanging on the walls.

The art gallery was hands down my favorite part of the day!

After getting all cultured up Unetha drove us over the the Fish Fry restaurants. I do not remember which we ate at but it was amazing. Ironically 2 of the couples we sat with at dinner were there as well... and they were seated right beside us lol!

So I was a little concerned about the food as I know that the islands are seafood based and I get sick when I eat seafood but I had fried chicken. It came with macaroni (which was baked and spicy), peas and rice, and fried plantains. Aaron had a conch "burger" with fries and Unetha had a whole fried fish with fries. We picked up the tab for lunch and everyone agreed it was delicious! After lunch we drove around the high end part of the island, where they are building the new resorts and along junkanoo beach and watched the people there having fun (that is where we went last time we were there).

Then we headed back to the ministry building and Unetha dropped us off for the ship. She tried to not accept it but Aaron left 20 dollars with her to pay for the gas of all the driving around and we thanked her for such an amazing day and for being a fantastic host.

 

I have to say that this was perhaps the best day I have ever spent in the Bahamas. We have been to several of the islands plenty of times and we have done the "touristy" thing, have done the islands on our own and even on tours. But Unetha really made the Bahamas come alive for us. We learned about the history but also about what people do every day. This was such an amazing experience and I hope everyone who reads this has an opportunity to try it out and has as great of a host as we did.