We just spent 8 days on holiday in Curaçao with two of our friends! On top of a decent amount of relaxation and inadvertent sunburning, we also made time for road-tripping around the island, snorkelling, observing some of Curaçao's amazing natural features, and an epic hike. But, first: the capital city of Willemstad.
The historic waterfront of Willemstad
After meeting up with Rebecca and Piers in the airport on Sunday morning, we boarded our 4.5 hour flight to Curaçao. Curaçao is an island just off of Venezuela that is known as one of the "ABC" islands that formerly comprised the Netherlands Antilles, the other islands being Aruba and Bonaire. Curaçao once played a large part in the slave trade for over 200 years but after slavery was abolished, the island's economy struggled until an oil refinery was constructed there in 1915, which still provides employment for many of its residents. Curaçao's economy doesn't rely as heavily on tourism as many of the other Caribbean islands, so that along with all of its influences from other cultures throughout history, makes it an interesting place to visit.
Our Airbnb host picked us up at the airport on Sunday afternoon and we set off for Willemstad. The place we stayed was in a perfect location on the Otrobanda side of the harbour and once we were settled in, we headed straight across the Queen Emma Pedestrian Bridge to Punda, the real downtown centre of the city. This pontoon bridge is hinged, swinging parallel to shore, and opens over 30 times per day to allow boats to pass!
Our Airbnb host picked us up at the airport on Sunday afternoon and we set off for Willemstad. The place we stayed was in a perfect location on the Otrobanda side of the harbour and once we were settled in, we headed straight across the Queen Emma Pedestrian Bridge to Punda, the real downtown centre of the city. This pontoon bridge is hinged, swinging parallel to shore, and opens over 30 times per day to allow boats to pass!
Crossing from Otrobanda to Punda
We wandered around the almost-deserted streets of Punda and settled on Café Copacabana for a bite to eat. That evening involved lots of tasty food and dropping by a bar for our first Happy Hour cocktails of the trip. Oh, and the Queen Emma Bridge was open when we tried to cross to get back to our apartment, so we hopped on the free ferry that runs when the bridge is open.
On Monday morning, we woke up to find a cruise ship blocking our view of Punda. Leaving the apartment we experienced the real Curaçao heat for the first time, so we were happy to duck into the air-conditioning of the Kura Hulanda Museum, an anthropological museum focussed on slavery, for a couple of hours. Their collection is extensive and starts with the history of man, then takes you through the history of the slave trade, and finishes off with some impressive African artifacts. The stories of slavery are often horrific and unbelievable, and the curators covered a lot of ground throughout the exhibits.
On Monday morning, we woke up to find a cruise ship blocking our view of Punda. Leaving the apartment we experienced the real Curaçao heat for the first time, so we were happy to duck into the air-conditioning of the Kura Hulanda Museum, an anthropological museum focussed on slavery, for a couple of hours. Their collection is extensive and starts with the history of man, then takes you through the history of the slave trade, and finishes off with some impressive African artifacts. The stories of slavery are often horrific and unbelievable, and the curators covered a lot of ground throughout the exhibits.
A bronze statue of a woman's face from one angle and Africa from another
After the museum, tasty local food was calling our name so we headed over to Plasa Bieu, a large open barn-like structure to eat some goat/beef/chicken stew (aka 'stoba') and 'funchi' (aka polenta) with the locals on their lunch breaks.
We set off back to Otrobanda once our bellies were full, but stopped on the way to pick up some fruit from Punda's famous floating market. Here, vendors come straight from Venezuela to sell fresh food from their boats. The most shocking thing was the size of the avocados! Our minds are still blown.
We set off back to Otrobanda once our bellies were full, but stopped on the way to pick up some fruit from Punda's famous floating market. Here, vendors come straight from Venezuela to sell fresh food from their boats. The most shocking thing was the size of the avocados! Our minds are still blown.
Behind the scenes at the floating market
The rest of the afternoon and evening involved a lot of walking around Otrobanda, whether it was to check out the shops and restaurants in the UNESCO-recognized Rif Fort, or to search for a cheap place to get some drinks, or to wander up and down an almost-deserted street at sunset in search of reasonably-priced food. Don't worry, we found some. Hamburgers all around!
Tuesday involved finding a furry "mouse rat" friend in our apartment, some maritime history, and an afternoon of luxurious relaxation. We started off at the Curaçao Maritime Museum. Piers loved the maps, and we all enjoyed learning about the extensive maritime history of the place. The museum does a tour of the harbour on Wednesdays and Saturdays which would have been great to check out, but unfortunately it didn't fit into our schedule.
We grabbed some baguettes for lunch and headed down the Pietermaai for a relaxing afternoon at the Saint Tropez. If it sounds classy, it's because it was. But don't be fooled, it only costs $6 to swim in their pool and lounge around all day, it's the cocktails and food that can make the experience extra pricey. And glamorous.
Tuesday involved finding a furry "mouse rat" friend in our apartment, some maritime history, and an afternoon of luxurious relaxation. We started off at the Curaçao Maritime Museum. Piers loved the maps, and we all enjoyed learning about the extensive maritime history of the place. The museum does a tour of the harbour on Wednesdays and Saturdays which would have been great to check out, but unfortunately it didn't fit into our schedule.
We grabbed some baguettes for lunch and headed down the Pietermaai for a relaxing afternoon at the Saint Tropez. If it sounds classy, it's because it was. But don't be fooled, it only costs $6 to swim in their pool and lounge around all day, it's the cocktails and food that can make the experience extra pricey. And glamorous.
Living it up at the Saint Tropez
As the sun started to set, we watched some crabs battle it out on the rocks and then took our business back to the other side of the harbour to Pizza Hut; we can only afford to pay for a life of luxury for so long!
Stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts, where we rent a car and head to an amazing bungalow overlooking the ocean, and take on the most vertical hike of our lives! Well, for Elizabeth and Rebecca at least.
To see the rest of our posts about this trip, check out:
4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part I)
4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part II)
And check out our awesome Curaçao travel video!
Here are some photos from our first few days in the magical land of Curaçao:
Stay tuned for our upcoming blog posts, where we rent a car and head to an amazing bungalow overlooking the ocean, and take on the most vertical hike of our lives! Well, for Elizabeth and Rebecca at least.
To see the rest of our posts about this trip, check out:
4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part I)
4 Days in Westpunt, Curaçao (Part II)
And check out our awesome Curaçao travel video!
Here are some photos from our first few days in the magical land of Curaçao:
Curious about some of our previous Something Saturdays? Well, this time last year we were soaking up some sunshine while snowshoeing on the Windsor Lake trail in St. John's, and back in 2014 we checked out a screening of all of the Oscar-nominated short films that year!
