Wonderful Wonderful Wonderful!

I will try to categorize this making for easier reading.

Casinos- We mainly played slots and BlackJack. We played most nights at Marriott and played also a few times at Alhambra, which in our opinion has gone downhill . We also played one evening at Key largo.
When all was said and done, we came home with $9 less than what we went with……so figuring on meals, horseback riding, casinos, resort fees, tips, grocery shopping and taking our car rental off the credit card and paying cash…………..we came home with only $9 less than what we went with. Amazing for us! Paul and I spent much time on the penny machines. I lost quite often and Paul seemed to win quite often. Paul would take his penny winnings and convert to dollars and then play some blackjack or dollar slots.
Marriott- more upscale, less smoky, good music, huge selection of machines, plenty of beverage wait staff circulating.
Alhambra- seems to be hotter, smokier and dirtier than usual. Needs a makeover. The 2 nights that we did stop into the Alhambra we were both very disappointed in the cleanliness of the place.
KeyLargo- no real pros or cons there. Quiet, clean, friendly casino staff, comfortable air temperature,.. but just to dead for our liking.

Accommodations- We have converted all of our fixed Lacabana units into Bluegreen points. So we took some points and stayed in unit 433C for 10 nights at Lacabana BRC. Unit was clean and well equipped. My complaint was the king bed was firmer than I liked. On day 5, I bid farewell to Paul and moved my sorry butt to the pullout sofa……..ahhhhhhhh, much softer. Paul and I communicated by yelling back and forth to each other during late nights. A second honeymoon………..not. J
We had a view of Amsterdam Manor, ocean off in the left distance and a nice view of the bird sanctuary. Housekeeping was great as usual and we tipped our housekeeper on day 1 and day 10 in ½ increments. Pool and beach were never crowded and we had no trouble getting a chickie hut or a shade hut on the beach or pool any morning at 8:30. SLOW SEASON. There were shade huts to be had all day. Security continues to be diligent, but not intrusive on the beach and on the BRC property.
Ben and Jerry’s in the BRC lobby is doing a booming business………..i had a scoop of Cherry Garcia almost every night.

Flights- Were uneventful and on time. American Airlines using advantage miles. Coming home from Aruba, planes were full AUA to SJ and SJ to BOS.
Again, like always, AA in AUA did not have a decent amount of ticket agents at the counter making for the line to be ridiculously long. Yesterday there were 3 agents handling the crowds at noon time. Once, boarding passes were obtained, the trip to the gate too less than 15 minutes. Aruba Immigration, to security check/xray and shoe removal, to US Immigration, to TSA security check/ xray etc. Then, up the escalator, to the gates. Oh ya, I wore my crocs and it was very easy kicking them off instead of having to tie and untie sneakers. Downside is walking barefoot in security places.

Timeshare Storage- timesharestorage@aol.com We store 47 lbs worth of clothing, crocs, sandals, swim and beachwear, lotions/spf, snorkel gear and various other items. By storing our stuff, we can comfortably travel with one pilot case (fits in the overhead) and one Vera Bradley “diaper bag”. Hahahahahaha. The diaper bag holds our CDs and DVD’s and other stuff that we cannot live without.
Lou and Joanne Bruno own this storage company and it is a well run, fine operation. For an annual fee one gets to store your own container (which you buy from them and it is eventually secured shut). Paul and I have been thru the lost luggage/vandalized luggage route too many times, so we only bring carry on. This storage place suits our needs, allowing us to keep our Aruba stuff in Aruba. If you visit Aruba more than once annually or like to travel with only carry on, timeshare storage may work for you.

Car Rental- For a very fair price, we rented a Toyota Yaris from TROPIC. We were met at the airport and in 5 minutes we were on our way.

Lings Grocery- Lings was closed on Thursday the 17th , a Holyday/Holiday. We stopped by Lings on Friday morning at 8 and did a quick run thru tossing stuff in our cart and getting back to the beach! Stuff bought ranged from milk to wine to strawberry jam to pita bread to Pringles to apples to pickles. Total spent $102.

