Bonaire ... Five Days in the Sun
Saturday, November 23, 2019 Farewell Curacao, Hello Bonaire
We flew from Curacao to Bonaire on an evening flight. It was a small plane (about 60 passengers) and it was a short flight. Bonaire is only 50 kilometers from Curacao so by the time the flight attendant had gone over the details of the flight after we took off, the pilot made an announcement that we were beginning our descent into Bonaire. It was all a bit surreal.
This is the first time that we have arrived in a new destination after dark. We were a bit disoriented at first. The staff at the airport were very welcoming and helpful. One of the porters walked with us all the way to the car rental office. Soon, we had our car, luggage in the trunk, and we headed off to find our accommodation. Happily, it was not far from the airport (3 minutes according to GPS).
Sonrisa Boutique Hotel is a small hotel with only 10 rooms. It has a lovely swimming pool in a courtyard and a breakfast area under thatching where we can begin each day. We had been told that we would have a poolside room but, alas, that was not the case. We settled into a very nice room at the back and slept well.
Sunday, November 24, 2019 A Relaxing Day
We slept in a bit on Sunday and enjoyed a late breakfast out in the courtyard. Our plan for the day was to simply relax. The good news of the morning was that we had been upgraded to a full apartment upstairs, complete with a private bedroom, a full kitchen and a lovely sitting area. Best of all was the balcony overlooking the pool.
I spent the morning reading a book and then we both had a nap. Following the nap, it was time for a swim. I was the only person in the pool (Jim joined me briefly) and enjoyed floating about and watching the clouds overhead. It was a pretty hot day but the brisk sea breeze took the edge off, making it very pleasant.
We chose a local restaurant, Bobbiejaan, for dinner. Their specialty is barbequed ribs, chicken and satay. What makes this place unusual is that it is only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. And the line-up was out the door.
We watched the sunset a few steps away
and knew we had a table reserved. Good thing!!
The food was slow to come because there was also a very busy take-out line. But it was worth waiting for - at least the meat and the coleslaw were. The rest was just so-so but we each had so much meat on our plates that we could barely finish just that.
We did have a chuckle over our drink selection at Bobbiejaan's. Jim chose to drink a Polar beer which happened to have a Polar Bear on the label. We remarked on how we had linked the first leg of our journey to Churchill with the final leg of the journey. Inadvertent to be sure but kind of fun!
Back to our room for an early night. Driving in the dark is becoming our specialty.
Monday, November 25, 2019 A Drive to the South Coast
Of course, our day started with breakfast which was immediately followed by a trip to Te Amo Beach, one of the many places recommended for snorkelling. We loved it! The parking lot was only steps from the water. The sand was clean and soft underfoot. The entry to the water was almost level and the reef was barely 5 metres offshore. The water was also very clean and nicely warm.
We donned our gear, slathered on the sunscreen and entered the Caribbean. We were astounded by the number of fish that we saw immediately - big and small, solo and in groups, familiar and new, and very photogenic. It was a wonderful way to spend some time enjoying and observing the underwater world.
The underwater camera was very busy this morning with several species of fish and coral in its viewfinder. The coral in this area has been badly damaged but it is being revitalized through a coral restoration program. It was great to see new coral growing on top of the old. Brain coral, elkhorn coral and staghorn coral were especially prominent and the fish loved flitting around them and taking cover when danger (us) approached.
We were in the water longer than we thought and it was almost noon when we arrived back at our hotel. I took another short swim in our hotel pool and then we got cleaned up for the day. I took another short nap while Jim went to the supermarket to pick up a few things to stock our kitchen.
We headed out in the car to explore. We passed the airport and the beach where we had spent the morning. In the beach parking lot was a food truck, Kite City. It has excellent reviews for its fish dishes so we made a quick decision to stop here for lunch. I had a trio of tuna (seared, tartar and sashimi) and Jim had a snapper burger. Both were wonderfully delicious!! We may have to go back for more.
From the beach, we turned onto the open road (no road is very long on Bonaire). This road led us past some very interesting sights as we flanked the sea on one side and open flat land on the other.
The first thing we spotted were the salt piles far in the distance. One of the major industries in Bonaire is harvesting sea salt. They have a complex system of shallow pools in which seawater flows and then evaporates. As it evaporates, the water level in the pools diminishes and the salt becomes more visible. Microorganisms, which flourish in high salinity brine, have carotene pigments in their cell membranes which turns the crystallizing ponds a pink/red colour. It is an amazing site to look around a wide, flat landscape and see nothing but wet, pink salt. Eventually, over a period of 10 - 12 months, the salt will reach a depth of 8 to 10 inches.
The next thing we saw were the numerous pyramids of salt awaiting transport. Each pyramid contains 10,000 metric tons of salt and the facility produces 30 - 50 pyramids each year. That is a LOT of salt.
The Cargill company owns and operates the salt operation but they have also contributed significantly to the environment of the island of Bonaire. They have established a flamingo colony which has become one of the most significant flamingo breeding grounds in the world.
