THE HOTTEST SOCK PHENOMENON. Anyone watching the March 18th festivities in Oranjestad on TV or live must have been impressed with the Hot Socks peeking out from behind trousered legs, as quite a number of our dignitaries and parliamentarians flashed the newest accessory for men, wild and crazy socks. Those socks are artistically crafted in bold colors and designs, signifying that the wearer of those trendsetting, contemporary fashion accessories is a good boy on the outside and a very naughty, rebellious boy on the inside. The colorful undergarment is supposed to be a fun expression of their true, cool identity, their real self, trapped in a conservative dark suit and unicolor tie.
LA-Z-BOY MAKES ME A LAZY GIRL. I visited Tropic Cas just recently. Now, that I am binge- watching brain-numbing Netflix series all night, I thought I’d better get myself a comfortable chair, a chair I can live in! The inimitable Mary and Esther greeted me with great warmth. They are gearing up for Mother’s and Father’s Day and the store is stocked with brilliant gift ideas. Apparently I was not the only one in search of furnishings and accessories, Margaret Wever and hubby Adolfo Bonarriva were there as well looking for a new living-room piece, and Liesbeth Malmberg came in for light fixtures, a Tropic Cas specialty. Then I noticed the La-A-Boy recliner and Mary, or maybe it was Esther, insisted that I give up my vertical stance in favor of a horizontal perspective. Wow what comfort. I can’t believe it’s a La-Z-Boy, I said. We get that all the time, answered Mary, or maybe it was Esther. La-Z-Boys are now so much less bulky and the fabrics are gorgeous. As of recently, Tropic Cas stocks sofas, chairs, love seats, sectionals and sleepers by the La-Z-Boy brand, and if your knees have given up on you, you may even purchase a power lift-chair recliner that will help you get up, and stand you on your feet. How about a rocker-recliner with memory foam, with 48 different positions? You got it. And the chairs have been selling at a fast pace. Apparently the whole of Aruba is binge-watching brain-numbing series on Netflix all night and requires comfortable chairs, chairs they can live in.
BLOSSOMS TUR DIA. We’ve been to Blossoms a hundred times and it’s always great. The Japanese & Chinese Restaurant at the Riu Palace Antillas suffered greatly during the ten months the hotel was closed in the transition period between the Westin flag and that of the Riu. Yet apparently, the relationship between the restaurant and the resort did not improve over that cooling down period, on the contrary, the cold war in on, with resort management representing the evil empire, completely unresponsive and indifferent to the needs of its distinguished, rent-paying tenant in the lower lobby. But the Aruban community can certainly be relied on, and while we were enjoying Wakame Salad, Sashimi, Honey Chicken, and a Dynamite Roll, we watched a parade of local dignitaries getting their fill of Blossoms’ outstanding cuisine from Rene Kan and Justus Martens, to Clifton & Ingrid Ling, Patrick Melchior, Francis Saladin, Ricky Malmberg and extended family, to Aldrick & Irene Croes. Service is always attentive, and they are the only restaurant in town that correctly serves Perrier designer water, nicely chilled, no ice. Yes they get it, if you’re drinking fancy mineral water, why downgrade it with melting ice, made with ordinary tap water?!
IMPRESSIVE BOB FOUNDATION. Apparently there are 22,000 women on the island between the age of 45 and 75 that could benefit from routine breast cancer screening. If you catch the lump on time, says Enrita Werleman, you might be able to skip the awful chemo treatments and manage to arrest the disease with just surgery and radiation. Enrita is at the moment busy setting up the foundation’s program, in which each member of the target population will receive an automatic appointment for screening every two years, in a friendly and centrally located clinic in Eagle, away from the hospital, in a fast, efficient and money saving preventive measure. The new digital mammogram machine, courtesy of banker and philanthropist Lio Capriles, from Curacao, only takes fifteen minutes to process a breast exam, and promises to reduce the stress of waiting for results. The initial funds to jump-start the project were generated at Cas Di Glas, in a two-year Peter Balliere initiative. Capriles came up with the rest. Jairo Boekhoudt is in charge of designing the ad campaign, urging women to show up, and do themselves the favor by saving their own lives. Radiologist Vanessa Williams and surgeon Dr. Deepu Darynani are on board, also a number of trained technicians, all working to reduce the impact of cancer and improve survival rates. Check Stichting BOB Aruba out on Facebook.
JET MINT BLUE OFFERS PREMIUM SERVICE. This winter Jet blue is planning to offer Mint service on Saturdays only, November 1st 2015 – April 30th 2016, on a A321 aircraft, flying 159 passengers on each leg of their flights JFK-AUS-JFK, with lie-flat seats on regular scheduled services. Each passenger gets a compartment with a fully reclining seat and nonstop inflight entertainment and dining, starting at $599. The complimentary alcoholic beverages and the upscale bites will restore the flying experience to its early day glory. Remember JetBlue Mint service, next time you go to NY.
EVER DE PENA IS NOW THE EXECUITIVE CHEF. I bet Ever is the island’s youngest executive chef. Working at the Manchebo Beach Resort & Spa, Ever went from sous-chef to chef at Ike’s Bistro and is now also responsible for the French Steakhouse, the Pega-Pega Beach Bar & Grill and the resort’s banqueting department. An invaluable part of the dining experience at the resort, Ever has been delighting guests for the past four years with his signature Mediterranean & Caribbean fusion, as well as his Caribbean & European classics. Venezuela-born, Ever grew up in Aruba. He studied at EPI’s Hospitality & Tourism section and finalized his AI-program in 2010. He was responsible for the transformation of the former Italian restaurant Giorgio’s into Ike’s Bistro, which opened in November 2012.
RESONA, A MEMORABLE PRODUCTION. The concert at Cas Di Cultura exceeded all my expectations and I urge those of you who haven’t seen it to get tickets for the 29th, the last performance. My favorite, Cunucu Di Seit, sung by Gabriela Krozendijk, a natural talent, and the late composer’s daughter, is in real life the Occidental Grand beach towel hut attendant. Gabriela’s dad, Don Ramon, apparently left over one hundred songs in his musical legacy which Gabriela would like to explore and record. My second favorite is a duet of Miguel Genser and Edselyn Figaroa, Min Sa, a rich composition by the father of our culture, Padu Lampe. Concert-goers were however disappointed when local singing stars C-Zar Olarte and Jonathan Biggie Boy Thiel, failed to show. With Michelangelo Kolman working and Jerino Ridderstap off island, the charismatic Jersey Sophia picked up the slack and did fantastic in multiple song presentations. It was a good plan B. After the ear-pleasing harmonies of Cas Di Cultura, Hamaka Sidewalk Cafe was musical-hell with three different DJs playing a cacophony at the same time. Cafe Chaos was much better. Jerusha Rasmijn and Gina Gnecco Lopez kept buying me beer to make me forget I saw them at the bar, but I remember. [email protected]
