Curaçao – April 27th

We’re heading home and losing energy and a whole lot of interest in some of these ports, even though our port guides show there’s lots to do.  Michael has been wanting to go home since the beginning of April and I’m pretty much of the same mind since leaving Fort Lauderdale.  Many of the people we’ve been with for the past 100 days left us and a whole new group of people have joined the ship.  It’s not that I want to actually leave the ship because I love cruising but the feeling and environment has changed quite a bit – it’s a lot noisier with a different type of people.  But everything changes….

Before we arrived in Curaçao, I asked Michael if we’d ever been here before.  Neither of us could remember.  I looked at our list of “countries visited” and, sure enough, Curaçao was listed but we had no independent recollection of it.  I even asked our good friend, Clay, to check our magnet wall at the house to see if we have a magnet and, so graciously, he took a photo of the magnet we already had and sent it to me.  Now we have a double confirmation that we’d been here but still no independent recollection of it.

The port shops were all closed because it was the King’s birthday and lots of stores were not open.  But as I looked at the dock from our balcony, a memory started to appear.  I remember walking along the harbor and sitting on the sea wall for Michael to take a picture of me with the ship in the background.  Well, I sat down, alright, on the sea wall not realizing that it was wet from a recent rainfall and the back of my pants were soaking wet.  I remember getting upset with myself for not looking and heading back to the ship to change pants.  I asked Michael if he remembered and he wasn’t sure.  I said, “Once we get off the ship, I’ll know right away if that was the sea wall.”  Yes, it was!  We had been here! 

Curaçao is one of the three Dutch ABC Islands off the coast of Venezuela – the other two being Aruba and Bonaire.  As I mentioned, it was the President’s birthday the day we were there and we were told to expect lots of celebrations and dancing in the streets.  It was no lie.  People were out and about celebrating, and, with orange being the King’s favorite color, hundreds of people were dressed in this bright color.  I was willing to wear orange but my blouse had short sleeves and I wasn’t about to venture out in something that was going to be so hot.  I chose the lightest white t-shirt I owned but Michael joined the festivities – at least by wearing the appropriate colored shirt and shorts.  School spirit!

The capital, Willemstad, where we docked consists of two sections, the Punda and Otrobanda districts, separated by the bay and each reachable by the “Swinging Old Lady,” the Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge which swings open to allow ships to access the bay.

Each side of the waterway is lined with numerous pastel-colored buildings which are evidence of the island’s diverse history and culture – its traditional Dutch architecture combined with the wonderful color of the Caribbean.  Absolutely lovely.  

An easy walk from our dock, we crossed the bridge, stopping for a trinket that I got for $5.  The first gal selling the item wanted $10 and I offered $5.  She refused and went down to $7.  Taking advice from Mr. Trump about negotiating, I was willing to walk and so I did.  The next gal selling the same item wanted $10 and, again, I offered $5.  She first refused and wanted $7.  I smiled and said “thank you,”and, once again, moved on.  She then said, “okay, $5.  I paid her $5, thanked her, smiled and walked away happy with package in hand. 

Both sides of the bridge were bustling with people and we managed to visit a couple of shops but headed back to ship earlier than we’d planned because of the heat and humidity.  We were in this port until after 9 p.m., and I was told it was quite lovely in the evening by some of the crew staff.  We were content to be back on board by mid-afternoon.   

Michael’s Observations:    I also have noticed a dramatic change in the 400+ new passengers that joined us in Fort Lauderdale.  Rumors are that Princess offered this segment for around $499 per person in order to fill the ship.   And fill it they did.  It’s a younger crowd filled with lots of noise and lots of drinking.  Nothing like the passengers who paid premium prices to do the World Cruise but we’re nearly home and it’s just another experience memory I’ll tuck away for future reference. 

I had a blast in Curaçao after my memory banks kicked in and realized I’d been here before.  You could really feel the positive energy generated for the King’s birthday – just lots of fun, lots of shopping and excitement.  Yes, it was very hot but that never bothers me.  This is definitely a fun place to visit.

Leona’s Reply:   When Michael says it’s a “younger” crowd onboard now, I’d like to elaborate on that.  While the World Cruisers probably averaged about 75 years of age, the new cruisers are probably in the 60s – they’re not all that young, and I know that these are the current passengers’ ages because the music they request comes out of the 60s and 70s.  The World Cruisers request music from the 40s and 50s.