They have also established Tern Island, based on the impact their salt trucks were having on the island's population of terns. This island is now a protected area as is the flamingo colony. Additionally, Cargill is quite invested in maintaining the turtle population of the island. All of the seashore around the vast Cargill property is protected as a turtle breeding ground.
Access is limited and vehicles are prohibited in most locations. Of the seven varieties of sea turtles worldwide, three are found on Bonaire.
There is a vast national park that includes much of the waterfront on the south side of the island. And, all of the coral beds that lie offshore from Bonaire are also protected as a national park.
As we travelled further along the ocean road, it narrowed to one lane. That made driving a bit trickier as cars that were meeting on the road had to manoeuvre around one another with very little shoulder on either side of the road. There were occasional laybys but, of course, they were never at hand when we met an oncoming vehicle. Nonetheless, we made it along the road safely.
Several other significant sights were worthy of stopping for photos along this route. The first was a world-class wind-surfing area where the air was peppered with kites of all colours pulling their riders along at breakneck speed. It was amazing to watch the kites and imagine the strength of the riders as they held onto the kites. One of the kiters was actually flying through the air at times.
A bit further along, we stopped at a lighthouse that marked the south point of the island.
On the west side of the island was the calm and gentle Caribbean Sea. One the east side of the island was the vast and energetic Atlantic Ocean. Because of the currents and the force of the water, both diving and snorkelling are not allowed on the Atlantic side. Even today, a quite calm day, the Atlantic was boiling and the breakers were crashing, sending spray far up on the shore.
We had noticed several tall pyramidal markers at various places along the shore. These were put in place many years ago before sophisticated navigational equipment was available.
They served as a warning system for nearby ships that there was land in this location. The land at this end of Bonaire is so flat and close to sea level that many ships simply ran into the island, not realizing it was there.
The next stop for us was the Wind Surfing facility.
Once again, because of the wind currents in the area, this is one of the prime locations for wind surfing anywhere in the world. There were many people on their boards, some with amazing speed and a high degree of skill and some who appeared to be much more novice at the sport.
We completed our circle tour of the south end of the island just as dusk was approaching. We decided to stop for a drink at a prime sunset location. Although the sunset was less spectacular tonight, the drinks were very good. Our table was well chosen. We also watched Venus and Jupiter in the sky again tonight. It helps us comprehend the immensity of the world and the universe we live in.
And now we are comfortably lodged in our apartment, reflecting on the day, planning for tomorrow and looking at photos. What a lovely way to close out a very full and fun day.
Tuesday, November 26, 2019 A Day in Kralendijk, Bonaire's Capital City
As we did yesterday, we began our day with a lovely breakfast provided by our hotel and them immediately headed out to snorkel. We checked out two new sites this morning but neither of them met our criteria for depth of water (too deep for Jim's comfort) or ease of entry (both had many steps and a long distance to swim to the coral). So we returned to the same beach we were at yesterday and enjoyed our experience there once again.
We explored two different areas on the reef and saw many different kinds of fish from yesterday. Some were species we have never seen before. I especially loved the little fish that was very deep blue and covered with florescent white specks. He was beautiful. Jim found a garfish that seemed to be a companion to a much larger fish and I found an eel, pale violet in colour and also speckled.
I have been experimenting with our underwater camera and occasionally now take a photo that is worthy of sharing. Most are not because one of the water, the fish, or I moved at exactly the wrong moment. In one photo to follow you will see that I even put my finger over the lense. Happily that did not prevent a shot of the main subject, a very big fish in the water!!
After snorkelling, we returned to our hotel. The sky was quite grey today with intermittent rain. Rain or no rain, I happily spent some time in our hotel pool. It is so relaxing. Then we headed out to explore the main part of town.
There was a medium-sized cruise ship in port so the streets were teaming with people. Great for the businesses ... a little less great for us. However, there was a market that is only open in cruise days and it was fun to browse all the trinkets and products that tourists might choose. We did pick up some sea salt made right here in Bonaire to bring home.
We had lunch at a highly recommended place overlooking the marina, Julian's Cafe and Restaurant. Jim ordered a wahoo fish meal and I had a wahoo burger. Wahoo is a kind of fish that is caught here. There is nothing as fine as the flavour of fish that has been caught just hours before you eat it.
Back to the hotel for the now customary afternoon nap. A terrific way to escape the heat of the middle of the day. Those early rain clouds had totally cleared and the afternoon sun was intense. After only an hour, we headed out again, this time for a time of self-indulgence. I had found a little shop where I could get a fresh manicure. And I jumped at the chance. The young woman who owned the shop was just 30 years of age. She moved to Bonaire from the Netherlands 7 years ago to live by the sea and to start her business. She was delightful. We chatted throughout the appointment but one conversation will remain with me for a long time.
