Forums · HPI in Aruba: In Search of Natalee Holloway
HPI in Aruba: In Search of Natalee Holloway
To see pictures from Aruba, please click on this link:
http://s459.photobucket.com/albums/qq319/HPI_International/HPIAruba/[/URL]
Now, are you ready for the story? You are? Cool, let's go...
This is the start of my vacation. The day is 12 January 2009. I am headed for Aruba. I stop at Shannon 'Ms. Macabre' McCabe's home, she has offered to drive me to the airport. I tell Shannon, that is really nice that you will drive me to Oakland. She exclaims...Oakland? I thought you were flying out of Sacramento? Paul: No, I said Oakland. Shannon: I can't go to Oakland, I am sorry, I thought you were flying out of Sacramento. Paul: Don't worry about it Shannon, I can get to Oakland by myself. Shannon: I am really sorry man. Paul: Don't sweat it, just make sure to watch my dogs HPI and Pika. Rukesh Kumar, my neighbor will be watching them too, I am glad you and Rukesh have met. Shannon: Don't worry about the dogs Paul, I will even walk them!
Now you are probably wondering why I am headed over to Aruba. I am headed over to Aruba for pleasure and to investigate the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
Quick History Lesson on Aruba:
The wind-swept island of Aruba was discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, later acquired by the Dutch in 1636. Aruba was once part of the Netherlands Antilles, but they withdrew and subsequently became an independent member of the kingdom of the Netherlands. At one time oil refining and even gold mining was the major industry in Aruba, but when tourists discovered this island, things for Arubians changed and it changed for the better. This sunshiny place of balmy perfect weather, sandy beaches, duty-free shopping has one of the most fascinating ecosystems on the planet, is surrounded by the warm, aquamarine waters of the Caribbean Sea. Yes, Aruba is paradise.
How Am I Getting There and How Will I Return?
12 Jan: Flight 90 Jet Blue Oakland to New York
13 Jan: Flight 755 Jet Blue New York to Aruba
(Through the Bermuda Triangle)
19 Jan: Flight 744 Jet Blue Aruba to Boston
19 Jan: Flight 477 Jet Blue Boston to Oakland
The Ghost Tracker (my vehicle) is parked at the Oakland International Airport - Economy Parking N6.
Where Will I Be Staying?
Talk of the Town Hotel and Beach Club Room 106
On my way to Aruba, I am cramped in with an older couple. The older guy is right next to me and he is elbowing me throughout the whole trip. Later in the flight, he takes off his shoes and socks and starts fiddling around with his feet. The thoughts in my head were unimaginable. I did everything in my power to hold down my breakfast. I was so happy arriving to Aruba and getting as far away as possible from this guy. When the jet landed, they started playing the Beach Boy's Kokomo song.
The next thing is the fun part, negotiating with taxi drivers on their prices. Finally found a taxi driver with somewhat of a reasonable price. $15.00 cash to get from the airport to my hotel. What the? It was practically an 8 minute ride. Since the taxi driver was not too friendly, I stiffed him a tip. Man, this was one grouchy taxi driver, nice taxi drivers get tips, grouchy ones don't get anything.
I love my hotel, you can feel the island breeze, a cute outdoor patio and bar, beautiful swimming pool and the interior of my hotel room is everything I wanted. Yes, I can see why this hotel is called The Talk of the Town. Big price though, over a thousand bucks for 6 nights. Ouch! Oh well, I am on vacation.
On the first day, I am exhausted and jet lagged, but my curiosity is at an all time high. I want to see the town. On this day, I would check out the Marketplace, Seaport Casino and Parlament di Aruba.
This Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of meeting a gorgeous dark haired Colombian girl named Sandra Osono. Sandra has given me many details of her country in Columbia and why she has moved to Aruba. Sandra was a pleasure to talk to and I will be keeping in touch with Sandra. This night, I would get lost in my thoughts as I listened to the reggae and salsa music at a club called Mambo Jambo and sipping on my pina colada.
It is now Wednesday and I would stop over at the Beach Bar Havana aka The New Havana Beach Bar and Restaurants. This is right across the street from my hotel and to my surprise, the Arubian women are parading around this beach without any tops. I instantly thought, just perhaps, the Arubian women might be poor and are not able to afford a full piece bathing suit, so minus the tops. Perhaps, when I get to America, I will start up a charity for these poor women, so they can have full piece bathing suits and they will not have to walk around the beach without their tops. I felt saddened at their plight.
Today, I would spend much of the day souvenir shopping and when I got hungry I would have some beef chop suey at the Kowloon Restaurant. In a location near the Kowloon Restaurant, I met Sasha (not her real name). She asked why I was walking around taking notes. I explained to her that I have heard stories about a blonde phantom woman that walks the beach of Aruba and some people think it is Natalee Holloway.
I explained that last night, I did go to the beach late at night. A beach location that some people believe that Natalee was taken to and attempted to get some EVPs. Some of the questions I have asked are: Natalee are you here? Natalee if you are here, speak to me. So far, I have not gathered any EVPs. I will continue trying.
Sasha laughed. Sasha: You are a ghosthunter, this is funny. There are many ghosts here in Aruba and many stories. The blonde phantom woman, is probably the Lady of the Mist. The Lady of the Mist is a ghost of a woman, that may have drowned. If you want to know how Natalee died, I know some of Joran's (Joran van der Sloot) circle of friends. I was told that Joran placed some drugs in her drinks and when he got her out to the beach, she went into convulsions. He had one of his friends drop her out in the ocean. Joran was scared when Natalee went into convulsions, because it was his drugs that killed her. Joran could only think of getting rid of any evidence and that was disposing of the body. That is why Joran did not call the cops, he is a coward.
Paul: Sasha, why haven't you told the cops? Sasha: The cops already know and they do nothing. I don't want to be involved and please do not use my name in your article, not my real name, you can call me Sasha, that is okay. Paul: Wow! I was expecting to just try and get some EVPs, I didn't realize I was going to talk to a person that has some inside knowledge.
After my meeting with Sasha, I watched her as she walked into a crowd of people at the local mall and vanished. I can only wonder what other information, I will find while in Aruba?
