Day 73 Curaçao

July 31

Our day was spent in Willemstad, the islands capital. We boarded a Trolley Train for a tour around the brightly coloured historic buildings. After the tour finished we walked about the city.

Curaçao is the largest of the Caribbean's "ABC Islands" (Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao).

The Trolley Train.

Willemstad has a collection of over 750 historic buildings which has earned it a place on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. The following buildings were originally constructed in the 1800's.

Dutch-influenced colonial architecture. Many of these buildings are now offices after being restored. The original buildings were built using local materials such as coral, this building material would cause the paint to blister due to salt seepage, so they had to be repainted on a regular basis.

At one point in time all the buildings were painted white, however the governor of the time insisted that the owners paint them a colour of their choosing, as the glare from the white paint gave him headaches. It was after he passed away, that it was revelled that he owned the paint shops. 

The Bolo di Bruit, known as the "Wedding Cake House", and the most photographed building in the city.

Pietermaai Cathedral.

1796 Dutch Reformed Church, with a cannonball embedded in the southwest wall.

Governors Palace within Fort Amsterdam. 

Shopping streets.

The floating market. Here Venezuelan merchants sell fish and other produce straight from fishing boats.

Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge, it swings like a pendulum to allow ships in and out of St. Anna Bay. It was built in 1888, and the locals refer to is as "Swinging Old Lady".

Queen Juliana bridge, the highest in the Caribbean at 185 feet.