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We saw so many beautiful sunsets on Bonaire. I figured another sunset picture would be the most appropriate for wrapping up our "Bonaire Adventure, starring Max the Wonder Dog". The wide shot was taken at the "Alice in Wonderland" dive site on Feb 19. Carolyn and I had stared the day there snorkeling and ended up back there that evening to watch the sunset. Seemed fitting. The shot of Max is at Bachelor Beach, which was the nearest access to the water from our apartment, and a place from where we watched many sunsets. That particular night the dusk sky made spectacular angular rays fanning out from the horizon. It's interesting how sometimes watching the sun set is more beautiful after the sun sets.
When I started this blog I didn't think about it having an end. Postcards sent to friends and family get hung on the fridge for a while and then tossed aside or put in a box you find years later and have a laugh about the silly things written on the back. What happens when you "blog" a vacation instead of sending postcards? I guess it just continues to occupy space on a computer forever, maybe waiting for someone cleaning up their web bookmarks to go back and reread a couple posts before deleting the link.
Carolyn and I really enjoyed our time in Bonaire. We met so many great people while there and want to thank all of them for sharing their lives and stories with us. First of all we'd like to thank the Klug family--Julia, Ralf, Jasmine, Julianna, and baby Tristan. They are a lovely family and most gracious hosts. Their home/apartment arrangement allowed us to enjoy freinds and family who came to visit during our stay and meet new friends -----Dennis and Constance from Oregon, Ralf's mother Barbara, our freinds Rob and Naomi from Quincy, Jolanda and Thom from the Netherlands, Bonaire residents Jan-Kees and Petra, Julia's mother Bettina (Oma Nina), Bill and Carol Collins from Connecticut, and countless folks we met on the island who allowed us to create pictures of and with Max for the DoggieLogue.
As son Jake would say...."Peace"......Dan and Carolyn
This is a picture I wanted to make as soon as I got to the apartments and saw the landscaping. My apologies to Jolanda. (I'm not sure why she has a turkey baster in her hand, honest)....Dan
Up until now you'd think Bonaire was mostly palm trees and ocean if you only looked at my blog photos. In reality it is very scrubby and thorny looking in a lot of places. That's not to say it isn't beautiful in its own way, but most folks come to the island to explore the beauty the underwater reefs have to offer. The smaller photo shows how many fences are constructed. Ouch.
In fairness to the cacti I offer up a couple shots.........Dan
It seems even dogs want to live in style. After a stint on Paul Allen's superyacht Octopus (see earlier blog) Max sought out a more permanent home on the island. Tucked away in the interior amongst the cacti was the perfect castle, literally.
Not sure of the address, but it was the only house like it that we saw......Dan
To me this is kind of an odd shot. The green iguana---a rather prehistoric looking animal---against the backround of the Caribbean and Paul Allen's superyacht---a modern day marvel (or atrocity, depending on your point of view).
As far as longevity, my money is on the iguana...Dan
Our newest apartment neighbors are Thom and Jolanda from the Netherlands. They are frequent visitors to Bonaire and are here for 6 weeks to finish plans on the apartment complex they will be building in Kralendijk.
Friday the 20th we headed back up to Playa Frans, the former fishing village that is home to Richard and Pam (former Minnesotans) and a few other hardy souls.
Jolanda and I dove the reef while Thom, Carolyn, and Max visited with Richard and Pam and enjoyed the wonderful view....Dan
On the way back to the apartment one afternoon last week Max spotted 3 boys thumbing a ride near the airport. You don't see this often in the US anymore, so Max has us stop and check things out. Turns out the boys were trying to make their way to Jibe City, the ultimate "windsurfer dude" hangout. It is also one of Max's favorite spots.
We gave them a ride across the island where Max insisted on a photo with his new friends. From left: Youp, 14, Max, Rover, 9, and Ezri, 15.
Later, dudes...Dan
Last week Julia'a mother Bettina (known as Oma Nina) arrived to help with the baby and around the house. Naturally, she brought gifts, as any good grandparent would.
It's already quite clear that Jasmine and Julianna need no help being noticed. The "beautiful" gene has shown brightly on them. Nontheless, Oma brought new bikini swimsuits for the two--which they showed off promptly....Dan
The wind is always blowing on Bonaire. You can see its effects espcially when you look at the Divi-divi tree, a shrub-like tree that is slow-growing and native to this part of the world. The wind sculpts the trees canopy to look like windblown hair. The roots are mostly exposed and gnarly. Max gives you some perspective of the size of some of hte roots....Dan
Sorobon Beach on Lac Bay is a favorite early morning destination for Max and Carolyn. They'll get up before sunrise and drive across the island to greet the day. Max sure likes it, and the panorama there is just as striking as the sunsets....Dan
The Sunday drive is a thing of the past in the US, but being on a beautiful island in the Caribbean you just must get in the car and take a look around....at least that's what Max does.
The landscape photo is by Jake, taken on the eastern (windy, more rugged) side of the island.
Dan
Spectacular sunsets are no rarity here. Sunday the 15th Carolyn, Max, and I cruised down to dive site Pink Beach, which is just about a mile south of here to catch the sunset. It did not disappoint...Dan
When's the last time you saw a phone booth in the US? You see them on the island quite frequently, but some appear to have suffered the same fate as those in the US in the latter years----either broken or no phone, filthy interiors, etc.
