On Saturday August 12 a special coffee tasting event took place at Starbucks, located in the hotel lobby of the Aruba Marriott Resort. For the very first time in Aruba, Starbucks partnered with a local writer during their regular coffee tasting event. Media personality and author Rona Coster was invited to sign copies of her new book Island Life, Aruba’s Best-Kept Diary. The book, a 200-page hard cover diary, marks Rona Coster’s 25th anniversary as a columnist in Aruba.
Visitors of Marriott’s Starbucks location were treated to samplings of Kitamu coffee, a special blend from Africa and three flavored green iced teas, peach, mango and strawberry. Caramel-dipped shortbread and refreshing citrus cake complemented the samplings. Meanwhile a meet and greet with author Rona Coster took place, attracting a mix of long-time loyal readers and tourists. The book, unveiling various fun facts and background information, gives insight in Aruba’s history, culture, movers & shakers and colorful personalities.
“This was the very first time we hosted a book signing at Starbucks in our lobby”, states Stacey Banfield, Marketing Communications Manager at Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino. “We thought it is a great idea to mix coffee with books and add a meet and greet with a local author to the social setting of a coffee tasting. I am very satisfied how this first edition turned out, and I am sure more will follow in the near future.“
The book Island Life, Aruba’s Best-Kept Diary, is for sale at local bookstores of De Wit & Van Dorp, including their two stores at the airport, at Plaza Book Shop and at Bruna. In the Palm Beach area the book is for sale at various resorts and gift stores: T.H. Palm & Company at Playa Linda, The Bazaar at the Aruba Marriott Resort, The MarketPlace at Marriott’s Surf Club, Shoco Market at Hyatt Regency, Coconuts seaside at Barcelo Resort, Tradewinds at Costa Linda Beach Resort, at RIU Antillas, Hilton Aruba Caribbean Resort & Casino and Marriott’s Ocean Club, Pure Indulgence Spa at Divi Phoenix, Indulgence by the Sea Spa at Divi Mega Resorts, and at Taste of Aruba in South Beach Center.
Rona Coster started her career in Aruba as a marketing executive and produced a weekly column from 1992 – 2015, which then became a daily online column. In 2004 Rona Coster received a Journalism CTC Award from the Caribbean Tourism Organization for her contributions and respectable achievements in journalism. She is the creator of 8 AM Buzz / BatiBleki, a daily column on Facebook and available as an App on both iPhone and Android platforms, App Name: Bati Bleki.
