Snorkeling at Sea and Sunburn

March 5, 2009
We signed our liability waivers on Moomba Beach at 9:00 a.m. and boarded a flat boat and were carried out to a "pirate" sailboat in the Carribean Sea. As we boarded ship, we were issued snorkeling gear, flippers and life jackets. We met the crew, the music started, and we were off to 3 snorkeling sites. The first was at a depth of 60 feet over a sunken 400 ft WWII shipwreck. LOTS of colorful fish there. The second drop was in 8 feet of water, and the third was at 14 feet. Unfortunately, we didn't see many fish. Next came the rope swing from the bow. Michael jumped 3 times; each time making a spectacular landing (well, feet first). We met a family from Maine with 3 sons, about 18, 16, and 14 years. They had a blast,too! The crew served us BBQ ribs and chicken, pasta salad, coleslaw, a roll, a slice of fried plantain, and cantelope for lunch. With great music continuing, a couple of people danced on the deck with some fancy footwork. We hit shore at 2:00 and walked up the beach for Italian gelatto. We felt a few big drops of rain, and all of a sudden we were in a downpour! Hilarious fun!! This is our last night in Aruba. The island is 19.6 miles long and 6 miles wide. We are happy to tell you it should be on your list of places to visit in the winter; especially if you live where it is snowing this week.

On Land and at Sea

March 4, 2009
We decided to return to the Palm Beach district nearby our resort. Stopping at a colorful line of new buildings, we found a large windmill, reminding us of the Dutch ownership of this island. We ate lunch at The Rembrandt, a new restaurant featuring food from Holland. I enjoyed creamy mushroom soup, filled with large chunks of mushrooms. We decided to see more of Aruba on the southern coastline and headed downtown in our rental car toward Oranjestad, capitol city. We shopped for gifts and souvenirs along an open market, and noted the prices were a third of what we'd seen in shops along the beach for the same merchandise. We returned to the beach and boarded a sailboat for a sunset cruise, followed by dinner at a Thai restaurant with beautiful decor. In case you haven't placed it on a map yet, Aruba the island is 15 miles north of Venezuela. In time zones, we're one hour ahead of Eastern Standard Time. When we get up at 7:00 a.m. here, it's 3:00 a.m. at home in Seattle.

Day 4 at Moombah Beach

March 3, 2009
This morning we put on sunblock and walked a mile and a half to the beach. At 9:00 a.m. it was already hot. I bought coffee at Dunkin' Donuts but it was too hot to drink it in the sun, so I carried it back to the condo and air-conditioned comfort. We ate breakfast of cereal and oranges - local oranges are so sweet, and seedless! We caught the resort shuttle back to the beach at 12:30. It's so easy to meet people staying here. We swapped stories about places we've eaten, things we've seen. Soon we were choosing two lounge chairs from among thousands on Moombah Beach. We were under a coconut tree and a little shielded from the sun, but soon were in the sea. Oh, the cool water felt so good! The floor of the Carribean is smooth and we could walk out quite a ways as it gradually gets deeper. The sand is white and mostly fine. No crashing waves! We watched the bathers and swimmers, and the "pirate ship" we are going to board on Thursday. We ate lunch at the Moombah Beach restaurant, right behind our lounge chairs. We noticed lots of small black birds. Not like the big crows we usually see at home! We walked along the beach and checked out a bunch of resorts right on the beach. We saw crawling lizards everywhere, from small to about 18 inches long. We've noticed accents and other languages in listening to tourists from Boston to NY to Europe. Haven't met anyone else from Seattle. We returned to our resort at 4:30 and joined the Welcome Party by the poolside: free drinks and snacks and music, and local vendors selling jewelry and art. We finished leftover pizza from lunch, wrote post cards, and dashed out in the rental car for Baskin Robbins ice cream before Molly's Skype call at 11:00 p.m. with TFNW colleagues in Seattle.

Tour of the Island

Monday, March 2, 2009
Today we took a day long tour of the island and learned a lot about it's history. Picked up at our hotel, we went to the ABC Tours office and signed a waiver of liability. Our tour guide was "PaPa Alfredo," a native young man, probably in his 30's. He was a great guide and storyteller! We not only hit the sites listed on the tour, he also took us by his home, and his grandmother's home and shared his personal history and hopes for his future success as a business entrepreneur. We visited the Natural Bridge, California Lighthouse, Wish Garden, Chapel of Alto Vista, Gold Mill Ruins, an Ostrich Farm, Indian Caves, San Nicolas and went snorkeling at Natural Pool and Baby Beach. Each one has it's story that is too long to share here, but I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone who wants to see the natural beauty of the island and get out of the tourist section. The best part was the bumpy ride in the land rover - you would hardly believe that a vehicle could take so much punishment and thrill 6 passengers! Oh yes, and we stopped for lunch at a Carribean restaurant at the Ostrich Farm - another BBQ that was even better than the first one. We were dropped off at our resort at 5:30 and couldn't wait to tell you all about it. Dinner tonight is from Papa John's Pizza, just around the corner.

Day 2 in Aruba

Sunday, March 1, 2009
We chose three "things to do" while in Aruba and made our reservations for the week. We got into our swimsuits and took lounge chairs by the pool. The temperature was 75 degrees at 10:00 a.m. We read books for a little while, then took a dip. Michael swam 15 laps. Lunch was a deal by the pool - we were served ribs, chicken, rice, corn on the cob and coleslaw with soft drinks. They do make a good BBQ sauce! Getting back to our room, we set up the laptop and made a Skype call to Jerry, then had a chat with Nathan. Voices were clear - what a neat deal, since cell phone cost is prohibitive from here. We drove to the hotel area on the beach and found lively night life. After walking up and down a strip full of restaurants, we chose Texas Argentine Grill. Not only was the food delicious, we were entertained by a singer who could impersonate well any artist he chose: Neil Diamond, Elton John, Frank Sinatra, BeeGees, Louis Armstrong, to name a few. We got up and danced during dinner, and sang along with most of the songs. We went in and out of several tourist shops and chose souvenirs to bring home.

Day 1 in Noord, Aruba

Saturday, February 28, 2009
We arrived at Queen Beatrix International Airport about 4:30 p.m. Going through the passport line and customs was a breeze. We rented a car, and wound around local streets to Carribbean Palm Village. We were warmly welcomed at the resort after being somewhat fatigued by an overnight flight and a half day flight from Seattle. We enjoyed dinner from the bar by the pool: filet mignon, garlic shrimp, vegetables, cocktails and wine. Our "suite" provides generous space and all the amenities, including a balcony that looks down on one of two pools. Tomorrow promises an orientation breakfast at 9:00.