This week went by so quickly I’m a bit late with this note, but all has been well here in our tropical paradise. I’ll give you a day in the life plot line retelling and go through a single day in week two.
As always we woke to our alarm at 6:00 and had coffee and orange juice on the patio while the sun rose and the mosquitoes buzzed around our ears. We cover up good during this period to fend off the attack of the irritating critters who are not out at 6:00 when it’s still dark and are also not out at 7:00 when it’s full day, but during the half hour of sunrise from 6:20 ‘till 6:50 they are insanely abundant! At around 7:00 we take an hour long walk down to the waterfront and north to a dive site called Something Special then back again south to The Divi Flamingo Resort, then back North along the same route to our favorite BBQ joint Bobby-Jans at the end of our street and home again. If we’re in the mood for a good workout we leave the dog at home but often we take him along (he slows us down) and since there are very few=2 0small dogs on the island Rexx has become something of a celebrity and we’ve come to be known as the couple that have the little dog. Even when we meet people for the first time some remark on this. Today the Scientology Training Ship FreeWinds was in port with its current group of Thetans for their OT8 (operating thetan level 8) training. Google it if you want to know more.
Often Berit will buy papaya or other fresh fruits at the open air Venezuelan fruit stand set up every day and supplied by a small boat that makes the 50 mile crossing from the mainland. Our breakfast is usually lunch as well since we’re out and about ‘till suppertime most days. Berit puts her heart into these meals and since we have a one butt sized kitchen and I’m not much good unless there’s a can opener involved she does everything except set the table on the patio when the cooking is done. This day we had scrambled eggs with sautéed mushrooms, peppers and onions along with made from scratch refried beans, potato pancakes and toast and a variety of fresh fruit including grapes and a yellow watermelon that was really sweet.
After breakfast, most days, it’s time to dive. We don’t go everyday (cave hunting, yard work and the like) but we don’t go less often than every other day. Today was a site called Candyland up north beyond the Venezuelan oil transshipment facility called BOPEC. It was our first time diving this site and it’s our current favorite. The reef drops off to the abyss and the blue water is loaded with schools of small fish with bigger fish chasing through the schools and huge lobster and groupers amid spectacular stands of hard and soft corals with angelfish and tangs and grunts and all the usual suspects in abundance. Fabulous.
After an hour or so we surface and stumble out of the surf and up the coral rubble beach to our truck and chatter like school children about the new things we saw while we get out of our gear and rinse the salt off with milk jugs of water brought from home. We have to remember to put the bottles in the cab while we dive so the water will cool down from scalding to just hot. Bonaire is just twelve degrees off the equator and the sun will literally boil or broil anything left out in it. One of the facts of life here is that it is always HOT!!
After diving our routine is to stop off at The Yellow Submarine Dive Shop to fill our tanks; then return to our house to clean up the gear, shower and put everything away for the next time. When we bought the house we wondered how it would be to have no hot water heater. I can tell you for true we haven’t missed it a bit. It’s not that you learn to live with cold showers; it’s that you’re surprised to discover that the water from the tap is already always warm! If you want a cool drink of water you get it from the pitcher in the refrigerator.
Anyway, the Yellow Submarine is back to the south, and the northern dive sites like Candyland are on a one-way section of road heading north, so to get back south to Kralendijk you have to take the roundabout route on “good” paved road through the small central island town of Rincon (there are only the two towns on the island) or take the dirt road “shortcut” back over the hill (maximum elevation on the island is 700 feet) but the tradeoff is it’s r ough going, but hey, that’s why we bought a truck.
We took the shortcut and about two miles along in the middle of nowhere saw a dive bag along the side of the road. Of course we stopped and picked it up and went through it looking for identification and found (along with a wet suit and other dive gear) a complete dive log with all the dives “Kostas” had ever done. He is Greek and has dived the Red Sea among other places and had all his certification cards and personal information there in his log, so when we got home I called the number in the log and had a very short conversation with some woman who spoke Greek and hung up on me. That’s when I realized it had to be around 3:00 AM in Greece
Kostas had also included an email address, so after we were all cleaned up and ready to go out to dinner, Berit emailed him, and before we even arrived at a decision on which restaurant, he called from his hotel (The Kon Tiki out at Lac Bay
The thing about the theft of the dive bag is weird. There’s a lot of petty theft on Bonaire but it’s thought of as normal and preventable by not making your belongings available to the thieves; like it’s your fault if someone steals from you. It never happens in person. There is very little crime or violence on the island and I’ve never been afraid here; everyone goes out of their way to be friendly and nice. But, if you leave something of minor value in your car it will be taken. On Bonaire you are instructed to leave your car windows rolled down and your car doors unlocked, otherwise your windows will be broken in an attempt to see if you’ve left any valuables in your car. The dive sites are targeted ‘cause the tourists like Kostas don’t know any better.
It’s not like this at your house. People know there are valuables in your house so the houses are all locked up like Fort Knox
We don’t eat dinner out a lot, but after leaving Kostas, we decided to try a restaurant we’d never been to called The Chibi Chibi. It’s in The Divi Flamingo Resort which we see every day on our walk. Wow, was it a great place! We were seated at a table overlooking the water and the lights from the restaurant attracted tons of fish which schooled below waiting for diners to toss bread into the water which would start a feeding frenzy. Of course we were much too refined and gentile to engage in this gauche activity. . . . at least while anyone was looking. Berit had the Seafood Mixed Grill and I had the (all meat) Mixed Grill and everything was very good. As a dessert offering we chose to have Mudslides. Turns out they are pretty darn good too! Wonderful place; one of the best we’ve been to on the island!!
After dinner we took what was left of our bottle of wine and wandered down the waterfront to the Divi Casino. It is the only casino on Bonaire and nothing like Las Vegas
He paid me in chips; I traded them for money at the cashier’s window; picked up our bottle of wine at the bar; tipped the man at the Roulette Table and we left the casino. It’s nice to be able to say we checked out the casino without it costing us anything. Now we don’t have to go back. I won’t have to bother with reporting the winnings to the IRS though, ‘cause this little trick doesn’t always work and I’m not yet even in my gambling experiences. Still it was fun to win.
And so to home and bed after one more in a long string of wonderful days.
There was a lot more to tell that happened last week from cave hunting to Survivor/Battlestar evenings to Iguana stories and more. But enough for now.