As I walked back to my hotel, I sort of was in a trance after talking with Sasha. A Mercedes pulls up and a dark haired Arubian girl stops the Mercedes and opens the door and tells me to get in! As I prepared to get in, a horn blows and I realize I was merely daydreaming. The person blowing the horn, was a large old woman in an old beat up Chevy. I was daydreaming the James Bond (Quantum of Solice) scene.
Hey, what do you expect? I am in paradise, the island of dreams...I can daydream a little bit. But, I know that this vacation is becoming an adventure and the night has not even arrived yet.
Okay, the night is here. It's Wednesday night. It's time to get friendly. It's time to interview people. My first interviewee is: Vasilisa Henriquez. Vasilisa verifies the story that Sasha told me and doesn't mind that I use her real name in my article. Vasilisa looks like a model and she has this sweet Jamaican accent. Instead of calling me Paul, she calls me Pol. I like that. Vasilisa Henriquez also tells me that Joran called his father when Natalee supposingly died. It was Joran's father that took Natalee on the boat and dumped her body. This is the story that has been told repeatedly here in Aruba.
Vasilisa has her own ghost story from Jaimaca. When she was 12 years old, she saw a woman in white holding a handbag near a big tree. As she watched the woman, she vanished in front of Vasilisa's eyes. Here in Aruba, her friend was jogging and saw a man with no shirt, as he passed the man with no shirt, he vanished in front of his eyes. Vasilisa works at the Mambo Jambo and put on Conversations with a Serial Killer from Shannon McCabe's website and everyone at Mambo Jambo was watching Shannon and I talk about Richard Trenton Chase for Two Four Productions. Vasilisa had to check out my credentials and started reading some of my articles at Alien Seeker News. Vasilisa's desire is to meet celebrity psychic Nancy Bradley. I told her, I will hook her up when I returned back to the States.
The next person I interviewed was Fanny Rodriguez. Fanny is a proclaimed psychic and she says when she drives 60 mph, she can see ghosts walking along the road. She at times astral projects from her body. One night as she laid in bed with her boyfriend, she saw her boyfriend standing over her, but yet her boyfriend was still next to her in bed. Either we have a ghost that does a good impersonation of her boyfriend or her boyfriend astral projected himself and that is what Fanny saw.
I met Darierre del Roxario on the street and she attests that Natalee Holloway is actually seen walking along the beach, this is the blonde phantom woman of the beach.
My next victims, I mean interviewees were three women from Italy. I met the lovely Susy Serra and her two girlfriends, they are here from Italy. Instead of telling me ghost stories, these ladies wanted me to tell them ghost stories. So, I talked the night away about one encounter after another. All three women were fascinated about the paranormal.
After the three Italian women left, I went to another club, it was so jam packed, that people were dancing on the streets, outside the door of this establishment. Here I met a Swedish girl that has no interest in the paranormal, but had a strong interest in Salsa dancing. I showed her some quick moves and she was hooked. We danced in the street during a down pour of rain that lasted for 15 minutes. We were both soaked.
Looking at the time, I had to attempt to get EVPs of Natalee Holloway. The Swedish girl who wishes to remain anonymous tagged along with me via taxi to a location where Natalee may have been. Asking a series of questions, it appears I may have gotten one EVP of a woman.
Paul: Natalee are you here? EVP of young woman: Help me please.
More EVP attempts are made and nothing is found for this night. I close this story for now, as the Swedish girl is bringing me a long island iced tea, as she sips on an Arubian beer. Let's see what happens tomorrow.
Well, tomorrow is here. It's Thursday! I woke up before 10am! Yahoo! I didn't miss the breakfast buffet here at the hotel! After I finished eating, went down to the Havana Beach and laid out. This beach is a trip, it has big lizards walking around on the beach. Also, you might note, there are big green Iguanas that walk around Aruba parks. The parks in Aruba do not have squirrels, they have big green lizards. But, let's get back to the beach. When you go into the water, you have fish swimming around your legs. The water is crystal clear and warm! On the beach I met Patricia Howard from the Southern part of London. It was an enjoyable conversation with Patricia, since I have been to London and I told her all of the places I visited while in London.
It's nice to pass time with people that are worldly, you get a better perspective of life. Worldly people are always captivating. On this day, I was very successful in something I wanted to do since I have been out here. To travel over to Venezuela. But, I will tell you about that in a minute. As I walk the streets of Aruba, people have reggae music or salsa music blasting from their cars, from their homes, from their businesses. You can hear reggae artists such as the classic Bob Marley and the Wailers and the newer reggae artists such as D' Angel, Lady Saw, Barbee. On this day, would visit the Eet Cafe - The Paddock and Iguana Joes. I encountered a lovely lady named Leslie Kain from Cincinnati. Cincinnati, Ohio is just another place I have been to, so it was easy to talk with Leslie about her home town. But, what I didn't know about her home town is a place called Bobby Mackeys. In this old bar and restaurant she tells me that the cellar of this establishment is very haunted. She says objects constantly move around and many patrons have seen full body apparitions while frequenting this place. Okay Leslie, you have me convinced, if I ever get back to Cincinnati, I will definitely check this place out!
As I was sitting at the Burger King #14524 - Caya Betico Croes #81, Oranjestad, Aruba, I met Captain Crowley. I was choking down my double Whopper with cheese and large coke, that cost me a mere $7.60. This is better that the other prices I have been paying for meals. I'm starting to watch my budget now. I got into a conversation with Captain Crowley and he told me he has a vessel called the Smidgen parked off the docks. I told him how desperately I have been wanting to go over to Venezuela. Captain Crowley said he could oblige for a sum of $200.00. So, much for my budget...sigh. The only problem is that he will not be able to dock his boat in Venezuela, but he promised me that I could see the coastline and that I will be in Venezuela territorial waters. I can make the claim that I have been in the territory of Venezuela. I agreed and handed over $200.00 cash. This is a trip that would be well worth it. It's only a mere 15 miles to Venezuela and the reason why they have no ferry boats going over to Venezuela is because there is some bitterness between Venezuela and Aruba. The Venezuela president has been rubbing shoulders with the Russian president and both have been eyeing oil wells near and around Aruba. Aruba is afraid that Venezuela may take claim of their island. The 15 mile ride seemed to go on forever, but finally I was in territorial waters and could see the gorgeous coastline of Venezuela. One of the boat hands is from Venezuela, his name is Fredrico Perez. I asked Fredrico are there any cattle mutilations in Venezuela, evil gnomes or UFOs.
