Aruba

Caribbean sunset from the La Trattoria El Faro restaurant

Bon Bini -  means welcome in the Aruban language!
The non-stop JetBlue A320 from Boston seemed to be a long flight, more so after a sleepless night (my own fault - drank tea late in the evening prior) AND a triple expresso macchiato from Starbucks at the Logan airport terminal. But landing in a tropical island on a bright Saturday afternoon seemed to take some of that travel fatigue away.
The Beatrix international airport at Oranjestaad (the capital of Aruba) and it's immigration hall reminded me of an Indian airport - long lines to get to the officer on-duty, some random questions and colorfully painted restrooms that masqueraded the stench inside. Clearing immigration and getting our bags was no problem; if you are not a US passport holder, a Green Card is sufficient for entry into this country. Walked out into the 85 deg F sun and hopped onto the next available cab. Stuck a conversation with the cabbie - he was a native and spoke Papiamento at home, one of the main Aruban languages; English is spoken by everyone and Dutch (this being part of the Dutch Caribbean) by some people. Driving out into the island again reminded me of India - colorful signs on the shops; independent houses with what we call "compound walls" and big gates; narrow, dusty roads and HOT!
We had booked the resort through Interval International, a travel exchange company; it's called the Caribbean Palm Village Resort. Located at Noord, in the northern part of the island, it was billed as being 'only a mile away' from the high-rise hotels area on the shore. The resort itself was well-maintained, had two separate pools (5-ft depth at max and hence kid-friendly) with separate hot tubs next to each of them.
The rooms were spacious, bright and clean; all rooms were air-conditioned and had a private balcony surrounded by coconut palms. The website said that were high-def TVs with DVDs in both rooms though there was only DVD player in the living room. Bathrooms were clean with maid service for towel change daily. The kitchen was well-equipped and had a gas stovetop. Overall, we were happy with the room quality and amenities.
Walked out of the resort to get grocery from a local supermarket Yinlu - was no more than a glorified dollar-store. Any produce was expensive; quality of fruits and veggies left a lot to be desired. Even more disgusting, found three tomatoes packed in a styrofoam plate with a plastic wrap and two of them were visibly rotten and growing mold! Got some bare necessities like milk, onion, oil and juice. Couldn't find any coffee which was a 'no-no' with the wife.
After a quick dip in the pool, went out on a stroll to find dinner. The main roads are paved and tiled well;  the side roads- you are on your own! Found signs for a 'family-owned' restaurant called Papiamento; walked through some of the side streets with stray dogs barking at us from a distance. The restaurant itself looked splendid in terms of ambiance - a winding path amid tropical trees with candles in the side took you to the reception. We asked the gentleman there about availability of our food preferences - vegetarian, nut-free (for my nut allergic daughter) etc. He meant well and said 'it may be possible'. The waiting staff seemed a little shocked to know that human beings can exist without eating meat or seafood; guess they've never heard or come across anyone with such exotic preferences in food!
The setting was charming; a nice pool in the middle surrounded by candle lights, a bar slightly to the inside and tables under the canopy of tropical trees. We settled for a 'caprese' like starter, mushrooms baked in cheese and a Creole bean soup that had vegetarian broth. The kids had pasta which they seemed to relish after a long day of travel. We skipped the main course (as they did not have any vegetarian and whatever they offered to cook sounded dubious) and had vanilla ice cream for dessert. The presentation of the food and the ambience were clearly superior but the choices were limited. Felt it was overpriced at US$75 (including tip and no alcohol) even without a single main course. Walking back to the resort felt like being in India again - with rash drivers in dark roads, stray dog menace, the heat and humidity sans mosquitoes. Settled down for a good night's sleep after a long day!

