Have you ever visited a place so small that encompasses so much? The Bahamas constitution is based on that of Westminster, modeled on that of Queen Elizabeth II. The Governor General of the Bahamas is the representative of the Majesty. Perry Christie has been Prime Minister of the Bahamas since 2002. The first Prime Minister of the Bahamas was Lyden Pindling. The Bahamian system of government is a parliamentary democracy. This type of democracy holds regular elections for leaders. The cabinet constitutes the executive branch and controls the government. Parliament constitutes the legislative branch and consists of the Senate and the House of Assembly. Judicial authority is compromised by the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. The Bahamas does not charge taxes to the population. Instead, the Bahamas raises money by taxing goods shipped into the country. Although the currency of the Bahamas is different from that of the United States, they are both of the same value. The dollar bills they make are one, three, five, ten, twenty, fifty and hundreds. All dollar bills feature the face of Queen Elizabeth II. They also make 1 cent, 5 cents, 10 cents, 15 cents, 25 and 50 cent coins. The one cent coin represents a starfish. The nickel represents a pineapple. The dime depicts a bonefish. The 15 cent coin represents a hibiscus. The twenty-five cent coin depicts a sailboat. The fifty cent coin depicts a blue marlin. The population of the Bahamas was 319,031 as of July 2013. Nassau is the capital of the Bahamas. The water surrounding the Bahamas is called the Atlantic Ocean. The Bahamas owns 28% of the Atlantic Ocean. Some of their ocean problems are coral reef degradation and solid waste disposal. The Bahamas is made up of more than 700 islands...... middle of paper ...... and Atlantis is a 141-acre waterscape. Many cruise ships go there. This place holds over 20 million gallons of water. The Bahamas is an interesting nation worth visiting. Works Cited1. www.artistsofthebahamas.com 4/7/142. www.atlantis.com Kerzner International Resorts 2014, 04/27/143. www.bahamas.co.uk fox kalomaskin 04/18/144. The Bahamas Government www.bahamas.gov.bs 2011 3/26/145. www.cabyya.com/bahamas/Bahamas-guide info 2004 3/28/146. Healing Center www.healing-arts.org online 2002 4/5/147. www.indexmundi.com 2013 03/27/148. www.infoplease.com high beam research 2005 4/4/149. National Geographic, national geographic book, Pearson 2013 4/3/1410. www.rootsweb.ancestry.com traces the past 2010 4/8/1411. Book Pearson Social Studies, Discovery School New Jersey 200512. Martin and Stephen Hintz, Bahamas, Children's Press