Pool Cleaning

We love our pool.  We spend time almost everyday hanging in or around the pool. 

It is a Magna pool which means its salt water.  It requires very little chlorine and never has that smell and feel of pools with a lot of chemicals. Every 6 months or so the pool company dumps a bucket of salt in the water. We have to add water to it on a weekly basis because of evaporation.

 

But it is not maintenance free. The pool company comes once a week to vacuum the pool and clean the filters.  The pool does get a film on the walls that has to be scrubbed off.

Rick has developed his own style for cleaning.  He puts on his snorkel and mask, hangs on the side of the pool, and brushes/cleans the walls.

When he is done, he rests under the mango tree. Life is good on Bonaire.

Cactus

We had two cactus growing in pots on the corner of our lot.  I have watered these cactus exactly once in the two-plus years we have lived here.  They survive on their own.  They are such good survivors that their pots have expansion cracks and their roots have grown through the bottom of the pots.

Instead of replanting them in pots, we decided to take them out of the pots and plant them in the ground. Well not us...I called my trusty gardener who made quick work of the project.

Jose and his crew broke the pots, extracted the cactus, trimmed the roots, dug two holes and placed the cactus in their new resting place. It took them less than an hour and cost us $50 which we think was well worth the money.  We would have been broken and bloodied had we tried to do this ourselves.

Replanted cactus.

 

Detailing

The decorative furniture at our house is all distressed wood.  Some more distressed than others.  Many of the pieces had no paint.  The weather had stripped the wood.  In an effort to protect the wood and keep the pieces from deteriorating, I hired a painter to refinish several pieces.  As you recall, my last painting experience was not positive.  I didn't want to repeat the bad experience.

After power washing, the painter discovered the wood bench had a carving of two elephants and the "OM" symbol on the back. The painter proceeded to highlight the symbol which fits in with my Zen décor.

The “AUM” symbol (or OM) symbolizes the Universe and the ultimate reality.  

The front door (the part facing inside the compound) is surrounded by antique wood carvings. These wood panels were also deteriorating.  Two days of power washing and two weeks of hand painting with a tiny brush produced the finish product.

After painting.

And here are my future projects.  Looks like painting will be my new hobby.

Curacao

Each night while we were in Curacao we went to a new restaurant. Rick would hold my hand, because I was still unsteady from my surgery and couldn't see much, and lead me through the streets of Willimstad.

This is the famous floating bridge (locals call it the "Old Lady Bridge") that allows you to cross the sea to the other side of the city.  The bridge swings open when a large boat comes into the harbor. You can stand on the bridge while it swings open and even walk from one end to the other...you just can't get to land while it is moving. It is light at night with bright arches of florescent colors.

There was a Baskin & Robbins ice cream store right outside our hotel. We took full advantage of the location on a daily basis. Rick did manage to walk the streets until he located an Italian gelato store in a little alley off the main street.

Lunch was usually Subway.  We haven't eaten at a Subway since we left the US.  We got our fill for a few days.  Plus it gave Rick a place to get cookies.

One of the restaurants puts your name on a chalk board to reserve your table. It was cute but hardly necessary as the restaurants don't fill up until about 8:00 pm...we usually go at 6:30 pm.

 

This is the famous skyline of Curacao.  We were pretty enamored with it when we first saw it 4 years ago. Now it seems ordinary as we are so used to this architecture. 

It was mostly cloudy while we were in Curacao.  The wind was really strong and the waves were splashing up on all the seaside restaurants.  This made it necessary to sit about two rows back from the edge of the restaurants that hung over the sea.

The sunset was very soft and pretty.  Rick was able to capture the wave action too!

Selfie on the bridge about 4 days after surgery on my eye....

 

And a bonus selfie with the Curacao skyline behind us.  

 

Retina Surgery

The two laser treatments to correct my retinal detachment didn't work.  My Ophthalmologist on Bonaire called her associate in Curacao to get me into surgery pronto.

The wheels of the island medical care usually turn slowly.  Not this time.  The government insurance agency booked a flight for me and Rick within 48 hours to Curacao. 

Bonaire has good medical care and a hospital full of specialists.  However, some things have to be done by experts in Aruba, Curacao or Columbia. There is an agreement in place that all the  Dutch Caribbean islands share medical care and specialists.  So they send patients to where the best doctor is located. I was in surgery within 24 hours.

The government insurance pays for everything  and arranges for everything you need while you are away. They book the airfare for you and a companion.  The transport company picked us up at the Curacao airport and took us to a wonderful hotel in the heart of Willemstad. The transport company took us to doctors office and on to the hospital and back to the hotel after surgery (which was outpatient). The insurance also deposits a daily stipend in your bank account to pay for meals. All of this is completely paid for through the medical insurance we have as part of the benefits of being residents of Bonaire.  

Everything was perfect.  The surgery was done exactly like I had it done in the States.  A gas bubble is placed in your eye to hold the retina in place while it heals from surgery.  This requires you to lay still for a week with your head back to keep the bubble in place on the retina. I spent a week recovering in the hotel.  

Usually they don't want you flying after the gas bubble is placed in your eye.  The doctor prescribed specific instructions for the airplane.  I realize its in Dutch but it says to fly in an

non-pressurized airplane.

The insurance agency has medical transport planes that shuttle patients to and from the islands.  The plane they booked for me was a pressurized model.  The airport doctor, the onboard nurse and the pilot all confirmed that the medical transport was pressurized and advised against travel. I really didn't want the gas bubble expanding in my eyeball causing excruciating pain.  I declined the flight and asked to be flown in a non-pressurized cabin as the prescription stated. Much to their credit, within 2 hours they had me on an old prop plane that was not pressurized and only flies at an altitude of 3,000 feet.

The Divi Divi (airlines) plane is a rattle-bag old turbo prop plane that takes about twenty minutes to fly from Curacao to Bonaire. It's all open and you can see directly into the cockpit.  It's loud, its been well used, and the seats are tiny... but it is non-pressurized just like the doctor ordered.

During the flight, my bubble did expand  and caused some pressure to my eye and my eyesight went dim for about 15 minutes of the flight.  We returned back home safe and sound. 

How nice it was to have a companion to help me through this surgery.  Rick was a dream.  He took care of everything for the week.  I relied on him completely through my recovery.  I am so thankful he was with me during this "adventure?".