First and foremost – some pictures are here:
http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=BestPicturesBonaire


Check back in a day or two, I’ll have more – including the ones I reference about ZeeZicht Below.

Background:

I think it's important to preface a trip report with some information about the person making the report - some guidelines regarding how much experience and where else this person has been. To me, someone who says diving somewhere is “easy” or “hard” and has 10 dives under their belt carries a little less weight than someone who says it and has 1000 dives and can probably build a regulator out of a crumpled coke can.

So here I go: I've got roughly about 135 dives under my belt, maybe more - my girlfriend has roughly 75 under hers. I've dove Aruba, Cozumel, Cancun, Tulum area, Cenote's in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Mona Island and Roatan, Honduras. In a non diving capacity - I've been to each of the following places at least five times - Rome, Milan, Paris, London, Geneva, Zurich, Zermatt and to the following at least once: -- Anguilla, St Moritz, Cape Town SA, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Belgium and a whole bunch of other places... In other words, I’m reasonably well traveled but probably not as well as some of you on this board.

I'm gearing this “trip report” a bit more towards "newbies" to Bonaire (which I was before this trip). I’ve never seen a trip report from the perspective of someone who has never been to Bonaire and I would have liked one before I came, so here I go.

The Dining

To be honest, the dining was decent but not spectacular at most places. I’ve included the places that I felt were worth mentioning (either because they were worse than airplane food or because you would seriously consider cutting off an arm for another plate).

Zeezicht: It’s too bad you can’t legally burn this place down and save people from having to experience this.

ZeeZicht is, without question, the worst restaurant I've ever been to in my life. I asked the waitress what she suggested and she recommended the lobster. Having had a huge excellent lobster two days earlier at another restaurant, I decided to have it again. My girlfriend chose the ZeeZicht Special II - a variety of different fish - something like a sampler. The lobster was tiny, served with two wedges of iceberg lettuce and a slice of tomato. $35. Don’t believe me? I’ve got a picture. The tail was, quite literally, a single bite. When I mentioned it the waitress said "Well it's not the season for lobster". Then why recommend it? And anyway, I had a lobster the size of Captain Don’s ego (if you don’t get it, just go visit his “museum” or “shrine to the lord himself”) two nights earlier, so that was a crock of !@#!. Have you ever spent any time in a federal penitentiary? Me neither. Apparently, the owners of ZeeZicht must have. Have you guessed what my girlfriend was served on? That’s right ladies – the legendary classic, romantic, one of the kind, stainless steel prison style tray complete with various “grooves” for exotic food items. I honestly expected to see a local prison stamp on it or something. See the picture here. The spectacularly presented $23 sampler she included on the menu "Fish, Shrimp, Crabmeat and Squid in a curry sauce." The crabmeat may have died by eating the sauce it was placed in, I’m not sure. The squid was pretty bad, the fish was very oily. Ok I’ll be fair - the shrimp was supposedly good. I wouldn't know it though, because she only got ONE shrimp. Have you ever been served one shrimp with a fish platter? It was nicely placed in a square indentation on the prison issued tray that looked like it might be for “Jello”. $70 dollars total. Stay away at all costs. If you must come here, I suggest you get a ladle of hard acholohic beverages, drink them and then proceed to complete a deep dive to the WindJammer on an empty tank. If you are lucky, you might cause permanent brain and tissue damage that will allow you to eat here without remembering it later. The locals say this place used to be excellent but has gone way downhill - they are right. Whoever it was that suggested this place - put down that crack pipe, go bang your head against a wall and then go have your head examined.

Lions Den: 5 stars, $$$$$

Lions Den Tuesday Night Lobster special - not cheap, $106 including two orders of lobster, lobster bisque, two pina colada's and a crabmeat appetizer. The food, while not cheap, was excellent and the lobster was huge. Served nicely with several shrimp on top and a side of fries it will fill you up. On our final nite we had the special pasta bowl including pasta mixed with grouper, shrimp and lobster mixed with a puttanesca sauce (not exactly a real puttanesca, but thats what they call it). I believe it was about $30 - and was very good. Comes with a choice of soup or salad. The Cajun calamari are surprisingly light for being fried and were very soft - clearly relatively fresh. The service was also easily the best we had on the island. One note: They add tip automatically to the bill but they seem to only add 7.5%. The view of the ocean is also great here. Reservations on Tuesday suggested – In short, I highly recommend this place despite the relatively steep prices.

It Rains Fishes: 3.5 stars, $$$$

Good food, but somewhat heavy. Be sure to ask about the sauces before you order - some are very thick and heavy. The shrimp termidor (I'm not sure it was supposed to be called thermidor or not, but it's listed as termidor) is very good but covered in oils, sauces, cheese and other items that remove much of the "flavour of the sea". They could have probably substituted one of the stray dogs on the island for the shrimp and I wouldn’t have known it. Not a light meal, but a good meal.

Rum Runners: 2 stars, $$$

The service here was the worst. It was not uncommon for me to have to get up and get our own menu's, or remind the staff that I wanted to order. Often I had to go get my own water. Forget waiting for the bill - they won't bring it unless you get up and walk over to them to ask for it. I’m convinced some of the staff would be diagnosed as catatonic.
Don’t try anything complicated on them either – for example, don’t change from paying cash to charging. The over exertion of a firing of one of the neurons left in their brains might cause them to keel over and die. Jokes aside, the service was pretty abysmal.

The food, somewhat made up for it. The anchovy Caesar salad ($4 I think) is a good choice for a light lunch (if you like anchovies of course). The pizza (served 3-10pm, and it's the only thing served from 3pm to 5pm by the way) is far too greasy. I might seem like a health nut since I keep harping on this kind of thing (I'm not), but take it from an Italian who hand makes his own dough and pizza - this is not particularly good stuff. It's better than Dominos (not that that's saying much), but don't expect to be blown away.

If you are staying at Captain Don's, don't expect too much from the all inclusive breakfast. It never changes - all week it's the same set of food. It's good for two days and then you begin to long something – anything different- a bacon and pig ear dog treat or a grilled Goodyear tire sauted in diesel fuel. The omelets are pretty tasty – and made to order. If you stay at Captain Don’s and eat out every other day, I’d say expect to spend roughly $300-$600 on food and drinks at Rum Runners and the Deco Bar for two during a one week stay.

The Lost Penguin: 2.5 stars, $

A good solid choice for a quick lunch - and the only place I could find that didn't have a heavily reduced menu at 3pm in the afternoon. The fish sandwich was, I think, $6, and was pretty tasty served with some kind of dill sauce (on the side - smart). Lunch for two can easily come in under $20. This won’t be “write home about” food, but you will be fed.

In general, on dining:

I had two general complaints about food on the island - 1) I found it difficult to find fish that was not somehow drowned in some overpowering sauce and 2) service quality varied significantly – not always inversely with price, but sometimes. Don't be surprised if you get handed a menu and no one cares to tell you what the "fish of the day" is, or the "soup of the day". At Richards, we were brought to our table, put in front of a hand written menu on a chalk board which was mostly smudged and illegible and left to our own accord though most of the dishes were labeled "Fish Mix" or "Catch of the Day", "Seafood Grill" - not exactly clear. After waiting a while for someone to come back we just left.

