Our longest open water passage meant that we were at sea all last night and all of today. Tonight we are at ‘drift anchor’ which means that it is too deep out here to put down an anchor, so the ship’s engines coupled with GPS are being used to keep us in the same position. Hasn’t GPS changed our lives. Traveling has been made so much easier by that little blue dot on the map.
Spent the day lounging about, so there’s little to report. Our wrist bands have been remarkably effective in keeping sea-sickness at bay, though in fairness it hasn’t been particularly rough weather. Our waitress told us that six months ago when the ship was near Nova Scotia up Iceland-way, they endured 12m waves. Everybody was confined to cabins and laid on the floor. Those ship’s crew who could manage to get up delivered a steady stream of crackers and soda water to every cabin. Wouldn’t you just love to be the housekeepers at the end of it all!
Tonight was our reservation at the boutique Spanish themed restaurant Cuadro 44.
So, since it’s a quiet day, how about I tell you a little bit about Simon Bolivar. Whenever you go to an ex-British country you will always see a statue of Queen Victoria near a statue of Wellington. In this part of the world every country has a statue of Simon Bolivar, and sure enough there was even one yesterday in Bonaire.
Bolivar was born in Caracas, Venezuela to a wealthy family of American born Spaniards, which makes his later life rather interesting. Educated abroad, and lived in Spain. From 1803 to 1805 he embarked on a ‘Grand Tour’ which was common for wealthy upper-class males at the time, ending in Rome. He had obviously become disillusioned with Spanish treatment of its colonies, and returned to Venezuela and began promoting independence amongst other wealthy families. When Spanish authority weakened in the Americas due to the Napoleonic wars, Bolivar joined the military in 1810 and became a politician, fighting the Spanish royalist forces. Whilst initially unsuccessful and having to flee into exile in Jamaica, he built up support and eventually returned successfully in 1817 helping to liberate Venezuela. He then crossed the Andes to liberate New Granada in 1819, followed by Panama in 1821, Ecuador in 1822, Peru in 1824 and finally Bolivia (named after him) in 1825.
In 1825, Venezuela, New Granada, Ecuador and Panama merged into a new country called Gran Colombia with Bolivar as their president. He was also appointed president of Peru and Bolivia, probably making him the only person to be simultaneously president of three independent countries.
Over the subsequent years as Venezuela, New Granada (Colombia), Ecuador and Panama all went their separate ways, he was removed or resigned from the various presidencies, and died of tuberculosis in 1830. Like Che Guevara who is immortalised as a revolutionary beyond his own country, Bolivar is immortalised as a fighter for independence all over the world. As islands like Aruba and Bonaire are just off the coast of Venezuela, he is also seen as their liberator from the Spanish, although the Dutch soon followed. Whilst his legacy is debated, there is no doubt that his life had a profound influence on much of the central and south Americas.
Our Tender