Friday, June 9, 2017
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02 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, June 9, 2017
life through a lens
A spiritual pilgrimage
E
ver since she visited Egypt as a young girl, Felicity Ingraham had a deep-seated desire to return to the motherland and connect with her roots. Although it would be a few decades before she returned to Africa, her dream came true last month when she visited Ethiopia for a life-changing spiritual journey. During her two-week stay, the Bahamian media consultant enjoyed many of the local foods, such as injera pancakes with shiro (a lentil and chickpea stew), and visited several historic monuments and tombs, including those of Haile Selassie I (Ethiopia’s 225th and last emperor) and the Queen of Sheba, a Biblical figure. She also paid a visit to the historic Cathedral of St Mary of Zion in the city of Axum (also called Zion/Tsion). It is said to house the Ark of the Covenant. While in Ethiopia, Felicity felt the need to be baptised in a special ceremony, which she described as a deeply meaningful and overwhelming experience. Ethiopia is widely considered as the region from which modern humans first set out for the Middle East. It is also the oldest Christian nation, and there is a beauty and spirituality that covers the land, said Felicity. “It was like going back in time to a world where everyone says, ‘Selam’ – meaning ‘peace’. Everyone is humble, respectful and peaceful. The tranquillity is sublime,” she said.
Have you taken a selection of photographs that might make a Life through a lens feature page? If so please submit it to weekend@ tribunemedia.net for consideration
The Tribune | Weekend | 03
Friday, June 9, 2017
Inside Weekend Interview 4 - 5 Cara Hunt talks to Bahamian YouTuber Alex “Bunny” Missick about what it means to be a digital entrepreneur
Theatre 6 Writer and director Dr Ian Strachan brings his new play “Honourable Member” to the stage
Environment 10 The Tribune’s newest columnists Laura Paine and Julia Tomlinson hope to inspire readers to do their part in reducing the country’s waste.
Art 11 Bahamian artists Alexis Caputo and Jackson Petit to present two films in Switzerland
Music 12 ‘Jazz in Bloom’ returns for this Father’s Day
Food 14 - 15 A new move shakes up things at Fat Tuesday
Books 17 - 18 The Bahamas’ Captain Paul WJ Harding recounts his life as an adventurer and a private pilot to the stars in ‘Sharks in the Runway’, plus young local author Nathan Curtis tackles love in a time of unrest in ‘Expat’.
Gardening 19 Jack Hardy talks pineapples
Film 20 - 21 ‘The Mummy’ kicks off the new Dark Universe franchise, plus Wonder Woman is a success story Hollywood cannot ignore
Literary Lives 22 - 25 The Hermit of Cat Island, part two
Forgotten Facts 25 Paul Aranha on Bahamian forests
Animals 27 Pets in advertising, plus Pet of the Week Cover photo | Malik Smith
My perfect Bahamian weekend Cardell McClam Fashion designer Q: Saturday breakfast or Sunday lunch? “Sunday brunch...oops. that’s not an option. l choose Saturday breakfast. Breakfast is my favourite (it will burn off by evening lol).” Q: Wine, rum, cocktail or Kalik? “Wine, if I’m luxuriating with good chatter. Kalik Radler with conch salad (all of these are far and few; I drink bottled water). Q: Beach or sofa? “Beach at night, sofa in the day.” Q: What is one thing you can’t live without? “I can’t do without a bag. I dislike tucking a wallet in my front or back pocket. A bag carries my identification, business cards, little safety items and something like a pencil/pen to make notes or sketch as inspired.” Q: Weekend away, where would you go and why? “I can approach this question with multiple answers because my travel moods change. At this present moment I would choose Albuquerque, New Mexico.”
Things 2 Do this weekend Friday
• ‘Honourable Member – A Political Play’ Time: 8pm Venue: The Dundas Centre for the Performing Arts • SEE PAGE 6 for more information and all dates.
