TCB
BONAIRE
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LOCAL
REPORT
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NEW
BONAIRE AMBASSADOR
AWARDED
BRONZE: |
Antoine
Demouche, The Netherlands |
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Antoine "Twan" Demouche
just received his Bronze Medal
for ten years of consecutive
visits to Bonaire. During the
course of the ten years, he
has visited Bonaire on at least
fifteen different occasions
and enjoys the hospitality
of the Plaza
Resort. |
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To see more of Bonaire's Bronze, Silver,
or Gold Ambassadors, visit http://www.bonaireambassador.com!
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NEW
EMAIL ADDRESSES FOR TCB BONAIRE
Effective Monday, September
13th, new email addresses are in effect
for TCB Bonaire. Although the previous
email addresses can be used for the next
few weeks, TCB Bonaire requests that
you update your addressbook. Staff can
be reached at the following email addresses:
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DIVE
PROMOTIONS START IN SEPTEMBER
This fall TCB Europe will promote Bonaire
once again as one of the top dive destinations
in the world. The kick off will take place
in our premier market (The Netherlands),
in October followed by our secondary markets.
This promotion will be based on real dive
experiences and will soon be followed by
leading dive magazines. Given the enormous
growth in on-line marketing and its ability
to ensure narrow targeting, TCB Europe
will (once again!) use high tech and state
of the art techniques to make sure we realize
maximum impact at minimum costs.
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EUROPEAN
CORPORATION WITH SEARCH ENGINE
While writing this input
for EntreNous, TCB Europe is about to
close the pan-European deal with the
number 1 search engine, Google. This
means starting mid September, Google
will make Bonaire and our official website
Infobonaire.com a preferred search result.
Not only for the Netherlands, but also
in the surrounding countries and the
rest of Europe. This means we will be
able to track and trace every Google-user
interested in diving and make sure we
offer them our Bonaire-proposition. TCB
Europe is further developing its niche
marketing strategy by using upcoming
marketing means such as this.
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NICHE
MARKETING USING MOBILE MARKETING
TCB Europe will present
a new innovation in September. Starting
the 15th, a brand new and strong growing
marketing mean will be integrated: Mobile
Marketing. As from that day the 13.2
million owners of a cellular phone in
the Netherlands will be able to subscribe
to the twice-monthly Bonaire
Newsletter via SMS. This matches perfectly
with our long-term strategy (Can you
keep a little secret). Mobile Marketing
is almost ‘made
for’ a
strategy like ours and is accomplished
by communicating with short and little
(fun) facts. One can imagine how TCB
Europe will brighten up the lives of
Dutch executives facing a severe traffic
jam on a windy and rainy November morning…..
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TURTLES
AND BEACH CAM: PRESS ATTENTION THROUGHOUT
EUROPE
A guerilla press offensive
in August generated a lot of press attention.
The Turtle Tracking already gave us coverage
and is now followed by the new web cams
like the Beach cam. It was promoted by
TCB Europe and also via CTO Offices in
the Netherlands and Germany.
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PRESS
TRIPS SCANDINAVIA
A lot of requests from
Scandinavia land on the desk of PR-manager
Marieke Raaff these days. It’s
her job to divide them by priority. Most
requests are combined press-trips with
Curacao and/or Aruba. And given their
more generic approach and much larger
budget, TCB Europe has to be careful
not to invite magazines and newspapers
which do not aim at our target audience.
Recently Marieke approved the Svenska
Dagbladet, Sweden’s number 2 economic/financial
paper. In advance we would like to thank
the private sector for hosting them.
DUTCH
ROAD SHOW TO START SOON
TCB Europe and Bonhata joined together
for the Dutch Road show to inform and
educate the Dutch trade. This Road
show, organized by CTO Holland, will
take place Sept. 27 – Oct. 4,
2004. It covers four different cities
throughout the Netherlands using the
credo: the (Dutch) Caribbean comes
to you this fall.
WTM
2004: UPCOMING NOVELTIES
We can’t tell
you everything yet but after two years
of unchanged presentation at WTM London
(Europe’s
second largest trade show and number
one UK-show) TCB Europe will, together
with the private sector, will present
some new ideas this year. Also the
E-learning tool will play a part in
this new presentation. This tool is
already very successfully introduced
in the Netherlands and the English
version is soon to follow. It is right
on time to be embedded in the WTM Trade
Campaign.
