On the water

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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 wreck from the boat because the water is super clear! The next stop was over a small reef and the final stop was by an area where you can see turtles. We saw one from the boat, which was really cool. Renee and I did not do snorkeling but it was nice to look down through the clear water and catch some glimpses of fish. A lunch was served on board with some fish, rice, chicken and salad. I was not that impressed with the food. The pina colada cake was quite good! We arrived back to land a little after 1.

I rented a palapa on the beach so I could sit and read in the shade while Renee took a nap. It was nice to sit on the beach in the shade. It rained twice, quick passing sprinkles with cooler winds. Each palapa has a call button to use to order food or drinks. I ordered the nachos, which here are chips with sides of salsa, pico, sour cream and guac. I feel this is a good beachside snack. Salty and delicious!

We were invited to go to dinner with two of the executives, Pete and Frank, and were to meet in the lobby for a 5:45 shuttle. Renee and I were on time, the other couple from our KC location was on time, the executives were not. We finally rounded them up and then had to wait for a ride because ours was long gone. We finally got to Madame Janette’s around 7, an hour beyond our original reservation. The restaurant serves a variety of food in a very charming setting. We ate outside under a tree wrapped in lights. It did pour once, luckily before our food came, which did not ruin the evening. The food was delicious. I had the chicken cordon bleu and it was stuffed full of gouda cheese. Renee had a plate sized piece of schnitzel. The one other girl got a burger and when it came we all stared in amazement as it was the size of my head! No where on the menu did it give a size and the waiter told us that was a small one. She will probably be eating this burger for the rest of the trip!

The food was good as well as the conversation. We shared some funny personal stories and had a really good time. It was a later evening for us as we got back to the room around 10 and then went right to bed.

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Photos

Jolly Pirate
Our boat looked like this