Fredrico in his own words says: Some people say that silver discs fly in and around the capitol of Venezuela. There have been cattle mutilations back in the late 80s. I don't know about gnomes, but it is said that there are little people living in the forests of Venezuela. Some of these little people have been seen near landed UFOs. I have a friend who says that he saw a little person on a high tree branch. As my friend looked at the little person, he could see that his skin seemed leathery, his color was sort of bluish and his eyes were red. My friend was very scared and ran from the tree.
I enjoyed my boat ride and the feel of the wind in my face was ecstatic. When I got off the boat, my hair was completely wind blown and I must have frightened many tourists with my wind blown appearance. Time to refresh myself back at the hotel. Goodbye Punto Fijo, Venezuela.
As I relax at my hotel bar sipping on an Arubian beer, I start a conversation with Lila Megens. Lila is from Venezuela and I easily place her into a conversation about ghosts and asked her if she ever had a paranormal experience. Lila tells me that when her sister was 7 years old, she complained about headaches. Then one day out of the clear blue, she passed away. Her mother was completely traumatized from this experience and would prepare a place on the table for her daughter, as if she was still alive. Every day her mother cried. Lila and her other sister had a vision that they were playing with their sister that passed away. The deceased sister stated to both living sisters, that she was still there, but she cannot be touched. She explains to both living sisters that she does not belong here, but to tell mother to please let her rest. Both visions were similar. When the mother heard of this, she finally calmed down and the visions stopped.
I ended this night by going back to the Mambo Jambo and listening to Madonna's song 'Holiday' and having a few laughs with the lady bartenders. On my way back to the hotel, I made some more EVP attempts at the beach and I was unsuccessful. Okay, it's time to sleep, tomorrow is Friday!
It's Friday! This week is going by fast. As I look out from my hotel through the palm trees that hold large coconuts, I see a multi-colored designed bus. These buses that travel throughout Aruba are referred to as Bar Hopping Buses. At night time, they carry party revelers throughout Aruba and they make stops at various nightclubs and bars. You don't see things like that in Sacramento. Yep! I am not in Kansas anymore.
Today I went on the Atlantis submarine tour. I have never been on a real submarine, but I did this time. I have been on a 1/2 submarine in Tahiti, but this is something I have never experienced. Besides seeing the spectacular coral reefs and an abundance of colorful sea life, you also get to see two shipwrecks. One of the shipwrecks is the Antilla. This was once a German U-boat supply ship. During World War II, Dutch Marines gave the ship 24 hours to surrender.
The Captain of the ship decided not to turn over his ship to the Dutch Marines, so he scuttled the ship. He safely had the crewmen go to the shore. He then heated up the boilers and opened the sea cocks. When the cold water hit the hot boilers, the ship exploded, ripping the ship in half. It sank in eight minutes. How exciting to see this history in the ocean. For more information, check out: www.atlantisadventures.com/aruba[/URL] If you visit Aruba, the submarine tour is a must!
An Arubian that does not want to be identified tells me an Arubian ghost story. A man who would go to the beach by himself, would at times see a small boy in a t-shirt, that had no arms. The boy would stare at the man and walk towards the trees and vanish. The man thinking it was some boy that lived near the beach, thought nothing of it. Then one day, the boy with no arms appears again and approaches the man. The boy seemed to have a sinister look on his face. The man felt no threat from the little boy. As the boy got closer, he bit the man's leg viciously. The man had a stroke. The man screamed and people on the beach hearing the scream assisted the man. It was determined he had a stroke on the beach, but there was also a large bite mark on his leg.
Today spent most of the whole day at the Havana Beach Club, sipping pina coladas. Met another Columbian girl. Her name is Yuli Cacezes, she is an inspiring writer and I was giving her tips that may be beneficial for her future writing career.
On this night, went to another beach area for an EVP session. I asked about 20 or so questions. One questionable EVP is this one, that needs further analysis:
Paul: Natalee, how did you die? EVP of Woman: Don't know.
Well, today is Saturday. Time to lay out at the Havana Beach. I was walking over to the beach and they have artificially colored blue rocks and to my surprise there is a Chameleon, the Chameleon was a bright blue. Amazing! As I was in the water, I struck up a conversation with Pablia, another lady from Columbia. Now check this out. I don't speak any Spanish, sure...I know certain words and Pablia doesn't know how to speak English. But, with sign language and certain word recognition, I was able to gather this information. Pablia is from Columbia, she has 3 children, she loves the water. She is not fond of the Venezuela president and feels he may invade Aruba, because of the oil. She has a large family in Columbia, but a small family here in Aruba. She has been to Orlando, Florida and she understands I am from California. Now, that is mind blowing. Not being able to speak Spanish, but having a full on conversation and understanding what is being said. I amaze myself sometimes.
Enough of that, tonight went back to Mambo Jambo for more interviews. With 4 long island iced teas and 2 jelly shots, I was still able to conduct interviews. The first interview tonight was a Columbian girl named Dora Zapata. She pointed the way to Cafe Bahia which was formerly known as Senor Frog. Yes! Senor Frog is the club where Natalee Holloway was last seen. After some Salsa dancing at Mambo Jambo, I will attempt to get some EVPs at Cafe Bahia. Tonight, I salsa danced with two ladies from Venezuela (Asdreina and Andrea). I really felt my salsa dancing sucked, but some Latino guys came over to tell me that I did a great job, especially when I started spinning them around and around and around. So, who knows. Perhaps I did good, perhaps I didn't. It is not easy to dance Salsa, especially if you are not familiar with the music. While I took a break from these ladies, I talked with Nolan Howe from Michigan. Nolan plans to join our HPI Michigan Branch Office. Nolan was completely fascinated with my stories and was quite knowledgeable about the paranormal. I was impressed.
After the nightclub ended, I went over to Cafe Bahia and took some pictures and tried to get some EVPs. Tonight I was unsuccessful in getting any EVPs. I made about 15 attempts at Cafe Bahia.
