Our Fifth Visit to Aruba

 

 

It has been a while since my last post.  Work and other life distractions have been a bit hectic so our most recent visit to the Happy Island of Aruba was a great escape.  Ernie and I normally travel alone but on this trip, our fifth visit to Aruba, we invited my son Noah, a recent high school graduate, and my longtime friends, Mike and Beth (the Carrolls).  This is the motley crew here at Las Ramblas on our first night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We typically stay at our timeshare at the Divi Phoenix but with the five of us, we needed more room so I rented a condo just a short distance away at the new Blue Residences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was absolutely fantastic to relax, enjoy the fabulous beaches and show these first-timers some of our favorite shops, beach bars and restaurants.  Our Monday morning flight from Boston arrived in the afternoon so by the time we checked in, unpacked our belongings and picked up breakfast items, snacks and such at the Super Foods, we were ready for some dinner and headed to Las Ramblas.

Not too far from the Blue Residences, Las Ramblas overlooks the beautiful Eagle Beach. Ernie and I had been to Las Ramblas on our prior trip and were extremely impressed with the whole experience.   Red sangria, petite filet, fresh fish, extraordinarily delicious vegetables, top-notch hospitality and of course, pleasant company, contributed to a perfectly delightful evening and we agreed we will be returning to Las Ramblas again on our next trip.

After coffee and a light breakfast on Tuesday morning, we walked Palm Beach to our first stop at the Marriott for $5.00 Bloody Marys (they also have mimosa). Our next stop was the Ritz-Carlton, the last hotel at the end of Palm Beach where only the most fabulous people stay and beach servers deliver guests desires via segway.

We headed back to home base and spent some time in the infinity pool and had a beverage or two in our fabulous condo at the Blue Residences before we headed out for dinner. Tango Argentine Grill where the steaks are delicious, an entertainer serenaded diners in the multi-restaurant courtyard and Juan, our server made sure everything was to our liking with a free dessert to top off the evening.  Ernie and I had been to Tango on a previous trip so we knew it would be another great  place to show our friends and no doubt, we’ll be back again.
Wednesday was another perfectly beautiful day on the happy island and for a good portion of the day we relaxed while simultaneously burning calories (is there such a thing?) as we walked along the velvety sand of Eagle beach.  While we showered and got ready for dinner, we also took plenty of time to sit out on the balcony to feel completely at ease and appreciate the amazing view. The Flying Fishbone was the evening’s dinner destination.  Ernie and I had learned from our last Flying Fishbone visit that it was an extremely popular place so Ernie had made reservations for 6:30 to ensure we would get a great table.  We were promptly seated at our table in the sand and the atmosphere was just serene.  We savored every moment of the incredible ambiance and every bite of the delectable gourmet meal.

La Trattoria El Faro Blanco at the California Lighthouse was a new experience for Ernie and me.  This was our Thursday dinner destination where the food and drinks were very good and I can imagine we will be back during a future trip.  Noah, my 18 year old son, had a little too much alcohol and made it an especially long trip back to the Blue Residences.

Feeling rather tired on Friday, we decided to get take out from Red Fish.  This place is just down the road from the Super Foods.  It is not find dining but the food and service are excellent.

El Gaucho Argentine Grill was another new experience for Ernie and me.  It’s downtown and a bit dark inside but the food and service are very good.  The 3 person mariachi band played some Spanish tunes and then broke out to the tune Sweet Caroline and got the whole restaurant singing.  Super fun!

Everybody goes to Gianni’s Italian restaurant.  This is a really large place in the middle of the activities across from the hotels on Palm Beach.  Lobster ravioli, Caprese salad, whiskey fired pasta for two and cabernet were amazing.  While we were quite full, we could not resist getting some gelato next door at Gelatisimo.  I was pleasantly surprised there was a coffee flavor called nutella.

Clearly, we’re good eaters.