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We traveled to Aruba, a Dutch island within the kingdom of the Netherlands.
LOCATION AND SIZE
Aruba is located in the heart of the southern Caribbean, 15 miles (20 kilometers) off the coast of Venezuela. It is 19.6 miles (30 kilometers) long and 6 miles (9 kilometers) across, at its widest point, with an area of approximately 70 square miles (184 square kilometers).
POPULATION
Aruba's population of about 100,000 inhabitants is made up of a broad international mixture of well educated people with a pleasant nature and a zest for hospitality. The modern Aruban is generally of mixed ancestry, claiming Caquetio Indian, African and European roots. However, the face of Aruba is in continuous flux with the island, drawing individuals from all over the world. Today, the island claims over 40 different nationalities, which live and work peacefully on the island.
ISLAND INDUSTRIES
The economy of the island had received a boost from gold, discovered in 1824, and aloe, which had been introduced to the island in 1850 and thrived so well in Aruba’s climate that the island was once the largest exporter of aloe in the world.
But true prosperity was not realized until 1924, with the establishment of the oil refinery of LAGO, a subsidiary of Standard Oil Company of New Jersey (later EXXON). However, as a result of the reduced worldwide demand for oil and an oversupply of refining capacity, Exxon decided to close its facility on March 31, 1985. The oil refinery re-opened in 1991under the Coastal El Paso Oil Refinery Company. In March of 2004 the refinery was sold to Valero Oil Corporation.
The closing of LAGO had been an economic setback for the Aruban community. Faced with rising unemployment, the island directed its full energies into the tourism industry. The successful development of the island’s tourism product resulted in a three-fold jump in the number of visitors, increasing from 206,747 in 1985 to 641,906 in 2003. Today, tourism is the main pillar of the Aruban economy. You can read more about Aruba here.
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