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HURRICANE
IVAN BRUSHES BONAIRE; MINIMAL DAMAGE REPORTED
Working
with Lt. Governor Herbert Domacasse and the
island's official Disaster Staff, TCB-NYC acted
as the designated off-island source for
dissemination of news and information concerning
Hurricane Ivan. Coordinating the collection
of reports from the Government, TCB-Bonaire,
Stinapa, Bonhata, BHG and individual hoteliers,
the New York office provided an on-going flow
of information to media, the Caribbean Tourism
Organization, DiveNewswire and the other overseas
offices.
Bonaire was indeed
fortunate that the winds and waves from Ivan caused
minimal damage to the island. All of
us at TCB-NYC want to congratulate the island
Disaster Staff for their very coordinated
approach to the preparations for the storm
and thank everyone on Bonaire who was so
helpful in assisting us gather and disseminate
accurate information.
Our thoughts are with our Caribbean neighbors
as well as those in Florida that have been
affected more severely by both Hurricanes Frances
and Ivan.
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WINNERS,
WINNERS EVERYWHERE....
From a pool of 2,000 entries in the Caribbean
Travel & Life Online Contest which ran from
March to August of this year, six lucky people
are on their way to Bonaire. Winners won a weeks
stay at one of the participating hotels; Belmar
Oceanfront Apartments, Captain Don’s Habitat,
Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino, Sand
Dollar Condominium Resort, Plaza Resort Bonaire,
and Port Bonaire. In addition to filling out
their names and contact number, in order to enter
the contest consumers filled out a short questionnaire
on their vacation destination selection criteria.
Results from the survey will be available in
mid-September.
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DIVE
RETAILERS WIN WITH THE DIVE PRO WEBSITE!
Congratulations to Mr. Tom Sinel
of Thunder Country Diving in Mississauga, Ontario
who was the Grand Prize Winner of the Bonaire
Dive Pro Website Raffle. Mr. Sinel won an 8
day/7night stay for two at Captain Don’s
Habitat. Another winner, of the quarterly raffle,
was Mr. Walter Lancaster of Riverside, California
who won Bon Bini Diver’s prize of “One
Free Boat Dive for Two People.” Both
gentlemen were notified of their prizes and
said that they would be packing their gear
and heading to Bonaire very soon! Visit the
site at www.bonairedivingpro.com.
CARIBBEAN
TOURISM ORGANIZATION ACTIVITIES
Joining over 18 participants,
including National Tourist Officers and Public
Relations firms, Marie Rosa, on behalf of Tourism
Corporation Bonaire, attended the July 15th
PR Council Meeting hosted by the Caribbean
Tourism Organization at their headquarters
in downtown Manhattan. A variety of topics
were discussed including post Caribbean Week
re-cap and plans for 2005, details about the
27th Annual Caribbean Tourism Conference (CTC-27),
a request for 2005 event country calendars,
a request for airline service updates, news
about Caribbean Tourism Day and information
about the Hurricane Preparedness Plan. The
next PR Council Meeting will be scheduled for
early fall.
DEMA
SHOW PREPARATIONS IN FULL SWING
The DEMA Show is just around the corner,
October 13-16 in Houston, TX and we
are getting ready to ensure that Bonaire’s
presence at the show will not go unnoticed.
All of Bonaire’s exhibitors;
Belmar Oceanfront Apartments, Bonaire
Dive & Adventure, BONHATA, Buddy
Dive Resort, Captain Don’s Habitat,
Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino,
Hamlet Oasis, Harbour Village Beach
Club, Lagoen Hill Bungalows/Divers
Paradise, Plaza Resort Bonaire & Port
Bonaire, Photo Tours, Sun Oceanfront
Apartments/Sun Rentals, Sand Dollar
Condominium Resort, Toucan Diving,
and the Yacht Club will receive generic
printed materials prior to the show
to assemble their own Dive Retailer
Information Packets. They will get
NEW custom designed Bonaire Dive Post
Cards (blank on the back for their
own personal message or DEMA special
being offered) to distribute to retailers
at the show, along with a supply of
Bonaire flyers and brochures. Bonaire’s
eye-catching banners will be on display
in the Dutch Caribbean Pavilion to
attract the attention of potential
customers. With more than 600 exhibitors
from around the world and 10,000 dive
and travel industry professionals expected
to attend this year’s show, it
a great opportunity for the island
to be front and center and show why
it is consistently voted one of the
top dive destinations in the Caribbean.
