Return to St. Maarten

It was March 18th, when we were ready to head out to sea again.  Our goal was to get to the Dutch side of St. Maarten to prepare for Granny/John's Mom/Lois' visit on March 28th. We decided to make an overnight passage so we could cover the 85 or so miles and arrive in day light.  It was a fast sail, and generally uneventful, except that we were reminded how tiring it is to be up all night and then have active kids (who have slept all night) to endure the following day. Uggh. Despite our careful planning, we sailed too fast and arrived before dawn.

We had a week before Granny's arrival, so we met up with Shera, Jeff and Malea on So Blessed in the anchorage in Simpson Bay. We anchored right beside them in an area where a lot of tourist commercial boats moored. There was a lot of action in this anchorage with boats passing in/out of the bridge to get into the large Simpson Bay Lagoon, planes landing at the airport nearby, and the action on the beach from the resorts and restaurants that line the beach.

We were also determined this week to revive our Bomeschool routine that had fallen off over the past several weeks. We made a perfect arrangement with the kids: school from 9:00 until noon.  If all their work was done, then they could go and play with Malea. It was a dream week. Kids got up, ate, got dressed, and did their chores before starting on time for school. After lunch, they went on deck to hail the crew of So Blessed. It wasn't long before the kids were jumping back and forth between our two boats, swimming, paddle boarding, and doing crafts together.

Simon on Malea's paddleboard

Simon, Malea and Wavey swinging off the side of the boom

Paddleboard fun

Simon making pancakes before school...yum!

One afternoon, Jeff took all the kids and dropped them on an island in the Simpson Bay Lagoon, locally called Explorer Island.  It is a flat, uninhabited island frequented by cruising kids looking for a place to get away.  The three kids packed their supplies for an afternoon of adventures with no parents. The kids hung out for the afternoon and were picked up a few hours later with tales of daring and fun. (We have no photos, as what happens on Explorer Island, stays on Explorer Island.)

Another afternoon, we all hopped on a bus and made our way to the St. Maarten Zoo (www.stmaartenzoo.com). This is a small, but interesting zoo with an array of birds, reptiles and mammals that thrilled the kids.  (Photos taken by Simon)

Arriving to the Zoo with with Malea, Jeff and Shera

Toucan

Turtles basking in the sun

Tortoise

Scarlet ibis

Peacock

Donkey

Capybara (the largest rodent in the world)

Caiman

Guinea hens

The biggest attractions were the monkeys that threw their food at us (hitting Simon and John right in the head!) The kids were also able to pick up and play with the adorable guinea pigs and their babies. We had to check their pockets and drag them home at the end of the day. 

Malea and Simon loving the guinea pigs

What? You wanna check my pockets?

Oh, please can I have just one...

...or two?

Jeff playing on the three-wheeled scooter that all the adults wanted to try

During the afternoons the kids were playing together, they revived the making of rainbow loom bracelets with a fervour. They started production with the plan of selling the jewelry to raise money for the St. Maarten Zoo. They worked together for hours and had quite a cache by the time So Blessed decided to sail off to Anguilla for a few days. They decided that they would each try and sell their bracelets and would meet up again to donate their funds.

Dinner aboard So Blessed

Eating and creating simultaneously

After five days of being back in St. Maarten, the kids and I went ashore to the Buccaneer's Beach Bar for Friday night Happy Hour. The kids had their little cash box, a sign, and their merchandise displayed on an empty paper towel roll. Having got prior approval from the staff the day before, the kids set off on the beach and around the bar to sell their wares.  I sat, sipping my Happy drink and watched, as they excitedly went from customer to customer, making sale after sale.  

Selling bracelets for the Zoo

Thirty minutes later, they returned with one bracelet left, $50 US in cash, and tons of stories.  Turns out, most of the patrons were grandparents on vacation and were happy to spend a few bucks to buy something for their grand kids back home.  One man came up to me and expressed his joy in seeing, "entrepreneurial kids with a conscience." Two couples at the next table to me flagged the kids down wanting to buy more. Once they had completed their task, the kids retreated to the beach where a movie was set up for all kids visiting the beach. John and I finished the Happy Hour sitting by a fire on the beach as the steel drum band played hits from the 70's.

Kids watching movie on the beach

Fire on the beach

I was happy to extend our five day streak of Bomeschool into Saturday with some learning in the field.  We learned on the Cruiser's Net (morning VHF radio net where cruisers share information) that there was a kid's Engineering Day being held at Lagoonies, a popular watering hole in the Lagoon. A former teacher and his wife (now sailing around like us) volunteered his time to create a workshop for kids.  About 20 kids of all ages showed up and were divided into groups.  Some made solar ovens, and others made cargo ships out of recyclable materials.  For those of you who know Simon, this kind of boat-building was right up his alley. It was fun to meet other cruising families and see the kids interact with each other.

Building a cargo ship

The design team

Testing the boats out

After lunch at a cool place called Pineapple Pete's, we went to a free fishing seminar held at Island Water World (big chandlery and marine store). We crammed into the picnic tables with about 60 other cruisers and got some fishing tips, along with free beer, drinks, snacks, and swag. We were pleased that we knew quite a bit already from Ben and Lana, who had generously given us tons of the fishing gear they recommended in the seminar.  Despite the fact that they were the only kids in attendance, they asked questions and paid close attention.  I love Bomeschool days like this!

After one week in Simpson Bay, we jumped south to Philipsburg, the capital of the Dutch side of the island and anchored beside the cruise ship terminal.  

Cruise ships in Philipsburg

From here, we could see the hotel where Granny would be staying when she arrived March 28th. We were all geared up in anticipation of her visit!