Vacationing in Aruba

Aruba is a beautiful island.  The sand is silky and soft and the water is crystal clear.  It's too bad that a few bad things have happened to give the island as less-than-ideal reputation.  Each time I would tell friends that I was going to Aruba for a wedding, their first response was "be careful."

Colin and I enjoyed 6 full days of the best Aruba has to offer - the beach!!  We spent as much time as we could on the Renaissance hotel's private island.

A boat was available every 30 minutes to pick you up inside the Marina hotel.  It would then drive the 2 minutes to the Renaissance Ocean Suites to pick up a second group of passengers.  From there, it was just a 5-10 minute ride to the private island.

View of the Renaissance Marina from the boat as we head to the private island.

The private beach was sheltered from the waves by a rock barrier.  It also had a wide beach area and several smaller beach areas like the one you see above.

The private island boasted a "family" beach and an "adults-only" beach.  We spent time in both areas, but the beach was better on the "family" side.  Thankfully, we didn't hear or see too many bratty kids, and we tried setting up our chairs away from the main beach.  The other awesome thing about the private island was having free wifi!! So we could catch up on e-mails, post facebook photos, and keep in touch with the rest of the world (when we weren't napping, swimming, eating, walking around, reading books, or listening to podcasts).  

 Half of the days were picture perfect, with blue skies and calm waters for most of the day.  

A disturbance in the Carribean (Tropical Storm Rina I think!) gave us a few days of rough waters, which led to the canceling of the wedding's booze cruise (more about that in the next post).

 This picture shows us looking back on the main beach area from one of the small areas.  Yes, the water is this bluish-green and you can see all the way to your feet while standing in 5 feet of water!

 

The private island had a series of paths between each of the beach areas.  Along the path, you could see lots of fish in the water and lizards of all sizes sunbathing on the wood!

 

We also got to see some flamingos on the beach and some dolphins out enjoying themselves in the water (I couldn't get my camera in time to catch them!).

 

During the six days, I fully recovered from appendix surgery, read two books, and got a nice tan!  Lounging on calm waters or in a hammock isn't a bad way to forget about life's problems!

It was also wonderful to catch up with my friends and former teammates.  

Look at all those soccer legs!! I have to give Annie (4th from the right) the title for best abs!!

When we weren't at the beach, we were hanging out with our friends at the pool, or participating in the wedding festivities (more about those in the next post).  

 The hotel pool was right near the lobby/bar and had a great view!  

The only bummer is that you could see and hear the cars on the road below.

To explore the island, we decided to walk from our hotel (downtown) to the high-rise hotels (called the high-rise area).  On the map, it looked really close, but it ended up being ~4 miles.  That doesn't sound so bad, but when the weather is beautiful and you are walking on the sidewalk looking at this...

instead of walking on the beach, it seems like forever.  

(Note - we took this photo because they have a shoe store called DCW, instead of DSW).

By the time we got to Eagle Beach, which is supposed to be one of the nicest on the island, it was already late in the day.  While the beach was nice, it didn't allow you to wade slowly into the water like our private island did.

It was nice to enjoy some solitude though.

I definitely want to go back to Aruba.  The beaches are as beautiful as they were in 2000.  

Both times these beautiful beaches have keep me from exploring other parts of the island 

- not that I am complaining. 

Stay tuned for the wedding celebration details, a story that's sure to entertain!

What's your favorite beach destination?

Day trip to Topsail Beach (July)

Our journey to find the best beach in North Carolina brought us to Surf City on a hot mid-July Saturday.  After running some errands near home, we packed the car for a possible overnight camping trip and drove the 2-2.5 hours to this beach just north of Wilmington.  Friends of ours had recommended the area, and more specifically, the southern-most beach called Topsail.  We decided to stay in Surf City because it was the first beach we arrived to early afternoon and we were ready for the ocean!

One of my biggest frustrations with North Carolina beaches: I have yet to find one with easily accessible bathrooms and changing areas.  After drinking so much water in the car, I had to walk 10 minutes to find a bathroom at the pier shop that housed everything from bait to water toys to a restaurant.  Walking into a shop with the sole intention of using the bathroom always makes me feel uncomfortable, and it didn't help that the staff stared at me as I walked in and out.

After taking care of my own business and not that of the business where I did my business, I was able to enjoy a great beach day.  Colin and I convinced Darwin to swim for a bit.  He preferred the areas where he was not overcome by the waves - a preference I can understand.  The three of us ran and splashed, and splashed and ran through the shallow water for a while.  Once he was all tuckered out, he found Colin's beach blanket to be a suitable place to relax and dry off.  The Sandman, a friend of dogs too, found Darwin quickly.  Darwin slept so heavily, I doubt he noticed when we left him alone while we went for a swim in the deeper part of the ocean!

Darwin and I enjoying an afternoon siesta in the shade

We spent the entire afternoon and evening at the beach and it was just delightful.  The air was pleasantly in the upper 80s with water temperature comfortably in the low to mid 70s.  As evening drew near and the crowds dissipated, we thoroughly enjoyed the serenity of cool and quiet beach.  Even Darwin kept his yapper shut.

When the last bit of sun dipped below the horizon, we decided to make the 2-2.5 hour drive back to enjoy a restful night's sleep in our own bed.  

I love the beach at all times of the day and in all seasons.  While summer is my favorite because I can sunbathe, cool off in the water, or relax under the beach umbrella, I feel nostalgic on an empty beach with a sweatshirt or jacket on.  Perhaps it brings back great memories of growing up in Rhode Island and having the beach a mere 30 - 40 minutes away.  Or, maybe it reminds me of times Colin and I would ride out to Long Island and walk or run on the empty beach.  Either way, sitting on the beach hearing only the waves crash on shore and seeing a vibrant red sunset is one of my favorite ways to end a day.

Tell me about the best beach you've been to in the U.S.

When is your favorite time of year to visit the beach?