Saturday
• Mud Run 242 – Marvellous Mayhem Time: 6am Venue: Jaws Beach Come dressed as your favourite Marvel or DC character to slug through the mud. Registration is $35 for adults and $20 for kids. Tickets are available at Airbrush Junkies. • Celebrate Life – Second Annual Fun Run/Walk for Layla Time: 6.30am Start: Arawak Cay The run/walk starts at Arawak Cay, goes around Go Slow Bend, down to Goodman’s Bay, then back to Arawak Cay. The event seeks to raise funds to cover medical expenses for Layla, a young girl who was born with sickle cell anaemia. Following cor-
rective brain surgery and a successful bone marrow transplant, she experienced many setbacks and will now require another six months to a year to ensure complete recovery before returning home to the life she once knew. Visit www.laylafunrunwalk. com for more information. • 1st Annual Weight Loss & Fitness Challenge Time: 9am - 2pm Venue: R M Bailey Park The Healthy Bahamas Coalition hosts its first free programme. Register complete with measurements of height, weight, waist circumference, blood pressure and blood sugar readings. Weekly exercise and nutrition counselling sessions will be hosted. • Book signing for “Those Who Stayed” Time: 11am - 2pm Venue: Logos Bookstore Author Amanda Diedrick will be on hand to sign copies of her new coffee table book about the history of Green Turtle Cay. Supplies will be limited. • Bahamas Dive Club’s BBQ Time: 1pm - 7pm Venue: Clifton National Heritage Park
Open to everybody, the cover charge is $10. The club will have some drinks and prepare the BBQ. Bring your own food and drinks. Whoever wants to dive, please let the club know in advance. • Open Studio and Artists’ Talk: Blake Fox + Shanteena Simms Time: 5pm - 7pm Venue: National Art Gallery of the Bahamas UB’s Art Programme associate professor and artist Heino Schmid in conversation with two emerging Long Island artists and budding educators, Blake Fox and Shanteena Simms. Fox and Simms’ current exhibition “Again. Again. Again” is on view in the Project Space Room at the NAGB through Sunday, June 18. • Movies in the Square Time: 7.30pm - 10.30pm Venue: Pompey Square Kick off the summer with your favourite family movie. Vote on the film you want to see. Concessions are available at 7.30pm and movie starts at 8pm The screenings are free and concessions are provided by Vell Monkey Foot. Security and surveillance is enforced by the Tourism Police.
04 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, June 9, 2017
interview In recent years, beauty gurus and lifestyle vloggers from all over the world have shot to fame and made lucrative careers out of sharing their hobbies with followers on social media. Here in the Bahamas, YouTuber Alex “Bunny” Missick tells Cara Hunt about her success as a content creator and her hope that the government will soon make policy changes to remove barriers for digital entrepreneurs.
Alex Missick
L
ike many young Bahamian women, former Tribune reporter Alex “Bunny” Missick is passionate about fashion and beauty. She also loves to sharing her likes and dislikes with family and friends. A journalist at heart, she was able to use her writing skills, as well as her bubbly personality, to launch a strong social media presence which has attracted a significant online following in just a few short years. “I started vlogging on my college apartment floor in Columbia, Missouri. My mother’s friends had asked me a number of questions about my hair and make-up techniques. I said to myself, ‘I can’t keep answering the same question over and over’. I then decided it would be easier to just create a video and direct them to it,” she told Tribune Weekend That idea eventually led to hundreds of YouTube videos and a fulltime blog – MissBeautyBunny.com. She now has thousands of followers and more then two million online views. “My focus is beauty and fashion. I chose to focus on those because there is a market out there for curvy women that has not really been addressed. With so much body shaming happening in the digital landscape I wanted to be a voice of positivity for those who may feel they are alone or can’t find someone out there who looks like them,” she said. Her approach is to chat with her
“...There is a market out there for curvy women that has not really been addressed. With so much body shaming happening in the digital landscape I wanted to be a voice of positivity for those who may feel they are alone or can’t find someone out there who looks like them.”
