RENT a WRECK
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Jan, s/y Witte Raaf, who spent 2 years in Curacao many years ago as a pilot in the Dutch Navy knows the Island well. He suggested we should rent a car together for the time we were here. He put his nephew, who lives here with his family, to the task. The request was that we did not mind the colour or breed as long as it was cheap. The result culminated in a metallic (faded) grey old
Volvo, we christened it THE TANK, at a grand price of 30 Naf per day (£10.90 at
today’s erratic rate).
Like any new machine (to us that is) one needs to get
used to its idiosyncrasies. The Tank has a few. As an ex KLM
“Jumbo Jet” Pilot Captain, Jan pressed all the window buttons at once, expecting
instant results. All he achieved was a blown fuse. Without fresh air The Tank became a
Turkish bath, relieved only by driving with doors opened,. The windows were
reactivated by depriving another, less useful, electrical circuit of its fuse.
We now had no indicators, heated front seats or dipping headlights but we had
fresh air……… The driver, in theory, should be the sole person in charge of the
window controls; instructions quickly forgotten by all when we arrived at a
destination.
Normally it never rains in Curacao during January.
Rightly guessed, we had plenty of water. Apparently it has been an unusual year
everywhere.
Having Tank enabled us to visit remote Island places,
with our newly acquired friends Timo and Annemieke, not forgetting Rocker and
Twister, who live in their amazingly peaceful and tasteful homebuilt Boat House
in Spanish Water.
After an excellent lunch at Jancies, a local institution,
we were faced with a flat tyre.
Just what is needed after a big
lunch.
Sailors are normally very independent and resourceful
people: the suggestions and orders were coming thick and fast from all quarters!
We became very fond of The Tank. Little did we know how
invaluable it would be in the coming weeks? The downside of having a car was that we missed the
interaction with locals and sailors alike when using the buses.
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