ATA Office &Webmaster Meeting- Paul and I had the pleasure of meeting Wiebe, Joanne and Fritz of the ATA. We were warmly received and had a very pleasant visit and informative briefing and question and answer session. All very interesting. Nice nice folks.
Wiebe is an intern from Holland and I think that he is a marketing or tourism major.
He will be returning to the Netherlands in July and I know Joanne will miss his web design skills and his very handsome face. Ahhh if i were 30 years younger and 80 lbs thinner...................but i digress. Joanne and Wiebe and Fritz= nice folks! Thanks for your hosiptality.

Weather- Outstanding. Plenty of sun, breeze and a few showers in late evening. Big thunderstorm on late Saturday night which was very intense for a few minutes. The first few days were kind of hazy, but finally the skies cleared more and brightened.

The Bird- We had a mourning dove that was sitting on her nest outside our balcony at Lacabana BRC. We watched she and her mate take turns sitting on the 2 eggs. The eggs were never left unattended/unwarmed. We were disappointed that no birdies did hatch while we were there. As we were driving to the airport on Sunday, Paul and I were talking of missing “the birth” of the babies. No sooner had the conversation ended, a mourning dove slammed into our windshield……….or we slammed into it? Either way, there was lots of silence and sadness coming home yesterday.

Flies and Smell- No smell from the sewerage treatment facility which apparently is closed. Very few flies. No mosquitos.

Food/Restaurants-

Paul and I are not gourmets and never claimed to be. We are protein and potato kinda people, with a good salad tossed in and we are golden.

Tulip- we ate at Tulip 2x. Paul both times had the salad, a soda and the mixed grill.
I had chicken sate’ and salad both times. Each visit $42 plus tip brought it to $50.
2 thumbs up for taste, presentation and service and price.

King Ribs- we had take out King Ribs. Paul and I ordered chicken rib combo dinners.
There was enough chicken and ribs and potato for us to get Friday night AND Sunday (leftovers) night dinners. Total cost $21 and $5 tip. 2 thumbs up for taste and price.
Presentation does not apply. Ate in our dining area at Lacabana.

Fololis- The Italian place at LaCabana BRC. Very good food at good prices.
Both Paul and I had chicken parm with ziti and Caesar salad. Yum. $42 and $8 tip.
Very good. 2 thumbs up for taste, ambience, presentation and service. Left my camera there by mistake and it was never turned in…………….my fault I was careless.

Captains Table @ Lacabana- 2 french onion soups, one roast chicken dinner and 1 conucu chicken dinner. Good, not terrific. 1 thumb up. Service excellent. $44 and $8 tip.

Madam Janette- 1 Caesar salad to share, 1 rack of lamb and 1 almond grouper, au gratin potatoes, and order of white asparagus. YUM 2 thumbs up. Ambience, presentation, taste, all wonderful . $75 and $15 tip

Lindas Dutch- Paul and I each had tenderloin beef sate’, came with rice and salad.
Dessert was a large apple pancake with whipped cream and strawberries too.
Yum. $28 and $6 tip (our waiter was our same waiter from MJ’s, he works at Lindas on his one night off) I love their dinnerware. Very good food. One thumb up.

Old Fisherman- probably suffices to say our best dinner of the week. We each had grilled grouper with a creamy garlic sauce on the side. Their fried corn bread with goat cheese was excellent. Everything about the meal was delicious and inexpensive. Loved it!
2 thumbs up $34 and $7 tip.