The Tribune | Weekend | 05
Friday, June 9, 2017
viewers as if they were girlfriends who are gossiping, trying on each other’s clothes and experimenting with make-up. “What makes me effective is that I am genuine with my audience and I authentically have a good time. I talk to them just as I would any of my friends and provide them with useful information. For example, I’ve never owned thigh-high boots and I asked myself, ‘Is there anyone else out there afraid to try it because they have thunder thighs, too?’ So I took the plunge, bought some thighhigh boots and reviewed them. The response I got from that video was unbelievable. Women from all over the world messaged me telling me they bought the boots because they saw how I looked in them. That’s the kind of impact I want to have and will continue to have because I create value. I allow my audience to see that I’m just like them, but I want them to find solutions and answers through my content,” she told Tribune Weekend. At the moment, Alex has expanded her content to include reviews on wigs, weaves, and of course as naturalista, she shares tips for dealing with natural hair. She also does make-up reviews, tutorials and fashion hauls. “I started out with mostly makeup and then I branched out to hair. I did a few what we call ‘outfit of the day’ videos and got a good response. That’s when clothing companies started reaching out to me to feature their pieces on my channel. I’ve worked with many other major brands like Creme of Nature, Fashion Nova, and others. I’m on the PR lists for Clinique, Make Up Forever, ELF, Sensational, Model Model, and many more. I built my following by being consistent. I post at least two videos every week to my YouTube channel. My subscribers are loyal and I appreciate them so much for coming back every week,” she said. “To create takes planning. I usually plan out my content a day in advance. I keep a blog and a YouTube channel right now and I love both for their uniqueness. I love creating content for YouTube because it’s like I’m sitting at home chatting with them and they can be anywhere in the world. As for the blog, I like the written content because I’m a journalist and writer at heart so my more detailed audience can go there and get in-depth reviews on beauty/
fashion items. “One of the biggest joys I have being a content creator is that I get to play dress-up every day with products that have not come out in stores yet. That way my viewers know what they are getting into before they buy. To supplement my make-up tutorials, I am certified in beauty and bridal makeup artistry. It is my belief that if you enjoy something you should should get certified if you can. Never stop learning, because no one can take that from you,” she said. Alex’s other interests include spending Sundays with her church family at Bethany Assembly and thinking of new ways to effectively present content to her viewers. She also enjoys watching YouTube videos from beauty, tech and food channels. She said she would like to encourage aspiring bloggers and vloggers to just go for it. “It all begins with you. Put yourself out there and tell your friends and family. Be active on as many social media outlets that you can and create value. By creating value, you put yourself in a position to be in demand because people want to listen to and
“We can’t have digital entrepreneurs because they can’t sustainably receive PR items due to Customs having to put a value on the item. It makes you feel like you can’t live your dream in your own country, and that hurts my heart.”
watch whatever you have going on.” However, she admits that pursuing a career as a content creator was much easier when she lived in the United States, before returning home after college. “The biggest challenge I face being a content creator in the Bahamas is the cost of doing business in this country. Ninety-five per cent of my wardrobe is PR. I am a walking billboard. So when companies want to send my items for free, I still have to come up Customs and VAT on something that costs $0 and is free. I hope this changes within the next few years because there are so many opportunities for Bahamians. The internet is an amazing place – a place where exposure is free, and that’s something the talent in this country is missing,” she said. “We can’t have digital entrepreneurs because they can’t sustainably receive PR items due to Customs having to put a value on the item. It makes you feel like you can’t live your dream in your own country, and that hurts my heart. Our young people have so much potential. All these electronics can be put to use by building businesses instead of wasting time on WhatsApp. The groundwork needs to be laid out for digital entrepreneurs or this country will continue to see a brain drain.”
06 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, June 9, 2017
theatre
New play ‘Honourable Member’ takes on politics
W
riter and director Dr Ian Strachan is bringing his new play “Honourable Member” to the stage from June 8 - 11 at the Dundas Centre’s Winston V Saunders Theatre. Dr Strachan’s Ceiba Arts theatre company made waves last year with “Gun Boys Rhapsody”, a moving drama about crime and violence. This time, he sets his sights on Caribbean politics. It’s his fourth play set in the fictional nation of “I-Land”. The play paints a portrait of a Caribbean prime minister called Winston “Fergie” Ferguson, played by Dion Johnson. Fergie is a master communicator and a wily veteran when it comes to outmanoeuvring his rivals. “I was blown away by Dion Johnson’s performance in ‘Sizwe Bansi is Dead’,” said Dr Strachan. “The role of Winston Ferguson is extremely demanding. He’s on stage for all but one scene. Dion has been up to the task. I think people will be truly floored by his performance.” “Honourable Member” also boasts an impressive cast of veteran actors. Chigozie Ijeoma, Leslie Ellis-Tynes, Matthew Wildgoose and Greg Deane are just some of the actors bringing this comedy-drama to life. “I know we just had a big election and people are eager to see the stories that have made big news in the country over the last few years raised on the stage,” said Dr Strachan. “They won’t be disappointed. The play does touch on quite a few of the big headlines over the last five years. But people will also get a lot that they don’t expect. I’m trying to tell a story that can stand on its own two feet long after this particular moment in our history. So it’s a real story, with a beginning, middle and end. With a real, complicated hero who’s trying to achieve something hard. And if we do our jobs right, you will love him and hate him all at once.” Dr Strachan said audiences will find lots to laugh at in this show, but
“I have a history of being very critical of politicians. I tried very hard not to be as judgmental and to show the very human side of these individuals. Because they are human. They are flawed. And so are we, the people.”
