Paradise Beach Villas

September 30 to October 7, 2000 - by Michele

Just returned from a fabulous week in Aruba at the Paradise Beach Villas where we own a 2-bedroom timeshare unit. Before we left on our journey I made sure to order an Aruba Plus Card for my husband and myself. It was well worth the US$20 investment for the two cards.

Our first stop after arriving via American Airlines was Explore Car Rental . We had reserved a Suzuki Jimny through their Internet site. As promised they were at the airport awaiting our arrival. The transported us to their offices, which is located near the Ling and Sons Grocery Store. The Jimny (a hardtop, two-door Jeep type vehicle) was $390 for the week. We knew this going in and presented our Aruba Plus Card and immediately received 15% off the rental price (US$58.50). Aruba Plus Card had already paid for itself.

Our next stop before our resort was the Ling and Sons Grocery Store to stock up on breakfast and lunch items and beverages. Because we had a full kitchen we chose to do these meals in to save some money. Once again, at the checkout counter we presented our Aruba Plus Card and received a 2% discount (about $ 4.20). The savings are really adding up.

We arrived at Paradise Beach Villas, our timeshare resort, about 3:30 pm. We were checked in very quickly and on our way to the pool. Paradise Beach Villas has completed the work on their pool area. They now have two beautiful pools and a waterfall stream that appears to connect them. There are two new hot tubs and a good- sized kiddy pool. After a little lounging by the pool we were off to the Royal Cabana Casino for gambling and dinner.

The Royal Cabana offered match plays on several table games with our Aruba Plus Card. Since we only play the slots we opted not to use our card. After a little gambling we went into their restaurant and had the all you can eat seafood buffet. This is a great deal for $14.95 per person, plus 15% service charge. They had several hot and cold items and lots of seafood choices. Don't be deterred because they call it a seafood buffet. There are lots of non-seafood items as well.

On Sunday, we decided to make it a lazy day for all. We walked the beach in front of our resort and covered quite a distance. Our friends attended the 12:30 pm Catholic Mass at the La Cabana Resort. They said that it was quite nice and that they enjoyed the priest very much. They would recommend this service to other Catholics that want to attend a Mass in English. After more lounging by the pools, we headed into Oranjstead for dinner. Tonight's vote was lobster, so we chose the Driftwood Restaurant. This restaurant can be kind of tricky to find, as it is not on a major street. Shortly after being seated we were given a basket of garlic bread that we had refilled twice. We had our choice of soup or salad with every entrée. The lobster tail here was quite good. It was served with rice, vegetable and corn bread. The portions, while large, were not too big to finish the entire meal. We skipped desert this night.

On Monday, we decided to do some sight seeing because there were no ships in port and we would avoid the large crowds. So early in the morning we packed up our bagels for breakfast and our sandwiches for lunch and headed out. We went to Arashi Beach, near the California Lighthouse, and combed the beach for shells and sea glass. But our greatest find was the US$20 bill that I found sticking out of some seaweed. After walking the beach for about an hour, we ate our breakfast in a little seating area near the parking lot. After breakfast it was on to the California Lighthouse. It is looking really beautiful this year; it has just recently been repainted to cover the graffiti that tourists and natives alike have been leaving. New to the lighthouse this year are three vendors with carts selling beverages and snacks. We left the lighthouse and headed down the eastern coast towards the Alto Vista Chapel. The chapel had just completed the celebration of its 250th year in Aruba. While beautiful, the tents that they had erected for the celebration took some of the serenity of this chapel away. After leaving the chapel we decided to head back to the resort, because we had encountered one of Aruba's rare rainstorms. We happened across the St. Anna Church in Noord. This church has a beautiful altar that has carved out of mahogany wood in Europe. It was a wonderful surprise on our journey.

