Now that we’ve been hosting guests for a few months, we really realize how much we enjoy working in our own B&B! Of course, there are less fun tasks, but being able to set your own schedule and decide what needs to be done feels great. Just like having colleagues :-).
Now that we’ve been up and running for a while, things are becoming more routine, which gives us more time for the family and for ourselves. It’s sometimes tricky to work and live in the same place, especially when the kids are on vacation, but we’re getting better at it. It might sound a bit cliché, but the contact with the guests is by far the most fun for both of us. Everyone is happy because they’re on vacation, and if there’s ever an issue, we can solve it well so that people remain satisfied.
With some guests, we feel a stronger connection than with others, but we always have pleasant interactions. We find that only nice people stay at our B&B :-). Each guest who arrives has their own story, and it’s fun to hear what life is like where they live and why they came to Bonaire.
For example, we often host people who are traveling around the world—spending a few days or weeks on Bonaire before continuing their journey through the Caribbean, Central, and South America.
We’ll never forget the moment when someone rang our doorbell and asked, “Is it true that you sell bras?” The male half of the couple in apartment 4 had already shared an interesting story about searching for his mother who was supposed to be living in Rincon. Now it turned out the female half had started a little business selling bras in cup size double-G from our apartment. Thankfully, she understood that this wasn’t quite the right place for that… and mother and son were reunited.
We had a great evening chatting with Greg, a police officer from New York, about life in “The City” and all the things he had experienced. And a sweet woman from Oregon wanted to buy a house on Bonaire, but she didn’t actually like the heat or small villages. She also seemed a bit out of touch with the world. She got lost several times trying to walk to the beach (150 meters from the B&B) and on her last day, she asked why there was only one tennis racket in her room (the mosquito swatter :-)). It’s wonderful to meet so many different people and have these experiences.
For now, we’re still really enjoying our time here… Never a dull moment.