Nos Conucu- Ok if you want a visual barnyard treat go here. If you are looking for delicious food, skip this place. Since we needed the visual we settled for mediocre food, but still had fun and would go again!
Peacocks and chickens and goats galore…………all wandering. The peacocks were at our side while we were eating. There was a very ugly bird that looked like a cross between a peahen and a quail kept eyeballing us and quite often gave us dirty looks.
Then, there was the monkey on a harness………..one of the workers brought his monkey which was quite fresh and misbehaved. Picture an out of control 2 year old child (teething and tired and hungry) on a leash and there you have it. One interesting site, that grew old very quickly. I was tempted to release him from his harness and scream “run forrest run!!”, but was afraid the little furry $astard would bite me.
Then there were kids from the neighborhood chasing and riding the 2 donkeys around the barnyard. Quite fun.
The food………..Paul and I each had shrimp cocktails, grilled chicken breast, rice and a balashi each. $32 and $6 tip. No thumbs up from us, but would probably go again as we were very much entertained.


Horseback riding- We opted to do a private ride with Jaburibari Ranch. The ranch is located near the Paradera section of Aruba and sits on the private grounds of a former prime minister (cannot remember his name). He, the former prime minister owns horses and has a small farm with a few chickens etc… He also owns a few guest houses on the property that are quite lovely. His home is set apart from where the stables are and it looks to be lovely. This ranch has handsome healthy horses that look great, well fed and properly shod. We rode with the guide “georgene” to the baby natural bridge and trotted along the road to the god mine ruins.
Price very reasonable for a 2 hour private tour. $75 each! (guide tip additional)
We went early in the morning and really had a ball. It was hot but not unbearable.
We never go anywhere without treats for the horses! We brought crusts of French bread, apples and carrots. A special treat was peppermint lifesavers. Jaburibari Ranch owns 8 or 9 horses and they are wonderful. I cannot recommend them highly enough.
Jaburubari_ranch@hotmail.com.

Janny , the manager, called Paul, John Wayne and is a real nice man that CARES for the horses. (Paul wraps his arms around the horse’s neck, bends over and prays for 2 hours….then claims “boy was that a blast”)

Next trip report…………..mid September (God willing).

Andrea and Paul

I just wanted to tell you that i enjoyed reading about your trip. We own a studio at la cabana during week 39. We are looking forward to going and we extended it so that we'll be there for 11 days. I wasn't able to use my week last year so i was wondering if you could update me as far as what's going on with the casino. Last i heard it was closed so i was just wondering if that was true. I purchased my unit in 2003 through bluegreen and i don't really know about the points thing that's going either. I will definitely have dinner at the old fisherman thanks to you, it sounds great. Thanks again for the great posting.

Any idea about resales for LACABANA BRC? for May, June or July
Do you know what the asking price might be for a studio or 1 bedroom
We might consider, we own one in Fl but would love to have one in Aruba

I own 3 weeks at the LCB. They are going to do a major renovation on all the studios and one bedrooms. There is an assement going to be due for the next 3 years, or one lump sum so if buying one inquire about that. They are going to be 5 star when finished. I own the larger oceanfront and they have been completed and are beautiful. I do have one in florida for sale if interested, I live in Florida now so I do not use it.

Great report! I hope one day I can go enough times a year to warrant using the timeshare storage company. I'm glad to see that the smell is gone from around the hotel... based on the "diligent" security, I'm assuming the rift between the two La Cabana entities is still alive and well. I guess I will have to pay to use the gym on my next visit there.... I feel like I'm there after reading this post!

Does the #5 train stop at Reina Beatrix International?

Well well...here you are, ArubaDre! Are you ready for some baseball? Bring it on!

LOL!!! I'm hiding until this series is over!!!!!!!!! I'm starting to think that Mike Mussina is a double-agent for the Sox!!!!!!!!

Does the #5 train stop at Reina Beatrix International?

LOL!! I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I actually felt a little...a LITTLE bad for them last night during that game.

OK - we'll be talking! There should be a "whatever" thread over here so no one feels we're hijacking!

I agree about having a "whatever" thread.

I urge all of you that are interested to PM jojo, our administrator and make the request known to her.
I have pm'd her already and requested us to have a thread where we can talk about anything EXCEPT aruba.

Andrea

Thanks for the info Andrea! Will do!