The Maasdam was fortunate to be small enough to dock inside the harbour at the pier whereas a huge Carnival cruise ship had to dock outside. Placement wasn’t of an issue for guests because the ships were close within walking distance of town anyway, with a street market and an old fort (now a shopping area) literally separating the ships.
Willemstad is a lovely town with its pastel-coloured colonial buildings. Many years ago the eyesight of the population was poor so a law was passed that all buildings had to be bright in colour – so that they could be seen/identified easily. And so even today buildings are still painted in bright colours. At the entrance to the harbour is the floating Queen Emma wooden pedestrian bridge which is opened from one side throughout the day to allow boats (and the occasional ship) to come into the harbour. Either the gate is opened a little to allow a boat or tugboat in, or it is opened up all the way (like a door) - flush to the other side to allow a ship to pass through. One can catch a small ferry, in need, which is just not far from the harbour side of the footbridge.
The island of Curaçao is relatively small, being about 64km long and 16km wide, making it the largest of the Dutch Caribbean islands group. It has full autonomy on most matters with exceptions per the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Sunhat, sun cream, notebook and purse to hand; I soon found myself downstairs on the pier waiting for an excursion group to assemble. It was so hot outside that I felt myself rapidly becoming a small puddle. By the time the group assembled and walked to the waiting bus I could almost see myself leaving moist tracks behind. Fortunately that wasn’t quite the case though.
The group was soon on its way to its first destination – an Ostrich farm. Unfortunately the sound system on board was terrible – our guide’s voice was very muffled when he spoke. Although I was at the back near the bus engine, those in the middle and close to the front also couldn’t hear what the guide was saying. I spoke to the guide and volume was turned up but it made no difference. The bus driver (Debbie) spoke into the microphone and we could hear her clearly but as soon as Gabriel (the guide) spoke again I couldn’t make out what was being said. Later on I spoke to Debbie and told her about the sound system still being problematic. Unfortunately there still no improvement during the driving part of the tour so I missed out on quite a bit of information, which was a real pity.
On arrival at the ostrich farm we were told that there was a problem with the safari vehicles. I’m not sure if that was because there was a physical problem with the vehicles or if it was because there was already a tour in progress (another tour bus was in the car park). We would have had to wait ½ an hour to 45 minutes so Gabriel decided that it would be best to go to the Aloe plantation and then come back to the ostrich farm. There was a bit of confusion because the sound wasn’t good when Gabriel told us what was happening, but it was soon sorted when other guests and I spoke up to explain that the aloe and ostrich tours were being switched.
Ten minutes later we arrived at the Aloe plantation but there was already a tour in progress. We were ushered into the shop to see the products, make purchases and there was a video about the plantation being played which I didn’t get to see because I didn’t have enough time. At the beginning of her talk the aloe plantation manageress apologised to guests for the confusion. The talk was interesting. It was about the history of the aloe plantation, benefits of aloe, cultivating of aloe leaves and the making of products. She sliced off a nice juicy leaf at the plant’s base and removed the skin, holding up the clear jelly-like flesh for us to see. She then cut the flesh into pieces and gave us all a piece to taste. It was nice, far nicer than the harvested juice. After that it was time to head back to the ostrich farm.
We finally we got to the ostrich farm and guests thoroughly enjoyed their visit. We went in a big safari vehicle which made the farm tour easier for those with mobility issues. We saw ostriches of various ages, pot-bellied pigs walking freely around the farm, 2 crocodiles in a pond and towards the end of the tour we were given the chance to feed a female ostrich and take photographs. Back at the main building guests were allowed to stand on an egg and also hold an egg to feel its weight. There was also an ostrich chick, 8 days old, in a small pen. Apparently a member of staff removes the ostrich eggs when the male is not looking. The male wonders where on earth the egg has gone then goes on to look for another female in order to keep the egg production going. This method is basically to ‘keep him keen’. Because the ostrich farm is relatively small still staff ensure that that there is no inter-breeding. That means even when a female is ready to breed – she may have to wait for a suitable non-related male. The pens at the farm were a bit bigger than those at the farm in Aruba and the birds didn’t look so stressed.
Back at the ship I was very upset, hot and ‘bothered’. Not only had I dropped Paul’s camera and scratched the screen but also had reached the end of my tether. A lot of people are very arrogant, rude and blatantly ignorant (one day someone said that they didn’t realise that there was so much poverty in the world and asked how come the people were so poor!!); and, without going into too much detail, some thinking that their country is the centre of the universe to the extent that I nearly asked someone if they had ever had geography lessons! It can be very tiring witnessing or being at the end of someone’s rudeness, arrogance or (stupid) ignorance. After a good cry and flushing all my emotions away, I felt better.
Paul was able to get off the ship again for a few hours so volunteered to be my personal tour guide as he has been to Willemstad before. I was a bit unsure of getting off the ship in the midday heat but it was good to get off again with Paul. As we headed along the pier we came across staff working in a cherry picker. Only the cherry picker had stopped working, leaving staff high and dry, unable to neither climb down nor get to the promenade deck. The overseer had fortunately called someone to come and sort it out. In the meantime the lads were still stuck so Paul had a look at the control buttons and had a fiddle. The battery was almost dead. After trying this and that he managed to get then auxiliary system going, getting the cherry picker’s basket drawn in a bit and lowered to ground level before the battery died. The auxiliary system was extremely slow but it was better than nothing. As it was, the auxiliary system of the basket’s instrument panel didn’t work otherwise the lads would have used it to lower themselves down. I half wondered if the staff working in another cherry picker at the other end of the ship would have come to their rescue. There was an alternative system if the battery was completely dead, a matter of opening a valve or two… but fortunately it didn’t have to be used.
Paul and I finally got away from the ship, taking a good long walk around town; visiting the fish market in the harbour and also a vegetable market. We picked up an ice cream on the way. The heat was a good excuse to have something cold going down our throats. We also crossed over the old footbridge but had to wait a few minutes before doing so because it was being opened to let a tugboat through. Nowadays there is an electric gate that opens and shuts, preventing people from going onto the bridge while it is open or in motion. Anyone already on the bridge at the time it moves just has to wait until the bridge is back in place. An engine/boathouse ‘sails’ the bridge from one end to open/close it. It was interesting watching the process and then also walking on the bridge itself – which is obviously not entirely steady because it is on floats. Town was buzzing with tourists and vibrant.
With the heat taking its toll, Paul and I plodded wearily back to the ship and had a dip in the lido pool to cool off. The water was warm yet refreshing, doing its job. Then it was time for Paul to get back to work. Oh yes… (if you are of a genteel disposition, bypass the rest of this paragraph!) After nearly 3 years of going bra-less (bearing in mind that I am no longer a cup AAA, more of a C or D now) I wore one today and regretted it. My poor nipples felt as if they were on fire, getting material burns. Time to ban the bra totally (after all, it all to do with fashion) and let those puppies go free!! Blimey after the squish they were delighted to go walkies!
My photos can be seen using this link: Tour: Ostrich Farm & Aloe Plantation
The ship has just left the harbour and I’ve been back outside on the deck, risking the heat to take some photographs of the pedestrian bridge that opened so that the Maasdam could sail out. As soon as we are far enough out to sea, Paul and I can go and have some dinner.
Tomorrow? Sea day and a bit of extra zzzz for me – if my brain will kindly allow itself to calm down.
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| Sailing towards Grand Turk |
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