Last Port of Call & the Invasion of the Towel Animals

 October 26th & 27th, 2022

“Complete peace blankets me, and I am still. It's a familiar feeling, yet unknown to me like this before now. It comes in total stillness. Silence. And in this instant I know that Natalee is with God.” ― Beth Holloway, Loving Natalee: A Mother's Testament of Hope and Faith

I know it's not fair to Aruba, but I can never visit this island without thinking of Natalee Holloway, who went missing there while on her senior class trip in May of 2005. She was only a few years younger than my daughters, and my heart still aches for her parents. 

Aruba's Dutch connections are displayed in full flower in its charming architecture.

And unfortunately, the last time we were here, probably a decade or more ago, we had an incident with a taxi driver who quoted us one price for an island tour and then a few blocks from the port announced that she'd be charging us a very different, much higher price than the original quote. We told her to turn the cab around and take us back to the ship, gave her $20 and shook the dust of the island from our feet.  

It was sad on so many levels because Aruba is a beautiful island.

Consider this a cautionary tale. We've had several excellent private tours picked up on the fly with taxis and independent van drivers--on Bora Bora, Antigua, and Grand Cayman, to name a few. Our local guides were knowledgeable, friendly and gave us a top shelf experience. But we've also hopped into private tours that have caused the hairs on the back of my neck to prickle a bit. On Mo'orea, the guide/bus driver had us slipping and sliding all over a mountainous road and at one point was so stuck in the mud, he asked the men to get out and push! 

The more we travel, the more likely we are to stick with a ship's excursion.  

But we didn't book an excursion for Aruba. We decided to lubricate the island economy in another way. So after a leisurely breakfast, we disembarked and walked into the market area near the pier. When we travel, we like to bring home gifts for all our family, and sadly, into each life some shopping must fall. (Ask my travel buddy Kristy if you doubt my claim to the title "The Anti-Shopper!") We'd already designated Aruba as our shopping stop because I knew we could find the light, airy caftans my mother loves so much. And when I'm forced to shop, I like to do it with as little mucking about as possible. 

Ah! The joys of a sea day!

We had one more lovely day at sea on the Eurodam and, as you can see, we made the most of it! One of the things we loved about our standard cabin was the generously-sized balcony, complete with footstools for both of us. It's rare to get a way to raise your feet on other cruise lines. In this instance, HAL steals the march even on Viking!   

When we ventured out to wander the ship a bit, we discovered the pool deck had been invaded by towel animals.

When we first started cruising, each night we'd be greeted by a new towel animal left by our room steward. This custom may be going by the wayside. Norwegian has dropped its turn-down service, and the passenger to guest ratio is being stretched ever thinner on most cruise lines, so who knows how many of our hard-working stewards will have time to create these whimsical creatures?  

Thanks for joining us on our Panama Canal adventure. Please stick with us as we gear up for our next cruise--A Search for the Northern Lights on the Viking Venus!