I told her that we had begun our trip in northern Canada when we went to see the polar bears. I described the clothes we had to wear while we were there. She totally misunderstood me which I realized when she asked this question. "Don't the bears mind when you dress then up?" I looked at her in bewilderment until I understood that she had not realized we had to dress in all the warm clothes and that she thought we were trying to help the bears stay warm. We both laughed out loud when I clarified. I told her I was glad we cleared it up because I was afraid her next conversation with a client might begin with, "Did you know that Canadians put warm clothes on their polar bears so they do not freeze?"
A little more exploration of the streets of Kralendiik including a stop at a bakery for a cappuccino and a tasty treat. Then it was time to head to the seashore to watch the sun set. It is like clockwork. It meets the horizon about 5 minutes before 6 and by 6 o'clock the sun has disappeared for another day. Our experience with the sunsets here is that they have not been quite as glorious as in Curacao or Aruba. There seems to always be cloud cover at the horizon which interferes with the spectacular display of colour that we had come to expect.
A short drive brought us back to our hotel. We watched as Jupiter and Venus appeared just above the horizon again. Saturn was also visible. Amazing that we can see them with the naked eye in spite of their distances from earth and from one another.
So we are in for the evening, writing this journal and organizing photos. I am working on a photo book for this ABC Island adventure. My goal is always to have the book complete and be able to 'press send' before we fly home. I am on track so far.
Wednesday, November 27, 2019 A Drive to the North Coast
Of course, our day began again with breakfast followed by snorkelling at Te Amo Beach. We have this outing down to a finely tuned routine now. We don our gear at the car and walk the short distance across the sand to the water. It takes no time to enter the water since it is very warm and the coral is only a few swim strokes away. Each day we have explored a different section of the reef and found differences in the coral and the life that lives there. Today, I saw another variety of eel and some new fish species and Jim saw an octopus. By the time I got over to him, the octopus had either hidden under some coral or had transformed its colour to blend with the sea bottom. Either way, I missed him. Maybe tomorrow ...
After about an hour in the water, it is time to get out. We are both a bit tired by then and we do want to be fresh for what the rest of the day holds. Back to the hotel for a short swim (me) and getting into our street clothes to go out again.
We have decided that one of our goals over the next 3 days (that is all we have left) is to eat as many varieties of fish as we can find. Today we had lunch at a lovely place called It Rains Fishes. We fell off the track immediately and both of us ordered tuna dishes. We love tuna and could not resist the descriptions on the menu or the recommendation from our server. The pictures will demonstrate that we did not make a mistake at all. Our meals were amazing.
After lunch, we headed out of town toward the north end of the Bonaire. There were two enormous cruise ships in port and Kralendijk was packed with people. It was a good day to be out on the open road. We passed several resorts on our way south. And then the traffic disappeared and the countryside became more wild. We watched for parrots as we drove along. This part of the island is known to be the nesting ground of several varieties. We passed through a few little communities and then we came to Washington Slagbaai National Park.
There are actually two national parks in this area. The first is the Marine National Park which embraces and protects the entire coastline of Bonaire. The whole shore and coral reef structures that surround this island and the companion island called Klein Bonaire up to a depth of 60 metres are included as national park holdings. There are quite extensive restrictions on where one can have access to the shore and what activities are acceptable within the park boundaries. The second national park on Bonaire is Washington Slagbaai National Park, 5643 hectares of nature sanctuary at the north end of the island. Within this park are a parrot colony, a flamingo sanctuary, a beautiful inland lake and many unique plants and reptiles.
Around the shoreline is a narrow paved road that provides a driving route around the perimeter of much of the park. It was a gorgeous drive on a bright, sunny day. The road wound along the coastline, at times rising high above the sea and then plunging right back down to sea level. There is no doubt that the incline and decline slopes on the road would not be acceptable in Canada. Sometimes it felt a bit like a roller coaster.
But the landscape and the views created a beauty that we would not want to have missed. Although we saw many flamingoes
and lots of lizards, we did not see s single parrot. We even stopped at the parrot colony but there was not a bird in sight. We did find a parakeet
and stopped to take a picture when a local resident suggested that we head to Rincon, a nearby community where there are 'always' parrots. But, not today!
We paused briefly at a garden where the proprietors made a liqueur using Kadushi cacti and lime. (Kadushi cacti are the ones that grow tall and straight and created forests in Aruba.) The liqueur was truly terrible. The only redeeming thing about the garden was that it was filled with bird feeders that normally attract many parrots every day. But not today. We left the garden with no liqueur and no parrot sightings.
We decided to drive around Rincon to see the large church with a bell tower. And as we drove, the air was filled with parrots. We followed their flight path to a nearby tree and we were able to see them at close range. At last .... parrots!! Of course, we took several photos.
After that, we headed back to Kralendijk as the afternoon was getting on. Along the way, we saw some wild goats high on a craggy ridge; we saw more goats just ahead of us on the road;
and we finally saw some wild donkeys
that were eating grass at the side of the road. Not one but seven of them!! It had been a great day after all!
We never regret our long and circuitous drives exploring territory we have not seen before. We always find things that catch our attention and arouse our curiosity. The world is a wonderful place and we are happy that we can explore it.
