Day 4-Thursday, December 10, 2009

After spending most of yesterday feeling under the weather and resting it off, we woke up bright and early this morning, feeling great (save a few more mosquito nibbles-bite count is up to 11 between us). It rained, either last night or this morning, but you can only tell because the ground is wet with puddles–the sky is partly cloudy and the climate is warm, if not a bit muggy. We need more insect repellant! Today the plan is to catch the local bus into town to shop for clothes. Shelli’s swimsuit doesn’t fit, so she hasn’t really been able to enjoy the water.
I went to breakfast and enjoyed some pineapple pancakes, some so-so cinnamon french toast, and some extremely bland hash browns. Still, my belly is full and I’m grateful. I used our 15 minute internet pass ($8 USD! BOO!!!) to seek out the Gay Hotspots in Curacao info and post quick updates to my peeps at home on Facebook and Twitter. The agenda for today on the resort looks fun–salsa classes and circus/trapeze today. I hope we don’t miss them! Also, I think tomorrow we should see about the scuba diving included in our package. I’m a little scared, but we’ll see!

I’m so ready to biba i laga biba (be and let be)! Let’s hit it!

Visiting Town
Shelli and I got dressed and took the local bus to Punda (downtown Willemstad). It’s funny, as we were waiting at the “bushalte” I was still expecting a regular Metro-type bus to pull up to the stop, so when a beat up, round chug-a-lug van coughed to a stop before us I hesitated in walking toward it, then a local woman rolled down a window and yelled PUNDA! So, we boarded. The ride was $1.50 USD per person. The15 minute ride through town in the daytime was little different that the first one at night from the airport. It did not strike me as poor or impoverished, like I’ve heard parts of Jamaica and other Caribbean locals are once you leave the resort. Narrow roads aside, it reminded me somewhat of Tampa, Florida. We mostly saw old black people, and a few of them were picked up along the way. All of the house are painted pretty bright pastel colors, supposedly because a former leader claimed the white buildings gave him a headache, so the locals, “eager to please” painted their homes and buildings from a colorful palette. Very nice, and calming as you drive through the communities and reach Punda/Willemstad on the waterfront.

We got to Punda and started out by seeking new, fitting clothes for Shelli. The area was like a farmers market and LA’s fashion district and Boston’s Downtown Crossing all in one. In one store she found some nice jeans and a few shirts. The shop owner negotiated a good deal for us; in another store she got two bikinis, also a good deal. I personally hate shopping and wasn’t hopeful that I could find anything in my size to wear. I hoped to find a couple of beautiful dresses, and some comfortable shoes. I did pick up a couple of day dresses, and a pretty yellow and blue tube top/sarong set.

The locals seemed fascinated by my hair. Almost every black woman had a relaxer, and they clearly weren’t used to seeing a curly haired black woman walking about on full fro. Most of them looked at my hair more than my face! It was funny. Shelli also remarked about the number of locals that would come up to her and speak Dutch or the local language, Papiamento (Mostly Spanish, some Dutch and English). She figured they thought she was a local, even with her fro!

We stopped at the “Botika” (pharmacy) and bought more insect repellant and some anti-itch cream. $35 USD for the 2!! IF YOU EVER TRAVEL TO CURACAO BRING PLENTY OF YOUR OWN FROM HOME! We also stopped at the ATM to get cash dollars, because there was a $5-$10 fee in the stores for using your Visa. The ATM dispensed US Dollars.

By then we were hungry (none of the eating stands we passed looked appealing), and I was hot, tired and ready to be in the water, so we decided to call it a day for town and explore the rest during later visits. We hopped back on the bus and went back to Breezes. We also said goodbye to our Gaycation friends Frank & Bob, who were waiting on the airport shuttle when we returned from town today. Frank gave me their info and I do intend to stay in touch. We dropped our stuff off at the room, changed into swimwear, and hit the Beach BBQ Grill.  Shelli had them make me a grilled cheese sandwich which was ok and I also had a grilled chicken sandwich, of which I could only choke down the chicken. Same tired fries.

Then, we were finally in the water, with Shelli showing off her new body in a hot new orange and blue bikini. We swam out to the water ring, climbed on board together and drifted and dreamed. The clouds looked like my soul–light, pure, and always in motion. I still find it amazing that you can stand up straight in the “bottomless” water, no treading, and not sink. Shelli said it was the breakwater wall that created this effect. Sadly though she is no longer as, ahem, buoyant, as I, so she had to tread lightly to stay afloat. People were snorkling around us, and I wanted to as well, so I went and checked out fins and a snorkel set. They only had 1 available though, so I only snorkeled for a few mins (didn’t see many fish) while Shelli went to the room to drop off our towels and sunscreen, and bring back my water shoes (I almost broke my ankle trying to walk over sharp rocks to shore in bare feet). When she got back, I returned the snorkel set and we headed over to the watersports tent. Shelli wanted to do a catamaran sail ride, so we signed up and went to the bar for a few drinks during the 20 minute wait.

The catamaran ride was totally awesome. I couldn’t believe the kind of speed we got. I thought it was be calm, smooth, and uneventful like sailing, but once we navigated around the breakwater wall, and into the deep blue open water, we were clinging to that thing for our lives as it jumped the waves, and having a great time! Our sailor (if that’s what u call it) was a young, attractive Curacaoan guy who spoke English well and refused to believe we were “Lesbi” (gay women) and married. He called us liars and demanded “a show” to prove it. We gave him a PG-rated one! He told us Europeans got way freakier, and we told him we’re not from Europe, we’re from Long Beach! LOL! It was a really pleasant conversation. We asked him where people in Curacao go on vacation, given that Curacao is paradise. He said, where else, the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA! New York or Florida. He’d never been to California. He said he was going to Texas in 2010 to play professional baseball for the Texas Rangers. We’ll look for him if/when they play the Dodgers!

Back at shore, I tried to kayak a bit but something is wrong with my right shoulder. It’s very sore. So, that was a short-lived watersport.
After that it was more cocktails, and another great ocean sunset, this time from the pool outside our room. We met up with a local boy to chill for a while. He was from Curacao, but a student in Amsterdam, just home for a holiday. He didn’t speak a lot of English, but we got on fine in conversation, with me applying my Reggaeton/Taco Bell knowledge to choke out an offensively basic Spanish word or two. It’s funny how much you can remember from your days of slinging lettuce and cheese, and years of listening to Pitbull songs. Shelli and her kitchen Spanish were a little better.

After our company departed, we headed out for food. It was Boulevard Night at the resort, meaning that all restaurants were serving, no reservations necessary. I had chicken from the Starlight Grill, Fettuccini and shrimp with Polenta from Pastafari, and a few bites of sushi from Musayan. All were sufficient as food, but again, not spectacular and ehh…no thanks on seconds.
After dinner was the Breezes Circus Gala/Trapeze show. I found it to be also unspectacular, just some guys flipping and hanging from the trapeze. I’ve seen more exciting pole dancing. And there were no elephants! 🙂 However, one interesting thing was that 2 resort guests, a mother and daughter, got to have a go at the trapeze with the professionals. I guess that’s what the free trapeze lessons were for. I’m gonna trying to convince Shelli to try it!

Tomorrow is Friday, which we’ve decided will be Shelli’s day. She wants to go visit another area of the island, Mambo Beach, go to the spa, and swim with the dolphins, a treat our gaycation friends hipped us to. My day is Saturday and I’m still thinking about how I’d like to spend it. Hmmm…

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