Bonaire, Caribbean Netherlands

Searchin' for my lost shaker of salt, Jimmy would be proud that I stumbled upon the B in the ABC Islands – Bonaire.  A jewel of an island as rich as its colors, sits in the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean Sea.  Here you will find some of the most amazing shore diving in the world with over 86 marked shore dives like 1000 Steps, Oil Slick, Slave Hut and my favorite, Salt Pier to mention a few.  Salt Pier is an iconic island dive with pyramids of salt being readied for export directly across the street.  Turtles arrive like clockwork around sunset to snack, Morays free swim around the legs of the pier and octopus and tarpon come out to play at night.  In the water condensing ponds, and in several other areas of the island like the flamingo reserve, you can view hundreds of pink flamingos foraging the watery fields in search of a meal or perched upon one leg taking a nap.  Wind surfers skirt across the shallow turquoise wind-swept waters of LAC Bay and if you are adventurous and have a good sturdy vehicle or boat, you can find remnants of thousands of Conch Shells at Conch Graveyard hiding a hidden beach nestled against the mangroves.  Another dive adventure, not for the faint of heart, is finding Playa Frans to dive and mistake a fisherman’s residence for a café.  In my defense, there were cold beer signs!  For local and international cuisine, look no further than Kite City or King Kong food truck along the shoreline drive or venture into the capital of Kralendijk for dining that will salivate any palette.  Finally, we ended our trip with a drive out to Washington Slagbaai National Park where the coastline looks like Iron Coral and dirt roads are dotted with wind turbines which lead you to the edges of the island.  On our way back to Kralendijk, we yielded to free roaming donkeys as we passed through Rincon, had a beer and some fries with the locals, stopped at a magnificent lookout called Altamira Unjo which overlooks the historic city below in which we were treated to views of lush arid landscapes that stretch out to the sea.  I could go on and on about Bonaire, but I will spare you and highlight a few of my favorite captured moments above and below the water.