08.12.2010 Dolphin viewing with NATSJ

Mrs Moen, who is a very nice lady, goes from door to door to sell all manner of second hand goods for Stichting Corantijn. Late November 2010 we were lucky enough to receive another contribution from her. With an extra addition we were able to make a small trip on the day before Children's day, with the NATSJ kids and Mr Moen, a very kind and reliable boatman.
Although Mrs and Mr Moen share their second name, they are not related to each other.

Mr Moen knows the sea like the back of his hand. He can take you to see dolphins and is able to tell you much about these creatures.

Although the kids initially were a little uneasy in these new surroundings, we still decided to brave the unknown waters on our boat trip. Pretty soon, complaints like „aunt, I can't swim” or „aunt, I'm going to be sick” were no longer heard.

Once aboard, with all our nerves settled by boatman Moen, most of us soon began to enjoy the ride.
On our way to Braamspunt where we were planning to visit the beach, a few dolphins were already spotted. „Aunt, they swim so close to the boat we can pet them!!”, the kids called out. The next moments were spent enthusiastically spotting dolphins.
But also red ibises, called Korokoros in Surinam, which are quite rare.

At Braamspunt we enjoyed playing on the beach as well as talking walks and enjoying the scenery. Most of us had never viewed the ocean from so close.
After some time was spent looking at the fishermen working their nets, we continued our journey to the 'Rust en Werk' (Rest and Work) plantation. At the plantation we watched the shrimp fishermen and enjoyed a nice lunch.
And because 5 December had almost arrived, we shared the gifts bought for the person each of us had drawn in a lottery. It turned into a very nice afternoon.

Back home everyone went to bed early, some had even started sleeping on the boat….
We can look back at a fun and informative day. The little stretch of Surinam we visited had been unfamiliar to most of us, so we were grateful for the opportunity to see it now.

Dear Mrs Moen, thank you for your support of Stichting Corantijn and the chance to make this wonderful trip.

Ingrid en Marc Lucas