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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
Our son Jake arrived for a week-long stay this morning. He flew in on the same red-eye flight that we did, so the first order of business was to take a long winter's nap. Looking forward to some dive adventures with him. He's Open Water certified (courtesy of our friend Rob Tipton) and his ocean dive experience has been limited to Mexico. He's in for a real treat here.
Notice the hooded sweatshirt. He said it was "still cold" and he didn't shed it until we got back to the apartment. It won't take long to fix that.......Dan
The rainy season has officially passed, but rain shower have been fairly frequent. They are usually short-lived but often intense. After dinner at Patagonia we ventured downtown for some ice cream. One minute we were trying to find and name constellations, the next we were looking for shelter from a downpour.
I know.....no sympathy for us.
Dan
After a full day of diving the group headed to Patagonia, an Argentinian steakhouse north of downtown. Rob & Naomi and I had dined there during our scuba trip in Oct 07. It was very much the same---very tasty. Rob & Naomi and I all had a steak dish, while Carolyn had the seafood pasta special of the evening.
Small world tidbit: We sat next to a group from Springfield, IL. One of their group was kind enough to shoot the portrait.
Dan
Who doesn't like a pretty sunset. Bachelor Beach. Wed Feb 4, 2009.
Dan
Watching sunset is something we try not to miss. It's a short drive to Bachelor Beach, the nearest beach entry to the water. There you have an unobstructed view of the horizon. Rob, Naomi, Max, and Carolyn and I witnessed another spectacular sunset.
We also ran into a couple from Vermont--John and Mindy--who were doing the same. John was quite the character and after Max introduced himself John performed a slight-of-hand trick with string and puzzled us with a riddle.
Max loves meeting new people....Dan
After meeting the young med students at the Karaoke bar on Wed night, Max decided he needed a night out on his own to make even more friends. He dressed up with his new "Flavor Flav"-style leash and hitched a ride downtown.
Apparently he had a very good time and was, as our dive friend Jim Vandiver says, "overserved" a bit and ended up doing a little pole dancing to amuse his new friends.
Max spent all of Friday "resting"....Dan
One of the most elusive and sought-after finds underwater. Naomi is awesome at finding underwater treasures. She located both seahorses we've seen so far. Many people come here on dive trips year after year and haven't yet seen a seahorse.
Rob shot the video and Naomi edited it......enjoy.....Dan
