Are You Ever Coming Home?...No! I am playing with Wizards, Farkles and Sparkling Friends

[dolphingirl47]

Bumpy doesn’t even describe the ride. It was insane! We were flying all over the place.

Maybe that is not quite so tempting after all.

That view is stunning and may even make up for the rough ride.

Corinna

 

[jenseib]

Maybe that is not quite so tempting after all.

LOL!!!!

hat view is stunning and may even make up for the rough ride.

It was super amazing

 

[jenseib]

The ride was getting worse as we went…bumpier and bumpier.


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But the views were just amazing….hard to take pictures though with all the bumps.


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And finally we arrived!!!


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We were told the rules and given snorkels and vests and then we had to walk down this mountainous hill to get to the pool.


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The view from the top.


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See the waves? This how the water seemed to be everywhere we went in Aruba. I am not sure if it that rough on all sides of the island, but it was really rough here.


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We made it down and they told us to set our stuff down and then walk over the pool…which you had to climb rocks to get to. This may look like sand….but it’s tiny pebbles that are super sharp on feet that are blistered.



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I was stupid and set my things too far away and then attempted to walk. I am not a barefoot girl. I could never walk on stones as a kid and I still can’t. I regretted it half way and thought about going back to my stuff to bring it closer, but I just kept going. I made it over where we had to hold on to rocks and climb through to get to the pool. That wasn’t as bad as some of the rocks were smooth, but some were pointed with sharp edges. My regret was not bringing my water shoes this trip. If I ever come back, water shoes would be a must here. I was actually surprised the pathway wasn’t any better or smoother with all the people who come here.


We finally made it to the water and I plunged in. It was a little cold, but we got used to it fast. I did some snorkeling and took pictures off and on. I will state right now that I forgot to put new rainX on my camera lens as that helps keep water drops off of it. They usually slide off or come off with a shake. It’s been about a year since I last had done it and you can tell. I have a LOT of pictures with spots in them and sadly I didn’t always clean off the camera later and there are spots on a lot of future pictures from this trip. Sorry…..


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The water was deep, but there were spots where you could stand on boulders…but the current in here was sloshy and often you couldn’t stand for long.


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The ocean would crash on the rocks that faced it and we would get big splashes in every so often.


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See the nice water spots?


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Cleaning my goggles


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We had one of the guides take our picture….he wasn’t very good. Hahaha.


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[jenseib]

Some people started jumping off a big rock….You have got to be crazy to do that….and then Kelsey and Emily went to do it. Hahaha.


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I swam around while I waited for them to jump.


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There goes Kelsey!!!


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Crazy girl!


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And Emily


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They did it a couple of times and I think Nick did it once too.


Jeanne took a picture of us.


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And one of the girls got us too.


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We saw that we would be leaving soon, so Jeanne and I decided to try and get a head start to climb out before it got full of people. The plan was good in theory…but we got behind a lady who just had a lot of trouble walking on flat surfaces…so forget about trying to climb out of here. She was so incredibly slow and she had guides helping her along the way. Of course she seemed to stop every time I was on a sharp stone and the pain was horrid. If I could have walked out fast, it would have been fine, but I couldn’t get around her. I think some of the guides thought I needed help too and I told them no, I just couldn’t move till this lady did.


Once I got to the flat ground with all the pebbles I could barely walk though. I had Claire go and get my shoes once I got half way so I could make it back. I have such horrid feet and those little buggers killed me.


We dried off and headed back up the steps. I knew I would be slow and Jeanne said she would be too. Amazingly I think I beat her up, but I think I started before her too.


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When we got back up, we were given water and a granola snack bar to eat. We dropped off our snorkeling gear on the side of the truck and then loaded ourselves back in for the trek back. Our guide told us that our drive out won’t be so bumpy because we now knew how it was and it will just seem like less bumps. Oh good!


We took off.


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And bumped along…and it did not feel better….it seemed worse! Really bad. I made a comment about how this thing has no shocks….it was throwing us all over.


All the trucks were playing around and climbing hills and being silly.


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We went up a hill and slammed on the breaks and all the other trucks started going around us and honking. I thought it was just in fun, but then we backed off the hill and went a little further and stopped. Our guide came out and said we had to get out as we had a flat tire. Kelsey and Emily said they heard a big pop quite a ways back and I bet that was our tire and why it was so freaking bumpy.