The Diving on Bonaire

Depending on what you are looking for, the diving is either the worst you've ever run into or the best you've ever run into. Bonaire is most definitely not the place for any kind of pelagic life - turtles, dolphins, sharks, big grouper - forget it. It is also not the place for great vis. I'd say the vis ranged from 40-60ft. If, however, your goal in life is to photograph a juvenile spotted drum, Bonaire will grant you your wish. Eels, Frog Fish, Spotted Drums, cleaner shrimp are all very common. The coral is in good to great condition on most sites. The Town Pier is an excellent dive which I STRONGLY recommend as a day dive or twilight dive. I think it’s a fun and unique dive. During the day it's very easy to find the various frog fish and the sea horse that has been in the same spot for ages. As a night dive, the pylons are amazing - bursting with colors. However I really don't suggest the night dive for any new diver - at least not without doing the day dive first. The pier can be very disorienting at night and it's easy to loose your sense of direction. Mix this in with the fact that the night dive is popular - and it's not out of the question to have numerous other dive groups in the water at the same time and it can be very easy to end up following the wrong group. Finally, do the night dive as a twilight dive. Get in the water around 7.15 or 7.30 - by the time you get out it will have turned dark and you will see 30 other divers getting ready to silt up the whole place. On my night dive on the way back in, I ran into a group of roughly 20 divers. The divers were busy kicking each other in the face, knocking one another into pylons, investigating the physics of “silt out”, pushing each other out of the way and helpfully shining their UK 1000 dive lights into each other's faces to see if their buddy was the one holding the fire worm or the one poking the scorpion fish. I’m still not sure if someone provided some kind of psychoactive pharmacopoeia to a bunch of mildly retarded epileptic monkeys causing their synapses to fire at random and then threw them into the town pier as part of some demented experiment. We may never know, but hopefully the people at ZeeZicht were beaten over the head with a prison tray until they participated. In other words – do the dive early or do it late. Don’t come at 8 or 9.

Town pier closing rumours - Ok, yes, it's closing July 1st. Sort of. From what I've heard it will still be possible to dive the town pier but permission will be more stringent requiring copies of passports and a minimum of a week's notice. So if you are coming down to Bonaire anytime after July 1st, I would suggest contacting your shop early.

We managed five boat dives, most out to Klein – the reef out there is nice but not particularly better than the reef on Bonaire itself. I would suggest removing boat dives from any included packages and maybe doing a single tank ($30 or so bucks) to Klein if you really want to.

We managed to get in a total of 15 dives - it would have been more but my last dive to Pink Beach resulted in a nasty reverse squeeze issue that caused me to have to cut diving out one day earlier than planned. All in all, we found that it is possible to dive Bonaire well without any rental car – there are enough people around (all quite friendly mind you) that are more than happy to let you dive with them. It means you can’t dictate dive sites, but you do end up saving a couple hundred dollars. You do however have some shopping that seems decent – at least in the “low” season. 3 baseball hats for $20, a Citizen Dive Watch for $472 (which, I hear, is a good deal) – but you can easily do the town center in a single afternoon.

The Accommodations on Bonaire - Captain Dons & Maduro Review

I will say up front that places like Captain Don’s or Anthony’s Key Resort – anything with the word “resort”, “hotel”, “all-inclusive” are usually not my cup of tea. I’m the kind of person who usually rents a house somewhere and just makes my way around on my own. In this case, it was a bit last minute so we just booked with Don’s (Usually I’ll spend countless hours researching an island, then location, map out dive sites, dive shops, -- etc before I settle on a villa)

That having been said, Captain Don’s was pleasant, even if somewhat more “commercial” than what we are used to. It certainly helped that the resort was near dead (I’d venture maybe 15-20 guests total). It didn’t really feel like a “resort” when it was this quiet. The day we left (@ the start of the festival) the atmosphere had changed significantly – 30 or 35 people at breakfast all banging heads at the counter trying to reach the “sausage” or “bacon” (quotation marks required I think), several screaming children convinced that feeding the cats is a *grand* idea, the occasional adult who thinks pigeons and dining tables result in some kind of symbiotic love dance when joined together, one lady who dressed like she might belong on a street corner, – it *felt* like a resort then. Come during a slow week – you won’t regret it.

The accommodations at Captain Don's are comfortable and clean. The dive lockers are convenient and big enough for two sets of gear (bring a lock or you got to buy one). The general layout for gear, rinsing, access to the reef and boats is all well laid out. There is a rope that descends to roughly 130 ft on the house reef - making it very easy to find your way back.

The dive boats are comfortable. The staff quality, as in most places, varies. Rob and the photo shop guy (Wilco) were fabulous. They helped me with a console problem and adjusted my girlfriends regulator twice - all with a smile and a friendly helpful attitude. Wilco looks like the blond guy from that chopper show on TLC or Discovery. Some of the other guys did a few things that irritated me and some of other divers - things such as dropping your camera into the ocean rather than handing it to you carefully, being rather careless with people's regulators (so I heard, but did not experience) when coming in from a dive -- things like that. In once case I asked where we were diving and I was told "The ocean". I laughed and said, "No really, where we going?" the response - "DMC - Don't Mess With The Crew". I asked again but I guess the guy didn't hear me. Maybe he was one of those epileptic monkeys from the town pier. Problem was - they went to a site 50 ft from the one they did during the previous boat dive. Had the guy answered me properly instead of trying to be cute when I had asked, I wouldn't have used a boat dive to go there. That having been said, the crew on this second trip was not the crew from the first, so they couldn’t have known.

One tip: Maduro doesn't seem to know much about Captain Don's (I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt on this one) - I specifically requested a room with a good ocean view - they pitched me an upgraded Villa Suite (or something like that) that cost $300 more. The pitch was that this was the room I needed to get if I wanted a nice ocean view. In the end, the rooms on that side (all upgraded villa suite's or whatever they are called) have SOME view of the ocean and mostly a view of the pool and restaurant area. The cheaper rooms are not only closer to the dive lockers/photo shop/etc but have an unobstructed view of the ocean that easily put my view to shame. If your primary interest is in a place to sleep with a good view, don't get the upgraded room. The upgraded room had a worse view and a tv/phone (which I could care less about).

Another little trick - if you rent a car, pick it up at the airport and return it the day before you depart (Why pay for the extra day when your flight is probably in the morning or early afternoon?). Your maduro package includes two airport transfers - you can use one to get back from the airport after dropping the rental car back off the day before your departing flight and one to get to the airport the day of your departing flight. Another interesting nuggest: First class upgrades from Bonaire to Montego Bay on Air Jamaica are $80 - depending on how much you don't feel like flying that can be a nice touch. For you Chicago people, Air Jamaica flies A320's to Montego Bay - meaning if you want an exit row seat, request either 11 A-F or 12 A-F.

Overall, I thought Bonaire was an excellent dive trip for someone looking to primarily dive and is interested in macro life. If your goal is something of similar dive difficulty but more well rounded (beaches, shopping, night life) or you have zero interest in macro life, I would suggest Roatan, Honduras instead.

For the record, all pictures shot with a Olympus C5050Z with PT-015 housing. Some shot with YS-90DX strobe, most without.

http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=BestPicturesBonaire

very good trip report....

I expect that many will appreciate your defining the perspective of your opinions. Many of us tend to report how great it is without realizing others may be looking for something different. And thanks for sharing your pictures. I especially like the shot of the arrow crab. I can not see the level of detail in real life, uw, that I can see in your picture!

And good idea/trick regarding car rental.

I can see where you are coming from. We were there 2.5 years ago and not very impressed by food or service, there are some good places though that it looks like you missed in addition to some of the places to avoid.

We are back to Bonaire in 12 days for two weeks!!! This time we made a few adjustments, we are staying at Belmar and planning on doing quite a bit of cooking and eating out only a few meals (much of this is also because we now have a 15 month old).

