Aruba: Beach Bar Decisions and Other High-Class Problems

We accidentally lived on the fancy side of the street,
and it was glorious.

Written by Matt & Linda (empty nesters with a Wi-Fi addiction and a refusal to live on autopilot)

If you are under a certain age, Cocktail is the movie where Tom Cruise flips bottles recites limericks, and makes bartending look like a competitive sport.

If you are over a certain age, you already know the vibe.

Either way, Aruba handed it to us on a silver tray, with a salt rim.

Eight Months. Fifteen House Sits. One Tiny Car With Big Dreams.

In May of 2019, we left Raleigh, NC for our first around-the-country house sitting journey.

This was not a cute little road trip with a Pinterest map and a playlist called Freedom.

This was a full-blown loop across America.

We went up the East Coast on Interstate 95.
Across the north on Interstate 80.
Through Colorado and Utah.
Down into Nevada to Las Vegas.
Up into the Pacific Northwest through Napa and Sonoma.
Down into Southern California.
And then further into Baja Mexico.

Then we turned the wheel east and drove the southern route on Interstate 10 toward Florida.

We did 15 house sits along the way. Some were three days. Some were six weeks.

Eight months later, we had more miles than we care to count, more laundry than we care to remember, and the kind of tired that only shows up when you are living a dream you asked for.

Also, we were doing all of this in a 2013 Chevy Sonic.

Look it up.

It is not big.
It is not luxury.
But it was paid off and got great fuel mileage, which is a very romantic thing when you are crossing the United States with your entire life stuffed into a car that looks like it should be delivering pizza.

By the time we hit month eight, we did not need a motivational quote.

We needed a beach.

Aruba Was Our Well-Deserved Break

(Also Known As: Please Let Us Sit Still For Five Minutes)

After the whirlwind, we headed to Aruba for a 9-day house sit.

But the first thing we did when we arrived was not the sit.

The first thing we did was get a room at a resort on Eagle Beach.

Not ON Eagle Beach.

Across the street from Eagle Beach.

Across the street was more in our price range, and we have no shame about that.

Here’s the part that still makes me laugh.

The nice hotel we stayed in had an agreement with the fancy property ON the beach, which meant we could use the facilities like we paid the big bucks.

So we unpacked, walked out, and immediately started doing what we do best.

Acting like we belong.

We Walked Into the Fancy Resort Like We Had Stock Options

First, we found the grocery store because we were still the kind of travelers who want snacks even when we’re pretending to be resort people.

Then we walked across the street, through the parking lot, and into Bluegreen at La Cabana Beach Resort & Casino.

We wandered through shops full of things we could not afford, like we were simply browsing for fun.

Then we stepped onto Eagle Beach.

And listen. Gorgeous is a perfectly acceptable word here.

Pristine white sand.
Palapas lined up like a postcard.
Chairs that make your back stop complaining.
Beach boys (not from Kokomo fame, but still committed to the role).
Peace.

We stood there and took a deep breath.

Because sometimes the most luxurious thing in the world is not the property.

It is the feeling.

Then We Found It

We walked back through the luxury property a different way.

And we ended up in the huge pool area.

And there it was.

What I can only describe as the set of Cocktail.

Not literally. But close enough that I took a good hard look around for Tom Cruise, just in case he was still working a shift.

He was not.

But it did not matter.

Because we had found our home for the next three days.

A beach bar next to the pools, steps from the ocean, shaded bar stools, cold drinks, and the kind of atmosphere that makes you forget what day it is in the best way.

Linda and I looked at each other and said it, quietly, like a pact.

Hell yeah. We’re doing this.

The Hardest Choice Was Pool or Ocean

If I chose to leave the cool shade of that bar stool, my hardest decision would be:

Pool or ocean?

I like those types of quandaries.

We spent our days living the fancy side of the street and slept on the less expensive side of the street.

Which is honestly the best travel hack we’ve ever stumbled into.

It was the perfect break after eight months of motion.

A pause.

A reset.

A reminder that this life is not about grinding through the dream until you hate it.

It is about designing it in a way you can actually live.

Yes, We Know

WAH. WAH.

We are crying over the freedom to travel and the magnificent experiences we chose on purpose.

But here is the truth.

This is the life we chose.
And we have had no regrets since we made our Declaration of Intendependence.

Aruba did not change our direction.

It confirmed it.

The Life Design Point

Adventure is not always the big dramatic leap.

Sometimes it’s the moment you realize you can build a life where rest is allowed, joy is allowed, and across the street is still close enough to walk into the pool like you own the place.

Helmets optional. Detours allowed. Autopilot disengaged.

Thanks for coming along for the ride.
With love and laughter,
Matt & Linda
No 2 The Quo

Want more adventures?
👉 Jamaica: Locals, Muddy Trails, and One Perfect Resort Day

Or see how all this became possible:
👉 Why We Said No 2 The Quo After the Kids Left Home

Before We Had the Framework, We Had the Stories

We didn’t start No 2 The Quo with a tidy little life design model and a color-coded spreadsheet.

Shocking, I know.

We started with a few lived decisions. Big ones. Messy ones. The kind where you say, “This is probably fine,” while quietly wondering if you have lost your entire mind.

These three stories explain how we got here before we had the words Declaration of Intendependence™ to describe what we were doing.

These are the origin stories behind No 2 The Quo.

👉 Why We Said No 2 The Quo After the Kids Left Home
👉 It Took Two Years to “Suddenly” Change Our Lives
👉 Yes, We Really Did Pack Our Whole Life Into a Car and Leave

Ready to Start Redesigning Your Life?

Download our free guide:
“How to Start Redesigning Your Life This Week (Even If You Think It’s Too Late)”

Get the 3-step framework we used to go from burned out to full-time freedom.
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Plus, you’ll get our weekly emails every Tuesday—Life Design strategies and adventure stories that prove freedom is possible.
No spam. No nonsense. And yes, we’ll probably talk about helmets.

We accidentally lived on the fancy side of the street, and it was glorious.