Back from Aruba!

Posted on March 31, 2009 by knittingpatterns4you | 1 Comment

These iguanas live by the pool at the Westin in Aruba where we spent a nice long weekend literally laying on the beach and drinking pina coladas. The big iguana towards the top of the picture was a total bully, he kept chasing and attacking the others! I kept missing Arnold while we were gone and at one time considered trying to befriend one of the iguanas . . . but Adam talked me out of it, which was probably better for all of us.

What's that? You want a proper beach picture, not a shot of lizards? Okay, here you go:

Neither one of us had ever been to Aruba before (actually, I may have been there once as a baby, but I don't remember it) and we went kind of spur-of-the-moment, just looking for a relaxing weekend away. We certainly got that, and we both liked Aruba, but it definitely is not up there on my list of favorite places ever nor is it on my must-visit-again list. Everyone tells you that Aruba is windy, but when we got there it was REALLY WINDY, with true wind gusts that knocked things over on the beach -- I was expecting windy like the Jersey Shore, not WINDY like Buenos Aires used to be (I'm told it is no longer windy, but growing up there in the 80's, I remember it being so windy I couldn't walk down the street!) . . . it's interesting that the wind was such a shock when we first arrived, but by the first day I was totally used to it and it didn't even phase me when our stuff got blown away on the beach.

While we enjoyed our weekend, I have to say I don't really understand why so many people seem to go back to Aruba year after year -- aside from the obvious practical reasons such as a short flight and good weather during out winter, I didn't think there was anything that special about it . . . the sand is beautiful and the people are nice, but isn't that the case almost everywhere else tropical? I remember family vacations to the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico feeling just the same, actually. If Hawaii were the same distance away I would always opt for Hawaii, personally! Going to Aruba has definitely cemented my desire to go back to Hawaii sooner rather than later . . . if only it weren't a 10 hour flight . . .

More pics in the Aruba Flickr set

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