WANDERING THE COLORFUL STREETS (AND DESERTS) OF CURAÇAO
"...SUCH IS LIFE, TRAVEL AND MARRIAGE."
From the moment our plane hovered over the airport landing path, I was immediately taken with the colorful and eclectic houses and the deep cerulean of the sea. Celebrating our 5 year anniversary, I felt so blessed to be able to explore Curacao with my best friend/hubby. We stayed at the Papagayo Beach Resort in Jan Thiel, on the east side of the island. There was a local bus that stopped right in front of the resort so we took full advantage of the cheap transportation and traveled all over the island via bus. The Willemstad market was a triumph of colorful sights, sounds and smells— tucked in a dark corner of the upper level of the marketplace was the most delicious island food I’ve ever had. If you ever find yourself in Willemstad, make sure to get a market meal. The floating market was another thing of beauty— boats travel in from Venezuela every morning and sell the most fragrant fruit and veggies (basically, a vegan’s dream). But no trip is complete without one hiccup, so of course, I have to tell you about how Wes and I got lost in a dessert on the hottest day of our trip. I had booked beachside massages at what was described (and rated) the most beautiful beach in the Caribbean. We set out to go to our spa appointment via our faithful (and cheap) local bus. After consulting with the bus ticket window in town, we were told to transfer to another bus which would drop us off a short walk from the spa— upon boarding the bus we confirmed this information with the driver and set on our way to Cas Abao Beach. The Driver let us know where to get off and let us know the beach was a 5-minute walk from the bus stop— I imagine her driving away and having a good laugh as we journeyed down the dirt road. 45 minutes, a few herds of wild goats, desert lizards and failed hitchhike attempts later, we are still on the same road— parched and callused. At this point, we are late for our spa appointment and I’ve literally given up on trying to flag down passersby— but God! A compact vehicle with the sweetest woman stops randomly and asks if we need a ride *insert praise dance here*. We are incredibly thankful, almost to the point of tears, and jam our tall selves into her car. Come to find out she works for the spa and was our masseuse and had been running a few minutes late— won’t he do it! She also let us know we would have been walking for at least another half hour before we’d make it to the beach!! Sunburn, dehydration and callused feet were small tokens to pay considering how idyllic Cas Abao Beach was. The metaphor of our journey to that beach is not lost of me— sometimes the journey is so gorgeous it can take your breath away, sometimes your surroundings seem daunting and downright scary, sometimes you feel lost, other times you feel found, but almost always you feel better in the end. Such is life, love, travel, and marriage.
