Update from Bonaire

I hope you’re healthy and safe wherever you are in the world! This is an unprecedented event in all of our lifetimes so it’d be weird not to be stressed out by these uncertain times. And even though we’re experiencing somewhat of a unique situation here, it’s still stressful. Here’s how things are going on the tiny rock of Bonaire right now.

If my life was like it is right now for any other reason it would be pretty perfect. I hate feeling that way because so many people in so many places are having a horrendous experience with this virus. But everyone everywhere is experiencing this outbreak differently and here on Bonaire it’s been extremely quiet.

The island is quieter now than the lowest of low season. The streets are practically empty and dive sites that are usually jam packed are ghost towns. Now is a great time for any wide angle photographers to get pics of the Hilma Hooker sans divers.

Even though it’s peaceful here, everyone is understandably stressed. I can feel the tension at the grocery store which is about the only time I see other humans. All of our stores have someone manning the entrance, cleaning the cart/basket handles before giving it to you, and limiting the number of shoppers in the store. Tape on the floor marks the safe distance to stand between shoppers and large plexiglass panels have been put in place to keep staff separate from customers. The way we do everything changed practically overnight. That’s a lot to process. And yet, I’m surprised by how quickly everyone has adapted to our new normal. At first, it felt rude to talk to my friends from 2 meters away but now it feels weird if they get too close.

We still don’t have any cases here but we’re only up to 30 tests across the 3 islands (Bonaire, Statia, and Saba) as of this morning which is a tiny number of tests given a population of 20,000. We’ve been closed off to cruises and flights for at least 3 weeks now and there are no reports of widespread illness or deaths here. It seems beyond improbable to me that it’s not here given the cruises and international flights, some of the final ones coming straight from Newark but stranger things have happened.

The governor announced a few days ago that heavier testing will be done over the next 2-3 weeks to try to root out whether the virus is here. If it’s not here after the heavier testing and another 3 weeks goes by without a confirmed case, we can go back to a more normal way of life here until the time comes when it is and we go back into our current lockdown mode. And it is a matter of when. We can’t stay closed off forever, the virus will come here at some point.

So for now …. we’ll just keep on keeping on. I’m grateful to be diving a lot, almost every day. It’s a great distraction from the state of the world which everyone needs right now. Whatever your distraction, make time for it every day! The news will be there when you’re done with your break. It doesn’t change that fast.

Until next time … stay safe, healthy, and sane!