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| Issue #9 3 June 2000 |
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| Entre Nous Bonaire's Bi-weekly Newsletter |
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Entre Nous is the bi-weekly newsletter from the Tourism Corporation Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. In this newsletter you will find the accomplishments of TCB in Bonaire, North America, South America and Europe. We hope that you will read it with pleasure and if you have something that you think is relevant for the tourism sector to know just fax it to 8408 or email to: tcb@bonairelive.com. TOPICS FOR THIS WEEK |
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LOCAL REPORT |
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BY JERRY C. LIGON There
are many ways to enjoy morning's first light, and birders know
most of them. But
there is a special way to reap the rewards of getting up so early.
Allow that morning to be filled with parrots and you will
be treated with an extravagant show of exuberance and grace and
beauty that has very few equals.
On Friday morning, 2 May, my group of birders enjoyed such
a treat, and I wondered why the small parking lot at Dos Pos was
not filled with local people and visitors alike to watch the show.
I wondered why we were the only lucky ones to know about
the parrot's fondness of mangoes.
I wondered why there was not an island wide murmur among
humans. "The mangoes are ripe!, the Mangoes are ripe".
This murmuring among humans happens when whale sharks are
sighted in winter, and visiting divers request to be boated to the
latest site where these magnificant creatures were last sighted,
in hopes that they will also be able to be counted among the
truely lucky people that might be able to spot one on a dive. Our local Yellow-shouldered Parrots are rare. This subspecies is found only here on Bonaire and we have a wild population of around 350. On most of my nature tours of the northern end of the island I count ourselves lucky to get to see one or two flying across the road. But to be in the midst of 40 or 50 squawking "Loras", as the local Bonarian calls them, is to be witness to one of nature's special occurances. The
species proper, Amazona
barbadensis, is found in semi-arid coastal regions of
Venezuela, and were formerly found on Aruba, but there, local
people found them to be such a pest because of their pilfering of
fruit and other food crops that they were eliminated by a vigorous
campaign of shooting and poisoning. Ours however, given the
subspecies of Amazona
barbensis rothschildi, and recognized as a distinguishable
variety as early as 1892, has a somewhat smaller yellow patch at
the bend of the wing and this patch is more intermixed with red,
which makes the Bonarean parrot quite spectacular.
We like to think that, us Bonareans have a keener
appreciation for beauty and have agreed to a program of
conservation, although it is a small effort.
There
has been a coordinated effort at conserving what parrots we have
remaining on the island through a program spearheaded by
conservationist Enit Schultens from Holland.
I was asked to join a group of 10 others from Bonaire who
also shared a common goal of hoping to see the parrot's
conservation an island-wide effort.
We started our campaign by having 600 local Bonaireans
answer a questionnaire about their personal attitudes and
knowledge of the Lora. To
our dismay, we calculated from the sample of people answering the
questions, that island-wide, there were likely to be as many as
3500 parrots in cages. It
is known that locals have traditionally captured and put the
parrots in cages. Some
even steal them from their natural nest sites, and sell them just
to make a few quilders. In
the process of getting the young nestlings out of the nest, which
is usually a large hole in a tree, the nest site is chopped into
and destroyed for any attempted nestings later, so nest sites are
at a premium on the island and getting rarer all the time. Many
answered the question on the questionnaire, "Why do you want
a lora in a cage?", by stating that they loved nature and the
sound of parrot's was gratifying to them. That nature enthusiasts
should not be a threat to the things that they cherish is an axiom
that everyone should understand. Bird
watching is about the most benign behavior that so-called nature
enthusiasts can participate in and should be encouraged, and to be
a small part of a dawn, filled with wild parrots is a special
treat that some of us previously could only imagine when we lived
back in the United States. There,
the last individual of the parrot family, the Carolina Parakeet,
that numbered in the tens of millions in the previous century,
died in a St. Louis zoo in the 1940's.
We would not want to have to rely on memory to enjoy such a
raucous beginning of the day that we, here on Bonaire, get the
privilege to enjoy. Back to
the top
AM: Dive Orientation at Your Hotel Monday, June 12th AM: Open Dives at host hotel / Aqualung and Sea
& Sea Demos at Buddy
Dive Resort Tuesday, June 13th AM: Open Dives at host hotel / Aqualung and Sea &
Sea Demos at Habitat AM: Open Dives at host hotel / Aqualung and Sea &
Sea Demos at Sand
Dollar.
