Since it is always so depressing to leave Aruba, I thought that sharing the details of my trip would help me feel a little better. Before I begin...I do have to tell you that I wasn't back home for 1 day before I booked my next trip to Aruba in June'08 which will be in addition to next October'08. I've decided that 1x a year to Aruba is simply too long to wait.

We arrived in Aruba on Friday 10/19 to cloudy skies and a HUGE tire fire next to the airport. The black smoke from the fire was so thick that it was getting trapped under the clouds in the sky! It was a little scary until we were told that the fire was intentional. There were four other couples that were traveling with us, so we took a couple of cabs from the airport to Ling's Supermarket to stock up on the necessities. After Ling's, we headed to the Marriott Surf Club for our check in. Surprisingly, all of our units were ready so we were able to unpack and unwind. Happy Hour started at 5PM in my parents's unit and we snacked on the antipasto we brought down with us from NY's Little Italy (Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, Reggiano Parmigiano, Provolone, Sweet Roasted Peppers, Hot and Sweet Supresatta, Olive Bread, etc.). Around 8PM we all headed to Champions for a very quick dinner/appetizers and then it was off to the Stellaris Casino for some gambling. Please note that the Stellaris is now a 24 hour casino! We had no luck so it was an early night for everyone. We were all exhausted from the travel.

Saturday 10/20 was a relaxing day at the Surf Club Beach. We obtained the most ideal water front palapa so it was destined to be a perfect day. We filled the inflatable Yanklee cooler (32 qt.) with ice and a case of beer (eventually 3 cases) and parked ourselves in the water for most of the day. Two more friends joined us in Aruba on Saturday and we were happy when their flight landed early and were on the beach with us at 2PM! Our group was now 10 people and we went to "Gianni's" for dinner. All of us opted for the pasta in the cheese wheel. Delicious! It rained while we were eating dinner but stopped in time for us to cross the street to get to the Radisson for a little after dinner gambling. A few of us had some decent luck, so it turned out to be a good decision to go there. We went back to the Surf Club, walked to get some gelato from the snack bar and then to bed.

Sunday 10/21 began with us all going to the Sunday Brunch at the Hyatt. It is a tradition that we go there at least 1x while we are in Aruba. The unlimited champage, pancake/waffle station, sushi station, pasta station, omelette station, eggs benedict station, fondue, bananas foster station, and donut machine would be enough to convince anyone to try it at least once! We rolled out (& I mean rolled) of the brunch around 1:30PM and wandered into the Hyatt casino where I made a quick $100 profit. We walked back to the Marriott to burn off some of calories that we consumed at the brunch. The weather was quite cloudy on Sunday which was perfect for napping on the beach. Nobody was very hungry for dinner on Sunday due to the brunch, so the 10 of us decided to walk down the strip of the high rise hotels to see if anything jumped out at us for a quick bite. Some of the guys wanted to check out "Hooters" b/c they had a bunch of TVs to check out the Red Sox game, so we went in and had a few wings (which were disgusting) and nachos. Never again....way too greasy! After dinner we all decided to check out the Riu which was a short walk away. We thought that since the building was newly renovated that it would have been much nicer than what it was. It was also weird for us to see a bunch of people eating McDonalds at the front of the entrance of the Riu. We probbaly wouldn't have thought twice about it but the Riu is all-inclusive so it was weird. The casino was also disappointingly small, so after a 5 minute stay we jumped into cabs and headed back to the Stellaris for some gambling. No luck.

Monday 10/22 was another beautiful beach day. So after a good work out at the Surf Club gym, the group started the morning off with delicious Staten Island NY bagels. One person in our group goes to the bakery the night before we leave for Aruba to pick up a couple dozen fresh baked bagels as they come out of the oven. They are packed, taken to Aruba, and are put in the freezer so they stay fesh for the entire trip. It is a great option if we don't want to eat out for breakfast or if we want a snack, etc....Monday was filled with sun, surf, and pool. The guys in our group discovered a new drink that I do not suggest ANYONE ever drink. It is called the "Rusty Bitch". I am not sure of all the ingrediants but there's definitely 151 proof rum in there. This "Rusty Bitch" completely destroyed three of our husbands (almost all 5) and sent them to our rooms throwing up and slamming from one wall to another. It was UNREAL and a little funny at the same time. All it took was 3-4 "Rusty Bitches" at Happy Hour at the swim up bar to set them over the edge. The people that did not drink the "Rusty Bitches" proceeded to "Madame Janette's" for a phenominal dinner. That restaurant never disappoints. The weather was perfect so it was an ideal night to be outside. The remainder of the night turned into a girl's night out....until 6AM..... and was a blast! Sorry boys

Tuesday 10/23 was a so so day so my hubby & I took a trip downtown for some shopping. We picked up some designer sunglasses, perfume, cologne, some great Cuban cigars for the guys, etc..We had lunch by the Water and spent the late afternoon with the group on the beach until it was time for a Cosmopolitan Happy Hour at the Surf Club room 4724. Then we were off to "Blossoms" for dinner. Our large group made it so much fun to sit at the Hibachi table! The food was great and the sushi was surprisingly good! We stayed at the Westin after dinner for some gambling. The lobby is under construction so everything is re-configured. We had a couple of winners at the Westin casino and we went back to he Stellaris to see if the luck continued there but not so much.

