Hello everyone! Remember my previous Q and A session with the founding members of the Bermuda Adventurers? Well, I'm back with a pleasant new surprise, because that Q and A session was merely Part One of a larger two-part Q and A session with the rest of the cast of The Bermuda Adventures!
As with Part One, MLPFan053 is back to interview more of our favorite adventurers from the Naimoli Universe! And as I stated in Part One and in my original post about The Bermuda Adventures, I just might make another blog post like Part One in the future if you have enough questions about the series. And now the time has come to do so. But enough about that - the rest of our adventurers are getting a bit too impatient to talk a little bit more about themselves, so let's get to the Q and A!
11) Questions for Amanda Winters:
Q: Dear Amanda, so...you like snowboarding, huh??? What is it about snowboarding that made you consider it as your personal favorite winter sport, Amanda?
A: You see, my parents and I are thrill seekers who hope to conquer the world. And we did that by traveling to different snowboarding locations around the world and making our mark on their slopes! Our snowboards laid claim to half the planet before we ended up here on THESE islands, but if we ever get out of here, the rest of the world will be ours soon enough!
Q: Dear Amanda, so...you seem to be a girl who is more at home with a cold environment such as among tall mountains that are covered in snow rather than with a hot environment such as on an island that has lots of beaches. Do you ever feel out of place with the islands and their people due to your personal preferences? It's okay, Amanda. As long as your answer is honest, I won't judge.
A: Yeah, well, a lot less than I used to, I’ll admit. But the other Bermuda Adventurers helped me realize that the cold isn’t everything. I still feel a bit out of place with even the other settlers, though. Sandals are by far the most popular footwear in Paradaisia, but I still wear sneakers, even on the beach. And I was nervous about wearing a swimsuit in front of the others at first since I didn’t wear them too often. On the other hand, I discovered that surfing is a lot like snowboarding, which is pretty cool!
Q: Dear Amanda, so...an indoor ski resort, huh??? How on Earth did your friend Matthew manage to build such an amazing place? I mean, where did he even get the snow?
A: Oh yeah, that played a HUGE role in helping me realize that the cold isn’t everything. The moment that my teammates came up with a way for me to continue snowboarding in Paradaisia was the moment I stopped freaking out about not being able to snowboard anymore in the tropics. Matthew is kind of a genius, though he got help to build the resort. The snow is artificial, of course – it comes from a ceiling that produces snowfall in a similar manner to a snow gun. You should totally join us sometime!
12) Questions for Lauren Soleil:
Q: Dear Lauren, so...you like sunbathing, huh? What is it about sunbathing that made you consider it as your personal summertime activity, Lauren?
A: Well, you see, when I went to the beach in Miami, I liked the tans my friends were getting and wanted one myself. I wasn’t good at it at first, but eventually, I managed to achieve what my friends called "the most attractive tan on the beach". Sunbathing has also slightly sun-bleached my hair, but I think it really adds to all the attention I receive!
Q: Dear Lauren, so...word on the waves is that you like to "Tan responsibly", huh??? Well then, any advice that you would like to give me with regards to how should I tan responsibly on the beach should I ever decide to go sunbathing someday?
A: Yeah, I’m very well aware that sunbathing isn’t the healthiest activity out there. It would kill me for this to have adverse effects later on, so I have a variety of different methods to tan. I arm myself with various sunscreens, and I also sometimes wear sunglasses and a wide brim hat for added protection. But I also don’t actually completely rely on the sun, as much as I love it.
My diet mainly consists of foods rich in beta-carotenes; some of my favorite fruits include peaches, apricots, cantaloupes, and especially mangoes. These kinds of foods not only fight the damaging effects of a regular tan, but they also help contribute to my sun-kissed glow. If you do decide to sunbathe, I highly recommend you follow my advice. I’ll even tag along if you need a refresher!
Q: Hey, Lauren. Did you know that one of your friends, aka Johnny Summers likes you? And when I say "Like", I don't mean he likes you as a best friend, Lauren. I mean, he likes you likes you. If you know what I mean...