And it was FLAT!


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We thought we were going to have to ride in another jeep, but nope, they were going to change it right there. We stood around and took pictures while we waited.


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They did a lot of standing around and talking, but then they all pushed the truck over a bit and one guy got under to get the spare. It was comical.


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I course I missed the picture of them actually pushing, but Jeanne caught part of it.


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Soon we had a new tire and were back to bouncing around. Whoa!!!! Wait! I am REALLY bouncing….I forgot to put my seatbelt on! Shoot. I had my phone in one hand and camera in the other and trying to buckle while bouncing. Claire and Jeanne were sure I would fly out. I handed off my phone and finally got buckled in and was safe again.


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We were off to our next stop…the natural bridge…which also would have bathrooms…..something I was looking forward to more than the bridge at the moment.


We laughed at the name of this store.


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We passed the Ostrich Farm, which looks like a cool place to visit.


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[dolphingirl47]

This how the water seemed to be everywhere we went in Aruba. I am not sure if it that rough on all sides of the island, but it was really rough here.

Where we went, we were in a sheltered bay surrounded by the coral reef and it was flat calm there. Graham went out with some people to do some drift snorkeling on the other side of the reef and it was rough there.

We made it down and they told us to set our stuff down and then walk over the pool…which you had to climb rocks to get to.

That definitely would not have been for me.

My regret was not bringing my water shoes this trip. If I ever come back, water shoes would be a must here.

What a pain. I always wear water shoes when snorkeling since I first sliced my foot open on a piece of coral. Come to think of it, that happened in Aruba, too.

Corinna

 

[ukintheus]

Just now catching up and I was several days behind. Aruba looks lovely, looking forward to hearing about the rest of it. Post-potty break of course. That excursion sounds very adventurous and also exhausting!

 

[jenseib]

Where we went, we were in a sheltered bay surrounded by the coral reef and it was flat calm there. Graham went out with some people to do some drift snorkeling on the other side of the reef and it was rough there.

That reef area sounds neat. I heard the Aruba has a lot of great snorkeling.

That definitely would not have been for me.

It was an adventure, thats for sure.

What a pain. I always wear water shoes when snorkeling since I first sliced my foot open on a piece of coral. Come to think of it, that happened in Aruba, too.

I almost always bring them, but for some reason I decided not to this cruise and I regretted it.

Just now catching up and I was several days behind. Aruba looks lovely, looking forward to hearing about the rest of it. Post-potty break of course. That excursion sounds very adventurous and also exhausting!

It was a lot of fun, but yes, we did get a work out too.

 

[jenseib]

As we headed towards the natural bridge we got some great views of the ocean.


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Almost there!


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We pulled in and I shot out to use the bathroom. I was doing the pee pee dance at this point. I ran inside and there was a desk and they were charging $1 to use the bathrooms. I asked if I could pay on the way out and they said yes and I made my way in. When I came out, I handed over my dollar to another lady and she didn’t seem to understand why. I guess I could have gone for free. LOL.

Now this was annoying, but I was ok with paying…I had to go. But this is not something Disney likes. If they are going to charge for the bathroom, it is supposed to be told to them so they can note it in the description…or they include it in the price. There should NOT be extra charges like this on any Disney excursion. Disney did take note (so I was told by others later) of the excursions that did not follow Disney policy. These ports are new, or visited not often by Disney and they can only be improved with feedback.


I came out and found everyone and the guides were giving them a talk and it was just finishing up.


Claire told me that the “big” natural bridge actually wasn’t there anymore. It had collapsed a few years ago…but the small one was still there….again not something I saw mentioned in the description. In fact I am almost positive it said we would see the big and small one…..and I just went to look to see if it is still listed and it is. “•Make a 20-minute photo stop at the Natural Bridge and the Baby Bridge.”


I also believe that we were supposed to stop at one other stop and we never did. I know we were running late and we did get back later than we were supposed to, but also our time in port had been extended till 1 AM, so it was no big deal being late.


We headed off to take some pictures.


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And here is the baby bridge.


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The water beyond was rough but beautiful.


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I took a little bit of video as well.

We walked around a bit and then headed over by the jeeps.


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Lizard!


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No one was gathering yet, so we walked back over to look at the views some more.


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It was so pretty. I swear the water was bluer than I have ever seen it. I am not sure if sailing in the summer was the reason…or maybe I am just crazy.


