February 5, 2015

The ship docked in the early morning at the pier in Willemstad, Curaçao. Looking out the porthole window, this morning, the wind seemed reduced at 5 knots, but the sea was choppy. When the sun rose around 7 a.m., the temperature was 24 C and gray clouds fringed the horizon, but the rest of the sky was blue. Curaçao was discovered in 1499 by Europeans. Willemstad is the capital of Curaçao with two distinct historic districts divided by St. Anna Bay. Punda, site of neat narrow streets, is crammed with shops and museums. Otrobanda, or "The Other Side," is the old town, a maze of twisting residential streets, contrasting with the organized grid across the bay. Willemstad's colourful colonial architecture has won its UNESCO Heritage site designation since 1997, the coloured houses and the markets are a rainbow of pastel colours.  These old 18th and 19th century houses are built with thick walls constructed from coral rock, from ancient coral reefs now on land; sandstone and sand, then plastered on the interior and exterior. They need to be maintained twice a year to repair and paint over the plaster blisters caused by the salt water and high humidity level of the coral rocks. The city of Willemstad dates from the Dutch capture of Curaçao by victory over the Spanish in 1634. While the Spaniards had been content to erect simple stone dwellings, the Dutch began to fortify the island. The oldest part of Willemstad, Punda ("The Point") is east of the harbor mouth.  The Jewish community in Curaçao is the oldest in the Western Hemisphere.   

Today’s bus trip was around the middle of the 45 mile long island. It included a drive through the modern town before stopping at the first destination, Curaçao Museum - located in a beautiful building dating from 1853. The collection at the Curaçao Museum is a combination of objects dating from the 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st century donated by island families. Highlights of the museum are Curaçao mahogany furniture of the 18th and 19th century, the traditional Curaçao kitchen, the Carillon dating from 1951, the cockpit of the SNIP, KLM’s first airplane to cross the ocean from Holland to Curaçao, and the various paintings and the beautiful sculptures, located in the garden created by well-known local and international artists. Then a short highway drive, where we pulled over to view a flock of over 200 flamingoes gathered in a small shallow lake.

Second stop was Hato Caves - during the early days of the slave trade in Curaçao, escaped slaves used them as hiding places, and lived in them for months at a time, scavenging for food at night back at the plantations, from which they had escaped.. Even before the arrival of Europeans and slaves, the Amerindian Arawaks used the caves for shelter, and left behind cave drawings, or petroglyphs, estimated at 1,500 years old. Our cave guide regaled us with stories behind some of the stalactites and stalagmites; in the eerie lighting, some take on shapes and are called the Pirate's Head, the Sea Tortoise, and the Madonna statue like stalactite. We had to climb up 49 stairs to enter the cave in a hill. The cave was warm about 27 C with small fruit bats occasionally disturbed by our noise.

We travelled back to Willemstad to return to the Punda area, via the highway that crossed high over the harbour on the Queen Juliana Bridge, which is the highest bridge in the Caribbean. It was built in the Netherlands and shipped over to the island in 50 pieces where it was assembled.

The last stop was the Curaçao Liqueur Factory. We tasted some of the Curaçao flavors (original orange, similar to Triple Sec; Rum & Raisin, Coffee and Chocolate. They are different colours and bottled in an open-air factory. It is located in the restored land house, named Chobolobo.  The 3 ½ hour tour ended at the ship, so we went for lunch. Steps so far 4,149.

One of the other tours that members of the group chose was a kayak trip (against the ocean current) for several miles to beach and snorkel then snorkel to a buoy and back for a hike, followed by an easier kayak trip back to the start point.  Another tour went to the Hato Caves followed by an hour walking tour of Willemstad.

After 1:30, we headed off the ship to explore the town, walking 10 minutes toward Punda ("The Point"), the oldest part of Willemstad. The temperature was 29 C with just a few clouds in the sky, but the wind was strong again today. It seemed windier than 11 knots. Willemstad has free Wi-Fi, so in order to save ship Internet minutes, we checked email on the tablet while we rested on our walk.  Punda is the tourist shopping area along with Riffort Village, the waterfront entertainment center and shopping area located at the entrance of Santa Anna Bay in parts of the old city wall which was part of Fort Rif.  We walked over the Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge and just as we arrived at the far side, sirens sounded and it swung wide all the way to the opposite side to allow ships to enter the harbour. This is done many times daily. The historic Fort Rif has guarded the entrance to Curaçao, but now the soldier’s barracks hold many shops, bars and dining venues. The walls are about 3 meters thick.  We stopped at Diamonds International to get a token gift then wandered the streets and found the Floating Markets in Punda, where boats from Venezuela and Colombia bring in a colorful smorgasbord of fruits, vegetables and the day’s fresh catch. On our return stroll, we passed a picturesque stretch of pier with Colonial Dutch buildings painted in pinks, blues, and yellows line the waters of Santa Anna Bay. The floating market had plenty of watermelon, which in Aruba cost $13 each, due to a political dispute between Aruba and Venezuela. Aruba has to import from a further distance to get any watermelon. Steps when we returned to the ship were 10,847.

We returned to the ship for an Iglu frozen coffee beverage. We watched to ship cast off at 5, then composed the blog and relaxed in the stateroom, skipping pre dinner dance since the Jazz trio is playing and the previous times they play 10 minute tunes that are not easy for dancing. The main menu choices we selected, after ordering a glass of wine, were appetizers Hawaiian Tuna Poké and Pear wrapped in phyllo; followed by Beet & Citrus Salad. The entrées were Sea bass or Chicken Roulade. Dessert was coffee custard and Grand Marnier Soufflé.

 After dinner temperature was 25 C and the winds were moderating to 7 Knots. The height of the waves is between 1 and 2 meters.  Larry went to casino while I read and hope the slight laryngitis is better on Friday. Tomorrow will be day at sea, so we hope to sleep in. Total steps for today 13,026.