We’ve just returned from two weeks in Aruba. This was our 10th visit, the second one
this year. We never tire of Aruba. We relax as soon as we arrive and the moment we leave
we’re making plans for our return visit. The weather was perfect as usual. Usually
about 88 degrees and sunny. We had very few clouds and the wind was gentle and constant
during the day.
Earlier in June, my partner Dan treated me to a week in Aruba for my 50th birthday. We
stayed at the Casa del Mar where we own two weeks in September. I’d recommend
checking out CDM, as their one-bedroom units are quite affordable, especially if
you’re a timeshare owner at this resort. If you’ve not visited the low-rise
area, we can’t say enough about it. We love Eagle beach and the long walks we take on
it daily. We prefer it to Palm beach as it is wide and sandy and the water is great all
the way for 2 miles. The CDM is an older timeshare. It's 15 years old. But it where's its
age gracefully. It is always well tended and the staff are helpful and friendly. The
prices for timeshare weeks are very reasonable.
Every year we rent from Econo at the airport. This year was no change. We had a spanking new
Yaris in June and a Neon last week. The rate for an ‘I’ category was $410 for
two weeks. This category is usually a bigger car than the standard ones offered by most
car rentals. As we usually have guests with us the second week we like to ensure that
we’ll all be comfortable. A
car is very important for us as we go to dinner every night, will hit two or three casinos
each night, like to go to town and will almost always do Baby Beach and Malmok for
snorkeling.
Our flight to Aruba on September 22nd, wasn’t eventful but that’s what everyone
was hoping for due to the horror of September 11th. JFK was not crowded at all and the
additional security was welcome. Our flight attendants thanked us for not canceling our
trip. We’d heard that hotels and restaurants weren’t doing well and I can only
hope that some of you will
try to make it Aruba. I know that the latest counter attacks are going to cause some more
concerns for travelers. That’s a decision that only travelers can make for
themselves.
We ate out each night and repeated the restaurants that we love. Finding a different
restaurant that we like for 14 nights is a challenge so we repeat the ones that we love.
Unfortunately, I don’t pay too much attention to the cost of meals. We save up every
year and while I have an idea how much we spent I don’t have specifics on how much a
meal here or there was. For us
Que Pasa? in town behind the Sonesta on Wilhemstrade is the best place to eat. The chef prepares
specials every night that are mouth watering and creative. This is continental cuisine
that is neither fussy nor boring. The desserts are the best on the island, especially the
specials. Sometimes we’ll go there just for dessert and an after dinner drink. The
staff is Dutch and they are charming. They always welcome us warmly. We ate there
five or six times and often saw friends of ours there whom we’ve turned on to the
restaurant. This year our friends Santo and Angela joined us twice, Charles and Angelo one
night and Sandy and Terri for our last. This years highlights were a lobster salad, a
Mexican chicken salad as appetizers. The soups are always great, pea, broccoli, onion,
potato, mushroom. We try them all! A Chocolate crème Brule and an orange/chocolate mousse
stood out. The fried bananas and a Dutch yogurt dessert called Hang OP! were delicious.
Shrimp teriyaki, a special of three fish served on top of eggplant and fresh
catch of barracuda and Wahoo and mahi mahi. This restaurant is also reasonably priced with
decent selections of wines that won’t break the bank. The bar both outside and in is
lively and frequented by many Dutch and Aruban diners. We ate there 5 or 6 times - both by
ourselves and with are friends.
We also ate at Hosteria da Vittorio twice when we were there last week. Discovered their
Artichokes alla Roma that were the real thing!! Grilled baby chokes cooked to perfection
and covered in garlic, olive oil and olives. Our waiter, Angelo, told us about the fresh
ravioli. This restaurant is expensive so we always ask for the fresh pasta dishes rather
than the boxed variety, (Barilla). The ravioli were light and were served
in a creamy gorgonzola and nut sauce. Really have to try it to believe it. Also highly
recommended are the Osso Bucco and the Octopus appetizer. The owner and chef of this
restaurant made the reputations of Il Faro Blanco and Valentino’s. Now that he’s
gone from those places they are not very good.
