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June 2005

South Coast

David Aaronson
2005-10-01 20:46:31

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cities on the island and assorted beaches as well.

North of the cacophany of the high-rise area is the northern tip of the island which once again becomes quiet and idyllic and has impossibly beautiful beaches like Arashi beach, shown here (6). Arashi beach is the northern terminus of the bus line that runs up from Oranjestad and is a very good use of the bus indeed. It will drop you off right at the beach and periodically return to take you back to your hotel. The buses, like most of Aruba take either US or Aruban currency. Aruban currency is more fun because half the coins are square.

Arashi is a great place to snorkel although you have to swim out to the kelp beds where some old pilings seem to attract the most coral and fish life. Often it was possible to stand up waist-deep in water as much as 200 yards (180m) from shore.

Another great spot for snorkelling is just south of Arashi and is called Boca Catalina (7). Occassionally a tour boat of snorkellers (or revelers) will float up and dock in one of the little harbors of Boca Catalina and disperse snorkellers in all directions. You should then pick a different harbor. This particular one we had all to ourselves for the afternoon. The shore is a bit rocky here so getting out into deeper water is a bit tricky (in flippers especially) but definitely worth it.

Here's a swarm of yellow fish because the puffer fish I chased all over Boca Catalina refused to pose for a photo (8). Parrot fish, angel fish, snappers, and some very fast orange things are also common.

At the very north end of the south coast (yeah that doesn't really make sense) is the California Lighthouse (9). It's not really all that exciting unless you're big on lighthouses but it's a mandatory stop on the tour of Aruba (see the north coast page for more on this subject). From here you can see, well, the same view you have everywhere else in Aruba. Water, some brightly colored houses and some lumpy looking hills in the interior of the island. However, having toured pretty much the whole coast we can tell you that it's not worth renting a car to find remote beaches. There aren't any, and Arashi and Boca Catalina are probably the nicest we went to. Plus they were more or less deserted and are easily bus-accessible from the hotel districts.