Jake notice this oddity also, and made a couple pictures...Dan
Lots of lizzard-type critters here on the island. All sizes. They show up in some interesting places, including Max's drinking water cup. We rescued him. He was rather waterlogged and sluggish, but was on his way after he dried out.
Our son Jake recently visited for a week. While he was here he used my camera to make quite a few pictures. Both he and our daughter Caitlin have developed an interest in photography. Caitlin has been shooting pictures since middle school while Jake has only recently had interest.
He made lots of nice pictures while here, but I liked these two shots together mostly because it reminded me of a recurring theme in the artwork of our friend Marshall Tripp, who has a series of paintings featuring three sisters (nuns) in different situations.
Jake titles one "Three amigos", I call the other one "Three Palms".
Dan
We have a visit at least once a day from the Klug girls (our hosts). They mostly want to see and hold Max, but occasionally they just want to "play". Recently Jasmine and Julianna set up a tea party with Carolyn.
Biggest difference from the tea parties I remember having with our daughter Caitlin is that Jamine's drink of choice was Amsel's Malted, a non-alcoholic malt beverage fortified with vitamins.
It's not your mother's tea party anymore....Dan
Richard and Pam's visit couldn't be covered in one blog post. Their place is very beautiful. Our visit limited the time I had to make more pictures, but we hope to head back that way before we leave Bonaire.
The panorama is the view from their house to the east, opposite the ocean. Richard doesn't know what activity went on there in the past, but to me parts of it looks similar to the salt pans on the south end of the island.
Dan
Max is always up for an adventure. Just north of NuKove dive site is an old fishing village. It is the end of that particular road. Our friends and across-the-street neighbors Mark and Carol Johnson and a group of their friends dove Bonaire in Feb of 08. They also dove NuKove and decided to explore the "end of the road". This is where they met Richard and Pam. We were told it was a "must do" visit.
Richard and Pam live in one of about 4 buildings that once comprised a fishing village. Pretty spartan existence with no electricity (I'm not sure about running water). But like many remote locations, the trade-off is a great view. One one side the ocean rolls onto a gentle slope. On the opposite side there is the remnants of what was probably a salt pan at one time which reflects the sky and rugged hilly landscape typical to the north end of the island.
Richard and Pam are originally from Minnesota. They spent many years working and growing dairy farms in northern Minnesota. We didn't get too nosy, but after farming they ended up traveling around a bit, including a stint piloting a boat down the Mississippi. They did make a stop in Quincy and Hannibal for fuel and repairs. It seems after that they traveled the Caribbean and somehow ended up on Bonaire. I think they said they've been here for about 3 years. The building they live in is apparently historic, and the local folks got a petition together to make Richard and Pam caretakers there. They keep making improvements to the structure to preserve it.
We provided the ice-cold beer and Richard and Pam doled out the stories and hospitality. Max, Carolyn and I hope to make it back to do some snorkeling, swimming and visiting.
Dan
Bonaire has literally hundreds of dive sites. Most of them are accessible by vehicle which makes it a great place to dive. You make your own schedule and go whenever and (almost) wherever you'd like. NuKove is one of the last named dive sites on the northwest side of the island. Getting there is half the fun. About two-thirds of the trip is on paved road. The last part is on extremely bumpy roads with overgrown brush on each side. It looks more like a path than a road. The trip is well worth it though.
The few dive sites in this area don't get much pressure since getting there takes time and patience. Therefore the reef and the landscape is beautiful. Hurricane Omar (mid Oct 2009) did some damage to the reef and shore, but I still thought the trip up the coast was worth it.
Naomi and Rob and Jake and I dove and Carolyn and Max watched the gear and scenery above water. Jake seemed to like the dive, but entry and especially the exit beat him up quite a bit. The surge and waves can pound you right back into the coral rock, which is sometimes very sharp.
After the dive we went exploring---to the end of the road where we met a most interesting couple. Their names are Richard and Pam. See the DoggieLogue post about them for more information...
Dan
Margate Bay dive site has been one of the most amazing dives so far here. Rob and Naomi dove there last week and saw tons of fish activity, including the bait ball Naomi is in the middle of in the beginning of the video. Jake and I joined them there again on 10 Feb and there was still a crazy amount of fish and activity. Rob shot the video and Naomi edited it for comsumption.
The lobster was at Pink Beach dive site. Naomi's label (Dan's lobster) is that way because usually Naomi never misses anything underwater. This dive I noticed she drifted right over the lobster. He was HUGE. I had to give her some grief about that......Dan
Having a new baby when you already have a couple children usually means the older kids don't get quite as much attention as they are used to for a while. Carolyn and Rob and Naomi anticipated this and brought small gifts for the girls so they wouldn't feel left out. Rob and Jake showed Jasmine how to play Jax (Jacks?) last night before supper.
In our case we've had a couple "pack mules" making the deliveries. Our friend Marianne did some shopping in Quincy and Rob and Naomi packed down several boxes of goodies. Jake followed a week later and came with more good from Marianne and her friend Karen. It's been fun handing out trinkets for the girls.
Valentine's Day is a couple days away and I think the girls are in for a windfall....Dan
I figured it was about time to publish a shot of some flamingos----something the island is known for around the world. (The airport is named Flamingo International or something to that effect).
Picture was made by Jake, looking west into the Cargil salt pans....Dan
Island life is tough on a dog. All that sun and warm weather.....Having to find the perfect place to nap......and trying to find a decent place for a pedicure! Max gave up and enlisted Carolyn and Naomi to trim his nails last Saturday afternoon.
He's stylin' now....Dan
