Bonaire Off The Beaten Path

There are no huge major attraction art galleries in Bonaire, but there are a few unique small galleries on the island that sell pieces too.

Richter Art Gallery features Linda & Jake Richter and other local artists. We didn't end up visiting because of the hours and bad planning on our part, but wanted to based on what we heard.

JanArt Gallery in Kralendijk displays art by Janice Huckaby. We were lucky enough to get invited to a gallery open house. She paints a lot of reef scenes and marine life and I remember many of her pieces having this really calming, almost hypnotic feel. She has lots of postcard prints for sale so if you don't pick up some art you can get a very nice souvenir.

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Bonaire is known for amazing reefs and marine life, but also has interesting and unique birds and land animals. You can spot a variety of different species with a short hike through the cliffs and trails on the Northwestern coast, the desert areas to the South, or through Washington Slagbaai National Park.

Endemic species include the Bonaire Green Parrot, Blue Whiptail Lizard and Bonairean Anole among others. You can see geckos, whiptails, anoles and iguanas everywhere on the island and it's pretty cool to watch them skitter around (they also always seem to make it off the road in time). I don't know very much about birds but there are lots of colourful and beautiful kinds to see including parrots and herons. Make sure to see the flamingos.

These are down near the Southern tip by the Solar salt works ponds.
It was really sad to see and imagine how horrible it must have been to have to live in these huts.
The Slaves were brought in from West Africa to work the salt ponds and were only allowed to rest on Saturdays.

Did you know?
Papiamentu is one of the few Creole languages left in the Caribbean.
It is said that the early forms of the Papiamentu language was made up with the mixtures of languages of the different Slaves and Owners.

Old abandoned lighthouse on the Southern tip of Bonaire.

We could not find much info on this lighthouse while here but you can see that there was once a need for it, as it is located at the tip of some very rough seas.

Located past the salt ponds.

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Is that snow on Bonaire?
No, it's just the salt mine.
There is a conveyor belt that goes over the road to a pier for loading onto ships.
Next time you salt your fries, just think that it may have come from Bonaire.
Located close to Pink Beach.

Did you know?
They have been mining salt on Bonaire since the early 1600s.
Bonaire gets it's tap water from desalination of the seawater.

The south side of the island is where the main beaches and diving spots are since they are on the leeward protected side. The north coast is rocky and has larger wave action. If you have a car, drive the north coast and check out some of the lighthouses and tidal pools in the rocks.

Directly across from the bay is Salinas Slagbaai. You will see flamingos here since these salt pans are a favorite feeding ground from Jan. to June. There are also many other species of waterfowl seen here.

The salt industry was also introduced during this period of time. The large yellow colonial-style building seen here was used as a salt storage warehouse. It dates back to 1868 and has been restored to use as the park's administrative offices.