This morning we arrived on the Dutch, southern side of this island, named Sint Maarten and docked in the capital Philipsburg. In comparison, the northern side of this island is French, known as Saint Martin and the harmonious dual nationality means we did not require passports to cross the border, effectively from the Netherlands into France.

So far, we have been very lucky on this trip, noting the size of our ship, that we are yet to anchor out at sea and have not had to reach shore via tenders.

The view from our balcony upon arrival was hugely impressive, with numerous stunning feats of nautical engineering floating in the harbour.

The most impressive ship on display was the 2018 built superyacht Bravo Eugenia (above), owned by Jerry Jones, also owner of the Dallas Cowboys. It is 109 metres long, hosts 14 passengers with a crew of 30 and was a snip at just $225 million to build.

We decided to jump in a private taxi with our very own driver, Raymond, who took us on the tour of a lifetime!

We did a full circuit of both sides of the island including Raymond’s house, his church, his junior school, his senior school and his parent’s graves (or as he called them, the underground condominiums). He showed us all the sights, many of which were awaiting rebuilds from the devastation caused by Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Above is the shot from Sint Maarten looking across the border into French Saint Martin, with the island of Anguilla beyond. The white bridge in the distance leads you to the infamous airport, where people sit on the beach taking selfies of aeroplanes landing just above their heads, as shown below.

In all honesty, Raymond was great fun and was full of surprises.

Above, is Oriental Beach in Saint Martin, a beautiful white sandy beach with an impressive swell, even on this calm day. We stopped for a quick photograph, before Raymond proceeded to drive us a mile further down the beach, to the highlight of his tour…the busy nudist beach. It is safe to say, we declined the offer of a stop over and no photos were taken.

We finally arrived back in harbour mid-afternoon and had a quick look around the port before heading for a cold beer in the Retreat and couple of hours R&R. This evening we dined at the Zenith Restaurant and are now getting organised for an early start tomorrow.

Our next stop is Antigua and this is a two-day visit. In advance, we have hired a car for the day tomorrow, to drive to Shirley Heights and Nelson’s Dockyard – less than half the price of a P&O excursion, and we have the car for a whole day! More to follow.

Love to all, R&L xxx