ermuda's new Deputy Governor Nick Carter is a very well travelled man. At 57-years-old, he has never spent more than five years at a time in any one country and has lived in such diverse places as Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, India and Latvia - to name just a few.

So it is hardly surprising that he has taken his latest posting to Bermuda in his stride and is relishing the thought of getting to know yet another community and working with the local people. Mr. Carter, a self-confessed sports fanatic, began working for the British Diplomatic Service some 37 years ago after spotting an advert for a clerical officer. Having achieved five or six O' Levels at school, and flunking his A' Levels, he and a friend both applied, and were successful. After travelling around the world with his family as a child, due to his father's military career, the 20-year-old knew that he wanted to see more. And there, the young Mr. Carter set out on a wide and varied career that would see him working as a Registrar in Belgrade; promoting UK exports in Prague; liasing with the German Government prior to the Berlin Wall coming down; and assisting countries in the Former Soviet Union to develop after the downfall of Communism.

orking in the Department For International Development, where he first met Governor Sir John Vereker, he was in charge of a massive ?15 million budget and assisted the former Soviet countries in establishing general practitioners and a health service, along with helping to modernise banks and farming, and playing a part in setting up the stock exchange.

He said the way to best describe that stage of his working life was "primitive", but said he gained much satisfaction and experience from seeing the countries go through the transition to become more modern economies.

His varied travels over the last 33 years have given Mr. Carter the opportunity to learn a great deal about a number of different cultures, as well as try his hand at sporting activities in nations across the globe.

He has played rugby for India's international team, and can even claim to putting his back out while practise bowling to former England cricketer Norman Gifford.

And when in countries where his favourite sports were not available, he tried his hand at the international event of Hashing, where very amateur runners take part in a modest race before supping vast quantities of alcohol.

Mr. Carter arrived on the Island last week and, in between meeting with various Ministers and permanent secretaries, he has already started to investigate the local cricket and rugby scene.

Mr. Carter said he was delighted to have been given the opportunity to come to Bermuda after first submitting his bid for the post in the early part of last year.

In the early 90s he worked in the Southern European Department of the Foreign Office, which, he said, gave him much of the experience he needed to work in Bermuda as Deputy Governor.

"After joining the Southern European Department, I covered Gibraltar for three years from London," said Mr. Carter.

"That's when I got my first knowledge of overseas territories and got a taste of the Constitution, chief ministers and so on.

"I found it very interesting and then started to look after Malta as well, along the way."

But when former Deputy Governor Tim Gurney was coming to the end of his stay, Mr. Carter last year decided to bid for the job.

"I decided to bid for Bermuda because it could be my last posting before I retire and if it were to be, I thought it would be nice to be in a place where, if I liked it, I could make a decision to extend," he explained.

"At the moment, I'm here for three years, but I could extend to four. The first time I came to the Island was in January this year, when I came over with my wife Andrea to get acquainted with the place for four days.

"I knew it was not part of the Caribbean, but I didn't expect it to be so cold then. It took us both by surprise. But we thought Bermuda was lovely and we liked what we saw. We are looking forward to getting to know the Island."

The couple, who have both been married before and have five grown up children between them, took the opportunity to learn to play golf at Mr. Carter's last posting in Latvia, so they are hoping to improve on their skills in Bermuda, where the weather is much better.

But the Deputy Governor, who is a big Blues fan, is also hoping to join a cricket team and get out on the water to do some snorkelling, while his wife, who has not yet arrived on the Island, is planning to spend some of her time painting with acrylics.

But on more serious matters, Mr. Carter is looking forward to getting his feet under his desk and getting down to work.

His particular interests are drugs, crime and Police matters, but he also has a keen interest in monetary issues and budgets, as well as, of course, The Regiment.

He said: "My first impression of Bermuda is that it is very friendly and there is a huge variety of different people here, and I'm not just talking about colour.

"There are Bermudians, Portuguese, expats from various places, and then there seems to be a big American and Canadian connection, which I'm completely not used to, so it will be very interesting,

"It's a small Island, and I know that all small islands tend to be quite political, but I'm looking forward to that, too. It's certainly an interesting dimension to function in. And although it's only 21 miles long, it takes a while to travel to different places, so it actually feels bigger.

"I relish new places and both Andrea and I are looking forward to getting out and experiencing Bermudian culture.

"It's an exciting time ahead."