21st January (Nicola’sBirthday)
Today our Port of Call is Aruba – now let me ask you who has ever heard of Aruba. Well until this cruise we certainly hadn’t, but let me tell you it really is a lovely town. Aruba, with its unbroken sunshine, white sandy beaches, excellent watersports and great shopping is a blissfully uncomplicated island visited solely to switch off the engine and recharge the batteries. It certainly did that.
Situated in the southern Caribbean, Aruba is just eighteen miles north of Venezuela, from where the fresh fruit and vegetables come daily. Aruba was formerly one of the six islands belonging to the Netherlands Antilles, and although the island broke its connection with the other Antilles in 1986 to become a separate entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it is inexorably linked to its neighbours Curacao and Bonaire.
The island is 19.12 miles long and 6 miles wide at its widest point. The cactus-studded terrain is flat with the exception of three small hills rising to about 500 or 600 feet. The dry climate means that Aruba is no lush paradise with only twenty inches of rain annually, the vegetation is Arizona-style with cacti and aloes set amongst rock formations.
The lure for tourists is the sunshine, the constant temperature of 82 degrees F, the cooling trade winds and the really magnificent beaches with crystal clear waters on the leeward side. This is paradise for snorkellers and scuba divers, where visibility is excellent. Swimming is out of the question on the windward side as thunderking waves crash against the rugged shore (see picture).
The island has one of the highest standards of living in the West Indies. This is due on the whole to several factors: one: after gold mining became uneconomical aloe plantations took over where the gold left off. At one time Aruba supplied the world with 30% of aloe gel for use in the pharmaceutical industry: two: it was “black gold” which brought real prosperity. Because of Aruba’s close proximity to the Venezuela oilfields, two oil refineries were built – with eight thousand people being employed from many far-flung places with varied cultures and lifestyles; and thirdly: prosperity was brought to Aruba in the form of tourism. Cruise ships were the main source of visitors until 1959 when the first luxury hotels were opened. Since then tourism has never looked back.
The Oriana arrived at the Port of Oranjestad at 7.00am. A delightful port immediately overlooking the marina and town centre. Thirty minutes after we arrived P & O ship Ventura berthed behind us in the port. Their captain, having some difficulty in berthing due to the stiff breeze. Doreen’s friend Jill, who she worked with at Alderwood for 15 years was on board the Ventura.
Our excursion was not due until the afternoon so after breakfast we walked into town, where Doreen walked around many shops and market stalls, whilst Geoffrey went off exploring the marina area and discovering the wildlife of Aruba (see Photographs).
Today we did a tour entitled “Butterflies and Island Sights”. The countryside, known as Cunucu, is so strange as to be unforgettable with its aloes, palms, seagrapes, watapanas and cacti. We drove up along the west coast past all the white coral sandy beaches to a small butterfly farm, where a guide explained the life cycle of moths and butterflies. We spent a pleasant half an hour walking around the enclosure try to spot the many various butterflies and take some photographs, with varying success. We must just say that this was nowhere near as good as the butterfly farm we visited in Penang.
We then continued up the coast and across the island to the barren north side, inhabited by cacti and aloes. The coastline was dramatically different from the west side, with waves crashing into the rocky shore line from the Caribbean Sea. Up along an un-made road we obtained close up views of these crashing waves and eventually arrived at a view point, where at one time you would find two natural bridges carved out of the rock by the sea. Unfortunately the largest one of these two bridges collapsed in September 2005, leaving only the smallest one. Nevertheless the views were spectacular and the strength of the sea was evident.
We then drove back inland to the Ayo Rock Formations, once considered a sacred site by the island’s original inhabitants, where we enjoyed a walk around the unusual towering boulders.
After a good afternoon tour we returned to our ship for a brief skype with Nicola (on her birthday). We then had to have a quick wash and change for tonights Tropical Evening, which carried on until midnight. All in all a thoroughly exhausting, but brilliant day. Thank goodness we have a rest day at sea tomorrow.
