Hi All,
Sorry we're late with this report. Busy with the holidays, having put off shopping until post vacation.
We flew from So. California via American & American Eagle leaving late Friday the 7th. Travel through Miami & San Juan uneventful. Long layover in San Juan boring, but unavoidable this trip. Will try to skip it next time.
We stayed at Happy Holiday Homes and were very pleased. Friendly staff, great prices. This was our second trip to Bonaire, and we preferred the accomodations to our previous one (Bel-mar). Though not on the water (as Bel-mar is) the place is set up very well to cater to divers. Private back patio with clothesline for wet clothes. Large rinse tubs in enclosed front yard with patio. Sturdy pegs for drying gear once it was rinsed. Very well thought out.
While we did not cook, we appreciated the full kitchen for the full size refrigerator. And the fact that for a small charge, it was stocked with essentials, including Beer, prior to our arrival.
The ceiling fans and many windows kept the place cool during the day & evening, and when we retired, the A/C in the bedroom was more than adequate. Actually, silly us, the first night we had it on too high, and nearly froze.
We visited Jake & Linda the day after arrival to deliver cables & CDRoms. Such nice people. Dove small wall & reef cam, I guess there's a nice shot of us swimming away. Oh well.
Places to eat: Dined Sunday at Jake & Linda's. Delicious Surinam dinner (spelling??). Also ate at: Amadeus (yum), Beefeater (my former favorite, not the same with new owners - but the fried yucca is good. Also, you get a pitcher of iced tea, not just a single non-refilled glass), Kon-tiki (delicious fruit shakes & goat cheese salad), Mi-Poron (actually went there 2 times that they were supposed to be open, per the restaurant guide, and they weren't open either time. So never actually ate there. Don't know if they take long breaks, or are closed altogether. Didn't try a third time.) Rendez-Vous (very good), Richards (very good), It rains fishes (delicious, went twice - love the creme brulee), and Maiky snack (overcooked fish, good goat stew - or at least my husband says so). Would have gone back to Amadeus, but the coin toss on the last day turned up It rains fishes. It was a tough choice.
Diving: Different from 1998 (last visit), naturally. Enjoyed it anyway. Dove 18 times in 6 days. Mostly marked dive-sites, except for a couple in Jessie Armacost's book. They were exceptional, and one provided our only turtle sighting. Highly recommend the book. Only dive we didn't feel was worth it was the one at Cap'n Don's. We asked permission to dive and were advised that there was a $5.00 per person fee. That was ok, I guess, since they maintain the dock and provide access to rinse tanks and showers. But we were a bit surprised by the $15.00 per person "deposit". Luckily we had it, but who normally dives with $40 on them? We don't usually. Unfortunately, we felt the dive was kind of boring. We followed their rope and dove to the north off it. Then finished at La Machaca upon returning. We didn't see the plaque (or frogfish or seahorse) referred to in one of Andy's reports. Unlucky us. We'll skip this one next time.
Trip home uneventful as well. Funny security at Flamingo Airport. They search only checked luggage, but don't mark it. So you can tell them something is hand luggage, and then check it after all. (Which, naughty us, we did so they wouldn't rip the tape off that was keeping the cooler closed.) My husband said that the metal detector wasn't working either. He walked through with keys and change that normally set those things off and nothing happened.
All in all, very good trip. One week (8 days) is not enough. Next time we'll go for two weeks.
Judy |
By Judy Bell on Thursday, December 20, 2001 - 9:58 pm: 
