Flying over Curacao

Curacao is a magical island. The hundred thousand tourists who annually visit this small piece of the Caribbean will certainly agree. It all seems so hospitable and inviting from the air and from the water that you can hardly wait to set foot on land. That is a big compliment for such a relatively small island. For if we are honest, Curacao, with a surface area of 444 square kilometres, can hardly be considered more than a speck on the globe and, apart from the azure blue seas which wash its shores, has only one major site worth seeing: the historic centre of Willemstad, which was placed by UNESCO on the World Heritage list in 1997. Aerial photographer Karel Tomei, who has visited and photographed so many countries, was initially troubled by this fierce attack on his retina. The colours exploded in front of me, he explains. What s more, he was also astounded by the changes the island had undergone since his previous visit, now more than forty years ago. Then everything was still very pure. It had the simple joy of a developing country. There are still traces to be found of that poverty, such as poor houses and ramshackle fishing huts. And a nasty smell still hangs round the refinery. But the island is indisputably more prosperous. "