Top 5 Things to do in Curacao

Today we're talking about five different activities you can do when visiting the island of Curacao when you're on your next Caribbean cruise.

1. Walk across the pontoon bridge. The Queen Emma Bridge, nicknamed the "Swinging Old Lady", has 16 pontoons keeping it afloat. When boat traffic needs to use the waterway - which occurs pretty darn frequently - motors move the bridge parallel to shore. It's hard to explain how it exactly works. I had to see it in person myself to really understand so take a look at it in action here:

https://youtu.be/Kat2NAUoCzk

2. Visit the floating market. With Venezuela being some 50 miles away, Venezuelans come over in boats to sell fresh fruits, vegetables, and fish. Stalls are as varied as the languages spoken. Recently the Venezuelan president closed their borders so the market was shut down. The border is currently open, but as with anything political, conditions may change.

3. Eat, drink, and be merry. Curacao is a Dutch Caribbean island and Venezuela is close so the cuisine is diverse.

You might have a Dutch frikandel, a deep fried sausage sandwich.

Or try a Dutch kroket sandwich, a tasty meat and potato croquette.

Or shredded meat Venezuelan Arepitas.

Maybe a nice rum drink?

Can't forget something made with Blue Curacao!

The menu for the restaurant can be found here. Not the greatest service but it was a perfect location on the waterfront. See those white canopies across the water? That's the restaurant's seating.

4. Snorkel over a submerged tugboat. After an anchor was dropped through its deck, the tugboat sunk a few yards off shore. Since it's sitting just 15 feet below the surface, snorkelers will get a good look at it. But it's the fish swimming in and out and around the tugboat that steal the show. And if you swim a bit away from the tug you will find a reef - and a drop off. There you will find even more colorful fish and sea creatures.

5. Add a lock to the Love Locks heart sculpture. It was inspired by the Pont des Arts love locks bridge in Paris, of course.

Curacao at night might be even more spectacular.

Iguana Cafe, Willemstad, Curacao Menu

Sew a Family Passport Holder Wallet - Tutorial Tuesday

Do you need a passport holder to store several of your traveling party's passports all together? Learn how to make your own fabric family passport storage wallet with this how-to tutorial.

For the family passport wallet you will need:

• Main fabric
• Lining fabric
• Fabric for pockets
• interfacing
• Button
• Hair tie or piece of elastic
• Iron
• Rotary cutter
• Cutting ruler
• Cutting mat
• Sewing machine
• Matching thread

Disclosure: Deb's Days is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you new sewing and crafting content.

Now available in my Etsy store as a digital download with the written directions, step-by-step photos, and link to the tutorial video. Click to find out more!

Looking for other travel accessories ideas? Check out these projects!

Otherwise, just watch how-to tutorial for this homemade family passport wallet sewing project right here:

Need a single cover instead? I have you covered with the single passport cover tutorial!

How to Sew a Fabric Passport Holder - Tutorial Tuesday

"But personally I think everyone should have a valid passport."
-Deb Pfeifer, Cruising with Confidence: How to be a First Time Cruiser without Looking like One, Second Edition 

I'm not sure why it took us so long to finally get a passport, but I'm glad we did. At this point I couldn't ever imagine going back to not having one. I want to be able to pick up and go anywhere in the world anytime I want. Not that I do that, but I want the option.

So for those who do have a passport - or those who don't (go get one, now!) - here are a couple quick and easy projects for them.

For this passport cover sewing project you will need:

• main fabric
• lining fabric
• fusible fleece 
• Iron
• Rotary cutter
• Cutting ruler
• Cutting mat
• Sewing machine
• Matching thread
• Passport

Disclosure: Deb's Days is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you new sewing and crafting content.

 Now available in my Etsy store as a digital download with the written directions, step-by-step photos, and link to the tutorial video. Click to find out more!

Looking for other passport and vaccine covers? Check out our other projects?

Or just watch the tutorial for this homemade fabric passport cover sewing project right here:

Need a family passport wallet instead? Check out the passport holder with spots for six passports!

Saturday is for Silly Kitties

Had to take a break from Saturday is for Sailing. Decided Saturday is for silly kitties in training instead.

Friday 15

And the crap just keeps leaving. Woo hoo!

2 items on eBay
8 magazines and catalogs (including some kiddo brought for me to read)
1 Golden Gate bridge tshirt
2 pieces of fabric
1 bag of unused pencil top erasers
1 pressure cooker

Goodbye 15!

But the kitties? They aren't going anywhere yet.

Top 5 Snorkeling Spots in the Caribbean

Today we're talking about the top snorkeling spots in the Caribbean. Clear waters, beautiful fish, what could be better?

As I was driving the kitties back from their shots yesterday, my mind started wandering. Random thoughts. So totally random. Seriously, who has their mind making a list of all the places they've snorkeled while sitting at a stoplight on an April Monday morning in Idaho? And who starts putting  them in alphabetical order in their head? Well, me. (I didn't finish the ABC order. I wasn't at the stoplight that long.)

Bahamas
Belize
Grand Cayman
Grand Turk
Aruba
Bonaire
Cabo San Lucas
Cozumel
Costa Maya
Curacao
Dominica
Hawaii
Playa del Carmen
Roatan, Honduras
St. Thomas
St. Maarten

I've snorkeled most of the list several times over. Don't worry - my drive wasn't long enough where I was assigning tally marks of how many times I snorkeled in each place.

