Sunday in Aruba

IguanaJust a short post today. Not much to tell. We went to the beach but the waves were very high again, so we retreated to the timeshare and hung around the pool. We tried out the hot tub and had a few drinks.

Parrot The old restaurant called Coco Loco’s has been renovated and renamed the Caribbean Palm Restaurant. The menu is much different, quite a bit more upscale. The renovations are nice too. It changes the ambiance of the place, that’s for sure. It has nice rich wood cabinets and linen covered chairs. I’ll take a few pictures or maybe a short movie of it another day.

The two parrots are still here, as are the friendly iguanas who hang around the pool side.

No parkingThis evening we went over to Paseo Herencia, an outdoor mall open ’til late in the evening, for an ice cream. It’s tough to find parking, but we got lucky. While walking to the mall, we strolled down a street with signs every 10 feet threatening to tow all parked vehicles. In front of every sign, was a parked car! haha

Here is a short movie of Boca Catalina. You can watch these movies in high def mode too. Click on the little 360 button and you will be given the option to watch in 480 or 720 mode – the 720 is full high def. You can even make the movie full screen, and it will give a really nice image.

Safely arrived in Aruba

Pam, Seattle AirportWe left home this morning, thinking we might have a long delay at the border, but we crossed over into the States the quickest we have ever done it. There was absolutely no wait at all. The border guard chat took about 10 seconds and we were done.

With the recent problem with potential bombs on some flights we expected some delays at the airport, but again, the delay was the shortest we’ve encountered. We simply walked right through security – there was no line, no standing around, right through!

Car wash muralThe flight was fine, a little rough on the landing, but we arrived about thirty minutes early. The inflight movie was Salt, with Angelina Jolie. I thought it was an interesting movie, but she was horribly miscast. She just doesn’t strike me as being a very tough actress. I didn’t believe her beating up several men at once. Anyway, it was entertaining.

We grabbed a hotel close by, with a free shuttle. Listened to some bad karaoke (is there any other kind?) had a drink, and got a decent night’s sleep.

Back to the airport for another crack at check in/security and it was again smooth as silk. This time security took at least five minutes tho! A tedious delay! haha

Arashi Beach We were pretty impressed with how smooth everything went, both with the border crossings, and airport security.

This airport in Atlanta is huge – close to a million flights a year. Very well signed, and lots of friendly staff to help. We were standing there looking confused, wondering where to go after we’d checked in, when a nice gentleman stopped and asked if we needed help. He pointed out where we needed to go, and off we went.

We’re waiting here to board our flight to Aruba. I’m going to have to post this from Aruba, since the Atlanta airport charges for WIFI. And I won’t pay for WIFI – it’s just not right. We’re hoping that Hurricane Tomas won’t affect the flight too much.

ADDED LATER:

The flight to Aruba was very nice. Terrific landing. Landed ahead of schedule, too. So all in all, a great start.

We got the rental car, checked into the timeshare, and headed to the beach! But WOW – the waves are incredible! We simply didn’t think we’d get much snorkeling in, so we came back to the pool and did a few laps.

We’re going to head downtown for dinner – keshi yena, natch –  but I wanted to post this little movie of Arashi Beach.