Special Note: People I interviewed claim that Natalee Holloway was last seen at the Senor Frog and not Carlos 'n Charlies like the newspapers reported. The 'don't know' EVP was obtained near the California Lighthouse.
Today is Sunday. I promised I would take it easy today, because I fly out on Monday. So, I did some EVP work at Pinchos Grill & Bar on the Pier. No success in obtaining EVPs. Then laid out at the Havana Beach Club, where I met two Columbian women - Jenny Castano and her girlfriend Angela Guitterez. They speak no English and I just know a few key words in Spanish and got into a great conversation with them, using a lot of sign language. Jenny fed me some Special K peaches and berries bars and in turn I bought them two pina coladas. Now I have committed myself to take them both to Mambo Jambo for dancing. As Jenny's girlfriend drove me back to my hotel from the beach, she played some Salsa music that she loves. I'm getting used to this Salsa music. It doesn't seem like I will be getting any rest tonight...sigh. It's not easy being a ghosthunter in an exotic land. No wonder they call Aruba - One Happy Island.
7pm and Jenny Castano & Angela Guitterez are at my door. We all hop in Angela's car and head downtown. They show me where Carlos 'n Charlies Restaurant and Bar is. They claim that Natalee Holloway was at this bar and it was the last place she was seen, not Senor Frog. But, Senor Frog is very close to Carlos 'n Charlies Restaurant and I can see how the Arubians could get that confused. Angela allowed me to drive her car on the streets of Aruba, that was a blast! On this night the three of us had Columbian dinners at Carlos Arango Dario Hincapie Jierras Colombianas - Schektstraat No 58. Wow! Columbian food is quite delicious and satisfied my pallet immensely! Afterwards we went to the Well Well Restaurant where Angela works as a bartender. We then finalized the night at the Wing Hung Restaurant and Bar (this is a Columbian bar), the prices are very good for drinks. The ladies had several drinks and shots and it cost a mere $20.00. Jenny taught me how to Columbian Salsa. My Salsa was top notch tonight and people at the bar were clapping. Ahhh...I still have it! What an exceptional evening and spent it looking at the billions of stars in the night sky with Jenny. No EVP work tonight, if you can catch my drift. I will miss Aruba. Tomorrow is the day I go home....double sigh.
Monday is here and I am jetting back home. Seated next to me is Kim and Andy Miller from Oakland. I love this couple, we had such a captivating conversation for most of the time heading to Oakland from Boston. Kim is very well traveled and we discussed the many countries we have visited. Kim had a great ghost story about the Mt. View Cemetery in Oakland. The very same cemetery where I had a scouting mission. Here is the story, that occurred in the 1800s. A wealthy doctor married a young gold digger women. He bought her a whopping diamond wedding ring. During their marriage, she became ill and died suddenly. The good doctor discovers after her demise that she had cheated on him. One night he heads out to the Mt. View Cemetery and digs up her fresh grave to get his ring back. As he pulls off her ring, she sits up from her coffin. The doctor has a heart attack on the spot and dies. It was discovered that his wife was accidently buried alive. Thank you Kim for this great story. Andy Miller, Kim's significant other has a great website at: www.burmesemountaindog.org[/URL] - Check it out when you have a chance.
This concludes my investigation in Aruba. While I was in Aruba, I did some promoting of HPI and Ghost Girls. The 4 female bartenders of Mambo Jambo allowed me to place Ghost Girls business cards on all of the seats of the club and the DJ announced that Ghost Girls business cards were placed on the seats, because an American ghosthunter and ghostwriter is in Aruba. That was some great advertising by Mambo Jambo and I thank them for this!
FINDINGS:
I interviewed dozens of people on the streets of Aruba. Many who are not even mentioned in this article. Many people confirm that a blonde phantom woman does walk the beaches of Aruba. I cannot confirm that this blonde phantom woman is Natalee Holloway. During my EVP sessions, the two EVPs I received are from a woman, but she does not confirm she is Natalee Holloway, even though the 'don't know' EVP, I do ask a question directed to Natalee and received the EVP.
CONCLUSION:
With the many witnesses that claim to have seen or heard about the blonde phantom woman of the Aruba beaches, I do believe they are seeing something that may be paranormal. With the two EVPs that I received, there is a strong indication that there is paranormal activity. I gathered no positive proof that the EVPs are from Natalee Holloway, nor did I ever see a blonde phantom woman on the beaches of Aruba. Many people believe Joran spiked Natalee's drinks with drugs. Many people believe that Joran's father took Natalee on his boat and dumped her body in the ocean. One person I interviewed that calls herself Sasha, says he received this information from the circle of friends that were associated with Joran. My thoughts, when rumors are this strong, there appears there may be some type of foundation of truth and this matter should continue being investigated by the police. As long as Natalee's death is not confirmed, Aruba cannot truly be 'one happy island'. There must be a conclusion to this and justice must be served! Natalee will always be in the hearts of millions. She is an innocent girl that confronted evil and paid a terrible price. God bless Natalee.
Below are some cool things to check out!
http://forums.jazmaonline.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=940[/URL]
UFO Story and Chris Holly Story. Great true UFO story and a story by paranormal writer Chris Holly, click on the link above.
http://forums.jazmaonline.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=927[/URL]
Some of the music that a ghosthunter like me listens to when heading to haunted locations and some stories that my father told me. Click on the link above.
Paul Dale Roberts, Ghost Girls Ghostwriter & Paranormal Investigator
www.ghostgirls.net[/URL]
www.HPI.paranormal.net[/URL]
http://www.shannonmccabe.com/Conversationswithaserialkiller.html[/URL]
(Paul and Shannon on TV Show Conversations with a Serial Killer - see link above)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Dale_Roberts[/URL]
www.nancybradley.org[/URL]
www.jazmaonline.com[/URL]
Staff Writer - Alien Seeker News - http://www.alienseekernews.com/[/URL]
WPRT Paranormal Radio - Content Editor
Email: JazmaPika@cs.com
Paranormal Cellular Hotline: 916 203 7503 (for comments on this story).
If you have a possible investigation call: 1-888-709-4HPI
Copyright © 2009 Paul Dale Roberts, HPI Ghostwriter Copyright © 2009
all rights reserved.