I have 500+ dives, in Hawaii, various Carribean spots, and perhaps the best of all California. While Boniare does not have a lot of pellagics, I can't really think of anywhwere else in the Carribean I would rather go. What I love about Bonaire is that you are on your own with diving, I hate diving in groups herded along with a DM. We have had some of our best dives ever at Bonaire, particually at the outer reef of the two reef system we were enveloped by large school of bait fish that were getting chased by schools of jacks on several occassions.

I also like the fact the Bonaire is not just another overrun tourist location with the same chains you see all over the place here. It is a very unique destination, I just hope it does not change much.

Just in case it wasn't clear, I really enjoyed Bonaire but I read so many raving reviews of restaurants and dive sites that I wanted to be more balanced. In re-reading my review, I realize it kind of comes off as if I didn't really enjoy myself - I did - and some of the dives I did were truly spectacular. I stand by my recommendation though - if you are a photographer in search of macro life Bonaire is likely the #1 place in the world. If you are looking for a more "well rounded" vacation, Roatan is a much better choice.

Cosimo,
I could not disagree with you more about Roatan.
What the heck is a 'well-rounded' vacation? Where do (did) you stay in Roatan and what about your stay qualified it as a 'well-rounded' vacation?

I must put a plug in for ZeeZicht resturant..it is always our favorite place for sunset and hamburger platter...I don't belive Bonaire is known for it's lobster anyway...go to Maine for that!

Thank-you for your report and information! Wonderful photos!

Interesting and humorous report. Never found the island dining to be great either. Wish it would at least be consistent. Russian roulette at $35 a plate. Go cheap and expect to get hosed. It always seems tolerable that way. God where's my zoloft. I'm have PBD...Again!!!

Thx 4 sharing your trip with us! Nice photo's on your site as well.
I do agree with u on ZeeZicht, we ate there in may 4 the first time and let's just say that was the last time!

Ate at ZeeZicht in February. The filet was so-so but the sides were excellent. A bit pricey for the quality but had the best service on the island there.

HI- Thanks for a great report! Photos were excellant! We were there June 2-6th stayed at Harbor Village- only 14 people there! Had the place to ourselves!
Casablanca was fab! Went 2 times!
Lesa Z

Cosimo,
Thanks for your report and great photos. I agree with you on most of your observations. And what a treat to have Capt. Don's mostly to yourself. This past April, we felt like we had a private resort our first week. 'Course our teenage girls had a different opinion. HA! We totally agree on you regarding Rum Runners. We've never purchased the breakfast package and only eat there when we're too worn out to go anywhere else...and we usually leave the restaurant frustrated! I didn't agree about Rob - a dive master. I observed him being totally rude to guests and it got to where I didn't go on any boat he was on. Wilco has always been very helpful. Bonaire, in general, is a very relaxed place to be. I love spending time with the fish varieties. We also highly recommend Capt. Don's cottages...no ocean view...but reasonably private, lush garden areas and full kitchen for breakfast and snacks.
Glad you clarified that you DID enjoy Bonaire...it's all on what the traveler is looking for!

Isn't interesting how different people have different reactions to the various dive masters. When we were discussing how to tip the dm's with a couple who had gone on many boat dives with us at the Divi we found that we had tipped totally opposite; we had tipped higher for 2 of the dm's and less for the other 2. And the other couple had tipped higher for the 2 we tipped lower, etc...

Discussing why showed how different our perceptions were and yet we were on the same dives together...... For each of us differing services and interactions were important.

Interesting report - I really have a good time reading these trip reports - Thanks! Totally agree on Zeezicht. Your right - Bonaire is Macro Heaven; excellent for underwater photography. I especially appreciate the suggestion on Roatan;(well, I mean, for everyone but my wife and I of course - us being hopeless Bonaire addicts and all).

Cosimo, too bad you feel that insulting Captain Don is somehow a useful addition to your dining review. It makes me take what you've written with a bushel of Bonairian salt.

I didn't get the impression he insulted Captain
Don, I thought his review was on the resort itself?

Carl

If you re-read the ZeeZicht review, try lines 4 and 5 about egos and shrines

Oh man! I hadn't had such a good chuckle in a long time! I have to say this is one the most objective reports I've ever read, but that does not detract from the jocularity of the reading. It is really well put together. You can actually feel Cosimo's range of emotions. He did not spare any sacred cows! It was refreshing to have someone bringing the darker aspect of Captain Don (instead of the repetitive "The Great" "The Legend" etc) I don't think that was an insult to captain Don, but rather humanizes him more. After all, he is simply human. Needless to say that in no way this diminishes what he accomplished. On my part I have to say that my wife and I were happy with the Dining in Bonaire, though the only place we have in common is Zee-Zitch, which that night was decent and the only thing that bugged me was a pesky cat begging for morsels. The rest of the places (Rendez-vous, Monalisa, Casa Blanca, and the Tipsy Seagull) were VERY enjoyable. I guess is a matter of luck. Thank you very much for taking the time to put together an awesome report and great pictures. Coach Izzy

Re the captain don ego thing -

It was mostly an attempt at humour when I made fun of captain don's ego . I don't doubt the guy is a 'stand up fella' and I'm sure he's contributed a ton to the islands growth and development. My joke was based on the fact that the "Diving museum" is really just a collection of awards, plaques, articles and the like about captain don. Even the rum runners menu says something along the lines of "This isn't really like it was, these guys haven't drank vodka from a tin can like I used to and haven't tried my famous pasta, but I hope you like the modern captain dons". Don't take the joke too seriously.

As for Roatan -

There are a few reasons why I felt that Roatan, overall, offered a more well rounded vacation trip. I don't think anyone would disagree with me that Bonaire doesn't offer any particularly spectacular topside topography - lots of half dead shrubs, pools of still water, etc. Roatan, while certainly not thialandesque in it's topography offers a much more lush and varied top side. There is even a rain forest.

From an "island feeling" perspective, Bonaire doesn't seem to have too much flair or real "local" feeling. The KFC is probably the worst example of this. Roatan has numerous friendly locals that add a little pizzaz to the island - the water taxi's for example, or the woman on west bay beach who sells (delicious) empanadas for 10 lempira every day. We cleaned her out more than once. These are, admittely, small things, but they make the island truly feel like a lost tropical land left behind by the modern world. The fact that tv and phones are all but nonexistant also doesn't hurt.

Roatan also (while by no means underdeveloped) still has an old centre which has failed to escape the grasps of poverty. While this is not something to "enjoy", it certainly provides a sobering and though provoking look at life on the other side of the fence. Roatan is also littered with quaint small shops selling a variety of hand made items. Bonaire seemed to lack that - most of the shops seemed to sell mass produced hats, t-shirts or citizen watches. There are also numerous fishing villages in Roatan that can be interesting to visit.

Of course, one of the primary differences is that Roatan has some pretty amazing beaches - namely west bay beach. Hopefully, anyone going to Bonaire knows that beaches are scarse.

The night life in Bonaire left a little to be desired. Roatan is no playa del carmen (thank goodness), but West End has numerous beach front restaurants and bars serving up local brews along a bustling street filled with a melange of people walking to the beat of music coming from the next place down. It makes for a fun upbeat atmosphere.

The dining in Roatan is also much better - but I know I sort of missed some spots on Bonaire. I actually can't recall having a single bad meal in the 2 months I stayed in Roatan back in 2002.

These small things - the water taxi's, the better food, the lady selling empanadas on the corner, the quaint fishing villages and old town centre, the lack of phones or tv (and lack of a KFC), the varied topography and the spectacular beaches - in my view, offer a more "well rounded" island experience. For the person looking for something more than just a routine of wake up, dive, breakfast, dive, lunch, dive, nap, dive, dinner, sleep, Roatan is a good choice.

