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Trip Reports: Betty's Trip: Windsurfing/Coco Palm
Bonaire Talk: Trip Reports: Archives: Archives 2000 to 2005: Archives - 2003-04-01 to 2004-02-05: Betty's Trip: Windsurfing/Coco Palm
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Betty Chang (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #8) on Thursday, May 29, 2003 - 4:30 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

My fiancé and I were there May 21 to 28 -- six days/seven nights. We spent 5 days windsurfing and 1 day lounging around and snorkeling.

Getting there:
Flew American from Boston since we got free tickets redeeming miles. Flights down and back went smooth, but we didn’t check any luggage in (only carry-on). I don’t think I’d use them again since the only flight out of Bonaire on American leaves at 6:00am! And since the Boston to San Juan leg was on a small turbo prop that was VERY cramped and uncomfortable. That flight is 2 hours long (pretty long time to sit without any leg room – especially after having just woken up at 4am). Next time I’d like to try Air Jamaica.

Coco Palm Gardens:
Lovely place. When we arrived about 8pm on Wednesday, they sent a taxi driver to meet us at the airport and drive us to the studios – which by the way only took a couple of minutes. Marianne met us at the room. The studio we rented was Coco Palm #6. It looked just like the website photos and we were very pleased. We bought groceries at Cultimara and made our own breakfasts everyday and a couple of days made PB&J sandwiches for lunch. The air conditioning worked great and was quiet. The shower had good water pressure. The grounds were kept nice too. The only insects we encountered were some tiny ants in the unit and some mosquitoes - if you’re not careful with keeping the doors shut, they can keep you up at night. Some things to consider bringing for the kitchen so you don’t have to buy: dishwashing soap & sponge, coffee & coffee filters, basic spices if you plan to cook. They have all the basic kitchen “hardware”. This is the first time we rented a studio and not a hotel room and was surprised that no one comes to clean the room daily. Since we stayed only for 1 week, that didn’t matter though. They supplied 4 bath towels (enough for 2 people for 1 week) and broom for sweeping. You can get beach towels from the office. Marianne was very nice and helpful. It turned out to be the perfect place to stay for windsurfing because it’s a short drive to Lac Bay (about 7 minutes) and since we went out every night for dinner it was close to downtown Kralendijk too (about 4 minutes). We would definitely stay there again! Oh, we also rented a pick up truck from them and found that to be convenient. No need to go to the car rental agency wait in line to do paperwork, etc….

Windsurfing:
We windsurfed for 5 days (taking Sunday off). The first day we arrived was not so windy – I used a 5.0 sail (BTW, I’m 116 lbs and an beginner/intermediate sailor). The next 2 windsurfing days were very windy - I think close to 30 mph and I used between a 3.0 and 3.5 sail. The final 2 days were medium wind and I used 4.2 to 4.7. We rented from The Place and I was happy with the equipment though I think my fiancé would have preferred smaller boards on the very windy days. They have a bar where they sell some small sandwiches that left me hungry. So we started to bring our own sandwiches, snacks, and fruit. They have some chairs on the beach, but the sun chairs (the kind where you can lie down) cost $ to rent! Only $3 a day, but it’s the principal – I thought they should be free to people renting equipment. On Sat. and Sun. some locals cook a BBQ and sell it at their bar. For $7 you can get a BBQ chicken leg, ribs, coleslaw, and rice – tasted great and super cheap! I took a harness & foot strap lesson and got a lot of practice in. By the end of our trip, I was really getting the hang of it – and planing. Lac Bay is a beautiful location and the staff at The Place were very nice. The windsurfing is great here – it really is the perfect place to learn something new or perfect something you already know.

Day off:
We took Sunday off from windsurfing and we rented a snorkel mask and fins from Wannadive. We drove to the Plaza – partly to check out the place and partly to snorkel. I’ve never snorkeled before and found it to be very easy and I saw so many pretty fishes, including a flat round sandy colored bottom dweller that had a fin coming straight up out of it’s center. I'm sure we could've found even more exotic ocean life if we drove to other snorkel sites, but we were being lazy - afterall it was our day off! Anyway, I was still pretty amazed. I took some photos with my waterproof disposable camera while I was bobbing around – we’ll see if any of them come out!

About 3pm we drove to Lac Cai to see the local party they hold there every Sunday. It’s a 2 mile drive on a dirt road, but we did get to see some flamingoes on the drive down. Since it was a windy Sunday, the windsurfers were out by the waves and we got to see them doing their jumps and tricks close up. It was quite a sight! A local band was playing, there was dancing, and food and beer. We tried the fried conch plate – it was yummy. We stayed until 6pm, but the party keeps going until about 7pm. It was about 50% locals and 50% tourists like us. We definitely recommend it.