To see pictures from Aruba, please click on this link:
http://s459.photobucket.com/albums/qq319/HPI_International/HPIAruba/[/URL]
Now, are you ready for the story? You are? Cool, let's go...
This is the start of my vacation. The day is 12 January 2009. I am headed for Aruba. I stop at Shannon 'Ms. Macabre' McCabe's home, she has offered to drive me to the airport. I tell Shannon, that is really nice that you will drive me to Oakland. She exclaims...Oakland? I thought you were flying out of Sacramento? Paul: No, I said Oakland. Shannon: I can't go to Oakland, I am sorry, I thought you were flying out of Sacramento. Paul: Don't worry about it Shannon, I can get to Oakland by myself. Shannon: I am really sorry man. Paul: Don't sweat it, just make sure to watch my dogs HPI and Pika. Rukesh Kumar, my neighbor will be watching them too, I am glad you and Rukesh have met. Shannon: Don't worry about the dogs Paul, I will even walk them!
Now you are probably wondering why I am headed over to Aruba. I am headed over to Aruba for pleasure and to investigate the disappearance of Natalee Holloway.
Quick History Lesson on Aruba:
The wind-swept island of Aruba was discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499, later acquired by the Dutch in 1636. Aruba was once part of the Netherlands Antilles, but they withdrew and subsequently became an independent member of the kingdom of the Netherlands. At one time oil refining and even gold mining was the major industry in Aruba, but when tourists discovered this island, things for Arubians changed and it changed for the better. This sunshiny place of balmy perfect weather, sandy beaches, duty-free shopping has one of the most fascinating ecosystems on the planet, is surrounded by the warm, aquamarine waters of the Caribbean Sea. Yes, Aruba is paradise.
How Am I Getting There and How Will I Return?
12 Jan: Flight 90 Jet Blue Oakland to New York
13 Jan: Flight 755 Jet Blue New York to Aruba
(Through the Bermuda Triangle)
19 Jan: Flight 744 Jet Blue Aruba to Boston
19 Jan: Flight 477 Jet Blue Boston to Oakland
The Ghost Tracker (my vehicle) is parked at the Oakland International Airport - Economy Parking N6.
Where Will I Be Staying?
Talk of the Town Hotel and Beach Club Room 106
On my way to Aruba, I am cramped in with an older couple. The older guy is right next to me and he is elbowing me throughout the whole trip. Later in the flight, he takes off his shoes and socks and starts fiddling around with his feet. The thoughts in my head were unimaginable. I did everything in my power to hold down my breakfast. I was so happy arriving to Aruba and getting as far away as possible from this guy. When the jet landed, they started playing the Beach Boy's Kokomo song.
The next thing is the fun part, negotiating with taxi drivers on their prices. Finally found a taxi driver with somewhat of a reasonable price. $15.00 cash to get from the airport to my hotel. What the? It was practically an 8 minute ride. Since the taxi driver was not too friendly, I stiffed him a tip. Man, this was one grouchy taxi driver, nice taxi drivers get tips, grouchy ones don't get anything.
I love my hotel, you can feel the island breeze, a cute outdoor patio and bar, beautiful swimming pool and the interior of my hotel room is everything I wanted. Yes, I can see why this hotel is called The Talk of the Town. Big price though, over a thousand bucks for 6 nights. Ouch! Oh well, I am on vacation.
On the first day, I am exhausted and jet lagged, but my curiosity is at an all time high. I want to see the town. On this day, I would check out the Marketplace, Seaport Casino and Parlament di Aruba.
This Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of meeting a gorgeous dark haired Colombian girl named Sandra Osono. Sandra has given me many details of her country in Columbia and why she has moved to Aruba. Sandra was a pleasure to talk to and I will be keeping in touch with Sandra. This night, I would get lost in my thoughts as I listened to the reggae and salsa music at a club called Mambo Jambo and sipping on my pina colada.
It is now Wednesday and I would stop over at the Beach Bar Havana aka The New Havana Beach Bar and Restaurants. This is right across the street from my hotel and to my surprise, the Arubian women are parading around this beach without any tops. I instantly thought, just perhaps, the Arubian women might be poor and are not able to afford a full piece bathing suit, so minus the tops. Perhaps, when I get to America, I will start up a charity for these poor women, so they can have full piece bathing suits and they will not have to walk around the beach without their tops. I felt saddened at their plight.
Today, I would spend much of the day souvenir shopping and when I got hungry I would have some beef chop suey at the Kowloon Restaurant. In a location near the Kowloon Restaurant, I met Sasha (not her real name). She asked why I was walking around taking notes. I explained to her that I have heard stories about a blonde phantom woman that walks the beach of Aruba and some people think it is Natalee Holloway.
I explained that last night, I did go to the beach late at night. A beach location that some people believe that Natalee was taken to and attempted to get some EVPs. Some of the questions I have asked are: Natalee are you here? Natalee if you are here, speak to me. So far, I have not gathered any EVPs. I will continue trying.
Sasha laughed. Sasha: You are a ghosthunter, this is funny. There are many ghosts here in Aruba and many stories. The blonde phantom woman, is probably the Lady of the Mist. The Lady of the Mist is a ghost of a woman, that may have drowned. If you want to know how Natalee died, I know some of Joran's (Joran van der Sloot) circle of friends. I was told that Joran placed some drugs in her drinks and when he got her out to the beach, she went into convulsions. He had one of his friends drop her out in the ocean. Joran was scared when Natalee went into convulsions, because it was his drugs that killed her. Joran could only think of getting rid of any evidence and that was disposing of the body. That is why Joran did not call the cops, he is a coward.
Paul: Sasha, why haven't you told the cops? Sasha: The cops already know and they do nothing. I don't want to be involved and please do not use my name in your article, not my real name, you can call me Sasha, that is okay. Paul: Wow! I was expecting to just try and get some EVPs, I didn't realize I was going to talk to a person that has some inside knowledge.
After my meeting with Sasha, I watched her as she walked into a crowd of people at the local mall and vanished. I can only wonder what other information, I will find while in Aruba?