We ate a simply dinner of chicken and salad at our apartment and Jim has gone out to a movie night about turtles. I am here working on my writing and my photos, as usual. It is always a great way to review the day and prepare documents of memories.
Thursday, November 28, 2019
Breakfast and then snorkel ... what a lovely routine. Today was our best snorkelling day yet, I think. The water was very still so the sand near the shore did not blur out vision of the coral. Both Jim and I have grown in confidence in our snorkelling this week. We can carry on for extended periods of time, travel greater distances and, even Jim, is more comfortable now out over deeper water. He tends to stay where it is more shallow and I am the one heading for the water beyond the edge.
Once again today, we each saw species we have not yet seen here or, sometimes, ever. That is always exciting. I have also managed to improve my technique with the under water camera. It is difficult to achieve a great photo when the fish are moving, the water is moving, the camera is moving and I am moving. But today, I will say, I am proud of many of the photos I took. I will post some here ...
I did see one very scary fish this morning. I chose not to photograph it (I got this photo from the internet) and I swam quickly away instead. I saw a stonefish perched in the shadow of a similarly coloured piece of coral. The stonefish has 16 spines down its back which will release venom if touched. Most common occurrences are caused when a swimmer inadvertently puts his/her foot down on the spines and the stonefish injects its venom directly into the foot causing excruciating pain and swelling. Something to avoid in the water!
After our snorkelling, we returned to the hotel to rinse the sand off everything. That done, a short swim in our hotel pool was in order. A different kind of swim than the ocean for sure but very relaxing and refreshing in the heat. Finally, we made it up to our room to get dressed for the day.
Lunchtime was upon us when we left the hotel. Our lunch destination again today was a food truck parked right along the beach with shady places to perch and eat. Cactus Blue offered a wide ranging burger menu but today, we both chose lion fish burgers.
Lion fish, also known as zebra fish, are invasive and very damaging to local waters because they destroy the habitats of fish and plantlife. They have been known to cause the extinction of some species. They like to live in coral reefs, rocky areas, and lagoons, mostly in the south Pacific but they were accidentally introduced to the Caribbean as well.
Because lionfish are venomous, but not poisonous, there is no harm in eating the lionfish meat. Once you dispose of the spines, there is no risk of envenomation. And, I will say based on today's experience lionfish is delicious.
However, lionfish is expensive. In Bonaire, they can only be fished by licensed fishermen using a specialized kind of spear. The fishermen dive deep into the water and spear one lionfish at a time. They are paid a bounty for each fish they bring in.
Once caught, there is a painstaking cleaning process to ensure that all the venomous spines are removed from the meat. In fact, very little meat is yielded from each lionfish. The proprietor of Cactus Blue has a team of 12 divers who fish daily for lionfish and clean what they catch in preparation for the kitchen. The proprietor then checks each piece of flesh to ensure that ALL spines are removed so there is no chance of a customer biting into a spine and ingesting the venom. The venom can cause incredible pain and swelling but no one will die from a lionfish sting.
So we sat on rocks by the water's edge eating delicious lionfish burgers and suffering no ill effects. I will say, if I had known then what I know now, I might not have made such a brave choice. The lizards that were flitting nearby were eager for a taste of whatever we had. No such luck for them.
After lunch we headed downtown to one of the many ice cream shops for dessert. We chose a shop where all the ice cream is made in house. Many flavours were on display. Jim chose coffee and mango (one scoop of each) and I chose raspberry and hazelnut. It was a treat to nibble away at our dish of delicious ice cream.
Time to visit a souvenir shop followed. We still had not purchased a suitable Christmas Tree ornament for our international tree. It did not take long to narrow it down as the pink flamingos seemed to be calling out to us. Mission accomplished. Shopping complete.
It was time to cool down so we headed back home to escape the heat. Jim had a nap and I worked on this blog and photos to go with it. Jim has now gone to do our laundry so we have only clean clothes to take home. It is hard to believe that we fly to Toronto tomorrow.
Once the clothes were finished, we headed out for dinner. As we drove to the restaurant we enjoyed the many Christmas lights that have been installed around Kralendijk. This city really embraces the Christmas season. Even the schooner that was in port got into the action.
We had chosen La Cantina Cerveceria, highly rated by Trip Advisor, to enjoy our next fish dinner. We managed to get an outdoor table at La Cantina and settled in to enjoy a drink. We asked to see the dinner menu and knew immediately that this was not the restaurant we had intended to be at. So, we finished our drinks (which were very good), paid our bill and walked along the street to find the restaurant we wanted. Oddly enough, it was right next door. It was not until we were inside that we realized the two places really are the same establishment. Where we enjoyed our drinks has a very casual atmosphere and where we went for dinner has a much more elegant tone. We laughed at ourselves and then settled in to have a fabulous meal of barracuda and shrimp for me and barracuda and octopus for Jim.