We won’t go to either of them anymore.
Another favorite of ours is Madam Janette’s. We weren’t disappointed in the two
nights we went. The second night was a challenge as there was very little wind and so, it
was very warm. We did however enjoy our meals.
We went to Ventanas del Mar when our friends arrived from NY. They almost canceled as they
concerned about leaving their children behind. Both had started new schools and while they
were invited it was decided that it would be too disruptive to bring them. So they rented
a cell phone for $8 a day so that the kids could call them any time while their folks were
in Aruba.
We must have hit a bad night at Ventanas. The meal was not good. They had advertised a
steak special that left a lot to be desired. Why don’t the raise the price of these
specials and make them worth the visit. We complained about the quality and two of them
were removed from the check. They had barely been touched.
New for us was Tabaskos We were very happy to find that a couple of the waitresses from
Que Pasa? were there. The restaurant was lovely. Again, a large percent of their customers
are Dutch. This makes us really feel like we’ve gotten away from home. We had a
good, not a great meal. I had the
paella and it was dry and bland. They serve buckets of sangria that are almost too much to
drink. Too sizes and both are reasonably priced. We’ll try them again next year.
Villa Germania is good for breakfast, lunch and dinner. So we did it for each. If you
haven’t tried it, you’re missing a charming place to eat. The potato pancakes
and the chicken snitzels are delicious and the selection of beers is great. They serve
Polar (not one of my favorites) in large quantities on tap, so if you’re thirsty and
in town shopping, stop in. One of our friends stayed behind to drink more with our
waitress while we took
his wife on a shopping spree. The snitzels by the way were better than Chalet Suisse,
which we also went to twice. I can’t make up my mind about this place. It’s not
the best place to eat but we got served good wholesome meals here.
Two comments about restaurants that we visited in June. As it was my birthday we decided
to go to Chez Mathilde. We were underwhelmed. Restaurants in NY without half the
reputation do it much better. An older couple that has been coming to Aruba for years that
also found it under par and very average confirmed this feeling. Also at Le Dome…. we
didn’t care for it at all. Vin Ordinaire and a little too fussy for the type of food
served. If starving your customers is the way to be a success I wish them
well. Our friends love it and are welcome to both of them.
We had great full body massages at the Radisson Spa. Ask for Robert. He is excellent.
Charge was $65.
Shopping was another fun thing to do…. We dropped some money at Little Switzerland. I
bought myself bracelet watch. It was discounted at 25% off the price. Dan bought himself a
FABULOUS diamond and gold bracelet there also. We shopped at Kenro at the Casa Del Mar and
got a great bargain on
gold rings, some earrings for our nieces and a pendant for Dan’s Mom. We bought
souvenirs for our staffs back home at the Juggling fish and Artistica on Main Street had
the perfect tablecloth for our friend Carol who was minding the place back home.
Each night we played blackjack at the casinos. After 14 nights I can say we broke even.
‘A push is better than a shove.’ We taught our friend Angela how to play and
have created a monster. She’s very lucky and caught on quickly. Her husband played
the slots and didn’t do as badly as most. We
played mostly at the Crystal, the Marriott, the Royal Cabana and the dingy, smelly
Alhambra resort across from the Casa del Mar. I say that with affection because it is
those things but it is usually our last stop before going to bed.
For those of you have any interest, the gay bar is back at the Cellar in Orangestad. Not
much to write home about, but if you’re gay or know someone who is and they’re
traveling to Aruba, this is the place. I know that many of you don’t care about this
type of subject, but you’d be surprised how
many travelers to Aruba are gay or lesbian.
Anyhow, as I’ve said we look forward to our trip next September. I’ll be happy
to respond to any questions that you might have and glad to be of assistance.
Doug & Dan
