Visa

The regular visa for Dutch citizens is the tourist visa, valid for 90 days. No big deal. Just before boarding the plane in Amsterdam or disembarking at the airport J.A. Pengel in Suriname, you can buy your visa.
But to plant a garden and build a house takes probably longer than these 90 days. So one of us had to apply for a long stay visa that allows up to a 1 year stay. Dick as an anchor in the Netherlands, Jack requested for the visa.

Today the authorities in Paramaribo approved my visa application!

Coat of Arms of Suriname

Master house

Last time in Suriname we met a draftsman. He offered us to transform our idea of the master house into a drawing with technical specifications. He also makes for a building permit.
The technical drawing is now finished. Now the next step is to find a suitable contractor. Henk maybe?

Terraforming

Recently we discovered that even Google Maps recognized a change landscape in 2011!

Finished?

This week our first lodge was finished! That is what Henk Dingé, the constructor, told me over the telephone anyway.
All shingles laid, sanitation installed, electricity wired and wood varnished. All we need now is water, electricity and occupation. Pictures of the lodge are promised and posted here the moment we receive them.
Regarding the situation in the Netherlands, we have applied for a long time stay visa from 2013 onward at the Consulate of Suriname. We certainly hope that the authorities in Suriname favor us, but an answer could take up to 3 months. An excellent exercise in patience.
Here rules is the clock, over there they have the time.

Lodge

Part of the BoxelBoesBelanda project is to incorporate a lodge or 2 into the garden. Recommendations from trustworthy people let us to the lodges Mets had built in Awarradam. The carpenter of these lodges is Henk Dingé, who lives in Pokigron (Atjoni). Just before we had to go back to cold, hectic Holland, we made up a 'contract'. On a notepad (you remember, pen, paper) we put down a signature committing ourselves to finance and built the lodge.

Jack, Stanley, Henk

Two months later at the end of July (actually, yesterday), I received the first picture of the lodge in the making from Erik.

The roof of the lodge is made up of shingles from the Walaba tree. Few people know how to make such a beautiful wooden roofing. Definitely a craft and Henk is rightfully proud to be that craftsman.
Actually, he is in the process of starting up his own carpentry firm. The trouble he goes through to keep us up to date, the fastness with which he collects all the materials and of course the magnificent result, we can not but recommend this man.

Maintenance, absence and Matapica

No one home and weeds immediately shoots from the ground. Tropical climate, you know.
First, in 2010, we had we help from the guy who already took care of the gardens in Little Paradise. He would keep the weed on our land in control during our absence. As it turned out, Neeta our neighbour had to step in as well :(
Then we asked the nephew of our neighbour at the back, in 2011. We were lucky we found him, because when we came around again in May 2012, we did not have to cut our way through bushes. We could immediately pitch our tent.

 

So we found some time to search for the giant sea turtles in Matapica. Only beach pictures here, because the turtles lay their eggs only during the night.

 

Ceremony, 20 February 2011

Not only did we have to work in February 2011, there was also time to celebrate! Master of Ceremonies performed the typical local practice to wish us strangers all the best. Complete with the local beauties!  A dinner was also part of the local practice ;)
We loved it!!

2 'strangers' and the local beauties

Dick and the Master of Ceremonies

Faja lobi

A lovely dinner at Little Paradise

The rough work, 2011

The first lines of our botanical garden with streams and small hills, were mapped with a tiny excavator in 2010. Now it was time to deploy a larger machine. 
At the end of our 'holiday' the land was transformed into what already looked like a garden. Well, to us anyway. We even came to planting some plants.

All wet from the western front

Shortly after we left, the rainy season started (September 2010). Combined with spring tide, things tend to get moist. Erik sent us some pictures to show us just how wet.

(Our future house must definitely be built on stilts)

Flooding

Streams and clay

High water

Spring tide, September 10, 2010

Mow and dig, 2010

In the second half of 2010 we were back. And for the first time we could sleep on our own piece of land! We had to cut the weed first to make room for the tent.

The next step was to alter the landscape to our design, one with small streams and hills. That was something that needed some explanation and lots of picket poles for the contractor with his tiny excavator...

When we told Erik & Neeta (the neighbours) and John & Lloyd (Kekemba Resort, Paramaribo) of our streams and hills, they reacted with: "Teletubbyland!". Hm, Suriname humour I suppose  :s

Boxelparaweg 22

While browsing the internet in search for anything about Suriname, Dick encountered the Botanical Garden Little Paradise in Boxel.

 

Already at the first meeting we were warmly welcomed by the owners, Erik and Neeta Kuiper. In 5 years time they had their barren land turned into a botanical garden: a beautiful cultivated piece of land, perfect to immerse yourself in the green world, accentuated with a cacophony of wildlife sounds. Hummingbirds buzzed, lizards rustled through the leaves, monkeys screeched, edible fruit or brightly coloured flowers in every tree and also the waters teemed with life. Actually, it looked exactly like our dream.
Even better, the adjacent land appeared to be for sale. But how do you negotiate with the seller when you are 7000 km away...?
Fortunately, Erik really helped us. He was invaluable for us in obtaining the piece of land. After half a year we were at the notary in Paramaribo to make it officially!

The first tentative steps, 2009

A bit of catching up to do on this blog...

Dick: "Why don't you go to Suriname on your own, during the rainy season and see if it looks, tastes, smells, feels ok?" That's how I first go to know Suriname, way back in 2009.
A year later we were both cycling through the humid heat of Suriname for the first time to find our future place. We explored the city of Paramaribo, crossed the Suriname river to Commewijne and ended up south of the city, at the plantation of Boxel, near Domburg.