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Happy New Year!
Bonaire certainly knows how to celebrate New Year's Eve. The fireworks start at dark, and continue well into the wee hours. People are
cheerful and happy, and most dogs and cats cower in dark corners hoping the bangs soon go away. Soon, dawn strikes to bring in the first rays of light, giving the New Year a gentle kiss promising hope and better
times ahead (as long as you ignore the inevitable near term hang-overs and exhaustion).
With all of that in mind, we'd like to wish our readers a most Happy New Year! Bon Anja Nobo! May 1999 bring you all that you need and strive for.
Bonaire 2000
While on the topic of new years, we decided to do some informal research on the viability of making Bonaire a key destination for New Year's
1999 revelers. After all, with news reports of fanatic religious groups plotting to wreak havoc as part of a grand plan to usher in the new millennium and mob mentalities being something to fear on December 31,
1999, Bonaire seems like a rather safe haven.
We queried Bonaire's largest resorts to see what their New Year's 1999 plans and availability were and discovered that several resorts are already sold out (apparently to folks more forward thinking than us). At this
point Buddy Dive and Sand Dollar are completely full, and Lion's Dive is almost at that point. However, for those of you with family and friends outside Bonaire who want to visit at the end of the century, or those
of you wanting to escape to Bonaire during that time, check with the Plaza Resort, Capt. Don's Habitat and Harbour Village to see if they still have rooms (they did have some availability when we contacted them last
week). Of all the properties, only Plaza indicated that they were actively planning a special New Year's celebration, but details aren't available yet.
Undoubtedly the other resorts will be announcing their new millennial plans as the year advances. And, it probably goes without saying, but flights are likely to be scarce getting to Bonaire, so if you're serious
about spending the millennial change with us, book early.
Taxes, Damn Taxes
Well, it's official. The 6% ABB tax (a sales tax on certain goods and services) is now history, as of December 31st, 1998. This means that
meals at restaurants should become less expensive, and various other goods and services (like car rentals) should similarly drop in cost. Of course, that's just for the moment. Looming on the horizon is the BBO
gross receipts tax of 2% we mentioned in our previous issue of the Bonaire E-News. So far there's been no confirmation, but rumor has it that this tax may kick in as early as February 1st.
While on taxing subjects, Port Call reports that Curacao has raised the international departure tax from US$10 to US$20 per person. This fortunately doesn't appear to affect Bonaire, which continues with its US$10
departure tax for international destinations.
Finally, the central government of the Netherlands Antilles has ignored Bonaire's petition to stop having to pay excess tariffs and duties on products from so-called "protected" industries, none of which
exist here on Bonaire. It's estimated that these protectionist duties cost Bonaire residents over one million NAFl annually for no gain or benefit. Local papers report that legal action may be taken against the
central government for their callous disregard of Bonaire's rights and desires, as such an action may be in violation of the charter the Netherlands Antilles operate under.
Underwater Clean-up
The third monthly underwater clean-up was held this past Saturday with a group of nine volunteer divers diving the same stretch of the
Playa area as in December. The divers managed to pull up another 100 kg (220 pounds) of trash out of the water. Prominent in this garbage collection were 85 empty Polar Beer cans, a car tail light, and an incredible
amount of abandoned fishing line and rope. Firework residue was also found, as were a large number of glass jars and bottles.
We think it's pretty sad that such a beautiful area gets so dumped on. If you see someone throwing trash in the water or even by the side of the road, ask them to stop, and if possible, retrieve the trash and dispose
of it properly. We all need to do our parts to keep Bonaire clean.
The next Underwater Clean-up Dive will be held on Saturday, February 6th, at Green Submarine N.V. on Kaya Playa Lechi, at 10AM, and will be followed by a BBQ, and is open to all divers desiring to keep Bonaire clean
and enjoy a nice dive. Call Eric Groenhart at 2929, mailto:dive@greensubmarine.com or Jake Richter at 6773, mailto:jake@nettechnv.com
to RSVP (so we can make sure that we have enough tanks of air).
