Welcome to St Maarten, or is it Saint Martin?
![Image](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbCRjQNuTm0TCuS0ZyEkA1K9cpargl3b0XI_tCA8tdCsQcidMXs997rY5GoNwZLwDiMpnNlq45tEtQoPPzyHi4xoh8IUTLF5FBLSheUTaroA8UzM0TciKiWCpXvuHfgaTzA2ar4z2rg4pi/s320/StMartinWestinBeach011312-2.jpg)
It has been many years since I stepped foot on the island of St. Martin (the common spelling I will be using to keep things simple). I spent the day here while on a cruise around the Caribbean. I vividly remember it being my favorite island on the trip. From the colorful cobblestone streets on the Dutch side ( St. Maarten ) to the unique European-style buildings on the French half (Saint Martin), I had been impressed with the beauty of the towns and the beaches. I remember strolling the streets and doing some jewelry shopping, as well as relaxing on the soft sand with a cool drink. A lot can change in twenty plus years and I was prepared for that when I decided to take this trip with the tourism board on the Dutch side. I actually hadn’t done any Caribbean trips since Punta Cana in 2010 and it seemed like the perfect island with lots of restaurants and home grown spirits. It had been a long day of three flights and I was ready to get to the hotel, where Trish, our