As I walked back to my hotel, I sort of was in a trance after talking with Sasha. A Mercedes pulls up and a dark haired Arubian girl stops the Mercedes and opens the door and tells me to get in! As I prepared to get in, a horn blows and I realize I was merely daydreaming. The person blowing the horn, was a large old woman in an old beat up Chevy. I was daydreaming the James Bond (Quantum of Solice) scene.
Hey, what do you expect? I am in paradise, the island of dreams...I can daydream a little bit. But, I know that this vacation is becoming an adventure and the night has not even arrived yet.
Okay, the night is here. It's Wednesday night. It's time to get friendly. It's time to interview people. My first interviewee is: Vasilisa Henriquez. Vasilisa verifies the story that Sasha told me and doesn't mind that I use her real name in my article. Vasilisa looks like a model and she has this sweet Jamaican accent. Instead of calling me Paul, she calls me Pol. I like that. Vasilisa Henriquez also tells me that Joran called his father when Natalee supposingly died. It was Joran's father that took Natalee on the boat and dumped her body. This is the story that has been told repeatedly here in Aruba.
Vasilisa has her own ghost story from Jaimaca. When she was 12 years old, she saw a woman in white holding a handbag near a big tree. As she watched the woman, she vanished in front of Vasilisa's eyes. Here in Aruba, her friend was jogging and saw a man with no shirt, as he passed the man with no shirt, he vanished in front of his eyes. Vasilisa works at the Mambo Jambo and put on Conversations with a Serial Killer from Shannon McCabe's website and everyone at Mambo Jambo was watching Shannon and I talk about Richard Trenton Chase for Two Four Productions. Vasilisa had to check out my credentials and started reading some of my articles at Alien Seeker News. Vasilisa's desire is to meet celebrity psychic Nancy Bradley. I told her, I will hook her up when I returned back to the States.
The next person I interviewed was Fanny Rodriguez. Fanny is a proclaimed psychic and she says when she drives 60 mph, she can see ghosts walking along the road. She at times astral projects from her body. One night as she laid in bed with her boyfriend, she saw her boyfriend standing over her, but yet her boyfriend was still next to her in bed. Either we have a ghost that does a good impersonation of her boyfriend or her boyfriend astral projected himself and that is what Fanny saw.
I met Darierre del Roxario on the street and she attests that Natalee Holloway is actually seen walking along the beach, this is the blonde phantom woman of the beach.
My next victims, I mean interviewees were three women from Italy. I met the lovely Susy Serra and her two girlfriends, they are here from Italy. Instead of telling me ghost stories, these ladies wanted me to tell them ghost stories. So, I talked the night away about one encounter after another. All three women were fascinated about the paranormal.
After the three Italian women left, I went to another club, it was so jam packed, that people were dancing on the streets, outside the door of this establishment. Here I met a Swedish girl that has no interest in the paranormal, but had a strong interest in Salsa dancing. I showed her some quick moves and she was hooked. We danced in the street during a down pour of rain that lasted for 15 minutes. We were both soaked.
Looking at the time, I had to attempt to get EVPs of Natalee Holloway. The Swedish girl who wishes to remain anonymous tagged along with me via taxi to a location where Natalee may have been. Asking a series of questions, it appears I may have gotten one EVP of a woman.
Paul: Natalee are you here? EVP of young woman: Help me please.
More EVP attempts are made and nothing is found for this night. I close this story for now, as the Swedish girl is bringing me a long island iced tea, as she sips on an Arubian beer. Let's see what happens tomorrow.
Well, tomorrow is here. It's Thursday! I woke up before 10am! Yahoo! I didn't miss the breakfast buffet here at the hotel! After I finished eating, went down to the Havana Beach and laid out. This beach is a trip, it has big lizards walking around on the beach. Also, you might note, there are big green Iguanas that walk around Aruba parks. The parks in Aruba do not have squirrels, they have big green lizards. But, let's get back to the beach. When you go into the water, you have fish swimming around your legs. The water is crystal clear and warm! On the beach I met Patricia Howard from the Southern part of London. It was an enjoyable conversation with Patricia, since I have been to London and I told her all of the places I visited while in London.
It's nice to pass time with people that are worldly, you get a better perspective of life. Worldly people are always captivating. On this day, I was very successful in something I wanted to do since I have been out here. To travel over to Venezuela. But, I will tell you about that in a minute. As I walk the streets of Aruba, people have reggae music or salsa music blasting from their cars, from their homes, from their businesses. You can hear reggae artists such as the classic Bob Marley and the Wailers and the newer reggae artists such as D' Angel, Lady Saw, Barbee. On this day, would visit the Eet Cafe - The Paddock and Iguana Joes. I encountered a lovely lady named Leslie Kain from Cincinnati. Cincinnati, Ohio is just another place I have been to, so it was easy to talk with Leslie about her home town. But, what I didn't know about her home town is a place called Bobby Mackeys. In this old bar and restaurant she tells me that the cellar of this establishment is very haunted. She says objects constantly move around and many patrons have seen full body apparitions while frequenting this place. Okay Leslie, you have me convinced, if I ever get back to Cincinnati, I will definitely check this place out!
As I was sitting at the Burger King #14524 - Caya Betico Croes #81, Oranjestad, Aruba, I met Captain Crowley. I was choking down my double Whopper with cheese and large coke, that cost me a mere $7.60. This is better that the other prices I have been paying for meals. I'm starting to watch my budget now. I got into a conversation with Captain Crowley and he told me he has a vessel called the Smidgen parked off the docks. I told him how desperately I have been wanting to go over to Venezuela. Captain Crowley said he could oblige for a sum of $200.00. So, much for my budget...sigh. The only problem is that he will not be able to dock his boat in Venezuela, but he promised me that I could see the coastline and that I will be in Venezuela territorial waters. I can make the claim that I have been in the territory of Venezuela. I agreed and handed over $200.00 cash. This is a trip that would be well worth it. It's only a mere 15 miles to Venezuela and the reason why they have no ferry boats going over to Venezuela is because there is some bitterness between Venezuela and Aruba. The Venezuela president has been rubbing shoulders with the Russian president and both have been eyeing oil wells near and around Aruba. Aruba is afraid that Venezuela may take claim of their island. The 15 mile ride seemed to go on forever, but finally I was in territorial waters and could see the gorgeous coastline of Venezuela. One of the boat hands is from Venezuela, his name is Fredrico Perez. I asked Fredrico are there any cattle mutilations in Venezuela, evil gnomes or UFOs.
