Today for breakfast….the buffet! Shocking I know! After breakfast we took a cab to the Aruba Aloe Factory and Museum. This is a really neat place! They have an aloe farm smack in the middle of town and there is a free guided tour. Our guide explained how aloe was brought here from Africa, so it’s not native to the island. However, they now have a thriving industry growing and turning it into everything from sunscreen to deodorant to shampoo. Of course they have aloe gel, but I was amazed at all the other products. The one interesting fact about aloe is there is a very concentrated yellow sap that is part of the plant which is actually a laxative. They make sure to remove that before processing the gel. Wouldn’t want to ingest that! After ... read more

I probably will say this every morning but the breakfast buffet is wonderful! And the mango juice is exceptional! Our excursion for the day was the Schooner cruise. It was to leave at 9:15 and get back at 11:15. I think we started walking to the boat at 9:30. Aruba time takes some getting used to… The boat was through the Jolly Pirate tour company and was a nice sail boat with a sunny front deck and covered rear. I thought the cruise was going to be more sightseeing and less snorkeling but it really ended up being mostly snorkeling. We stopped 3 different places for snorkeling. The first stop was over a ship wreck of a German boat from 1940 or 41. The water was pretty choppy here but I could see parts of the ... read more

Today was mostly a travel day. There are direct flights from Chicago to Aruba but apparently only on the weekend so we had to connect in Miami. Our day started out leaving home at 4:30 AM, chauffeured by our dad, for O’Hare. The temperature was a balmy 12 degrees with a windchill of 1. We arrived, checked our bags, went through security and were to our gate with time to grab a quick breakfast. WE boarded, took off and landed in Miami, all on time. And by some stroke of luck our arriving gate was right next to our departing gate. That never happens! Again we had time for a quick bite and then were on a plane once again. 3 hours later we landed in Oranjestad, Aruba, where it was not 12 degrees with no ... read more

Almost a repeat of yesterday. Usually I like to have things to see and explore while vacationing so not having anything to do any of the days seemed strange at first but I got over it! I walked to the beach before breakfast today just to enjoy it without all the people. And I ate later since I had to go for my Covid test after. Breakfast was at the buffet again. Today I went with eggs, hashbrowns, fruit and some pastries. The Covid test really puts a pause on your trip. You have to get one to return to the US and you have to wait in line to schedule and get tested, which takes some time out of each day. An online scheduling system would improve the overall process. Anyway, I got in line ... read more

Time to depart cold, grey Illinois for warm, sunny Dominican Republic. I booked this trip on a whim after seeing a deal for a 3 night stay in a junior suite with free upgrade to a rooftop terrace. Kind of hard to turn that down when the price includes everything! And it was perfect timing to get a break from the rough start to 2022. My departure time was 10 am from O'Hare and I arrived early, as usual, to avoid rushing through security and to the gate, which always ends up being the furthest away from security. I parked in the relatively new Multi-modal Facility. This new parking garage houses the rental cars as well as two levels of economy parking. It is also connected to the airport by the people mover, which just reopened ... read more