The Royal Sea Aquarium News

Dionne Warwick, Earth Wind & Fire and More to Perform Labor Day Weekend

WILLEMSTAD, CURAÇAO – April 13, 2011 –The highly-anticipated second annual Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival will headline world-famous musicians Sting and Stevie Wonder , who will respectively open and close this year’s event, September 2-3, 2011. The Festival returns with another year of A-list performers, including Dionne Warwick , Earth, Wind & Fire and more, for a first-class jazz and blues concert series, incorporating an eclectic mix of salsa, Latin, pop! The Festival will again be held at the World Trade Center Curaçao in Piscadera Bay.

“Our incredible line-up of iconic Grammy Award-winning artists, including Stevie Wonder and Sting , will be a huge draw for this year’s Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival,” says Curaçao Tourist Board Marketing Manager North America André Rojer. “Building on the success of last year’s Festival, this year’s event is sure to heighten awareness of Curaçao as the hottest island in the Caribbean!”

Singer-songwriter and 16-time Grammy award-winner Sting will headline the festival, kicking off the weekend with a performance on Friday, September 2. Sting made his debut in music as the lead singer and bassist of the rock band The Police. As a solo musician since 1985, he has evolved into one of the world’s most distinctive and highly respected performers.

Stevie Wonder , confirmed to be the closing act of the Festival, is sure to draw fans with his legendary, soul-moving performance. With his nearly 50-year music career, Wonder is a timeless icon and inspiration for many other artists. Wonder’s 25 Grammy Awards , Academy Award for “I Just Called to Say I Love You,” and prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award make him a coveted act for the Festival.

Other performers at the Festival include Dionne Warwick , Earth, Wind & Fire , Ruben Blades , Roberto Fonseca , Juan Luis Guerra , Terence Blanchard, Chic featuring Nile Rodgers , Poncho Sanchez, Danilo Perez Trio, Levi Silvanie, Chucho Valdes Afro Cuban & Messengers and Ronchi Matthew, providing an impressive line-up of jazz, soul, rock and Latin music.

In the week before the Festival, concerts are held on various locations on the island, including the popular party spot, Mambo Beach.

Last year’s Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival, was a spectacular success for the island, selling 18,000 tickets to crowds of locals and visitors during the two days of the Festival. Memorable performances from artists John Legend , Lionel Richie, Natalie Cole, Simply Red, George Benson, Sergio Mendes, and more wowed the audience.

Travelers heading down to Curaçao for the Festival can expect lively pop-up concerts and events by local Curaçaoän performers during the full week prior to the Festival. There’s no question that Curaçao knows how to throw a good party, having recently been named one of the ‘Best Islands in the Caribbean for Bar-Hoppers‘ by The Huffington Post.

Day tickets for the 2011 concerts start from only $185. For more information on the Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival, please visit www.curacaonorthseajazz.com.

Curaçao is now more accessible than ever with twice weekly nonstop flights on Continental Airlines from Newark, as well as twice daily flights on American Airlines from Miami. The island’s local carrier, InselAir , also services Curaçao with one flight, Sunday through Friday, from Miami.

For more information on Curaçao or to book your trip to the 2011 Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival, please visit Curacao.com.

About Curaçao

Selected as one of the ‘Top 21 Places We’re Going in 2011′ by Fodor’s , one of the ‘Hottest Destinations for 2011′ by AOL Travel and one of the ‘Destinations to Watch in 2011′ by SmarterTravel , Curaçao is a unique Caribbean island paradise, boasting 35 uncrowded beaches, and an eclectic mix of history and culture. Explore the vibrant, culturally diverse capital city of Willemstad – a UNESCO World Heritage site – with its distinctive architecture, museums, monuments and world-class shopping. Indulge in Curaçao’s vast selection of flavorful restaurants, with a mix of sophisticated international and tasty local cuisines. Discover Curaçao’s abundant natural beauty, pristine dive sites and spectacular snorkeling at secluded beaches – including Cas Abao Beach, selected as one of the ‘Top 10 Beach Destinations for 2011′ by SmarterTravel. Curaçao offers idyllic weather, situated on the fringe of the Hurricane Belt. To learn more about the island of Curaçao visit Curacao.com. To request a FREE Curaçao information package click here or call toll free 1.800.328.7222.

Good evening from Curacao. We all know the saying “don’t bring sand to the beach?” Well, here in Curacao, it has a totally different meaning. This is Dutch today bringing sand to the beach and building what will be a new sandy beach for Royal Resorts five Star Hotel.

If you look in the background you can see how small the beach area has become from years of constant wave action and storms. There are very few natural, sandy beaches in Curacao, as this is a rocky island that is lined in limestone. So, if you want sand……you have to truck it in from the North coast (good luck with that), or dredge.  Over the last 20 years, Dutch has turned this entire Sea Aquarium area from Royal Resorts to Breezes, which all used to be a dump-site, into a family oriented beach and hotel area.

That takes a lot of sand. The sand here that Dutch is laying out on the beach today was dredged months ago from the Sea Aquarium area, then trucked to a nearby field where it was sifted and dried and then trucked back and laid out under the beautiful palm trees. Who would have known? Most tourists that come here think the sand is all natural but boy are they ever wrong and what they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?

I think Dutch told me they were bringing in 28 dump truck loads today for this beach alone. Once the sand is dumped it is then spread out by the man himself and then within days the sun will dry it and it will look like it was born there, cool huh?? So remember the next time your walking down the beach and leaving your “footsteps in the sand” and having a “Sand-sational time” especially here in Curacao you may want to stop by and say thanks to Dutch for all the hard work!

Extracted from http://www.coralreefphotos.com/