A: Oh, really? Well…that’s interesting. He seems like a nice guy, but he’s got a pretty unhealthy tan, which caught me off guard when I first saw him. If he does decide to get closer to me, I’ll be sure to let him know exactly what he’s done to his body. He probably isn’t going to like it, but if he’s going to be MY significant other, he’s going to have to lighten up his tan – and following my advice should do the trick!
13) Questions for Simone Occean:
Q: Dear Simone, so...word on the waves is that you're an accomplished swimmer, right??? Tell me. How long have you been participating in any and all kinds of competitions that have something to do with a water sport, Simone? How many competitions that have something to do with a water sport have you entered so far? How many competitions that have something with a water sport have you won so far?
A: I first realized my love for the water when I accidentally fell into the family pool at six. Instead of drowning, I held my breath underwater for as long as I could before resurfacing, and the rest was history. I traveled the Bahamas and then the world to attend swimming competitions, occasionally winning some competitions before I achieved a streak of nine wins.
I then took a plane to New York to get my tenth consecutive win there, when I ended up in Paradaisia. So, I guess I will get that win at this year’s annual Paradaisian Open Water Swimming Competition instead. I’ve checked out my competitors already, and yeah, there’s no WAY I’m losing this thing!
Q: Dear Simone, out of all the water sports that you had played in so far, which one would you consider as your personal favorite sport to do whenever you're in or around water?
A: I will always love swimming the most, but I love just about every other water sport. I’m also an accomplished diver. Have you been to the blue holes on Andros Island in the Bahamas? They’re such mysterious and beautiful places to dive into, and Paradaisia has one as well on Mouchoir Island. I’m just as accomplished a surfer, and I was so stoked to get a Three-Board when I first found out about them!
Q: Dear Simone, how do you manage to keep yourself in shape so that you would be able to stay in tip-top condition whenever you are partaking in any water sport competitions?
A: Well, let’s just say that I have something of an urge to undress and hop into a body of water as soon as I see one and stay there for as long as I can to hone my skills. My parents have joked that I practically live in my swimsuit and spend more time wet than I do dry, but they’re not wrong. In other words, I’m just about always in the water, so maintaining my physique is more an afterthought than a concern!
Q: Hey, Simone. Did you know that one of your friends, aka Steven Waters likes you? And when I say "Like", I don't mean he likes you as a best friend, Simone. I mean, he likes you likes you. If you know what I mean...
A: Oh, you don’t say? Well, that’s fascinating. He seems like a fun person to get to know, but I think our shared talents may actually come at odds with each other since we’re both attending the Paradaisian Open Water Swimming Competition. He’s so confident he’s going to win that he’s relaxing instead of training, which is why I CAN’T see him winning. So, if he wants to be my better half, he better show me his full potential!
14) Questions for Justin Greenburg:
Q: Dear Justin, so...word on the waves is that you are a part of a family of fashion models and yet, you had decided to be a botanist instead. So... tell me. What exactly inspired you into wanting to become a botanist when you grow up instead of growing up to be a fashion model just like the rest of your family, Justin?
A: Well, I don’t mean to sound nerdy, but plants are actually a lot cooler than you might think. They give us oxygen to breathe, wood to build homes, shade to cool off from the sun, and fruits and vegetables for us to eat and make meals with. They also make great accessories like the leaf necklace and bracelets I wear to remind me of my hobby when I model. Plants are just so important to life on Earth, which is why I feel I’m doing something just as important by helping manage them.
Q: Dear Justin, I apologize if I seem like I am prying into personal matters between you and your family, but I’ve got to ask. Have you already told your family that you wanted to become a botanist when you grow up rather than be a fashion model just like your parents and siblings, Justin? If so, how did they take it? I mean, if you don't want to answer this question due to the question itself being of a personal matter to you then that's fine but.... I’m just.... asking out of curiosity, mind you. That's all.
A: No, no, it’s okay, I guess. No, I didn’t actually tell them yet, but I am nervous about how they will react. It’s just that my parents are really passionate about my modeling career. They’ve made me model for all sorts of companies such as Suntropics Swimwear. I wasn’t interested in modeling their latest swim trunks for a photo shoot in Sint Maarten, so I was actually relieved when we ended up in Paradaisia instead. Maybe I can practice my botany more and figure out how to lay the news to my parents easier.
