First time in BON - Summary of research

[Cecil]

Also bring cash, humor and patience. Spend the cash, share the humor and practice the patience. Enjoy.

 

[scubaaaronh]

This use to be good advise but earlier this year for whatever reason they now require a boarding pass before they will take the tax. So you must now go through the checkin line before paying the tax.

Thanks for the info Herman. They changed that after our last trip there. That is kind of crappy, made it nice to get it out of the way and forget about it.

Have fun on your next trip there. It will be at least a year for us. We just found out that the Docs are going to induce my wife next wednesday, so there will be a future diver in our family next week.

 

[Tom Smedley]

First - leave your obsessive/compusliveness at home and pack all of your sense of humor. There are things that happen that you have no control over - adjust and go forth with a smile.

Do what you can comfortably and save some stuff for next time. Trust me, you will return - over and over again.

Don't punch holes in your bottle lids. Instead buy a card of "Convert to Squirt" bottle caps and take them with you. Buy a couple of bottles of cheap 2 liter drink and pour it out. Fill with water. When you are diving put the bottle on top of your dive mobile. Instant hot shower on exit. Friends for life if you happen to run into a fisherman with a boiling radiator.

Get a bottle of wine, a blanket, make some sandwiches, and go to Seru Largu at night. Sit, ponder, relax, and look at the beauty before you.

Eat local food - you can get hamburgers and Italian stuff at home. Cabritu Stoba! Now that's a meal.

Take some 16 ounce cups. You can't get them on the island.

The electricity is 125 volt 50 cycle. If you plug a 120 volt 60 cycle appliance in it is history. Multivoltage appliances are just fine.

Get a bottle of wine, a blanket, make some sandwiches and lie naked at Pink Beach watching the sunset.

Dive your buns off.

Did I mention leaving your obsessive/compulsiveness at home??

 

[dogenia]

Tom Smedley gets my vote for President.

Kabritu Stoba, tasty. How about some stewed conch meat?

Sorry couldn't resist.

Don

 

[scubaaaronh]

If you have a chance to do dinner at Gibi's house do it. I think it is tuesday nights that he does the Bonaire Talk Dinner You can get the directions to his house on bonairetalk.com. He made us some dishes that were out of this world. We had Iguana in soup and stew. Goat stew. and Filet with rice fresh bread funchi. there was some other stuff that he made but i can't remember it all. You have to take cash and it was like 40 bucks or so with tip.

 

[Tom Smedley]

Stewed conch, coconut conch fried conch, conch fritters, conch salad, fricasee conch, barbecue conch, conch al la king, filet of conch, conch and shrimp, conch and lobster, conch and conch............ Yeah!

 

[dogenia]

Ok I just had lunch and I'm hungry again. Hmm Iguana soup tasty, any adventurous folks out there to try the tripe soup or kari kari? For the real real real adventurous ones, ask for bachi bachi next time yr in town.

How bout some ice cream topped with Blue Curacao after your dinner and then:

Get a bottle of wine, a blanket, make some sandwiches and lie naked at Pink Beach watching the sunset. (I liked this part best, kinda like a Bonaire Hedo IV)


Don

 

[Jersey]

Just a couple suggestions:

Departure tax procedure varies - 2 weeks ago we paid it when we arrived and stuck it in with passports for week. Others were told you needed boarding pass and had to wait. Depends on who you ask and the day of the week.

If you forget something, there are stores. The other half forgot his swim trunks..duh..now how, going on a DIVE trip, could you forget them? He ran into the little store (on the corner of Kaya Grandi and Simon Bolivar, forget name) and picked up a pair for $7.00 US. No problem.

I don't exchange $$, I just use the change I get before we leave, leave it for the nice ladies who keep our room tidy or drop it at the airport in the donkey refuge fund.

I 'donate' any unused adult beverages to my crew/diveguides/DM's at the end of the week.

Try the local foods - I like the beef stew at Capt Don's served with a really good polenta and bean cake. Enough for dinner and lunch the next day.

If you see any of the crews or staff out and about during the week - buy them a beverage or a bucket full.

Speak softly, tip loudly.

Check tank pressure and o-rings BEFORE the dive. Be prepared to change o-rings at the dive site...or listen to the hiss of escaping air during the dive. That really annoys me.

'Dushi' = sweetheart

Wave, smile and say hello to everyone.

Do a night dive under a full moon and turn the lights off.

Most importantly - RELAX, have fun and dive!!

 

[dvrliz1]

OHHHHHHHHHH... You guys have gotten SOOOOOOOO good! The skeeter's are the worst around dusk, so if you don't do a night dive, be sure to spray bare skin with deet before going out to dinner

You may also want to consider seeing Magazina de Rei, it is the 2nd oldest building on Bonaire, has alot of history. It is located on the east coast road to Rincon, just before you get into Rincon, on the right. It is really cool. Also, Donkey Sanctuary, just south of the runway of the airport, and the Bonaire Museum, located 1 block south and in, from the Catholic Church in town. There is also the butterfly farm on the way to Lac Cai, landsailing (it's cool just to watch!) on the east road to Rincon. The flamingos are also abudant right now on the north end of the West side road to Rincon at Goto Meer (the north end salt lake).

 

[Diver Di]

Thanks for all the great tips. We are going to Bonaire for the first time in September. I have bookmarked this page so I can use lots of these tips when we go. Now all I have to do is wait!