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Bahamas Facts |
Bahamas Overview |
Bahamas Tourist Attraction Bahamas Location Map | Bahamas City Map |
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Geography: With a chain of 700 islands and 2500 cays Bahamas is located in the Atlantic Ocean. It lies to the north of Cuba and Caribbean, east of Florida and US, and northwest of Turks and Caicos Islands. Hurricanes are a common phenomenon during the summers, which often results to devastating situations. The climate of Bahamas varies from tropical to subtropical.
History: Bahamas was primarily inhabited by a tribal group named Lucayans whose main profession was fishing and harvesting shellfish, lobster, conch, and mollusks. In 1492 Christopher Columbus was the first American to have reached the coast of San Salvador followed by the growth of Spanish colonies here. The Spanish started using the Lucayanians as slaves. In the year 1650, British started settling in Bahamas and in 1718 it was crowned as British colonies. Bahamas got its complete independence in 1973 as a member of Commonwealth Nations.
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Economy: The economy of Bahamas mainly depends upon tourism and offshore banking. In fact Bahamas is one of the top offshore financial centres of the world. Manufacturing and agriculture although do not contribute much in the GDP, they have many people engaged in these profession. Bahamas is a developing country. The unemployment rate has fallen from 10.2% to 7.6% in 2005.
Transport System: Bahamas is very well connected to the rest of the world by airways and cruise liners. There are 6 international airports serving Bahamas. But the most popular ones are Nassau International Airport and Freeport International Airport. Nassau and Freeport are the most important harbors of Bahamas as well. For roaming around in Bahamas, bus should be kept as the last option as bus rates are very high. The islands could be explored on bicycle, scooters, rented cars, taxis, private boats, private jets, and ferry services.
Administration and Government: Bahamas is a member of Commonwealth of Nations and is an independent country. The Queen of United Kingdom represented by Bahamian governor general is the ceremonial head of the country. The leader of the party with majority in the House of Assemble is elected as the Prime Minister. The people of Bahamas enjoy the constitutional rights like freedom of speech, worship, press, association, and movement incorporated by the government. Legal proceedings are based on English Common Law.
Society & Cultural Life: The Bahamians lead a very colorful life. Their fusion culture influenced by Africa and Europe is worth watching. Junkanoo is their most popular music with a fantastic rhythm. Bahamas is a land of percussions and their form of music has been adapted in various wide in eastern as well as western classical music. Music is one of the main parts of all the Bahamian festivals.
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