However, Roatan does also have its own downfalls. Cruise ships come by on Tuesdays and Sundays - virtually turning West Bay into disneyland. Macro life is all but nonexistant on the island (i saw two juvenile drums the whole time I was there), the coral reef has been damaged badly by hurricane's and is not even remotely close to as healthy as in Bonaire, shore diving is essentially non-existant and much of the diving is deeper than in Bonaire.

Bonaire's flexibility in diving schedules, outstanding reef health and abundant photo opportunities for even the most incapable certainly give it an upper hand when it comes to diving. Town pier, in particular (as I've already mentioned) is spectacular.

In the end I suppose it's difficult to compare the two - they are truly different destinations.

By the way, I appreciate the kind comments on the review. Thanks everyone - and don't anyone get me wrong - Bonaire is a fabulous place to go diving!

Thanks for your trip report--and for defending it well. From one visitor to both Roatan and Bonaire totaling about 15 trips.

I've added most of my pictures from Bonaire to the site. You can see all of them here:

http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=Bonaire2004

I've also added voting capability to the "Best Pictures" category.

Nice pics cosimo.
A very good way of sharing this way.

Cosimo, I truly enjoyed reading your trip report and your comparison to Roatan. I haven't been to Roatan yet, but it's "on my list". You have a flair for writing and it made for interesting reading. Pictures were great too.

Kelly

Cosimo
We agree on the fact that the Lions Den is the place to dine. We have made 10 trips to Bonaire and three trips to Roatan and pretty much agree with your opinion. The great shore diving which I consider total diving freedom is what keeps us returning to Bonaire year after year.

James

Great Report! Having been to Roatan and awaiting
my trip to Bonaire (c'mon July 9th!) I found it very interesting to say the least. I too, prefer
a little local flavor and tend to stray from the touristy spots.
Looking forward to drawing my own opinion!
The diving freedom and shore diving is what drew me in the first place-I hate diving with a large group and being babysat by the DMs!
Why does time come to a standstill when you are awaiting a nice trip..?

Hey there Cosimo. I was at Capt. Don's the same time you were; in fact I was on the "Hands Off" dive. My wife and I spoke w/ you and your girlfriend a couple of times.

Overall I had a wonderful time in Bonaire, but I gotta agree with you regarding the boat crew on that "Hands Off" dive. In fact you may have been a little generous in your description. Those two guys were major jerks. I think that's the only boat dive I've ever done where I didn't leave at least a little consideration for the crew.

Besides that I think your review was pretty fair and I agree w/ most of it. One thing I did notice was that overall, most of the folks on Bonaire seemed very friendly. Maybe I'm biased because I've spent a lot of time in the USVI's, but by way of comparison, I was very impressed with the people of the island.

Here's something interesting - a list of some domains that have visited the pictures...

It's interesting (at least to me) to see these thousands of different places around the world people live and work and think that we are all (not to get too sappy here) share the common bond of diving. Lots of schools below and a few big fortune 500's too.

ncspearson.com
lyondell.com
mcri.com
monitor.com
commercebank.com
caremark.com
statefarm.com
cisco.com
usc.edu
nih.gov
jhuapl.edu
uiowa.edu
utexas.edu
northwestern.edu
iastate.edu
McMaster.CA
clemson.edu
abbott.com
uic.edu
nevada.edu
NoDak.edu
army.mil (the army!)
ford.com
okstate.edu
stthomas.edu
dell.com
chevrontexaco.com
gov.bc.ca
rti.org
ucdavis.edu
columbia.edu
bloomberg.com
state.nj.us
jhmi.edu
redcross.org
factset.com
bankofamerica.com
lucent.com
citicorp.com
britishmidland.com
novartis.com
tiscali.nl
saic.com
ericy.com
ceco.com
norwest.com
amershambiosciences.com
telbonetISP-165telbonet.an ( .an!)
capitalone.com
state.tx.us
canvas.ne.jp (japan!)
aaa-autoclubgroup.com
banklife.com
bristolbabcock.com
cityofpalmdale.org
mcleodusa.net
sprint.com
wmbpumps.com
kmart.com
conti.com
uscourts.gov
sierradesign.com

What a wide range of hits! The tax man is not after you, is he, Cosimo??!! LOL. Very interesting lot of folks. Carole

Took me a while, but as promised, here is ZeeZicht - The $23 prison tray (shrimp was in top right hand groove):

http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album07&id=zeezicht

Photo of the lobster:

http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album07&id=zeezicht2

On a more general level, you can find some new top side photos here:

http://66.92.128.100/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=album07

My goodness!!
that's really very small for that price.
Looks more like a appetizer.

I'm glad that you rectified the opinion you gave me on the report you wrote.
This food might have biased the rest of yr story a bit :-)

The prison tray is not fancy. For me that wld have been OK if the food was good.
I ate next door to Gibi from a plastic takeaway dish with a plastic fork and no knife.
A big chunk of fish accompanied with freshly made baked potatoes. Tasted excellent and I had to pay NAF 10. That's price /quality!

I would imagine the tray is being used to spare the washing of several separate dishes each type food would have required.....make sense? I, personally, cannot eat off a metal tray...not even in the fancy steak type places...metal on metal is not my bag...likened to running one's fingernails down the chalk blackboard (do they still make them?! LOL). I wouldn't have been able to eat it even if it were decent food.

The photos do kind of say it all, Cosimo! Not very appetizing the way it is served in the tray and it looks a little "sloppy" i.e. like "slop" . That's a shame as there have been many, many good reviews from ZeeZicht. Joe and I did eat there on our first trip years ago but I do not recall how it was......Carole

_______________________________________________
Roatan also (while by no means underdeveloped) still has an old centre which has failed to escape the grasps of poverty. While this is not something to "enjoy", it certainly provides a sobering and thought provoking look at life on the other side of the fence.
_______________________________________________

Where do you live? Monaco?

Hi cosimo,

I enjoyed your report and pics.
as a bit of practice for myself I photoshopped your pic of the trunkfish, the one where you wished to have had a strobe
I think it worked out great, i'll try to upload it here
I am in no way a techie or a nerd, i did this by using a technique i found on the net, here is the link
http://pt010.da-kine.info/adjustments.htm
although this page says photoshop 7.0 it works just as well with photoshop elements 2.0

image{photoshopped image of the trunkfish}

2nd try, told you i wasn't a nerd :-)
image\

image{trunkfish}

\image

to see the difference, here is the original

I will give it a try.
The trunkfish looks really good to me.
The background looks very white.
It looks as if the picture was taken is Aspen :-)

When you go "one step back" in the link, you'll find some interesting stuff about u/w photography as well.
For me was very useful how to eliminate red eyes in photoshop. Most of the programs can do that automatically, but not the photoshop (7.0) that I have

Cosimo, while you were dining out in your $$$$$ restaurants, how many local residents did you see at the tables next to you? If you need to see a lack of "progress" to give you a "tropical feel," please also consider the residents of that place (who don't go away on expensive vacations), who may want to be rid of poverty, have paved roads, tv & phones, and have affordable places to take their families for a treat. Our lack of poverty, filth, and begging is something I love about Bonaire (this is my 14th year as a resident). No one unwillingly lives in a shack, without utilities, or goes to bed hungry at night.