Q: Hey, Justin. Did you know that one of your friends, aka Kaitlin Flowers likes you? And when I say "Like", I don't mean she likes you as a best friend, Justin. I mean, she likes you likes you. If you know what I mean...
A: Oh, Kaitlin? Heh, I’m actually not that surprised. I’m something of a preteen heartthrob due to my modeling career. I know that many other boys would kill to be like me, but I don’t really care to be a chic magnet. I don’t think most girls would like me for who I actually am, but if Kaitlin is an exception and we get together, then maybe I can get all the other girls off my back. That would be such a relief!
15) Questions for Maritza Fuentes:
Q: Greetings, your highness. Tell me. What is it about seashells that made you love them very much?
A: Well, they’re really pretty and make the perfect accessories! Aside from my royal duties, I’m a fashion designer who likes designing my own shell bras and shell jewelry. My mother eventually encouraged me to launch my own fashion line called Fuentes Shells. My bras are popular among Atlantean girls for their style, comfort and brand recognition. But seashells have other uses as well. I’m also searching for the perfect queen conch, which makes the perfect instrument to amplify a merfolk’s singing voice.
Q: Greetings, your highness. I apologize if I seem like I am prying into an embarrassing matter about you and your people, your majesty, but I’ve just got to ask. Doesn't it bother you that you and your fellow mermaids have nothing to wear except shell bras that cover your...you know...your...chest...most of the time?
I mean, don't take this the wrong way but mermaids are not known for their...modesty. However, I can imagine that some of your fellow mermaids are actually quite shy girls who are not keen on exposing their...you know, their...non-private human parts. To the point where they consider the thought that a simple seashell bra is not good enough for them and they are expecting, well...how should I put this? Oh, more decent clothing that covers more of their skin. Again, I apologize for asking such a personal question, but I feel like it's a question that needs to be asked, your highness.
A: Okay…well, I guess I can’t blame you for being curious as a human! You may have noticed that, well, “certain areas” of our bodies are, well, obviously not visible, right? Well, all I’ll say is that our tails are very thick, and they do a good job at hiding what you don’t want to be seen until you need it for whatever reason. In other words, it’s like organic clothing, if that makes sense. But us mermaids do need shell bras since we’re, you know, half human. And that’s fine by me since I love designing them!
As for your other question, clothes aren’t actually that necessary underwater, so if you see a mermaid wearing more than just a shell bra, it’s not usually because they have low self-esteem like humans do. It’s because they want to indicate their privilege as, say, a government official, like how I wear my woven sea grass cloak during my royal duties. I will say this though: I’m VERY eager to try on some human clothes the day I finally get the chance to go on land!
Q: Greetings, your highness. What is it about Puerto Rico that made you consider your plan of visiting that island someday?
A: Well, you see, every now and then I visit the waters of Puerto Rico to take a glance at its shores. Let’s just say that our Atlantean ancestors did some…unpleasant things on land a long time ago that made us become merfolk in the first place. The other undersea nations don’t want us to become human out of fear that we still want to do those things, but we don’t, and we are trying to prove that to them. The day we do, I’m finally stepping foot on Puerto Rico!
And the reason why is not just because it is my second home. There is much justice to be served for my land-dwelling people. Whether or not you support a certain political status doesn’t interest me as much as righting the wrongs created by colonization, whatever form that may take, and I’m very well positioned to do that as a political leader. I’m also interested in checking out Old San Juan in particular. It’s so pretty from the shore and I bet it’s even prettier up close!
16) Questions for Rosalie Fontaine:
Q: Dear Rosalie, so...word under the waves is that you collect all kinds of doohickeys from the human world, right???? So... tell me. What kind of interesting gadgets, gizmos, whosits, whatsits and thingamabobs have you collected so far? Perhaps a dinglehopper or two?
