Curaçao

February 2024

Hazel loves the beach and it always makes a nice vacation to meet Grandpa and Grandma Carole someplace warm and relaxing. After lots of discussion and planning, we decided on Curaçao, a stunning island in the Caribbean that combines beautiful beaches, vibrant culture, and exciting adventures.

Justin and Hazel happy to be in Curaçao

We stayed at the Lion's Dive Resort on Mambo beach. The location was ideal. We could walk a short distance to shops, but we could also walk the opposite direction out onto the salt flats. There was a sheltered beach and swim area behind a manmade breaker wall that provided excellent snorkeling right at the resort.

Grandpa going snorkeling at the resort

Hazel was able to take a pool noodle out there, float around and watch fish. She was so excited when she would see them that she would start laughing and shouting to people on the shore about them. Although she didn't have a snorkel, she used her swim goggles and enjoyed the experience. Justin and I went snorkeling both inside and outside of the break wall several times; it was some of the best snorkeling I have done.

Hazel snorkeling behind one of our many sand castles

The beach was definitely the highlight of the trip for Hazel. We spent many hours building sandcastles, floating in the clear, warm water and just trying to relax. Even when the adults were too lazy to build castles, Hazel never stopped. She would work all day moving water and sand around, collecting pieces of corals and filling her buckets and dumping them out again.

Hazel and Laura working on a sand castle

The resort also had an Olympic length swimming pool. The first few days we were there, I would get up in the morning and sit on our patio with a cup of coffee; I noticed a swim club doing organized workouts. We started chatting and I found out they were a group from the US that went to Curaçao every year just to do swimming. They would do pool workouts in the mornings and open water workouts in the afternoon. They invited me to swim with them, which was fun but also a good reminder of why I don't do triathlons anymore! Many of them were fellow Ironman Triathlon finishers, so we traded stories and laughed about some of our experiences.

Swimming in the Olympic length pool

Of course we explored the island too. We took trips to several national parks, other beaches, unique rock formations, and cultural and historical sites.

Hazel at one of the many beautiful murals in town

One day we set off to climb Mount Christoffel, the highest point on the island. When we got there, we were informed that due to the heat and humidity, the national park would only let people start climbing before 8 AM so they could beat the hottest part of the day. We made a plan to return on a later date and immediately moved on to another adventure.

Large iguanas were everywhere. They especially liked the tree right by our patio.

We visited Shete Boka national park. Shete Boka is located on the rugged northern coast of the island and features blowholes, rocky inlets, sea arches and caves. We hiked around and enjoyed the unique nature of the coast and the power of the ocean as waves crashed on the rocks and water shot up through holes and constrictions creating quite the show.

Justin, Hazel and Laura at Boka Pistol

Justin and Grandpa practicing some climbing on the cliffs at Shete Boka

We made a quick stop at Hato Caves one day and took a guided tour through the limestone passages. These ancient caves were once submerged beneath the sea and are now adorned with impressive stalactites, stalagmites, and other fascinating rock formations. Historically, the caves served as shelter for the indigenous Arawak people and later as a hiding place for runaway slaves during the colonial era. Today, they are a tourist attraction; visitors can take tours through the illuminated passages, learning about the geological history and cultural significance while enjoying its cool, mysterious atmosphere.

Justin, Laura, Hazel and Grandpa at Hato Caves

We also explored the Watamula Hole, another section of rocky coast with more blowholes and very rugged terrain. The Watamula hole itself is a huge hole that sounds like a dragon breathing as the water crashes in and out and ocean mist rises out of the hole adding to the allure. The locals say it is the breath of Curaçao.

Watamula Hole in Curaçao

Another exciting surprise was our chance to see flamingos in the wild. After doing a little research as to where they might be, we took a detour and, after a short walk, we were rewarded with the sight of dozens of flamingos wading through the shallow waters, their bright pink feathers standing out against the blue water.

Flamingos in Curaçao

One of the must-see spots on the island is Willemstad, the capital city, known for its colorful Dutch colonial architecture. We spent an afternoon wandering through the lively streets, snapping photos of the many works of art including the famous ChiChi statue and the gigantic, 3D "Curaçao" and "Dushi" signs. Hazel loved the heart made of padlocks and the cool park at Plaza Brion. We bought fruit at the floating market and ate lunch along the river on the Handelskade while we watched ships pass through the Queen Emma Bridge. The bridge is floating; it's literally built on a row of boats and swings open to let boats and ships through. The first time we walked across, we weren't quite sure what to do when the siren started to sound. We looked around but didn't move fast enough and ended up stuck on the bridge when the gates closed at either end and the bridge started rotating. We didn't mind; it was very interesting to see how it worked.

Laura, Justin and Hazel posing on the Dushi sign. In Curaçao, Dushi means nice, sweet or good.