BONAIRE EZ NEWS
FOR AUGUST
During August two issues
of Bonaire EZ News were written and distributed
to our database of more than 25,000 consumers
and travel agents. The August
3rd issue of EZ News focused on the
new American Airlines/American Eagle flight
schedule to Bonaire for Fall 2004/Winter
2005 and fall/winter hotel packages, while
the August 25th issue focused on the
upcoming International Sailing Regatta and
island news.
DIVE NEWSWIRE
FOR AUGUST
Dive Newswire is distributed electronically
to more than 6,000 dive shop owners, manufacturers
as well as media outlets. On August
4 a press release on the new
American Airlines/American Eagle flight schedule
for Fall 2004/Winter 2005 was included on
Dive Newswire and on August 25 a press
release on hotel packages was included.
PRESS RELEASES
As part of the ongoing press release program,
Adams Unlimited researches, writes and prepares
a steady stream of releases for mailings to
the media for applicable editorial coverage
based on editorial calendars and the need to
disseminate timely news. In August we
prepared two press releases - one focusing
on the new American Airlines/American Eagle
flight schedule, the other on fall/winter packages
being offered by Bonaire's hotels. This
information was also used in the August
3rd issue of Bonaire EZ News. Both
press releases were distributed on
Dive Newswire, August 4 and 25 respectively, and
to a database of more than 250 media outlets
including daily newspapers, travel, travel trade,
family, outdoor, dive and bridal magazines
as well as travel freelance writers and
websites.
ONE-ON-ONE
PRESS VISITS
We are currently working with
well known travel writer Candyce Stapen on
a press visit to Bonaire in December. Candyce
writes about family travel and will be
visiting the island to update her guidebook National
Geographic Guide to Caribbean Family Vacations,
which "offers detailed profiles of the
best family-oriented tours, activities, and
programs at one hundred vacation destinations
throughout the Caribbean. Each of the wide
range of options presented in these pages is
designed for families that want to be active
or to immerse themselves in the local culture
while having fun together." Candyce is
also best known for her segments on the CBS-Television
network and also writes for
Physicians' Travel & Meeting
Guide, The Washington
Times, The Boston Herald and Caribbean Travel & Life.
EDITORIAL
HIGHLIGHTS
Daytona Beach News-Journal
(circulation 124,124): Island news
and what was happening on Bonaire were
highlighted in the July 18, 2004 Sunday
travel edition of the Daytona Beach
News-Journal. A package from Captain
Don’s Habitat titled “Kids Dive
Free-But Not Alone” was mentioned, along
with the details and dates of its validity.
Travel Weekly (circulation
50,632): Bonaire was featured in the
July 19, 2004 issue of Travel Weekly,
as being a destination that is committed
to protecting the island both above and below
the water. The 25th Anniversary of the Bonaire
National Marine Park and the 35th Anniversary
of Washington-Slagbaai National Park are
also highlighted. Bonaire’s
800 number and Website are listed.
Scuba Diving (circulation
191,436): In the August issue of Scuba
Diving Magazine, in the “Top
10 Unique Destinations” section, Bonaire
is noted for being “uniquely” outside
of the Caribbean’s hurricane belt,
which accounts for the island’s spectacularly
diverse reef life. Bonaire’s reefs,
corals, and fish are all mentioned as being “unique” to
the island.
Scuba Diving (circulation
191,436): Scuba Diving Magazine published
an article in August about the new American
Airlines/American Eagle flight schedule to
Bonaire. The change was noted as “easy
and convenient.” Burney el Hage, Commissioner
of Tourism for Bonaire said “The new
schedule will allow vacationers to plan both
long weekend getaways to Bonaire as well as
longer stays, in addition to preserving the
Saturday to Sunday option which has always
been the most popular choice of travelers from
the U.S.” Bonaire’s 800 number
and Website were listed.
About.com (circulation 36,000,000): In
Teresa Plowright’s. “Your Guide
to Travel with Kids”, July 19, 2004 column
on the About.com Web site,
Bonaire was highlighted for offering many kid-friendly
activities, such as “pool pre-diving
programs.” SASY, Bubblemaker, and Discover
Scuba were also noted as kid-friendly programs.
Bonaire’s 800 number and a link to the
Website were listed.
Smarter Living (circulation
900,000): On July 26, 2004,
Smarter Living posted
an article featuring the ABC islands on their
Website (www.smarterliving.com).
Bonaire was praised for its “pristine
environment and world-class diving and snorkeling.” The
island was noted for being a good choice for
adventurous families that want to avoid high-rise
mega resorts and crowded beaches. A link to
the Bonaire Website was included.
