Smooth Trunkfish

Koraal

To get enough exercise, we snorkel and swim almost every day. We are so happy with this beautiful place and enjoy our own "House Fishes" to the full. After more than one year, the fish have gotten used to our swimming and diving habits. As soon as we jump into the water, our own "French Angel Fish" couple will already come and swim towards us.

Or could it be because we have a treat for them now and then? Of course we do know that it is actually not good at all, but it is so nice when they just eat out of your hand. Not only these two fish, but also a lot of gray "Surgeon Fishes" and the striped "Sergeant Major" fishes swimming around and with us.

'Huis vissen'
 

As we swim towards the neighbors, the cheeky neighbor boy (as we called him) of the "French Angel Fish" couple swimming around there, swims towards us at great speed. This fish is really cheeky and dives under you to suddenly pop up right in front of your face. Dad and Mom are more reserved, because our "own" Angel Fishes chase them away. Are they our "House Fishes" or are we there "Water People"? Who's to say!
 

When the fish are suddenly swimming in all directions, it generally means that there is a "Tarpon" nearby. We regularly see 2 or 3 of these large fish swim by. Tarpons can grow up to two and a half meters long and in addition to their impressive dimensions, the fish also stand out for their silver color. They can be quite impressive and we distance ourselves from them as much as they do from us.

 Tarpon
 

Every now and then we see the "Spotted Eagle Ray". This ray is found not too far from the coast in the tropical parts of all oceans. The habitat is mainly above reefs and in bays. It is a beautiful animal that moves through the water very elegantly. Its tail can be up to 2 meters long.

 Spotted Eagle Ray
 

We also saw a very large Octopus. We were able to observe him for a while and saw him constantly changing color to camouflage himself. What a special experience! Too bad we didn't have a camera with us at the moment. Unfortunately we have not seen the octopus again.
 

One of the highlights remains the Seahorse. One of the animals that appeals to the imagination of most people. We have seen seahorses in two different colors. The head of the fish resembles that of a horse and it is the only fish in the world that moves vertically through the water..

In addition, seahorses, like chameleons, can move their eyes separately from each other. Seahorses are not much on the menu of predatory fish on Bonaire. The fish have both an internal and an external skeleton, which makes them generally too tough for predators.

Staying fit
Of course we have to keep moving now that we cannot leave, which is why we swim, snorkel and dive as much as possible. Among the sailors there is a group who meets up three times a week at one of the boats to "noodle". This means that we do all kinds of exercises in the water with the help of a long round floating tube.

It once started with a sailor who was a physiotherapist and found that she did not get enough exercise. Nowadays, people are noodling by islands across the Caribbean. There is usually one sailor who gives instructions and the rest will follow. The size of the group varies between 6 to 25  people. Besides being busy, it is also a fun social activity. People from different countries who come together to exchange all kinds of experiences and ideas during the exercises. I haven't been able to persuade Fred to join and I fear this will never happen. I try to noodle at least 2 out of 3 times a week.

In addition, because we are staying longer at Bonaire, we bought two good bicycles. They are sturdy city bikes with good tires, because you need that on these roads. During one of our cycling trips we found a set of plastic crates along the road near a restaurant. They are super handy as a shopping carrier! After talking to the owner, we were allowed to take them. Before we bought these bicycles, we sometimes borrowed a folding bicycle from other sailors. Walking is not really my thing and so we get a bit more exercise and get somewhere.

Kwallen
While swimming, we sometimes come into contact with small jellyfish. These usually appear about 10 days after the full moon and then we often skip a day. These jellyfish are small, with black dots and a sting can be quite annoying. Personally, I think they have it in for me. Sometimes the result is worse than other times.
 

This is not me!
 

Various types of jellyfish are found around Bonaire. In the evenings, the jellyfish couples often come close to the shore and swimming is not recommended at that time. One week after the full moon is the mating period of "Tamoya Ohboya" (cube or Box Jellyfish) is a translucent "balloon / cube" swimming sideways. The sting is very painful and can be dangerous.

