After four decades as one of Aruba’s most trusted names in aquatic recreation, Aqua Windie’s proudly enters a new chapter with the opening of its modern dive shop at Caya Harmonia 4, located inside the Lava Building. This milestone marks not only a new chapter, but also the start of a generational transition within the family business.

What began with Windie’s father — one of Aruba’s early pioneers in sailing and snorkeling charters — has grown into a multi-faceted watersport enterprise rooted in passion, service, and family. From the hand-built charter vessels Octopus and later Blue Melody, to Windie’s own dive school and the iconic aqua fitness center opposite the hospital, the brand evolved through dedication and vision.

Today, Aqua Windie’s enters a forward-looking chapter. The new dive shop creates space for innovation and elevated guest experiences — while symbolizing the transition into a new era, in which the next generation of the family continues the mission built over decades. Meanwhile, all Aqua Fitness activities will continue at the current pool facility, which features Aruba’s largest half-Olympic-size training pool.

“The sea has always been at the center of my life,” Windie shares. “Diving, snorkeling, and aquatic fitness do more than build strength — they calm the mind, bring joy, and connect people. Seeing our guests return year after year and witnessing my own family step into leadership makes this transition deeply meaningful.”

The new Aqua Windie’s location will serve as the central hub for: dive tours, dive courses, and snorkel trips. As well as snorkel rental, sales and service of dive and snorkel equipment. And finally the departure point for guided water experiences.

Aqua Windie’s will continue to prioritize advancing environmental awareness, investing in future instructors and professionals, and maintaining the close-knit community culture that defines the brand.

The new store was officially introduced to the public during an opening event held on December 14th, attended by guests and media partners.

About Aqua Windie’s

Aqua Windie’s is a family-owned business offering recreational water activities, dive education, aqua fitness programs, and snorkel and dive experiences since the 1980s. With strong roots in the local community, the business has grown into one of Aruba’s leading names in watersport hospitality. For more information visit their website: www.aquawindies.com

We started planning a girls’ trip in the summer – I did not do anything. I showed up. One of our very capable members secured a home exchange, the other planned a meticulous itinerary.

I have been to Colombia before on several occasions, stayed at El Poblado, the swanky neighborhood with shopping malls and high-rises, ate well, slept well, the weather was perfection, the area safe and green.

But this time, the universe opted for El Retiro, outside the urban congestion, for a 6-day tour for 6 girls, the ultimate constellation.

Welcome to Medellín. Our helpful guide – @viajes365colombia, helpfully pointed out that the immigration process takes time. This was an understatement. We stood in line over two and a half hours, before being picked up by two cars and a super friendly and knowledgeable couple who drove us to Casa SAFETTI, at El Retiro. We settled down while Daisey the gracious cook made dinner, set the table. I uncorked the wine.

Casa Safetti, tucked away in a natural forest is a dream estate with gorgeous views. The bedrooms are framed in large glass panels, bringing the landscape right inside. Four lovely dogs, a busy chicken coop — the ladies, provided fresh eggs every morning, avocado, lime, and orange trees, decks big and small, a great hall with a rustic fireplace, cathedral ceilings, and comfy sofas, with blankets. It gets chilly in the evening.

Safetti is a stylish clothing brand, running, cycling & triathlon apparel line, designed for performance, and the house serves as a retreat to bikers/runners. We did not fit the guests’ profile, but we loved the accommodations.

On our first morning we took a hike, what was described as a light hike, at El Retiro, along a natural trail, with a one-hundred-year-old local guide that put me to shame. I was huffing and puffing. May I remind you that the altitude at El Retiro is 7,136 feet, and I felts it.

We took a stroll through the colonial town, up and down narrow street, the place feels cared for and clean. People are the sweetest – just sitting around town’s square watching the activity in and out of the church.

At Carmen de Viboral, we visited a ceramics factory and gained a new appreciation for the hand painted gorgeous dishes they mold, glaze, paint, and fire. The traditional Viboral Ceramic factory workshops, in a three-level building, employ the same artisanal techniques since opening day in the 19th century.

