January 22, 2017, Sunday, Willemstad, Curacao

January 22, 2017, Sunday

Ashore at Willemstad, Curacao
We had breakfast in the Lido. Followed by a quick elevator ride to the gangway and ashore to explore a new island, at least for us. Curacao is a Dutch owned island and part of the ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao. All are about forty miles off the coast of Venezuela. We had not booked a ship’s tours so we were on our own.
Right at the pier, we found a guide with a twenty-passenger bus and offered a two and a half tour of the local sights, all for $20 a head. We took the offer and were soon headed out. Our guide, a lady by the name of Luz, proceeded to shows us around town going over the highest bridge in the Caribbean which crosses the main harbor with access to an oil refinery. We were shown the older sections of town.  One house called the Wedding Cake House, the gift of a father to his son’s bride. We stopped at the distillery which makes the orange peel liquor, Curacao. We were given a couple of samples. Next stop was a gift shop with a million-dollar view. The view included the old harbor originally used by the Spanish galleons, a tall mountain being mined for fertilizer, and a very upscale neighborhood, one of the houses owned by Oprah Winfrey. I think it is really a ten million-dollar view.
At the end of the tour, we were dropped off at the downtown area to do some shopping, sightseeing and just wandering around. Passed by the oldest synagogue in the Caribbean. We then took our time walking back to the ship, crossing the channel on a pontoon bridge. We were back on board before 1630 and the Sail Away Party.
In the evening, we took in a show by Troy Thirdgill, a comedian.