A trip to Gregory Town, Eleuthera in the Bahamas, summer travel tips, and travel rituals

Indeed the pineapples were sweet last week as special guest co-host Ed Griffith and Jensen Beach, Florida Chamber of Commerce executive director Ron Rose provided a marvelous recap of their experience at the recent Pineapple Festival in Gregory Town, Eleuthera. Amazingly, the Sister City relationship between Gregory Town, Eleuthera and Jensen Beach, Florida has been in existence for 21 years! This down home event, celebrates Eleuthera’s roots as a major pineapple producer and an island rich in Bahamian culture and history.

Ed and Ron focused on many details that made the trip so great, but the conversation always came back around to the extreme hospitality displayed by Eleutherans everywhere the two went.

The rest of the show was devoted to a random group of interesting and fun topics including a list of retailers and merchants who are helping travelers with the price of gas, what vacation destinations in the U.S. are the “coolest” (in more ways than temperature), what are some peculiar PDR’s (personal travel rituals) that some travelers perform, and last but not the least important, nine thrifty travel tips to help stretch your travel budget.

As always, it was great to have Ed in the studio and always a pleasure to share some time with the one and only Ron Rose.

The show's audio file will be posted as soon as it is available. See you all next week and thanks for listening!

The sweetest pineapple in the world: Eleuthera, Bahamas!

Taking some time off from being a tourist (recent visit to Nassau and shows from Abaco, Grand Bahama twice, and Heathcote Botanical Gardens), Talkin’ Tourism will be back in its home studio at Sailfish Marina, Stuart, Florida. Joining Radio Man this week will be special guest co-host Ed Griffith, the general manager of the Courtyard Marriott-Hutchinson Island.

Ed had the opportunity to visit Gregory Town Eleuthera, Bahamas for the town's annual Pineapple Festival and Talkin’ Tourism wants to hear all the details. This is particularly big news since a major Treasure Coast “connection” exists between Jensen Beach, Florida and Gregory Town, Eleuthera; these two towns have shared a 20-plus year Sister City relationship. Pass the pineapples (or BOOM pineapple wine) please!

Ed and Gary, will touch upon a number of topics that you will find of interest including;

• How merchants and retailers help make a difference on the high cost of gas. We all need a little help in easing this burden of the cost of travel!
• Nine thrifty travel tips. Who doesn’t need “thrifty?"
• How to get the most happiness out of a vacation. Isn’t that what vacations are all about!
• Hot tips for Travelers: The coolest, most overlooked vacation destinations for the summer. Definitely need a break from the summer heat…but where?
• And, a look at personal travel rituals (PTR). Do you have one? If you do, and are willing to share,  email us at talkintourism@gmail.com  and we'll share your PTR with our listening audience.

And, to round out the hour, expect all the usual Bahamas info and Treasure Coast happenings.

Join us this Friday at 10:05 a.m. on your radio dial at WPSL 1590 AM or catch the live stream from your computer at www.wpsltv.com

See you Friday morning!

This Week, Three P's Took Center Stage---Pineapples, Pirates and (air) Planes

Gary and Robin were reunited this week back at the Elliott Museum “studio". Eventhough the crew was home, the show could not get into gear without first recapping the Talkin' Tourism adventures on Eleuthera last week. Without question Robin will be going to Eleuthera sometime soon as she continues her quest for exotic sportfishing locations. Right Robin?

Having gotten past the Eleutheran adventures Radio Man and History Lady launched in to this week’s show by introducing Mike Roberts, president of the Road To Victory Military Museum. Certainly Robin had lots to say as she IS the CEO of the Elliott Museum! The big news was Mike’s conversation about the upcoming Stuart Air Show, which the Road to Victory Museum is now commanding. Mike shared some interesting facts on what his group will be doing to inject some new activities into the very popular weekend event. It’s pretty cool stuff!

Jensen Beach Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Ron Rose was not shy about sharing what he feels makes the Jensen Beach Pineapple Festival such a great success. Now in its 23rd year, the event will also mark the 20th anniversary of the “Sister City” relationship the town of Jensen Beach, Florida shares with Gregory Town, Eleuthera. Besides talking about the entertainment line-up, Ron gave details on the Bahamian Marketplacewhether event goers can expect a Junkanoo rush-out.

If you can swagger, and talk like a pirate, the Treasure Coast Pirate Fest may be just the event for you and your family. More about this popular event, which is in it's third year, in the show.