My customers (I am the KFC franchisee, of one of the smallest KFC's in the world) are probably 90% local. At the end of every month (payday--most locals are paid once/month here), we are swamped with local families treating themselves to a favorite & affordable meal out, where they can people-watch, meet up with friends & enjoy the local music from Karel's Beach Bar. While we don't have poverty, our average income is probably in the $800-$1,000/month range. Are these people not allowed to have an affordable place to eat out so you can be charmed by them? Do you think that any of them would spend $100 on dinner? At any given time, I employ about a dozen single mothers, and give them the chance to learn skills which they missed when they were 15 & pregnant & not in school (reading comprehension, counting, manners, self-esteem & self confidence at being self-sufficient). I send anyone who wants to go to night classes. Everyone who works for me has the equal chance to advance. One of my supervisors started 10 years ago as kitchen help (the entry level job). Before that, in 1994, she had been "head of housekeeping" at a now defunct resort, and had been making about $500/month. Now she makes well over the average income, and earned it all herself.

There are probably about 50 locally owned & run "snacks" (places where you can get beer, fish, soup, fries, goat stew, fried chicken, etc) about the island, some as "fancy" (but most not), as Rose Inn in Rincon, Antriol Catering, Giby's or Maiky Snack, which it seems you didn't attempt to find. KFC is celebrating its 10th year here, and would not be able to do so unless we were desired by the local population. Your words about us were unkind and uncalled for.

Great job on the photoshop pic - Nicely retouched. As for KFC - I think you missed my point but im too lazy/tired to explain. I don't doubt you provide a valuable service to the island by employing locals. Nor do I think that poverty = tropical.

Cosimo,

Ruth sound like a serious employer who felt hurt my a remark you made.
When I read yr posting I get the impression you did not mean it the way Ruth has taken it.
Your post #41 does not do her justice. I think she deserves a more meaningful answer then "I'm to lazy/tired". If you really are that tired, maybe you should have waited posting till tomorrow

My two cents - I also don't think it was read as intended. I also had the same impression years ago - when you first visit Bonaire, you see no traffic lights, no chain resorts, no golf courses, so it leaves you with a feeling that this is not Aruba or Curacao or some Americanized paradise. But then you see KFC and Subway, and it
brings you back to the USA. Had I written those words, my intention would be that Ruth's food would be just as good, and her contributions to the island just as important, had it been called Ruth's Chicken House. Same applies for Subway, had it been called Carib Sub Shop it would be the same food and same staff, but not the American influence some of us dread. Some of us go to Bonaire to forget about America, even if it's just for a week a year. I dread more US influences on that beautiful island in the future, but I'm afraid it will be unavoidable.

Again, Ruth, nothing against your restaurant - eaten there, no complaints - but I think the comments were meant about the US corporate influence and certainly not towards you, your staff or your food. And I would have argued that
maybe you chose KFC to attract US/Dutch tourists, but if your clientele is 90% locals, that kills that theory. :-)

Carl

Very well said Carl. I assumed that Cosimo meant it the same way.

I doubt very much that you are going to have to worry about McDonalds or Burger King popping up on Bonaire. Neither Subway nor KFC are recent additions to Bonaire. They were both here 8+ years ago since I've been here and nothing has been talked about or added since. 11K residents don't add up to enough traffic for the chains.

Let's hope it stays that way :-)

We have been to Bonaire 2 times in the last 8 months...in October of 2003 and again in March 2004. We absolutely love Bonaire!!! We just returned from a trip to Nassau, Bahamas and it made us REALLY appreciate Bonaire. We Saw sharks, huge Nassau Groupers, and many ship wrecks, but nothing compares to the beautiful reefs and the wonderful, sweet fishes of Bonaire. All of the dives were boat dives (can you imagine :-))with no fewer than 10 people on the boat. Needless to say, Bill and I were the first in the water and the last back on the boat. We go on diving trips to ...DIVE. I have only 100 or so dives under my weight belt, but Bill has 47 YEARS of diving under his weight belt...(when asked how may dives he has done, he started calculating his dives and now he is up to 337 and he is only to year 1961)and we love the freedom of Bonaire as well as the beauty. Beaches..Bonaire has beautiful beaches!!! How many places can you "off gas" by sitting on the back of your pickup truck with the one you love, eat wonderful Kentucky Fried Chicken, dutch cookies, Gouda cheese and baguettes, drink rum and coke, and talk about the beautiful dive you have just had!!!!! The beautiful water is right in front of you and you are soaking up the wonderful sun!!! Now, check your computer... is it time to do another wonderful dive!!!!! Night dives at Buddies is another great thing!!! Have you ever performed a giant stride or walked down a nice ladder into the water to be greeted by a sweet puffer fish...going from person to person with the sweet "puffer grin" on her/his face (kinda like the Wal Mart greeter) and then you are just 30 feet from shore and you see a Spotted Eagle Ray feeding. Then you are out a little further and you see "Charle"...what a guy. He has put on a little weight...he is huge!!! We have seen soooooo much there at night dives and dusk dives. Well anyway, I could talk forever about our Bonaire!!!!! There are plenty of great places to eat....Donna and Georgios, after a dive on the North reefs... Rose Inn, Pizza Bon Bini (I think this is the name)and BobbeJan's Take Outs. These are our favorites!!!! Well, anyway...we go to Bonaire to DIVE and have a wonderful non-tourist dive vacation!!!!! Have a wonderful dive vacation.

Ok let me explain -

Its not that I have any particular problem with KFC per se. I don't. The issue for me is more one "americanization". So many places you go to these days have been "cancunified" and are filled with McDonalds, Sheratons, Hiltons, KFC's, Subways, Starbucks, etc. When I travel half a day on a plane to get somewhere that most people have never heard of I don't want to feel like I might as well have gone to Tampa, FL.

(Before you Tampa folks take offense - I would move to Tampa - or anywhere in florida for that matter - in a heartbeat if given the opportunity - its just that in Tampa I expect to see those things).

I appreciate the need for growth on an island and I'm sure that KFC/Subway have provided employment for many locals that otherwise would probably not be able to make ends meet.

At the risk of sounding like some kind of anti-american militant psycho, I really feel that the globalization of America detracts and slowly erodes unique cultures around the world. That's why I'm saddened when I see Fortune 500 conglomerates scattered around an island where they stick out like sore thumbs.

Whether or not one admits it, diving and traveling to these places is a form of escapism -of daydreaming of a different life. For some maybe it's just about leaving the "corporate rat race" or the "hustle and bustle of the big city" or maybe the commercial feel of where they live. Maybe its about leaving the kids behind, or the dog, or maybe its not about any of that. But for most of us - whatever the specifics are - its about "Leaving it all behind". To me, this includes leaving "corporate america" behind too.

In essence, Carl hit the nail on the head. While I was in Roatan there was a place called Bojangles (which I liked but gave one of our group "the bojangles"). It was basically a McDonalds, but with a local twist. There was no denying that the business model was clearly borrowed from American fast food joints, but instead of offering a "A chicken leg, biscuit and a coke" they had something a bit more local on the menu - "Cajun chicken sandwich with plantain" or something similar. Despite having the mcdonalish feel to it, the owner clearly wanted to sprinkle a little local flavour into the place.

In any case, my comments were not about Ruth or KFC's food or service. My apologies to whomever I offended.

Wow Cosimo,
Chapeau!!

As in a hat?

Donna, it's wonderful to read that you enjoy Bonaire so much. 47 yrs of diving! Talking about an early adaptor.