Justin and Hazel at the ChiChi statue; her outfit represents the island

Hazel checking out the padlocks on couples placed on these hearts in downtown Willemstad

Justin showing Hazel the Queen Emma bridge floating on boats so it can open up and let ships through

Justin next to the floating market, where boats pull up to sell fruit and vegetables brought from Venezuela

We also wandered through the mangrove national park while we were in Willemstad. The Mangrove Park is a natural mangrove forest right in the city and consists of walking trails where you learn more about the mangrove trees and the animals that live in the forest. You can stroll the wooden boardwalk that connects several parts of the park with each other. We climbed the observation tower for views of the park before heading on.

Grandma Carole, Grandpa, Justin and Hazel strolling through the Mangrove Park

We got up early one morning and made the drive back to Christoffel National Park. Seeing how overbearing they were with their restrictions about the climb, I was worried they wouldn't let Hazel go. I quickly filled out the paperwork and we started out before anyone asked any questions. As expected, Hazel cruised up the trail with no problems. She absolutely loved the rock outcroppings where she could show the other tourists how to climb and all of the encouragement kept her motivated all the way to the top.

Hazel and Laura hiking up the Mount Christoffel trail

Everyone at the top of Mount Christoffel

Justin and I did several diving trips. One of the best dive sites was Alice in Wonderland off of Kalki beach. We would just rent dive gear right on the beach and walk off the pier and jump in. Grandpa even went diving with us there while Hazel played on the beach with Grandma Carole. There were a couple of interesting statues that had been placed underwater in the diving area. One was a miniature replica of the ChiChi statue and the other was a Saxaphone. Although the statues were cool, and something different, they were really unnecessary as there were lots and lots of fish and corals.

Hazel coming to help us out of the water with all of our dive gear

Tugboat beach was another fun place to snorkel. Just a short swim from the shore is a sunken tugboat. The boat was sunk intentionally in very shallow water just to create a dive/snorkel attraction. It is teeming with colorful fish and coral and I even saw a sea snake on one of my trips out there. Also parked at Tugboat beach was an oil drilling platform. I don't know much about those but it was a little eerie snorkeling right next to it with water pouring out of its pumps. With the rugged rebar sticking out of the pier and the shadow from the drilling platform, it felt like a wreck site. On our last morning there, we saw the entire platform moving back out to sea. I had no idea they were even mobile, but there it was, moving along just like a ship, going to where it needed to be.

Grandpa and Justin snorkeling at Tugboat beach with an oil platform parked there

The snorkel map on Tugboat beach showing the underwater features to check out.

Hazel surprisingly really loved checking out Fort Beekenburg with its old canons and the ruins of several buildings. We climbed to the top of the lookout towers and posed for pictures with the canons. The fort was built in the early 18th century per order of Nicolaas van Beek as part of the islands coordinated defense against the British, the French and pirates. Later it was used as a quarantine station starting in 1882, designed to isolate sailors potentially suffering from yellow fever. The quarantine house was used until 1925 before falling into disrepair.

Grandpa, Justin and Hazel posing with some old canons at Fort Beekenburg

Justin and Grandpa at Fort Beekenburg

Hazel exploring the old quarantine building

The view of Tugboat beach and the oil platform taken from the quarantine station on the hill

The Cathedral of Thorns is a unique work of art and we enjoyed strolling through the labyrinth. The structure itself is built using only branches of thorns and the work was done by unemployed youth. It incorporates symbols of various world and nature-based religions and is intended to raise consciousness of the similarities between religions. The walls have niches where contemporary art is displayed from guest artists and are an expression of mankind's ability to change, share and collaborate through creativity.

Grandma Carole and Hazel checking out some artwork in the Cathedral of Thorns

Justin at the Cathedral of Thorns

Hazel in a chair made of thorns

As the brochure says, "While France has champagne and Portugal has Port, Curaçao is famous for its Blus Curaçao" which is produced and bottled at a distillery on the island. We took a tour through the Landhuis Chobolobo Plantation and learned about the production of the liqueur from the laraha fruit which is native to the island. We learned that the famous blue color is achieved by simply adding food color and they actually make the same beverage using other colors as well. While I found the tour very interesting, Hazel literally slept the entire time; probably for the best.

The original still used to make Blue Curaçao

Curaçao turned out to be the perfect destination for our family getaway; it was snorkeling in crystal-clear waters, hiking through rugged landscapes, building sandcastle after sandcastle and even enjoying a sunset or two on the beach. From swimming with the triathlon club to spotting flamingos in the wild, each day offered new experiences. The island's laid-back vibe made it easy to relax, while the variety of activities kept everyone entertained. It was the perfect place to unwind, explore, and make lasting memories.