the Island to stop our visitors getting bored. He is correct of course because Bermuda has kept its quality image at a price. Today Bermuda is too much of a Grannie where resorts are concerned, a dignified Grannie but a Grannie none the less. There are people, many of them repeat visitors, who enjoy Bermuda that way but as Sir John Swan said, more and more visitors are complaining about a lack of things to do.

It is very clear that Bermuda is not a lively resort. It has a reputation for catering to the "newly wed and the nearly dead'' and that reputation is deserved. Maybe Bermudians want Bermuda that way and maybe there are enough visitors who enjoy a quiet resort to keep the economy healthy. But maybe we are taking a dangerous risk of being left behind.

We believe there is more to do in Bermuda than we sometimes think. The impression that Bermuda does not sparkle comes about because Bermuda is too often a "locked-up and locked out'' resort. It is not open late and what is open in the evening tends to close early. We shut down our shops and our transportation at times when many visitors might like to be out and about.

Bermuda has virtually no sidewalk activity. What does a cruise ship couple do in Hamilton at 9 p.m. It's too early for discos, restaurants are taking last orders and shops are firmly shut. Widow shopping is not an exciting holiday.

There is a stuffy and boring sameness about the ambiance, the prices and the menus in the restaurants.

Basically we open and close our shops and restaurants and places of entertainment according to the standards suitable to Britain during the First World War. Bermuda has geared itself to its own comfort and convenience and not to the wishes of visitors. Enforced dress codes are considered restrictive for today's holiday. So are a good many of the other don'ts Bermuda lives by.

Today's visitors do not want to be unnecessarily restricted according to the standards of Victorian England nor do they want to be treated like small children. Visitors want to relax and enjoy themselves. They want their vacation to be memorable and fun. Visitors spend their money to have a good time and that often means that they want to relax from the pressures of urban America.

Bermuda is a very controlled and repressive society heavily influenced on the surface but not very deeply by the dictates of fundamentalist religion. That is outmoded in most countries and it is not in tune with happy holidays. As examples, religious dictates are why horse racing was scrapped at Shelly Bay thus depriving the Country of a major free sports complex which was to accompany racing. It is the basic reason we have no lottery money to spend on capital projects and no casino to amuse visitors.

Sir John Swan is right. Fewer people want sand and sun because of the dangers of the sun. Bermuda needs a more enjoyable and relaxed atmosphere.

Grannie has to learn to dance and sing to earn her pay.