Aruba: August 2010

Most of my traveling has been in Asia and Africa, but it was wonderful to have a whole week in Aruba this summer to relax and explore a very different kind of culture. Everyone my husband and I met was extremely welcoming, friendly, and laid-back, which really made our trip wonderful.

We stayed at the Marriott Resort on Palm Beach, which was a great place to be because we were at the end of a long, luxurious strip of white sand. There are many hotels and restaurants along this strip, and behind them are a couple large shopping centers and more restaurants. It was perfect for us because almost anywhere we wanted to go at night we could get to by walking along the beach with our toes in the water and then just quickly cutting through one of the hotels.

For journeys that took us farther away from the hotel, we did rent a car. Most tourists will tell you this isn't necessary if you stay on Palm Beach, but it is a must if you want to really experience the Island. We drove into Oranjestad, the capitol city, do so some exploring and grab lunch. Oranjestad is a small but busy city with narrow streets, lots of cars, and colorful, ornate buildings everywhere. The architecture in Oranjestad includes a mixture of Latin, Aruban, and American; however, the style that stands out the most is Dutch colonial, marked by the pastel colors, gabled roofs, and ornate details. Some of the buildings are newer concrete replicas, but others are very old and starting to deteriorate. Some of the very old walls have cracked plaster that makes it possible to see the unique method used to build them by carefully piecing together coral rocks without using mortar.

At night we returned to the city to attend the weekly Bon Bini (Welcome) Festival at Fort Zoutman. Several musical groups and dance groups performed for a sizeable audience of mostly tourists. Early in the evening a woman brought out a large wooden instrument on a table that makes a song when you turn the handle. They called it the "Ting-a-lingi box", but I believe its proper name is "Caja Di Orgel". Many of the children present went up to the stage to take a look at the intricate arrangement of thousands of nails inside that make the music.

One of our days on the island, we took a jeep tour to visit several different landmarks, some of which are not easily accessible without 4-wheel drive. At our first stop we saw the California Lighthouse on the northwestern part of the island, which was named after a ship that sunk offshore about a hundred years ago. Next we saw the beautiful Alto Vista Chapel, which is allegedly the oldest church in the Caribbean.

We also stopped at the Bushiribana Ruins followed by the Natural Bridge. The original natural bridge collapsed a few years ago, but tours continue to go to the spot because there is a smaller bridge still standing next to it. Lastly, we went to the Ostrich Farm. Although my sister ordered ostrich at a restaurant with me in Africa, I had never actually seen an ostrich up close before. They are very dirty animals, but they look really interesting and the babies are absolutely adorable. The farm is a for-profit operation and does have a restaurant on site, but the tour took us somewhere else for lunch.

When we weren't exploring the city or the northern part of the desert island, my husband and I spent plenty of time reading, swimming, and snorkeling at the beautiful beaches. The island was covered in all sorts of different kinds of lizards, but I saw more of them at Malmok Beach than ever before. A few of them were shiny blue or bright green, but most were a dull grey that camouflaged well with the rocky beach. When I lay very still they would come right up to me, and a couple times they actually crawled on top of me!

Our week in Aruba was wonderful and I really enjoyed learning about a culture that was very different from many of the cultures I have explored before. I certainly hope I can go back soon!