Paget

In the time we've lived in Bermuda, Viv and I always lived in Warwick. It wasn't planned in any way, that's just the way it happened.

Map of Bermuda showing the 9 parishes. Warwick is the green number 3. We started out bottom left and progressed to end up top right of the parish

I'd found our first house called Anchor Down, a typical Bermuda cottage next to Warwick Camp on South Shore Road overlooking the beaches purely by luck. I hadn't had any real plan, this place turned up and I was first to reply to the advert. It was pretty much on the border with Southampton Parish and for the next 32 years we moved progressively nearer to Hamilton… again not through any specific decision taken by us. 

The top picture shows the bottom left part of Warwick with the Camp on the left and beaches at the bottom. To the right of the collection of houses is a green field and single building. That is the old Military Hospital where soldiers would be moved if they caught diseases (which they did a lot) for the soothing sea breezes. To the left of that building is Anchor Down where it all began for us. The lower picture blows this up better.

Next was Paddock Drive for a decent spell in between Middle Road and Harbour Road, just off Burnt House Hill opposite St. Anthony's Catholic Church where we have been irregular frequenters over the years. After that a short stay in Ord Road, in the Forest Hills area for a couple of years before moving to Marine Villa right on Harbour Road on the border with Paget which was Cobbs Hill Road, a road that ran over the hills to South Shore at the other end. It was probably a Tribe Road back in the day.

Then finally two years ago we moved across the garden and parking area to Inverness right smack bang on Cobbs Hill Road -- Marine Villa was all of 50 yards away to we were still getting nearer even though this time it wasn't by much.

Cobbs Hill Road and Harbour Road junction. The Inverurie Hotel and Wharf Condos are the harbor side buildings with Inverness the first house up the hill on the right. It is peachy pink with green shutters. Marine Villa is the house just below Inverness right on Harbour Road.

Inverness was a lovely, old Bermuda cottage which had been reimagined over the many years since it had been in existence, mostly courtesy of our friend James who had lived there a couple of tenants before us. Hard to believe but the cottage had simply rested on top of the hill so it was infested with bugs of all sorts and was very damp, the damp that only a Bermuda stone cottage can have. James had done his best and really did work wonders so we were very happy there. So when we'd finished all our downsizing, selling, chucking, gifting and other means of getting rid of our stuff, we had a few days before we left on our adventures which coincided with our eldest son Indy and his new wife Cat being away on honeymoon. So we got to house sit and cat sit for a few days. 

The house is called Pennywise and is in Paget.

Bermuda's lovely beaches are bottom left of Warwick Parish where we started out. 32 years later we had moved in small jumps from bottom left to top right on Harbour Road. The boundary line with Paget to the right is Cobbs Hill Road where Inverness, our last home, was number 2. Mind you the condos on the other side of the road were also number 2 which caused much confusion when the time came to give directions.

Even before this but only by a couple of days, we'd been sleeping in Pennywise as we'd sold our bed but returned to Inverness to continue our moving work but this time it would be for real as we also took our cat, Bella, with us to join her sister, Chessie, and in fact rejoin her as family for once we moved on our travels, Bella would stay with Indy and Cat.

Viv liked Paget. She said that it was only a few minutes away not like before… where we were 10 minutes away. For my side, I didn't care for Paget that much. The weather wasn't as good for a start and the main feeder road, Middle Road, was nasty and quite busy where we were. 

Moreover, Warwick was named after the Earl of Warwick, not the king maker from even older times but an Earl who considered Bermuda to be a great investment when he and a bunch of others set up the Somers Isles (Bermuda) Company soon after the accidental discovery and colonization in 1609 by Admiral Sir George Somers. He turned out to be wrong. It wasn't that great an investment. The other new colony of the time, Virginia, was much more fertile... and bigger. Here's the Wikipedia link so you can read more of the history of Bermuda which I find fascinating. So much came down to chance in the old days. I don't really believe that an island of its size can really be otherwise. Even the island's motto "Quo Fata Ferunt" (wherever the winds blow us) reflect this.

Anyway when our taxi picked us up from Pennywise to take us to the airport, whilst I was sad about leaving Bermuda with all its familial history for us, leaving Paget was a snip. We'd only lived there for 4 days after all. Now Warwick Parish, that was something else.

Full aerial map of Warwick in the foreground with Paget beyond stretching out to the east end