Aruba

Every evening they come to sit by the shore to await the sunset: a family of six visiting from some distant land. During the day the parents may have dined in style or gambled in the glitzy casinos downtown. The kids may have gone snorkeling or diving, or perhaps drove an ATV across the arid, moonlike surface of the northern coast. The evening, though, is the time when they all come together as a family to watch the sun dip down below the water. In the tangerine light of another Aruba sunset, they hug and laugh, six happy silhouettes against the Caribbean sky.

Cruise ships gleam in Oranjestad Harbour, while thousands of eager tourists scavenge through souvenir stalls looking for the perfect memento. The mile-long stretch of L. G. Smith Boulevard is lined with cafés, designer stores, and signs for the latest Vegas-style shows. The countryside is dotted with colorful cunucu (country-style houses) and small neighborhood shops. Suddenly, the rocky desert landscape is startlingly austere.

Aruba offers an amazingly diverse experience in a small package. Tourists flock here for the sunny climate, perfect waters, and excellent beaches—so much so that the area around beautiful Eagle Beach is an almost unbroken line of hotels, restaurants, and bars. Here on the south coast, the action is nonstop both day and night, while the fiercely rugged north coast is a desolate and rocky landscape that has so far resisted development.

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