Bati Bleki April 22nd, 2013

FPNA & ARIKOK PARK. We were photo-shooting this week at Arikok Park for the upcoming edition of Island Temptations Magazine and enjoyed the collaboration of the adorable, well-informed, enthusiastic and charismatic Indra Zaandam, who handles the PR for FPNA. We also met the head ranger, the friendly and knowledgeable Salvador Franken, and his front man Agapito Gomez, who is an amazingly dedicated professional. So now that I told you what we liked, I also have to report on the challenging aspects we encountered which could and should be fixed. On our first day at the park I drove the road from the San Fuego gate to Boca Prins, six times, bumping into 44 of those canyons in the road, designed to possibly slow the traffic down and/or divert flood water, on every trip. At the end of the day I was ready to cry. Those kill-joy gutters or channels are too deep, and really take the fun out of driving down the winding hillside road. Their slant should be modified. I suggest concrete?! The park also boasts an architecturally impressive Visitor’s Center, alas, the wooden beams and railings are warped and deteriorated, the weather conditions at Arikok are extreme as you know, and the sun bakes that structure relentlessly. We saw quite some foundation employees hanging around the days we visited, perhaps they could also pitch in to paint and protect their center against the elements. Last Saturday at 6am, we went on a highly recommended morning hike with the rangers and the Junior Rangers, a bunch of cute super-kids, to Cunucu Arikok. Along the way we were taught the names of the plants we met — Bringamosa, Seida, Breba di Pushi — which was entertaining and educating, we also admired the ancient rock paintings, which are having a tough time surviving into the third millennium. Cunucu Arikok, a kind of yesteryear family farm at the end of the trail, showcases the traditional cas di torto, successfully explaining the old way of life here, and conveying the difficulty of building a home out of mud and dry cacti wood, making white pain with coral and lime stone dust. But as visitors we felt, the garden should be upgraded with more traditional fruit trees and the ones already there, some more than one-hundred years old, should be helped with water and sprayed against termites, who are by the way doing their best to feed on the old kwihi, cashew and watapana trees and take them out of business. We realize the park is a natural habitat, and natural processes cannot be interfered with, but within the boundaries of Cunucu Arikok we think the environment should be supported with extra landscaping and repairs, transforming it into a true oasis. I also have to say that I host many more bird species in my backyard, as we observed only a few in the wild. I believe the birds all migrated to urban areas for water, fruit trees and freedom from boas. We did see a handful of early-morning chuchubis soaring over the dry landscapes, but otherwise the park’s bird population is very small. Indra reports the boa is to blame! Thus on our last day at the park we went on a boa hunt, in a remote area, past Boca Prins, on the coral shelf adjacent to the wind-mill farm. We wanted to photograph and document the capture of this invasive species responsible for the dwindling numbers of our birds and other wild life — having finished with the winged ones, the indigenous lizards are next. Trekking over treacherous terrain we found our first boa on the first tree. Apparently, Agapito knows where to find them. Having scanned the snake, the ranger determined it was a chipped specimen, part of a study program in collaboration with the Toledo Zoo, so he left the snake unharmed. On another tree we found another reptile, un-chipped, which we could bag and gratefully hand carry back to the center to be euthanized by the vet on his future visit. Good riddance. The so-called study group maintains a number of live snakes in the park, both males and females, in order to monitor their behavior and life patters. We were pretty shocked to find out that the park supports this extremely bad initiative. Some out-of-town high-brow conservationist gave FPNA a very bad piece of advice. In fact, it was a detrimentally negative recommendation, which the rangers while opposed still follow the procedure which works against the park’s environment. Remember these snakes in the wild may breed, and females can be fertilized when mature. Moreover, they can carry the male’s sperm inside them for almost three months. Then after a period of gestation of 100-120 days, females give birth to live young, an average of 25 mini-boas, which are self-sufficient and grow very quickly, hunting their way into the heart of the park. To add insult to injury, the so-called study is no longer going on full-speed because of challenges in transportation, and Agapito is hoping that this summer the directive would be issued to capture all chipped reptiles and terminate their employment, once and for all. At the end of the day at the park, we visited Bobby Miller, at Seroe Colorado, a disarming self-described red neck from Texas, a Boa-Hunter hobbyist who catches, kills, skins and cooks the pests. He serves them beer-battered or simply sautéed, and reports the meat tastes like whatever seasoning you put into it. The larger-than-life Texan is in charge of security at the refinery, now used as an oil holding facility, and he responds to many calls within San Nicholas, to help dispose of boas in unexpected places. You may also call Agapito, 592 4473, if you encounter a live one and require assistance in its capture.

JONNA & ALANNA DESIGN LOVELY JEWERLY. We featured a cute line of jewelry in our photo-shoot, a brand called Ana Morris Jewelry, which we discovered in the showcases of Gandelman.  We were delighted to learned that our very own Jonna & Alanna Gandelman are the creators of the fresh and contemporary collection made out of natural gemstones with clever clasps and accents in 14 karat gold. The fourth-generation jewelers started the line in New York City having graduated GIA, the Gemological Institute of America. The Aruban-born sisters started by finding interesting beads and other materials and then just went on creating from there, working as a team, with Jonna in charge of the design aspect and Alanna dealing with sourcing, vendors in New York, as well as handling all pricing and logistics. The two employ ongoing two-way feedback exchange and cross-inspiration, working side by side on Ana Morris Jewelry, producing delicate yet striking pieces for the fashion savvy woman and for the beach-babe! Check them out exclusively, in the Gandelman stores. The girls are working on expanding the collection, seasonally.  [email protected]

 

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April 21, 2013
Rona Coster