St Marteen Vacay Sept. 2010

We all made it to St. Maarten in one piece with all of our luggage!! We got settled in and adjusted to the "island pace" there is a lot of waiting and many things that don't work on the island-and that is just how it is! The prices were high at restaurants and at the grocery stores. We tried to be savvy and purchased pancake mix, eggs, frozen pizzas and then went out to eat here and there too. On the 1st full day we went on a bus tour that took us through the French side and Dutch side in a quick over view. We stopped at Orient beach for an hour and one side is a nude beach and my mom was overly excited to see what that was about, but when it came down to it, we didn't venture "to the dark side!" There is one main road that circles the island and there are lots of hills and cliffs and crazy drivers. There are round-abouts and you just have to plow in there...no one lets anyone in-ever! Also, motorcycles just drive in the middle, between cars, whenever they want and there isn't much of a side walk, yet lots of peeps walking and narrow roads, so that's a fun game. We went on a sunset cruise around the island and there were fish jumping and a double rainbow--like scenes from a movie. It was beautiful and lots of fun! One day we rented jet skis. I didn't love it. You have to be balanced and plus there are waves and I was so afraid to fall off in the deep ocean. Paul says "Are you loving this?" screaming over the motor and I say " I am hating this." so he takes me to shore and goes on his own. Everyone kept pressuring me to try again, but it scared me to death...my arms hurt from grabbing Paul so tight and it was only for 5 mins. I can appreciate it-but its not for me. Since when did I become such a wuss??? One day my mom and Krystle went on a snorkeling tour and had a really great time seeing tons of fish. That day, me Paul and Katelyn and Jess went back to Orient Beach and rented a boogie board...I mostly just sat on it to avoid touching things!!! hahaha, but it really was fun, even thought I am afraid!! :) We took a bus to Phillipsberg-the Dutch capital. We walked around in the muggy air and everyone wanted to sell us t shirts and jewelry! We also took the bus to Maho Beach and watched the planes fly right over our heads!! Other than that we didn't make many structured plans. Lots of relaxing and swimming. This was definitely an adventure that I will cherish forever!!!
It was also my and Paul's 3rd anniversary while we were there--what a way to celebrate!!

Earl can't bring me down! Saint Maarten or bust!!

We are SAINT MAARTEN Bound this Friday!! We are staying at The Royal Palm and have major plans to sit on the beach daily, enjoy the slow island pace.

A little island background:
Saint Martin (French: Saint-Martin; Dutch: Sint Maarten) is an island in the northeast Caribbean, approximately 186 miles east of Puerto Rico. It is divided roughly 60/40 between France (21 miles) and the Netherlands Antilles (16 miles);it is the smallest inhabited sea island divided between two nations, a division dating to 1648..

We will be staying on the DUTCH side. Beaches are a main attraction on the island of Saint Martin; it has 37 total. Beach Bars and Cafes are very popular attractions with over 300 restaurants offering exquisite cuisines with European and Caribbean inspiration.

We have been planning this trip for a year and knew it was in the middle of Hurricane season...how else do you think we could afford these flights?! We figured we'd take our chances with Mother Nature. Turns out, she sprung HURRICANE EARL (and possibly his little sister, Tropical Storm Fiona) on the Caribbean this week.

"On Monday 8/30/2010, Earl delivered a glancing blow to
several small Caribbean islands, tearing roofs off homes and
knocking out electricity to people in Anguilla, Antigua and
St. Maarten. In Puerto Rico, nearly 187,000 people were
without power and 60,000 without water, Cruise ships were diverted and flights canceled across the region. But there were no reports of deaths or serious injuries.
Islanders gathered to watch big waves pound the shore as the
wind sent sand and salt spray flying."

"The eye of Hurricane Earl passed 40 miles north of St. Maarten
- St. Martin in the morning hours of August 30th. The storm brought plenty of rain and strong winds, but did not cause any serious damage. Business, banks, the International Airport and other offices have reopened Tuesday at 12pm. Tropical Storm Fiona is expected to grace the island on Wednesday, but forecast wind speeds are modest and will
not create problems. Resorts and most business on the Dutch side are
running on generator power, as the local utility company has decided
not to restore service until Fiona has passed. Residents are not thrilled
about this policy."

**Roy & Merrie, Krystle, Katelyn, Jessy, Paul and I begin our adventure on Friday If big, burly Earl doesn't hold us captive at the airport. He is currently gunning for the east coast coast where we are all flying out of different cities at different times. I hope we can all make it and meet up with out too much travel havoc! (famous last words?)

SO STAY TUNED!! The following post will be of an extremely sad and stranded Kim OR of a relaxed and happy KIM that made it to St Maarten!!