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After a lovely shower got dressed and headed for the garden cafe on deck 12. They have lots of fruit and pastries out early and open the main breakfast buffet at 640ish the only problem that we had was that we could not reach the back tray where the cups were for our tea and coffee but a nice gentleman of asian descent helped us out. 
We had a lovely breakfast and went back to our room to watch the ship dock, to get our money and passports and get ready (use the washroom) to leave the ship. We went to the stardust theatre to meet with our tour group, the “Sea and See Aruba” 
Check out went smoothly through the security and we were on our bus number 70 with Gwen, our tour guide, and Ignatius the Driver. Our first stop was the house rock, or the rock house. A geological formation on the island that they have put stairs onto so that tourists can climb to the top and get great views of the island.
It is a small park and actually very fun, I could see my grandchildren really enjoying themselves there.
Aruba is very rocky and lots of cactus and prickly trees like acacia all over the place. There are lots of houses with small courtyards to hold back the cacti and acacia with some lovely imported palms and flowers like bougenvallia but overall it is pretty dry and barren.
The beaches though are lovely.
Our next stop was on the north side of the island with is very rugged and no one swims there. We passed lots of little washout areas on the beach and one of them had a goat. I guess there are wild goats in Aruba. The road was very bad and bumpy and we went pretty slowly so had a good look at the fields of coral limestone, basalt, cactus and Quihee trees. 
We went to see “the Bridge”, a natural rock arch on the beach worn away by water and wind,. There used to be two, a large one and a small one but the large one finally collapsed and that left only the little one. We only had 15 minutes there and Gwen told us that if we needed to use the washrooms this would be a good place as our next stop was twenty feet underwater. So we took some quick photos and used the washroom with was very clean and only cost a dollar. I bought a bottle of water from the canteen and hopped back on to the bus. 
Gwen kept a running history of the island and all aspects of life here. Politics, schools, incomes, birds and pests. Boa’s are of concern as someone brought one onto the island illegally. It got loose and had babies and they are now all over the tiny island. Aruba is not that big. I was wondering what they would eat. Birds and eggs and iguanas I suppose.
Our third stop was our under the sea tour of the wreck of the Antilles ship just off the coast in Aruba. We had a pleasant walk down a long pathway road in-between two big hotels to a beautiful beach with a dock in the middle. Then we got onto a boat and were told to hang onto anything that you did not want to loose “Ladies Hang on to your husbands” ha ha… 
We rode along the coast for about 15 minutes to an area with about 10 different boats on it and transferred to one that was very skinny and very long. We went below deck and each took a one of the blue fold down seats on each side of the ship, each by a window looking out into the water. The captain of the ship maneuvered us to above the wreck of the Antilles and we saw through mostly cloudy water the wreck covered in corals and things. It was interesting more interesting were the fish which sometimes were there and sometimes were not. 
There were scuba divers in the water as well as the boats, probably from the boats that were around us and so we had to wait sometimes for the snorkelers and scuba divers to move off so we could get back to the wreck. Our boat, being long and skinny would maneuver so that either one side or the other was able to see the wreck. There was a tour lady below deck with us telling us some rather bad jokes and directing us to look on other side for different things as the ride went along. She passed back a picture of the original boat before it broke in half due to the boilers exploding. It had been there for many years. 
After our tour finished we went back upstairs onto the deck where our other boat was waiting for us and transferred back to it for the return journey. I sat at what I thought was the front and casually dropped Mom and Dad into the water. They are now swimming with the fishes at the wreck of the Antilles in Aruba. I hung onto my hat which is big enough to shade most of me from the sun and we headed back to the beach.
When we got back to the beach we used the washrooms which cost one dollar US, honour system, and were not that clean. Margie ran down to the waters edge and dipped her hand in the water so she could say she was in the Caribbean Sea. Of course a small wave got her foot to so as she walked off the beach she got sand in her shoes and had sand in them for the rest of the day.
Just before we got back onto our buses I spotted a lizard on a wall. Aruba Wildlife. I got a great shot of the little guy and will look up what kind he is when I get home to Comox.
from there we continued on to the light house that we had seen from the boat on our way out to the wreck and back. it was a lovely spot in a desolate area that I would not want to go hiking in. the thorns on the bushes were used as sewing needles in the old days. rather scary.
They drove us back to the ship and Margie and I headed into the shopping area which was right there. We were on a mission to get our free charms, necklaces and whatever they could give us for our grandchildren back home. The shopping area in Oranjestad is very touristy which is to be expected as tourism is their number one industry.
We found all the shops we wanted plus a few more. Margie found a shirt for her son. There were some people on the street handing out flyers for free trinkets at different shops the one fellow told us that he gets paid for all the coupons that get handed in so just by bringing the coupons into the store we were helping him out. We also found dice which we now realize had been at almost every port but they are sold in small boxes with the name of the port on them and we had just thought that they were boxes.
On the way back to the ship after security but still out on the dock area there is more shopping and we picked up a few more trinkets from local artists. Bracelets and keychains. In the building right in front of the ship they had set up quite a few stores with those last minute deals for real cheap. I got two 5 dollar t shirts, one for me and one for my grandson, John.
Back onto the ship and our rooms and it was lovely to sit on the balcony and watch oranjestad. Some people were late and there were lots of people on their balconies and we all clapped as the late people went up the gangplank. For dinner we went to the grand pacific and did not sit with anyone just had a nice dinner and talked about our day and the next in Santa Marta, Columbia. An early time to bed as we were exhausted from all the fresh air, sunshine and good times.
Towel animal - Cat
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