Wednesday 10/24 was a rainy day. We blamed the turn in weather on the last couple that was joining us in Aruba and arriving that day. LOL. Seriously, I think the bad weather was the effect of the hurricane moving toward Haiti. The bad weather was a good time for me to get a deluxe manicure at the Marriott's Mandara spa. It was a nice relaxing break in the day. Once our friends arrived, we took them on a tour of the grounds b/c they have never been to Aruba before. It was a low key afternoon filled with renting movies and taking naps. Dinner that night was at a fairly new restaurant called "Yamanja". None of the cab drivers had ever heard of this restaurant but luckily I ready somewhere that it is located where the old Que Pasa used to be so they found it. Yamanja is a small restaurnat and our party of 12 was a little overwhelming for them to handle. The wait staff consisted of Hospitality interns from Holland and they really stuggled with the English language. Our group had mixed reviews on Yamanja. The menu was a little limited and EVERYONE's food was undercooked. Steaks, lamb, etc...everything was extremely rare....almost raw. They also forgot to cook one person's entree and they had to wait 20 minutes for their fish dish to cook as everyone else ate. The restaurnat also could not understand our mixed drink orders. All in all it was an ok experience and a smaller party might have had a better experience. I would give them another chance. After dinner, the rain stopped and we walked over to the Renaissance to go to the L.G. Smith lounge to listen to music and have a few drinks. Of course, a few people wandered off to the adjacent Crystal casino for some action but there weren't any winners.

Thursday 10/25 was an overcast day. The sun came out here and there but it was another day for napping on the beach, floating around the lazy river on our rafts, and playing Bingo at the Stellaris casino. Prizes are $100-$500 each game so it was worth the 3 hour effort. It is fun when you do any activity with a big group of friends!!! No winners in our group but we dranks lots of Balashi. We headed over to "Chef's Tables" for dinner which we made reservations for in June'07. We all rank "Chef's Tables" at the top of our favorite list along with Madame Janette's. We were at the restaurant for hours enjoying the comapnay and the good food. After dinner we decided to check out the Key Largo casino b/c none of us had ever been there before. Someone told us it was small but also new and cute. I was shocked at how small it really was! After a quick profit, we decided to head to the Stellaris where we continued to win. I finished up over $400 for that night...Not bad!!

Friday 10/26 the weather was cloudy and warm. However, the wind was blowing in the complete opposite direction causing pretty big waves and a ton of seaweed to wash onto shore. The waves also churned up a ton of rocks and coral at the water's edge which made it almost impossible to get into the water without cutting your feet. It became a pool day for us very quickly! A couple people in our group also got minorly stung by Jelly fish in the short period of time they were in the water! The group intended on doing a sunset catamaran cruise but due to the rough surf and cloudy weather, that idea fizzeled out quickly. Friday night was "El Gaucho" dinner which was a big hit as always. This time there was 14 of us and it got quite loud on the 2nd floor. We traveled over to "Garufa" across the street for an after dinner drink/cigar but it was too crowded for our large group to fit comfortably. So, 4 people stayed and the remainder of the group we walked down to the Seaport to check it out. Eventually, some of our group went dancing and "Mambo Jambo" while the others headed back to the Stellaris. My husband & I cleaned up again leaving the casino ahead by $500.

Saturday 10/27 the weather was still very cloudy and the surf was even rougher than the day before. It was yet another not so nice beach day. There was no need to rush outside, so most of us slept in a little bit. After the gym and a light breakfast, a few played volleyball in the pool while others relaxed and even took walks on the beach. The 4PM Bingo at the Stellaris was a no-brainer! This time one of us won the $200 card! We had a later dinner reservation at "Screaming Eagle" on Saturday night. It is a hot new restaurant on the island. The ambiance was right up our alley and the food and service were good. The menu had a good variety of food to choose from. The "South Beach Style" lounge next to the bar would have been a great place to hang at for a while if it wasn't for the women's toilets overflowing into the restaurant. After dinner, 6 from our group went to Havana Beach to check out the monthly "Full Moon Party". It was supposed to attract over 3,000 people b/c it was also going to be a Halloween party too. A 45 minute wait online and $15 per person and it was worth it. Great music, dancing and didn't feel crowded even with all the people! The rest of the group went to the Stellaris where there were a bunch of winners. The guys enjoyed their cubans while gambling. It was another profitable night for us (3rd night in a row) and husband left ahead $300 for the night.

Sunday 10/28-We all went to the Hyatt AGAIN for the brunch b/c we all enjoyed it so much the week before. This time a bunch of us were dragging from over a week of drinking, eating, etc...Around 12;15PM, the first couple from our group had to depart for the airport to catch their flight home. That's when we all got sad realizing that it was our last day in Aruba and that we'd be going home the next day. Sunday was another cloudy day on the island so we all relaxed. Some of the guys went to Moomba Beach to watch football. There were no real dinner plans so everyone did their own thing...Some who were hungry went to Azzurro, some ordered pizza and stayed in, some went to the bar to watch the game, etc...Some of the women even stayed in and ate left overs so they could pack My husband hit the casino one last time and came home ahead another $300 for the night.

Of course Monday (the day we were leaving) was the most beautiful day we had seen in a while. The winds reversed and were blowing the correct way. There were no more rough waves. The sun was out. The Marriott staff was out on the beach clearing away all the seaweed that washed onto shore. We had 2 hours to catch the last rays of sun before it was time to shower and get ready for the trip home. As always, I cried as we got into the cab to go to the airport. I LOVE Aruba and cannot wait to get back there in June!!!!!

Thanks for letting me share I feel better now.....