Day 5: Aruba - Sunset at West Deck Beach Bar and Island Grill

We get back to the ship in the early afternoon in time for a late lunch.  After lunch we head back off the ship to do some walking and exploring around the town.  We are a few minutes off the ship when it starts to rain.  A down pour is more like it.  We keep walking and knowing that this shower will pass eventually.  We continue for a mile or so and go as far as the Renaissance Market Place and decide to head back.  It was nice to get some exercise in before our dinner reservation later this evening.

I had done much research on the island of Aruba in search of great dining venues.  While most that appealed to me were quite expensive (you pay for dining on the beach with a view), I found the West Deck Beach Bar and Island Grill.  It was less than a mile from the Renaissance Market Place, but decide a taxi would be a better choice especially since it was still blazing hot outside.

Hubby and I snag a taxi at the cruise terminal and wait for D and M.  Total cab fare is $15.  What a bargain!  We arrive at the West Deck way before our 5:30pm reservation:





You can’t beat the view of the sun setting in the distance:


It could not be avoided…headlights:

Day 5: Aruba - Eagle Beach

Warning:  This is a picture intensive post!

We waited until the majority of our fellow cruisers were off the ship and then left around 9:30am.  We were going to take a taxi to a beach.  My first choice was a place called Reflexion Beach Bar and Grill on Surfside Beach…south of the port.  The rate for the taxi is $13.  Once we were in the taxi and chatting with the driver, she recommended Eagle Beach.  So, shifting gears and going with the flow, off to Eagle Beach we go!  Just $13 later we arrive at the beach.  We were looking for a palapas to share with D and M, but there were none left.  So we settle on a beach umbrella and four lounges for $30.

What can I say?  This beach is just gorgeous!  White fine sand and Caribbean blue water:

 

Looking to the right towards Palm Beach and their high rise buildings:

Looking left (south) towards Manchebo Beach:  

Here’s a close up of the high rise hotels at Palm Beach further north from Eagle Beach:

Lots of people enjoying the water:  

Incredible waves!  Hubby came to my rescue when I got slammed by the first wave and lost my balance and got slammed by two more waves.  I tumbled around underwater while holding my breath.  I know it was just a few seconds but it seemed like forever before Hubby (my personal lifeguard) pulled me up and out of the water.  What I forgot to mention was that after the first wave I almost lost my bikini bottom and then tried to recover (in a nice way) and got hit with the two other waves.  I was laughing out loud because that was the only reaction I had to all this.  Needless to say, I  was carrying around 5 pounds of sand in my bikini (top and bottom) and did not know until we got back to the ship.  Let’s just say that our cabin steward, Sandy, had a lot of vacuuming to do.  Life is soooo good!

 

Now to continue with our Eagle Beach pictures:

Here you can rent wave runners.  I call these lemons as in the color:

And these are limes:  

Okay, so this young couple wanted to go ride around in the beautiful Caribbean water with this wave runner:

They had to be pushed when water came ashore:

The waves were too much and of course everyone got slammed!  I could feel their excitement and surprise:

Once they recover, they are on their way for some fun:  

Young folks body surfing:

Hubby and I take a break from people watching and wander over to Paradise Beach Villas about a block north behind where our lounges are located.  Here’s our approach before walking across the main road to the villas:  

We are looking for a restroom and along the way taking pictures:  

We find the Tiki Bar & Restaurant onsite:  

Here’s one of two pools:  

Did I mention it’s hot here in Aruba?  We walk back through the villa gates and head back to the beach.  Here’s the side road I mentioned.  It runs parallel for a bit with the main road:  

If you want to enjoy a more quiet beach time and avoid the high rise area of Palm Beach, this is the place to be.  There’s plenty of wave runners to rent and use:  

A Holland ship arriving into port in the early afternoon:  

 It was our "first time" to Eagle Beach and we had an amazing time here!  This picture sums it up for us:  

Day 5: Aruba!

Aruba:  Discovered in 1499 by Europeans.  After years of colonial rule, it was not until 1986 that Aruba became its own country, although it sill remains a Dutch protectorate.  Located in the Southern Caribbean, Aruba is 20 miles long (69 square miles) and lies north of Venezuela and east of Colombia.  The  climate in Aruba is warm, dry, and sunny  Due to a tropical marine climate, temperatures remain stable at a pleasant 82 degrees.  It lies outside the hurricane belt.  The language is Dutch/Papiamento (local dialect).  Their currency is the Arubian Florin (AWG).  The US Dollar and credit cards are widely accepted.

(Once we left Curacao a bit before 10pm last night, we traveled a short distance to Aruba,  The swells were slight, but you could feel the movement of the ship).

I wake up early to see us gliding into Aruba:


Then a rain shower appears and I have to take a step back from our balcony into our cabin:


The rain lasts for a few minutes and I resume my usual position taking pictures.  Here you can see Aruba is a working port as well a cruise port:


The cruise ship Freewinds is in port with us again.  She was also in Curacao.  You can see her tenders hanging from the top deck:



Yes, we absolutely agree with this.  Hubby and I are always happy to be here:


In the horizon you can see the tall hotel buildings located at Palm Beach.  The white buildings is the Hilton to the slight left and next door on the right is the Riu Palace resort (looks like a castle):


The colorful downtown shopping and dining area.  About a 10-15 minute walk from the port area:


We approach the pier moving in parallel to the dock:


Then we move forward so the lines can be tied in appropriate areas.  It was entertaining to watch this dock person moving the steps:


Aruba has lots of pelicans:


Tying one of many lines with the Pilot boat helping to pull them to various locations around the dock:



Once we are tied to the dock and the ship is cleared, all of our fellow cruisers are able to head off for a day of fun in the sun.  Did I mention it’s hot in the Southern Caribbean?  While the temperature is only 82 degrees, the sun is INTENSE!  We are enjoying this immensely!

Various boats are taking cruisers to different destinations:



A gorgeous day for sailing:


A helicopter landing at the Renaissance:




Lots of dive boats and fishing vessels:


This the Renaissance Hotel and Mall area.  Between the two rows of palm trees is a small canal that goes under the hotel.  The Renaissance also has additional buildings in the port area and a private island.  Their small boats were running all day taking folks from here to their destinations:


We are here in Aruba until 10pm.  Next up…it’s beach time again!