Aruba, 2009
Posted: February 26th, 2009 | Filed under: Out Of TownWe went to Aruba last year and enjoyed it so much that we returned this year, some friends in tow. Last year we missed the Carnaval festivities, but this year we got to see the Tivoli Lighting Parade through Oranjestad:
Other highlights included Alto Vista Chapel (and the festively decorated house on the road there), the Aruba Aloe Factory, the Jolly Pirates Afternoon Snorkel Cruise and the Seroe Colorado Lighthouse (thanks to fellow guests for the directions — on the way to Baby Beach, make the first left just past the drug treatment center you see on the right side of the road).
Like last year, we stayed at Peter and Julie’s Coral Reef Beach — highly recommended if you want a different Aruba experience than you’d get from the hotel resorts on the other part of the island. As Peter himself might say, Coral Reef is “very nice . . . very inexpensive . . . very local.” Both Peter and Julie go out of their way to point you to some of the more out-of-the-way places on the island, and the accommodations are really charming.
Bring a snorkel and mask; we did this time and it was fantastic.