On the way back to El Retiro, we posed for pictures at a waterfall, Cascada La Esmeralda, a picturesque beauty in an emerald, green nature reserve.

A long drive in the early evening hours brought us to Ritwal a spectacular restaurant overlooking Medellin. If you only go out once, then RITWAL Mesa & Mística restaurant, is a most spectacular choice.

We found the Felipe Angel band, on stage at the restaurant. He is a popular heartthrob. The accordionist gave us an all-consuming, emotional, Vallenato recital.

We made a stop at Alto del Chocho, a kind of tourist trap, but highly recommended for one on ones, with llamas, horses, piglets, goats, and craft shops. Feed the llamas carrot sticks and connect with your inner child.

The place stocked with roaming, lounging, socializing farm animals is meticulously clean.

We took a boat on the Peñol Reservoir, which was created by flooding a large valley for the purpose of building a dam and a hydroelectric plant. On board, a local rapper dazzled us with his lyrics, improvising in Papiamento while we sailed past the bombed-out shell of Pablo Escobar’s waterfront estate.

I did not climb the 700+ steps to the top of the rock, I had coffee and desert instead. One tireless tigress in our group made it up the stairs in neck breaking speed, of 9 minutes. That is phenomenal. The immense El Peñol Rock, a natural wonder, is 670 feet tall.

Guatapé came next on our itinerary. The whole town is out in the streets selling their services and goods, a super enterprising spirit saturates the iconic waterfront and all other streets around it.

We admired the famous zócalos, riding a noisy, fuming tuk tuk. The guide explained that the decorative reliefs on building facades represent stories and local culture, and the occupation of the home’s residents.

We wrapped up with cocktail at the Brown Hotel. I will be back there.

On day four, the adventurous among us set out with the ancient tour guide for a 4-hour hike in the riverbed, water to their knees, sometimes chests, up to Cascada Paso Del Toro, tied together by a red rope, they waded in rapids and reached the waterfall in record time.

The more reasonable bunch visited a mountainous coffee plantation overlooking the city of Bello, at over 6,000 feet where the Arabica grows. The Coffee Tour at a traditional artisanal farm included planting and care, harvesting, pulping, fermenting, and drying. We gained a new appreciation of our favorite morning beverage. The coffee farmer’s work is not easy.

Casa Safetti welcomed us back, with two masseuses in attendance. Relaxing massages are options on the menu of activities, and we booked them.

On day five with climbed up Comuna 13. Another super entrepreneurial neighborhood.

I learned a lot about the spirit of a neighborhood that pulled itself out of abject poverty by its bootstraps.

The government provided the asphalt cap, and the escalators, but the diligent residents opened small businesses and work to attract the world to their doorstep, every day. Kudos to them.

We bought souvenirs, drank aguardiente, watched street dancing, experienced a rap tirade, ate homemade ice cream, and churros, took a million pictures against the urban jungle.

Medellin transformed itself on the wings of its culture – music, food, and history. That is something San Nicolas could do.

We could also learn how to treat dogs – we have not seen any neglected stray, all dogs we met were pedigreed leashed to proud owners, and the ones in the street at Comuna 13 were clipped and looked well fed. If they can do it, why can’t we?!

The mall at El Poblado paled in comparison to the colors and sights of the outdoors.

We departed the following day, from José María Córdova International Airport, at Rionegro, it has nice duty-free shops. We returned with a few mosquito bites, but other than that, in top shape!!

Our guides are highly recommended. They made our trip @viajes365colombia

A paper on the Kingdom of the Netherlands—Aruba was recently prepared and made available publicly. It was written by a staff team of the International Monetary Fund as background documentation for the periodic consultation with the Kingdom of the Netherlands—Aruba. It is based on the information available at the time it was completed on November 5, 2025.

(I am quoting a lot from the report)

OK, so the experts of the IMF, the International Monetary Fund, report about Aruba’s finances, and then they compile an extra 37 pages on selected issues.

They picked two issues they wanted to discuss, one was Aruba’s demographics and its potential impact on the labor market, and its output, and the second one was sea level rise and climate adaptation in Aruba.

I will focus on the first, special issue, in a nutshell.