3:00-4:00pm: Dee Scarr and CMC Underwater Cleanup
Seminar at Habitat Conference Room. AM: Underwater Cleanup Dive / Aqualung and Sea &
Sea Demos at Harbour
Village. ALL DAY: Eco Adventures (see special flyer in
packet) |
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Bonaire, represented by TCB-New York, will be participating in the second annual "Islands in the Park" day-long event on Sunday June 18, 2000. The event, sponsored by Air Jamaica and CarePlus Health Plan, will take place in Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York and will showcase Caribbean culture, cuisine and entertainment as well as draw attention to the Caribbean as a vacation destination. Representatives from many hotels and tourist offices from the Caribbean are expected to attend. The event will also include a trade show on Friday June 16, 2000 at the New York Marriott Hotel in Brooklyn at which Bonaire will be present. This trade show will feature hotels and government tourist offices and approximately 300 attendees including travel agents and tour operators, are expected to attend. More information on this event to follow in next Entre Nous.
Bonaire
will be participating, as a sponsor, in Air Jamaica's Caribbean Golf
Classic on June 21, 2000 at the Indian Lakes Resort in Bloomingdale,
IL, just outside of Chicago. As part of Bonaire's
participation the TCB will be sponsoring one golf hole at which the
Bonaire banner will be prominently displayed. Information on
Bonaire will also be distributed at a mini trade show which will
take place after the Golf Classic and information on Bonaire will
also be made available at the golf hole Bonaire is sponsoring.
The
May 22, 2000 issue of Travel Agent
Magazine (circulation 53,500) contained a feature article
on Bonaire's
Dive Festival. The two-page article was written by the
magazine's Dive Editor James Ruggia who attended DEMA 2000 and
interviewed Commissioner Ramoncito Booi and included a quote from him.
Titled "Coral Conservation" the article which focuses solely
on the
Fourth Annual Dive Festival gives a day-by-day account of Dive
Festival activities as well as information on Dive Festival packages and
the tour operators selling them. A rundown of the Official Host
Hotels is also included with a paragraph devoted to detailing each
properties amenities. The
May 2000 issue of Sport Diver
contained a placement on the upcoming Dive
Festival. Written by Michael DeFreitas, who attended last
year's Festival, the placement includes package information plus
information on the Official Dive Festival Host Hotels and Tour
Operators. TCB's toll free number and website address are also
included. This issue also contained a placement on Bonaire's
purchase of Klein Bonaire with detailed information on the purchase
agreement and Bonaire's future plans for the island. The May 14, 2000 travel section of the Chicago Tribune (circulation 1,029,241) featured a placement on the Dive Festival in the Calendar of Event section. The
Summer 2000 issue of Destination
Weddings & Honeymoons, which is dedicated to people
planning weddings and honeymoons away from home, included
information on getting married in Bonaire. In a special section,
the requirements for getting married on island were listed along with
the requirements for a number of other islands.
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Public Relation
In
the June edition of Duiken, a full page was dedicated to the
Bonaire saving plan! We are getting quite a few calls for
information. Arke
Reizen, one of the largest Tour Operators in Holland, will visit
our island in June with an ABC Fam. Trip. Regarding
the Bonaire article published in the Dutch Travel Magazine Reizen:
regretfully the publication of made a big error by publishing the wrong
information under the heading vaccinations. It took us quite
some effort to get this corrected with the assistance of Publi
Seven. Meanwhile in the next issue a proper correction has been published.
And, they also did send an apologize / information letter to
our Tour Operators in Holland. At the moment we are advertising in the Dutch Newspapers De Telegraaf & De Volkskrant. We are receiving a lot of fulfillment requests via e-mail and telephone. We have finalized our spring and summer advertising campaign and are now preparing the fall campaign together with CREAM.
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El
Universal Newspaper… "Bonaire, at a glance" The
number one commercial newspaper in Venezuela had one half page on
Bonaire, The article describes the Marine Park and the major hotels,
Harbour Village, Plaza Resort, etc. Also give some tips on location,
currency, shopping, restaurants, etc.
June,
month of many events and promotions June
17 /21 South America press trip For
the first time this year, a press trip with representatives form
Venezuela, Colombia and Argentina has been organized. The journalists
will enjoy the beauty of the Marine Park as
well as our top side attractions. They will experience first hand that
Bonaire is much more than the best diving destination in the Caribbean. International
Tourism and Destinies Tradeshow 2000 Valencia June 22/23 This
city is located 2 hours from Caracas and to Bonaire through Curacao.
This is a great opportunity to get in touch with the local tour
operators! The Star of Tourism, Caracas Hilton Hotel,
June 25
The
main personalities of tourism will receive awards during this event.