CyberCafe Comes to Bonaire
De Tuin Eetcafe has become the first dining estabishment to set up a real, full-fledged CyberCafe, featuring two Pentium II PCs
equipped with Internet Explorer and a connection to the Internet. The CyberCafe portion of the restaurant is open from Noon till closing each day except Monday, and cost is NAFl 15,- for an hour of connect time, and
NAFl. 10,- for a half hour. Contact mailto:detuin@infobonaire.com or call 2999 for details.
UFO Sighted?
Was a genuine UFO seen by hundreds of people gathered to watch the fireworks on New Year's Eve? It passed from north to south noiselessly at less
than 10,000 ft., flying at great speed and disappeared into a cloud.
The time was about 11:50 p.m. A news net search of UFO sightings for that night was negative except for one in the British Isles. People who saw Bonaire's described it as a bright light trailed by smaller lights and
a vapor trail. Speculations are that it was a missile, a piece of space debris falling to earth, a military jet, a spy plane, a unique type of firework or a genuine space traveler. The resultant UFO controversy has
been the highlight of numerous social gatherings since New Year's Eve.
(Courtesy of Port Call)
People of the Year
Robby Sint Jago was voted Man of the Year by the Bonaire Press Association for his many community activities. The maritime Ship
Skipper/Mechanic school he worked to establish, graduated its first class in 1998. He was also one of the driving forces behind CITRO, the Citizens Rescue Association. Robby works as Harbor Pilot/Asst. Harbormaster
and provided the plotting that resulted in the successful rescue of 2 fisherman lost at sea last year.
Riet Sealy was voted Woman of the Year by the Bonaire Press Association for her work in education of youngsters. Riet founded and runs the Sebiki Foundation, a project "Headstart," for children up to school
age.
Delno Tromp was named Man of the Year by the local newspapers Nobo (Papiamentu) and Algemeen Dagblad (Dutch) for accomplishment in business community service. A graduate of the University of Puerto Rico, Delno is the
General Manager at the Sand Dollar Resort and is the head of the Maria Hoppner Foundation (for orphans).
(Courtesy of Port Call)
Bonaire Twin Cinema News & Features - January 7 - 13, 1999
Bonaire Twin Cinema is located in the heart of Kralendijk next to the Exito Bakery and behind the Cultimara Supermarket. Starting Thursday, January 7, Bonaire Twin Cinema will be offering the following film features
(NaFl.10.- for all normal features):
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The Mighty
- Matinee Sat. & Sun. at 2:00pm
- Nightly at 6:30pm, 8:30pm, and 10:30pm
- Late Shows Fri. & Sat. at 12:30am
An unlikely bond forms between two young boys who have vivid imaginations and worlds to conquer. Kevin is an intellectual giant trapped in the a small fragile body, while Maxwell is a good hearted oversized kid who
is slower than Kevin and also lacks courage. (Rated PG-13, Drama Adventure, 107 min.) For details, see: http://dir.yahoo.com/Entertainment/Movies_and_Film/Titles/Drama/Mighty__T
he/
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Antz!
- Matinees Sat. & Sun. at 2:15pm
- Nightly at 6:45pm and 11:15pm
- Late Shows Fri. & Sat. at 1:15am
Z-4195 is a rather unhappy ant because he feels meaningless and insignificant. He wants to be able to make a difference and stand out. An encounter with an ant princess gives him the change. Rendered entirely in
stunning 3D computer graphics, and featuring the voices of Woody Allen, Gene Hackman, Sylvester Stallone, Jennifer Lopez, and Christopher Walken. (Rated PG, Animation, 82 minutes) For details see: http://headlines.yahoo.com/Full_Coverage/Movies/Antz/
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Holy Man
- Matinees Sat. & Sun. at 4:15pm
- Nightly at 8:45
Eddie Murphy stars as an outrageous spiritual leader who offers a hilarious look at life and TV shopping as he is given the opportunity to take his pitch to the airwaves on a cable shopping network. Jeff Goldblum and
Morgan Fairchild co-star. (Rated PG, Comedy Drama, CinemaScope, 94 min.) For details, see: http://movies.yahoo.com/movies/guide/holy_man.html
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The Little Mermaid - Last Week!
- Matinees Sat. & Sun. at 4:00pm
The Disney animation featuring an adaption of Hans Christian Andersen's tale of a mermaid who longs to be human returns to Bonaire's silver screen. (Rated G, Animation, 83 minutes). For details, see: http://movies.yahoo.com/movies/guide/the_little_mermaid.html
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Another Movie Marathon...
