Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles (2015)

The garden of our holiday home in Coral Estate on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles was beautiful. There were flowers everywhere and almost all were blooming lavishly. It was clearly designed in such a away that flowers could be enjoyed from every corner in both the house and the garden.

Our holiday home in Coral Estate on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles had such a huge garden and so many lovely corners and corridors. We loved this trellis gateway a lot and occasionally had a coffee here.

We were going to have lunch at a restaurant at Caracasbaai on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. Opposite the restaurant was a small jetty with some boats which looked so inviting that we suddenly felt an urge to go on to the water.

Exploring the area around Caracasbaai on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. While on our way to Fort Beekenburg we spotted this idyllic looking small beach. But looks can be so deceiving, as right behind the rocks was a huge industrial installation.

In order to deviate from the standard tourist attractions on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles, we went to see Fort Beekenburg. The fort is located on a rocky outcrop next to the Caracas Bay east of the city of Willemstad.

Fort Beekenburg was built in 1703 on the orders of the Governor Van Beek to protect the entrance to the bay behind it; the Spaanse Water. The round tower of the fort was completely built out of stones that were fabricated in the Netherlands and which were shipped to Curaçao as ballast.

We loved being the only ones here and had a great time exploring.

Visiting the Sea Aquarium on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. I remembered this place from when I was there twenty-five years earlier but the area improved a lot. Especially this bridge leading up to the sea aquarium. The aquarium itself was quite disappointing to be honest.

Against my better judgement we went to visit the Sea Aquarium in Willemstad on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. I had been there over twenty years earlier and thought it was rather sad. I really hoped it had improved but it didn't unfortunately. It's not a pretty place for animals to be held, especially the dolphins. This starfish looked like it wanted to get out badly.

After a visit to the Sea Aquarium on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles we had a drink at a bar overlooking an inlet. After a while this common iguana showed up enjoying the abundant sunshine. It was a pretty large specimen and its colours were just awesome.

Here we are at the tourist office in Willemstad, the islands capital city. Me and my wife love the colours on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. In fact, we love them so much that we decided to paint some walls in our apartment in exactly this yellowish colour. It always makes us happy.

After spending a lovely morning at out holiday home in Coral Estate on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles we decided to have a small picnic near the ocean. We didn't have to go far as we could take our lunch down the stairs to a small platform that was created for just this purpose. We enjoyed both lunch and the roaring sounds of the crashing waves.

While we were driving around on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles we noticed this old house next to the road. Somehow I am always fascinated by dilapidated houses like this one. It always makes me wonder who lived there and why it was abandoned. Great for some nice photos though.

So many beaches on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. So many boats too. Here's one left on the beach at Daaibooi bay. We had a lovely late afternoon cocktail and simply enjoyed the view.

Christoffel Park on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles is a beautiful place visit. There are a few scenic routes for driving around in the park with plenty of stops to explore some more details on foot. While walking we came upon an old abandoned copper mine where the entrance clearly shows remnants of copper.

While we enjoyed a drink near the ticket office of Christoffel Park on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles this little bird joined us, probably hoping for a little snack. The yellow oriole blended in so nice sitting on the yellow wall.

The northern coast on the island of Cucaçao, Netherlands Antilles is wild and unpredictable. It is this roughness that is attracting many people to visit Sheta Boka National Park with its many bays. Here we are at Boka Grandi on a viewing platform overlooking the barren and dry landscape. The lonely cactus next to us was about the only vegetation that had some colour.

We had a great time exploring the area around Boka Grandi on the island of Cucaçao, Netherlands Antilles. It's part of Shete Boka National Park on the wild northern coast of Curaçao. Since I love looking at waves crashing onto the rocks I had a great time here.

The bay at Boka Grandi in Shete Boka National Park on the island of Cucaçao, Netherlands Antilles is pretty big compared to some of the others.

While my wife stayed behind I crossed a large stretch of coral rubble and a white sandy beach to reach the other side of the bay and climb the rocks there. Felt amazing!