But I did assign a ranking.

1. Bonaire
You can snorkel from shore - the beach itself is made from coral so you'll definitely need water shoes - but the best snorkeling is somewhere else.

See that island out there? That's Klein Bonaire, an uninhabited island. No chairs, no toilets, no services. But there is a water taxi that can take you out there so you can snorkel from shore. Tours also take snorkelers out for drift snorkeling. The absolute best snorkeling in the Caribbean, hands down. (Check out Woodwind tours. The best!)

2. Roatan, Honduras

If you head to the West Bay you'll have easy access to the reef  right from the beach. There are even fellows in kayaks working for tips who will tow you out to the back side of the reef for even better snorkeling. Water clarity is amazing, coral is in pretty darn good shape, and fish are abundant.

3. Grand Cayman
There are a couple spots in Grand Cayman that are my favorite. If you've never snorkeled or swam with stingrays, this is the place. No, their barbs aren't removed. Head out to Stingray City on a boat or jet ski to see something like this.

Those dark blobs are the stingrays. They congregate at the sandbar and are fed by tour operators. You get up close and personal. And yes, you should go in the water with them.

Otherwise head to the Paradise Seaside Grill and snorkel right from the shore to the reef. It's within sight of the ship.

4. Bahamas
You can see the clarity from the shore.

 From the air.

 And from the water.

And the fish are pretty cool, too.

5. Belize

Belize has its own barrier reef. You'll need to take a boat to get out there, and the current can be a bit strong depending on the weather, but the clarity, fish, and coral are amazing.

Belize was my first snorkeling adventure - before I had an underwater camera. And the next Belize visit was after my underwater camera busted. So no pictures. But I'll be back again some day!

Easy to Sew Sleep Mask Project - Tutorial Tuesday

“I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?” 
― Ernest Hemingway

I like my sleep. It's great in the winter when it's dark early but in the spring and summer? Not so easy to sleep late. Which is where my second sleep mask in a year comes into play. When I don't like something I have I just make another.

So a sleep mask is what we have as today's tutorial. And I get to sleep in because I'm wearing it. Score!

For this project you will need:

•  main fabric
• lining fabric, something soft like fleece or flannel
•  piece of batting
• 1 piece of elastic
• Iron
• Rotary cutter
• Cutting ruler
• Cutting mat
• Sewing machine
• Matching thread
• Template downloaded from pattern

Disclosure: Deb's Days is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you sewing and crafting content.

The pattern is now available in my Etsy shop as a digital download with the written directions, step-by-step photos, and printable template. Click to get your copy today!

Looking for more travel ideas? Check out some of my other projects!

Check out the step-by-step how to tutorial and make your own homemade fabric sleep mask:

You can find the directions in a PDF here.

Sunday Sew-In

“I hate Sunday, and I don't think I'll ever get over it. But I'm going to try.” 
― Frank D. Gilroy, The Subject Was Roses

I used to hate Sunday. Sunday meant Monday, and Monday meant work. Now Sunday means I get to sew. And Monday means I get to sew some more. Or cut fabric. Or film a tutorial. Or write for upcoming books. In other words, not work.

Today's Sunday was filled with two projects. Actually, four. Two from an upcoming travel crafts book and two cute little black and white foster ones from Simply Cats.

Cutie patooties Cami and Sami.

Cruise Ports - Tendering

It's Cruise Ship Saturday! Today we're talking about tender ports.

“To reach a port we must set sail –
Sail, not tie at anchor
Sail, not drift.” 
― Franklin D. Roosevelt

Unless your ship is at a port that requires tendering.

In some ports the ship may not be able to dock at the pier. The channel may not be deep enough for the ship or the piers could be full with other ships. The ship instead anchors offshore. Passengers are then shuttled back and forth from ship to shore in tenders. The boats used to tender are typically the ship’s lifeboats and in some cases, local boats.

Lifeboats are quite safe and stable.

Tenders, being small boats on ocean waters, can bump and move. The crew does a great job in assisting passengers with entering and exiting the tender. Follow their instructions. The movement felt on the tender will be more than is felt on the ship. Tendering can be a challenge for people with physical difficulties as tenders require steps to enter and exit and are not wheelchair accessible. Passengers with collapsible wheelchairs and foldable walkers and scooters who can navigate steps may be able to access the tenders. Full sized mobility scooters and electric wheelchairs are usually not allowed.

Don't want to take a tender to shore? Stay onboard the ship. Some of the most peaceful and quiet times can be had when everyone else is off the ship. While onboard shops are closed the pools are open, the buffet is empty, and the decks are clear. It’s like having your own private yacht for the day.

A private yacht day.

Excerpt from Cruising with Confidence: How to be a First Time Cruiser without Looking like One, 2nd edition.

The Friday 15

“Friday's a free day. A woman's day.” 
― Neil Gaiman, American Gods

Or a good day to get rid of a Woman's Day magazine!

And another magazine,
and four spools of thread,
and a placemat,
and four pieces of fabric,
and two tutorial projects,
and two things on eBay.

Friday is a free me day for me. I'm free of 15 more pieces of stuff.