Ashton Abroad

BACK TO BONAIRE

I'm back! In Bonaire, that is. The tropical island paradise for divers, snorkelers, and windsurfers.

A map of Bonaire. I live in Kralendijk, on the west side. Lac Bay, on the east side, is a great spot for windsurfing.

The arrow points to Bonaire, the island outlined in white. Curacao is in the middle, and Aruba is on the left. These three islands were formerly known as the ABC Islands, but as of 2011 that association no longer exists.

On January 15th, 2011, I arrived in Bonaire for the first time. It was my first study abroad experience, and my first time being in a foreign country without my family. It was my first of several (and hopefully many) stints living abroad. It was also when I started this blog!

My plane from Aruba (there are no direct flights from Detroit, of course) was delayed by several hours, but without a way to contact the program coordinators, I ended up stuck alone at the Bonaire International Airport at midnight. It was well over an hour before anyone came to collect me, and I was having serious doubts about my decision to come here. Fortunately, things got better the very next day, and I got to experience all the culture, history, and nature the island had to offer.

A few good memories from three years ago:

I was here for Carnival, the annual celebration. Hopefully I'll be here for it again this year!

Windsurfing at Lac Bay.

Playing traditional instruments, poorly.

Transects! (I really did learn some science-things here. Honest.)

The very first photo I took--or had taken--on the island. (Wow, I don't look any different. I also still have that shirt, bag, and swimsuit. Broke the sunnies, though. Oh well.)

Three years later--almost to the day--I'm back on the island as a divemaster-in-training. For the nondivers reading, "divemaster" is a level of certification for scuba divers. Diving is fun and rewarding, but it's only safe when divers are well-trained and following their training. To make it safe, the professional diving organizations (PADI, NAUI, and SSI being the major ones) have created different 'levels' of diver certifications, based on training and skill sets.

I'm a PADI-certified diver, which is the largest professional diving association. (PADI stands for "professional association of diving instructors.") PADI has a clear and ladder-like certification system, which goes as follows:

Open Water Diver (the most basic)
Advanced Open Water Diver (includes deeper diving and night diving)
Rescue Diver (able to rescue people while diving, and treat diving-related injuries)
Divemaster (able to work as a dive professional, leading dives and assisting with classes)
Instructor (able to teach new divers)

There are a few more levels for instructors, but this is the basic structure. I got open-water certified in 2008, and AOWD and Rescue Diver certified in 2011 during my study abroad experience in Bonaire. As a divemaster, I'd be able to work in a dive shop and lead certified divers on guided dives. I'd also be eligible to become an instructor, an even more desirable position in the diving industry.

There are two routes on the path to divemaster certification: a paid course and an internship. The paid course runs for two weeks and generally costs in the ballpark of US$2000. The internship is usually two months, and while it's free, you also aren't paid for the work you're doing. It's actually cheaper for me to fly to Bonaire and live here for two months, so that's what I'm doing. (Plus, you know, I get to live on a tropical island for eight weeks. Can't beat that.)

There are several dive shops on Bonaire, but I'm working for the one I'm already familiar with, Dive Friends Bonaire.

This is their main shop, Yellow Sub.

This is the boat pier for Yellow Sub. The confined training area is on the other side.

Dive Friends was formerly affiliated with the CIEE (study abroad) program, which is how I got to know them. My mother and sister were Open Water certified through Dive Friends, as well. They have five locations on the island and several retail shops. Yellow Sub is their main location, but I'll be working at a different location, Dive Inn, about a kilometer south of Yellow Sub. (For those familiar with the island, it's near the Divi Flamingo resort.) I report to work on Tuesday, and I can't wait to get started!

Now that I've bored you with all the technical details for why I'm in a tropical paradise, let's get down to my favorite part of this blog: the photos!

(A note to Mac users: I've recently learned that my photos look a bit strange on Macs, probably because the picture is so vivid. They look good on my computer, and that's the best I can do. Sorry!)

The walk along the water is still beautiful.

I'm pretty sure this 'construction' was still going on three years ago. Also, see the Santa?

A lot of things have changed in the past three years. City Cafe, which used to be a popular restaurant and bar, has closed.

