#305: Curacao (pg 1078 2nd Ed)

 

Dec. 29, 2021

Greetings from Curacao!

We spent the morning exploring the town and could immediately see and sense the Dutch influence.

If the shoe fits....wear it!

Our first glimpse of the town from the other side of the pontoon bridge.

Walking across the floating pontoon bridge - very cool!

This is inspired by the famous bridge in Pares "Pontoon des Arts Bridge" and some have claimed it as "the most romantic and instagrammable love stop in Curacao."

Locks of love looking over the town.

After exploring the town, we made our way by cab ($8/person each way) to "Tug Boat Beach" on Caracas Bay because I heard this was one of the best diving and snorkeling spots on the island.  Although I'm a certified diver, everyone I was with was a snorkeler, so we were more interested in the latter.  Tug Boat Beach, as it is known, has a sunken tugboat that is shallow enough to be able to snorkel around and is surrounded by loads of colorful fish!

The beach itself is very eccentric!

We spent several hours at the beach, so after a while, we ventured out and explored our surroundings a bit more and literally stumbled across this ancient fort!  It was amazing!

Fort Beekenburg was built in 1703 in order to protect the entrance to the bay.

We had the entire fort entirely to ourselves and loved exploring it all!

A view from the top.

This fort (and the people that manned it) warded off many attacks from English warships, French buccaneers and pirates. 

This Fort has seen  A LOT of history over the past 300 years!  Over time, it changed hands from one country to another but once it was returned to the Dutch, it served as a military outpost until the mid 1800's when it was finally dismantled.

The fort was inaccessible between 1927-2005 since the land around it was used by an oil company but it is now accessible and an incredible place to explore, especially because you can climb all the way to the top of the tower!

Looking for Pirates.....

Goodbye Tug Boat Beach, Caracas Bay and Fort Beekenburg.

We sure loved spending the day with you!

Curacao at night.

The pontoon bridge sure knows how to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

VERDICT:  Tug Boat beach was great for snorkeling (and I'm sure for diving too!) and the Fort is absolutely worth exploring.  But don't come here if you want to lay out at the beach.  There's no sand -only rocks and the chairs cost $3 to rent and are falling apart and old and super uncomfortable!  But the down town area was lovely and absolutely worth visiting.  And there's more of the island I would love to see.  Curacao is definitely worth a visit and is a place I'd enjoy coming back to!

#304: Bonaire Marine Park (pg. 861); 2nd Edition Bonaire National Marine Park (pg 1068)

 

Dec. 28, 2021

Hello, Bonaire!

When we first arrived to the island, we hired a driver to show us all around!  He started by giving us the South Island Tour ($25/person) and took us to the Pink Salt Flats.

These were truly amazing!  They looked even pinker in person.  I've never seen anything like it!

My daughter Lacey sampling some of the salt!

From there, we went to the slave quarters.  A sobering reminder of the slaves that worked the salt flats.

From there, we got as close to Pekelmeer as we could.  Bonaire is one of only four locations in the world where the American Flamingo breeds.  Bonaire is so proud of this fact that it named it's airport "Flamingo Airport" and painted it pink!

Although flamingoes can be found throughout the island, most of them are at Pekelmeer, which is not open to the public.  You can see literally thousands of them from the side of a road through binoculars or, if you're lucky, you can see them come in much smaller numbers closer to the beach and road like we did. 

Next Stop: Lac Bay

Crystal clear water!

Lac Bay is famous for it's kite surfers and kite surfing school.  We debated swimming here, but we really wanted to snorkel, so our driver took us to another place better known for it's snorkeling.....

Finally time to jump in the water!

 We were told that this beach is knows as Coco Beach, Eden Beach and Spice Beach.  Apparently it's all one in the same!  Whatever the name, the water was glorious and the fish were plentiful!

I'm scuba certified and Bonaire is a perfect island to dive!  However, nobody else in my family is certified and I didn't want to ditch them all to head out on my own, so I settled for snorkeling and it was still fabulous!  We saw tons of colorful fish and beautiful marine life!

VERDICT:  I loved Bonaire!  I'm so glad we came here and I would absolutely come back!  Next time I come, I plan to explore more of the North part of the island and go diving!

#303: The Hotel Hassler (pg 195)

 

No, this isn't the Hotel Hassler.  These are the Spanish Steps.

But if you climb to the very top.....

You will find yourself at The Hotel Hassler!  Let's go inside....

Hello Mr. Hassler!

The Hotel Hassler is a luxury 5-star hotel with 87 rooms/suites, each uniquely decorated.  It is home to Imago, a Michelin-starred restaurant and the "Hassler Bar" where Princess Diana enjoyed, what she exclaimed to be the best Bellini she'd ever had.  The history goes back even further as Audrey Hepburn stayed here while filming Roman Holiday.  There are many luxury hotels in Europe, but the vast majority are owned by large corporations.  Very few are privately owned and operated; this is one of them.

Verdict:  The Hotel Hassler has history, charm and intrigue.  It has fine dining, luxury spas and classy bars.  It has vintage rooms, many with terraces and most with second-to-none views.  It is in a perfect location to see all of Rome's most famous sights.  So, if you can afford it during your own Roman Holiday, stay here.  But if you can't, no worries.  Stop by for a drink to channel your inner Princess Diana and then move on, because like most hotels, it's not something you HAVE to do before you die.  In fact, it didn't make the cut in the revised 2nd Edition.