Frankly, I first thought the entire place was in need of a good watering. Bone-dry and flapjack flat, this tiny island in the Dutch Caribbean lacked the fertility and slaying beauty of some of its neighbors. But then I took a scuba-gear-laden giant stride—my first dive ever—off the edge of the island and fell right into Bonaire’s submerged soul: a water world filled with fish and coral of discombobulating hues. When I came up for air a half hour later, the world was significantly changed.
Norie Quintos Danyliw is an associate editor at TRAVELER.
Sheila F.