Different destinations will have displays to assist travel agencies and
the general public, as well as member form the media (press, radio and
TV) Seminars
"Discover Bonaire" We
will begin our second edition of our seminars "Discover
Bonaire" during this low season. The objective of these seminars is
to inform the travel agents about the attributes of Bonaire so they
can provide accurate information to their customers and better market
the area. Operators form Caracas, Valencia and Maracaibo are very excited with the proposal so we are expecting a big audience for the seminars. This event is coordinated with TCB, Air ALM and our Hotels
Magazine
Rutas & Rumbos In the may issue of the magazine, a whole page is dedicated to Bonaire and its new slogan "Bonaire, perfectly pure". They take a lot of text directly from the vacation planner so as to describe the beauty and purity of the destination, broadening the idea the Colombians already have from the island as a perfect diving destination
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Bon
Bini Divers Bonaire and Lions Dive Hotel Bonaire are pleased to
announce their Grand Re-Opening! Beginning 1st July,
2000, BON BINI DIVERS will
be housed in their new and improved location at the oceanfront of
Lions Dive Bonaire. These new facilities will include a new larger
guest gear storage room just a few steps from the water, and a
larger retail store and classroom. A roomier dock also soon will be
in place for our guests to enjoy! Enjoy
the tradewinds at SIMBA’S BAR, the new oceanside watering
hole just above the dive shop. Planned completion is August, 2000. Coming
events call for the planned completion of the LENNY BEACH
RECREATIONAL AREA in November, 2000, located next to the dive
shop. Sit and relax in Bonaire’s beautiful sun while waiting for
your next boat dive! Also, don’t forget to try our new
restaurant, slated for an opening in December, 2000! For
more information contact: Bon Bini Divers Bonaire, N.V.
(Kaya Gobernador N. Debrot #9, Bonaire-Netherlands Antiles) Phone:
+(599) 717-5425 Fax: +(599) 717-4425 email: info@bonbinidivers.com website: www.bonbinidivers.com STINAPA Bonaire
manages both the Bonaire National Marine Park and the Washington
Slagbaai National Park. They
were recently awarded a 3-year funding grant for the
purpose of improving Washington Slagbaai National Park.
The funding includes the hiring of a full time Park
Manager. This means that now both the Bonaire National Marine Park
and Washington Slagbaai National Park will benefit from the expert
guidance of full time park managers. Aliansa Naturalesa Bonaire
was also named as a recipient of funds from this grant.
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June 2000 |
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| 1 | Ascension Day | ||
| 3 | Cycle Tour Kralendijk - Lac Bay | ||
| 10 - 17 | 4th Annual Dive Festival | ||
| 19-25 | Siman di Kultura (Cultural Week) | ||
| 24 | St. John's Day | ||
| 29 | St. Peter's Day | ||
| * | 5 km Run (organized by Comcabon) | ||
| * | 4th Angola Construction Sailing Competition at Kas di Regatta | ||
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July 2000
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| 2 - 4 | Dia di Art (Art Day) | ||
| 2 | 5 km Fun Run (organized by KONKABON) | ||
| 22 | Time Cycle Trial 10k and Circuit 50k (Bonaire Cycling) | ||
| 23 | Road Bike Race 60k | ||
| * | Lac Bay Mini Regatta | ||
| * | 14th Copa Cultimara Sailing Race at Lac Bai-Cai | ||
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August 2000 |
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| 6 | 5 km Fun Run (organized by KONKABON) | ||
| * | 5th Cap't Don's Habitat Sailing | ||
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September 2000 |
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| 3 | Cycle Tour Kralendjik - Sorobon | ||
| 3 | Local Fishing Tournament | ||
| 6 | "Dia di Bonaire" Bonaire Day | ||
| 6 | Sailign Race "Dia di Bonaire " at Kas di Regatta | ||
| 6 | 5 km run | ||
| 30 | Mountain Bike Race | ||
| * | Duofest International | ||
| * | 17 km Estafetter run | ||
| * To be announced | |||
| For a complete calender of events visit our website at www.infobonaire.com | |||
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For a complete calender of events visit our website at http://www.infobonaire.com/ Note: Dates are subject to change. A full cruise ship schedule is available upon request at the TCB Office. If you have any additions, changes or corrections to this planner please send these to S. Pourier via fax (8408) or e-mail: statistics@tourismbonaire.com - thank you. *To unsubscribe or subscribe send an e-mail to: tcb@bonairelive.com ********************************************* Tourism Corporation Bonaire Kaya S. Bolivar 12 Bonaire Dutch Caribbean Tel: 599-7-8322/ 8649 Fax: 599-7-8408 E-mail: tcb@tourismbonaire.com Website address: http://www.infobonaire.com/ **************************************************** |
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Bonaire's Bi-Weekly Newsletter Tourism Corporation Bonaire E-mail: tcb@tourismbonaire.com |
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