Day 7 -Friday - Beach Hopping Snorkling Tour

 Well guys… It's hard to believe that I reached day seven already! It's been an amazing trip it's just so hard to believe it's time to head home tomorrow.   Today I had my very last excursion for this trip to Aruba.

 A bus picked me up at my hotel at 9 AM… The tour was with EL Tours and it's called the Beach Hopper. We hop to two different beaches and snorkel while we're there. The snorkeling equipment and water to drink is included… as well as the transportation in an open air bus.

Here is the outside of the bus that picked me up… Pretty crazy!

Here's a shot of the inside of the bus… I was the last pick up so there was only about 16 of us on the tour.    

Here's my little selfie from the bus…    

The first stop was Mangel Halto beach... this is the little mangrove that we used to get in and out of the water.

And here is a view of the entry/exit from the water...

This is the picture I took while I was floating out there… This first stop had quite a few fish but you had to go pretty far out and it wasn't that clear. I do have a video from the second stop that was a lot clearer so I'm going to post that video later in this post.

 We stayed at the first beach for about an hour… After that we hopped on the bus to head to the second beach.  During the drive, we spotted these wild donkeys on the side of the road. Our tour guide Uri had brought a loaf of bread to feed the fish.  He hopped off the bus and fed some to the donkeys so we could see them up close.  

This would be my donkey selfie…

Where else would you see this site? This is my tour guide Yuri with a wild donkey. You gotta love Uri's Santa hat in the middle of the desert!    

The next stop after the donkey visit was Baby Beach. This is a very well-known beach for snorkeling and just chilling. Here's a picture across the beach…

And here is the video if you want to snorkel along!

We actually spent two full hours snorkeling around Baby  Beach. It was a pretty amazing trip. My tour guide took me along the reefs as well… We started at one end and just floated  there while the current pulled us all the way down to where the other snorkelers were....

 On the way home he stopped here at the Lourdes Grotto.  It is a unique Roman Catholic shrine built into the rocks!  It is decorated for Christmas as well!

Little closer view...

I got dropped off at my hotel and then got showered and dressed and walked over to the Renaissance Marketplace to get dinner. I had to get this picture for you… This is how the ice skate in Aruba! It is a plexiglass skating rink.

I tried a new restaurant Cuba's Cooking tonight. It was perfect. I asked my waiter what he recommended and he suggested the pork steak. It was absolutely delicious. I was seated outside on the patio right in front of the Cuban band… It was a great dinner! 

 

Here is the live performer… He was fantastic!

On my walk back to the hotel I decided I had to stop and get a picture of this iconic sign! I actually got a picture of this last time I was here as I was driving past it. Much easier to take the photo when you're walking! LOL!

This is the view down to the boat launch from my balcony… If I was more athletic I could probably dive off my balcony and hit the water… LOL!

I am quite sure that this post has horrible formatting! In fact; I am quite sure this has been the case all week! Thank you all for bearing with me. It is so hard to do these blog post from my iPad. If anyone has any app that makes it easier please let me know. I've paid for two different apps and neither one of them makes posting from my iPad any easier!  There are so many glitches and it's just so hard to get the formatting in there. 

So,  again… thanks to my readers that have kept reading and have been  bearing with me through this week of horrible formatting and spelling and no links… I could go on and on!

I  promise to fix them all when I am home! 

Until then… I hope you all have had an amazing week and I cannot wait to catch up with everyone! Have a great weekend guys! 

Friday Favorites / Five on Friday

Hi ya'll!!! Welcome to my blog! I am so happy to write this post today!!

Here it is...Friday again!

Yippee!!! 

Friday this week means that I am off work for the rest of the year!!! What?!?!? Yup!!! You read that right...the rest of the year!!! Wowsa - I am so thankful for this MUCH NEEDED break! I will not return to work until after the new year! Yippee me!

I am starting out my off time right by heading to Aruba for a long awaited vacation with MYSELF!!! Yes, you read that right too! Myself! I will be traveling alone and I am sooo happy about it! I take a family vacation every year and that is always awesome and I took a Hawaii vacation this year with my Mom and that was awesome! But now, I am truly looking forward to having no one to answer to except me!! I get to do whatever I want, whenever I want!! SO EXCITING!!! Then I will return home and spend Christmas eve and day with my family!

If you are a robber and are reading this and thinking..."yippee"...don't try it! Or, I guess you could it just wont end well for you! HA!

I have a cat sitter/house sitter, I live in a secured condo building on the second floor and I have cameras! So, try it! LOL! Also, I have the worlds best neighbors and I am sure they will stop you if if the cats, cat sitter or cameras don't. Just one of the bonuses of owning a condo I suppose!

So, onto my five this week!!!

Here are my five top things I will be doing in Aruba next week...

I have booked this half day Jeep Safari tour. The tour company website says "Ideal for those who want to discover the wild side of the island without spending a full day on tour. Be your own driver in a 4X4 Jeep that will show you some of the most beautiful sights on the island. Fantastic guides will keep you entertained all the way in this off-road adventure."

Next I booked this Beach Hopping / Snorkling Tour.  The company website says A new snorkeling adventure with an  open air bus. Visiting the hidden secret Mangel Halto for a snorkeling stop, afterwards moving towards the famous Baby Beach for another snorkeling stop.

Then I booked this Snorkel Adventure with a different company. The website says See Aruba from a new perspective, aboard the spacious Palm Pleasure, a 70-foot-long and 40-foot-wide catamaran. You'll get treated to 3 snorkel stops, open bar, lunch and beautiful views.

Another thing I cannot wait to do is attend this Aruba Fashion Week!! It just happens to be there during my stay so I am planning to definitely check it out!!

And lastly, I will do more of this next activity than anything else!! I am planning to RUN to my favorite local beach and run to set myself up at my favorite little pagoda!!! Fingers crossed - it is still there and waiting for my arrival...Arashi Beach here I come!!! Oh how I have missed you Aruba!

I promise to blog about the adventures as much as possible so that it will almost be like you are there with me! Happy Holidays to you all! I am so very grateful for each and every one of you that takes time out of your day to read my blog and show interest in my life! Hugs to you all!!!!

I will also spend my time on the beaches reading your blogs so please keep posting I need all the reading material I can get!!!!