Valentines day

One Happy Island

Today we were in Aruba, the motto of which is “One Happy Island.”

This is our third visit to Aruba and it was the best yet. We did not have an organized tour instead we took a local bus and went to the beach. We went to Eagle beach in the area behind The Amsterdam Hotel. How did we know to go there you might ask?  Well the answer is we went with Alice Schmidt. She had been here many times and she knew just what to do. We walked to the bus stop and paid a fare of $2.30 each and we got off at Eagle Beach.( A taxi would have been 14.00) Alice said she wasn’t exactly certain which stop it was and so she asked a fellow passenger. She came to find out that he was a bartender at the Amsterdam. We arrived at another amazing Caribbean white sugar sand beach. Actually it was even softer than sugar, it was like talc. We tried unsuccessfully to get a reduced fare on longue rental and so between the three of us we rented 2 at 15.00 each which was entirely too much but it did come with one of those palm covered shades, called a palmetto, ( I think). Anyway the situation was so ideal that it was difficult to argue. The chaise longue and the location was supposed to be for hotel guests only and not for rental to cruisers. But I guess the law says that all beaches in Aruba are public beaches.

Well we stayed there for almost three hours and it was grand. At the end of our beach time Alice gifted me her little tube. This is her last beach day as she disembarks in Fort Lauderdale and she knew how much I will enjoy it. Thank you Alice.

 Then we left the beach and went to a bus stop,(a 30 second walk). The bus took us right back to within 2 blocks of the cruise ship terminal. We strolled through the stalls of some of the local vendors where Ken found the Aruba flag pin for his hat. Now the hat looks so good that it has become a conversation piece. We are missing only one flag and that is the one of Dominica.

We made our way back to the ship and when on board we went to the international café for a quick lunch. It was full and there seemed to be no seats. Just then we met Amanda the Captain Circle Host and she greeted us and told us where we could sit. She referred to me as Comquot. I would like to know how she made that connection. I have never ever given her a card or told her of my CC name.

After lunch it was time for a nap.

We went to dinner and had an interesting evening. The head waiter was waiting for Alice to arrive and when she did he presented her with a bottle of white wine that was a gift from the MaitreD, the head cheese of food for the entire ship. Later he arrived to visit Alice to give her a kiss on each cheek. He even stopped long enough to pose for a picture.

 I don’t know if Alice was impressed but we were. In honor of Valentines day I allowed myself to have The Princess Love Boat for dessert. That is the first time in years. It was Oh So Good. I’ll bet you have never tasted such rich chocolate flavour

We went to the Princess Theatre and saw the performance by Kimberly Locke. I guess she was a performer on American Idol 11 years ago. We didn’t remember her and she was alright.

Then we called it a day.