TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin memories of days gone by

Watching snow I started thinking about 1st trip to SXM.

Traffic mirror on Front Street
Able to walk the beach from Great Bay Hotel to the Dock West Indies Tavern
"Yellowman" known by all the locals and helpful with island info
Being able to climb Pic Paradise without fear
Back Street was a dirt road
Not much in Simpson Bay
Maho Golf Course actually had players on it
Le Galion Hotel
Horrible road to Dawn Beach
Spartico restaurant
Le Bec Fin was on Front St
Pinocchio's beachfront restaurant.
Little Bay Beach & Racket Club
Birds of Prey show on the Lagoon (near Summit)
El Tigre cruise to St Barts
L'Habitation in Anse Marcel
Walking tarmac at airport
Rosemary's in Marigot was a walk-up window for take-out
Buying French lingerie in Marigot and not knowing the exchange rate for Francs.

to name a few things

Rosemary

Nice memories, most of which were not there on my first trip. However, I do remember L'Habitation in Anse Marcel, walking on the tarmac at the airport (still do that sometimes!), and climbing Pic Paradise without fear.

The Pic Paradise experience was out of ignorance, and we were lucky, as we left our beach bag in the back of our unlocked Jeep while we walked the trails and took photos.

The first trip memory that I miss most is dining on the upstairs balcony at La Vie en Rose.

So is it no longer safe to hike to Pic Paradise based on these fond memories?

Oh I'd forgotten La Vie en Rose. That was our 2nd trip---so romantic.
Climbed PIC in 1979, had trouble finding the road to it. Hubby didn't want to cross the fence, said it was private property. Then another couple arrived and we all jumped over the fence. Ran into a group of donkeys. What a great view from there.

I wouldn't climb it today---not because I'd probably break bones at my age, but because some "unsavory" people hang around up there.

Thank you for posting these fond memories All a part of our early St maarten experiences

Saw "yellow man"
in the census office on Friday.

Rosemary,

Memories, memories. So many memories.......

We never paid that much attention to Pinocchios until we brought our two daughters for the first time in 1983. They fell in love with the freshly baked warm croissants there when we'd make the big trip into Philipsberg for our souvenir hunts.

And as early as our first trip, we loved to walk the Mullet Bay Golf Course in the evenings after dinner but just so you know, lots of people still play Mullet on a regular basis and even though it's not what most are used to back home, they still find it challenging, picturesque and fun.

We fell in love with Antoine's on that very first trip and we've been returning every year since. We fondly remember the Captain and Madame, at a time when the current owner was but a young waiter there. Today I can say he and we have watched each other's children and in our case our grandchildren grow up.

One of the things we loved to do in the evenings with our daughters was take the walk from our friends MB villa along the golf course and out past the entranceway to the beach at Maho to watch the last big plane of the day come in. There was no Royal Islander, no Boat Bar and no Sunset Beach Bar in those days and it used to be a spot where the romantic young island lovers used to exchange a few kisses as they, too, watched the planes' lights glisten on the waters at Maho Bay as they came in for their landing. No street lights and not much vehicle traffic back then but it was a wonderful spot to savor the beauty that was St. Maarten.

Most of my earliest island memories are primarily centered on Mullet Bay because back in those days, even though we rented cars, we were very content to spend the vast majority of our island time right there. And why wouldn't we since it boasted two swimming pools, never less than five dinner venues, two or three breakfast and lunch spots, a few very upscale shops, an icecream shop called The Sweet Tooth that both my dear husband and two daughters loved. And then there was the beach - that beautiful island beach - we used to get to the beach most mornings before the beach attendants and we'd hang there all day till they just about tossed us off the beach.

All those wonderful memories...........TY, Rosemary, for starting this thread.

Have you been here lately?
Love this island BUT it is getting way too crowded
Most due to cruise ships I guess
Great for business but will make me rethink my next trip...

We go in May. Just the right amount of people and not to many cruise ships.

