Curacao and St. Maarten become autonomous countries: what it means for travelers

Get ready for two new passport stamps: the former Netherlands Antilles has dissolved, and Curaçao and St. Maarten are now autonomous countries. Smaller islands such as Bonaire will now become Dutch municipalities. Aruba, the biggest of the ABC islands, has been a similarly autonomous state since 1986. It’s not a major status change for residents, as Curaçao has been self-governing for more than 50 years, but it will mean greater independence from the Dutch monarchy and more control over their own finances and local courts.

So what does this mean for travelers? The new independent status means more tax dollars for both Caribbean islands, meaning more money for tourism infrastructure and development. Curaçao, with one of the only UNESCO World Heritage sties in the Caribbean, has already seen huge growth in visitors from North America, up 40% this year. Development so far in Curaçao has been conservative and thoughtful, with many well-kept public beaches and no mega-hotels or high-rises spoiling the scenery. Even the island’s newest resort, the 350-room Hyatt Regency Curaçao Golf Resort, Spa, and Marina, barely makes a dent in the landscape; let’s hope the island maintains its charm.

In other news for Curaçao, the island is planning to enter the space tourism game with flights to space in 2014, perhaps the new tourism revenue stream will speed up the process.

[Photo credit: Flickr user Jessica Bee]

Kura Hulanda’s spiders – an unforgettable hotel exhibit


On my recent trip to Curacao, I stayed for a few nights at Kura Hulanda, a historical hotel with an unexpectedly enormous museum curated by owner, entrepreneur and traveler Jacob Gelt Dekker. Inside the labyrinth of exhibits, I came upon a shack filled with unsettling dolls by Dutch artist “Mrs. Zanoni.”

Mrs. Zanoni was born in Curacao and at one point lived on the property which has become Hotel Kura Hulanda. The exhibit’s literature refers to her doll-making as a “pleasant hobby” and “a reflection of the society of Curacao.” One look at these dolls will have you wondering what she really thinks of the place.

The Kura Hulanda Museum hosts a huge collection of artifacts and replicas from Dekker’s travels around the world, including the largest collection of African artifacts and anthropological exhibits in the Caribbean. What becomes clear almost immediately as you explore the galleries is the unspoken central subject: slavery. Curacao was once a major slave trade hub in the Caribbean, and this museum quietly, but prolifically, gives solemn recognition to that inescapable past. Mrs. Zanoni’s dolls are no exception, as illustrated by the spiders.
%Gallery-104440%According to my guide at the museum, slaves on Curacao would speak in code to avoid having their personal business, including plans of escape, overheard by their masters. They would refer to themselves as “spiders,” with the allegory being that they had “many works; many arms.” The master was called “The King,” and with these and a few other substitutions, they were able to carry on private conversations even when their masters were in the room. Mrs. Zanoni made these doll spiders to document that secret code, and to teach future generations.

All the dolls have a stylized, grotesque quality, but the spiders are heartbreakingly significant.

Also from the exhibit, as Mrs. Zanoni could not be reached for comment: “Making character dolls is a good way to explain to people who I am and where I come from.”

The other dolls reflect more run-of-the-mill aspects of life on Curacao — including an American tourist (see gallery above) — and have been used in The Netherlands to educate the Dutch about life in the Antilles. “I tried, with the help of the dolls, to put the Antilles with all her positive aspects in the center of attention,” Mrs. Zanoni has said.

[Photos by Annie Scott.]

My visit to the Kura Hulanda Museum was sponsored by Kura Hulanda, but the ideas and opinions expressed in this article are 100 percent my own.

Photo of the Day (7.20.10)

Think you can’t capture beautiful images with a mobile phone? Au contraire. This tranquil sunset shot uploaded by Flickr user Gus NYC was taken with an Apple iPhone in the waters of Saint Martin. The range of color, the light, & the serene water make me want to go explore the Caribbean right now.

Saint Martin is an island in the northeast Caribbean, currently divided 60/40 between the French & the Dutch. However, on October 10th of this year, the Dutch side of Saint Martin will become a self-governing country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; much like Aruba is today.

Have a mobile upload that we can’t miss? Put it up on Flickr and submit it to our Gadling Pool – it could just be our next Photo of the Day!

Photo of the Day (3-23-2008)


No, this is not from the set of Lost. And no, this is not a shot of a plane crash-landing on a tropical island. But it sort of looks like it, doesn’t it? Matt.Hinsta captured this scene on the island of St. Maarten. He titled the photo “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” and writes that the beachgoers got “a rush as Air France flight 488 from Paris (operated by an Airbus A340-300) passes over their heads before touching down on runway 09 at Princess Juliana International Airport on Friday, March 21st, 2008.” He also points out that the woman on the far left is facing the wrong way. No word on whether this type of landing occurs 5 times an hour or once a week, but it seems pretty extreme, based on the vacationers’ body language.

Have any crazy travel photos you’d like to share with the world? Upload them to Gadling’s Flickr pool and we’ll consider them for our Photo of the Day feature.