Fredrico in his own words says: Some people say that silver discs fly in and around the capitol of Venezuela. There have been cattle mutilations back in the late 80s. I don't know about gnomes, but it is said that there are little people living in the forests of Venezuela. Some of these little people have been seen near landed UFOs. I have a friend who says that he saw a little person on a high tree branch. As my friend looked at the little person, he could see that his skin seemed leathery, his color was sort of bluish and his eyes were red. My friend was very scared and ran from the tree.
I enjoyed my boat ride and the feel of the wind in my face was ecstatic. When I got off the boat, my hair was completely wind blown and I must have frightened many tourists with my wind blown appearance. Time to refresh myself back at the hotel. Goodbye Punto Fijo, Venezuela.
As I relax at my hotel bar sipping on an Arubian beer, I start a conversation with Lila Megens. Lila is from Venezuela and I easily place her into a conversation about ghosts and asked her if she ever had a paranormal experience. Lila tells me that when her sister was 7 years old, she complained about headaches. Then one day out of the clear blue, she passed away. Her mother was completely traumatized from this experience and would prepare a place on the table for her daughter, as if she was still alive. Every day her mother cried. Lila and her other sister had a vision that they were playing with their sister that passed away. The deceased sister stated to both living sisters, that she was still there, but she cannot be touched. She explains to both living sisters that she does not belong here, but to tell mother to please let her rest. Both visions were similar. When the mother heard of this, she finally calmed down and the visions stopped.
I ended this night by going back to the Mambo Jambo and listening to Madonna's song 'Holiday' and having a few laughs with the lady bartenders. On my way back to the hotel, I made some more EVP attempts at the beach and I was unsuccessful. Okay, it's time to sleep, tomorrow is Friday!
It's Friday! This week is going by fast. As I look out from my hotel through the palm trees that hold large coconuts, I see a multi-colored designed bus. These buses that travel throughout Aruba are referred to as Bar Hopping Buses. At night time, they carry party revelers throughout Aruba and they make stops at various nightclubs and bars. You don't see things like that in Sacramento. Yep! I am not in Kansas anymore.
Today I went on the Atlantis submarine tour. I have never been on a real submarine, but I did this time. I have been on a 1/2 submarine in Tahiti, but this is something I have never experienced. Besides seeing the spectacular coral reefs and an abundance of colorful sea life, you also get to see two shipwrecks. One of the shipwrecks is the Antilla. This was once a German U-boat supply ship. During World War II, Dutch Marines gave the ship 24 hours to surrender.
The Captain of the ship decided not to turn over his ship to the Dutch Marines, so he scuttled the ship. He safely had the crewmen go to the shore. He then heated up the boilers and opened the sea cocks. When the cold water hit the hot boilers, the ship exploded, ripping the ship in half. It sank in eight minutes. How exciting to see this history in the ocean. For more information, check out: www.atlantisadventures.com/aruba[/URL] If you visit Aruba, the submarine tour is a must!
An Arubian that does not want to be identified tells me an Arubian ghost story. A man who would go to the beach by himself, would at times see a small boy in a t-shirt, that had no arms. The boy would stare at the man and walk towards the trees and vanish. The man thinking it was some boy that lived near the beach, thought nothing of it. Then one day, the boy with no arms appears again and approaches the man. The boy seemed to have a sinister look on his face. The man felt no threat from the little boy. As the boy got closer, he bit the man's leg viciously. The man had a stroke. The man screamed and people on the beach hearing the scream assisted the man. It was determined he had a stroke on the beach, but there was also a large bite mark on his leg.
Today spent most of the whole day at the Havana Beach Club, sipping pina coladas. Met another Columbian girl. Her name is Yuli Cacezes, she is an inspiring writer and I was giving her tips that may be beneficial for her future writing career.
On this night, went to another beach area for an EVP session. I asked about 20 or so questions. One questionable EVP is this one, that needs further analysis:
Paul: Natalee, how did you die? EVP of Woman: Don't know.
Well, today is Saturday. Time to lay out at the Havana Beach. I was walking over to the beach and they have artificially colored blue rocks and to my surprise there is a Chameleon, the Chameleon was a bright blue. Amazing! As I was in the water, I struck up a conversation with Pablia, another lady from Columbia. Now check this out. I don't speak any Spanish, sure...I know certain words and Pablia doesn't know how to speak English. But, with sign language and certain word recognition, I was able to gather this information. Pablia is from Columbia, she has 3 children, she loves the water. She is not fond of the Venezuela president and feels he may invade Aruba, because of the oil. She has a large family in Columbia, but a small family here in Aruba. She has been to Orlando, Florida and she understands I am from California. Now, that is mind blowing. Not being able to speak Spanish, but having a full on conversation and understanding what is being said. I amaze myself sometimes.
Enough of that, tonight went back to Mambo Jambo for more interviews. With 4 long island iced teas and 2 jelly shots, I was still able to conduct interviews. The first interview tonight was a Columbian girl named Dora Zapata. She pointed the way to Cafe Bahia which was formerly known as Senor Frog. Yes! Senor Frog is the club where Natalee Holloway was last seen. After some Salsa dancing at Mambo Jambo, I will attempt to get some EVPs at Cafe Bahia. Tonight, I salsa danced with two ladies from Venezuela (Asdreina and Andrea). I really felt my salsa dancing sucked, but some Latino guys came over to tell me that I did a great job, especially when I started spinning them around and around and around. So, who knows. Perhaps I did good, perhaps I didn't. It is not easy to dance Salsa, especially if you are not familiar with the music. While I took a break from these ladies, I talked with Nolan Howe from Michigan. Nolan plans to join our HPI Michigan Branch Office. Nolan was completely fascinated with my stories and was quite knowledgeable about the paranormal. I was impressed.
After the nightclub ended, I went over to Cafe Bahia and took some pictures and tried to get some EVPs. Tonight I was unsuccessful in getting any EVPs. I made about 15 attempts at Cafe Bahia.
