[highlight]Leia em Português[/highlight]
Curaçao was my first trip to the Caribbean. I was expecting to get into a small island, tropical, full of palm tree, several beaches… then I faced a huge oil refinery in an island with desertic vegetation!
It was a surprise, but soon I understood my innocence. In the Caribbean you have huge islands such as Cuba or Hispaniola, which are the same size as countries like Uruguay or Paraguay maybe. To be an island in the Caribbean does not necessarily mean to be a perfect paradise, and this is Curaçao.
Of course this is not bad. It was just a surprise. After cruising in the island I finally discovered the fantastic beauty and why Curaçao is so famous. The island belongs to the wonderful Caribbean ABC: Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. The islands were colonized by French, Spanish, Portuguese, and finally the Dutch, who still have control of them as an autonomous territory. Having this several different European influences, the genuine inhabitants, who are mostly of African origin who were slaves in the past, have developed their own language, which is Papiamento, a mix of Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Dutch, which is only spoken there.
This trip lasted only three days. As I was visiting Venezuela, with my sister Andrea and my friend Lucrecia, we decided to buy a travelling package from Caracas there. It was very easy and practical. We travelled in small ALM planes and we stayed at a hostel in the capital, Williemstad. What we liked the most was KAS ABAO beach. The sparkling blue water, the beautiful floating wood decks for swimming and diving, and its beautiful rocks sculptured by the wind and the ocean tides.
The city also is very beautiful. It has its Dutch style, small casinos, bars, and clubs, such as Mambo Beach which is right on the beach. Besides, you can go trekking on the Mount Christoffel which is 375m high and it is situated at the Shete Boka National Park.
Take Note
Since the island has a considerable size and the best beaches are far from the capital, I recommend renting a car during your stay but be careful because there are not much signs and the maps they give for free is incomplete. The best is to use GPS and drive slow, since there are several tourists and people don’t drive well.
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Translated by Lúcia Maciel
English teacher
