St. Maarten: Airplanes, Pizza, & Tacos

Now, we took notes last year. Some things we repeated and some things we kept notes for the following year. Sunday was a repeat, well, in all honesty, Sunday was the reason I first convinced Matt to go to St. Maarten in the first place. Maho Beach. Sunset Bar. Princess Julianne Airport. SXM. And for those that have been there….you know what I’m talking about.

Here’s the deal, there are two airports on the island. St. Maarten, the Dutch side, has the only international airport, which means all the tourists typically enter this way, which means that’s how the big planes, the 747, the 757, the MD80 and so on come onto the island and due to the size of the planes, the runway needs to be very long, which means that the only thing separating the runway and the ocean is a narrow road and 20 feet or so of beach. Last year, we spent the day with buckets of beer and sun and sand and had some pretty amazing stories.

This year started the same (wink wink). The planes coming in, almost touching the beach and leaving is amazing and takes your breath away. The post the arrivals on the surfboard so you know what to expect but everyone was watching for the KLM 747 to come in and leave. Michele and Randy didn’t waste any time jumping waves and playing in the salt water, which is nothing like Sakakawea. I will admit I have no problem sitting on the beach and watching the planes come in. 

We had lunch at Sunset Bar. Matt and I copycatted our meals from last year. I had the KLM pizza and he had the Dutch Croquette. Both were as amazing as I could remember. The beer was cold and the sun was hot. And the entertainment flying over was ongoing. 

After eating, we walked around Maho a bit, took in a few drink’s at Cheri’s Café and then went to Taco Machos, which we’d read about in Trip Advisor reviews. Michele wanted to try fish tacos. We were fortunate to get there by happy hour! We had a few beers, nachos, and Michele even tried on the dress she bought for the day. My only regret of the evening was not trying the beef tacos. 

After we got back to the resort, Matt enjoyed a Cuban cigar and I got eaten by bugs. All in all, it was a great day.

MJR: Dad, I should have told you that you’re going to be covered in sand. When I went to the bathroom I left the beach on the floor. 

Michele: Yeah, me too, two seashells came out!

10 minutes later

Randy: Matt, I’m so glad you told me about that, I feel like a new person.

Michele: OH heartburn, I have heartburn.

Randy: Michele, ….

Michele: Don’t make a scene, Randy.

Michele: AHHHHHHHHHH! Milk, it’s warm, what are you doing to me. AHHHHHH

Day 3