Aruba

It’s no surprise that modern day visitors to Aruba are often drawn here by gold. The island boasts an endless string of swanky jewelry stores, the golden-sand beaches are legendary, and Balashi, the homegrown golden pilsener, is one of the best beers in the Caribbean.
If you were among the hordes who trekked here nearly 200 years ago, though, it’s a good bet you made the trip expressly to find, or better said, mine the real thing.
That’s right, people used to mine for gold in Aruba; specifically along the island’s remote north shore. As the legend goes, the first gold discovery in Aruba was made in 1824, a good 24 years before the start of the famed California Gold Rush.