Nooooo! Now where will I get my delicious malibu-and-pineapples?!

There's still a lot of Christmas decorations up around town.

Still lots of cruise ships coming in.

Near the tourism office.

This church has service in English, Dutch, and the local language, Papiamentu.

It might look dated, but it's actually a pretty church.

This plaza has a market on some days, but today was Saturday and it was empty, so I'm not really sure what day the market is on.

Sometimes bands play on the little stage, and people dance in the plaza. It's a good time!

There's also a cafe on the plaza, but I've never eaten there. Looks nice though!

I love walking along the water. It's so beautiful, I never get sick of it. I walked around taking photos, visiting old places, and going to the grocery store several times. (I can only carry so much, you know.) I think I walked up and down this stretch about 15 times today.

The water is so clear! You can always see fish, crabs, and urchins in the shallow water.

Urchins!

Lots of birds! They like to eat the fish remains that the fishermen leave behind. Mostly fish heads, yum.

You can get a ferry to Klein Bonaire, the littler island, from this dock.

There are many restaurants and bars along the water, but my favorite is Karel's. (I think it's pronounced like "Carl," but you can never tell with Dutch names.) It's literally on the water, and the food and drinks aren't half bad!

They also have karaoke at night, but I'm not sure that's a good thing.

It's as nice as it looks, trust me. They've also got a pretty good milkshake, as I recall.

A lot of things have changed. The grocery store I used to frequent, Cultimara, has been bought out, shrunk, and renamed Top. The art gallery on the water is gone, but there's a new playground next to it. There's a few new shops with some cool art and gadgets in town, but a lot of things have been sold or are for sale.

That said, a lot of things are still the same. My favorite gelato shop is still there and still has my favorite flavor, although they've finally translated it from Dutch to English, so I now know that it's lemon cake. (Yum!) Most of the bars are the same, Watta Burger is still the cheap drunken fast-food joint with the space-car kids' ride, and Cultimara still has cool mural-style paintings on the walls.

The murals still say Cultimara, even though it's been renamed officially. People still call it Cultimara.

Look how happy she is with her cereal and paper towel!

And a windsurfing dude! I love these paintings.

I got a lot done in the 24 hours since I arrived here. I've met my new roommate, moved into my room, unpacked, arranged cellular service and internet, gone shopping, and met most of my new coworkers. They've been expecting me, and they just so happened to be having a going away/welcome party for the departing and arriving divers!

To be fair, a lot of them were expecting me to be a guy. Can't really blame them.

My family was a bit worried about my housing situation. I did, after all, agree to live in a room in the house of a guy I found on facebook. But don't worry, he's very nice, and his house is lovely!

He's even got a very friendly dog, Angel. She's a sweetie.

I've got all the workings of modern life, with the exception of hot water and air conditioning. But hey, who needs a hot shower in 85-degree weather? And I certainly didn't come here to use the aircon--I kinda like being hot and a little sweaty.

The next two months will be busy, but I'm really excited about it. Wish me luck, and check back again soon for more updates from paradise!

Cheers,
Ashton

PS: If you weren't around for my last stint in Bonaire, or you just want to look at all the pretty pictures again, click here to go back to the very first post on this blog!

Angkor Thom is enormous. It's not a temple, but actually a whole city! It's 9 square kilometers, or 3.5 square miles, and encompassed by an 8-meter (26 feet) tall wall. There's a lot of ruins inside the city, including temples, gopuras (entrance structures), terraces, palaces, and more.

Angkor Thom is the big walled area on the left.

I've already talked about Bayon, which is smack dab in the center of Angkor Thom. The map below is a close-up of central Angkor Thom, where all the good stuff is. Bayon is at the bottom of this map.

BAPHUON

The temple just north and to the west of Bayon is called Baphuon. It was built in the 11th century, but thanks to time and an unsteady sand base, much of the temple collapsed by the time anyone rediscovered it. Restoration efforts began in 1960 but were disrupted by the civil war, but a second attempt in 1995 was more successful. Restoration was finally completed in 2011, and visitors were finally able to see the temple in (some of) its former glory.

