Curaçao

Curaçao was great – colorful Dutch colonial cosmopolitan town of nearly 150,000 with great shopping and a beautiful protected natural harbor, the best in the Caribbean. The Dutch East India Co. chose for their West Indian headquarters and took it from the Spanish.

The harbor entrance is unique: the “Old Lady Bridge” is a low pedestrian pontoon bridge that swings open like a gate 10 or 15 times a day to allow ships to pass from the open sea up into the main channel. At the back end of the channel is a 150 foot suspension bridge allowing access to the inner harbor.

We went snorkeling over a wreck, lot's of great colored fish and walked into downtown Willemstad (Williamstown).

The local language is a criole dialect, Papiamentu, with enough Spanish that we could read and understand it. Welcome is “Bon Bini” which is a variation of French or Spanish “Bon Venir.”

The "Old Lady Bridge" at the harbor entrance, suspension bridge in the rear, our ship parked in between.

The Dutch on Curaçao like puns - Joani at the dock to board the boat for snorkeling

Willemstad across the main harbor channel

Curaçao inner harbor behind our ship the "Insignia" and the suspension bridge