Dawn Beach Methodist Church Colorful Building, Philipsburg St Maarten is awesome: Mountainous terrain, sandy beaches, friendly people, inexpensive prices.... I'd move there in a heartbeat. I'm afraid I don't have many pictures from St Maarten. I was driving, etc., and didn't make chances to take pictures. I wish now that I had. Instead of taking an excursion, we decided to rent a car and be on our own. Remember when you were a kid, and you had a little toy car that you sat in and pedaled? This car wasn't much bigger than that. And it was a good thing, too, because the roads weren't much wider than the sidewalk where you drove your toy car. We went to Dawn Beach, one of the many gorgeous beaches on this island. To get there, we had to go up a very steep road, and then down another steep road with lots of switchbacks. Judi is afraid of heights, and was terrified during this drive. At one point we had to stop to wait for some goats to clear out of the road. But we made it (safely). That car was little, but it had a powerful engine. Hills were not a problem for that car. We found a restaurant at Dawn Beach and had some absolutely wonderful fish. Going back meant negotiating the same steep roads. But we didn't meet any goats this time. Why are there so many signs advertising what are apparently personal lotteries? Can anyone and their brother just run a lottery? There are signs all over the place for "Joe's Lottery," etc. Philipsburg is the capital of the Dutch part of the island. There's not a lot of old architecture, but there are a few interesting buildings. The real highlight is the shopping. Prices are very low, compared to the U.S. We got good deals on some excellent rum! We also visited Marigot, on the French part of the island, but were not as impressed.

Sunset Sailing Away That Evening