Costa Linda Beach Resort / Amsterdam Manor Beach Resort

June 17-July 8, 2005 by Teri in OH

We’re Off

Flights from Cleveland to Newark and Newark to Aruba were uneventful, on time with a light breakfast and two movies shown on the second leg—very nice. This was our first experience flying Continental to Aruba and hope to continue with them. Our previous experiences (10 years) with American Airlines had forced the change of airlines. Arrived at 2:40 pm made our way through immigrations to the luggage claim, retrieved bags, picked up phone from Fastphone, on to Econo to pick up car and on our way in about thirty minutes. Whew…I can’t believe we’re here for three weeks. We encountered pretty light traffic on our way to Costa Linda. We’ll be spending two week (timeshare) at the Costa Linda before moving to the Amsterdam Manor for our final week. Our room is ready when we arrive so upstairs to the fifth floor, unpack, change into climate friendly clothes, then out for groceries at Ling and Sons. Split our shopping between Kong Hing and Ling and Sons, both are convenient and offer a great variety of items. Returned to Costa Linda unpacked groceries and realized we were both hungry and tired. It was coming up to 6 pm and we had been up since 4 am with only a light breakfast to eat—we needed something close and quick. Pizza Bob fit the bill—located on the south end of the Costa Linda parking lot next to the Aveda Salon. Good thin crust pizza and a couple of cold beers was just the right way to be putting an end to a long day.

Daily Routine

Goat on Golf Course Most days followed the same routine: morning coffee and toast, pack cooler with water and juice, load beach bag with towels, sunscreen, books and CD player, and then off to the beach. Set up chairs grab a couple of bottles of water and take a long walk—north to Amsterdam Manor or south to just past Casa del Mar. Before returning to our chairs, we would soak in the beautiful clear blue water and relax. Chair time and reading. Break for quick lunch in the room, repeat the first part of this section except cooler was packed with water and beer for the afternoon refreshment. Walk, soak, read, drink—you get the picture—sand gravity!

Exceptions to the Daily Routine

Tierra del Sol Golf—yes we’re those people dragging the bag of clubs through the airport that most of you think are nuts…some days we may even concur, however we do enjoy the game and the challenge of Tierra del Sol Golf Course. We played 18-holes twice (June 21, 28) along with the goats that seem to have grown quite a bit in the past year. This year we tried the Links at the Divi (July 5) for our third round. The course is very nice and will be more of a challenge when the trees have matured—especially then one in the middle of the fairway. This was also the day the T.S. Dennis took the wind away and replaced it with a gray sky and rain, but it was a warm rain. That afternoon as we were returning to the Amsterdam Manor we noticed a group of people gathering on the beach north of Costa Linda, we stopped and spent the next two and a half hours waiting and watching a turtles nest hatch.

The Turtles

On July 5, 2005 we saw a nest of leatherback turtles hatch. They were slow to start but they eventually erupted from the sand and raced to the sea. It’s amazing to see how they struggle to free themselves from their nest, their instincts so strong. I wish I had the words to really describe what I saw, but as I look at my notes from that day, all I see is the same word written many times…WOW! Turtles Hatching Race to water Turtle on beach

Amsterdam Manor

Patio view We moved to Amsterdam Manor on July 1st. We booked a studio which was fine for the two of us. The staff really tried to make your stay a wonderful experience. We never were able to get the wi-fi service to work---neither did anyone else during our stay---the staff said they had someone coming to help, but help never arrived. We did experience a problem with the "smell". It may not be as noticeable depending on your location within the resort, but it caused us to leave the resort and beach area one day. Monday, July 4th, the BB meet was at the beach bar. Kristy and her husband, from North Carolina and Mike and his wife from Michigan attended, very nice people. We talked about our experiences on Aruba and enjoyed happy hour beverages and snacks courtesy of Amsterdam Manor.

Shopping

Okay…tried this the first Thursday on the island, and there was no was no place to park in downtown! How can you shop if you can’t find a parking spot? This has become a real problem in the past few years. We managed to wedge our car into a parking spot in town later in our stay to do some shopping, but we had to circle the downtown area several times before finding a parking spot.

Dining

Taste buds and personal opinions are subjective, what to me might seem like an exquisite entrée may send you running for the door, that being said I’ll only offer a brief comment on the restaurants we dined at.

We returned to many restaurants which we have enjoyed on previous visits: Rumba (it’s still consistent), Driftwood (liked the new menu items), Madame Jeanette’s (one of the best restaurants on the island), Le Dome (fabulous and a contender for best restaurant on the island). Salt & Pepper (delicious tapas and sangria), and Ventanas Del Mar (leisurely dinner with beautiful music by "El Provo"). Restaurants that were a first visit for us this year where: Pizza Bob’s (mentioned above), Tango (nice early bird menu, dinner and show), Pinchos (fabulous dining experience, very romantic, great sunset), Mango’s (great food at a reasonable price), and The Ostrich Farm (enjoyed some very tasty snacks for a late lunch one day). Portions at many restaurants are very generous and provided us with either lunch or dinner the next day.

Random Notes

We saw fireworks on July 3rd in the sky over the high rise area and on the 4th above the coastline by Costa Linda…thank you Aruba. Your thoughtfulness is beyond words.

This trip was the culmination of a very busy year for us. My husband sold his business last summer and retired this past May, the same week our son left to pursue his internship in South Carolina. My husband wanted a memorable start to his retirement and thought that an extra week in Aruba would be just the way to do that. He was right…we enjoyed Aruba more than we ever had in the past…no work related phone calls or email. We hadn’t had a vacation without work interruptions in 24 years. It was great to have three weeks to reconnect with one another and ease into a gentler lifestyle. That may be why it took me a month to finish this report. We are looking forward to next year’s visit to Aruba…yet every week or so I catch myself checking web sites for last minute deals to the island that has captured our hearts…who knows we may be back sooner.

Thanks for reading.

Teri in OH.