This will be my first real blog and I’m excited because I have so much to tell. I just don’t know where to start, but I’m just starting … at the beginning!

The first tangible thing of our dream was the first step on our newly purchased plot. It was and still is on Bona Bista, then still a residential area in the making, with mostly empty yet unbuilt lots. When I think back to that day, it was impossible for me to imagine what everything would look like. You see in the photo below the disbelief in our eyes, dreamy. At least in mine!

When construction started it was still a “far from my bed show” for me. The construction project was 4 houses and a swimming pool on a separate plot and will be shared together.

The technical construction discussions via Skype were not my thing, although I wanted to see the progress of the construction. And not which electric cable has to be connected to light that lamp, but more what does the breakfast bar look like in the open kitchen and how big is the Master bedroom and oh yes … the roof terrace was also exciting. As the only one of the 4 houses, it is a standalone challenge that has worked out beautifully. A roof terrace had a staircase and it became a spiral staircase from the showroom of Trappenfabriek Vermeulen from Etten Leur and, according to hearsay, the only spiral staircase of its kind on Bonaire.

While Rob, my hubbie, was working on the Bonaire project every day, it was also time for me to take action. Construction was not my thing, but the interior of the house was! I had long noticed during our vacations to Bonaire during construction, that furniture there, which we liked was very expensive and the furniture that was cheap, we did not like! So we decided to buy the entire facility here in the Netherlands and have it transported by ship to Bonaire. This is indeed not a cheap joke, you pay for the content per m3. So the challenge was born for me to score nice furniture and accessories as cheaply and compactly as possible.
Marketplace was a daily fare every night. At IKEA I have all pots, pans & purchased crockery and the bed bases, linen and bed linen from JYSK. The KWANTUM home accessories and LEEN BAKKER include the cushions for the sofa and lounge bed. I also found cheap addresses on Marktplaats, for example to have seat cushions made for the couch in the living room and the scaffolding wooden bar stools as a kit at SAVRI in Breda. At a carpenter in Ulvenhout we had an 8 person dining table made for an affordable price, also as a kit. The teak dining chairs on the veranda are second-hand for € 8.00 per chair per 4 pieces at two different addresses. Hahaha, exactly the same seats. And so I can continue for a long time about my search for the interior of our dream house.

To have this transported by ship to Bonaire, geographically the best option for us was Moerdijk and we ended up at IFC, International Freight Caribbean. I had to keep all purchase receipts for the new items. And everything had to be put on paper. That was quite a job, where we bought it, how much it cost and what the contents of the packaging were. We did this per box and all boxes were numbered and these numbers were listed on the shipping company list. All fragile items were packed well in newspapers or bubble wrap. Our garage was full of boxes and furniture and at the end of October 2014 the boat left for Bonaire with the entire interior of our house in Bonaire.

We ourselves left at the beginning of November, the boat would eventually take 3 weeks to arrive in Bonaire. Because we have recorded everything very accurately, releasing our stuff at customs in Bonaire was no problem. And for a small fee, they also brought the things to the house and the boys also helped to put the furniture in place.

The first job was done. The items had arrived without much damage. Now a matter of cleaning and furnishing, apple egg … if only that was pfff !!

To be continued…

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