Customs of life in Bahamas

The Bahamas, officially known as the Commonwealth of the Bahamas (Bahamas), is a federal island nation located on the west coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Located east of Florida and north of Cuba and the Caribbean Sea, the Bahamas contains 700 islands and coral reefs. Across the southeast coast of Florida, north of Cuba. The archipelago extends from northwest to southeast, is 1220 kilometers long and 96 kilometers wide. It consists of more than 700 islands and more than 2000 coral reefs, with a total area of 13878 square kilometers, of which more than 20 islands are inhabited. It has a subtropical climate with an average annual temperature of 23.5 ° C.

From 300 to 400 AD, Indian civilization existed in the Bahamas. After 1492, Bahamas began to become a European colony. It was not until after World War II that tourism in Bahamas began to develop, promoting permanent prosperity in the area. In 1964, the Bahamas gained internal self-government. It became an independent state of Bahamas in 1973. The official language is English.

The indigenous people of the Bahamas Islands are Indians. Over the centuries, they have formed their own customs, giving Bahamas culture a strong Indian color. Later, in 1647, British Puritans began to settle on Irusera Island, which brought about great changes in Bahamas culture. Over the next four centuries of evolution, slaves and free blacks in Bermuda, royalist colonists who fled the United States after the American Revolutionary War (with their slaves), Africans liberated from slave ships, black Minoles in Florida, residents of other Caribbean islands, as well as China, Syria and Greek immigrants came here to witness the history of the Bahamas. These people are vastly different in origin, traditions and beliefs, and to this day they have created a unique and colorful Bahamas culture that embodies the lifestyles of all ethnic groups.

The names of Bahamas people are the same as those of Europeans and Americans, that is, the first name comes and the last name comes. Blacks have been culturally assimilated by whites, so names are no exception. People shake hands when they meet, calling men gentlemen and ladies madam and miss. As early as the 1880s, blacks were largely Christians, and people strictly followed the rules of their beliefs.

Many Bahamas people are endowed with art, as can be seen in their colorful paintings, infectious music or gorgeous dances. The traditional music of the Bahamas is Gombe, a combination of African musical traditions and European colonial customs. "Gombe" is a Bantu language, which means rhythm and rhythm, and also refers to the sheepskin drum used to play this style of melody. As early as slavery, some very simple bands began to play Gombe music, because black slaves did not have much material to make musical instruments. A typical minimalist band has a drum, which is actually a pork barrel wrapped in sheepskin; a carpenter's saw made from a sheet of metal; sand balls; a few drumsticks; and a homemade bass violin (a laundry basin with a three-foot-long wooden stick in the middle and a string tied).

Traditional minimalist music is used to accompany the Bahamas four-way dance and tap polka dance, another example of a fusion of African and European factors. Today's minimalist bands play on sax, electric guitars or other instruments in addition to sawing blades and Gombe drums. However, they still retain their original minimalist style. It's not like a dance, but more like a lively parade, in the form of taking one step back every two steps forward. Like the charging pace, the jumping dance also originated in West Africa. This dance is led by one person, others dance around it, and the leader performs alone in the center. Everyone claps, sings, and sometimes beats drums to play music. After a few minutes, the dancer in the center will pick another dancer (usually of the opposite sex) to replace him or her in the center. In this way, everyone can maintain a high interest and the dance continues like this. Religious music in Bahamas has a strong colonial background and is also influenced by American culture. Some people believe that they are the best expression of Bahamas culture.

Religious hymns are somewhat similar to black American slave songs introduced to the Bahamas during the royalist period. In places where religious services are held, you can often hear the harmonious blending of contemporary African-American gospel music with European classical music. Except for the strictest churches, singing activities in Congregational churches are accompanied by clapping, music appreciation and religious dancing.

Seafood is the main ingredient in Bahamas cuisine. Conch (pronounced "Kongke ") is a mollusk that lives in the ocean. Its meat is white, very strong, with light fluff on it. Fresh but unprocessed conch meat is very delicious. You can cut it with a knife and eat it and top it with lime juice and condiments. It can also be fried (called "shredded snail meat "), steamed, stewed, boiled in soup, or made into salad, chowder, conch diced, etc. The crayfish, a specialty of Bahamas, is a claw-free and spiny seafood that can be grilled, chopped or made into salads. Other delicacies include boiled or steamed land crabs.

A variety of fresh fish are also an indispensable dish on the Bahamas table. Boiled fish served with coarse corn meal is very popular with tourists. Stewing fish with celery, onions, tomatoes and other vegetables is another local specialty. Many dishes are served with pigeon beans and rice (which is the famous Caribbean dish with beans and rice), plus seasonings, tomatoes and onions.

Peas often play an extremely important role in various delicious soups in Bahamas: dough pudding and corned beef are added to the soup, or Tonga ham made from cracked dried peas, just two of the many pea broths. There is also a specialty soup called Suzi in the Caribbean and in the Bahamas. The soup is slightly salty and consists of water, onions, lime juice, celery, pepper and meat without any thickening agents. People often add chicken, sheep tongue, oxtail or pig's trotters to soup to make "suzi soup" delicious and nutritious.

Bahamas cuisine is not the kind that has a light taste. On the contrary, unlike the cooking style of the West Indies, it is influenced by southern American cuisine and uses local meat and other local products as raw materials. It is a bit spicy and has a unique flavor. A very representative dish is the fish and corn flour mentioned above.

On the island of Bahamas, both spirits and soft drinks have their own specialty varieties. Each bar has its own unique signature beverage preparation. The Kalic wine here is light yellow all over. After drinking it after refrigeration, it can cool off the heat. The sports drink in Bahamas is coconut water, not the strong, fatty coconut milk mixed with a dash of sweet milk and gin. There is also a drink called "Change the Taste", which is made from the local specialty lime.