Meet the cast...
Chigozie Ijeoma
Dion Johnson
Leslie Ellis-Tynes
Matthew Wildgoose
it deals with some very serious issues nonetheless. For instance, the play asks whether someone can really have power without being corrupted in one way or another. And asks if people really want a leader who tells the truth all the time. “I think one of the main things I wanted to do with this piece is just address what I believe are some of the misconceptions people have about the way power really works in these third world microstates. I have a history of being very critical of politicians. I tried very hard not to be as judgmental and to show the very human side of these individuals. Because they are human. They are flawed. And so are we, the people.” The Ceiba Arts production of “Honourable Member” runs Thursday, June 8, through Saturday, June 10, nightly at 8pm, and Sunday, June 11, at 6pm at the Dundas Centre. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at the Dundas Box Office or by calling 393-3718 or 470-1963. You can also e-mail ceibalearning@gmail.com.
Friday, June 9, 2017
The Tribune | Weekend | 07
08 | The Tribune | Weekend
Friday, June 9, 2017
travel
A hidden gem Deep Water Cay is keeping Grand Bahama featured in tourism
D
eep Water Cay has developed a reputation for its exceptional fishing flats, peaceful setting, mouth-watering cuisine and friendly island service. That reputation has earned the hidden gem on East End Grand Bahama not one, not two, but three significant feature stories showcasing its beauty to millions of possible vacationers this month alone. This tranquil resort which has quietly kept its doors open and tourists flowing for over 59 years, was first
noted in the April edition of Business Jet Traveler’s Paradise by the Week – which reaches a target audience of more than 35,000 subscribers in 152 countries. Deep Water Cay was given high praise for its wonderful luxury accommodations on a list that featured other noteworthy accommodations in Fiji, French Polynesia and Florida. Then in late May, an Orbitz.com article, which reaches over 6.1 million unique visitors, dubbed the resort the perfect place for a tranquil honeymoon destination. “There’s a good reason you’ve probably never heard of Deep Water Cay. It’s a private island—a secret haven of sorts,” said Sheryl Nance-Nash in her article on the International website titled ‘Which Bahamas island is your perfect match’. She noted, “There are only seven ocean view cottages and six oceanfront private homes on the entire island, which is just off Grand Bahama. There are no phones or TVs in rooms and Wi-Fi is limited. Meals are fresh caught, hyper-local and prepared by Bahamian cooks using time tested family recipes. Snorkel the legendary blue holes and reefs, scuba and kayak.”
Deep Water Cay offers its guests scuba services, bonefishing and a tranquil escape. Then, in a further wave of good publicity, the DWC team was thrilled to find out that the Cay, the resort, and its well-known fishing guides were to be highlighted in a ‘Saltwater Sportsman’ article and video: ‘Grand Tour of Grand Bahama island, its fast recovery from Hurricane Matthew.’ The article written by Glenn Law included a three–minute video by Austin Coit, and was edited by Christ Balogh. The account discussed the October 2016 landfall of Hurricane Matthew and Grand Bahama Island’s speedy recovery accompanied by a wonderful showcase on Old Bahama Bay. The writer and team spent a few days at DWC and enjoyed the fishing and the rustic scenery.
“Over the decades, the place has changed hands and recently got a multimillion-dollar upgrade. But throughout, it has maintained a reputation as one of the premier flats-fishing destinations in the Bahamas, where bonefish are both abundant and large, and service and facilities remain second to none,” wrote Law. “The Cay itself sits as the gateway to more flats than the average angler could explore in a lifetime.” In the decades since it first opened its doors Deep Water Cay has not strayed from its commitment to providing a superior experience for its visitors while staying true to the simple charms of island life and remains the gem of Grand Bahama.