The meal began with an amuse bouche - a hot sweet potato soup accompanied by a roulade of snapper and cream cheese. Beautifully presented and delicious as well. Next came our ceviche, prepared in an unusual way in that all the elements were in the bowl separately and the diner could combine them as he/she wished. Again, a stunning presentation and such subtle flavours. Another hit!! Then came the bread board, on a board which was shaped like Bonaire with seasalt spread on the board where the salt flats are located on the island. At the other end was a small mountain of eggplant capanata, just where the small mountain at the north end of Bonaire is located. Interesting bread rolls were placed in between. Very clever and creative.
Finally we got to the main course. Neither Jim nor I had ever had barracuda and we were in for a wonderful treat. Barracuda is a fairly dense white fish which had been prepared so that it was very flaky yet held its form. My shrimp were also excellent as was Jim's octopus. We washed it all down with some lovely chardonnay (Jim) and sav blanc (Me).
There was absolutely no room for coffee or dessert although the menu made both sound appealing. We left the restaurant totally sated and walked along the street on a beautiful evening. It was a wonderful finale to our five days in Bonaire.
We fly to Toronto tomorrow afternoon and will spend the weekend at Iain and Elaine's. Then home on Sunday evening. It is always good to get home.
We flew from Curacao to Bonaire on an evening flight. It was a small plane (about 60 passengers) and it was a short flight. Bonaire is only 50 kilometers from Curacao so by the time the flight attendant had gone over the details of the flight after we took off, the pilot made an announcement that we were beginning our descent into Bonaire. It was all a bit surreal.
This is the first time that we have arrived in a new destination after dark. We were a bit disoriented at first. The staff at the airport were very welcoming and helpful. One of the porters walked with us all the way to the car rental office. Soon, we had our car, luggage in the trunk, and we headed off to find our accommodation. Happily, it was not far from the airport (3 minutes according to GPS).
Sonrisa Boutique Hotel is a small hotel with only 10 rooms. It has a lovely swimming pool in a courtyard and a breakfast area under thatching where we can begin each day. We had been told that we would have a poolside room but, alas, that was not the case. We settled into a very nice room at the back and slept well.
Sunday, November 24, 2019 A Relaxing Day
We slept in a bit on Sunday and enjoyed a late breakfast out in the courtyard. Our plan for the day was to simply relax. The good news of the morning was that we had been upgraded to a full apartment upstairs, complete with a private bedroom, a full kitchen and a lovely sitting area. Best of all was the balcony overlooking the pool.
I spent the morning reading a book and then we both had a nap. Following the nap, it was time for a swim. I was the only person in the pool (Jim joined me briefly) and enjoyed floating about and watching the clouds overhead. It was a pretty hot day but the brisk sea breeze took the edge off, making it very pleasant.
We chose a local restaurant, Bobbiejaan, for dinner. Their specialty is barbequed ribs, chicken and satay. What makes this place unusual is that it is only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. And the line-up was out the door.
We watched the sunset a few steps away
The food was slow to come because there was also a very busy take-out line. But it was worth waiting for - at least the meat and the coleslaw were. The rest was just so-so but we each had so much meat on our plates that we could barely finish just that.
We did have a chuckle over our drink selection at Bobbiejaan's. Jim chose to drink a Polar beer which happened to have a Polar Bear on the label. We remarked on how we had linked the first leg of our journey to Churchill with the final leg of the journey. Inadvertent to be sure but kind of fun!
Back to our room for an early night. Driving in the dark is becoming our specialty.
Monday, November 25, 2019 A Drive to the South Coast
Of course, our day started with breakfast which was immediately followed by a trip to Te Amo Beach, one of the many places recommended for snorkelling. We loved it! The parking lot was only steps from the water. The sand was clean and soft underfoot. The entry to the water was almost level and the reef was barely 5 metres offshore. The water was also very clean and nicely warm.
We donned our gear, slathered on the sunscreen and entered the Caribbean. We were astounded by the number of fish that we saw immediately - big and small, solo and in groups, familiar and new, and very photogenic. It was a wonderful way to spend some time enjoying and observing the underwater world.
The underwater camera was very busy this morning with several species of fish and coral in its viewfinder. The coral in this area has been badly damaged but it is being revitalized through a coral restoration program. It was great to see new coral growing on top of the old. Brain coral, elkhorn coral and staghorn coral were especially prominent and the fish loved flitting around them and taking cover when danger (us) approached.
We were in the water longer than we thought and it was almost noon when we arrived back at our hotel. I took another short swim in our hotel pool and then we got cleaned up for the day. I took another short nap while Jim went to the supermarket to pick up a few things to stock our kitchen.
We headed out in the car to explore. We passed the airport and the beach where we had spent the morning. In the beach parking lot was a food truck, Kite City. It has excellent reviews for its fish dishes so we made a quick decision to stop here for lunch. I had a trio of tuna (seared, tartar and sashimi) and Jim had a snapper burger. Both were wonderfully delicious!! We may have to go back for more.
From the beach, we turned onto the open road (no road is very long on Bonaire). This road led us past some very interesting sights as we flanked the sea on one side and open flat land on the other.