A: I mean, I just think the surface world is so fascinating, since my people haven’t been allowed to visit it. I can’t help but to check out all these things that humans leave behind to get a better understanding of their lifestyle. Perhaps unfortunately, it’s very easy to find. I’ve found a lot of jewelry like the necklace I wear, beach items like pails and shovels, and even scuba gear. Since it’s all ocean pollution, I don’t keep most of it forever, so after a while, I attempt to shove it as far away from water as I can.
Q: Dear Rosalie, I can see that not only are you an environmentalist who is serious about ending the pollution of your home aka the oceans, but you are also supportive of the conservation of a species of animals that exists on the surface world aka a cute and majestic bird called the Imperial Amazon. With that said, what exactly inspired you to become a person who seeks to conserve and preserve both the underwater world as well as the various animals that can only exist on the surface world, Rosalie?
A: Well, my mother is the administrator of the Atlantis Environmental Protection Agency. To improve its relations with the other undersea nations, Atlantis became a world leader in environmentalism, and I was inspired by my mother to become an environmentalist myself. I’m partly fascinated with human-made objects to find a solution to clearing garbage from the world’s oceans.
As for the imperial amazon, it is the national bird of Dominica, but it’s sadly very endangered, at least in Dominica. That means there are environmental issues to address on land as well. However, I was thrilled to learn about a huge population of imperial amazons in Paradaisia, so when I finally grow legs, I hope to bring some of those parrots to Dominica. It will be an amazing moment!
Q: Dear Rosalie, what is it about Dominica that made you consider your plan of visiting that island someday?
A: You see, I have a very intimate connection to my other country. My tail is purple, and Dominica’s flag is one of only two in the world that have the color purple! Guess where the purple comes from? The imperial amazon! And while my environmentalist motives for setting foot on Dominica are important and mean a lot to me, I am also really interested in checking out Boiling Lake. Did you know it’s the second-largest hot spring in the world? It’s too hot for swimming, but it must be breathtaking to see!
17) Questions for Martha Chynn:
Q: Dear Martha, what is it about starfishes that made you love them very much?
A: I mean, I don’t know if it’s because I have Rosalie, Glover and Niraj for friends, but I just love nature. I love to spend my days at Atlantis National Park to study the various starfish species that live there. You can’t pick them up or disturb them, but once they’re dead, you can preserve them and turn them into pretty accessories, which I’m pretty good at doing. The starfish I wear is the red cushion sea star, a common species in the Caribbean Sea. It really complements my red tail, don’t you think?
Q: Dear Martha, what is it about Jamaica that made you consider your plan of visiting that island someday?
A: You see, I’m really eager to visit Montego Bay, which has a high Chinese Jamaican population. You might be surprised to learn that people like us are a thing, but we’re more culturally Jamaican than Chinese. Did you know that Chinese reggae is a thing? I also love music, and that’s my favorite genre! And even though I can’t visit Jamaica yet, it’s not all that bad. One place I already visit is the sunken pirate city of Port Royal. It’s pretty crazy how an earthquake made them sink into the ocean like Atlantis did, huh?
18) Questions for Bruce Blackett:
Q: Dear Bruce, tell me...what’s it like? Being the son of the leader of your kingdom's military?
A: Well for one thing, you get to see what it’s like to maintain Atlantis’s national security up close. I like to get involved in the military’s activities, even if I’m not required to do so, especially at my age. But I can’t help it! What the military does is really cool, though sometimes they do more boring stuff, like watching over the Atlantean border. But one thing I especially like to do is build and even use awesome weapons for battle!
Q: Dear Bruce, so...word under the waves is that your family is responsible for fashioning technology in your kingdom, eh???? Tell me. Are you willing to show us a few notable examples of your wonderful kingdom's technology, Bruce?
A: Why, definitely! I spend much of my free time designing technology for the Atlantean Army with my mother at a business in Atlantis called Blackett Blacksmiths. She invented the Broken Trident, which is my favorite weapon to use. Why is it broken, you may ask? It’s a reference to the Barbadian flag. The trident symbol is taken from Barbados' colonial badge, in which Britannia holds the trident of Poseidon. The broken lower part is a symbolic break from its status as a colony.