The rain lasted most of the afternoon (about 5 hours) but it was not a violent storm. In fact, we took this cloudy time to enjoy the new hot tubs at our resort. For tonight's dinner we chose the French Steakhouse. I would highly recommend this to anyone dining out in Aruba. Located in the Manchebo Beach Resort, you have the choice to dine either in the restaurant or outside on their covered patio. We chose to dine outside were we could enjoy the weather and the music being performed. For dinner we decided on the Ambassador's five-course meal at $25.95 per person, plus 15% gratuity. This meal included a bottle of wine for each couple, appetizer, soup or salad, entrée, desert and coffee or tea. We had the twin tournedos with butter shrimp for an entrée.

On Tuesday morning we went into town to get some souvenir shopping done. Our friends wanted to get a pearl necklace that one of the larger jewelers on the island was advertising. The store did not have it and was not sure if they would every get it in stock again. We wandered into several of the stores looking for this necklace. We walked into a jewelry store behind the Royal Plaza Mall called Kay's. I am not sure if the man we talked to was the owner or not, but he offered to order the same style necklace for us and have it in his store by Friday with no condition for us to purchase it. I would highly recommend this jewelry store to anyone. After shopping, it was another relaxing day on the beach and at the pool. The surf was really high and strong due to a tropical depression that was in the area. We have never seen anything like it in all the years that we have been going to Aruba.

After a relaxing day we decided that we wanted to enjoy the sunset from the beach and check out all of the hotels on the Palm Beach boardwalk. We parked our car at the Wyndham Hotel and made a short stop in their casino. From there we walked past the Aruba Grand and headed to Kokoa Beach Bar for cocktails and to watch the sunset. Once again we presented our Aruba Plus Cards and got two cocktails of the day for the price of one (savings of US$8.00). After watching a sunset that was blocked by clouds we headed further down the beach, we looked at the newly rebuilt Radisson (quite beautiful) and the remodeled Allegro Hotel. Our next stop was the Hyatt for a little more casino action and the dinner at their Palms restaurant. My husband had the shrimp fajitas and was very surprised by the portions. I had their soup of the day and chicken quesadillas. This again was very good food at reasonable prices.

On Wednesday, we decided to complete our sightseeing tour of the eastern coast. We went to the Bushiribana ruins and the Natural Bridge. It is amazing how different this side of the island is from the Western coast where the hotels lie. It is rugged and deserted, and gives the feeling of being anywhere but a tropical paradise. From here we came inland and toured the rock formations at Casibari and Ayo. They are quite interesting and with a little imagination, you can see all sorts of things. After the completion of our sightseeing tour we went back to the resort for more relaxation at the pool. Our resort offered Bingo at 3:00pm in the afternoon. To play one card for 5 games it would cost you US$ 5.00. It was a good investment, as I won a gift certificate to use on either the Mi Dushi or Tattoo sailing adventures.

Tonight's dinner was an adventure into Cuban dining at Cuba's Cookin'. Once again we used our Aruba Plus Card and we each received a free cocktail. We had two choices and decided on the Hemingway Daiquiri. This was very near the best daiquiri that I have ever had anywhere. Once again we had a savings of about US$ 10. When we arrived we got a basket of yucca chips and three kinds of sauces a hot salsa, honey mustard and a balsamic vinegar and oil with chive and garlic. During our cocktails and through our entire meal a two piece ensemble that played all types of music entertained us. After the chips, we chose to have an appetizer of boiled yucca with the balsamic vinegar sauce on top, then on to the main course. My husband had a dish that they have nicknamed the "1959 Cadillac". It was a combo platter that contained two types of beef dishes and pork tenderloin. I had the lobster enchilada, and let me tell you that it was out of this world. The lobster was so tender that you could cut it with a fork. Our entrees were served with vegetables, black beans and rice and fried plantain. After dinner we decided to splurge and had dessert, my husband chose the rice pudding and I had some of the best key lime pie ever. Our entire meal with an additional round of drinks was US$ 85.00. Quite reasonable for all that we had.