The first thing we spotted were the salt piles far in the distance. One of the major industries in Bonaire is harvesting sea salt. They have a complex system of shallow pools in which seawater flows and then evaporates. As it evaporates, the water level in the pools diminishes and the salt becomes more visible. Microorganisms, which flourish in high salinity brine, have carotene pigments in their cell membranes which turns the crystallizing ponds a pink/red colour. It is an amazing site to look around a wide, flat landscape and see nothing but wet, pink salt. Eventually, over a period of 10 - 12 months, the salt will reach a depth of 8 to 10 inches.
The next thing we saw were the numerous pyramids of salt awaiting transport. Each pyramid contains 10,000 metric tons of salt and the facility produces 30 - 50 pyramids each year. That is a LOT of salt.
The Cargill company owns and operates the salt operation but they have also contributed significantly to the environment of the island of Bonaire. They have established a flamingo colony which has become one of the most significant flamingo breeding grounds in the world.
There is a vast national park that includes much of the waterfront on the south side of the island. And, all of the coral beds that lie offshore from Bonaire are also protected as a national park.
As we travelled further along the ocean road, it narrowed to one lane. That made driving a bit trickier as cars that were meeting on the road had to manoeuvre around one another with very little shoulder on either side of the road. There were occasional laybys but, of course, they were never at hand when we met an oncoming vehicle. Nonetheless, we made it along the road safely.
Several other significant sights were worthy of stopping for photos along this route. The first was a world-class wind-surfing area where the air was peppered with kites of all colours pulling their riders along at breakneck speed. It was amazing to watch the kites and imagine the strength of the riders as they held onto the kites. One of the kiters was actually flying through the air at times.
A bit further along, we stopped at a lighthouse that marked the south point of the island.
We had noticed several tall pyramidal markers at various places along the shore. These were put in place many years ago before sophisticated navigational equipment was available.
The next stop for us was the Wind Surfing facility.
We completed our circle tour of the south end of the island just as dusk was approaching. We decided to stop for a drink at a prime sunset location. Although the sunset was less spectacular tonight, the drinks were very good. Our table was well chosen. We also watched Venus and Jupiter in the sky again tonight. It helps us comprehend the immensity of the world and the universe we live in.
And now we are comfortably lodged in our apartment, reflecting on the day, planning for tomorrow and looking at photos. What a lovely way to close out a very full and fun day.
Tuesday, November 26, 2019 A Day in Kralendijk, Bonaire's Capital City
As we did yesterday, we began our day with a lovely breakfast provided by our hotel and them immediately headed out to snorkel. We checked out two new sites this morning but neither of them met our criteria for depth of water (too deep for Jim's comfort) or ease of entry (both had many steps and a long distance to swim to the coral). So we returned to the same beach we were at yesterday and enjoyed our experience there once again.
We explored two different areas on the reef and saw many different kinds of fish from yesterday. Some were species we have never seen before. I especially loved the little fish that was very deep blue and covered with florescent white specks. He was beautiful. Jim found a garfish that seemed to be a companion to a much larger fish and I found an eel, pale violet in colour and also speckled.
I have been experimenting with our underwater camera and occasionally now take a photo that is worthy of sharing. Most are not because one of the water, the fish, or I moved at exactly the wrong moment. In one photo to follow you will see that I even put my finger over the lense. Happily that did not prevent a shot of the main subject, a very big fish in the water!!
After snorkelling, we returned to our hotel. The sky was quite grey today with intermittent rain. Rain or no rain, I happily spent some time in our hotel pool. It is so relaxing. Then we headed out to explore the main part of town.
There was a medium-sized cruise ship in port so the streets were teaming with people. Great for the businesses ... a little less great for us. However, there was a market that is only open in cruise days and it was fun to browse all the trinkets and products that tourists might choose. We did pick up some sea salt made right here in Bonaire to bring home.
We had lunch at a highly recommended place overlooking the marina, Julian's Cafe and Restaurant. Jim ordered a wahoo fish meal and I had a wahoo burger. Wahoo is a kind of fish that is caught here. There is nothing as fine as the flavour of fish that has been caught just hours before you eat it.
Back to the hotel for the now customary afternoon nap. A terrific way to escape the heat of the middle of the day. Those early rain clouds had totally cleared and the afternoon sun was intense. After only an hour, we headed out again, this time for a time of self-indulgence. I had found a little shop where I could get a fresh manicure. And I jumped at the chance. The young woman who owned the shop was just 30 years of age. She moved to Bonaire from the Netherlands 7 years ago to live by the sea and to start her business. She was delightful. We chatted throughout the appointment but one conversation will remain with me for a long time.
I told her that we had begun our trip in northern Canada when we went to see the polar bears. I described the clothes we had to wear while we were there. She totally misunderstood me which I realized when she asked this question. "Don't the bears mind when you dress then up?" I looked at her in bewilderment until I understood that she had not realized we had to dress in all the warm clothes and that she thought we were trying to help the bears stay warm. We both laughed out loud when I clarified. I told her I was glad we cleared it up because I was afraid her next conversation with a client might begin with, "Did you know that Canadians put warm clothes on their polar bears so they do not freeze?"
