So last week I wrote a quick blogpost on being hung up over wanting to take a cruise. In the end I know I wouldn’t be too worried about being so torn over where to go, because let’s be honest – I’m a girl, and my emotions and feelings turn on a dime! Yes, I am woman enough to admit that. And no, you can’t use that against me! With that, I’m not hung up over the cruise anymore – we finally made a decision!
WE’RE GOING TO ARUBA!
Hells yes! We did it, we made a decision! I’m not going to lie, it was hard to get wanting to take a cruise again out of my head. Pure luxury so ready at my fingertips. Food any time of the day, swimming pools, entertainment, and being able to relax and disconnect from the world.
When going through the pros and cons of taking another cruise, Andy brought up a great point from our last cruise that is important to us.
We want culture.
I read about so many travel bloggers who seem to want the stamp in their books more than wanting the culture. We tend to avoid that type of travel because it’s so much more than a stamp. On our last cruise we got to go to four different Caribbean islands, even taking a tour on St. Lucia – but looking back and trying to recall them…. guess what? They all blend together. Sure, if I try real hard I can remember one certain thing about each island, but it’s not a handful of memories like our other trips.
The cruise I had wanted to go on would be taking us to a couple new islands – but honestly, I had no real desire to even want to get off the ship. I wanted to completely disconnect and just relax. Besides, taking an island tour was going to cost even more money that we would have to budget for. And ship excursions are not cheap.
Why Aruba?
I’m not sure what even made me think about Aruba in the first place. Once I got it into my head that I wanted to go, it wouldn’t leave. It’s different from the other Caribbean islands. It’s much further west than the rest of the chain, very much close to South America. On a clear day from the tallest mountain in Aruba supposedly you can see Venezuela.
We found an awesome listing on AirBnb from a lady who is proud to be from Aruba, she sounds exciting and is one to give all the good tips about where to go, but not be a tourist. We like going off the grid and finding the locals, because you know what, that is where the best food is. That is where you are going to learn how to live like a local, and have the best experience. Sadly, Adventure of the Seas wasn’t going to give that us, because we’ve been there already.
It’s much drier than the other islands. Most of the island is a desert. An average temperature of 80s with beautiful trade winds. Which is my idea of perfect weather.
Aruba has gone Green
Another reason? Aruba is going green. Maybe not literally with the island being a desert, but an eco-friendly way. When the tiny island saw a boast in tourism a few years ago, Aruba’s authorities put a moratorium on any new hotel construction until a greener plan is in action. Another way the hotels are helping by being green is offering beach clean ups often, and even their cleaning products are less harsh with toxic chemicals, they switched to baking soda and vinegar!
One hotel has been using the Earth’s resources for the past twenty-five years, using copper coil on the roof and letting the sun do the work. Like when leaving a garden hose coiled up in the sun, the water becomes warm, meaning hot showers which keeps vacationers happy. The hotel even found a way to use less water when guests take showers, using the sink and even the toilet, cutting water usage by 60 percent! All that grey water is reused again throughout different parts of the hotel, like dispersing in the lawn and gardens around the hotel.
If you want to read more about how Aruba is going green, click here.
Andy and I have a way with picking different areas of the world where sea wildlife makes an appearance, but we always seem to pick the wrong time when they show up. But not this time, which is another reason why we are picking Aruba and keeping our fingers crossed for a sighting.
SEA TURTLES!
Four different species of sea turtles call Aruba home for nesting. March is the beginning of their nesting season, and we are hoping that we will be able to see a mama turtle or two! I know my family will give me crap about this one, because I have a thing against regular turtles, but sea turtles are so much more special. To see one come back to the beach where she was born to lay the next generation of turtles is something truly amazing. And I want to be a part of it.
Maybe some day when Andy and I are old and grey, not as mobile as we once were, we will think about cruising again. But now, I have the ambition to see the world differently, not the way a cruise wants you to.
Until then, I am going to listen to Kokomo on repeat and pin a bunch of photos of Aruba!
Daphne says
Hi there :) I stumbled across your blog while googling not so wild horses in Puerto Rico. Kind of a disappointment, but I still can’t wait to see them. I completely agree with you about cruises, I’ve yet to take one because the best part of traveling to me is experiencing the culture, meeting locals and even getting lost a couple of times. I’ll also be in Aruba in March (how coincidental) maybe I’ll see you guys around!