On Thursday, we decided to visit De Palm Island and do some snorkeling. A great secret for anyone with a car, at any De Palm tours desk in a hotel you can get an Aruba Activities Catalog. About two-thirds of the way through the book there is a coupon for a free ferry transfer. Each coupon is good for one person only, but it will offer you savings of US$ 8.00 on the ferry transfer. If you want to see fish, this is the best snorkeling on the island. The fish are so tame that they will come to you the minute you enter the water with a bag of bread. We saw giant, blue parrot-fish and several other varieties that I cannot ever name. It was some of the best snorkeling that we have ever done anywhere. There is a restaurant and bar here that is more reasonable in price than most of the places in town. If you don't snorkel or scuba dive you can relax on the beach and enjoy the view.

Dinner on Thursday was at our favorite restaurant on the island. As usual dinner at Papiamento's was a 2½ hour event. I don't think we would have ever gotten out of there if we didn't ask for the check. We enjoyed a romantic meal on the patio with light only from the white twinkle lights. The baked onion soup was fantastic and the Cesar's salad was perfect. My husband had the Neptune and I had surf and turf for dinner. Both of these meals are served on hot stones so that you can complete the cooking process at your table. After dinner we relaxed and enjoyed coffee and their coconut mousse dessert. Once again it was a fabulous evening of relaxation and romance.

On Friday, our last day on the island we took the Mi Dushi sail and snorkel cruise at a US$ 48.00 per person (includes: snorkel trip, equipment, lunch and all you can drink) we had some great savings. The first was that I got to go for free because of the Wednesday win at bingo. My husband presented his Aruba Plus Card and received a 10% discount (US$ 4.80). Our adventure started on the Kokoa Beach Bar pier where, at check in, we were given the choice of orange juice or Mimosa (orange juice and champagne). After our juice we lathered up with sunscreen and were ferried out to the Mi Dushi a sailboat that was built in 1925.

We had a sail of about an hour to our first snorkeling stop at Boca Catalina. This is a pretty reef with many fish, but not nearly the amount of fish we saw at De Palm Island. After about a 40-minute snorkel we boarded the boat and everyone was given a chance to get on the rope swing. It was a ton of fun. After the rope swing event we were served a BBQ lunch. This included BBQ chicken, BBQ ribs, Caribbean rice, a cold vegetable salad, corn on the cob, a hush puppy (fried fish-cake) and a roll with butter. Off to our next snorkeling stop, the German freighter Antilla. This was our first snorkeling experience with a shipwreck. While the fish were still not as plentiful or colorful as at De Palm Island it was an eerie experience none the less. Make sure you tell Captains Mario and Pete hello if you take the trip. After the Antilla stop it was back on board for our cruise back to the docks and did the free drinks flow. All total it was a trip that was about 4½ hours in length.

Friday night we went to the Mill resort to see BWM (Brothers Making Wisdom) play. This is the hottest band in Aruba right now and we know one of the members. If you get a chance to check them out make sure to tell Randolph that Michele and Chuck from the USA said hi. While at the Mill we decided to eat dinner. We ate at little restaurant that is attached to the bar near the pool. WHAT A FIND!!! We had their BBQ tourist special. Our meal included bread basket and beef noodle soup to start. Then we were served a BBQ meal that included chicken and ½ a slab of ribs. With the main course we also received french fries and cole slaw. After the main course we got chocolate cake for dessert. The total price for this meal was US$ 10.00 per person. Check out what their daily tourist special is, you will be pleasantly surprised.

Saturday was our last day on the island. Since we were taking the 3:00 pm flight to Miami in route to home we decided to be lazy by the pool in the morning. Our resort has a new deli that serves some great sandwiches. Afraid that we would not have a meal on our flight we bought sandwiches to take with us. We took our car back and arranged for a taxi to the airport. The taxi was US$ 15 and we gave the driver a US$ 4.00 tip with four people in our party. We were sad to be leaving Aruba again, but we are anticipating our return next year only 363 days to go.