Restaurants:
Here are the restaurants we ate at for dinner (spelling might be a little off):
-Croccantino – We had their pasta dishes – simple but good Italian pasta dishes

-Donna and Giorgios – We had fried calamari and pizza. We didn’t like the pizza – I thought the crust was soggy, too much cheese and too little tomato sauce. But, maybe some people like it that way?

-Boobijans (only open on weekends) – we had their bbq special which was $10 and came with lots of meat and fries

-It Rains Fishes – pretty décor and nice atmosphere. We ate there twice. Once had the fish special with the mustard sauce everyone raves about – everyone was right, it was delicious. The second time we ate there no fish was caught so we had to eat meat dishes. The fish dishes are priced right and cheaper than anything you’d ever find in Boston. The meat dishes were priced along the lines of what we pay here.

-Mona Lisa – it turned out to be our favorite on the island. We had the fish special made with Jackfish. This was our best meal on the island.

-Casablanca – if you’re in the mood for meat, this Argentine grill is the place to go. I had a rib eye steak (12 oz) and it was about $12, came with fries, small side salad and coleslaw. I ate everything and was stuffed!

We thought the food on Bonaire was great. You can't really go wrong. It was a definite plus to be able to drink the water and not have to be careful of what we eat. Mona Lisa was our favorite because it had the best food, atmosphere, and service.

Overall we loved the island and had a great trip. By the way, we had nothing stolen from us and we just followed the basic rules to keep our belongings safe. Although this is only my 3rd Caribbean island (Aruba and Dom Rep. Being the other 2), Bonaire is just so different and unique – in a good way. Will we return? Absolutely – after all, we never made it to Rincon or the National Park this time around. Plus, we’ll have to return when it comes time for me to lean how to jibe!

Thanks for all your trip reports and useful info posted!
Betty & Billy

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By C Poteet (BonaireTalker - Post #81) on Thursday, May 29, 2003 - 6:27 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Betty y Billy -

We don't get too many windsurfing reports...most interesting.

It is great that your first Bonaire experience was positive enough to make you want to go back. Can't imagine a better endorsement for any vacation spot.

We've never tried windsurfing, but it looks to be great fun and your report has got our interest up. We've marveled at the athletics we've seen at Lac.

It sounds as if the "flat round sandy colored bottom dweller" you saw at the Plaza was a flounder. We've seen many in the same location and most are peacock flounders. They are covered with iridescent peacock blue spots and when the sun hits them just right, you think someone has tossed jewels on the bottom of the ocean.

As you get more into snorkeling, you'll find there are all kinds of incredible sights waiting. Until you see them, you can't imagine.

Thank you for taking time to put together the report.

Charles Poteet
Dallas

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Betty Chang (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #10) on Friday, May 30, 2003 - 10:00 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

I know what I saw underwater was just a tiny glimpse of what else is out there. I look forward to trying some more adventurous snorkeling next time.

Bonaire really is THE BEST place to learn or just try windsurfing. Who knows you may get hooked!
Betty

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By DARLENE ELLIS (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #747) on Friday, May 30, 2003 - 10:11 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Great report and glad you had a good time! There is something hypnotic about Bonaire!!!

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Brigitte Kley (BonaireTalker - Post #86) on Saturday, June 7, 2003 - 10:52 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Betty, we are very happy you liked staying with us in Coco Palm Garden.
Concerning the daily cleaning, as said on our web site, you can choose for a maid service (cleaning, making your bed, bringing fresh towels, toilet paper, garbage bags) but it is an extra fee of $10 per day. The big majority of our guests prefer not to have the cleaning lady around every day and also to save these extra $10.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John and Carol Collins (BonaireTalker - Post #44) on Sunday, June 8, 2003 - 5:59 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Betty: Enjoyed your trip report. Bonaire is certainly a very special place. My husband and I agree with your opinion re the Mona Lisa. "Can't be beat." Also very happy to hear about your experience at Coco Palms. Brigitte and Richard are great people. Carol

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Betty Chang (BonaireTalker - Post #12) on Wednesday, June 11, 2003 - 10:39 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Brigitte & Marion,
I guess I didn't read your website (was too busy looking at all the nice colorful pictures!). I hope I didn't relay the wrong information in my trip report. You're right, we found the cleaning wasn't necessary. But, I'm glad to know that you offer it as an option (in case we stay 2 weeks next time we might want use it).

Thanks for all your hospitality!
Betty & Billy

 


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