Here's the link to download or listen the audio file of this week's show. See you in a week for another action-packed hour of Talkin' Tourism on Florida's Treasure Coast (and Beyond)!

Pineapples, Conch, Blue Flag Marinas, and Gin Clear Waters

Last week, host Gary Guertin and special guest co-host Ed Griffith literally made a splash in South Eleuthera.  No, not the “cannonball kind," but the kind that gets everyone involved buzzing about a great time and wonderful experiences.  

From the luxury of Cape Eleuthera Resort and Yacht Club, Talkin' Tourism on Florida’s Treasure Coast (and Beyond) really connected with the best of the best of the Bahamas tourism efforts.  

Leading a long list of Eleuthera tourism officials and stakeholders, Director General Vernice Walkine opened with remarks on behalf of the Bahamas.  Her comments were as warm and bright as the Bahamian sun.  Getting to the main topic of the day General Manager of Sustainable Tourism Earlston McPhee and Blue Flag Programme Administrator Leon Gibson along with Cape Eleuthera Resort General Manager Steve Kappeler gave an excellent overview of the Blue Flag Programme and what it means to the Ministry, but  most importantly to the marine environment. 

Moving on from there, guests Tommy Sands, owner of the Cotton Bay development, Shaun Ingraham, president of the Rotary Club of Eleuthera, provided insightful comments on the state of tourism in South Eleuthera and what the future may hold.  What was the consensus?  You will want to listen to find out.

And for Treasure Coast connections there was a host of them, not to mention the 20 year old Sister City partnership between Gregory Town, Eleuthera and our very own Jensen Beach, Florida.  Co-host Ed Griffith was greeted like a rock star at the Governor’s Harbour Airport much to Radio Man’s surprise. Could Ed become the FLAHAMIAN Ambassador to Eleuthera?  Future shows may tell!

Click on the audio file and take a mini-vacation to the beautiful Bahamian island of Eleuthera…and don’t forget your favorite boat drink. A link to the podcast for viewing on your computer or iPad/iPhone and photos of Eleuthera and the show's guests, can be found below.

See you next week! And don't miss out on the Bahamas Out-Island Companion Fly's Free promotion.

Subscribe to Talkin' Tourism's podcasts on the iTunes Store. If you don't have an iTunes account, here's the link to our Eleuthera remote Blip TV podcast:

Gatorade on a Q-Tip and Art Masterpieces with Bugs

From Talkin Tourism Show Photos

Getting back together again after their travels, History Lady and Radio Man picked up like they had never been apart. Something that is bound to happen when you have close to 75 shows under your belt…or perhaps it is just talent!

With Ed Griffith in the studio, recounting his recent trip of Eleuthera with the Jensen Beach gang, it was interesting to hear the Talkin' Tourism Team actually talk about their experiences as tourists, each in a different country. So, who was the man who proposed to Robin and what do Marie Antoinette and Robin have in common? What were Ed’s reflections on his first visit to Eleuthera and is the Jensen Beach 'Sister City' relationship with Gregory Town alive and well? Are “Nature’s Little Secrets” (the British Virgin Islands) keeping any secrets about Gary and Misti’s trip to Tortola? All this and more when you download the show.

The main event was the return visit of Dr. Noble, Director of Public Exhibits at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Always a wealth of information, Dr. Noble carefully explained the uniqueness of the new exhibit entitled CSI: Crime Scene Insects. The discussion was fascinating. While this type of forensic analysis did not have legal credibility in the U.S. until the 1960’s, it has been practiced in China for over 1,200 years. How was a murder in China that long ago solved? Is it an exhibit that children will enjoy? Absolutely! Who would have ever thought that you could 'paint with maggots'! And what about our cold winter? The outdoor butterfly exhibit which houses 2,000 butterflies had to make adjustments, which they did. Believe it or not, they moved many of the butterflies into their indoor breeding areas and allowed the patrons to feed the butterflies. The butterflies food of choice? Gatorade on a Q-Tip!

It just gets better and better every week, so if you missed the show download and listen now. If you have not been to the blog in a while, check out the amazing photos of the two shows broadcast from the British Virgin Islands. You will want to travel to paradise and have a cheeseburger in paradise!

Until next week, Talkin' Tourism on Florida’s Treasure Coast…signing off!