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| Renting a scooter allowed us to reach some beautiful out-of-the-way spots |
So, we’d explored sections of Providencia by foot and by
bus, but craved the freedom to explore farther afield and on our own time, so
we rented a scooter (moto, in the local parlance) for the day. Scooters are the
vehicle of choice on Providencia. They vastly outnumber cars, trucks, or vans,
their small size no deterrent to multiple passengers. We’d often see whole
families – mother, father, several children – balanced precariously (to us)
atop the seat and handle bars, or people carrying things like bicycles held out
to the side, or large containers on their laps. Once we even saw a woman
blithely steering with one hand, an infant draped over her other arm. It all
seemed so effortless. It’s not. Anne opted for a helmet, putting her in the
tiny minority of riders (and she eventually took it off so as not to conk Chris
on the head with it every time we changed speed). We headed out down the
eastern road, stopping at Pash Beach, which had been badly eroded by the winter
storms. Then we got to Bahia Aguadulce (Fresh Water Bay). Very cute and quaint
with many small beachside hotels and restaurants – there’s even a Mr Mac
posada! Next stop was Bahia Suroeste (Southwest Bay). Here, the long, sandy
beach is dotted with little rustic restaurants where we had a delicious seafood
lunch. Seafood is abundant and relatively inexpensive around Providencia – not
surprising, given the location – with nary a sign of the usual ubiquitous
Caribbean standard, fried chicken. Aboard the moto once again, we sought out what
was reputed to be the most beautiful beach on the island – Machineel. After seeking
and not finding, then asking directions of several people, we finally made our
way there. Just lovely! We had a cold drink (non-alcoholic because…scooter) beneath
the palms before heading back to town. The scooter made getting around
convenient, but it was just a bit too nerve-wracking for us, so we decided to
stick to the bus and our feet.
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| Colorful hotels in Bahia Agua Dulce... |
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| ...and our very own Mr Mac cabanas! |
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| Beautiful Machineel Beach |
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| Waiting for lunch at a beachside restaurant |
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| Seafood was de rigueur at all the restaurants in Providencia, which makes sense for an island! Even better is that it was INEXPENSIVE seafood. |
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| A hillside view down to Southwest Beach |
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