The "Spot-winged Comb Jellyfish" are oval-shaped cube jellyfish with black dots and striped "combs" to propel themselves. These jellyfish do not sting and glow in the dark when something moves. A very attractive sight for divers.

‘Spot-winged Comb Jellyfish
 

Home port
Because it became clear in March 2020 that we would not be able to leave for the other islands for the time being, we started thinking about what to do next. We are having a good time at Bonaire and are happy to see Bonaire as a "home port". From here we can visit the other islands during the sailing season in the coming years and stay safely on Bonaire during the hurricane season. After some research we make the decision and aim to become a resident of Bonaire. We therefore deregister in the Netherlands. However, this entire process does not happen overnight and comes with the necessary difficulties. Not only do you have to arrange a lot of paperwork, but also make agreements with the IND (Immigration Service). We already hear a lot of different stories from other sailors. Apparently they make up on the spot that you are missing another form and that costs you a lot of extra time. With your application you will receive a paper in your passport stating until how long you can stay. The cost for this application is $ 129.00.

Normally you can stay for six months and then stay away for the next six months. But now with the Covid, the rules have relaxed a bit. We will submit the application in April 2020, an answer from the IND can take up to 4 months. And then it was very quiet for months, until Fred received a message in October 2020 that he had to visit the IND to collect his decision. During this interview, however, he is told that his application has been rejected on the grounds that he did not intend to stay in Bonaire. They based this on the fact that, at the time of arrival in November 2019, we had indicated that we would go to Jamaica in March 2020. You are obliged to indicate to customs when you leave and what your next destination will be upon entry. Did we know much that a Corona virus was coming and that we had nowhere to go? There was no doubt that anything could have changed in our situation. They are a bit simple here. Since I still had not heard from it, I asked during this interview, in October, how my application was doing. It turned out that it was already approved in June and I should have been notified. However, I have never received anything by post from the IND. I received a copy on the spot stating that it was granted for an unlimited period (5 years). We were flabbergasted. Fred was denied and I was approved. We live on the same boat and are otherwise the same in everything. You really get the feeling that they just do whatever they want. Weird world. Fred will of course go appeal at the end of October. In December we have to make an appointment with a mister de Graaf from the IND for the result of this objection. There we are told that Fred can stay for one year. This gentleman also informed me that my approval was withdrawn and converted to one year! It's getting crazier! He gave the reason that we live on the same boat and that they want to equalize it. Ridiculous stuff, which we disagree with, but we'll just leave at that.
 
But then we are not there yet, because then we still have to register with the Burgerzaken (Civil Affairs) of Bonaire. Again, you need a ridiculous amount of papers. Officially all original papers, but fortunately we can mostly use copies. It does take some effort to arrange everything (birth certificate, marital status, etc.), because the Dutch bureaucracy does not really cooperate. At the beginning of December 2020, the time has come that I’m registered on Bonaire. The cost is only $ 8.00. I receive my Sedula (the official ID of Bonaire) and I am hereby also deregistered in the Netherlands. From that moment on I can call myself Bonairean. Fred will take a little longer, but at the beginning of January 2021 the time has come and he is also officially a Bonairean. In January I get a phone call with an urgent request to come immediately to Civil Affairs to exchange my Sedula for another one. Totally amazed, I go to Civil Affairs and I’m told that they have heard from the IND that my approval has been withdrawn from unlimited and converted to one year. Sometimes they communicate with each other and at other times not at all. Anyway, I got a new Sedula for only one year and didn't have to pay anything extra for it.

The last step in this entire process is to register with the health insurance on Bonaire (ZVK). This healthcare is free for all residents! This is a lot cheaper than in the Netherlands. Just show your Sedula, fill in the form and you're done! It is certainly an advantage of living here compared to the Netherlands, it saves us hundreds of euros a year. So far we are extremely satisfied with the medical care on Bonaire. Because I had received a new Sedula, I also had to go back to the ZVK office.
 
If anyone is still wondering what we spend our time on, you know that by now! Its occupational therapy for 60+.