(possible repost; google problems)
Mike wrote:
> -hh wrote:
> > Ann "n...@..." wrote:
> >> Can you tell me what island has no crime?
>
> > Little Cayman. Cayman Brac. Bequia is close...
> Sorry, but I don't think that is a fair comparison...
I agree that its not "fair". But Ann's declaration was effectively
that that no such places exist anymore for the tourist to make any
product differentiation upon, but all three of the places I mentioned
do have scuba-oriented tourism, and Cayman Brac even has limited 737
Jet service for those willing to work their schedules to avoid tiny
puddle-jumpers.
> Little Cayman nd
> Cayman Brac are so small and "lightly populated" that no one dares
> commit any crimes because everyone on the island would immediately > know who had done it.
Agree, and that explains part of the "why", although at roughly 6,000
residents, Bequia is half the population of Bonaire...most of their
crime problems are locals from St Vincent who "commute" over on the
local ferry.
> Among islands of similar size/population I think
> Bonaire is pretty typical.
It very well may be, which suggests that if a customer values a low-
crime environment, they can consider travelling "one more flight" to
find a small out-island someplace...the claim to not even bother to
look because such places no longer exist is simply wrong.
> Yes, the petty crimes may be more visible
> because of the 'environment'. Many of the shore dive locations are
> somewhat isolated and vehicles with valuables are tempting targets.
I'd agree, if the crime was limited to just the cars on the beach.
Unfortunately, the bad guys have gotten more aggressive the last few
years (about the same time that digital cameras came along) and are
conducting more break-ins. The inevitable excuse is that the victim
left a window or door unlocked, but many (if not most) of the tourist-
oriented hotels have security guard services and many of these break-
ins are now occurring during the overnight, so the burglers are
sneaking into *occupied* rooms.
> I suspect that if
> you parked vehicles in relatively isolated beaches in the US, the
> break-in rate would be considerably worse than in Bonaire.
The only reason why there's few "break ins" is because on Bonaire, no
one dares secure their vehicle...the "search" rate of unattended
parked vehicles at a shore dive site is probably close to 100%.
> I'm not an (active) diver, but as I remember, while many (most??) of the
> dive sites are accessible from the shore, there are many that are also
> (or only) accessible by boat and many of these would be excellent sites
> for beginners or those learning. (I agree about "1000 Steps" though, I
> cannot imagine hauling tanks and gear down, much less up, those
> steps.)
Personally, I find it less physically demanding to dive from a boat
than to do a shore dive. In the original post, it wasn't clear to me
what the ages were of those that were interested in learning how to
scuba dive - - what might be acceptable to a 20-something is not
necessarily what someone in their 50's may tolerate.
> And
> as was mentioned, there are reasonable activities for other family
> members... like windsurfing for the younger members (Bonaire has to be
> about the best place to learn windsurfing in the world), sea kayaking
> for young and old and snorkeling.
IIRC, the premier windsurfing is over at Lac Bay, which is a modestly
long drive from where most of the hotels & scuba diving is at. As
such, transportation logistics will be a consideration...
> If the OP was planning the trip for a different time of year, I might
> suggest some other places (Turks & Cacios, Bahamas, etc.), but for the
> Christmas holidays I think you want to be in the southern islands and of
> those, Bonaire is one of the better choices...
I was also thinking of T&C or Bahamas, as there should be reasonable
direct flight access, but you're right in that the water temperatures
in winter can get relatively "chilly", where everything's relative:
http://www.smallhope.com/JPEG/WaterTemp_432.jpg
While a wetsuit will be needed for diving, for the bathers, they'll
find it to be warmer than Ocean City MD for all but a few weeks of the
year :-)
-hh
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