March 26, 2007 - Bonaire

Bzzz. Bzzz. Bzzzzzzz. That's the sound that we've been listening to as we try to fall asleep. "What I don't get is how there can be mosquitoes on this island. It is so dry!" Sten exclaimed in frustration this morning. He had an even worse night than I did last night, as I'd taken the desperate measure of swabbing my forehead, ears, neck and arms and legs with a 24% deet solution before turning in, and then again each time I woke up in the night - I might get cancer, but at least I won't get dengue fever or any more scars from mosquito bites.

We've both just finished reading The Path Between the Seas, an excellent history of the building of the Panama Canal. One of the most striking facts was the extent to which mosquito borne illnesses - primarily malaria and yellow fever - decimated the workforce. So we're both a bit sensitive to getting bitten by anything right now. We did have a slew of immunizations before we left Boston, including yellow fever, hep A, and hep B, but there are still a lot of bugs out there, all of which we'd like to avoid getting.

So, as much as we've enjoyed Bonaire (especially the donkey sanctuary), we're out of here.