Caribseek Caribbean News
(online circulation): On August 24,
2004, an article was featured on the Caribseek
Caribbean News Website about Bonaire’s
upcoming Fall/Winter packages and deals for
divers, couples, and families. Belmar Oceanfront
Apartments, The Black Durgon Inn, Bonaire
Lagoen Hill, Buddy Dive Resort, Captain Don’s
Habitat, Caribbean Club Bonaire, Casa Bonita
Apartments, Deep Blue View B&B, Divers
Paradise Bonaire, Divi Flamingo Beach Resort & Casino,
Golden Reef Inn, Grand Hotel Playa Pabou,
Harbour Village Beach Club, Ocean View Villas,
Plaza Resort Bonaire & Toucan Diving,
and Sand Dollar Condominium Resort were all
mentioned. Bonaire’s 800 number and
Website were listed.
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GAM
PROMOTES BONAIRE OFFICIAL SEMINARS
In a half-page, with full-color,
this Venezuelan magazine directed travel agents
to highlights in the sixth annual edition of
the seminar, “Discover
Bonaire & II Discovery Scuba”, that
took place in July. This was an event long-awaited
for by the tourism sector, as it not only
prepares the sales force of the tour operators
with general information about the island and
its hotels, but also provides the opportunity
to experience scuba diving, an activity that
took place in a swimming pool with divemaster
members of FVAS (Venezuelan Underwater Federation).
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EL
MUNDO APASIONANTE DEL BUCEO EN BONAIRE
With this title, Gaceta Aérea
reported in a half, full-color page, the seminars
Discover Bonaire & Discovery Scuba in its
August edition. This event has been
organized for six consecutive years in cooperation
with the hotels and the support of the Venezuelan
tour operators, to train and familiarize
travel agents with the island of Bonaire.
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OD
VIAJES AND ITS SPECIAL EDITION
This high target magazine, in
its special tourism edition of August, published
the article, “Las
Cuatro Joyas del Caribe: Aruba, Curaçao,
Bonaire and Punta Cana”, as the favorite
Venezuelan Caribbean destinations. The journalist
Carolina Ledezma discovers each island, describing
Bonaire “Donde la Naturaleza es Reina” (where
nature is queen) highlighting that it is considered
one of the best places in the world for diving.
These article also comes with beautiful color
images of windsurfing, diving and also from
the hotels Plaza Resort and Harbour Village.
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AMALGAMA
TURISTICA ONLINE: A PERUVIAN MAGAZINE
Previously an informative tourism
bulletin which has almost 8.000 subscribers,
since August 23th it has now become an online
magazine introducing Bonaire to its new tourism
section where the consumers have the option
to link with our website infobonaire.com.
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THE
PERUVIAN MARKET AND ITS ACTIVE PROMOTION
OF BONAIRE
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KLM is designing a flyer
with the programs of the hotels of the
island to be promoted in the tourism
sector.
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New groups in Fam Trips are being
requested by KLM for the second semester
of the year, within the fam trips 2004
program.
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August was the month
in which Bonaire started to position
its image in the specialized tourism
magazines, “El
Profesional" and “Viajar."
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As a diving, relaxing,
and adventure destination, Bonaire
maintains its image promotion in the
magazine Transport, directed towards
travel agencies.
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RETO
A MAR ABEIRTO BY JUAN MARINO
In the ocasion of the Regatta,
Juan (a champion windsurfer in his category
in this event), is preparing
to cross from Puerto Cabello (Venezuela) to
the island of Bonaire in a journey that will
take ten to fourteen hours depending on the
wind speed. This will take place on October
2nd, 2004.
He will be guarded by a ship
from the Venezuelan Navy which will also carry
a group of Venezuelan press, besides the crew
members. The initiative from Juan Marino has
found support from Hamlet, which will be the
host hotel for the athlete and its team. More
information of this sea odyssey, in our next
Entre Nous.
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BONAIRE,
THE BEST ECO-ADVENTURE DESTINATION IN THE
CARIBBEAN
The Ecuadorian magazine, “Transport”,
in its August edition delights us with two
center full color pages showing beautiful
images of Bonaire, emphasizing its diving and
natural parks in a peaceful environment that
invites relaxation.
The report talks about the location
of Bonaire, followed by an island tour from
the northeast to the south, describing all
the activities there are to enjoy. Practical
tips are found in a chart ideal for travelers.
Also main tour operators promoting Bonaire
in the market are mentioned and can be contacted.
