St. Maarten


















Monday Dec 6, Day 9

Today was our last port of call in St Maarten. We were here 2 yrs ago and had done a tour before, so we just decided to do a beach day today. We had gone to Orient beach before and were going to go there but someone else who we went to the beach with in St Thomas, recommended a different beach. He said Le Galion was a very calm beach that would be great for the kids that won’t be crowded (Orient can get crowded).

So we hailed a taxi and off we went. This island is divided into 2 parts. St Maarten which is owned by the Netherlands, and St Martin is owned by France. The beach we were headed to was on the French side (we docked on the Dutch side). The island is only 36 square miles so it only took about 15-20 minutes to get to the beach.

It was a nice, quiet beach. There was a little restaurant there that also rented out chairs & umbrellas but otherwise, the beach was untouched and in a very natural state. The water was lightly lapping the sand which was perfect for the kids to play in. (Orient had big waves). In fact, they could go out very far as it never really got too deep. The beach was in a “U” shape and there was a natural reef out further that helped break the waves before they could come in further. The water was a beautiful clear blue and once again, it was very warm.

We spent a good part of the day at the beach and just enjoyed being able to relax in the sun. I’m on my 4th book now!
J
We left the beach around 3 and went into Philipsburg to walk around the shops there. It was only maybe a mile from the ship so we walked back when we were done looking around.

When it was almost time for sailaway, we went to the upper deck to see what all was going on. There was another ship docked across from us so we were watching the people on there as we were really close. Our ship was taller than theirs so we had a nice view onto their pool deck. We noticed their ships horn went a few times over the course of 15 minutes but yet, their gangplank was still down and they were still tied to the dock. We figured they must’ve been waiting for someone and sure enough, a golf cart came barreling down the pier with 2 gals who jumped out. Now, you have to realize, when people on board know that the ship is waiting, everyone goes out on their balcony or up on deck to watch the people running for the ship. So when these to gals went running to the ship, both ships erupted in applause as well as yelling and whistling at these 2. It is NOT cool to make a run for the ship!! Haha

We decided to take a break from the main dining room tonight and just eat in the Windjammer where we could eat at whatever time we wanted and it’s buffet style. We enjoyed that for something different. They had sushi rolls (which Erik & I had some), make your own pizza (then they bake it for you), they had make your own stir-fry where you select what you want in it and they cook it up for you, as well as tons of other things to pick from.

The kids wanted to go up to kids clubs tonight, so that’s where they are at right now. Last night while in clubs, they said the captain came up to meet with them. They thought that was pretty cool as not many people get that opportunity. For one of the activities they did in clubs last night, the kids were split up by ages. Poor Hannah got mistaken for a 5yr old. Haha But they did have fun with pirate night!

A funny sign I saw in one of the elevators recently; the #6 button had a sign over it saying “out of order, press #3 two times if you want the 6th floor!” haha I wish I would’ve thought to have taken a picture of it, it was hilarious! It didn’t last too long until it was fixed.

Well, today was the last time we were on land until we arrive back in NJ on Friday.

We should have nice weather the next 2 days to still enjoy the outside and sun. I hope this finds you all doing well!
J

No comments

I enjoy hearing from each & every one of you! Thanks for taking the time to comment. :)