Bonaire

Staff Member wearing white uniform on left; crewmember in blue pinstripe shirt with Goldendoodle in front

By now, the adrenaline was really pumping. Staff Member Karin arrived to retrieve my Service Canine from my stateroom and Crewmember Harold was ready to escort me ashore. I wondered if the canine would miss me, whether I would be able to manage without her; she simply politely smiled for a photo, as if to tell me to leave, and I knew she would be just fine in my absence.

Crewmember Harold wheeled me along the smooth cement pier to the security gate for clearance with the Dispatcher who was most kind and eager to assist. Yvonne Schultheiss, Manager of Bonaire Destination Services, happily greeted me near the Security and Dispatchers Building, and then introduced me to Jan Brouwer, who would soon become my driver, guide, narrator, and help orchestrate photography.

Once inside Jan's vehicle, Dispatcher Papy Cicilia gave his final wishes of a pleasant journey along with Yvonne and Harold. I was rather surprised when later learning Jan shared similar interests, and more than ready to see exactly what would unfold and whether it possible access would be available and at what degree or how much. Kralendijk, Bonaire, was indeed friendly, but I wondered what we would see and had only recently heard about the lovely Flamingos and already knew about the abundance of water activities. Thus my first journey on the Island of Bonaire began, early in the morning on a clear day, with a wonderful tradewind blowing.

Yvonne Schultheiss, Manager of Bonaire Destination Services

Left to Right: Yvonne Schultheiss, Manager of Bonaire Destination Services; Jan Brouwer, Photographer and Author, (Bonaire on Wheels), with Bonaire Dispatcher Papy Cicilia (Middle); Bonaire Dispatcher Papy Cicilia wishing Hollenbeck a pleasant visit (Photo on right).

As it worked out, Jan's skepticism, (if any), surely disappeared as he hoisted me inside the dual Hilux cabin of his truck; possibly relieved to find me a lightweight, then he started the engine and thus our journey began.

Mustard colored fort wall surronds the tower

Mustard colored fort wall surronds the tower

It is not terribly surprising (for anyone who knows me) that I would become extremely excited to see either Fort or Lighthouse, but little did I expect it would be both and the first historic building the lens of the camera would capture coming directly from the dock.

Kralendijk (Fort Oranje) Lighthouse dates back to 1796; said to be the first stone building on the island of Bonaire. Named after the Dutch Royal House, the small fortress has high walls and is located a short distance from shore immediately in front of the cruise dock.

Four cannons and a large garrison kept intruders away, (no doubt from their impressive sight), the fort never attacked, became home to the Commander of Bonaire in 1837. In the same year, a station established for the lighthouse built in 1832, with the tower standing 23-feet in the center of the square flashing every two seconds from her pyramidal stone tower with colors ranging from a mustard base at the bottom to lighter colored sand near the top.

The Fort's prominent position adjoins the cruise ship docks, and evidently now serves as the Harbor Master's office on the west side of the island in Kralendijk where our vessel docked. Admittedly, I did a double take when noticing the cannons, strategically placed at the fort. Apparently, the light remains active with a focal plane of 44-feet.

Triangle sign trimmed in red with black donkey in center on white background

Triangle sign trimmed in red with black donkey in center on white background

Mangrove trees with green foilage perched at the edge of the beach in front of ocean

Driving away from Kralendijik, an interesting sign warned of donkeys crossing the road and six minutes later, I was suddenly staring at the beautiful ocean and mangrove trees bending in the direction of the wind.

At this small elevation along the coast, near the airport, the splendor of Bonaire began to unfold and hold truth to the island's famous diving areas, but the trees did fascinate me. (Photo on right.)

These trees grow very slowly while standing in salt or brackish water. They are amazing in that they make their own fresh water out of seawater; the fresh water needed for their growth.

As we continued traveling along the coastline, Jan Brouwer pointed out the Pyramids made of pure salt stretching across the horizon on the opposite side of the ocean in the photo on the left above. In the middle photo, a white obelisk reminds the beginning of the salt industry which was restored by "The Economic Platform of Bonaire in cooperation with the BonaiGroup and Cargill" in 2006, but not far from here, a pier at the Cargill Salt Company stands proudly waiting while a ship is loaded with salt. Nearby is another historic location of a blue obelisk and other historic ruins.

Industry on the Island of Bonaire includes a variety of things, but among the most sought are tourism and salt. Bonaire's salt production continues to be, with four obelisks (circa 1837) built near the Salt Lake to guide ships coming to Bonaire to load their cargos of salt that would then be transported by vessel to other lands, including the United States of America. The obelisks, painted red, white, blue, and orange are the colors of the Dutch flag and the "Royal House of Orange". Accordingly, a flag with one of the four colors raised atop a flagpole, directed a vessel to an appropriate pan.

