Frets and Frolics of Saint Maarten

We went to Saint Maarten (The Friendly Island) for the second time. We didn’t plan on returning this year; however, this year has been such a roller coaster ride for us that we thought we needed to take the plunge and get away together. I’d love to share some of our adventures and pictures with you… if and when you get a chance to visit, I’ll make some fabulous recommendations {smile}.

We stayed at the Princess Heights (again) on the Dutch side. Last year we stayed in a studio, which was very nice, but provided limited seating space. Basically — the bed. This year we stayed in a one bedroom condo and LOVED the space. Here are a few pics.

Full Kitchen, One Bedroom, Living Room, and a large Balcony Porch.  We were very glad to have upgraded this year 🙂  We spent most nights in being that we’re not gamblers or club hoppers, so having the space was nice.  We even cooked a few meals in.

Last year, we did quite a bit around the island — but this year we did a few different things.

Pinel Island was one of the ‘new’ adventures we took, with access via boats that run from the French Cul de Sac.  It was gorgeous and secluded…

The Guavaberry Emporium in Phillipsburg. Guavaberry is the legendary folk liqueur of Saint Maarten. Steve & I LOVE the guavaberry coloda, and brought home four bottles so we can make them at home. Yumm-o!

Before buying our tickets to Anguilla, we strolled through the Marigot Market.  Lots of vendors selling lots of different cha-chee stuff, souvenirs, etc.  I also enjoyed the Farmers Market side of it, although I couldn’t take advantage of it.

We decided to take a day trip to one of the other islands.  There wasn’t much to do on this island, so we strolled the beach — ate some lunch and headed back.  It was a $200+ day trip due to our lack of knowledge.  Would we do it again?  Nope, but we made the best of our time there and learned that Anguilla is a quiet spot with not a lot to do.  Unfortunately, we didn’t wear our beach apparel {half smile}.

These are a few of the ‘new’ experiences we had on the island.  However, we have many ‘favorite spots’ as well.  Our favorite beach spot is Orient Beach at Club Orient (which is a clothing optional nude resort).  It’s not congested, no vendors, free public restrooms and a bar.  It’s nude heaven {hee hee}.  Aaaand Pedro’s is a short walk up the beach with great food.

The stories I could tell after spending several days on this beach are endless.  One day it rained off and on, so everyone would go to the beach bar.  I couldn’t help but joke later that when it rains on the beach, you drink too much and talk to naked people.  I wish I was as comfortable in my own skin as some of those people were.  Mind boggling confidence…  However, we met some good people too — Jim and Joy from AL and Greg from Chicago.Now, our last day on this beach ended on a sour note. We returned to find our rental car in this condition:

It was a pathetic way to end vacation.  We were blessed that a tourist from Trinidad, named Brandon, was willing to get us back to our hotel.  We spent the entire evening with Tyrone from Avis trying to get the tires replaced, etc.  The evening ended with a late night dinner and we headed to the police department on the French side of the island to get a police report for our claim first thing in the morning.  We spent almost two hours waiting before we had to leave to ensure we would catch our flight on time…  There you have to speak with the sergeant and they fill out the police report for you.  There was a lady from the island waiting before us and she said that if there isn’t blood, nothing is of urgency.  After wasting two hours of our time  waiting to speak with the sergeant about damage to our rental care — I’d have to agree considering that we walked out empty handed.  Extremely frustrating.  $463 later.

Considering we went in the peak of hurricane season, we were truly blessed to have such BEAUTIFUL weather.  A few adventures made the trip more memorable, it just sucks when they cost you hundreds of dollars.  Overall, it was a wonderful time for Steve and I to escape the chaos and retreat away alone for a week.  Who knows, maybe there will be a next time…  until then, here’s to Saint Maarten and our Caribbean vay-cay of 2010.

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