(Message edited by bpsmits on June 12, 2004)

Yeah, like taking a hat off :-)

Thank you to all who stood up for me, but still, when I read that line: "From an "island feeling" perspective, Bonaire doesn't seem to have too much flair or real "local" feeling. The KFC is probably the worst example of this"...hmm, I dunno, hard to put my finger exactly on it, but for some reason, I do find it demeaning & insulting, both to KFC and even more so to Bonaire. I too have traveled extensively-I solo-journeyed around the world (got certified on the Great Barrier Reef), and later spent five years working for Caribbean Travel and Life Magazine. I could've chosen to live anywhere in the world, but in 1990 I chose Bonaire, because of its wonderful people, relaxed small-town feel, great year-round weather, lack of poverty, violent crime & pollution...well, you get the idea. And I chose to become a KFC franchisee, because it was a well-known brand, a good product, and much loved in Curacao & Aruba already--by the local populations. Also because I was here long enough before opening to see KFC imitators fail (Subway imitators too, for that matter). There are now 1,000 KFC's in China--and they were not put there for the American tourists, but for the local populations. There I just hope the "C" remains standing for Chicken...

I have to agree that Cosimo's intentions were misunderstood. Heck, that's one of the downsides of the online forums. Without a facial expression to frame them, or a voice to accentuate the varieties of emotions, words can take on several different meanings depending on the reader and his/her mood. I don't think Ruthi mentioned that she's the head-honcho for Mangos at the Sand$, which is place very much appreciated by anyone who needs escape and relaxation, and certainly not a franchise. Ruth is after all a smart business woman looking to make a living and mentioning one her means of earning a living with the adjective of "worst" could not have been a good choice of words. Kudos to Cosimo for Apologizing. I also have to second the sentiments of everyone when it comes to the influence of American Corporations when it comes to places we go to forget them. I don't think a KFC and a Subway pose much of a threat. They are so easy to avoid and if you don't even want mention of them, take a quick ride to Rincon. The town is flooded with local feeling and the warmth of their people. Now if they were to open an American Franchise there (ie, McFatso, Cholesterol King, etc) THEN I would worry, but not even much since I would simply skip them. I would REALLY start to worry when people start mentioning these dreadful, paradise-destroying, stupid-annoying-lazy-tourist-magnet franchises:

Hollywood Planet
Hard Rock Cafe
Rainforest Cafe
Senor Frogs (several have polluted South America)
Any major hotel chain
ANY type of golf course
ANY type of shopping mall

Keeping my fingers crossed such day never arrives.

Coach Izzy

Boy, how did I miss this ending...I'm with Ruth here, she has explained why she opened the KFC, their clientele, etc...and it had nothing do do with attracting American tourists...Cosimo you failed to mention Whataburer, of which is a great place to get a meal in the afternoon when all of the restaurants are closed...KFC and Subway are open in the afternoons as well...and when you are hungry, and everything is closed until dinner, I say it's wonderful! AND, for me, I know what I am going to get.

You say you didn't find the local flair, color, etc...you must not have been hanging out at the right places...or had the right attitude as far as I'm concerned...on my trips to Bonaire, I have had nothing but wonderful experiences with locals...in fact, it makes going other places difficult now because they all seem to crowded and commercialized and unfriendly! There are plenty of outdoor BBQ places etc. to get the "island experience." Bonaire isn't tropical, and I'm not a big desert fan, but all of the other wonderful things Bonaire has to offer make up for the desert/cactus in my book by far.

Oh, did you go to the donkey sanctuary and see the donkeys and Marina? Did you drive through Rincon? Did you visit Lac Bay and Sorobon? did you go to the local Sunday night party at Lac Cai? Those are just a few more "local island" experiences that you may have missed...

Just expressing my "opinion" here as everyone else has done...

I loved hearing from you all about Bonaire. Maybe to much reading of "personal attacks" feelings being generated and justifications and/or apologies being made. Anyway, to hear from the heart and your honest prospective of Bonaire is welcoming. I am planning my first trip to Bonaire on September 13th, 2004. I will be by myself and looking to buddy up with someone who may be there during that time period. I am staying a week at Captain Don's Habitat. I am PADI Advanced and have only 63 certified dives under my belt. I too, have visited many islands, countries, and dove shallow to deep reefs and wrecks (all with in recreational diving). However, I did go to 144 feet at Palancar Wall Belize, Central America, last month. Anyway, I am most interest in knowing what deep wreck and/or wall dives Bonaire may have. I understand that there are very few of these type dives and if so, they are "boring". It's just what I have heard. I have a 7 day boat dive package scheduled with Captain Don's. I also like to tip my guides MD accordingly. I own a trout fishing resort in Arkansas and I know what it is like for my customers to have a good time and my help (guides) to be paid according to their expertise. Thanks for all the GREAT inside information on Bonaire. Scott

Cosimo

I am a new user to Bonaire Talk. I found your messages both honest and informative. Even though at times I thought Bonaire may have been a mistake to plan my dive vacation (because of your input) I just had to keep reading to understand that we all have our opinions and need to base these opinions on experiences. By the time I read through all the "talk", I was laughing and picturing a wonderful time I will have in Bonaire.
Thanks for the heads-up on restaurants, Dive Masters, and all the other subject matters that magazine advertisers don't want to print.

Cynde

When I travel to the islands, and after my scuba dives, I like to rent a scooter, or any other rental vehicle, and tour the island. I want to see different customs, the way of life, island resident sports, education/schooling of the island's children, church fellowships, etc...
This, in my opinion, is what travelling is all about (understanding cultures). When I am in Bonaire, I'll stop by for a moment to shake your hand, gossip, and have a chicken wing Bonaire Style. Thanks, Scott

Scott,

Yr resort looks real nice. Must be wonderful to operate in such beautiful surrounding.

Scott, make sure you stop by the Donkey Sanctuary and see the work that Marina is doing...there are also a few other no profits that are on Bonaire that are always happy to see donations of clothing, etc...check out www.supportbonaire.org

Also, there is a great outdoor rib place...I can't remember the name of it...I know someone will...ugh...help!

Cheeseman has held his silence as long as he could. I'm a relative newcomer to the bonaire family, (two trips in a year), but I found the island to be an amazing aggregation of influences....many local, some european, some north american, some south american that make Bonaire the kind of place that it is.....a truly enjoyable place. I just hosted a meeting of Mexican and southern Arizona mayors and our keynote speaker spoke about this border region being like "an estuary".....where the meeting of fresh and seawater (or the confluence of cultures) provides for an amazing and wonderful variety of life. To my way of thinking, following this thread, I'm not sure that this description doesn't perfectly fit the Bonaire that so many of us love.....something different to each of us but wonderful in it's own way at the same time. One last thought before Joe returns to the "Sleepland Sofa and Sunday Semi-moving Sanctum Sanctorum". Izzy referred to the list of "globalized businesses" that have polluted so many of our favorite places. I don't even disagree, having traveled the Yucatan before it became Houston south or Key West South or San Diego South or any number of other north American cities transmitted to beautiful caribbean waters, but we need to remember that many of us are relatively adventurous travelers to whom a Cancun or an Ocho Rios or Freeport are way too tame and way too north American for our tastes. However, those chains are there because there is a MARKET FOR THEIR SERVICES....a taste of home away from home for many travellers. I did find it interesting that Senor Frogs is included in this list.........it is a purely Mexico owned and based company that thrives on that north American market. We also need to remember that this globalization has some good affects on each of us, we think nothing of buying costa rican coffee or australian sea food at our grocery store, obviously evidencing the globalization of our market place. I winced when I saw Douewe and Egberts (or however you spell it) Dutch coffee that I had come to love on Bonaire is for sale at Walmart in southern Arizona, but it certainly didn't stop me from buying it...mmmmmmmmmm good. One final (I mean it this time) rant(let) which was just brought home to me by Mexican Mayors over the last couple of days. I do believe that "America" starts just south of the arctic and ends at Tierra Del Fuego....some north, some central and some south, lets us US citizens remember that and respect all the cultures that make it America (all of it) what it is. WHEW, now I'm tired, my coffee (Dutch of course) is cold, the damn dogs have stolen my place on the couch and there aint a damn thing on TV. I wish I was on Bonaire...exactly the way it is....exactly the way it will inevitably change to be (whatever way that is). A snorkel or a dive, a bright (or 12), a conversation with a most friendly local, and an awesome sunset.

