SERENDIPITY UNDER THE SUN
At Eleuthera in Bahamas, you’ll never want to leave
The definition of “French leave” comes from the 18th-century French military, meaning “to leave without permission.” I realized quickly on my recent visit to French Leave Resort (frenchleaveresort.com), a delightful spot tucked into the far tip of the Bahamian island of Eleuthera, there's a modern twist on that meaning. Because at this French Leave, my stay was all about not needing permission.
I could choose to linger over breakfast looking out on the Bahamian bay, or meander along a nearly empty pink sand beach, soaking in the sun and serenity. I could dine with friends seaside and then giggle over perhaps a few more cocktails than is usually suggested.
Here one can let go of the popular perception of a Bahamian escape (Atlantis, after all, rules the vision), and blend into a different backdrop, one where things move slowly, folks do what fits their mood, and the climate makes it all perfect.
I arrived at Eleuthera a bit stressed. My work-
week had packed itself in my suitcase and did not want to let go. It took about four seconds for that to change, as I made my way through the quaint north eleuthera airport (where customs is a woman with a folding table and a smile). There are two airport choices for French Leave: Governor's harbor, which is a 10-minute jaunt but has fewer flights; and north eleuthera, about an hour's taxi ride but with more flights.
eleuthera is actually a series of Bahamian islands; the one I had landed on (the largest at about 100 miles long) and many smaller ones. since I'd landed far to the north, I was able to wind through the many “settlements,” tiny hamlets and sometimes just a cluster of waterfront homes that make up the island.
I was soaking it all in on the taxi ride from the airport when I suddenly spotted a narrow bridge, and on either side of it, the dark blue atlantic and the turquoise Caribbean. They seemed to be up against one another (in fact a tiny swath of land separates them). I gasped, and my driver laughed. That, he told me, is the Glass Window Bridge, connecting the north and south of the island, and yes, those were two bodies of water butting up against one another.
soon I was at French Leave resort, a Marriott autograph Collection locale that is more seaside village than hotel. My room was actually an oceanview villa, with a covered porch and my own golf cart to tool around in. The resort features one- and twobedroom villas, along with a waterfront infinity pool, restaurant, fitness center, docks with water sports, a small shop and a beach to die for. The villas, restaurant, docks and pool are set on the Caribbean. a friend and I snorkeled around those docks one day and saw more fish than we could imagine.
across the road and up a small street sits the resort's beach. French Leave has chairs and umbrellas, as well as a beach attendant to help you out and even bring you food or cocktails. The beach is massive, and mostly empty. It also offers sunrises over the water. That's right — you can see the sun rise on one ocean and set on another sea — all at the same resort.
I opted to explore the largely unsettled island. at harbor Island, the far north end of eleuthera, I poked through town in a golf cart, walked a breathtaking beach and enjoyed the bustle of a Bahamian town. along the way I found treasured spots such as Queen's Bath, a natural giant “hot tub” carved out of rock.
another day, I climbed aboard a small craft from Fishbone Tours (fishbonetours.com). Capt. Bubba asked what we'd like to see or do in our roughly four hours on the water. Folks shouted out: see a shark! see dolphins! Get up close with sea turtles! snorkel! he delivered all that and more, including hunting for conch and then making a fresh conch salad right on the boat, fishing for barracuda, snooping at a few celebrity vacation homes, sipping Bahamian beer in the sun and soaking in the beauty.
he brought us out to a reef to snorkel. Others returned to the boat to sunbathe, but friends and I continued on. Then, out of the blue, a dolphin swam up to us and, no more than 10 feet away, rolled and played and showed off for us, as if trying to make friends.
That's the thing about French Leave — and eleuthera as a whole. There's no set time on things, no agenda to stick to. you won't find “swim with dolphin” spots, and you might not even know what exactly you're doing for lunch.
But with permission to not need permission, all you want and need on an island escape shows up.