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The signal was given, so we headed back.


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One wall of the building has a picture of the big natural bridge before it collapsed.


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Back into our jeeps and we were off again.


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[canyoncam]

In fact I am almost positive it said we would see the big and small one…..and I just went to look to see if it is still listed and it is. “•Make a 20-minute photo stop at the Natural Bridge and the Baby Bridge

That's too bad it was in description. It fell in September 2005. I was in Aruba in 2002 on a cruise stop and did a separate excursion than my parents who went to the bridge. I always wanted to see it after I saw the pictures but I didn't get back until this year. I knew it had collapsed. I watched the news the night it fell. I still went to see the baby bridge. A month later I stopped back in Aruba with my aunt, not a great listener as she was shocked it had fallen. Hello!!!! I told you about a dozen times.

 

[dolphingirl47]

That is a shame that the excursion was not quite as described. I loved the photos and I think the baby bridge was still pretty impressive.

Corinna

 

[lorimay]

Those pictures are gorgeous!!
Glad you enjoyed Aruba.

 

[jenseib]

That's too bad it was in description. It fell in September 2005. I was in Aruba in 2002 on a cruise stop and did a separate excursion than my parents who went to the bridge. I always wanted to see it after I saw the pictures but I didn't get back until this year. I knew it had collapsed. I watched the news the night it fell. I still went to see the baby bridge. A month later I stopped back in Aruba with my aunt, not a great listener as she was shocked it had fallen. Hello!!!! I told you about a dozen times.

I hadn't done my research on it at all so I had not known. But the baby bridge is still beautiful.

That is a shame that the excursion was not quite as described. I loved the photos and I think the baby bridge was still pretty impressive.

Corinna

I had that issue with every excursion this trip. I know things can change but some people might not be so go with the flow as I am.

Those pictures are gorgeous!!
Glad you enjoyed Aruba.

Thanks

 

[jenseib]

We now were heading back to the port area, but still had some beautiful views.


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Back by the ostrich farm again.


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I believe this is the Divi tree. The single lady that was with us was pointing them out to us.


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She was cruising with her husband, but he doesn’t like to do excursions, so she does them herself. This was her first Disney cruise, but she cruises other lines several times a year. She grew up in the Caribbean (I forget which island now), and she was familiar with all the islands. She told us that Curacao was mainly sand and looked like a dessert and its best to go to a beach there. I thought that was funny as I thought Aruba looked like a dessert too.


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I was impressed with the houses here so I took quite a few pictures along the way.


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We went by the boulder house again and I got a better picture this time around.


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Our new lady friend also pointed out mango trees. Claire perked right up. She is obsessed with mangos.


Soon we were rolling back to port and dropped off a little ways from the ship.


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We wanted to go shop around a bit but Nick wanted to go back to the ship. Our lady friend said she would walk with him and be sure he got back onboard. We all loaded him with our towels so we didn’t have to carry them anymore.


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Emily and Kelsey went behind then and watched from afar just to be sure he got back on.


We then looked around at some of the street shops and also headed towards the mall area for Starbucks.


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It was really hot in this area. It wasn’t as open and the breezes were not flowing like they had been out in the park area.


We found the mall and got in line for Starbucks.


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Claire and I got strawberry Frappuccinos and they were the best we ever had. They had extra strawberry flavor to them which made them fantastic. They didn’t have the capability to pay using my app, so they gave me a discount instead, which was nice.


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We sat at a table and used the free wifi we were getting there and some of them made some phone calls.


Now here is where we were all stupid! Jeanne was the only one who had brought a charger with her and a cord. I had a charger, but not a cord. Claire had nothing (all her stuff was in her other bag) and Jeanne’s girls had nothing. I am always prepared…and I could kick myself for not double checking to see if I had a cord in the bag. We all had our phones down to about 10% and we would pass the charger and cord around to top up. I went to a nearby gift shop looking store and they had cords so I asked how much. I would be willing to pay $5-10 for one….$30….. Nope. I will let my phone die if I have to. LOL.


After we drank our drinks we decided to move on and shop our way back. I picked up a magnet for me and Claire found a shirt she likes. There is particular style of shirt she got last cruise in a couple of the ports and she loves then. This Aruba shirt was in that style.


We then made our way back to the ship.