The report states that historically, Aruba benefited from population growth that expanded its labor force, thereby boosting productivity and fostering economic growth. But since 2017 declining fertility rates and a rapidly aging population are altering the balance between the economically active working population and those dependent on them, for social security and health care. Aruba’s population growth has slowed down and those in the work market have aged.

In the 60s, the island’s population has nearly doubled from 60k to 120k, most of that growth occurred before 2010. In fact, from 1989 to 1993 Aruba had one of the fastest growing populations in the world with average growth rates over 5 percent.

Economic opportunities at the refinery and Aruba’s emergence as a major tourist destination attracted many foreign workers during the late 1980s and 1990s, and the population increased by nearly 40 percent from 1990 to 2000.

This growth rate slowed to 13 percent in the early 2000s and further declined to 7.8 percent in the 2010s. Since the onset of the pandemic, population growth has stagnated, as birth rates have declined to historic lows and incoming migration has diminished. Currently, the primary drivers of population change in Aruba are immigration and emigration flows.

As of December 2024, 39.5 percent of Aruba’s population is foreign-born. Our immigrants are younger than the Arubans, also because many young Arubans emigrate to the Netherlands and other advanced economies. We are suffering from a brain drain. When looking at the evolution of the Aruba population pyramid you can clearly see that Aruba’s aging increases dependence on the working age population, to support the healthcare and elderly services.

Very few will have to take care of many. And when looking at other Caribbean islands we see that fertility in the Caribbean is dropping at a more moderate rate than it dropped in Aruba.

The report also highlights some positives, we have less unemployment, there is a smaller gender gap between women and men, and more young people are involved in the job market, but we should be concerned about young people on the island having the carry the burden of an aging population. The health of our Social Security Bank, SVB, is in danger, and the head of the bank, speaks about it openly.

The report packs a lot of interesting information such as men dominate as managers, while women shine in professional and hospitality roles.

I hope our law makers read the report that makes some interesting policy suggestions!

SEA-LEVEL RISE AND CLIMATE ADAPTATION IN ARUBA1

The IMF reports that sea-level rise presents long-term risks in Aruba that can lead to sizable permanent costs with potentially large macroeconomic and fiscal consequences. Aruba cannot control global sea-level, but it can manage how it affects the country by adapting.

IMF recommends identifying counter measures for coastline protection, in the form of dykes, revetment, floodgates, costal dunes, etc. that could reduce losses by approximately 40 percent by avoiding permanent inundation of land and relocation of population. Estimates of protection costs in Aruba are around 0.4 percent of annual GDP with a moderate emission scenario. This will likely require an increase in public spending as coastal protections are public infrastructure.

I stopped here. Because I think it will never get done. Or perhaps this will be done immediately after we build a new AWSS.

A group of local senior citizens enjoyed a Christmas outing this week. It included all the participants from the “Qi Gong for Seniors” activity in Dakota.

Foundation STER offers preventative healthcare for senior in the form of classes facilitating movement every week on Tuesdays at the YMCA in Dakota.

Qi Gong is an ancient Chinese medical philosophy that promotes wellness and healing through movement, breathing, massage, diet and visualization. Those five elements make sure our internal organs, the liver, heart, spleen, lungs and kidneys, are in top shape circulating blood and nutrients and expelling toxins and waste.

It’s all about movement and circulation, explains Sofie Slegers, with Stichting Ster who organizes the classes, and initiated the outing.

A Fofoti Tours bus picked the group up at the YMCA in Dakota and the friendly driver Julissa was very helpful in assisting everyone to get on and off the bus. The first stop was Murano Art studio in Ayo where the owners, Juliano and Patricia, offered their visitors a glassblowing demonstration. After that the group headed to L’Avenue Belgian Bistro in Palm Beach, where owners Tina and Heidi served them a delicious 3-course lunch.

The event was generously sponsored by Juul and Ingrid Hamoen from Aquazul Aruba apartments and was perfectly organized by Isabella Kainama.

The group that meets regularly sees the benefit of exercise and community ties, they are all brave health warriors, and they deserve a moment of recognition for their dedication to health.