The memories that stand out for me are (1) how much we liked Marigot (2) the Grand Case beach was where the action was and nothing on Orient (3) P'burg wasn't a zoo to drive through. Also so many cows on the road to dodge. Were not allowed to rent a car at the airport. First time my wife went topless on Baie Longue - it was a total surprise to me.

That has to be our most memorable dining experience in St. Martin also. Oh how I wish it was still there!!

We took friends there with us in 1984 and I remember the evening like it was last night. It was that restaurant that caused me to fall in love with and purchase my everyday Villeroy and Bach porcelain dinnerware - the Basket Pattern. Loved it then and love it today, and I still remember the roses they presented the ladies with at the end of our evening. Sitting on that balcony enjoying the sights and sounds of Marigot was unforgettable, for sure.

My daughters and their Dad preferred the Patisserie downstairs. What's a Mother to do?!

Hope I am not violating this thread but, pat, we are at our beloved Towers for our 2 weeks here and today , on that beautiful beach a 4 year old was swept out of his fathers arms and a senior citizen was sufficiently tossed to need plastic surgery for a 7 inch gash in his forehead. Amazing how that surf can change from beautifully calm to fiercely angry. Many people on the beach jumped up to help which was heartwarming. The child seemed better after he got the water out of his lungs but he was very upset. No one should have been in the water today. The Towers is wonderfully improved .

Have also noticed that everyone we have encountered has been so friendly and helpful. The Towers group is as wonderful as ever. We are having a wonderful time.

Vivian,

How very sad but at least the end result was good. My first thought was why would anyone be in the water with a small child in those conditions but we can all have mental lapses and do some silly stuff when our guard is down. So thank goodness the child and the senior were both okay.

Three beaches I have always been doubly cautious with are Mullet, Cupecoy and Rouge. Rough surfs and rogue waves can and do happen without warning almost anywhere but these three in particular have always been on my caution list. And yet, each of them can turn around within hours when the prevailing seas and wind conditions change. We've seen Mullet waveless and the surf so gentle you could pull your chaise lounge into the water and let the water lap at your toes. And in the same trip we've watched breakers cascade over the cliffs and rocks at either end of the beach and surfers on their boards commandeering the beach. It's the ocean and she can be wild......

Marina Royale Hotel. La Belle Creole. Restaurant Row in Grand Case was the main road. Hevea restaurant. Mark's Place in Cul de Sac. Nothing above Pedro's on Orient. Renting Mini Mokes.

We were younger, not realizing how many times we would return. Change is inevitable - some good, some not so.

Zarchary's All You Can Eat Ribs in Pointe Blanche (Guano Bay)
St. Martin Rib Company in Philipsburg
The old, un-air conditioned Juliana Airport with the baggage claim slide attached to hole in wall
Pelican Resort and Casino (now Simpson Bay Resort)
Vince's Konga Kafe in Cul de Sac
Kim Sha Chinese Restaurant
La Belle Creole
"If its yellow, let it mellow, If its brown, flush it down"
Direct flights from JFK on American, Eastern, Pan AM
The Food Center ( now Grande Marche)
Marigot before the landfill creating parking
The Dick Martin radio show at 1700 hrs on PJD2
The Boardwalk between Mullet and Maho (before hurricane Luis)
Land crab races at Mullet Beach
Early morning swimming at Mullet with the smells of bacon and eggs from the large snack bar
Timeshare Ladies on streets of Phillipsburg
Buying Timeshare at Pelican (pre-construction Caladium Building C11A & B)in 1984
Renting our lower unit to friends who discovered SXM and later bought timeshares there too.

First Trip 1984 - almost annual since (in our timeshare unit)

Not sure if they're still doing them there, but we were in crab races at Mullet maybe 3 years ago..

Mark's Place in cul de sac
As has been stated here before, Cafe Juliana is the ONLY thing I personally miss about the old airport.

The old Dawn Beach Hotel and the old Dawn Beach

Dawn Beach, pre Westin. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/cry.gif" alt="" />

we had dinner at Spartico on our first trip in 1989. I loved the stone house. Is it still there?