SOFA FOR SALE

cheeseit

Cynde,

did you mean Bobbejaan? Great value 4 money. Also for take out.

Ofcourse there's the ribfactory

Yea..the cheeseman speaketh.....and Amen to that!

Scott - you'll have a great time in Bonaire. You got a digital camera to take with ya? If not, get the C5050Z, its discontinued (think $300 vs $600) and works great - even for the total idiot lacking any real photography skills (my pictures prove this).

Cosimo

I don't have an underwater camera yet. I'll look into this as Bonaire seems like a great place to apply some photography skills. I couldn't find an underwater case for the C5050Z but I'll keep looking. Thanks, for the reply. Scott

Hey Scott! Welcome aboard. You will just love Bonaire! The water is just a little clearer than Lake Norfork! We were certified at Lake Norfork several years ago and still go up there several times a year. My husband and boys also fish on the North Fork too! You probably know my brother-in-law, Dick Goldsby. We are planning on a trip your way next weekend.

(Message edited by leighann on June 13, 2004)

Scott, you will LOVE Bonaire!!!! The diving is sooooo sweet!!!!! We will be back in Bonaire July 4 - 14. We are trying to decide which dive to do first!!!! We are going to do some boat dives this time, we have only been doing beach dives, which are great! Has anyone done any early morning dives, like right before dawn? There are great places to eat in Bonaire. This will be our 3rd trip to Bonaire and our favorite places are: Donna and Georgio's, Pizza Bon Bini, Croccantino's (misspelled I think), The Garden Cafe, Bobbejaans Take Outs and Kentucky Fried Chicken...GREAT for a little lunch after a wonderful dive!!!! We saw local people at all of these places and everyone is soooo nice!!! WE absolutely love night dives at Buddy's!!!! You will have a great time!!!

Cosimo..Enjoyed reading your trip report! You have a great writing style..But...
Boy it's funny how people can have such differing impressions.
Being Italian (& married to a great italian cook who lives for food) & having been all over Italy (from the Alps to Sicily many times) I think I know great food. We've had many GREAT meals on the Island & LOVE the pizza at Captain Don's Pizza temple.
And for the diving...well I've been all over the Caribbean (Yes also on Roatan [Fantasy Island] & will never return probably since my wife contracted Giardia there) & just love the diving on Bonaire. Yes there are more spectacular places (I don't believe Roatan is one of them), no question about it.but somehow Bonaire is like your favorite rock n roll band. For some reason you keep going back & never get tired of the music.

Well said Vince - we agree! Scott, I just bought a PT-015 underwater housing on line. Recommend you do an internet search for the Olympia PT-015. You should find several choices for places to purchase. The PT-015 is the housing for the C5050Z. Glad to see you did not base your Bonaire decision on this trip report. Don't worry, if you love to dive you will love Bonaire cause bottom line - Bonaire Rules!!

That should be Olympus PT-015 and "base your Bonaire trip decision soley on this trip report." Sorry.

Marcus - my trip report was not really all that negative - I keep saying I had a great time in Bonaire and the diving was pretty cool. For some reason though, people seem to want to focus on the negative in my report rather than the positive! Why is that?!

Marcus - my trip report was not really all that negative - I keep saying I had a great time in Bonaire and the diving was pretty cool. For some reason though, people seem to want to focus on the negative in my report rather than the positive! Why is that?!

hmm .... sorry for the double post there, dont know what happened.

I don't know... I personally like the trip reports for the opinions, good or bad, about everything from diving to dining. I think we need to focus on the fact that these are opinions, cause if we attack the 'reporters' you won't have unbiased opinions any longer, just the positive. If someone's 'facts' are wrong, that's one thing, but we've all had a good meal at a restaurant that another BT'er found to be awful. It's just an impression or opinion.

Your report was positive at times, negative at times, humorous and represented your impression and opinion, Cosimo. Don't be discouraged. :-)

Carl

Cosimo - It was not my intent to focus on the negative in your report. It was my intent to commend Scott for taking into account many different opinions - not just yours. (Scott's post #2 above).

Cosimo, I do not think anyone is saying you have a negative report. You've brought up the good, the bad, and the ugly. Nevertheless, people are sensitive to some of the mentioned issues, and without having a direct one-to-one to show your true intentions, it is easy to misinterpret them. That's the nature of the web. I don't think I have seen so many responses to a trip report before, even after searching the archives. Your contribution was a refreshing change of pace from the worn-out "Help me! I'm new, I need suggestions where to stay, dine, and dive! There are 10 postings asking the same questions already, but I'm too lazy to do a keyword search or browse the archives" Your report has indeed turned BT back to its main purpose which is to discuss opinions and experiences about the island we all love so much. As far as the thread in Diving Bonaire titled "Why some of us love diving Bonaire" I believe that your report was the straw that broke the camel's back rather than the main reason for its existence. When I replied to that thread, I had in mind a posting under "Everything Else Bonaire" titled "THIEVES AT 1000 STEPS" in which the poster blamed everyone for a theft he suffered. He mentioned that it was his third time in the island and nobody had "warned" him about theft problems, and because of that, he left valuables in the car. I'm not going to discuss it any further, but I found it irritating that people like that blame their own stupidity on others. As you can see, the responses you are getting are a result to the emotions that your stirred. Other BTrs expressing their opinion just like you did. Thanks again for the report and generating a long overdue, interesting discussion. Stay Healthy! Coach Izzy

Cosimo - Leigh Ann - Bill/Donna Goodwin - Marcus

You all been so much help. I'm really excited about what I've been hearing (pros & Cons) with Bonaire Talk. Well I did it. I went on line and purchased an Olympus C5050Z (NEW) for $379.90 thru DigitallyDiscovered.com and a PT-015 Housing for $149.89 (NEW) thru 17th Street Photo. Thanks Cosimo and Marcus for the insight.

Leigh Ann. It's a small world. I do know of the name Dick Goldsby. Havn't met him yet. You scared me about the visibility of Bonaire being a little better than Lake Norfork. I was Night Diving Lake Norfork to about 80 feet one night and 95 feet the next night. Visibility was about FOUR TO FIVE feet. Allot of silt. I went with a member of a Sheriff's Department. They invited me to explore the lake at night. So it was my first time with a Mares 5 Mill Isotherm wet suit, it's hood, and low visibility.Water temperature (according to my Citizen watch computer) was at 50 degrees at 95 feet. Saw an Arkansas Mudpuppy at that depth. Wish I had the above camera. Visibility was great after 75 feet past the thermocline. Visibility should clear up above this thermocline soon. We just had massive amount of rain and the lake is 10 feet above normal pool level. It was a great experience. Makes me really look forward to Bonaire. Thanks Bill & Donna for your insight on restaurants. I'll do my share of eating and drinking.

Scott - a few tips r.e. the C5050z.

One, be happy! You are going to love this camera.
Two, make sure you get an extra set of batteries! (One is just not enough - trust me.)
Three, make sure you get a memory card! It doesn't come with NEARLY enough. I got a 1GB CF card and didn't need to offload the whole time I was there (roughly 850 pictures taken I think)

A little reading to get you started:

http://www.myunderwaterworld.com/5050settings.htm

http://www.pbase.com/imagine/oly_5050_2

http://www.splashdowndivers.com/photo_gallery/underwater_photography/up_settings.htm

http://pt010.da-kine.info/absorbing.htm

http://www.backscatter.com/HostedStore.LassoApp?-ResponseLassoApp=detail.lasso&ID=168aee792f62f92f&s1op=cn&s4op=cn&s7op=cn&s8op=cn&sop=OR

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/mhc401fs.htm
(didnt buy it, but its suposedly quite good)

http://dive.scubadiving.com/members/gearreviews.php?s=540 (worth a read)

http://www.wrotniak.net/photo/c5050/index.html

http://dpfwiw.com/batteries.htm

I think it's mentioned one of the links above but the only way to get the flash to fire in super macro mode is by setting it to slave.