Sofie Slegers

Stichting “STER”

PO Box 237

Oranjestad, Aruba

Tel: +297.5939133

Arubabank# 2504670190

Www.Steraruba.Com 

During our radio days, Pica One used to dispense pluimpjes, a feather to your cap, to people and organizations she appreciated.

Here is my list.

Last night I reported to Elmar that a street light next to Aqua Windie’s was winking on and off. I got a message this morning that it was fixed. Pluimpje for you! https://www.elmar.aw/

I gave ECOTECH a request regarding the return of totters at a specific address once they are emptied. The request was followed up the next day. Pluimpje for you. https://ecotecharuba.com/

In September I ordered an awning from Retraco Sure Solutions, in business since 1983. They said it will take a while and asked me to come to their office to pick a fabric. It took about 6 weeks, but a uniformed crew showed up at the house with my awning, they had all tools, they worked measuring and consulting among themselves. They asked for a broom and dustpan, they swept the entire area from dust created by the holes they bore, and in the process collected all leaves blown their way. They asked me for the house paint to patch up some invisible nix, they had the appropriate brush, they patched up my awning for invisible nix, it might have suffered during transport, and when they left, they wished me a happy life under my awning.

As soon as they left, I already missed them. Such good craftmanship and courtesy, like in the old day. It made me nostalgic for workmen who say what they do and do what they say, the ones that clean up after themselves and close everything they open. Pluimpje for you, #RetracoAruba @retracoaruba

I ran into trouble with the multi-factor authentication required by DIMP. I registered ok, but when it was time to pay my taxes this month, I failed to connect with the Microsoft APP and forgot the name of my first pet, my favorite teacher and my dream job, all part of the security questions.

I reached out to DIMP horrified I will miss the deadline, but Valeska Y. Genaro came to the rescue quietly and efficiently. She suggested I see her when my challenges persisted. Ten minutes in and out, and I was all set, leaving DIMP victorious. Pluime for you.

Save her mail: onlinetaxservices@impuesto.aw

Other that that, ZOE of Luna Foundation is my Woman of the Century, and Stimami Sterilisami gets my Presidential Medal, the highest honor in my vocabulary. Pluimpje for you. https://www.luna-aruba.com/ https://www.stimamisterilisami.com/

Greg Peterson is also deserving a pluimpje, how he tirelessly repeats himself in protection of our environment. #Arubbabirdlifeconservation

He wrote to me this week about a recent court decision: Why this court decision matters for nature in Aruba

On December 9, 2025, the court made a crucial decision in a legal case between hotel developer Natura Development and the environmental organization Aruba Birdlife Conservation (ABC).

The case was about plans to create a beach for a hotel project, Embassy Suites, in an area where protected sea turtles live and nest.

ABC argued that the project could harm these endangered animals and that proper nature permits were missing. The Court agreed that the old construction permit had expired because the developer did not start building in time. It also ruled that the case must be managed through the official government and environmental permit process, not through emergency civil court procedures.

As a result, the developer is not allowed to continue without obtaining new and proper permits.

This ruling is especially important for nature protection in Aruba.

It confirms that economic development cannot override environmental laws, even for large tourism projects. It also sends a strong message that endangered wildlife, like sea turtles, must be protected by law.

For the ABC foundation, this is a major achievement.

Its legal efforts helped ensure that Aruba’s natural coastline, marine life, and fragile ecosystems receive stronger legal protection. This is not only important for residents, but also for visitors who come to Aruba because of its beautiful and healthy nature. Protecting the island’s environment today helps guarantee future generations enjoyment. Pluimpje for you.

What I think – This is not the last word, the resort will walk the gauntlet and eventually, a minister will cave in, and a beach will be built, with many pretend or real precautions, because the developers made a generous investment and in capitalistic circle must be allowed to make money.

Saraquita, you deserved a bouquet of pluimpjes.

Antonio Caralps, Susanita La Bella, the Profet family, the Sydow family, Romar Trading, Meta Corps, Hubert Dirks, Pluimpje for you for urban revival of Oranjestad, there are more on that list, I might have overlooked, sorry.