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Back on the ship, we showered and just kind of chilled. Claire and I headed to Flo’s for some lunch. I think we got chicken strips, fries and pizza to share. As we were eating I saw another co-worker of mine walk by. I said hello to her and we chatted for a few minutes. We are personally not close and I knew she was sailing with her family and her best friend. At this point in time, I think Patty was the only other person to have seen her and talked with her, but I could be wrong. I noticed she was really sunburnt and later I saw they sold lanacane in the gift shop and I messaged her to let her know in case she wanted to get some.


Claire and I had talked about seeing Pirates of the Caribbean, Dead Men Tell No Tales, but honestly I was tired. We have seen it already and really liked it. Claire really wanted to see it, so we headed off to the theatre to watch. The seats were awful. Mine tilted WAY back and they are just not roomy or comfortable. The theatre was pretty empty so I scrunched down on my spine and flopped my legs over the chair in front of me.


After the show started Claire thought she saw Emily come in….then later Nick and Jeanne. They sat in a different spot.


The movie was great once again, but I was tired and sitting in one place and I kept nodding off and catching myself before I fell over. When the show ended we knew to stay till after the credits to see the very last scene…..only one other family did that as well.


Jeanne, Emily and Nick. Hahahaha


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At some point we ran into Cass and family. It was Canada Day and they were all dressed in cute Canadian shirts. They had played the Canadian trivia and won….but she said the questions were impossible, even for a Canadian and Deano was reading the questions and he had no clue about any of it.


Tonights “show” was the prem”ear” of Cars 3. We didn’t have an interest in seeing it. I think it started at 5:30 while Pirates started around 5:15. After pirates we just kind of chilled a bit and at one point I went outside to see Aruba at dusk.


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It was really pretty and the lights in the port area would change colors.


It was time for dinner then and we headed off to Royal Court. Tonight’s menu was international.


There were a lot of things I wanted to try and I ended up with like 4 or 5 appetizers and a couple of entrees but I did not take pictures of them all. Some of it was good and some not so much. Jeanne was an adventurous eater tonight as well.


This was a Vietnamese spring roll. In the past when I have had a spring roll it has been deep fried…like an egg roll. This had some disgusting plastic like crap on it and the inside was cold. Several of us ordered it, took one or 2 bites and pushed it aside.


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I believe these were Argentinian empanadas and I liked them.


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Canadian Cheddar cheese soup. It wasn’t the best I ever had, but I liked it.


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I think I also may have gotten a Caesar salad.


I think this was the USA Prime rib. The meat was good, the corn sucked…but all corn on the cob is gross unless you get it freshly picked….and I wasn’t a fan of the potato.


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For dessert I got the USA cheesecake.


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Some people got the crème Brulee which came with macaroons. Jeanne’s girls asked for extra macaroons and gave me one to try. I can say I am still not a fan.


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I think this was a night where Kira wasn’t feeling too well. Rob ended up taking her out while we sat and chatted and Cass told me that Kira just doesn’t like the long 2 hour (plus in some cases) meals. I felt bad for her and hoped she would feel better later. I was kind of upset that Claire wasn’t being friendlier to her either and we did have a talk that night. I think there was just a big difference in age with that 2 year gap between them. Jeanne made a comment to me a couple of times that Claire was very mature for 12 and she was even more mature than her 2 14 year kids. I guess I never saw that before as Claire is my baby. And compared to my niece who is just 10 months older than Claire, there is a big difference …though over the last 2 years they have been getting closer and liking more of the same things.

I also saw that perhaps Kira looked up to Claire as an older kid, while Claire was having sparkly eyes for Jeanne’s daughters who were older. And sadly it didn’t seem like they all had the same interests.

 

[jenseib]

I can’t remember exactly what we did tonight and I have seem to have lost 2 days worth of Navigators and this is one of those days. At some point Jeanne and I were walking by the shops…probably window shopping…and we came upon Tiana.


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Back in the room I think we watched some movie again….I know at one point I started watching the Founder, but didn’t get far and restarted it a few days later.


Towel animal for the evening.


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I went to get some drinks for our room and passed the pool, which had a ton of kids all around it. I guess they had some special kids club activity going on.


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We then settled in for the night. We had a big day again tomorrow and needed our rest.


It was a great day. I know I told the good and bad about our excursion, but we loved it. It had some hard elements to it, but it was still so much fun for us. It just might not work for everyone and I wanted to be sure everyone is aware of it.