Also, I strongly suggest trying out the case/camera for a day or two and then renting a strobe - the pictures I got with the strobe are FAR superior to those I got without. I think Captain Don's charged me $28 a day - worth every penny. I found that the internal flash works nicely at night but an external strobe really made difference during some day shots.

If you end up renting the YS90 (I think that's what it's called) I found the following strengths to be about right:

< 25ft on sand: 1 or 2
< 25ft on coral: 2 or 3
< 40ft: 4 or 5
< 60ft: 5 or 6
< 80ft: max

Took a little playing around with before I found reasonable settings.

The very last thing in the entire world a diver with 63 dives needs is a camera. Learn to dive first for gosh sakes. I started taking pictures after I had 400 dives.

Seb

Well, I'm sure your going to stir up the waters with that statement. Diving is suppose to be relaxing, fun, educating, and it sure gives me a avenue to vent. You could be totally correct based on your experience. During my dive travels, I have witnessed many divers (with cameras for the first time or may have had them for quite a while) doing some real silly to stupid things. The biggest thing was stopping to take long pictures of everything in sight. The dive master and other divers are now an uncomfortable distance away waiting for them to catch up. (In the mean time, I'm sucking down my precious air). The dive master is the one who knows where all the goodies are (ocean life) to take quality pictures. Then I have seen photographers get way to close and banging into reefs, sponges, or just scaring the fish and turtles away. I'm not saying all people with cameras do this but I sure got a lesson by personal experience. Now, at a minimum, I need to watch by bouyancy, experience the operation of my new camera, and have some quality pictures/memories to share. So, in short, I do appreciate your "gosh sakes" approach to concern. If I find myself fluttering amidts the underwater environment with my camera, then I shall pack it away. One must live and learn. I thought I would do this (camera) in Bonaire, shore diving, where I wouldn't interfere with other divers fun. Your approach is well taken.

Scott,
In your message you state: "The dive master is the one who knows where all the goodies are (ocean life) to take quality pictures."
That's the point, I believe, that Seb is trying to make. In Bonaire, YOU are the one who (hopefully) learns where the goodies are.
You learn this by careful observation of what's down there. And you do so by not sculling about with your arms which does nothing but send predator waves throughout the vicinity thereby scattering any interesting critter into its hiding place.
Buy books before cameras. Learn buoyancy before buying a camera.

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The very last thing in the entire world a diver with 63 dives needs is a camera. Learn to dive first for gosh sakes.
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If you dont know how to dive after 30 dives you are a hopeless spaz.

I agree with Jason. Waiting until you have 100 or so dives to enjoy underwater photography is over kill. I started photography after 50 dives or so and I never really had any problems staying off the coral while shooting pics.

"If you dont know how to dive after 30 dives you are a hopeless spaz."

haha... I actually think camera work helped me hone my anti-hit-everything-in-sight skills - particularly the video camera I have. If you were to watch the very first shot I took with it, you might think the diver shooting the video was diving 36% to 120msw (get it?) - the last shot I took on a sandy patch looks like the camera might be on a tripod. I got better with my bouy control because I had to learn to keep the camera still (and therefore, myself) in order to get a good clean shot.

I agree w Cosimo regarding ZeeZicht restaurant. Not a good place to eat. Expensive, and the food is not that good.
Actually, I thought that the food on Bonaire was only fair. The only really good meal we had on the island was at Gibi's. Food was very good, good portions. Service was a tad slow, but that is true of all restaurants in Bonaire.
We had a great snorkeling experience.

ken

I wish I could have made it to Gibi's - I was planning on going but that night I was just absolutely zonked from diving.

OK Ladies and Gents. This question may sound strange. I need to program my vacation in January 2005 and I would like some great scuba places to go in conjunction to Bonaire. I am going to Bonaire in September 13 for a week. I have been to Cozumel, Great Barrier Reef Cairns in Australia, Hawaii, Nassau Bahamas, Ft. Lauderdale Florida, Belize Ambergres Caye, and St. Thomas BVI. I like walls, caverns, swim through tunnels, and of course the diverse types of coral life. But then again, this is what scuba is all about. I am thinking about Roatan, Bermuda, Cayman, or anywhere south of the equator when the temperature is spring/summer. I just received my Olympus C5050Z Camera and PT-015 Housing. Thanks for all your help in pointing me in the right direction.

Scott: I'd recommend starting a new thread with your question under Diving Bonaire as it doesn't really seem related to Cosimo's stay at Cap'n Don's.

Just a thought. If you're not sure how to start a new thread, just yell and somebody here can help you out (including me).

KLM flies to Lima, Peru and Quito, Equador through Bonaire. It has possibilities - Quito to Galapagos.

Thanks Brian. I made a new thread. I now understand the format of Bonaire Talk. Great information center.

Jason, if you think you know it all after 30 dives and that using words like "spaz" is appropriate behavior, have a nice day and what color is the sky in your world?
I've seen many a videographer crashing through the coral who swore he never hit anything. Even ones with a string of certifications, instructor ratings, and professional credits Marcus.
The only way for diving to become second nature is by diving. That's why pilots are rated by hours.
IMNSHO

Seb: I can respect your ideal to protect the reef. In fact, I can respect that ideal so much that my wife and I have, in the past, contributed money to an organization dedicated to the preservation of reefs. I was recently reading that negative diver impact on coral reefs is small compared to hurricanes and pollution. That doesn't mean I think anybody with 10 dives under their belt should grab a camera and go for it; it does mean that I think that divers who want to share their expiriences with family and friends through pictures do not have to have 100's of dives under their belts in order to do it in a way that is not harmful to the reef. Although I am a certified dive master, I don't feel I'm qualified to dictate to others a certain number of dives they should have completed before they are ordained good to go with an underwater camera. I only feel compelled to remind them of how important it is to have your bouyancy skills down pat prior to trying underwater photography.
I stand by my earlier post and can assure you that I have done no significant damage to the reef. That's something I wouldn't lie about. Have a good dive.

I'm not talking about anybody lying, Marcus, I'm talking about the people who don't even know they are crashing into the reef. The people who buy a camera before they buy their scuba gear.
And it's not just the number of dives, but what kind of dives they are, how guided were they, and over how many years. There are divers, and there are people who dive.

OK. I came back to this thread to see that no one has communicated anything since June 21st. What a shame. Anyway, I am arriving in Bonaire Sept 11th and staying at Capt Don's for a week. I need a buddy. Hope to hear about other trips, good or bad. I'll take a look at the other threads.

Scott

Scott, I'm sure you'll have a great time. As I said, be sure to make it to the town pier (though I guess it's a bit harder now).

Cosimo

I just wanted to add that I did buy the C5050 Olympus and the PT-015 Housing and most accessories. I reread your settings and "links" and appreciate the info. I think others are syphoning the information too for operating comparison. Anyway, I'll give it a go on Saturday (9-11-04) when I arrive in Bonaire. I'll be by myself so I'll have plenty of time to play with different settings. Anyone out there needing a buddy for some afternoon shore dives??????
I would like to get an evening trip too. Thanks again Cosimo