...arrives January 16th. 12 hours of action movies for NAFl. 35,- Admission included six (6)! movies, a sandwich and coffee or tea. Call 2400
for details.
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The Bonaire Twin Cinema also offers a Dinner and a Movie special in conjunction with and DeTuin Eetcafe. Nafl. 35.- gets you dinner, beer or soda, popcorn, and a ticket to a movie.
The Bonaire Twin Cinema Box Office opens nightly at 6:00pm, and no reservations are required. Tickets are only available at the box office. Questions about the movies? Call Bonaire Twin Cinema at 2400 (Noon to
closing everyday), FAX: 8010, or send an e-mail to mailto:TwinCinema@InfoBonaire.com (please include your phone or FAX number).
Web Site of the Week
Each week, we'll list the addresses of new Bonaire Web sites that we come across.
Our Web site of the week is:
Jibe City - http://www.jibecity.com
(Okay, so we featured this one only a couple months ago, but it has since gone through quite a face lift)
If you have a new Bonaire-related Web site and want to make sure people know about it, send a message to mailto:news@infobonaire.com with the details.
Quick Takes
- Internet Course. NetTech's Internet expert, Jake Richter, in conjunction with BonaireLive, will be conducting an Internet
Workshop on Saturday, January 30th, in the BonaireLive/Tjin N.V. computer class room in downtown Kralendijk. The workshop is targeted at new and intermediate Internet users interested in getting a good handle on the
Internet. The course, which will be taught entirely in English (the language of the Internet and of Jake), will run from 9am until 4pm, and will include lunch (catered by the Sandwich Factory) and two text books for
a fee of US$150. Topics covered in the workshop will include an overview of what the Internet is and how it works; configuring and using e-mail, newgroups, and the Web for maximum benefit; getting the results you
want from search engines on the Web; and how to effectively communicate and market yourself via the Internet. The workshop will be hands-on oriented and quite interactive. Space is limited.
Call BonaireLive at 5180 to reserve a seat or send a message to mailto:tjin@bonairelive.com .
- DEMA. Bonaire may seem rather quiet next week as the island's annual tourism business member pilgrimage takes place. The destination is the Dive Equipment & Marketing Association (DEMA) '99
show in New Orleans. DEMA is an industry-only event where dive shops, equipment manufacturers, travel agents, and travel destination operators rub elbows and try to sell their products and services to each other.
See http://www.dema.org for details.
- Become a Dive Instructor. Bonaire's Pam Teitel, owner of Professional Motivations N.V., and a great PADI Course Director (this is speaking from personal experience) has announced that she will be
teaching a PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) in Curacao starting on February 17, 1999. See http://www.infobonaire.com/pmti for details.
- Contractor Victims. If any of our readers have recently (in the last several months) had dealings with a Theo Clappers (he also does business under the name Thetronics N.V.) which have left you
holding the bag and him the money, please drop us a note with details at mailto:ClappersMatter@infobonaire.com . This information may be used to aid an official investigation.
- Local Santas Do Good. The group of concerned private citizens we wrote about a few weeks ago who were collecting food and other items to help disadvantaged Bonaireans have a merry Christmas met
with quite a bit of success, thanks to generous contributions from others sharing the Christmas spirit. They raised NAFl. 600,-, of which NAFl. 400,- was donated to the Kas di Sosiego, which houses some of Bonaire's
older citizens, and NAFl.200,- was donated to the Maria Hoppner Foundation for Children.
Additionally, 10 large bags of groceries were delivered to various churches and the social department. Special thanks go to the Bonaire Art Gallery and A Place For You, as well as the Chandlery at the Marina for
being collection points.
- Salt Pier Damaged. The Cargill Salt Pier, a favored dive spot, was badly damaged several days ago as a disgruntled former employee went berzerk and started destroying outbuildings and part of the
conveyer-belt which brings the salt to waiting freighters. What made the destruction quite serious was his use of a bulldozer. After police cornered the individual he threatened (and apparently succeeded) to set
himself on fire. The individual was shot as part of the effort to subdue him, and is now recovering in a Curacao hospital while officials prepare charges. Reports indicated that one police officer also suffered
burns as part of the effort to take down the former employee. All damage to the Salt Pier was land based, on the north-western side of the small canal surrounding the salt pans. At present two freighters are
awaiting the repair of the salt conveyor belt, which Cargill indicates should be completed (at least for partial operation) by the end of the week.