We didn’t pull out till 1 AM. I had wondered if the horns would go off when we did, but I never heard them. I asked other people and some said they waited up and never heard them while others said they did go off. So I guess I’ll never know. LOL.


We had another busy day coming up tomorrow…..another port day….a first for the Fantasy!

 

[dolphingirl47]

You managed to cover a lot of ground that day. What a shame that the dynamics between the kids did not quite work out.

Corinna

 

[jenseib]

You managed to cover a lot of ground that day. What a shame that the dynamics between the kids did not quite work out.

Corinna

We did do a lot and had a great day.
I really wish they all had the same interests and gotten along. Sadly, Claire is in the preteen stage and has wild mood swings. Some days I even think she is possessed!

 

[jenseib]

Day 8, July 2, 2017, Curacao


Today was a first! We were arriving in Curacao!

Now they kept announcing that this was the first time the Disney Fantasy was ever in Curacao, but sometimes they would say it was the first time Disney was in Curacao. Our taxi driver told us it was the first time that ANY Disney ship had ever visited, but when I got home I looked it up and the Magic has been here before.


Still it was a first for this ship and a first for me. This island would never have been on my radar if we hadn’t been stopping here.


This morning was similar to yesterdays. I got up and got ready and looked out our window to see if we were pulling in.


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Claire and I went up top to watch some more. Just as we got up there the horns started going. I only got one on video as we walked out.

We looked at the view for a little bit.


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I believe we had a little rain this morning or last night too.


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It was another beautiful island. I found it similar to Aruba.


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Whoa! Look at the bridge! It looks so scary.


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I love those colorful buildings…and that bridge that leads to it…I think it is a walking bridge. I believe Cass walked over it. I think our taxi driver told us it is nicknamed the swinging old lady, (he was very hard to understand) because if boats came through it would swing out of the way. I guess it was really old and they recently re-did the whole thing.

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Hello Curacao!!!


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We got a quick breakfast and then met up with Jeanne and her family. Today we were going to Sunscape on day passes. Sunscape is an all-inclusive resort. It normally cost $89 per person for a day pass, with kids being cheaper. We found out that we had access to a class they offer and if we took it and passed, then we could go for free with our credentials and up to 3 other family members at $25 a person. That was a great bargain and included food and drinks. Jeanne and I decided early on we wanted to do this as it would be a cheap port day and we sent in our request very early on. The other gal we work with also sent in a request for her and her friend’s family…then Patty did as well. At first they gave Patty a little run around, but eventually approved her. Brook sent in a request kind of last minute and was denied. I then emailed and asked if I could add 2 more to my family (since it was just 2 of us) so we could at least get 2 of Brook’s family in for cheaper and she could pay for the 3rd, but I was told no. They typically only allow 4 per day with family members and they were already at 6 for the day and were not allowing anyone to add extra people. Brook found something else to do then.


We headed off the ship and walked out and found several people offering taxi’s. We asked what it would be for 6 and he said $10 a per person. We had researched and knew it should only be about $5-6 per person one way and we said no. The next guy we came to said the same price and we told him no as well. We were looking for $5 and would go out the gate. Several drivers kept telling us we would never find one for that price and we said we would take our chances. We kept walking and just about out the gate and taxi driver #2 came after us and said he would do it for $7 each. That worked for us and he did come after us a ways, so we followed him to his vehicle.


We all hopped in his vehicle and we gave him the name and address and he seemed a bit confused about why we would want to go there. I got a little scared….maybe this place was crappy? We had done a little research and the place got some mixed reviews, but all seemed to be happy with the pool and beach and that is really what we wanted.


I was in the front seat and our driver talked a bit, but he had a really thick accent so he was hard to understand. I asked him what the language of the island was and he said there were 5 spoken here. One was more native to the area, Papiamentu (and they spoke it in Aruba too) which I believe is kind of a mix of several languages, and then Spanish, English, Dutch and I think French.

He pointed out some things and I would occasionally take a picture, half the time not knowing why.


I think this was an all-inclusive resort.


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We then headed over that big bridge we had seen from the ship.


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He told us about the “Swinging Old Lady”, but again, he was hard to understand.


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A look back at the big bridge.


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He told us today is Flag Day and that the town would be quiet as they celebrated the holiday. He said he suspected many things in town to be closed today in honor of the holiday. We then came to a stop as there were young people running with a torch. I tried to get pictures, but the windshield reflected his dash.