Today our Port of Call is Aruba – now let me ask you who has ever heard of Aruba. Well until this cruise we certainly hadn’t, but let me tell you it really is a lovely town. Aruba, with its unbroken sunshine, white sandy beaches, excellent watersports and great shopping is a blissfully uncomplicated island visited solely to switch off the engine and recharge the batteries. It certainly did that.
Situated in the southern Caribbean, Aruba is just eighteen miles north of Venezuela, from where the fresh fruit and vegetables come daily. Aruba was formerly one of the six islands belonging to the Netherlands Antilles, and although the island broke its connection with the other Antilles in 1986 to become a separate entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it is inexorably linked to its neighbours Curacao and Bonaire.
The island is 19.12 miles long and 6 miles wide at its widest point. The cactus-studded terrain is flat with the exception of three small hills rising to about 500 or 600 feet. The dry climate means that Aruba is no lush paradise with only twenty inches of rain annually, the vegetation is Arizona-style with cacti and aloes set amongst rock formations.
The lure for tourists is the sunshine, the constant temperature of 82 degrees F, the cooling trade winds and the really magnificent beaches with crystal clear waters on the leeward side. This is paradise for snorkellers and scuba divers, where visibility is excellent. Swimming is out of the question on the windward side as thunderking waves crash against the rugged shore (see picture).
The island has one of the highest standards of living in the West Indies. This is due on the whole to several factors: one: after gold mining became uneconomical aloe plantations took over where the gold left off. At one time Aruba supplied the world with 30% of aloe gel for use in the pharmaceutical industry: two: it was “black gold” which brought real prosperity. Because of Aruba’s close proximity to the Venezuela oilfields, two oil refineries were built – with eight thousand people being employed from many far-flung places with varied cultures and lifestyles; and thirdly: prosperity was brought to Aruba in the form of tourism. Cruise ships were the main source of visitors until 1959 when the first luxury hotels were opened. Since then tourism has never looked back.
The Oriana arrived at the Port of Oranjestad at 7.00am. A delightful port immediately overlooking the marina and town centre. Thirty minutes after we arrived P & O ship Ventura berthed behind us in the port. Their captain, having some difficulty in berthing due to the stiff breeze. Doreen’s friend Jill, who she worked with at Alderwood for 15 years was on board the Ventura.
Our excursion was not due until the afternoon so after breakfast we walked into town, where Doreen walked around many shops and market stalls, whilst Geoffrey went off exploring the marina area and discovering the wildlife of Aruba (see Photographs).
Today we did a tour entitled “Butterflies and Island Sights”. The countryside, known as Cunucu, is so strange as to be unforgettable with its aloes, palms, seagrapes, watapanas and cacti. We drove up along the west coast past all the white coral sandy beaches to a small butterfly farm, where a guide explained the life cycle of moths and butterflies. We spent a pleasant half an hour walking around the enclosure try to spot the many various butterflies and take some photographs, with varying success. We must just say that this was nowhere near as good as the butterfly farm we visited in Penang.
We then continued up the coast and across the island to the barren north side, inhabited by cacti and aloes. The coastline was dramatically different from the west side, with waves crashing into the rocky shore line from the Caribbean Sea. Up along an un-made road we obtained close up views of these crashing waves and eventually arrived at a view point, where at one time you would find two natural bridges carved out of the rock by the sea. Unfortunately the largest one of these two bridges collapsed in September 2005, leaving only the smallest one. Nevertheless the views were spectacular and the strength of the sea was evident.
We then drove back inland to the Ayo Rock Formations, once considered a sacred site by the island’s original inhabitants, where we enjoyed a walk around the unusual towering boulders.
After a good afternoon tour we returned to our ship for a brief skype with Nicola (on her birthday). We then had to have a quick wash and change for tonights Tropical Evening, which carried on until midnight. All in all a thoroughly exhausting, but brilliant day. Thank goodness we have a rest day at sea tomorrow.
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