Our final week in Bonaire was very hectic. We did our third bike ride to the north of the Island. Very pretty but very hilly and the ride was about 30 miles. We both must be fitter because it didn't hurt as much as the first one! The ride followed the coast and we had a great snorkel and passed a lake with lots of Flamingos. The following day we hired a car with friends Wendy and Bobby. It was a surprise to see them, as they had visited Venezuela and we didn't think they would catch us up but they arrived in Bonaire in time to snorkel with us on Kline Bonaire (small island off the W coast) and then go sight seeing.
We took the car to the national park in the north which was very wild and picturesque. It was dirt track roads so the driving tested Mike's skills. After a picnic and a snorkel we headed south and also stopped at Rincon the other town on the Island.
We had another day's diving and managed to do 3 dives. We saw lots but its very tiring! The US company we wanted to buy the dive gear off (see last blog) would not accept a credit card (no one has told them that the credit card company is responsible for fraud not them!) so we left without ordering anything.
We had a good sail to Curacao a week ago. Unfortunately, we didn't catch any more fish but it was an enjoyable day with a good breeze and we had a visit from the dolphins as we rounded the northern tip of the island. We anchored in Spaanse Water on Saturday, so Sunday we caught a bus into Willemstad to check in. After a long walk we found Immigration who were very friendly and on our 3rd attempt we managed to get in to customs by knocking on their window to get their attention! We also need an anchoring permit (office closed weekends!) so we had to go back into town Monday to get this, but they were closed for a long lunch hour!!! We finally managed to get hold of them Wednesday. They do not make it easy here to comply with their rules but it is probably a taster of what it will be like in the Spanish speaking countries.
Although Willmstad is very pretty, the town is a world heritage site with lots of lovely old buildings, we are missing the lovely clear waters of Bonaire. The water here is very murky and we have not had a swim since arriving here. It is also not as convenient as you have to get a bus to do anything and they run on Caribbean time (i.e. when they feel like it!).
We were hoping to leave for Cartagena this weekend but unfortunately our generator has majorly broken down. For the mechanics amongst you the valve has broken and gone into the piston. We are trying to find someone to mend it but getting parts could be a problem. There will probably be even less chance of getting it fixed once we leave here so we could be here a while!
We are consoling ourselves with wine and cheese and socialising with friends. The supermarkets here do have a big selection of foods, more than we have seen since leaving the UK. So there are worse places to be and its too windy this weekend to go anywhere anyway!
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Friday, November 6, 2009
Life in Bonaire
We have now been in Bonaire 3 weeks and are loving it. We have completed our PADI open water course which took 4 days and was very tiring. I (Karen) found it very stressful as one of the things you have to do is take your mask off and put it back on. For some reason breathing through my nose always seems good when I don't have a mask on so I struggled but managed to do it once in the pool by holding my nose! The actual dives are amazing, we have seen so many fish and the coral is so colourful. Both of us are so much more relaxed in the water now. We have had our first day diving by ourselves and dived under the boat. We have so many divers under our boat that we thought it must be worth a look! Even snorkeling we have seen so many fish including Angel fish, Parrot fish, Squid, Tarpon (big) and a Turtle. We may need to get an underwater camera!
Besides diving we have also been exploring the island. We decided to get fit and hired bikes. Our first ride was around the south of the island which according to the local map is about 10 miles. It was very hot and windy with huge salt ponds and mountains but fairly flat. Mike spent ages trying to photograph Ospreys but they flew off every time he got the camera out! We also saw old slave huts used by the workers on the salt ponds. The only break was on the east coast where we had a welcome beer. It turned out to be about 25 miles back to town and we were both exhausted and in pain! Neither of us have been on a bike in the last 6 years so our legs and bottoms were definitely feeling it and drugs were required to sleep!!!! Our second ride was shorter, across to the lagoon on the east coast. Again we saw lots of birds including Flamingos, Osprey, Herons and Storks. It was on dirt tracks and on the way back I managed to acquire 2 punctures so we had to get a lift back to town (neither of us was too upset about this!). We still have one more day cycle hire left and are hoping to head north.
Last weekend we took our dive instructor out for a sail which was a lovely relaxing morning. As usual the fishing line was out and as we pulled it back the line screamed out. We thought we had caught the bottom or a piece of debris but no, it was a huge Wahoo. It put up quite a fight and several times pulled the line back out but eventually it was gaffed and hauled onto the boat. It was 52” long but too heavy for our scales. However having weighed the bits we estimate it was about 30lb and we had 16lb of skinless fillets. We gave some away but still have a freezer full!!! Its our first Wahoo and it tastes lovely.
We have also been socialising with fellow cruisers. Our neighbours, Bonnie and Tom are very keen and expert divers. They keep recommending things to see which unfortunately are too deep for us novice divers to see. We are meeting up with boats who are heading in the same direction as us so we should see them again in the coming months.
Still not sure when we will leave as we are now looking to have dive gear shipped from the States and want to do some more diving! We also have to wait for our dive certificates to be delivered.
Besides diving we have also been exploring the island. We decided to get fit and hired bikes. Our first ride was around the south of the island which according to the local map is about 10 miles. It was very hot and windy with huge salt ponds and mountains but fairly flat. Mike spent ages trying to photograph Ospreys but they flew off every time he got the camera out! We also saw old slave huts used by the workers on the salt ponds. The only break was on the east coast where we had a welcome beer. It turned out to be about 25 miles back to town and we were both exhausted and in pain! Neither of us have been on a bike in the last 6 years so our legs and bottoms were definitely feeling it and drugs were required to sleep!!!! Our second ride was shorter, across to the lagoon on the east coast. Again we saw lots of birds including Flamingos, Osprey, Herons and Storks. It was on dirt tracks and on the way back I managed to acquire 2 punctures so we had to get a lift back to town (neither of us was too upset about this!). We still have one more day cycle hire left and are hoping to head north.
Last weekend we took our dive instructor out for a sail which was a lovely relaxing morning. As usual the fishing line was out and as we pulled it back the line screamed out. We thought we had caught the bottom or a piece of debris but no, it was a huge Wahoo. It put up quite a fight and several times pulled the line back out but eventually it was gaffed and hauled onto the boat. It was 52” long but too heavy for our scales. However having weighed the bits we estimate it was about 30lb and we had 16lb of skinless fillets. We gave some away but still have a freezer full!!! Its our first Wahoo and it tastes lovely.
We have also been socialising with fellow cruisers. Our neighbours, Bonnie and Tom are very keen and expert divers. They keep recommending things to see which unfortunately are too deep for us novice divers to see. We are meeting up with boats who are heading in the same direction as us so we should see them again in the coming months.
Still not sure when we will leave as we are now looking to have dive gear shipped from the States and want to do some more diving! We also have to wait for our dive certificates to be delivered.
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