Los Roques and Bonaire: 4-9 Feb 2018

ANIMA
Manuel Ribeiro
Fri 9 Feb 2018 23:55

On our way to Bonaire, we stopped at Los Roques for a brief visit. Gran Roque (the main island) has a nice and colourful village, with several simple “posadas”. Although part of Venezuela, these islands are safe and seem somewhat apart from the troubling times that the mainland is enduring. As we sailed to Bonaire, we finally caught a small tuna, which immediately turned into ceviche (can not be much fresher!) and grilled steaks on the following day.

 

We landed in Bonaire early morning on the 5th February and found a place at Harbour Village Marina. Clearance was very easy. Since our last visit here in 2015, Kralendijk (the capital) has gone through major renovation (hotels, shops, restaurants) and now looks like a different place! We missed our “Tchesub” friends, as we remember the great fun we had together during the 2 times we were diving here as a group.

The marina is a friendly place and we met several boats which are following a similar route to ours. We made some good friends (Peter and Patty, who have sailed together 120,000 miles over the past 25 years on their J35...) and we met Andre, a successful entrepreneur who has lived in Bonaire for many years, running a gourmet food truck and an unmistakable glass bottom boat (AquaSpace), where tourists can enjoy the underwater beauty of the rich marine life in Bonaire. Andre helped us tying the mooring lines and, after we talked for a few minutes in English, we suddenly realized we were both Portuguese!! We will surely meet again!

As planned, Pedro has arrived by plane from Lisbon and will be sailing with ANIMA for the next 3 months, until French Polynesia. Excellent help and company!