by Wendy O'Dea

Photo courtesy of Aruba Tourism Authority

Looking down I saw a large piece of coral, brown with a white border along its outer edge, and furiously began flapping my arms, forcing my body upward. My guide had warned me about the dangers of the sea: not sharks or jellyfish, but fire coral. "It will burn you," she said, "and ruin the rest of your stay on our sunny island."

Certainly the last thing I wanted was to ruin my stay on the sunny island of Aruba. Although a popular destination for east-coasters, I'd traveled quite a distance from California to get to the tiny island and didn't want to spend my time nursing stinging burns from an aquatic life form.

It was during my underwater Snuba adventure that I narrowly escaped the fire coral. You read right, Snuba. An odd combination of snorkeling and Scuba diving, this sport encompasses much of the fun of Scuba without the hassles. Rather than donning a heavy tank of oxygen, a breathing apparatus is tethered to a tank floating on the surface. With an oxygen tube that reaches down about 20 feet, we were unable to swim deep into colder water, so there was also no need for a wet suit.

Snuba is one of the more unique offerings on Aruba, along with Sea Trekking, which allows participants to walk along the sea floor while wearing a helmet that circulates oxygen. But, other than my "adventures in Snuba," I stuck with more common beach activities: snorkeling, sunbathing, and exploring and learning about the island.

Aruba is the best known of the Dutch possessions that make up the Caribbean's ABC islands, the other two being Bonaire and Curaçao. The oblong-shaped island is a mere 70 square miles but is home to 40 distinct nationalities including Dutch, African, Spanish, and Caquetio Indian. And, although the official language is Dutch, the most commonly spoken languages are Papiamento, a language native to the ABC islands, English and Spanish.

Flying in, I noticed Aruba wasn't as lush as other islands that dot the Caribbean Sea - it was born of a volcanic explosion, after all, and much of the land is rugged and dry. Nothing grows naturally here although the imported palm trees flourish, providing the desired effect one would expect on an island vacation. And the Arubans have made the best of what they've got - at least on the east side of the island - with Arikok National Park, natural bridges, and impressive underground caves - unusual for a tropical island. (CONTINUED...)