Willemstad: Otrabanda and the eastern outskirts

Otrabanda, the part of Willemstad on the other side of the Annabaai.
Punda is touristy, neatly renovated, with a lot of Western shops and cafes that serve steaks, hamburgers and fries. Otrabanda has long been a no-go area but is now 'safe' and far more exotic - i.e. much more the 'real' Curacao.

We came to Willemstad on Sunday, to visit the Slave- and Anthropological Museum.
They were closed.
As was most of Willemstad.

But not Otrabanda. The centre of Otrabanda is the famous Breedestraat (Broadstreet) and there we found most of the shops and restaurants open, so we shopped to our hearts content, had lunch, drove all around Otrabanda - enjoying ourselves very much, there was so much to be seen - then went to the Oostpunt, the eastern part of the island.

The photos are taken in Otrabanda and the eastern parts of Willemstad. Btw - did you know it's because of the Dutch the houses are all pastel coloured? Somewhere in the 18th century the Dutch decreed the houses weren't to be painted white anymore because a) it glared too much and  b) it didn't suit the atmosphere of the island. We totally agree!