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It was really neat to see though.


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And this is the truck that would pick up the kids after they ran their leg.


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And then we were off again.


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And soon pulling into Sunscape.


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Well it doesn’t look bad from the outside, so that’s a good sign.


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We paid our driver, giving him a few dollars for a tip as well and then headed into the lobby. I believe we had to wait just a minute or 2 till the people in front of us were done.


The lobby was very nice and modern looking.


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Jeanne was the one who made the original reservation for us, so she pulled out her email confirmation and we talked to the lady at the desk, who was sort of confused. We had to fill out paper work and we told her Claire and I were together and Jeanne would be paying for her kids.


It took a little time and Patty and her gang walked in then too. The lady then says that the adults are $89 and we quickly let her know that is wrong. We tell her the person we had communicated with and that she said to talk to her if there was any trouble. The desk clerk said she had to go check something so we waited.


Look how excited she is……


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Patty said their driver (who was cheaper by the way) said that today was going to be a busy day in town with the holiday and that there will be more stands open and a parade, etc. We totally laughed as our driver told us the opposite.


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The gal came back and everything was now cleared up for her and we only had to pay $25 for our kids (and for Fred in Patty’s case). They did have to take our license for the day and they would get those back when we checked out. Jeanne asked what to do if they carded Emily or Kelsey, who both still look young for their 20’s and the lady said they could just show their ID. Um…you just took our ID’s. LOL. OH, she said just to go to the bar right now and let them know that the ID’s were at the desk.


So it was a little disorganized at the desk, but we were doing something that is not the normal everyday thing there, so I am sure the desk clerk just probably had never dealt with it before.


We headed out the back side then and towards the beach.


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The resort itself didn’t look too bad. This is one of the AM Resorts Value properties.


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I thought the pool was beautiful for a Value.


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[jenseib]

We worked our way over to the bar and Jeanne introduced the girls to the bar tender to let her know they were old enough to drink.


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And I took pictures along the way.


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We made our way over to the beach to find a spot. One of the reasons we wanted to get here early was so that we could hopefully find a good spot to set up camp.


We found a spot under a palapa and set our stuff down. Patty’s family was nearby. I had to go to the bathroom, so Claire and I went in search of one.


We passed the gym


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And soon found the bathroom, which wasn’t too far. There was a bit iguana sitting out there but I never got a picture.


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We headed back and I made Claire stop for a picture.


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I found that everyone had moved….I guess there was a bunch of ants near our first spot, so we moved a row back and had plenty of room to have Patty’s family join us as well.


The bar wasn’t open yet, but there was a place that was making iced coffee and hot chocolate, so we went to get some. As we approached a guy stopped everyone but me and let them know that beyond this spot, shoes had to be worn. I was the only one with shoes on. LOL. So I went and made the orders and they all stood at the edge and I would hand them off as they were made.


We came back then and settled down a bit. We took in the views and enjoyed the area. It was still early and pretty quiet.


Look what I see!


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It’s a beautiful beach, but we found that to walk out in the water where we sat it was really rocky. You had to go to one end or another to get in the water without killing your feet.


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Just Chillaxxing in my chair!


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Patty’s family…before they ended up moving up closer to us.


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We got the kids together for a group shot. At this point, Caleb hasn’t done a whole lot with us other than one dinner. Notice him on the end. (right side next to Claire). Just a little stand offish. A few days later you will see him with his arms wrapped around the girls. Hahahaha! The kids kind of bonded today.

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Since it was early, they decided to go out to the float thing you climb on before other kids started taking it over. They all walked out, unbeknownst to us at that time that this was the rocky part. Later I walked down and found the better way to enter the water.


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They swam over and we walked to get a better view of them playing on it. Claire was not about to climb it but had fun watching out there. Some were determined to make it to the top and we laughed so hard as they kept falling.


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Our view from where we were standing, which was on the other side of the beach area.


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Kelsey was so determined to get to the top and it was hilarious.


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And that splash in the back is her falling off.


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Emily is happy with the side, but Nick made it.


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Emily made it for a short time and then slid down.


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We then headed back to our seats for a bit and they played out there for a bit and then they came back and we all just relaxed and talked. I knew that Nick was getting more comfortable around us as he actually said my name and asked me a question. Jeanne had brought a game of Nick’s and encouraged Nick and Caleb to play together. So they both seemed to be opening up a bit.