I had been to Boka Tabla on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles before but I wanted to go back. It is located in Shete Boka National Park, close to Westpunt on the north-western end of the island. It was exactly as I remembered. Boka Tabla is a cave passage, one end opens out on land, the other end opens out into the sea. The high waves enter the cave, which is a very impressive sight. Getting inside the cave is quite tricky, the climb down is slippery and requires a little fitness and appropriate clothes as it's hard not to get wet. Watch out for the very low ceiling!

Boka Wandomi was another one of the stunning bays in the Shete Boka National Park which we visited on the island of Cucaçao, Netherlands Antilles. It is situated in the Park beside the Natural Bridge. It was an opportunity to see the wild and rugged coast being lashed by the Southern Caribbean Sea.

After a great day out on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles we had dinner at our holiday home in Coral Estate. The sky had many tiny clouds and the sunset proved to be truly amazing.

A visit to the floating market is a must when in Willemstad on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. Everyday Venezulean market traders supply the market with fresh fruits and vegetables from Venezuela which is only 75km away. Their sometimes rickety boats are docked in downtown Willemstad and sell their goods to local people as well as tourists.

A friend of ours asked us to visit Jaanchie's in the small village of Westpunt on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. Jaanchie's is a restaurant famous for its seafood and has been around for a very long time. The old owner is still around and welcomes each and every guest personally.

Since I first visited the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles I was taken by the sheer beauty of this extremely small beach near Westpunt called Playa Kalki. It's a small corner in paradise but great for swimming and some relaxing. Nowadays there is a small bar which allows you to get a drink while enjoying the crystal clear water.

The island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles hosts quite a few plantation homes. In the nineteenth century, slavery was very common on the island as the preferred workforce for these plantations. Since slavery was abolished most of the plantation homes were abandoned. These days a few have been restored like this yellow plantation house called Landhuis Knip. Inside a small museum shows some of the gruesome details of the slavery period.

Even though we are both not into museums all that much we did go into Landhuis Knip on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. It was truly interesting to read about the history of slavery on the island and the role that these plantation houses played in it. Apart from learning about the history of this place we admired its architecture.

Playa Kenepa Grandi or Grote Knip as it is called in Dutch is a beautiful bay on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. We did not actually went to the beach to swim in the crystal clear water but the view from above was perfect. We spent some time enjoying the view while sitting on this bench.

The holiday home we had rented on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles lies on a cliff in a guarded area called Coral Estate. It was a truly magical place to stay with all the flowers and the ocean so close. The sea below is incredibly clear.

We were spending a relaxing day in our holiday home on Coral Estate. The estate is far away from the more touristy areas on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles.

The villa has a small path leading down to a platform near the ocean and I loved going there to just watch the waves crashing against the rocks. The water was insanely blue.

There are so many beautiful beaches on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles and it's impossible to visit them all. This day we went to Cas Abao Beach. It has a few facilities like a small bar and nice thatched roof for some shade. We always pick a spot away from the crowds so we ended up in this corner overlooking the whole beach.

While my wife was swimming at Cas Abao Beach on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles I noticed a black shadow in the turquoise water. It appeared to be a harmless manta ray that was just passing by. It was pretty amazing to see how large these fascinating animals actually are.

While driving from our holiday home in Coral Estate towards the west side of the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles we passed Jan Kok Bay and noticed a group of wild famingos. Even though many of them were sleeping it was magnificent to watch them.

We were visiting Playa Santa Cruz on the island of Curaçao in the Netherlands Antilles where we looked around for a bit and had a drink. I have always had a weakness for colourful boats, especially when they are weathered like this one. There were quite a few, probably owned by local people although I wonder if this particular one would be of much use.

Early in my working career I had to visit the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles on a few occasions. Me and my colleagues at that time always booked a hotel on the west side of the island near Santa Martha. It was quiet and peaceful, had a small beach and a bay that could be safely used for swimming and snorkeling.

During our visit in 2015 I went back there but unfortunately the hotel was no longer in use. This area here used to be the outside terrace where we always had breakfast.

I had a birthday surprise dinner booked for my wife at a restaurant in Pirate Bay, Willemstad on the island of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. It was a special table at the end of a pier and it would only be the two of us dining there. When arriving at the restaurant it was pretty clouded but luckily it cleared up soon after that and the sunset turned out to be magical.