The "A Real Bahamian Sweetheart" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Time to take the rental back to Budget Car Rentals at the Lynden Pindling International Airport on the island of New Providence in the Bahamas.  Carol and I, along with friends Jere and Just Sue, have been traveling together just about every year since 1999 when Jere and I retired together from Manheim Township School District.  Most years we rent a vehicle to explore the island we may have traveled to that year.  I have been doing most of the driving over that time and have experienced driving on both the left and the right side of the road as well as driving on islands where there are very few stop signs and stop lights.  The places such as that have round-abouts to keep traffic flowing faster.  I have found the islands with the round-abouts and left-hand driving are the most challenging.  Can't sight-see and drive when I have to totally concentrate on staying on the left as well as navigating the round-abouts and trying to stay in the correct lane on the round-about.  New Providence is one of the islands where they have numerous, no make that loads of, round-abouts that require my intense concentration to drive safely on the roads.  Since we have traveled to New Providence in the past, we had visited many of the tourist attractions in the past, so we opted for just a few days of rental driving during this year's visit.  At this point in my story I should tell you about a remarkable woman we have met at the resort where we are staying.  Pamela is the concierge at the Melia Resort and she is a real sweetheart.  She has been not only a friend to the four of us, but seems as if she is a member of the family.  

Pamela. (Photo by Sue)

All started when we met her the first day of our vacation.  We sat and talked with her about places we might like to visit and the fact that we would need a vehicle for transpor- tation.  She was more than willing to call the rental company and make the arrangements for us.  She worked with the company on the dates and a reasonable price and lined up a ride to the airport location for us.  While getting to know her, we found that she was anticipating cataract surgery in the near future.  We could see that she was worried about the surgery and the outcome she could expect.  Told her that I had just had the surgery and we talked about what she can expect and how stressful it may be.  I told her I felt the same way and had absolutely no problem with the surgery.  Told her everything involved and I believe I alleviated some of her fears.  Well, last evening, after spending a day of touring the island by car, we returned to find Carol and I, as well as Jere and Sue, had a bottle of Champagne and a tray of fruit and cheese, waiting for us in our rooms.  Card attached thanked us for the encouraging words and signed, Concierge.  What a sweetheart!  After our two days of having the car, I sat with her and asked if she could call the rental company and find if they had someone to drive Jere and I back to our resort after we returned the car.  

Our bottle of Champagne and "Thank You" note.
Click to enlarge

She called and reported to us what to do and marked on my map the route, telling me the landmarks to look for along the way.  She could see that I was worried about getting lost, but she assured me it would be find.  When we left she said she would call the rental and tell them we were on the way so they could make sure they had a return trip ready for us.  Her directions were perfect and after a stop to fill the gas tank, we pulled into the rental lot.  The young girl at the rental desk said they were expecting us since Pamela had called to tell them we were on our way.  Wasn't long before we were in the van for the return to the Melia.  After walking into the front door of the Melia and past the concierge's desk, Pamela walked over to us to tell us that they had called from the rental agency to tell her we were on our way back.  She informed us our wives had just stopped and are expecting us.  Now that is not only service, but someone who was actually concerned about two old guys who may have gotten lost on an unfamiliar island.  We have met many friendly and courteous employees since we have arrived, but none, absolutely none, as warm and caring as Pamela.  What a wonderful human being!!  She is a true ambassador for the Melia as well as the island of New Providence.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.