Episode 109: Aruba Curt and Maggie Feb 2018 Vacation Part 3

We are back for the third part of our Aruba February 2018 trip series. Maggie and I are currently stuck in traffic while on the way back from Eagle beach so we figured we might as well get the show started while we’re at it.

 

The following will be a recap of the events that occurred from Sunday night (February 25th) to Wednesday evening (February 28th).

 

To pick up where we left off last time, we went to Ling’s Chinese Restaurant for dinner. It was a nice, clean little place with decent food. If you’re looking for value and like Chinese food, then we definitely recommend this place.

 

Monday morning, we headed off to Palm Beach and set up our own little spot right between the Hilton and the Bugaloe. It’s basically a no man’s land with easy water access which is just perfect for us. However, the water topography was a little bit different than usual. It appeared a little murkier and was littered with numerous rocks, but nevertheless, that did not deter us from enjoying a beautiful day at the beach. We also stopped by at Eduardo’s to get our favorite Acai balls. They were lovely as always. Lunch was spent at Pelican’s Pier. Even though the food was good, the service leaves much to be desired which I suppose crosses it out from my list of restaurants to eat at from now on.

 

Moving on, that evening was truly a memorable one because we went to an Aruba Ray comedy show as planned. The funny thing is every time we watch one of those shows, we always say “that’s the best one we’ve seen yet” but this time, it really is the best. There were 5 comedians in the line-up: Ray Ellin (who’s always there), Tony V, Ricky Velez, Mike Vecchione, and Jim Colliton. All of them positively delivered. It was a phenomenal show. I am going to take this chance to encourage everyone that if you’re down on the island right now, you should absolutely check out Aruba Ray’s Comedy shows. You would be short-selling yourself if you don’t. The show will run until the end of March so don’t miss out! Visit their website for more information: arubacomedy.com

 

The next day, which is Tuesday, we woke up kind of late while still being pretty buzzed from the drinks we had at Aruba Ray’s open bar at the Marriott the night before. So it made for a pretty lazy day of hanging out at our favorite Eagle beach while stopping by for meals at Don Pistache and Pickles.

 

Come evening was an event that we were looking forward to the most: Friends of One Happy Podcast’s Meet-up at Barney’s. We are very thankful to the 30 or so people who showed up.  Thank you for hanging out with us and generally having a good time. It’s always nice to meet new people. Barney’s also did an amazing job with the snacks, special drinks, food, and service so kudos to them! One of these days I hope I can secure a podcast interview with them.

 

Wednesday was Full Throttle Tour day. Let me tell you that Full Throttle Tours is now in the top 5 of the best excursions I’ve experienced in Aruba. Maggie and I had a really fun time. Full Throttle Tours basically takes you on a speedboat to drift snorkel on different spots on the island. The big difference with other snorkeling tours is that the boat can move very fast, so it has the ability to take you from one end of the island to almost the next end. You can learn all about it in Episodes 101 and 102 of One Happy Podcast, in which I interviewed the family who runs the business.

 

After that, we had a little missing car fiasco which was thankfully resolved without further issues. So that evening, we opted for a quiet dinner and to just unwind by sitting at the beach and looking at the night sky and stars. It was the perfect ending to an eventful day and reminded us of the true spirit of vacation: relaxation.

 

ON THIS EPISODE OF ONE HAPPY PODCAST, YOU WILL:

 

• Learn about the exciting snorkel locations we went to during the Full Throttle Tour.
• Hear about a new restaurant that will open soon in downtown Aruba.
• Hear the interesting cautionary tale about parking in Downtown Aruba.  Learn from my stupidity.

ESTABLISHMENTS, EXCURSIONS, AND RESTAURANTS MENTIONED:

 

Barney's Bar & Restaurant

Aruba Comedy

Full Throttle Tours

Ling’s Restaurant

Bugaloe

Hilton Aruba

Eduardo’s

Pelican Pier

Legends Pub

Alfie's

Don Pastechi

Pickles, Sandwich Bar & More

Lucy's Retired Surfers & Bar

Matthew's Beachside Restaurant