- .an Internet Woes. If you have your own Internet domain and it happens to be one registered in the Netherlands Antilles, such as "nettech.an", you may have noticed problems in using your
regular e-mail and Web addresses.
That's because the .an "root server" (a "phonebook" for Internet computers) has not been functioning properly since mid-November, when a computer malfunction caused .an domains to be inaccessible
by anyone for several days. The root server is managed by Setel, the Curacao phone company. Setel acknowledges there is a problem, and say they are working to fix it, but don't know when it will be working again.
Therefore, at least two Bonairean businesses, NetTech and Sunbelt Realty, have taken additional measures to make sure that people can communicate with them. NetTech has taken the domain "nettechnv.com" so that http://www.nettechnv.com reaches their Web site, while Sunbelt's Web site can be reached via http://sunbelt.infobonaire.com
by those people having problems with http://www.sunbelt.a .
Classifieds
Lots of things for sale, and some things being sought (please note that we do not warrant the accuracy or validity of the
products/services/etc. being presented here):
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For Sale:
BOOKS: Sea Change, personally autographed by author Dr. Sylvia Earle, NAFl. 25,- or US$14. Profits go to benefit the Bonaire Marine Park. Call Jake at 6773, mailto: jake@nettechnv.com .
RANGE ROVER STATION WAGON
Classic '76 4x4 - only one of its kind on Bonaire Mint condition with parts and qualified maintenance available locally. Only NAFl. 12,000. Call 7223 or e-mail mailto: intertech@bonairelive.com
TOYOTA TERCEL
"Classic" car. Cream puff condition, 65,000 miles. Asking Nafl. 5000. Call 2447
EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
New freezers (several sizes available)
17 kw Lister Diesel Generator (mint)
Slicing machine
Vacuum pack machine
Clothes dryer
Reel of coaxial cable
Maple wood bed frames - twin size
"Harvard" mattress frames
And more....all priced to sell
Call 2447
CELLPHONE
Motorola Ultra Lite MicroTAC Cellphone with Vibra Call, Enhanced Features include battery, Intellicharger, leather case, Already programmed for Bonaire and USA. Cost in Curaçao over Nafl. 2000. Reduced!
Asking Nafl.600. Call George 8988 or mailto: portcall@infobonaire.com
COMPUTER HARDWARE
Used 2GB External SCSI Hard Disk - 3 years old - Nafl. 500 or best offer Used (5 months) 32MB DIMM - Nafl. 75 Call 6773 or mailto: jake@nettech.an
HELP WANTED
Accounting office "Bonaire Pro" is looking for an accounting assistant. Must have experience working in accounting. Please respond to mailto: bonairepro@bonairelive.com or call 8143.
GARAGE SALE
Sunfish sailboat - Nafl. 900
Computer keyboard - Nafl. 50
Cellular Phone - Nafl. 200
Canon Video Camcorder with Underwater Housing - Nafl. 1500
Four (4) Kitchen Chairs - Nafl. 100 for all
Dot Matrix Printer - Nafl. 150
Minolta x-700 35mm camera with flash, 5 lenses, auto-winder, bag - Nafl. 1800
Call Susan at 5425 between 8:00am and 5:00pm, or 2848 from 6:00pm until 9:00pm
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Want to Buy:
STUFF FOR APARTMENT
- Second Hand (small) refrigerator with freezer section * Furniture for a small living room
* Bed (mattress size 1.90m x 1.40m)
* A carpenter :-) who can make me a bed and a desk/cubboard
Contact tel./fax 5095 or e-mail mailto: titus71@hotmail.com
USED NOTEBOOK COMPUTER:
Looking to spend not more than Nafl. 1500. Send details to mailto: classifieds@infobonaire.com .
USED COMPUTER MONITOR:
15" or 17", color, PC compatible. Contact mailto: tcbproduct@bonairelive.com
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