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AEROPOSTAL
WITH NEW SMALL AIRPLANES
Six new planes have
been contracted and incorporated into the Venezuelan
airline and will expand their air services
to new cities. The turbo prop model 328-100,
with a capacity of 32 passengers, will start
operation at the end of the year. (Gaceta Aerea
August edition).
Note: In the past we have been
in contact with Aeropostal inviting them to
consider Bonaire in their Caribbean destinations,
a proposal that today we bring up again due
to the conveniences of the small aircraft,
ideal on routes such as Caracas-Aruba or Curaçao,
and then connecting to Bonaire with BonairExel.
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OUR
BONAIRE SPANISH BROCHURES IS READY
The brochure, already available
at Bonaire's TCB office,
is being distributed in Venezuela and very
soon in Ecuador and Peru. Thanks to those colleagues
from the private sector, for their support
by promoting their properties in the
brochure that, for the first time, is printed
in the Spanish language.
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SAO
PAOLO BOAT SHOW 2004
The dates of this Brazilian
trade show have been changed to October 20th
to 26th. An event where important meetings
with the PADI, NAUI, and DAN associations will
take place in the diving area of the trade
show, along with pictures and video exhibitions
by Ary Amarante, a profesional photographer
from Mergulho magazine, who will project his
pictures of Bonaire. The trade show will be
an important opportunity to contact the key
people of the Brazilian diving industry, even
more now when Varig is operating in a regular
basis to Aruba from Sao Paulo on Tuesdays.
Please contact Yasmin Pérez at: flamingorep@cantv.net for
more information.
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AVAVIT
TRADE SHOW: NOVEMBER 9TH AND 10TH
The organizers of Avavit have
already extended a kind invitation to participate
in this new edition to take place in Quinta
Esmeralda on November 09th and 10th.
Bonaire has confirmed its presence
with an 8-square-meter booth with an excellent
location. We invite all of you to contact BHG/Bonhata
to participate, or, for additional information,
contact Yasmin at: flamingorep@cantv.net.
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NEWS
FROM THE TOURISM SECTOR
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CARIBBEAN
DESIGN PREMIERS NEW WEBSITE
 Caribbean
Design & Marketing recently
premiered a new website for
Golden Reef Inn. Formerly the
Travellers Inn Bonaire, Golden
Reef Inn is located in the
quiet residential area of Hato,
only three minutes walk to the
sea, and only a short drive
(5 minutes) by car to Kralendijk. These
accommodations
are configured into four
studios. They are equipped
with air conditioners,
ceiling fan, cable TV, either
two twin beds or one king-size
bed (your choice), and
a fully equipped kitchenette
(full size refrigerator,
gas oven and range, microwave,
coffeemaker), in-room
safe, and private
bathroom with shower, and
are maintained to the highest
standards of cleanliness.
For more information,
visit the new website at www.goldenreefinn.com,
or email for additional information
to info@goldenreefinn.com.
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CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
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Carnival
Adult Parade Dates:
2005
- 2011 |
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2005
- Feb 6
2006 - Feb 27
2007 - Feb 18
2008 - Feb 3
2009 - Feb 22
2010 - Feb 14
2011 - Mar 6 |
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September
2004
TBA - Duofest International
TBA - Bonaire Bikers MC Flag Day
Weekend 2003
Sep 6 - "Dia di Bonaire" Bonaire
Day (Rincon)
Sep 6 - 5 km Bonaire Day Fun Run 8am
Sep 6 - Sailing Race "Dia di Bonaire " at Kas di Regatta
Sep 18 - Underwater Cleanup at Bonaire Yellow Submarine at
1pm followed by potluck BBQ 717-2929
TBA Tene Boneiru Limpi island wide cleanup
October 2004
TBA - 8th Bonaire Mountain Bike Speed Challenge Race
TBA - Road Bike Race 60 km Bonaire Cycling
Oct 3-10 37th Bonaire International Sailing Regatta at Kas di Regatta and Sorobon
TBA - 18th Comcabon Regatta
5 km WEB Run 5:30pm
Oct 21 - Antillean Day
November 2004
TBA - Cycle Tour South Coast 70km (Bonaire Cycling)
TBA - The 4th Annual Deep Blue 5k Swim, Metric Mile Swim, and Ocean Festival
TBA - Arrival of St. Nicholaas (Sinterklaas) Town Pier
TBA - 1/4 Triathlon - Swimming 1km
TBA - Running 60 km round Bonaire
Every Tuesday Night
@ 6:30pm -
BonaireTalker Dinner/Gathering at
Gibi's Terrace, call Jake at 717-6773
or email jake@bonairetalk.com
Click here for a detailed CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
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