The first time we visited Baphuon was just after visiting Bayon, and the temple was unfortunately closed for the day. We were able to check out the outside of the temple and the walkway up to it, though.

Impressive!

Me and my purple plastic bag raincoat.

Love the lighting with the rain!

The walkway up to Baphuon is pretty cool. The whole walkway is lifted up on pillars.

It's a good six feet off the ground, hence the steps.

Viewed from the sides.

Checking out the exterior wall.

This is a gopura, an entrance building. It's pretty big, right? (Yes, that's me in the doorway.)

The windows have been concreted up for support.

We went back a few days later--that's the beauty of a 7-day stay--and climbed up to the top. Cambodians must have itty bitty barbie feet because the steps are about a third of the width of my foot. Combine that with the rain and it was downright scary.

The walkway and entrance, viewed from the top of Baphuon.

I'm not afraid of heights, but I do have a healthy fear of death by splattering. So the complete lack of guardrails, ropes, or any other safety equipment made me a mite nervous.

That is a long way down.

Fortunately I found ONE spot with a rope. Phew.

Wearing my $2 night market shirt and $4 Cambodian Tourist Pants.
They're both shockingly comfortable!

Baphuon is tall, but from the front it doesn't look significantly different or more special than some of the other temples. Go to the back, however, and you'll see something pretty weird.

Is that wall... round?

Turn your head and it kinda looks like a face, right? I see a nose, an eyes, and a forehead...

It's a reclining Buddha! The temple was originally Hindu, but it was converted to a Buddhist temple in the 15th century. The Buddha is 70 meters (230 feet) long and 9 meters (30 feet) tall.

Napping Buddha.

Next to Baphuon is Phimeanakas and the Royal Palace area. The Royal Palace is gone, but Phimeanakas is still standing tall.

PHIMEANAKAS

Phimeanakas means "celestial temple" in Khmer and it was built in the 10th century. There's a legend that the top tier of the temple was inhabited by a naga (snake) princess, and the king had to climb up each night to "lie" with her, or else something dreadful would happen to his kingdom. That's a lot of stairs to climb every night!

Last but not least is the terrace. In front of Phimeanakas is a long decorative terrace. There are two parts to the terrace. The main part is called the Terrace of the Elephants, named because it has some pretty cool three-headed elephant carvings. To the north is the smaller Terrace of the Leper King.

The Terrace of the Elephant King was used by the king to view his returning armies, assuming they were victorious. It was also a place for him to address the people. It was part of the Phimeanakas complex at one point, but most of the materials used to build the area were organic and have long since rotted away.

The titular elephants.

A crab!

This is a lotus statue. It's the size of a large hot tub.

More elephants. There's a few trios along the terrace front.

That is a very large five-headed horse.

Still in remarkably good shape!

Another elephant. These carvings are probably life-size for a small elephant.

The view from the top of the Terrace of the Elephants.

Across the road from the Terrace of the Elephants is a group of structures called Prasats Suor Prat, which means "towers of the tight-rope dancers." It's said that during certain festivals, wires were put up between the buildings for acrobats to perform on.

These things are about 50 feet tall. The doors are normal-sized.

That probably wasn't their original purpose, though. Some records say that they were used to pass 'divine judgement' on arguments. If two people needed to settle a dispute, they would each stay in one of the towers for three or four days. A family member would stand guard to make sure they didn't leave. The person who showed signs of illness was deemed the wrong party, and the person in perfect health won the dispute.

There are twelve towers, all in a row.

It's clear that they've been renovated with concrete; see the color difference and the tin roof on one?

Renovated or not, I still wouldn't want to spend three days in one of those.

Back to the terrace. The Terrace of the Leper King is a U-shaped structure. There's a small terrace on top which was probably used as a royal cremation site. The double-wall around it extends from the ground to the edge of the terrace, which means you could fall in if you're not careful. Between the two walls are some impressively complex carvings.

The entrance is that muddy area with the boards.

The outer side of the outer wall.

It's like a topless U-shaped tunnel of carvings. The terrace got its name from a statue on top of the terrace, which--much like a person with leprosy--was moldy and discolored and missing pieces. This fit with a Khmer legend that one of their kings had leprosy. Today the statue has been replaced with a replica.