A little more exploration of the streets of Kralendiik including a stop at a bakery for a cappuccino and a tasty treat. Then it was time to head to the seashore to watch the sun set. It is like clockwork. It meets the horizon about 5 minutes before 6 and by 6 o'clock the sun has disappeared for another day. Our experience with the sunsets here is that they have not been quite as glorious as in Curacao or Aruba. There seems to always be cloud cover at the horizon which interferes with the spectacular display of colour that we had come to expect.
A short drive brought us back to our hotel. We watched as Jupiter and Venus appeared just above the horizon again. Saturn was also visible. Amazing that we can see them with the naked eye in spite of their distances from earth and from one another.
So we are in for the evening, writing this journal and organizing photos. I am working on a photo book for this ABC Island adventure. My goal is always to have the book complete and be able to 'press send' before we fly home. I am on track so far.
Wednesday, November 27, 2019 A Drive to the North Coast
Of course, our day began again with breakfast followed by snorkelling at Te Amo Beach. We have this outing down to a finely tuned routine now. We don our gear at the car and walk the short distance across the sand to the water. It takes no time to enter the water since it is very warm and the coral is only a few swim strokes away. Each day we have explored a different section of the reef and found differences in the coral and the life that lives there. Today, I saw another variety of eel and some new fish species and Jim saw an octopus. By the time I got over to him, the octopus had either hidden under some coral or had transformed its colour to blend with the sea bottom. Either way, I missed him. Maybe tomorrow ...
After about an hour in the water, it is time to get out. We are both a bit tired by then and we do want to be fresh for what the rest of the day holds. Back to the hotel for a short swim (me) and getting into our street clothes to go out again.
We have decided that one of our goals over the next 3 days (that is all we have left) is to eat as many varieties of fish as we can find. Today we had lunch at a lovely place called It Rains Fishes. We fell off the track immediately and both of us ordered tuna dishes. We love tuna and could not resist the descriptions on the menu or the recommendation from our server. The pictures will demonstrate that we did not make a mistake at all. Our meals were amazing.
After lunch, we headed out of town toward the north end of the Bonaire. There were two enormous cruise ships in port and Kralendijk was packed with people. It was a good day to be out on the open road. We passed several resorts on our way south. And then the traffic disappeared and the countryside became more wild. We watched for parrots as we drove along. This part of the island is known to be the nesting ground of several varieties. We passed through a few little communities and then we came to Washington Slagbaai National Park.
There are actually two national parks in this area. The first is the Marine National Park which embraces and protects the entire coastline of Bonaire. The whole shore and coral reef structures that surround this island and the companion island called Klein Bonaire up to a depth of 60 metres are included as national park holdings. There are quite extensive restrictions on where one can have access to the shore and what activities are acceptable within the park boundaries. The second national park on Bonaire is Washington Slagbaai National Park, 5643 hectares of nature sanctuary at the north end of the island. Within this park are a parrot colony, a flamingo sanctuary, a beautiful inland lake and many unique plants and reptiles.
Around the shoreline is a narrow paved road that provides a driving route around the perimeter of much of the park. It was a gorgeous drive on a bright, sunny day. The road wound along the coastline, at times rising high above the sea and then plunging right back down to sea level. There is no doubt that the incline and decline slopes on the road would not be acceptable in Canada. Sometimes it felt a bit like a roller coaster.
We paused briefly at a garden where the proprietors made a liqueur using Kadushi cacti and lime. (Kadushi cacti are the ones that grow tall and straight and created forests in Aruba.) The liqueur was truly terrible. The only redeeming thing about the garden was that it was filled with bird feeders that normally attract many parrots every day. But not today. We left the garden with no liqueur and no parrot sightings.
We decided to drive around Rincon to see the large church with a bell tower. And as we drove, the air was filled with parrots. We followed their flight path to a nearby tree and we were able to see them at close range. At last .... parrots!! Of course, we took several photos.
After that, we headed back to Kralendijk as the afternoon was getting on. Along the way, we saw some wild goats high on a craggy ridge; we saw more goats just ahead of us on the road;
We never regret our long and circuitous drives exploring territory we have not seen before. We always find things that catch our attention and arouse our curiosity. The world is a wonderful place and we are happy that we can explore it.
We ate a simply dinner of chicken and salad at our apartment and Jim has gone out to a movie night about turtles. I am here working on my writing and my photos, as usual. It is always a great way to review the day and prepare documents of memories.
Thursday, November 28, 2019
Breakfast and then snorkel ... what a lovely routine. Today was our best snorkelling day yet, I think. The water was very still so the sand near the shore did not blur out vision of the coral. Both Jim and I have grown in confidence in our snorkelling this week. We can carry on for extended periods of time, travel greater distances and, even Jim, is more comfortable now out over deeper water. He tends to stay where it is more shallow and I am the one heading for the water beyond the edge.
