A Relaxed Itinerary

Quite often when Jim and I travel, we have packed itineraries to see lots of attractions and we enjoy those excursions enormously. But this trip has been different. After a very busy spring with home improvements and other commitments, this trip has provided a time to relax and unwind. We have spent the majority of our days on the beach or around the pool.

In the evenings, we walked to neighboring beaches where there are restaurants with a little more local flair than our resort. Two of those evenings, we ended up at Italian restaurants, which seems surprising to me. But what is more surprising is the quality of the Italian food – this is food like we had in Italy. The first evening we ate at Amore Mia in the Palm Beach area. We had the pasta special of the day, which was penne in Marinara sauce with fresh shrimp. The marinara sauce was not the chunky type we’re used to; it was pureed and absolutely delicious. The shrimp were extraordinary and the pasta was prepared to a perfect al dente. We were amazed at the quality. We ordered dessert – I had panna cotta, which is an Italian custard and was served with a fresh berry sauce. Jim ordered the Profiteroles, which are like small creampuffs that came with a side of chocolate sauce. Both desserts were as delicious as they sound (sorry – no photos)

The second evening we walked to Eagle Beach and visited Terrazza Italiana. We walked up to the third-floor location; a climb that was rewarded with an amazing view overlooking Eagle beach. We opted for a side salad and a pizza – we wanted to try this because it seems to be a favorite here. There’s a reason for that – it was incredibly good. The crust is unlike anything I’ve ever had. It was light and airy, thin, but still crunchy on the bottom. The sauce was delicious – we ordered half Margherita (my favorite) and half Italian sausage (Jim’s favorite). We were served a medium size pizza and were too full for dessert.

Wednesday evening, we returned to Palm Beach to investigate the area. We strolled past shops and numerous restaurants and finally settled on Fish and More. This small restaurant offered outdoor seating under huge umbrellas with edison lights under them. Our waitress explained the various fish that were available – each prepared to your liking (grilled, pan-seared, or blackened).They also offered shrimp, lobster or filet mignon with seafood. Jim opted for mahi mahi, pan-seared. I saw a fish on the menu that was new to me – corvina. I asked the waitress about it and she explained that it was the chef’s specialty, cooked with a sauce of white wine, lemon, onions and capers, so I decided to give it a try. It proved to be a meaty, white fish, delicate in flavor and really delicious.

The presentation of both meals was just beautiful – each was plated with a base of potatoes topped with a lightly sauteed zucchini medley and the fish on top. The food was amazing – even Jim was impressed with the delicious meal (Jim is not typically much of a fish-eater). For dessert he had strawberry cheesecake and I had mango sorbet served with tropical fruits.

After walking back to our resort, we treated ourselves to an evening swim where we had the pool and hot tub to ourselves. The temperature here is a constant 80 – 85 degrees, making an evening swim quite attractive.

On the way back from Palm Beach, we discovered an attraction only minutes from our resort – the Aruba Butterfly Farm.

So Thursday morning, after our mandatory covid test so we could fly back to the US, we visited the location. What a beautiful place – there were colorful tropical plants and an enormous array of butterflies flying everywhere.

After a brief tour and explanation of the life-cycle and habits of the butterflies, Jim sat patiently waiting while I attempted to photograph the gorgeous creatures. We visited in the late morning and the butterflies were very active. One came to rest on Jim’s knee and decided to stay for a while. My bright orange shirt attracted a few as well (although I couldn’t get a picture of them for fear of scaring them off). The farm itself is a tropical oasis with beautiful plants, ponds and amazing tropical flowers. We left and returned to our resort for lunch but mostly to cool off – perhaps an afternoon nap will be in order.