In between these remarkable sightings another amazing sight appeared as Jan quietly slowed to yet another stop and parked his truck, and then explained the location to me of what had caught his eye. At the top of a tree, a White Crested Caracara perched itself on a branch with claws gripping tightly from both legs, daring our appearance below; he paid little attention as I hung out the window to take his photo. The Caracara made no attempt to move but I hurried to take a half-dozen photos within 60-seconds. It was me who was at the disadvantage; the Caracara could fly away, I could not and the bird appeared to know it.

Historically, this species is considered low on the island of Bonaire with apparently, the last breeding area recorded off this same coastline in 1931; in 1993, only two pairs were reported as being present on Bonaire's west coast. Now year 2009, is there a chance this bird of prey flies solo or perhaps arrived from Curacao with a partner? Maybe the bird is much older than the credit it deserves and comes from the troop spotted in 1931 or 1993. This Crested Caracara is black with a white chest and underbelly, there are white feathers atop its neck, (appearing ruffled; possibly from attack), definitely a black cap, and four black bands appear on its tail. The bill appears dark or black; reddish is not seen at the base, but this could be due to the photography. Without a doubt, this is an adult bird; younger Caracas are typically brownish in color.

If indeed this is a White Crested Caracara; Jan Brouwer sighted it along the coastline shortly before reaching the Cargill Salt Company pier, on October 29, 2009 at 8:28 AM, and deserves the credit for this rare find.

Just beyond the house, a bend in the road leads to four white slave huts marking yet another historical site, just minutes away from the last and actually in combination with the salt harvesting still shipped from the pier.

Yellow rock with black lettering next to green foilage at base of hut

Yellow rock with black lettering next to green foilage at base of hut

The White Slave Huts site restored and maintained by the Parks Department, is frequently used by local and touring skin divers or snorkels' from either shore or a boat; with ocean depths ranging 20 to 100-feet, sea turtles are often spotted and to many divers the "White Slave Huts" have become a paradise for the sea. This once upon a time home for slaves, (brought from places in Congo and Angola or other parts of the globe), lived in these tiny huts while working the salt flats; a long and tedious process of harvesting, slaves spent hours wading in the slush, sifting salt crystals with only their hands and wooden rakes. At night, the slaves slept in these huts made of stone at the edge of the saltpan.

At some point in time, a rock painted yellow with black lettering was placed on the sand near the front of a corner of one of the slave huts proclaiming, "White Slave"; obviously serving as a marker or perhaps a reminder or maybe both, it marks just one location of slave huts used to house the workers from many years past, but around the island's coast these rocks are plentiful with marking dive areas for divers using the ocean too! In other words, they are official markers for dive sites as well!

White lighthouse with brown stripe running from observation deck to base.

Among possibly five other lighthouses, at the southernmost tip of the island, Jan stopped at the Willemstower Lighthouse, supposedly the first lighthouse built in 1837, (which obviously conflicts with the history of Kralendijk Lighthouse), built similar to a Doric column. By 1838, the lighthouse was first lit on August 24, 1838, in honor of the birth date of Dutch King Willem the First and hence, the name of the lighthouse. In present times, the lighthouse uses a solar energy beam to warn ship and mariners of the coastline.

On the rough and windy East side of the island, at least three yellow metal windmills, pumping salty water from the sea to the various basins of the salt company. In the distance are hills, (looking more like pyramids), made of pure salt. Further along the road, a large power generator is located near the T-junction at Sorobon Beach (Photo on Right.)

Along the same road to Sorobon, we spotted goats looking for food in what appeared an interesting area for them to graze, while in the background, we could see the mangroves. Jan explained this area would be near the shallow of the Atlantic Ocean. (Left photo above.)

Then, along Kaya Nikiboko Suit, an outdoor church is situated with remarkable pews in neat rows across the front in the middle photo above. This open-air church is near Kralendiji, the Capital of Bonaire.

As we continued our journey past the next coastline and along Tolo Beach, in Landhuis Karpata a conglomeration of buildings belonging to the former plantation of Karpata, restored about thirty years ago, now sitting idle slowly become ruins because of the lack of water and electricity. (Photo on Right above.)

Tolo Beach is along a curly road that follows the leeward coastline and is very popular to local divers and non-divers as well as tourists. As a matter of fact, much of the whole island is popular to divers, because of the magnificent off-shore diving and apart from diving gear, one just needs a vehicle to drive to this coast. What is rather interesting is the photos speak for themselves; the darker the water, the greater the depth, and where one sees an immediate change of color from light to dark, one should expect an immediate drop of depth - anyplace from fifty to over a hundred feet!

The coastline between Karpata and Bopec is an area completed protected by surveillance cameras to prevent activities such as swimming, diving, fishing, picnicking, etc. Activities along this stretch of coast (in the three photos above) is strictly prohibited by the government, and for good reason; Bonaire wants to protect this area as a natural back up for the rest of the coastline.