But that doesn’t mean it’s hard to wield. It still has a handle, it’s just that it’s much shorter. And it is capable of detaching from the actual trident, which is connected by an extendable chain. This enables me to use the trident at the same distance as a staff, though you must be skilled in wielding a chain, rather than a staff, to use it properly. It can also emit electricity like many of Atlantis’s other weapons. We also wield staffs with small pyramids at the ends of them, which are more frequently used.
Q: Dear Bruce, what is it about Barbados that made you consider your plan of visiting that country someday?
A: Well, like most Atlanteans, I hope that I’ll finally get the chance to grow legs and visit my second country. I’m pretty interested in checking out Bridgetown, the capital of Barbados. It’s a major tourist destination, after all. And did you know that Barbados recently transitioned from a British Commonwealth realm to a republic? It’s like breaking the trident twice. If you ask me, there couldn’t be a better time to visit my fellow Bajans!
19) Questions for Glover Pacho:
Q: Dear Glover, what is it about coral that made you love them very much?
A: I have a very intimate connection to coral reefs. After all, I was born in the Belize Barrier Reef, the world’s second largest coral reef. But when I found out about coral bleaching, I was devastated. My parents work at the Atlantis Environmental Protection Agency, which inspired me to become an environmentalist myself so I can find a solution to coral bleaching.
Atlantis National Park consists of much of Atlantis’s coral reefs, and I love to spend my days at the park to study the various coral species that live there. My jewelry is actually made from coral, but I waited until the coral was dead from natural, non-human causes before I made it. Most of the world’s biodiversity is inhabited and protected by indigenous people like me, and I’m thrilled to be able to contribute to that protection.
Q: Dear Glover, what is it about Belize that made you consider your plan of visiting that country someday?
A: Well, I still visit the Belize Barrier Reef, of course. But as a Mayan, I’m really eager to visit Caracol, the largest Maya site in Belize. Did you know that it was larger than modern-day Belize City? Sure, Belize is actually part of Central America, and you don’t think of people like me when you think of the Caribbean necessarily, but culturally speaking, Belize is most certainly a Caribbean country. I can’t wait to set foot on my ancestral homelands the day I finally grow legs!
20) Questions for Niraj Persaud:
Q: Dear Niraj, what is it about underwater plant life that made you love them very much?
A: It started with my mother, really. Seaweed is sown into many things in the merfolk world, with seaweed sowing being a profession. My mother is a seaweed sower, who taught me how to sew my seaweed necklace and bracelets. But it wasn’t until my father started to work at the Atlantis Environmental Protection Agency that I was inspired to become an environmentalist myself.
Have you heard of sargassum? It is a species of seaweed that floats on ocean currents in large mats that can stretch for miles. At the boundary of Atlantis lies the Sargasso Sea, a vast patch of ocean that the sargassum inhabit. This is where I spend my days studying seaweed and other sea plants. Eventually, I found out about this relatively new environmental crisis, in which sargassum accumulates along the shores of many Caribbean countries. Ever since, I have been trying to find a solution to stop the crisis.
Q: Dear Niraj, what is it about Guyana that made you consider your plan of visiting that country someday?
A: While I love the plants of the merfolk world, I’m just as fascinated with the plants of the surface world. I’m really interested in checking out Kaieteur National Park the day I finally grow legs, which has flora and fauna that can’t be found anywhere else in the world! Yeah, Guyana is really part of South America, but culturally, it is definitely a Caribbean country and is even the headquarters for the Caribbean Community. It will be amazing to see plants with golden rocket frogs inside up close!
And so, Part Two of the Q and A session is over! You can also see this session in a new post on my DeviantArt page. I will be adding these characters' answers to the Bermuda Adventures FAQ section shortly. Due to the sheer number of questions that are being added, I will be transferring the FAQ section to a new page, which can be accessed via a button at the bottom of the Bermuda Adventures page. As I stated in Part One, if anyone else has any other questions about the series, those answers will be added to the FAQ section as well, and if anyone else has any questions about my other works, other FAQ sections will be added to the pages for those works as well. Just be aware that not every question may be answered, as the answers to some questions may reveal information that I'm not ready to reveal yet.
Until then, stay enlightened, educated and entertained, folks!