You Only Live Twice

View of Fleming's house on Goat Island

We were on our way out to sea just off the coast of Speyside, Tobago, buffeted by the wind, our boat rocking in unsteady seas.  Our guide, Tanja, was a Swiss master diver with a penchant for adventure; she had lived in Egypt the past four and a half years and was there during the revolution last spring.  She had only been doing her job, and now she was pointing out to us a private house on the island directly across from the hotel room where we spent the past two nights.  There was a legend that came with the large white mansion on Goat Island with its private access to some of the best coral in the world.  Supposedly, it had once been owned by none other than Ian Fleming, the famous British former intelligence agent who went on to write about, you know, that other famous British secret agent.  We would do our first training dive in the same waters Fleming used to snorkel for his daily exercise.

Ecstatic fails to describe our excitement on learning this tidbit.  Could our introduction to scuba diving take place in a more perfect location?  The house dominates the seascape off Speyside.  We had wondered if it had a story as we drove up in the dead of night a couple days before.  And even now, with the roof caving in and the dock falling to ruin, there was an allure to the place, as if there were secrets there lurking beneath the crumbled facade.

Author looking out toward Goat Island from Speyside Inn hotel room

Reality never measures up to the heights of fantasy.  It turns out (according to this website) there is no actual evidence Fleming ever owned Goat Island, but that the idea is more a local legend.  Fleming's more famous estate, Goldeneye, is located in Jamaica.  However, for as little as $3 million, you could own some of the legend that is Bond in Tobago.  The  house is apparently for sale (or at least was in 2006 according to this website).  Personally, I think I'll go with the local legend on this one.  The house looks straight out of a James Bond thriller.  I can picture Scaramanga running through the trees with his golden pistol or Honey Rider emerging from the surf in that famous bikini.  The underwater scuba fight from Thunderball could have taken place in the water just off the shore.

So if anybody asks; yeah, we went diving at Ian Fleming's house.  But don't tell anybody; that's top secret.  And I'll have that vodka martini shaken, not stirred.