It was bright and sunny when I woke-up, around 945 am local time on Sunday. Went to an orientation meeting at the resort where they spoke about different things we could do in the island over the next week. Signed up for a sunset cruise in the Caribbean for that evening.  The MTR Sambar mix we brought along proved handy; potato curry with onions and pav bhaji masala went well with the rice and sambar. Since I hadn't found any yogurt or thayir  at Yinlu, had to settle for watered-down sour cream to go with the rice. The boys of the house settled for an hour's nap/siesta while the girls were finishing up their novels, sitting in the balcony. Took a cab to the Hyatt around 4 pm - were told to come to the 'Gray Tent' in the beach by the cruise people, though nobody new where it was. Finally found the location and the woman there told me to sign a waiver for the cruise; as I was doing it, she got a chuckle out of the fact that I was Indian and yet not a 'Patel'!

The Delphi - sailboat catamaran

The cruise was well worth it. A small rubber dinghy carried us to the main boat - a catamaran with sails called the Delphi. Open bar was included; kids got their fruit punches while I tried out different varieties of their cocktails. 'Sex in the beach' is a popular Aruban cocktail - mix of different fruit juices/blends with a shot each of vodka and gin. We all sat in the front part of the boat, directly in the sun and beneath the sail. There was nothing to hold on to for grip or support; for people who weren't expert swimmers, there was no life-jacket or vest provided. But the ride itself was beautiful - we went south first until the Eagle Beach, turned around and sailed all the way to the northernmost tip of the island close to the California Lighthouse and then turned back to return to the beach around the time of sunset. Aruba is located 12 deg N of the equator and hence the sun sets more than an hour earlier than the Northeastern US. Again, was well worth it for US$ 27 per adult and would recommend it - organized by Dolphin Cruises.
Began with grocery shopping (again) at a better supermarket (that actually looked like one) further down the street on Palm Beach Road first thing Monday. Produce still was not anywhere close to what you come to expect living in the US. But other things were available including decent wine and cheese.
Took the resort shuttle to Moomba Beach after. The beach itself was fairly good; guests from our resort were assigned specific lounge chairs; the water was no more than 5-6 feet deep; warm and turquoise with plenty of sunshine. After a couple of hours, we settled for lunch at the restaurant in the beach. Food was okay and vegetarian (pizza) was available.
We were told that there were 4th of July fireworks in the beach next to the Hyatt starting 9 pm. Showered, dressed up and strolled (amid a few stray dogs) to the high-rise area. It is amazing how different and nice this area is compared to the resort locale; as my daughter said, it looks like we are living in Hartford and the beach area is West Hartford. A more apt comparison would have been Chintadiripet and Besant Nagar, for those of you who know Chennai!

Italian zucchini appetizer

Here came the biggest surprise of the trip so far; tripped on a sign that said 'Yalla Yalla' Middle Eastern restaurant. Casually walked to the waitress and asked to see the menu to find out if any vegetarian choices were available. They had plenty - both Italian and Middle Eastern. The Italian part of the joint was called 'Segafredo Zanetti'. It was outdoor dining at it's best - in a little courtyard like space, squeezed between Japanese, Indian and Italian restaurants and vibrant tourist crowds; plenty of winds and excellent furniture. The staff were great - attentive and dynamic. They picked on our preferences and delivered promptly - we had fresh babaghanoush, fresh taboulleh salad, falafel sandwich, a great Italian zucchini preparation (thin sliced and sauteed in olive oil, topped with basil and capers) and the kids had pasta (ravioli and penne). The food was delicious; finished up with white chocolate mousse and Baklava.
Personally met the owner Kanaan Baroud and thanked him for their food and hospitality; Kanaan is of Lebanese descent and grew up in the different islands of the Dutch Caribbean. Seems very personable and fluent in English.
Walked over to the Hyatt; the fireworks started more at 930pm than as announced at 9 pm. It was beautiful - though not at the level of Boston or NYC - and short, lasting 7-8 minutes total.
Woke up and walked to Linda's Pannenkoeken & Pizza on Tuesday for breakfast. A nondescript joint on Palm Beach Road, the owners appeared Dutch and were known for their pancakes. The best pancakes I had prior was during my trip to Amsterdam in 2006 (again at a very nondescript place called the Pfankuchen across from the Marriott). The choices at Linda's were even better - strawberries pancake and whipped cream for my daughter, pancake with candies for my son, walnuts pancake with brie cheese and honey for the wife and apple pancake with rum-soaked raisins for myself. All of them were well-made; the staff were courteous and prompt. Finished up with a shot of espresso in a cute, Delft-like cup. For lunch, made potato/asparagus curry for the kids and spicy egg curry with rice and tomato rasam

