Page 14 - ARUBA TODAY

A14 LOCAL
Friday 27 July 2018

Exploring the Mainstreet of San Nicolaas

come a magnet for all that site food offered by the ca-
is young, cool and hip in fes and restaurants or just
Aruba. Indeed, San Nicolas enjoy a peaceful walk ad-
has all of the ingredients of miring the murals, mosaic
an emerging cultural hub benches and all the history
— varied history, interest- San Nicolaas has to offer.
ing architecture, and, per-
haps most importantly, an Experience San Nicolaas
urban layout that makes Ready to experience
it walk able. As you walk something different on your
around, the streets are si- Saturday outing, consider
lent but the walls are loud, San Nicolaas.
filled with bright, colorful Fundacion Museo Aruba-
murals painted by a collec- no, a non-profit organiza-
tion of artists from around tion that aims to manage,
the world. Thanks to the ef- retain and promote Aru-
forts of various art organiza- ba's cultural heritage, will
tions in Aruba, such as Art be holding their next event
Rules Aruba and Aruba Art this upcoming Saturday in
Fair, San Nicolas has had the city of San Nicolaas.
quite the aesthetic make-
over with regards to vibrant The event will be from 9AM
street art. Each year more till 1PM and starts with a
and more stunning murals Museum Bus tour. The tour
are replacing broken down will start at the museum Fort
buildings with colorful art Zoutman & Willem III Toren
pieces that keep brighten- and will continue towards
ing up Sunrise City. the Museum of Industry and
the Community Museum in
Must See, Do, Buy & Eat San Nicolaas. You will have
A little bit of everything can a chance to sit down and
be found in the main street. relax at Nicolaas Store, and
Stores selling shoes, cloth- enjoy all the MURALS, and
ing, jewelry you name it. afterward you will be visit-
Arts & crafts by Cosecha ing the Sanimarket. Here
store & Creative Center, a you will find hand-made lo-
design store in which you cal artwork, home articles,
can immerse yourself in dis- local food and so much
covering genuine and lo- more. After that we will
cally made arts and crafts head back downtown to
which reflect the diversifi- embrace the Historical Mu-
cation of the Aruban craft seum. For more info check
heritage and the artistic it out on facebook Funda-
supply of artisans. Don’t cion Museo Arubano or Ex-
miss out on trying the exqui- perience San Nicolaas. q
SAN NICOLAAS — Just 19 and customs, housing and this history. Nicolaas Store
kilometers southeast from population are clearly vis- built in 1940 and renovated
Oranjestad you will dis- ible in San Nicolas - more in 2014 is the house of the
cover San Nicolaas, also than anywhere else on the Community Museum. The
known as Sunrise City or island. collection is remarkable
Chocolate City. A city rich and spans millennia. An-
in authentic culture and is- Flow of history cient fossils stand next to
land charm. San Nicolaas is If you are looking for history tableaus of an authentical-
Aruba’s second largest city San Nicolaas has it. Here ly recreated colonial kitch-
and was once a bustling you will find two jewels of en and bedroom and 19th-
company town dominated museums. The Museum of century barbershop, just to
by the oil industry since the Industry and The Commu- name a few of the exam-
early 1930’s. nity museum all in a short ples of old-time Aruba that
walking distance from have been preserved. A
Over the course of four de- each other. The Museum collection of artifacts and
cades its demographics of Industry is situated in the other objects of artistic, cul-
changed immensely due Water Tower in San Nicolas tural, historical, or scientific
to a mixed stream of Afri- and narrates Aruba's indus- importance can be found
can/Caribbean and South trial history which began in here for the purpose of ed-
American workers who the 19th century. Here you ucation and enjoyment.
were attracted from sur- will get to know The Gold
rounding islands and coun- Industry, The Aloe Industry, The new San Nicolaas
tries to fill the jobs in the oil The Phosphate Industry, In the shadow of the refin-
refinery between 1920’s The Oil Industry and The ery, an art capital is quietly
and 1960’s. Till this day trac- Tourism Industry and expe- beginning to build. This is
es of the multicultural influ- rience the touching stories the new San Nicolaas, a
ences in culinary offerings of those who were part of place that is starting to be-