Friday, July 20, 2012

Pirates of Nassau Museum

We can't seem to visit any place without hitting at least one museum during our visit, so it is no surprise we had to do the same here.  This little museum was lots of fun, starting out with the hilarious tour guide.  Here he is encouraging me to take a picture of his "booty":
The museum was a little pricey for what it offered ($12 for adults) but we did learn a lot about pirates while we were there so I'd still recommend it.
From their website:
The Golden Age of Piracy lasted for thirty years, from 1690 to 1720 and Nassau was at its heart. Here was a tropical pirate paradise which attracted the greatest concentration of pirates ever seen in the New World.
Nassau was well suited as a pirate base of operations, its waters were too shallow for a large man-of-war but deep enough for the fast shallow draft vessels favoured by pirates. From their snug harbour they could employ their hit and run tactics to full effect; they devastated merchant shipping that plied the trade routes just a short sail away. Their pirate gold and goods formed the basis of a thriving community that attracted rogues, merchants and wild women from far and wide. 
 It was said that when a pirate slept he did not dream of going to heaven but instead to return to his favourite port of Nassau on New Providence Island.
Now you can join them when you explore Pirates of Nassau, an new interactive museum of Piracy in the heart of this historic city.

My favorite part was learning about female pirates.  They sounded pretty fierce.  It was a fun visit and added to our already interesting day.

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