Once again today, we each saw species we have not yet seen here or, sometimes, ever. That is always exciting. I have also managed to improve my technique with the under water camera. It is difficult to achieve a great photo when the fish are moving, the water is moving, the camera is moving and I am moving. But today, I will say, I am proud of many of the photos I took. I will post some here ...
After our snorkelling, we returned to the hotel to rinse the sand off everything. That done, a short swim in our hotel pool was in order. A different kind of swim than the ocean for sure but very relaxing and refreshing in the heat. Finally, we made it up to our room to get dressed for the day.
Lunchtime was upon us when we left the hotel. Our lunch destination again today was a food truck parked right along the beach with shady places to perch and eat. Cactus Blue offered a wide ranging burger menu but today, we both chose lion fish burgers.
Lion fish, also known as zebra fish, are invasive and very damaging to local waters because they destroy the habitats of fish and plantlife. They have been known to cause the extinction of some species. They like to live in coral reefs, rocky areas, and lagoons, mostly in the south Pacific but they were accidentally introduced to the Caribbean as well.
Because lionfish are venomous, but not poisonous, there is no harm in eating the lionfish meat. Once you dispose of the spines, there is no risk of envenomation. And, I will say based on today's experience lionfish is delicious.
However, lionfish is expensive. In Bonaire, they can only be fished by licensed fishermen using a specialized kind of spear. The fishermen dive deep into the water and spear one lionfish at a time. They are paid a bounty for each fish they bring in.
Once caught, there is a painstaking cleaning process to ensure that all the venomous spines are removed from the meat. In fact, very little meat is yielded from each lionfish. The proprietor of Cactus Blue has a team of 12 divers who fish daily for lionfish and clean what they catch in preparation for the kitchen. The proprietor then checks each piece of flesh to ensure that ALL spines are removed so there is no chance of a customer biting into a spine and ingesting the venom. The venom can cause incredible pain and swelling but no one will die from a lionfish sting.
So we sat on rocks by the water's edge eating delicious lionfish burgers and suffering no ill effects. I will say, if I had known then what I know now, I might not have made such a brave choice. The lizards that were flitting nearby were eager for a taste of whatever we had. No such luck for them.
After lunch we headed downtown to one of the many ice cream shops for dessert. We chose a shop where all the ice cream is made in house. Many flavours were on display. Jim chose coffee and mango (one scoop of each) and I chose raspberry and hazelnut. It was a treat to nibble away at our dish of delicious ice cream.
Time to visit a souvenir shop followed. We still had not purchased a suitable Christmas Tree ornament for our international tree. It did not take long to narrow it down as the pink flamingos seemed to be calling out to us. Mission accomplished. Shopping complete.
It was time to cool down so we headed back home to escape the heat. Jim had a nap and I worked on this blog and photos to go with it. Jim has now gone to do our laundry so we have only clean clothes to take home. It is hard to believe that we fly to Toronto tomorrow.
Once the clothes were finished, we headed out for dinner. As we drove to the restaurant we enjoyed the many Christmas lights that have been installed around Kralendijk. This city really embraces the Christmas season. Even the schooner that was in port got into the action.
We had chosen La Cantina Cerveceria, highly rated by Trip Advisor, to enjoy our next fish dinner. We managed to get an outdoor table at La Cantina and settled in to enjoy a drink. We asked to see the dinner menu and knew immediately that this was not the restaurant we had intended to be at. So, we finished our drinks (which were very good), paid our bill and walked along the street to find the restaurant we wanted. Oddly enough, it was right next door. It was not until we were inside that we realized the two places really are the same establishment. Where we enjoyed our drinks has a very casual atmosphere and where we went for dinner has a much more elegant tone. We laughed at ourselves and then settled in to have a fabulous meal of barracuda and shrimp for me and barracuda and octopus for Jim.
The meal began with an amuse bouche - a hot sweet potato soup accompanied by a roulade of snapper and cream cheese. Beautifully presented and delicious as well. Next came our ceviche, prepared in an unusual way in that all the elements were in the bowl separately and the diner could combine them as he/she wished. Again, a stunning presentation and such subtle flavours. Another hit!! Then came the bread board, on a board which was shaped like Bonaire with seasalt spread on the board where the salt flats are located on the island. At the other end was a small mountain of eggplant capanata, just where the small mountain at the north end of Bonaire is located. Interesting bread rolls were placed in between. Very clever and creative.
Finally we got to the main course. Neither Jim nor I had ever had barracuda and we were in for a wonderful treat. Barracuda is a fairly dense white fish which had been prepared so that it was very flaky yet held its form. My shrimp were also excellent as was Jim's octopus. We washed it all down with some lovely chardonnay (Jim) and sav blanc (Me).
There was absolutely no room for coffee or dessert although the menu made both sound appealing. We left the restaurant totally sated and walked along the street on a beautiful evening. It was a wonderful finale to our five days in Bonaire.
We fly to Toronto tomorrow afternoon and will spend the weekend at Iain and Elaine's. Then home on Sunday evening. It is always good to get home.
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