The Next Chapter: Day 518

Ugh. Early mornings. Me. They just can’t go in the same sentence! I had a tour today! That’s pretty much the only way you’ll get me up before 0800! The Tour guys were kind enough to give me a tour of the island.

I joined the tour just off the ship & we climbed into Land Rovers. Well, the other guests did. I was lucky enough to sit in the front seat with the driver, Bas, a Dutchman living in Bonaire for the past 2 years. (I just sneezed & Jaco didn’t move an inch. He’s sleeping next to me.)

We drove out to the saltpans & I ate a chunk of raw salt. It was salty. Ya don’t say? I loved the brilliant blue coastline en route. We could see the trucks collecting salt and the conveyors adding salt to the giant piles of salt. It was impressive! The plant is owned by Cargill, from the US, where they use most of the salt for water softeners.

From there we traveled on to the slave huts. That was sad. They used to work in the saltpans from sunrise to sunset & they lived in these tiny stone huts. They were like an oversized doghouse. In fact, they’d probably be about right for a Great Dane or Irish Wolfhound. A tiny window & a ½ sized door, they were small. I’m not even sure a grown man could stretch out in one! The huts were 25 miles from town, so if a slave wanted to see his family, he’d have to walk 25 miles in the dark & be back (+25 miles) for sunrise to start work again. And the ground they had to walk on was gypsum, a byproduct of the salt. It was like shards of glass clumped together. I can only imagine what their bare feet looked like from working in the saltpans.

From there, we traveled along the south coast, past the adventurous kite boarders, past the lighthouse, with a brief stop at the inlet for the saltpans. There was an inlet, which led into the first pan. Windmills were working to pump water along, starting the process.

Our next stop was Sorobon beach. We made a quick pit stop, with just enough time to check out the windsurfers & dip our feet in the calm bay. This is where the east side scuba divers leave from. Larisa dove here last cruise, but she commented on the attitude of the Captain & how uncomfortable she felt whilst on the boat. Looks like I won’t be going diving there for a while. I suggested Larisa open her own dive shop on the east side!

From here we slogged across bumpy dirt roads to the rocky coast. Here the open ocean, aided by strong winds, met the rock cliffs. It was a fantastic scene of smashing & crashing. The craggy lava rock from eons ago had not yet worn down from the effects of the water. The effects of littering, however, were sadly apparent. I’ve never seen so many plastic bottles & broken flip-flops. It was disgusting & sad. Apparently the rubbish is from South America. Bonaire has periodic clean ups when they will pick the trash from the coastline, but sadly, there is just as much back within a few days. I can only imagine how many fish, dolphins, turtles & other sea creatures that have lost their lives from eating plastic containers or flip-flops. PLEASE – AVOID PLASTIC WHEN YOU CAN. IF YOU MUST, RECYCLE. NEVER LITTER & LOOK FOR EARTH FRIENDLY CLOTHING. OR EVERYTHING FOR THAT MATTER!

AVOID PLASTIC! RECYCLE! USE EARTH FRIENDLY EVERYTHING!

Did you know that plastics act like estrogens in your body? Not eating plastic? Do you eat from plastic dishes? Drink from plastic bottles? Wear synthetic clothing? Think again!

I’m going to be on the lookout for a pair of earth friendly flip-flops from now on. I’ll keep you posted! If you know of anything, let me know!

Back to the tour!

From here, we traveled across the island in the direction of the ship. We drove past piles of cactus, mangroves, acacia trees, wild goats, donkeys & the odd speedy iguana. We did spot two glorious green & yellow parrots as well!

It was a splendid tour! I would highly recommend a trip to Bonaire to anyone. It’s very different from the other Caribbean islands that I’ve visited. It’s quiet, hassle free & always sunny! Plus, it’s outside of the hurricane belt! If you like to scuba dive, it’s a diver’s paradise! In fact, that’s the island’s slogan!

I popped back onto the ship to see if Jaco was able to go ashore. He wasn’t. Boo. I headed back out & walked along the water. I spotted a film crew on a wooden ship. Apparently they were filming an episode of ‘My Father Is The Best’ – or at least the Dutch version! It was cute to watch the kids & their Dads. I’m not sure who won… I walked a little further, dipped my feet in the water & then came back to the ship.

It was sailaway time, so I went to the Shorex office & visited with the guys for a while. When they closed the office, I came back to the cabin. I was about to take a nap, when I flipped on the tv. SALT was just starting. I hadn’t seen it before & I am a big Jolie fan, so I kept watching. I LOVED IT. Part way through the film, Becky knocked on the door. She came in & we watched the rest of the film together. When it was through, we ordered pizza & salads. By the time it arrived, the movie had started again, so Becky was able to watch the beginning she’d missed. We both concur it is a great film.

Becky left & Jaco & I had a bit of a chat – discussing our plans for Aruba tomorrow. I can’t believe a week has already gone by. Only one week left in the cruise. It’s time to start packing soon!

xxxxMaria