Aruba

Represented by Fredi's Governor Jose Refunjol

Aruba is one of the three ABC islands (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao ) belonging geographically to South America and part of the Lesser Antilles in the southern Caribbean. The island is located 25 kilometers north of Venezuela. It is next to the islands Curaçao and St. Maarten and the Netherlands ( consisting of the actual Netherlands in Europe, as well as Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba in the Caribbean ) is one of four equal parts of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Like the other parts of the country also has its own constitution and government of Aruba. The island enjoys complete internal autonomy.

Geography

Aruba is the westernmost and smallest of the three ABC islands. It is mostly flat, max. 30 km long and max. 9 km wide. The highest mountain is the Jamanota with 188 m.The bemerkenstwerte and everywhere visible stretcher elevation is the Huiberg, which is seen from the island everywhere he is 168 m high. the island is characterized by kilometers of white beaches, while the east is dominated by partially bizarre coastlines.

Language

The official languages ​​are Dutch and Papiamento Aruba ( a going back to the Portuguese creole ). On Aruba own spelling of Papiamentos is used, which differs from the spelling on Curaçao and Bonaire.

Flora and Fauna

Aruba lies outside the hurricane zone and enjoys sun all year round weather and cooling trade winds. The landscape is replaced by the lush cacti, aloe plants and the unmistakable silhouettes of divi-divi trees ( Caesalpinia coriaria ) a special charm. The National Park Arikok in the south offers a glimpse into the island's vegetation.

Climate

The climate on Aruba is tropical maritime with an average temperature of about 27 ° C and minimum seasonal differences. In January the average temperature is 26 ° C and in July 29 ° C. Most co-sponsored by the prevailing east wind rain already falling over the southern islands of the Lesser Antilles ( Windward Islands), so the climate is very dry in Aruba. The annual rainfall is only about 510 mm. The rainy season lasts from October to December.

Due to the low annual precipitation, drinking water must be obtained using a sea water desalination plant.

History

Aruba was founded in 1499 discovered and colonized by Spaniards. 1636 earned the Dutch the island. In the 19th century it was economically viable in the wake of the gold rush. The last decades of the 20th century helped the island a further boost by the booming tourism. Aruba separated officially in 1986 by the Netherlands Antilles, including Bonaire and Curaçao belonged, and became an autonomous part of the country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Efforts to complete independence from the Netherlands have been temporarily frozen at the request of the State of Aruba in 1990.

Economy

From 1825 to about 1915, the gold mining was the largest industry in Aruba. Aruba's biggest city after the capital city of Oranjestad is St. Nicolas. It developed in the period of gold mining to this size. In 1924 the Lago Oil & Transport Company settled on Aruba. The petroleum industry in the ABC islands grew rapidly in the 1920s and led to a strong change in the economic structure. The second largest city in Aruba, St. Nicolas, mid-1920s, developed after the opening of the Lago oil refinery for the business center of the island.

During the Second World War, the refineries played for strategic reasons play an important role, they secured the energy supplies for the United States. After 1945, the oil industry lost its importance. The refinery, once one of the largest in the world, was closed in 1985. The new plant was opened in 1990 again under American company management specializing in the refinery, transhipment and storage of oil. The oil industry has subsequently won their central importance to the economy of Aruba again. Until 2009, when the petroleum refining and storage has been set, oil was the main product of Aruba.

There also exist on Aruba many offshore banks and data processing companies. Since Aruba is indexed in the OECD ended up as a tax haven is, as its financial structures of a large-scale tax evasion and money laundering are conducive, the government has taken many steps to take the "tax savers " these possibilities and thus to meet the requirements of the OECD requirements.

Agriculture has low Aruba importance because, among other things, the climate with plenty of sunshine, warm tropical temperatures, but little rain leaves a bad ground. Only about 10% of the land is arable. The industry is confined largely to the production of tobacco and beverages.

Aruba's main trading partners are the Netherlands, the USA and Colombia and Venezuela.

The official currency of Aruba is the Aruban florin ( AWG). A Florin consists of 100 cents. There are coins of 5, 10, 25 and 50 cents as well as a two and a half and five florins. The square 50 cent coin, " Yotin " called, is probably the most famous coin Aruba.

Tourism

Tourism is the main economic activities and most important foreign exchange earner Aruba since the end of the oil industry.

Aruba is visited annually by about 1.5 million tourists (of which three-quarters of the U.S.), who settle mostly in the major urban centers of tourism west of the capital.

More than 20 years of the underwater world has been turned around the island a nature reserve. This has turned into a world-famous diving area of Aruba and its neighboring islands. Divers can observe not only soft and hard corals, but also numerous sponges, anemones, gorgonians, sea horses, scorpion fish, rays, barracuda, sharks, sea turtles and cuttlefish. Also located off the coasts of the island some shipwrecks that are easily accessible to divers.

Traffic

Aruba has a single airport, located south of Oranjestad Queen Beatrix International ( IATA code AUA ) Airport. From here direct flights leave mainly to North and South America and Europe. At the airport in 2008 a total of 1,973,559 passengers were handled, mainly tourists. The airport may be due to a closed in period of 10 years in March 2000 agreement between the governments of the U.S. and the Netherlands as a Forward Operating Location (in German outworked base ) are the U.S. military use (see also military bases of the United States in Latin America and the Caribbean).

At 31 December 2008 49 372 cars were registered in Aruba, so has almost every other inhabitants of the island of their own car. In 2008 2.723.944 persons (except school children ) were transported by buses on the island.

Aruba has two ports located solely along the densely populated west coast. The Port of Oranjestad is served by many cruise ships sailing in the Caribbean. Other ports are located in Sint Nicolaas and Barcadera, the latter has lost with the end of the oil industry in Aruba important.

2012 the ground was broken for the construction of a tram line connecting the cruise terminal and the pedestrian area of ​​Oranjestad. The operation of receiving the web was planned for the end of 2012. The line will run every eight and a half - minute intervals; for the operation of three open, battery-powered vehicles were ordered, their engines are powered by solar cells. On February 19, 2013, the tram line was put into operation.

Sports

Since the Summer Olympics in 1988 in Seoul Aruba participates with its own team in the Olympic Games. So far advocated Aruba total of 18 athletes, nine of them in track, four in swimming, two in sailing and in each case an athlete in weightlifting and judo competitions. In this case, no medal could be won. Aruba has to date only at Summer Olympics. The National Olympic Committee called Comité Olímpico Arubano and was founded in 1985.

The Football Association of Aruba, the Arubaanse Voetbal Bond, was founded on 29 January 1932. The national football team of Aruba played their first international against the selection of Curaçao in April 1924. Currently, she is ranked 165 of the FIFA World Ranking (June 2012). The Football Association is a member of CONCACAF and since 1986 also a member of FIFA. Since the 1998 World Cup Aruba takes part in the World Cup qualifiers. However, the team has been able to qualify for either the World Cup or for the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Almost all national players Aruba play in clubs on the island.

Sons and daughters of the island

  • Dave Benton, musician, winner of the Euro Vision Song Contest 2001 with Estonia
  • Bobby Farrell, musician ( Boney M. )
  • Pieter Monzon, musician, MC, Pete Philly & Perquisite
  • Wally Warning, musicians, "no monkey "
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