Greetings! We recently returned from a trip to the island of St. Martin/Sint Maarten. This is a bonus post because the island, while governed by two independent states, does not itself hold the status of an independent nation. The featured image (in the banner of this post) is the monument that straddles the border between the two nations on the island – France and The Netherlands – on which are the details of the 1648 Treaty that separated the nations. Below is information that we learned during our visit.
SXM
The island of St. Martin (saynt mahr-TEEN)/Sint Maarten (sent MAH-ten) is frequently referred to by its airport code, SXM, in written discussions, serving as a unifying term that encompasses all its inhabitants. The island is only 37 square miles (96 square kilometers) – 16 square miles (41 square km) on the Dutch side and 21 square miles (54 square km) on the French side. SXM is a melting pot, as more than 100 nationalities live on the island, with approximately 46,000 documented on the Dutch side and 33,000 documented on the French side. The island’s population can swell to more than double when cruise ships are in port, with as many as seven docking in a single day. During the most recent cruise season, nine ships docked in port on a single day. This makes for a crowded island, but the locals very warmly welcome all visitors!
Tourism is the primary industry in SXM, and in 2017, tourism was significantly impacted by Hurricane Irma, a Category 5+ storm that devastated the island. Hurricane Irma hit almost exactly 22 years after Hurricane Lois (Lois hit on Sep. 5, 1995, and Irma hit on Sep. 6, 2017) which, at the time, had been the most devastating hurricane to hit the island. Due to the devastation from Hurricane Irma, cruise ships were not able to come to port for quite some time…and just as the island was beginning to recover from Hurricane Irma, the COVID-19 pandemic struck. The island has mostly recovered and tourism is robust again. However, there are signs of ongoing recovery, especially on the French side. This in no way diminishes the warmth and graciousness of the island’s inhabitants—by far, one of the friendliest nations I have ever visited!
One Island, Two Countries
The island of SXM was originally inhabited by the Ama Indians, who called the area “Soualiga” (swah-LEE-gah), which translated to “land of salt,” as the area was replete with salt ponds. The last time salt was extracted from the land was in 1961, and since then, much of the area has been developed over the former salt ponds. The island was later named Saint Martin by Christopher Columbus and changed hands between the Dutch and Spanish until 1648, when the Dutch returned to the island and found that the French had occupied the island. This resulted in the peaceful Treaty of Concordia, which was signed to partition the land between the French and the Dutch. Over time, there were conflicts that changed the borders, but the current border has been stable since 1816, with distinct capital cities (Philipsburg in Sint Maarten; Marigot [mah-ree-goh] in St. Martin), separate laws, distinct languages (though English is spoken throughout the island, as is Creole, which stems from the original inhabitants), and separate currencies (Dutch Guilders in Sint Maarten; Euros in St. Martin; however, US Dollars are accepted widely across the island [and often preferred by restaurants and vendors, who offer a stable/consistent 1 EURO = 1 USD conversion rate]).
Bought three former plantations with his brothers
The island’s history includes slavery, as both the French and the Dutch brought slaves to the island. Slaves on the French side were freed in 1848, and slaves on the Dutch side were freed in 1863.
The Island is part of a chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles, that extends from the Virgin Islands down to Trinidad (which is off of the coast of Venezuela). Due to its placement, SXM is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Caribbean Sea on the other side. There is also direct access to the nearby islands of St. Barths (saynt BARTS, which is a French territory on the Atlantic side of the ocean; 1-hour ferry ride from SXM) and Anguilla (ann-GWILL-uh, which is a British colony island; 30-45 minute ferry ride, depending on the calmness of the ocean).
Here are some other interesting points about SXM:
- The national bird is the brown pelican;
- The national tree is the Flamboyant Tree;
- The building codes changed after Hurricane Lois (1995), and the buildings are now stronger/better (hurricane season is June 1 to Nov. 30);
- The island is safe, but they do have holding cells and a prison on the Dutch side. They also have holding cells on the French side, but if they have to send someone to prison (for harsher crimes, such as rape), they send them to the island of Guadeloupe (which is another island that is governed by France);
- The French side is described as being calm, laid back, and quiet. The Dutch side is known as being more lively, with casinos, discotechs, nightclubs, and movie theaters, none of which are on the French side;
- While a smaller airport (with flights to Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and the nearby French islands) and ferry terminals are on the French side, the cruise ship port and major international airport are on the Dutch side;
- Ironically, the French grocery store, Carrefour, is only on the Dutch side (there are four Carrefour grocery stores on the Dutch side).
One of the main attractions in Philipsburg is Sunset Beach, which is adjacent to the SXM airport in Sint Maarten. Every day throughout the day, people will sit, stand, or lie on the beach waiting for incoming flights, which fly directly over the beach and land just a few hundred meters away. There are warning signs about the impact of the jet wave if you stand right underneath the path, as well as the importance of staying behind the barriers. However, it is quite a sight to behold, even if you are not into planes.
St. Martin/Sint Maarten is a unique island location, with extremely friendly people, good food, and a vibrant atmosphere. It is a place that I look forward to visiting again, and encourage others to do the same. Until next time, take care and be well…