Bonaire
is part of the Netherlands Antilles otherwise known as the ABCs.
Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonaire
Bonaire
is also a diving Mecca with crystal clear water. Yachts are required
to use mooring balls at US$10.00 per day.
Really,
really cool site to view current and weather modelling forecasts
passed on by Phil and Fay on “Jigsaw”. The navigation of the site
takes a little getting used to.
Spin
the globe as you would in Google earth.
Double
click to zoom in.
Click
on “earth” bottom left corner to view info and options.
Hanging
off the mooring at Bonaire was so pleasant that I decided to stay for
another week. And this was extened for a further week. With
assistance from other friendly cruisers I had found the laundry, the
supermarket and where I could buy fuel and water. Internet access was
fast, with Digicel offering 4G speeds. Unfortunately my Grenada
Digicel sim card did not work in Bonaire/Curacao.
The
Soccer World Cup was on. It was amusing to watch the victorious team
supporters celebrating, carrying the country flag, honking horns etc
as they drove and walked along the road and promenade near the beach.
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| Bonaire - cactus country |
There
are not many palm trees on Bonaire – this is cactus country. It
does not rain much on Bonaire, which means the temperatures are
slightly cooler and more bearable. It is amazing how hot it appears
to feel shortly after a shower of rain during the day.
Cockroaches.
I think I've been lucky and left the families and friends behind of
the two cockroaches I found on-board after returning to Sadiqi in
Trinidad. One cockroach,deceased, was found in the bottom of a
coffee cup, the other was heard scuttling about the galley and
expired soon afterwards with some assistance. These were the big
brown mostly harmless flying ones.
In
Bonaire I met up with:
- Macushla – Mark and Sue - from UK.
- Cattiva – Maurice and Marie - from Canada.
- Eye Candy – Andrew and Claire – from Australia.
The
snorkelling here in Bonaire is incredible. Most afternoons I would
don mask, fins and snorkel around the boat. The fish life is amazing
and some of the best I have seen since Sumatra and Madagascar.
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| Amazing snorkelling |
Mark
and Sue decided to hire an underwater camera and do a dive near the
boats. Sadiqi was moored next to Macushla. I tagged along and offered
to pay half the US$40 /day camera hire. It was a an enlightening
experience. I had never done any underwater photography before. I
pulled the PowerDive kit out of the deep dark depths of the cockpit
locker. I had last used it in Tobago about a year ago. Mark had his
own dive gear and Sue had booked to do an open water dive course. We
discovered that underwater photography is not as easy as it looks.
One has to get really close to the subject to take a picture for the
flash to enhance the colours. Also, the fish have an annoying habit
of moving out of the picture just as you are about to take a shot.
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| Skipper using the Power Dive |
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| Blue fish |
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| That looks interesting - don't forget to breath |
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| Weird fish |
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| Amazing fish |
Most of these pictures were taken with 100 metres of where the boats were moored.
After
five blissful weeks languishing on the mooring in Bonaire it was time
to leave. Ten dollars a day mooring fees add up very quickly compared
to ten dollars a month or free. So with Sadiqi liberally covered in a
thick layer of pinky brown dust I prepared to depart Bonaire for the
the 30 odd mile downwind sail to Curacao – the blue liqueur island.
I cleared out of customs and Immigration at no charge on Sunday. The
staff were polite, friendly and efficient.
