After two days of sailing we finally reached our first port of call, St. Maarten. We had booked an excursion here originally for The Race-St. Maarten (like the Amazing Race), but that got canceled about couple weeks before our sailing because of leftover hurricane damage. The kids were pretty bummed because they were really looking forward to that excursion. The choices were pretty limited and we ended up booking the Double Decker tour bus that goes around the island and stops at Orient Beach (French side) and Maho Beach (Dutch side). About a week before our sail date we received an email letting us know that the tour will stick to the Dutch side and changed some of the stops.
We booked the morning tour so we had time to do things after like shopping for souvenirs. Our tickets said to meet at 7:45am in the theater. That meant we had to get dressed, go up to the buffet and eat, then sunscreen and pack supplies before making it down to the theater by 7:45. It was tough but we made it.
We followed our group out to the pier in a sunny 81 degrees and then loaded up on the double decker bus. When loading the tour guide heard Ethan’s name and said her son’s name is Ethan too. For the rest of the day she would refer to him by name (no one else) which he thought was neat. The bus had headphones at each seat that played music and allowed the tour guides to tell us stuff about the island.
On our drive around the island we saw beautiful water and hills but also saw all the destruction and work being done due to hurricane Irma. The guides kept thanking us for visiting them as they need that to help rebuild.
You can tell that the island is still hurting because the stops we did make seemed like they were fishing for ideas. They felt more like mom & pop places that the tour group knew and brought them business. It was fine but nowhere near the whole island tour Amy and I experienced when we visited here years ago. The first stop was a rum bottling place that was located in a warehouse/storage building. We got to sample something like 8 types of rum they make ranging from 20-40% alcohol content. That was pretty much it and we stayed there for 25 minutes. There was not really anything for the kids.
Our next stop was Maho Beach. This is what the kids were waiting for. I’m glad it didn’t get cancelled even though it took quite a beating during the hurricane. We were told our stop there was only going to be for 20 minutes. If you are not familiar with this beach, it’s known for the airport runway right at the edge of the beach. This makes for nerve wracking low plane over your head when standing on the beach. Also takeoffs are known for blasting people off their feet when standing behind the planes. With only being there for 20 minutes we were wondering if we would be there during any plane activity. We timed it just right because as we were walking off the bus, I saw plane lights in the distance. We hurried to the beach just in time to get buzzed by a decent size plane as it landed. A prop plane also landed while we were there along with one taking off but propeller planes don’t produce much wind compared to the jet airliners. The kids also enjoyed the little beach time we had there. The waves were breaking fairly strong so they let the water blast their legs (neither were wanting to get all the way in the water). It was a good experience for only 20 minutes.
Other stops included a carousel place that sold ice cream, a cheese place, and a lookout point. When we were dropped back off at the port, we fit in a little last minute shopping.
It took a little longer than we thought to get through security with the long line. I guess there was a scanner malfunction holding up the line. After it started to move, we made decent time. We got back on the ship around 1pm. Our plan was to rinse the sand off in our rooms and then grab a late lunch in the Windjammer. The plans changed slightly when Amy & the kids decided to hurry and go to the Valentine’s craft activity (yep, today was Valentine’s Day) which was starting soon and eat after.
I opted to go eat right away and save them a spot. I snagged a nice seat by the window overlooking St. Maarten. I had a mixture of Monte Crisco sandwich, sweet & sour pork, pita bread with hummus, rice, Caesar salad, and fries. Great meal, right? Just a typical cruise smorgasbord of food. I finished well before the rest of my family joined me so I decided to call my mom for her birthday. Luckily the WiFi is good enough to use the WiFi calling feature on our phones. Despite leaving back home when a mini ice storm was coming through, they now are experiencing unseasonably warm temps in the 60’s. At least I’m most likely not going to return to an ice covered car.
After the rest of my family had their lunch (around 2:30), the kids prepared for the pools (more specifically the Flow Rider). The boogie board session at the Flow Rider started at 3 and we wanted to be there as close to that as possible after waiting so long last time. Hannah was determined to try it along with Ethan this time. Both kids did really well. They each went 2 rounds on it before calling the quits. Hannah actually got up on her knees one of the times before wiping out. Ethan attempted to get on his knees but it turned out it made him spin round and face backwards briefly before showing off his wipeout abilities. They followed that up with a little pool time. 
Before heading off to get ready for dinner, we decided to watch for cruisers running down the pier the last minutes right before the final “all aboard” warning. We were surprised how many late arrivals were still just strolling their way up to the ship. I would be running and freaking out. That is what we’ve seen before. I’ll keep a look out at the other ports.
We were all exhausted at dinner from all that sun today but just like good cruisers we sucked it up and ate our fair share of food. Despite the option for escargot again for Ethan, he opted for the usual shrimp cocktail with a riskier choice of seafood cake (which he only took one bite before giving up). Amy and I both tried the Arugula Salad. We lasted longer than Ethan but the dressing was not pleasurable so after several bites we tapped out. Hannah stuck with her usual Caesar salad. Our family did the dual main course option tonight. Both kids tried the Spaghetti Bolognese (more like one bite) and Ethan added the Beef Short Rib while Hannah went with her trusty grilled chicken. Amy and I both ordered the Chicken Cordon Bleu and the Risotto. The chicken was good and the risotto was acceptable for several bites. Everyone tried the Warm Chocolate Cookie. The kids thought it was one of the best things they had on the cruise. It was really rich. I complimented mine with the Lemon Panna Cotta.
After dinner Ethan wanted to go to AO for most of the evening and we would pick him up before our Aqua Theater show (the makeup one from the other day). With Ethan in AO, we decided to sneak in a peek at the earlier showing of the Aqua Theater show. We caught the first 5 minutes of it before they stopped the show due to weather conditions. Now we were worried if our late showing would even happen. Next was the headliner show which was a Beatles cover band. During the intro into the performance, I had to retrieve Ethan from AO. Tonight ended up being the AO pirate night where they march to the Promenade and put on a skit for everyone while being dressed up with bandannas and face paint. Because of that, we had to check Ethan out early or wait until the pirate performance was over and he would then miss the Aqua Theater show. He requested to be picked up early even if our showing at the Aqua Theatre gets cancelled.
I picked him up and dropped him off with the girls at the Beatles show while I went to check on our Aqua Theatre show chances. It looked like it was going to happen so I held seats until the rest of the family joined me. The show did go on but there was a stoppage part way into the performance due to weather conditions but they said they hoped to continue on when conditions improved. They did and finished the show. However, it was an abbreviated version and it didn’t feature any of the really high dives. Oh well, at least we saw something. I might try and sneak a view of another showing if I can and see if the high dives happen. 
After the show was back to the room for bed preparations. Amy helped the kids while I’m working on this posting. Tomorrow we arrive in San Juan. We don’t have anything planned other than walking around exploring the city. This means we get to sleep in a little later (maybe get up around 7:30am).