My memories do not reach back nearly as far as you true veterans, but I thought the old airport was a hoot. The first time I arrived to the new airport I hardly knew where I was.

Saw "yellow man"
in the census office on Friday. [/quote]

Seriously? He's still alive? How old now?

Actually, this is the 1st year since 1979 that we will NOT be coming to SXM---of course that could change at any moment.

Yes a little too crowded now but more exciting things to see and more places to eat great food.

Walking Orient from where Pedros is to Mt Vernon and having the entire walk almost to yourselves during the day. Just a few small buildings and shrubs along the beach.

Other's posts brought back things I'd forgotten.

Anyone remember Poisson D'Dor?

And we went to a restaurant located where La Vista is now. Pelican wasn't there. It was a dirt road with potholes big enough to swallow a car.
Our hotel called a cab for us and told us to NOT pay him until he picked us up for the trip back because if we paid we'd never see a cab again.

He arrived with his wife, hair done up in rollers and a baby in her arms. We felt so badly for him we gave him a $20 tip. He turned to wife and said...:and you wanted me to leave them there....Does anyone know that restaurant's name?

And I'd forgotten Heava in Grand Case. We had the best coq au vin there. The main road in GC had two way traffic---boy was that scary. We got pressed against the wall at the curve near GCBeach Club by a tour bus.

And like the poster whose wife went topless at baie Longue, I did it for the 1st time on Dawn Beach.

I won $50 on a "dime' machine at Rouge et Noir casino 1980 and haven't entered a casino since so I guess I'm ahead.

Rosemary,

Forgive me, please. I guess my age is showing, but I do so enjoy these reminiscing posts....

One thing that always stuck out in my mind back in those early days and early trips was you almost never saw the local ladies out and about in slacks or shorts but almost always in longer skirts, and it was very normal and typical to see them out and about with their hair in those big pink fluffy hair rollers and carrying their umbrella to use as a parosol to keep the sun off their heads. My, how times have changed.

And how did we ever find all these wonderful island offerings and options and locations without benefit of road maps, GPS, street signs and the internet? Exploring was a big part of the fun back in those days although my daughters and their friends didn’t always enjoy it nearly as much as we did.

Driving up the winding and narrow road to Paradise Peak the first time was an experience of a lifetime - I think it was our 1983 trip and the first time we brought our daughters to SXM. You can't imagine our concern at seeing the only other car on the road careening down it in the distance at a good clip and knowing you were ultimately going to have to pass each other on what was then little more than a one lane path. But we did it and survived to laugh over the ride. Yikes!

And after our initial surprise at finding it in the first place, I remember driving up the hill to L’Habitation for the first time and thinking out loud, “I don’t know where this came from or how they got it here, but it had better be good when we get to the top….” And it was. And speaking of hairy scary drives, how about approaching Dawn Beach from the back or French side of the island? The roads were all dirt and had ruts big enough to swallow whole cars. Oh Lesley, if you only knew where we took some of those Holiday Rental Cars back in the day.....you'd never rent from us today but honest, the roads are much better now and we don't wander too much off the well traveled roads these days. Yikes!

You can’t imagine our surprise in going to Marigot one day after a couple of year’s hiatus and seeing the area all filled in and the remains of the movie set still in place. Yet another island surprise – and so many of our old favorite restaurants which were once upon a time at waters edge were either gone altogether or now a block or two removed from the water.

And thinking of Marigot, the Saturday morning marketplace ‘back in the day’ before it became the tourist trap it is today was an absolutely amazing sight to see. No fancy stalls or vendors hawking their goodies.

The small fishing boats would come in early in the morning with their bellies full of all the beautiful colored fish to offer up to the local restaurants and residents alike, along with small boats of produce from other parts of the island or other near islands with better growing climates. These were all a sight to behold tied up at what was then the waters edge.

Occasionally, if you were really lucky, you might spot one or two of the local ladies walking away from the stalls with their baskets balanced on their heads while they carried off what was, just moments before, a live chicken and what we assumed was to be their Sunday dinner.

