Staying Amused in SXM
13 March 2014 | Simpson Lagoon, St. Martin
Lynn
We have been in Simpson Bay lagoon for just a shade over a month now. What had been planned as a week or less visit to get the dinghy dealt with has transmorgrified into a bit more of an odyssey. However, we have come to the conclusion that this is just a fact of life for us here in Saint Martin. While waiting for store managers to return to the island, riggers to inspect our standing rigging and getting the work done on the above mentioned rigging, we have not exactly remained pinned to the boat.
I have taken up a new "hobby". I have decided to "collect" race t-shirts from places we have visited (and only races I have participated in) and from Hashes. St. Martin has a keen core of runners, so there are a number of races to participate in. I have participated in an 8km trail race with friend and fellow cruiser Paul Shard, but it didn't have a shirt, and just this past weekend, a women-only 5k road race. It was the first time I have done a 5k race, and I was pleasantly surprised at how well I did. Ken was fantastic support for both of those races. This one gained me a hot pink t-shirt. There is an "Around the Lagoon ½ Marathon and 10km Race" that I am eyeballing for this weekend... the ½ marathon sounds far more scenic than the 10km route.
Aside from hitting the road and wearing out running shoes, we have also visited Maho Bay twice now. The second time we dragged along our friend Sandy, who only seems to see things when we invite him along. Sandy and I stood behind a departing plane to get a feel for the jet blast; we were a little off from the main thrust, but it was enough. Earlier, we had observed someone's bucket hat fly about 200 feet into the water when it was caught in the blast.
We did the touristy walk of Philipsburgh. We had lunch at "Quality Snacks and Sportsbar", a little place right across from the salt pond. No exaggeration, it was the best chicken roti we have ever had. Granted, we haven't been to Trinidad yet, but this had a fresh, flavourful skin, and the curry mix had a nice blend of potato and chicken with great spicing. And locals say there is a place that is more popular, which I think we need to explore.
After lunch, we walked on to the main touristy area. Being a duty-free island, there are scads of shops offering goods to one and all. You can't swing a cat (or even a hamster) without hitting a jewellery or liquor store. They work hard for your business, with some offering free gifts just for walking in, or a cold beer, or one place giving a free beer with the purchase of a $2 Cuban cigar. The souvenir vendors will ask plaintively if you will come into their little shops.
Even the bars on the beach have to hustle hard. You can get two beach chairs, 4 or 5 drinks, umbrella, WiFi and one or two other perks for $25 - a good deal since some places will charge that much just for that many drinks. Frozen alcoholic concoctions beckon the overheated tourists, and buskers perform for a few dollars in their jars. Ladies walk amongst the sun worshippers on the beach, hats stacked high on their heads, leaving their hands free to carry baskets of beach wraps and other things they offer for sale.
Philipsburgh is fortunate to have a pretty decent beach right there where the cruise ships are docked. It gives a very centralized location to try to attract the tourist dollars, but it certainly makes it very competitive, too.
Besides gawking at tourists and checking out the regular sights, Ken and I have also walked some of the trails near the anchorage . We have visited a great little shawarma place (Little Jerusalem) a couple of times now, and have caught up with some friends we have seen in the anchorage.
We hope we won't be here for too much longer, but if we are, we will manage to keep ourselves amused.