On Tuesday afternoon, we rented a Jeep and did some off-road sightseeing around the island. The northern/eastern coast is very rocky and has big waves since it's exposed to the strong trade winds of the Caribbean Sea; it's much different than the white sand beaches and calm waters of the southern/western coast.
Wish Rock Garden. Aruban legend says that when you stack stones you get to make a wish.
This is the stack we made:
Baby Natural Bridge
We also visited the Arikok National Park, a wildlife reserve.
We explored some caves in the park (Joe enjoyed this much more than I did).
Joe really enjoyed seeing the wind power plant up close. These towers are much bigger than they look from this photo, and standing under one was both fascinating and terrifying. Ten of these harness the power of the trade winds and provide much of the island's electricity.
Tuesday's adventures ended with a visit to the center of the island and some climbing on Casibari Rock.
We saw some interesting wildlife on our trip: wild goats, lots of blue-tailed lizards, colorful birds, an owl (he turned his head just as Joe snapped the photo), and an iguana who enjoyed hanging out in the gardens of our resort.
On Wednesday morning we still had the rental car so we headed over to Baby Beach for some snorkeling. The water was very shallow, clear, and calm and there was a large reef with tons of tropical fish.
Wednesday evening we took a sunset sail.
The highlight of the trip was the delicious food. Most of the restaurants we went to were just tables on the sand, and the seafood dishes were some of the best we've had.
On our last night, our resort set up a private dinner for us in one of the beach cabanas, where we had a five-course meal and watched the sunset and the waves.
It was a great trip!
It's beautiful! Looove that first pic of the two of you. You're too cute. So is this where I should go next year? Seriously, I'm tempted!! Where are you guys going to go next?
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend it! There is just enough to see and do that it's not all lounging, but the lounging part is great too. Our resort was wonderful, and the only place we'd stay if we ever went back. Let me know if you want the info!
ReplyDeleteWe probably won't take any more big trips without the kids and it will be a while before they're old enough to go too many places. Maybe a long weekend jaunt to Paris if we can pawn them off on Grandma again. ;)
Awesome. Definitely send me the resort info. I am seriously considering it! I figure this is our last trip without the kiddos too.
ReplyDeleteThese pictures are great, I feel relaxed just looking at them! How wonderful for you guys. Aruba is definitely on our list.
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