Curaçao includes the main island of Curaçao, and the much smaller, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao (“Little Curaçao”).
The capital Willemstad is the historic center and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Punda and Otrobanda are two districts separated from each other by the Sint Anna Bay.
Pedestrians who want to go to the other side, Punda, have to use the Queen Emma pontoon bridge.
This oldest and longest floating bridge in the world (1888) rests on 15 pontoons and swings open some 30 times a day (hence the name “swinging Old Lady”) to let big oil tankers, container and cruise ships in and out of the harbor.
Curaçao, along with the Netherlands, Aruba, and Sint Maarten, is one of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
It is the largest of the ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao) in terms of both area and population.
The northern seabed drops steeply within 200 ft of the Curaçaoan shore. This drop-off is known as the “blue edge” and is renowned for scuba diving.
The term “Dutch Antilles” is an outdated term, but it refers to a former Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands that dissolved on October 10, 2010. It consisted of two island groups: the ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao) and the SSS islands (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten). Following the dissolution, Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten became constituent countries, while Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba became special municipalities of the Netherlands. (It’s a little confusing, isn’t it?)
Curaçao qualified for the first time for the World Cup in soccer. They play Brazil first. I will be rooting for them.
Curaçao has a strong baseball program which starts when they are very young. They consistently play in the Little League World Series and won in 2004. A movie called Boys of Summer is about this baseball program.
Aquafari
Rob and I had scheduled an Aquafari excursion where one goes under the water in an air bubbled, motorcycle-like apparatus.
Click on the link below to see a short video. Make sure that your sound is up!!
Rob’s Big Adventures
This is Rob writing: I went underwater and put my head in the helmet. Air coming from the attached tank was trapped in the helmet. The underwater scooter had a button at my right hand that turned the engine on and off. The scooter would move slowly forward and turn left or right.
As we left the dock and proceeded toward the tanker, at first there were no fish. Then fish started to appear, either because we had moved to a different area of the reef or because the fish were attracted to the diver who was carrying a bottle of fish food.
I had no trouble controlling the scooter. It was easy to breathe the air in the helmet.
The length of a rope connected to a float above determined our depth. A diver periodically adjusted the rope. We started near the surface and went as low as 22 feet. They told us that the effects of the bends (expanding air bubbles in your body) only begin at about 32 feet.
At one point a diver gave me a piece of the fish food about the size of a small orange. It felt like a small sponge. Many colorful fish came up to take a bite until it was gone.
After about 30 to 45 minutes we returned to the dock. Underwater it was hard to tell what direction we had gone, how far we had gone and how long we were underwater. It was a fun experience for me.
Brenda’s Misadventures
I am not claustrophobic, but I learned that I am aquaphobic. My helmet had water that came up to my chin and when oxygen would come in, it would splash me in the face. I was not able to steer, and my device was rocking side to side. I was not able to see anyone else. I started to panic, got a little seasick, and started to hyperventilate. The diver turned up my oxygen and guided me to slow my breathing. He gave me the signal that he would keep his eye on me … AND THEN HE LEFT … and I thought that I can’t do this for 30 minutes. He came back and asked me if I was okay. I shook my head no. He asked the symbol if I wanted to stop and I said YES. I was not able to shake my anxiety. I am a true landlubber. I was under the bubble for 5 minutes and that was enough for me.
Leave a Reply