Flamingos in lake at distance surrounded by green hill

Two Pink Flamingos: One upside-down feeding, the other gliding on lake

Another photo of Flamingos at distance in lake

In the shallows of Goto Lake, Flamingos float about swimming, turning themselves completely upside down to grab something to eat, or simply stand quietly on one foot. It is an amazing sight to see; hundreds of Flamingos quietly charming the lake, which forms a natural border of the Washington and Stagbaai National Park.

There were over two hundred Flamingos in this lake; a human is unable to get very close to them and must take their photography from a distance. One fifth of the Island of Bonaire is a National Park; this park is accessible by a one-way unpaved road of approximately forty kilometers.

In the safe little old village of Rincon there are a multitude of interesting sites to see, but most descriptive are Jan's words with describing the scene as we slowly drove through the town:

For instance, there is the old Protestant Church on a corner whose bright yellow fence actually borders the road.

Then there is a local bar selling Amstel beer that in earlier days was brewed on the Island of Curacao from seawater, but now it is imported from Holland in the Netherlands. The beer, named after the Amstel River where the Capital of Holland is located, with Amsterdam actually named after the river where ships floated in and out of a dam.

Next to the bar, an old building of the open air cinema is located, called "Cinelandia". Inside the walls of this building on the first floor, huge Philips projectors with big wheels contain film, waiting idle with time it could be ruins. Very recently, people closed the little hole in the facade of the building with some blocks and a little cement; it was the hole through which tickets were purchased to watch a movie.

A yellow government building sits idle near the square of Rincon as if waiting for business men and women to walk through the doors, while a freshly modernized "Gasoline Station Rincon", shows off its new roof and fuel pumps. Another yellow building holds a bank, the tax office, and the post office.

Then, another bar on the left hand side of the gasoline station, which makes three bars in less than 500 meters, no - there are actually five bars in Rincon! The blue painted bar is known as the "Amstel Bar"; Polar is a popular beer from Venezuela that is sold here and they repainted the bar without charge in exchange for advertisements. Even more interesting, there is also a snack and soda fountain called "Flamboyant", which is still functioning.

Without a doubt, it is the "Hurricane Proof" building that probably interested me the most, and Jan referred to this building as, "A traditional Bonairian building". Amid all of these buildings stood the former Roman Catholic school with two levels, a rarity on Bonaire, and especially in Rincon according to Jan, and then he explained the Priest lived here. "I think he lived more close to the Lord because of the levels", he said.

Cactus fence stretches alongside dirt road on right

After leaving the town of Rincon, Jan took me off-road to an area where a magnificent cactus fence had been built over the years. This unpaved road led to the "wild coast" and the fence was on the right hand side of the vehicle where I could do film footage. The photo taken from the film does not do justice to the beautiful fence, but at least gives an idea of height and length, which is probably a good five feet tall and most likely two or three feet wide. (Remember, I am the passenger in a truck and sitting at a rather good height while the vehicle is moving.)

A fence of poles, combined with cattle or goat wire is made, then specialists go into natural cactus fields and harvest the cacti for the fence. With special tools, named chi and the cha, the cut cacti are positioned in a slight angle against the fence. Eventually, the cacti begin growing again and over time, with a little maintenance and patience, a beautiful foolproof fence protects livestock and land. Who or what in their right mind, would want to climb over this fence? Maintenance appears to be an on-going need because baby cacti pop up out of the soil. Flowers also pop from the cactus fence, making it even more beautiful. The cactus fence, constructed by man and situated along this dirt road is on the windward coast.

On the wild North Coast, a "mouth" for the river delta of Boka Onima is one of many beautiful scenes. Part of this beach is protected with rocks to prevent vehicles from crushing eggs laid in the sand by turtles.

A tall sail similar to that on a small craft is situated on a land machine with wheels

Making a stop at Land Sailing Bonaire, the BloKarts stood neatly lined up ready for a driver. I had an odd feeling when Jan Brouwer enthusiastically jumped out from behind the wheel of his vehicle; he was more than ready for five laps around the track, and had probably been eagerly waiting for his chance. I captured him with both film and still photography as he seemingly sailed rather quickly on the large oval track, with the color of his shirt matching part of the sail.

Jan later learned from Nelson Croft and Naomi, at the BloKart enterprise, Blokarts are available with two seats, making it possible for a person without leg strength or paralysis to be a passenger. But after Jan finished his quick laps around the track, we needed to move on and soon return to the cruise dock. According to Jan, the sport is "never boring and always fun" and judging by his enthusiasm, I believe him.

Panoramic views from Seru Largu at the middle of the island. We enjoyed the seeing the South below.		Kralendijk and pyramids of salt... Jan kept referring to as "snowy mountains".
	There is Klein Bonaire and the area of Republiek and Hato. The scene impressive with buildings and the "snowy mountains".
Finally the beginning of the outback...		Between Kralendijk and Rincon come into view.

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