November 19, 2022
We boarded the Oosterdam on Saturday, an exercise we never want to repeat as it was perhaps the worst embarkation we’ve ever experienced (not sure if it was Port of Miami, HAL or both!). We had received notification of a change in port location for our embarkation a couple months before the cruise, however flight and hotel reservations had been made for Ft. Lauderdale. HAL assured us that a shuttle bus would be available to take us to the Port of Miami on embarkation day. In addition to the change in port, we had to take a COVID-19 test 72 hours prior to embarkation and use the VeriFLY app to load our information to speed the embarkation process. In theory, it looked efficient. COVID-19 PCR negative and VeriFLY downloaded—we are ready!
The shuttle bus taking us to the Ft. Lauderdale airport was late but got us to the airport where we waited (again) for the bus taking us and many other passengers to the Port of Miami. Our embarkation time was scheduled for 1:20, however the bus arrived shortly after and dropped us off in front of an opening boldly stating “Priority Passengers”. The line at the Priority gate was longer than the regular boarding line. As new 4-star Mariners, we had been looking forward to a quick check in and lunch in the dining room. This was not to be! We stood in line from the time we arrived on the pier at 1:20 to the time we reached our stateroom at 3:15. We nearly missed the 4 & 5 star “meet and greet” as the invitation wasn’t in our stateroom inbox upon arrival (thankfully our keys were there). Thinking we would grab a cocktail on the Sea View deck, and waiting (and waiting) for a server, Tom returned to our stateroom for his sunglasses and found the invitation. We made it to the Crow’s Nest 10 minutes before the event ended, finally having a much needed glass of Prosecco and a Cosmopolitan.
The nightmare didn’t end there. Thinking we would wait out the crowd and having time to catch the first show, we went to the dining room at 6pm and found a long line that wasn’t moving. Pivoting away from this debacle, we headed to the Canaletto, made a dinner reservation for 7pm and returned to the Sea View Deck in time for a sail away cocktail. The Port of Miami is absolutely gorgeous, giving us the perfect send off and elevating our mood.
We had hoped the following day would be a much more organized but experienced a 1.25 hr wait for breakfast. We later learned that more than half of the crew had turned over when the Oosterdam reached Miami. It apparently took a while for everyone to be trained and oriented to their jobs. All can be forgiven!
November 22, 2022: Oranjestad, Aruba
We decided to go with the flow and not let the previous day’s events color our cruise experience. Once on board, we relaxed and readied ourselves to start our adventure. Of course, Mary Margaret immediately found a Mahjong group that meets daily. After 2 days at sea we arrived early morning in Oranjestad, Aruba and, after customs clearance, joined a walking tour. Wendle, our guide, speaks 7 languages and grew up in Oranjestad but spent most of his adult life in Europe. He was very knowledgeable and added so much to the tour.
We had attended a destination wedding here in February 2017 and had explored most of the 6-mile wide island during that week. We decided to learn more about the history, culture and food of Aruba in the best possible place: Oranjestad. We met our group at the pier and began our walk to Palace Square to talk about the architecture (mainly Spanish but all buildings are replicas) then stopped to have an island “staple”: pastechi. It is a delicious hand held pastry-like goody filled with Gouda cheese. Yum! We learned about the Spanish influence as well as the history of the Dutch on this island, still a protectorate although Aruba gained independence from the Lesser Antilles in 1986. It was interesting to note that Curaçao held sway over Aruba until independence.
Onward to view more historic areas. We stopped in front of the National Archeological Museum consisting of a collection of homes. These had a story as well, involving the Ecury family consisting of the parents and 10 children. One of the children, Boy Ecury, returned to Holland during WWII and became the master planner of the Dutch Resistance. Unfortunately, he was later killed by Nazis but will always be a war hero in the hearts of the Dutch.
We had noticed statues of blue horses in various places along our tour. These are a result of a cultural/historic project, Paardenbaai Aruba, to highlight important events around Horses Bay. The bay received its name from its natural harbor’s ability to safely transport horses from Spanish ships to the market. The blue color is the Delft Blue of Holland.
We crossed the busy L.G. Smith Boulevard to walk along a lush greenway and into the Queen Wilhelmina Park. Along the way, we stopped in front of a statue of Anne Frank, wistfully looking upward, with an inscription, “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment to improve the world.” No one should need a reminder of who she was!
The Queen Wilhelmina statue was quite impressive as was her rule. We recrossed L.G.Smith and over to the Parliament Building, standing in the shade of a large tree and learning more about Aruba’s government and subsequent development.
We walked along, past the ruins of Fort Zoutman, the oldest structure in Aruba, built as protection from pirates. Only a few walls remain, however there is discussion of reconstruction. Further down the street was the Willem III Tower, built as a light house but now houses artifacts, located next to the historical museum. Before ending our “official” tour, Wendle quickly took us down a side street to show us a unique monument honoring the 3 musicians who created the Aruban national anthem. Back on the Main Street and over tram tracks, heading to a large green house with an interesting history.
This former home and dentists office was sold to the Aruban Government where it currently houses City Hall. It has become a popular place for civic weddings.
Wendle was quite talkative but gave us so much information! We were rewarded with a stop at a very small market to sample the local beer, Balash, a cool and refreshing drink on this very warm day! Before returning to the ship, we stopped at a seafood restaurant to dine on fresh fish tacos and use the Wi-Fi. Back to the Oosterdam with another sea day ahead of us before reaching the Panama Canal.
