Back to Nassau

 After a night out at Shroud we moved Freedom back up to Highbourne Cay where we were going to spend three nights. We had this tentative plan to take advantage of an approaching good weather window to cross from Highbourne back up to Nassau so as to enjoy a smooth ride. Being a bit more conservative with our planning after our experience with the ride from Spanish Wells over to Nassau we were hesitant to take a chance on the weather again. But Highbourne is expensive for what it offers and they were a bit inattentive there. Lets face it, 50 or 60 bucks a night for power is a bit on the cher side or reality even if they need to generate their own power.
 With our original reservation we were offered a couple of nights in a comfortable slip but after that we were going to have to move to an alternative to make room for a long term resident. We had no issue with this and were willing to play along. However, whenever I asked where we would be next we got a less than substantial commitment like "somewhere over there". Having refused a slip "over there" already we began to think about moving to Nassau earlier. On the second day I again asked where we would be and I received another less than definitive answer so we got serious about moving on knowing others had issues with their reservation "system". When Saturday rolled around we looked at the forecast and decided it was adequate and left for Nassau. In hind sight we made the right call since Sunday the bank was much more rough based on our observations from the shore of Nassau which we made during our drive around the island.
 The boat ride up to Nassau was uneventful and calm because the water turned out to be a foot or less of chop which was well within our threshold of discomfort. Upon arrival we tied up at the Nassau Harbour Club where we spent 3 nights. While the price was reasonable and the water unlimited the water was not potable. A test of the water with our hand held TDS meter indicated that it was at least double and almost triple the World Health Organization standards for dissolved solids. So I washed the boat with it. If it was just the water quality we would have been ok with a longer stay but the club is frequently rocked by boats in the harbour and, electricity is frequently off. We suspect that it is off due to rolling black outs that enable B.E.C. to keep Atlantis "hot". The lights are always on over there.
 As I forwshadowed on Sunday, having plenty of time with nothing to do we rented a car from Budget and drove around the island. If you think the U.S. has issues with immigration you have not seen anything yet. I won't go into it but suffice it to say there are serious issues developing in the Bahamas and there is no way anyone could encourage me to purchase property here. It would not matter if it was the outer islands, Nassau or Grand Bahama. Along the way around the island we passed by many upscale developments that have fallen into total disrepair. It's remaniscent of what we have seen all over Florida in our travels there.
 But in spite of the outward appearance we enjoyed the ride having stopped in at the Compass Point Inn for lunch. After another day at the Nassau Harbour Club we decided the weather would  soon look good enough for a crossing to the Berry Islands followed the next day by a crossing to Bimini. With the anticipation of only a couple of nights more in Nassau we moved Freedom to Atlantis.
 Given it's 4.50 a foot plus utilities to keep a boat in a slip here, there was no way we were going to stay here until the weather and water settled down. This is why we started at the Nassau Harbour Club. The notion was to time our stay with Atlantis with an approaching weather window and move on after a night or two.
 Hopefully the plan pans out and we wind up with a smooth crossing to the Berry Islands in the near future.
 I will say that Atlantis offers a means to ease back into life in the United States. The Abacos are wonderfully quiet during the Winter, offering one a distinct change from life in surburban NYS. At least here, while there are crowds waiting in line for water slides etc., there are no cars honking horns and syrens screeming. Neither of which are aspects of living in NYS that we look forward to.