A most enjoyable day ashore in Curacao. We arrived at the dock about 0900 and we were very much ready to go. It was sunny and partly cloudy but very warm. The wind was still blowing, a strong and constant force 7. Luckily we were diving from the shore so that didn't matter very much.

As we came out of the dock gates there was a chap with a sign with Bob's name on it. We said "are you Mark" and he said "yes" so we loaded our dive gear into his truck and set off. About 5 minutes into the journey his mobile rang and he passed it back to Bob. It was Mark from Twin Divers who we had booked with. "Why had we gone off with Dive Curacao?" "Why did Dive Curacao have a board with my name on it?" asked Bob. It was all very mysterious, obviously a kidnapping attempt LOL but we got the guy to drop us at Twin Divers albeit he muttered a bit.

We picked Twin Divers because Mark had shown a sense of humour in our correspondence and we just liked his vibe. He really lived up to it. A native of Curacao, he takes very small groups shore diving, He took us to two dive sites that were far off the radar, certainly no one else was there. The diving was superb. Big walls, lots of coral, sponges, small and large fish. Nothing particularly stunning but a dazzling array of life. The visibility was very good. The only down side was entry and exit through the surf, particularly on the first dive. And on the first dive we had to scramble down some steep rocks to get to the entry point. Mark carried our sets for us though LOL. It's good to be old sometimes…….

I managed to get rolled a bit in the surf coming out of the first dive and got a couple of scrapes but nothing much. We really enjoyed the diving and would definitely recommend Curacao, Twin Divers and would like to come back again.

Got back to the ship about 4pm, dumped the kit and turned around and walked into the main centre of Willemstad, the capital of the island. It's a ridiculously pretty town. All the houses are Dutch style and painted in bright colours, quite stunning really. Lots of squares and little bars and restaurants. Lots of shopping…. And free wifi through the streets. We walked along the esplanade and through the old guard fort which has been turned into a quaint shopping centre. To get to the old part of the city we had to walk across the swing bridge. The old part of town is full of winding cobbled streets.

I'm ashamed to admit that we were both starving and short of time so….. we went into KFC and shared some chicken!!!!! Gobbled it down like starving men and then wandered on again. Managed to have a phone chat with Daisy. She didn't get the Premier Inn internship but was pretty positive about it all as she felt she'd done well and they said she had been very close. Walked a big loop back to the ship and then sat on the quay and tried to FT Lu. She was on a press jaunt in Newcastle, it all looked amazing. She was in a restaurant and could show us the menu. We could show her Curacao. Technology is extraordinary.

I uploaded some blog photos and we hopped back on Aurora at 5:55, just before the gangway came up. Absolutely knackered to be honest. Bit of back ache which is usual for me these days after diving. Leaped into the shower to get the salt and sand off. My hair looked a sight! Spiked up like that hedgehog guy years ago.

Really liked Curacao. Apart from the Disneyesque port of Willemstadt, it isn't a very attractive island. Flattish and brushy. More like Cayman than the lush beauty of Jamaica or St Lucia. But….. the diving was really good. Not as good as Cayman, if you can get someone to take you in a small party on Cayman but much better than Jamaica or St Lucia.

So tired, we limped up to the Horizon and grabbed some quick dinner and then went to the early show at 830. The Johnson Brothers who won Britain's Got Talent some years ago. These two chaps came on who were just like Ant and Dec i.e. tiny and then they opened their mouths and the hugest voices came out. Amazing.