The bar opening time now had come and we headed off to get some drinks. Claire and I got Strawberry/Mango daiquiris, her’s being a virgin one.


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She approved.


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Another co-worker of ours had now shown up with her family and her friend’s family. We said hi and talked a bit and they went to find a spot to sit.


I took some pictures of this beautiful place.


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I had been walking around a bit. I never saw the inside of a room, but it looked like some might be better than others from what they looked like outside. Over on the further beach area, away from us, they had balcony type rooms, and the building just looked nicer. On this side, the rooms had small slitwindows and just a little less as nice. I did look on Trip Advisor when I got home and I couldn’t find pictures of the rooms that had the slit windows, but the ones with balconies did look pretty nice for a Value resort.


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They also had a towel hut over here and I stopped to get us some extra towels so we could keep our cruise ship ones clean for our return trip. They asked for our room number and I told him we were just here on a day pass as we were on the Disney ship. The one guy was all excited and asked all sorts of questions about the ship. He said his dream is to sail on Disney someday.


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[jenseib]

Claire and I walked up and down the beach a bit. I wanted to snorkel and had brought my mask and snorkel. She just was coming along. I think some of the other kids went to play volleyball, which isn’t really Claire’s thing.


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We found a better spot to get in the water.


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The water was shallow for a ways out, but then the drop down to the deep was fast once you got there.


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I just couldn’t get over how blue the water was. I swear I have never seen water this blue before. I am not sure if summer makes a difference or not, but all the ports seemed to be bluer than I have ever seen them before.


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I then snorkeled a bit. It was hard for me to tell what I was taking, so a lot are just literally pointing and shooting and hoping for the best. I found out that at times I hit the settings and it would change from underwater settings to something else and also at times I accidently turned it off and I thought I was taking pictures, but I really wasn’t.


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At first I moved over towards the rocky area where we were sitting by.


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Ummmmm…..there is a sea urchin here and the kids had walked right on these rocks. EEEK!


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I actually saw several but they were always under the rocks….but I told Claire not to walk on them again.


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A look back at the beach.


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After a bit Claire asked if she could go back and sit down. I guess watching me snorkel wasn’t much fun. I told her she could use my stuff, but she said no.


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I kept up with my explorations.


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It was really really shallow here.


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I chased this fish all over trying to get a decent picture of him. I took like 15. LOL.


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Look at the eyes popping out of the sand. I assume they are crabs.

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I made my way over to the far side of the beach (towards where the ship was) and there was a rock wall and it had a lot of great things to look at. This is one of the times my camera turned off so I didn’t get as many pictures as I thought.


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These fish were not shy either and they kept coming up to my face.


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These fish looked like they glowed in the dark water.


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I kept following this parrot fish to try and get a good shot of him too. Fish don’t understand they are supposed to stop and pose for me.


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At this point the fish were really getting in my face and also my camera. I don’t like to touch fish, I only want to look at them. When one thought my finger was something to suck on I totally jumped and got the heck out of there. Too close for comfort for me. LOL!!!!

 

[Timon]

We all loaded him with our towels so we didn’t have to carry them anymore.

HAHAHA, poor Nick

This had some disgusting plastic like crap on it and the inside was cold.

I am so glad I didn't order that, it looked really gross

I also saw that perhaps Kira looked up to Claire as an older kid, while Claire was having sparkly eyes for Jeanne’s daughters who were older. And sadly it didn’t seem like they all had the same interests.

I think you're right, from 10 to 12 is a huge gap Kira gets along really well with kids her own age and younger. She is now at a school that has older grades (7, 8 & 9) and she doesn't like being around the older kids.

It was a great day. I know I told the good and bad about our excursion, but we loved it. It had some hard elements to it, but it was still so much fun for us. It just might not work for everyone and I wanted to be sure everyone is aware of it.

I'm glad you had fun! And I am glad we didn't book it, Kira and I wouldn't have done so well on it based on your reviews.

I love those colorful buildings…and that bridge that leads to it…I think it is a walking bridge. I believe Cass walked over it.

Yes, the Queen Emma floating bridge! So very neat

Look what I see!

Hahaha, pretty cool that you could see the ship from your beach

Claire and I got Strawberry/Mango daiquiris, her’s being a virgin one.

Those look delicious!!