Our first port is C for Curacoa and we play all day

After two relaxing days at sea, we reached the port at Willemstad, Curacao.

Curacao is a little ways off the coast of Venezuela.  Its name is most likely derived from the Portuguese word for "cured."  Early Spanish sailors, suffering with scurvy, found themselves miraculously healed after landing here, most likely from eating local fruits rich in vitamin C.

We have a full day planned--an ATV ride in the morning and stand-up paddleboarding in the afternoon.

We had reserved our tour with ATV and Buggy Tours.  Our ride to their office was waiting for us as soon as we made our way off the ship.

Soon we were off for a tour of the island, with Lorenzo as our guide.

It was great fun to tour the island this way.  We stopped often to check out various sites.

First it was an aloe farm...

Then an ostrich farm...

It also had several peacocks roaming around.

even a white one...

And I found Lorenzo singing a song to a goat...

Next we drove through the desert-like terrain to a cave

and followed Lorenzo up a hill to the entrance.

Outside on top of the cave we had a panoramic view

Onward we traveled, stopping by a beach

and another cave 

Then it was off toward the giant wind generators...

We stopped at another beach where we could swim or just dip our feet into the warm water.

Here on the rocky shore, Terry spotted a fossil of a shell.

It was HUGE!

We stopped by an natural arch bridge for some wonderful views

We thought this might make a nice Christmas card....or just a way to embarrass our children!  LOL

We had a blast on the 4-wheeler, mud and all..

It was then back to the ship to grab some lunch before it was time to meet Hilde for our SUP experience....that's Stand Up Paddleboard.  Our daughter loves to SUP so we thought we would give it a try.

Hilde met us at the port gate and drove us to their headquarters where we got in a boat to take us to the SUPs.

We headed across the water toward the mangroves

At this point I had to leave the camera and attempt to stand up on one of these paddleboards. Our guide, Gars, would take photos as we paddled along...

Success, I'm up and ready to paddle.

After a few minutes of teetering on the board, I relaxed and felt steady and we were ready to go.

We paddled along the mangroves and enjoyed the scenery and calm waters.

 We stopped for a break among the mangroves for water and a snack.

 Then it was time to stand up and paddle across the open water to the dock at their headquarters.

Now we are energized and experienced...really, Gars?

While dealing with some waves from speed boats passing by, we successfully navigated our way back to the SUP's dock.  We stayed dry the whole time!

It was a wonderful experience and we definitely plan to join our daughter this summer on the reservoir near our home for more SUPing!

Thanks, Gars!

Our next port is Aruba.  Click on "Newer Post" below the comment section and you will go directly to:  A is for Aruba and we ride trikes!