Happy Aruba Birthday to Joe Sacay

By: Maria Girlie Pascual

As Covid cases decline and Spring draws near, it was a nice idea to get away for a few days from all of these stressors so I said yes to being Salvy Marino’s roommate in Aruba to celebrate Joselito “Joe” Sacay’s birthday. Aruba is known as one of the island colonies in the Caribbean and is best remembered by Filipinos as the home country of 1974 Miss Universe Runner Up, Maureen Ava Viera who put this small island on the map for some Filipinos who made it their home for over 30 years. With a mandatory US equivalent of $15 a hour minimum wage law, Aruba is considered to be the most successful Caribbean state belonging to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, their autonomy and national identity only established in 1984 as a hard fought right by its people.

With flights from major airlines under 4 hours from Miami, Aruba’s tourism economy is buoyed by the USA and European visitors, travelers enjoying year round sunshine and mild 70 to 80 degree Fahrenheit temps along with convenient use of the dollar and English speaking friendly natives.

Joe and Mabel Sacay, Elber and Elizabeth Regacho, Salvy Marino and I made it to Aruba on a Wednesday and left on a Monday, enjoying a six day hiatus with unlimited unobstructed views of the beach and an azure ocean which is a Caribbean feature that attracts a million visitors a year to this beautiful paradise. Birthday boy Joe booked us on a private cruiser which took us snorkeling, diving and sightseeing from a boating vantage that presented us a more exciting panorama of Aruba set to Caribbean music and popular Latin dance music that set a fun party time to our mini adventure. During the day. It was sun, surf and sipping cocktails, and at night we dressed for dinner, dining and dancing. All in all, our six relaxing days away from the cold and Covid news was a welcome respite that replenished our souls and refueled our strengths to come back healthy, refreshed and ready for another round of work and responsibilities, back to our normal lives, work and family.

Thank you Joe and Mabel for including us in your celebration— until next time “ Bon Bini mi Dushi” ( Hello My Loves in the Papamiento language in Aruba) and to traveling companions Elbert, Elizabeth and my roomie Salvy.