Special Note: People I interviewed claim that Natalee Holloway was last seen at the Senor Frog and not Carlos 'n Charlies like the newspapers reported. The 'don't know' EVP was obtained near the California Lighthouse.
Today is Sunday. I promised I would take it easy today, because I fly out on Monday. So, I did some EVP work at Pinchos Grill & Bar on the Pier. No success in obtaining EVPs. Then laid out at the Havana Beach Club, where I met two Columbian women - Jenny Castano and her girlfriend Angela Guitterez. They speak no English and I just know a few key words in Spanish and got into a great conversation with them, using a lot of sign language. Jenny fed me some Special K peaches and berries bars and in turn I bought them two pina coladas. Now I have committed myself to take them both to Mambo Jambo for dancing. As Jenny's girlfriend drove me back to my hotel from the beach, she played some Salsa music that she loves. I'm getting used to this Salsa music. It doesn't seem like I will be getting any rest tonight...sigh. It's not easy being a ghosthunter in an exotic land. No wonder they call Aruba - One Happy Island.
7pm and Jenny Castano & Angela Guitterez are at my door. We all hop in Angela's car and head downtown. They show me where Carlos 'n Charlies Restaurant and Bar is. They claim that Natalee Holloway was at this bar and it was the last place she was seen, not Senor Frog. But, Senor Frog is very close to Carlos 'n Charlies Restaurant and I can see how the Arubians could get that confused. Angela allowed me to drive her car on the streets of Aruba, that was a blast! On this night the three of us had Columbian dinners at Carlos Arango Dario Hincapie Jierras Colombianas - Schektstraat No 58. Wow! Columbian food is quite delicious and satisfied my pallet immensely! Afterwards we went to the Well Well Restaurant where Angela works as a bartender. We then finalized the night at the Wing Hung Restaurant and Bar (this is a Columbian bar), the prices are very good for drinks. The ladies had several drinks and shots and it cost a mere $20.00. Jenny taught me how to Columbian Salsa. My Salsa was top notch tonight and people at the bar were clapping. Ahhh...I still have it! What an exceptional evening and spent it looking at the billions of stars in the night sky with Jenny. No EVP work tonight, if you can catch my drift. I will miss Aruba. Tomorrow is the day I go home....double sigh.
Monday is here and I am jetting back home. Seated next to me is Kim and Andy Miller from Oakland. I love this couple, we had such a captivating conversation for most of the time heading to Oakland from Boston. Kim is very well traveled and we discussed the many countries we have visited. Kim had a great ghost story about the Mt. View Cemetery in Oakland. The very same cemetery where I had a scouting mission. Here is the story, that occurred in the 1800s. A wealthy doctor married a young gold digger women. He bought her a whopping diamond wedding ring. During their marriage, she became ill and died suddenly. The good doctor discovers after her demise that she had cheated on him. One night he heads out to the Mt. View Cemetery and digs up her fresh grave to get his ring back. As he pulls off her ring, she sits up from her coffin. The doctor has a heart attack on the spot and dies. It was discovered that his wife was accidently buried alive. Thank you Kim for this great story. Andy Miller, Kim's significant other has a great website at: www.burmesemountaindog.org[/URL] - Check it out when you have a chance.
This concludes my investigation in Aruba. While I was in Aruba, I did some promoting of HPI and Ghost Girls. The 4 female bartenders of Mambo Jambo allowed me to place Ghost Girls business cards on all of the seats of the club and the DJ announced that Ghost Girls business cards were placed on the seats, because an American ghosthunter and ghostwriter is in Aruba. That was some great advertising by Mambo Jambo and I thank them for this!
FINDINGS:
I interviewed dozens of people on the streets of Aruba. Many who are not even mentioned in this article. Many people confirm that a blonde phantom woman does walk the beaches of Aruba. I cannot confirm that this blonde phantom woman is Natalee Holloway. During my EVP sessions, the two EVPs I received are from a woman, but she does not confirm she is Natalee Holloway, even though the 'don't know' EVP, I do ask a question directed to Natalee and received the EVP.
CONCLUSION:
With the many witnesses that claim to have seen or heard about the blonde phantom woman of the Aruba beaches, I do believe they are seeing something that may be paranormal. With the two EVPs that I received, there is a strong indication that there is paranormal activity. I gathered no positive proof that the EVPs are from Natalee Holloway, nor did I ever see a blonde phantom woman on the beaches of Aruba. Many people believe Joran spiked Natalee's drinks with drugs. Many people believe that Joran's father took Natalee on his boat and dumped her body in the ocean. One person I interviewed that calls herself Sasha, says he received this information from the circle of friends that were associated with Joran. My thoughts, when rumors are this strong, there appears there may be some type of foundation of truth and this matter should continue being investigated by the police. As long as Natalee's death is not confirmed, Aruba cannot truly be 'one happy island'. There must be a conclusion to this and justice must be served! Natalee will always be in the hearts of millions. She is an innocent girl that confronted evil and paid a terrible price. God bless Natalee.
Below are some cool things to check out!
http://forums.jazmaonline.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=940[/URL]
UFO Story and Chris Holly Story. Great true UFO story and a story by paranormal writer Chris Holly, click on the link above.
http://forums.jazmaonline.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=927[/URL]
Some of the music that a ghosthunter like me listens to when heading to haunted locations and some stories that my father told me. Click on the link above.
Paul Dale Roberts, Ghost Girls Ghostwriter & Paranormal Investigator
www.ghostgirls.net[/URL]
www.HPI.paranormal.net[/URL]
http://www.shannonmccabe.com/Conversationswithaserialkiller.html[/URL]
(Paul and Shannon on TV Show Conversations with a Serial Killer - see link above)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Dale_Roberts[/URL]
www.nancybradley.org[/URL]
www.jazmaonline.com[/URL]
Staff Writer - Alien Seeker News - http://www.alienseekernews.com/[/URL]
WPRT Paranormal Radio - Content Editor
Email: JazmaPika@cs.com
Paranormal Cellular Hotline: 916 203 7503 (for comments on this story).
If you have a possible investigation call: 1-888-709-4HPI
Copyright © 2009 Paul Dale Roberts, HPI Ghostwriter Copyright © 2009
all rights reserved.