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LOCAL Friday 3 November 2023

Aruba to me

ORANJESTAD — You are back and we would as well as names, likeness, etc. for promotional
like to portrait you! By inviting you to send us purposes without compensation.
your favorite vacation picture while enjoying
our Happy Island. Last but not least: check out our website, Insta-
gram and Facebook page! Thank you for sup-
Complete the sentence: Aruba to me is ……. porting our free newspaper, we strive to make
Send your picture with that text (including your you a happy reader every day again.
name and where you are from) to: news@aru-
batoday.com and we will publish your vaca- For today we received a lovely message from
tion memory. Isn’t that a special way to keep an Olga Alonzo.
your best moments alive? Please do note: By
submitting photos, text or any other materials, She wrote to us saying: “It’s my happy place.”
you give permission to The Aruba Today News- Thank you for sending us this wonderful mes-
paper, Caribbean Speed Printers and any of sage sharing what Aruba means to you with us
its affiliated companies to use said materials, and our readers!q

Prohibited by law: leaving the island with seashells, white sand or corals

(Oranjestad)—Often times, with seashells, white sand national treaty of CITES ited to take any seashell,
the customs department at and/or corals as souvenirs. and our local law which sand and coral outside Though we love to accom-
the airport intercepts many protects our Flora & Fau- of Aruba. This is to protect modate our visitors, let’s all
tourists leaving the island Conforming to the inter- na, it is absolutely prohib- our environment. The high give nature the respect it
number of seashells, coral deserves by protecting our
and amount of sand con- environment. Stop collect-
fiscated is very strange and ing seashells, white sand
it is suspected that our own and corals from our shores
locals are the ones selling and stop buying or ac-
these to the tourists, which cepting these from local
is unacceptable. sellers or companies.

Upon confiscation at the We want our future gener-
airport, you can also face ations and visitors to enjoy
a fine that they have to the beauty of our beach-
pay before leaving. This is es, shells and corals in a
surely not a pleasant ex- sustainable way, without
perience for the tourist. This destroying or disrupting the
also leads to a negative re- Aruban ecosystem. Help us
action which can put our protect what is ours!q
tourism in a negative light.