12 Nov. 2015; At Sea / Oranjestad, Aruba.

The passing of hurricane Kate caused some destabilization in the Caribbean and that turned the wind slightly from an Eastern Trade wind to something coming out of the South East. It resulted in the peculiar situation of having a ship which on occasion bumped into the waves. A sort of occasional pitch without rhythm or sequence. Normal on this course (SE) the wind is on the beam and so are the waves and then the stabilizers take care of the movement.

Note the ropes of both ships going over the pier to large inland bollards

The next peculiar thing caused by the wind was that it was blowing from the “wrong side” on arrival. Normally the wind is straight over the island and the whole bollard setup which keeps the ships safely alongside with the mooring lines has been designed accordingly. Long lines with bollards set inland to keep the ship with their portside tightly alongside against an overland wind which can go up to 50 knots in rain squalls. But today the wind is just on the starboard bow and it pushes the ships against the dock instead of trying to blow them off.

Note the outline on the chart screen showing the overhang of the Jewel of the Seas.

We are not the only ship in port, there is also an Apartment of the Seas, the Jewel of the Seas to be correct, which is docked ahead of us. Both ships at the one long Pier and it just fits.  The Jewel would have been in an overhang if the Port authorities would not have installed a dolphin in front of the pier and thus the Jewel could hang over and still have good lines out against the wind.

The ship is staying here until 23.00 hrs. tonight as part of the company policy to offer one late evening call during a cruise longer than 7 days. We try it on seven days as well but it does not always work out that way. Oranjestad on Aruba is a good port to do this as there is something to do for the guests in the evening should they wish so, or stay away instead of having to hurry back at 16.30 hrs. Most shops stay open, restaurants there are a-plenty, and there is a big casino as well. Plus after sunset, when the temperature gets a bit more reasonable it is also just plain nice to walk along the boulevard.  For the crew and some of the experienced Dutch Guests there is the Pilgrims journey to the Paddock. The restaurant near the pier with the cow on the roof. Dutch fast food and cold beer to feel as if back in Holland for a few hours. There is (at least there was last year) a Dutch Pancake restaurant but that is a good 15 minute walk.

Aruba is a bit of a strange situation for us as Dutch people. It used to be Dutch as one of our Colonies in the area (A.B.C islands; Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao) and then it went its own way with a Status Aparte. This means the island runs itself although it still has a Governor who re-presents the Kingdom of the Netherlands. A sort of Commonwealth as the British have. Some of the other islands have much closer ties to the Netherlands and are more financially intertwined. So although Aruba has its Dutch ties its focus is less on the motherland and more on North America where most of the Tourists are coming from.  Apart from oil, Tourism is the major factor in the islands economy and there are more tourists coming from North America than there are from Europe.

The Jewel of the Seas and the Zuiderdam at the Oranjestad Cruise terminal. (Courtesy Lesley Schoonderbeek who has spy camera’s everywhere to keep an eye on her hubby………….LoL)

We sail tonight towards Willemstad Curaçao  which is just around the corner, hence that we can sail so late.  I will be transferring tomorrow to the Westerdam and for that I have to fly back to Florida. So tomorrow there will be no blog as I believe not many readers will be interested in seeing a description of the waiting room in Willemstad Airport.  It should be a similar day as today so I will not have to put my winter coat to leave the ship.