We once encountered a butcher stall – just a big old wooden table – where the proprietor was using a big old machete and had butchered an even bigger old pig and was lopping off hunks of meat to eager buyers, wrapping it in newsprint for want of anything better or more sanitary…..the head of the pig was still sitting on the table next to it and someone there told me that was a special delicacy but I didn’t believe it then and still don’t today.

Okay, so there are a few memories that weren’t so terrific, but they were interesting nonetheless. This was all long before they started with the tee shirt and souvenir stalls though you could find a few if you hunted around.

These were all great insights into things we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to comprehend through merely hearing or reading about them. So lucky were we to have had these experiences and today these wonderful memories.
<img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

1st time was 1985 we stayed at the old westin it was called "dawn beach" resort....the roads were rough..lol had to stop for cows, and get momentum at the bottom of the hill in order to get to the top of the hill...only missed 1 year since...

Wow - other than me, a lot of people who post on this site are getting rather old.

Other than the Dawn Beach Hotel ducks, one of my earliest memories on SXM is of a naked beach boy at Club O standing in the back of one of their boats pouring gasoline into the tank of a motor with a lit cigarette dangling from his mouth. I wondered whether he would suffer very painful burns before blowing himself up.

I FORGOT LOBSTER CREPES FROM LYNETTS...OMG !!

We loved Spartaco's. Went there every visit. Do you remember the toucan they had in the entryway? The first time we ever had tiramisu was at Spartaco's and we liked it so much we ordered another one!! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" /> Another of my old memories is of Paradise Café - another place for birds - my husband and I just love birds!! I also loved the old Zee Best location in Marigot - nothing like croissants and gasoline fumes with your coffee. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/jester.gif" alt="" />

The only English word used in Marigot was off. The windows of the shops there had signs that said "20% OFF", "40% OFF", "50% OFF".

Lunch at Sam's
Parking on Front Street
Julio's Smoke 'n Booze, where you could sometimes get Saba Spice
Walking the length of Orient Beach at mid-day and seeing exactly 2 other people
Wan Yang Doll in Philipsburg
The original Caravanserai
Mark's place in Cul de Sac
David's

Regarding Paradise Cafe........every once in a while you'd actually see the birds INSIDE their cages as opposed to on top of them walking about.

And while we, too, loved the lobster crepes and table-side preparation of Caesar Salad at Lynette's, we also loved the seafood appetizer baked and served in the huge pastry 'shell' and dressed with hibiscus and other flora from the nearby trees that we came to enjoy poolside at Paradise and which we've never found anywhere else on the island to this day.

For us relative newcomers this is impossible to imagine.

Orient Beach when there were 6 people on the whole beach, paradise lost. Dirt roads with potholes everywhere..The beauty and sophistication of Mullet Bay Resort/Casino/Golf course (is it really 20 years and nothing has happened to bring it back to life)..driving onto the runway to help my friends father unload 30 ShopRite Bags from his plane (LOL) and staying at their home which today has a bus parked on the foundation on Simpson Bay and is a restaurant/cafe..hitchhikers everywhere..little English spoken on the French side. the 1st time I ordered a drink on the French side and was the last served even though I had been waiting less time then the other French patrons..when you could snorkel off Orient Beach and see lots of fish and sea life..Not to repeat myself, but what I miss the most was how nice the Mullet Bay resort was..the outdoor check in lobby..the movie stars staying at the mullet bay "cliff" residence, the beautiful blonde dutch women topless on the beach.. as a 20 something it felt like it was a fantasy place. One thing that still has not changed is the beautiful color of the water on a sunny day....

Also, being able to leave your luggage/shopping in the car while the two of us would go into grocery store on the way to the villa from the airport.

I don't know, as long as I have been going to SXM, we have ALWAYS been warned to never leave anything in the car.. As far back as 94 or 95, our travel agent, Jim Ruos of Caribbean Islands Travel Service, had a standard letter that said 'petty crime is too common to ignore. Don't leave anything in the car, etc... '

I am talking about a fair number of years before '94 or '95.

ok