Aruba's Parliament Houe

Royal Plaza with the Indian tricolor

 

Wednesday was a day in the beach after hitting the gym for a quick morning workout; Moomba beach was less crowded today. Mai Tai and Hurricane cocktail after a dip in the water, followed by Veggie Fajitas and Dutch Apple Pie with vanilla ice cream. Returned to the resort, showered and took the commuter bus to downtown Oranjestaad, the capital of Aruba. Few colorful buildings, not much of the 'quaintness' you would expect in a colonial capital; walked past a whole bunch of American retail stores into the waterfront at the harbor. Here is where it got better; nice boardwalk along the marina led to a big sign that  'Marketplace' with Starbucks and Haagen-Daas plus the other usual Yankee food outlets like DD and Taco Bell. However, the buildings in the waterfront appeared important; one of them, that looked like a wealthy man's independent bungalow had the sign "Parliament of Aruba". The Renaissance Hotel next door clearly dwarfed it. Beyond that was the "Royal Plaza", a very Dutch-looking Pink colored stately building that housed a lot of business establishments and surprisingly had the Indian tricolor amongst other flags. The main bus station was right past it. The marina itself had many of the touristy shops - selling souvenirs and jewellery. On the other side, there were many 'brand-name' jewellers like Cartier and Colombian Emeralds. The bus service was clean and relatively cheap - Afl 4.50 (almost US$ 2.50) for a round-trip to the downtown from Noord. One thing that impressed both my daughter and I was the fact that almost all the retail stores and most restaurants we saw were Chinese -disproportionately represented in the business community of this small Carribean island nation (it is said that the number of Chinese expats is close to 50 million - they should be somewhere I guess).
Drove up to California Lighthouse at the time of sunset on Thursday; named after a ship that wrecked close to the Aruban coast on the Caribbean Sea during the early twentieth century, it is a beautiful location to get 360 degree views of the island from atop a gently hill on the northern edge of the island. An Italian restaurant - La Trattoria El Faro - is located here; though pricey, the views are spectacular and the food is good. Excellent salads, hot appetizers and different kinds of pasta are all served, and in vegetarian! Would particularly recommend the Tiramisu for dessert.
Went back to Linda's for brunch on Friday to try out their other varieties of Dutch pancakes; my daughter ordered a specialty Strawberry and Mango one; wife tried the one with Pineapple and grated coconut; I had the banana one with banana liqueur and whipped cream. They were all good but we still thought the one with walnuts and brie cheese we had eaten earlier in the week was the best - would strongly recommend it. Finished up as usual with espresso and cappucino.

Strawberries with whipped cream pancake

Apples with rum-soaked raisin pancake

Strawberry and Mango pancake

Wrapping up, Aruba is a great Caribbean island to spend a week at; it is very tourist friendly and pro-American. As someone remarked, 75% of Arubans make their living from tourism and the other 25% make their living of the 75% involved in tourism!  Vegetarian food is available though an effort has to be made. English is widely spoken and understood. Cab drivers are friendly and nominal. Though we could have done more in terms of sightseeing and visiting national parks, we decided to take it easy and chill out in and around the resort area. Food is very expensive and a decent restaurant in Aruba costs more than what it would in Manhattan or San Francisco. Drinking water is fantastic - it is purified at a local plant and is very tasty; there is no need for bottled water and one could drink off the tap anywhere!
For those returning back to the US, we clear both US Immigration and Customs at the airport in Aruba and one needs to be at the airport at least 2-3 hours prior to departure.

Of course, there has to be an Indian connection to anything - saw this car shade outside a supermarket in Noord!