True Children's Stories of Curaçao
Kuentanan real di muchanan di Kòrsou
Curaçao is an island shaped by stories. They are in the salt of our shores and the rhythm of our music. They are in every voice that calls the island home.
This book, True Children's Stories of Curaçao, gathers twelve remarkable tales that stretch from 1653 to today. Each story is rooted in real history or cherished island lore—tales of music that crossed oceans, of athletes who dared to dream, of leaders who fought for change, and of the quiet, powerful traditions that have carried our culture through generations.
Written in both English and Papiamentu, these stories invite readers young and old to step into the colorful soul of Curaçao. Papiamentu is more than a language; it is a living symbol of our resilience, creativity, and unity. Born from the meeting of cultures, it carries within it the laughter of markets, the prayers of churches, and the songs of the sea. To tell these stories in Papiamentu is to honor the spirit of the island—to keep alive the voice of the people who shaped it, and to pass it proudly to the next generation.
Through these tales, readers glimpse our music, our sport, our politics, our faith, and our everyday joys—an invitation to laugh, to wonder, and to remember.
Though these are children's stories, their spirit speaks to everyone. They remind us that the island’s greatest treasures are not just its beaches and cityscapes, but its struggles, triumphs, dreams, and the vibrant threads they weave into the fabric of Curaçao.
We hope these stories inspire a new generation to listen, to ask, and to tell their own.
The Witch of Watamula - 1653
The Talking Flags - 1780
The Pirate’s Cave - 1795
Governor Albert’s Secret - 1800
Bishop of Cartagena - 1826
Music That Bumped the Walls - 1875
The Cinelandia Cathedral - 1916
City Without Hate - 1952
Call and Answer - 1958
Andruw Jones Listens - 1996
The Mangrove Man - 2009
Your Story - 2032
Kòrsou ta un isla formá pa kuentanan. Nan ta den e salu di nos kosta i den e ritmo di nos músika. Nan ta den kada un bos ku ta yama e isla su kas.
E buki akí, Kuentanan real di muchanan di Kòrsou, ta kolektá diesun kuenta remarkabel ku ta kuminsá for di 1653 i yega te na awendia. E rais di kada historia ta mará na susesonan real òf ta un historia kerí di e isla: kuentanan di músika ku a krusa oséanonan, òf atletanan ku tabatin e kurashi pa soña, lidernan ku a lucha pa kambio, i di e tradishonnan silensioso ku a pasa nos kultura di generashon pa generashon.
Skirbí na tantu papiamentu komo ingles, e kuentanan aki ta invitá e lesadónan yòn i esun mas di edat pa drenta den e alma kolorido di Kòrsou. Papiamentu ta mas ku un idioma; e ta un símbolo bibu di nos resilensia, kreatividat i union. Nasé di enkuentro entre kulturanan, e ta karga e harimentu na marshenan, e orashonnan den misanan, i e kantikanan di laman. Pa konta e historianan aki na papiamentu ta pa honra e spiritu di e isla pues pa tene e bos di hendenan ku a form’é na bida, i pa pasa esaki ku orguyo pa e siguiente generashon.
Pa medio di e kuentanan aki, lesadónan ta haña un bista di nos músika, nos deporte, nos polítika, nos fe i nos legrianan di tur dia. Pues ta un invitashon pa hari, pa keda asombrá i pa kòrda.
Maske esakinan ta kuenta pa mucha, kada kuenta su esensia ta papia ku tur hende. E kuentanan ta rekordá nos ku e tesoro di mas grandi no ta solamente e lamannan i paisahenan konstruí den Punda. Sino tambe su luchanan, triunfonan, soñonan i e hilunan vibrante ku ta kose e tela di Kòrsou.
Nos ta spera ku e kuentanan aki ta inspirá un generashon nobo pa skucha, puntra i pa konta nan mes kuentanan.
E hèks di Watamula - 1653
E banderanan ku ta papia - 1780
E kueba di pirata - 1795
E katedral di Cinelandia - 1916
E eiskrim ku a gana e guera - 1944
Siudat sin rabia - 1952
Yama i kontestá -1958
Andruw Jones ta skucha - 1996
E hòmber di palu di mangel - 2009
Bo historia ta kuminsá aki - 2032
Cliff Villa
The tip of Curacao!