One thing that we love about Sint Maarten is the variety of cultures, food and activities that are all on one island. It is very unique in that way and we have been out exploring again this week. We started at Maho Beach which is known for watching the planes land. The airplanes fly directly over the beach in order to hit the runway which is adjacent to the beach. The first couple of planes that landed were smaller private planes so I was feeling a bit underwhelmed based on all of the hype that we had heard. Then came the jet plane. The roar of the plane was incredible as it flew about 200 feet over our heads. When you are under it, the plane looks as if it is going to land directly on your head! Then, when the next plane was ready to take off, it taxied down the runway and turned so that the tail end of the plane was facing the beach. Once the engines began to roar, they were so powerful that they set off the alarms on the cars that were parked by the beach and sand blew everywhere. Maho Beach is definitely not a peaceful day out but it is a beach you would not soon forget! We continued our tour of the island by crossing over the bridge to the capital of the French side of the island, Marigot. Marigot definitely had a French vibe with cafes sitting right next to the street and lots of cars working their way down narrow, one way streets. And the food….amazing! On every corner was a bakery with fresh made tarts, croissants, bread, rolls, etc. There was also an amazing chocolate shop that Bill spotted and when we left, I am proud to say there was still a little chocolate remaining on the shelf. It was a little piece of heaven! By the last day we were there, I told Bill we had to get back on the boat or I was going to gain twenty pounds! Our Airbnb had an amazing restaurant that served one of the best fish dishes I have ever eaten. For lunch one day, we drove over to Grand Case where there was a “consortium” of restaurants all along Grand Case Bay. There were grills with ribs and chicken smoking and lines of side dishes. We selected one of the places because the host, Elvis, was a charismatic salesman and out did his fellow competitors by knowing that Georgia Tech was actually a place in Georgia. We sat on a long bench overlooking the bay and the local boys put on quite a show jumping off the pier doing back flips, front flips and quite a few belly flops which brought on much jeering from their peers. The most entertaining part was when a tour boat filled with bikini-clad twenty somethings pulled up next to the beach. Before the tour guide could even throw out the anchor, all of the local boys were at the back of the boat to “assist” the young women into the water and onto the shore….each lad getting a huge hug as payment. I was waiting for Bill to jump over the fence to go lend assistance as well but I suppose he knew he could not compete with the 12 year old boys! After our entertainment, two huge plates full of ribs, macaroni and cheese, slaw, shrimp and potato salad arrived and once again, we were fat and happy!
Luckily, the area also provided a few exercise opportunities. We made our way to the top of one of the hills to see Fort Louis which was built in the 1800s. The view from the fort spanned the entire Marigot bay all the way over to the Dutch side where Galt was anchored. We voted that the Fort Louis view was the best we have seen in the Caribbean and I feel it is going to be awhile before we find a new view to top it. We then decided to go snorkeling at Baia Rouge which was just down from our Airbnb. Or, at least it was supposed to be. We drove back and forth several times on the one road and could not find a way to get over to the beach area. Bill got in touch with our friend, Erik, who had been at Baia Rouge the week before to ask for directions. These were the directions Bill received….”Look for the creepy house on the hill and then turn there.” What? What kind of directions are those? We started looking for what could possibly be defined as a “creepy house” which is a very vague term because I tend to find “creepy houses” super cool places to live and if you throw in a haunting, even better! Erik finally pinned a spot on Google Maps and sent it to Bill so we could find the beach. I still never saw a creepy house but we finally arrived and made our way down to the beach which had the softest and deepest sand we have had in the Caribbean. It was so soft and deep that it was difficult to walk so I decided that at least I would not have fat calves after my croissant binge. We snorkeled in crystal clear water and there was even a small cave so it was well worth the bad directions and calf burn. Our final adventure of the week was getting my Stupid test so that I can fly back to the States this week for my daughter’s graduation. The airport had set up a tent and advertised that one could get a Covid test in 15 minutes prior to your flight. Knowing I would have burned down the airport if I waited until the last minute to get a test and received a false positive, I decided that I would go a couple of days ahead of time to get the test. We arrived at opening time and I was number seven in line. That was at 11:00am. By 11:20am, there were between 30 and 40 people in line. Needless to say, people who were counting on 15 minutes as advertised were becoming stressed as the check in time was at least 15 minutes…then the test…then the wait for the results. When I left at noon with negative test in hand, the crowd was over 50 people and nerves were raw. I crept out of the tent to the safety of the car being very glad I had gone early! So, I am all ready for my flight home and I am looking forward to spending a week with my baby girl….who is no longer a baby! Since I will be there for a week, there will be NO blog next week but I will be back on schedule the following week when I return. Have a wonderful week and remember, when you visit Sint Maarten, you can eat all of the croissants you want….they will never go to your calves!
1 Comment
Rebecca Smith
5/7/2021 04:59:20 pm
Hey! So good to catch up on your adventures! I hope you have a great time at graduation! Please pass my congratulations on <3! What a fabulous accomplishment! Is Bill going to stay and hold down the boat or is he off to see family as well? Send pics of graduation to me!!!
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AuthorSally Miller Archives
May 2024
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