The End

The End

Nothing like Business/First Class

Flying home first in Business and then in first Class felt great.  I sat next to a well-traveled woman on the flight to NYC. She mentioned the. Biltmore Hotel just outside Miami.

Leaving on a jet...

Time up. I am glad to be heading home 3 nights in a resort area is enough for me.  The town was nice but so geared to cruise ship shopping. I guess if I was more of a water person there would be more to enjoy but I am what I am.

The Oldest Synagogue

This Synagogue was beautiful in its simplicity. It is the oldest in the Western Hemisphere.

Dating back to 1728, the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel Synagogue is the oldest Jewish temple in continuous use in the New World. Commonly called the Snoa (short for the old Portuguese word for synagogue, esnoga), the temple was founded by Jews from the Netherlands and Brazil who were displaced during the Spanish Inquisition. Tourists may visit the adjoining Jewish Historical Cultural Museum, which houses a Torah scroll brought to Curaçao by the island's first Jewish settlers, along with other artifacts and Judaica.

Many recent travelers were in awe of story that the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel Synagogue has to tell, as well as its role in the history of Judaism. The temple's sand-covered floors symbolize both the 40 years that biblical Jews spent wandering the desert, as well as the sandy floors used by secret Jews in Spain to muffle the sounds of their illegal worship during the Inquisition.
I felt the sand covered floor was a powerful connection to its past. 

 

The Floating Bridge

The Queen Emma Bridge, built in 1888, can be considered as the landmark of the island of Curacao. The world's largest floating bridge, "the old swinging lady", is definitely the most famous and photographed structure on the island. It was closed for motorized traffic once the Queen Juliana Bridge was opened in 1974 for traffic. Today only pedestrians are allowed to use the bridge, which connects Punda and Otrobanda in Willemstad. The carnival parade used to pass over the bridge in the past, the last time it did was in 1993. The bridge has been restored twice: in 1939 and 2006. The bridge swings open to let vessels into the harbor. While opened, pedestrians can use the free ferry service to travel between Punda and Otrobanda. I love this bridge and I find it very unique! I'm sure if this bridge was built in a bigger, world city, it would have been a well known landmark all over the world!

Last two days

The second day here was spent working on a tan and just relaxing at the hotel.  I met some women fron Dusseldolf and talked about traveling at the bar.
I woke up early and decided to grab a cab and head into town. Willestad, Curasao is a UNESCO world hertigage site.  The builings are all painted in pastel colors and the town has a delightful waterfront. Some town photos...

The Marriott

Nice Hotel.....

Curacao

The day arrived and not a moment to soon s NYC is getting ready to get hit with more snow.  My free ticket to Curacao came about thought using American Airlines stopover rules hen I returned from  Europe in October.
I had a 4am wake up call to get a 7am flight to Curacao.  of course, I barley slept.  An easy flight to Miami where I had a hour layover to my final destination.
Frustration and annoyance were the order of the day as Immigration and customs were a nightmare.  I got out of the airport and not a cab to be found anywhere. I never saw an airport with so few cabs,   The sky was overcast and then a torrential downpour bean to change the day. I was worried about my Panama and not getting it wet when a cab picked me and this other couple up and saved the day.
The guy part of the couple I shared the cab with is a relative of Charlie "King Kong" Keller.  They were there for Veterinary conference.  It was cool to share Yankee stories but his wife seem bored having heard it all  many times.
The kind woman at the desk of the hotel checked me in and after I complained about my loyalty to Marriott and having to pay for internet she proceeded to comp me the internet for the 3 days at a cost of $75.  My room, while not the king I asked for was a nice Queen double with terrace overlooking both the garden and water.
I unpacked and heeaded to the bar......