A Fairy-Tale Touch on St. Maarten

Hansel and Gretel could find a gingerbread house without a wicked witch on this Caribbean island, and that would be only the beginning of their discoveries.

Not even the Brothers Grimm could have conceived a fairy tale in which two nations in this troubled world of the late 20th Century would have lived without border formalities for more than 300 years.

When veterans are honored in the United States on Nov. 11, the day will be St. Maarten’s and Concordia Day here on an island that measures only 37 square miles and is divided so amicably between the Netherlands and France. Festivities at the border will celebrate the agreement negotiated between Dutch and French settlers in 1648.

The spirit engendered by this harmony is more important than the beaches, resorts, duty-free shopping and, yes, even the gingerbread houses.

Increase in Passengers

For the first six months of 1987, cruise passengers arriving here at the island’s main port reflected a 17% increase over the same period in 1986, which was a record year with 313,893 arrivals. Visitors arriving by air this year have been reflecting an 11% increase over the record 439,462 arrivals in 1986.

My wife and I recently returned to Sint Maarten/Saint Martin for the first time in several years.

The tourist office near the pier has all the information a visitor needs for a self-guided or guided tour.

The Courthouse, now the post office, was built in 1793 and rebuilt 32 years later. It has retained the mood of old Philipsburg. Front Street is the main shopping street and one of the two main streets of this capital city for the 25,000 who live on the Dutch side of the island. The parallel street behind it is, of course, named Back Street. The narrow alleyways linking them are called steegies, pronounced “stake-yas” in Dutch.

If your first visit here is by cruise ship, save the duty-free shops of Front Street until the end of the day or you may never get beyond them. If Hansel and Gretel could return in another fairy tale to St. Maarten, they would find themselves on the trail of West Indian gingerbread, on both the Dutch and French sides of the border.

Gingerbread Houses

Tucked away in the streets an steegies of Philipsburg are fanciful gingerbread houses with designs of many patterns carved into their porches, eaves and balconies, adding a charm even to weathered old houses in need of repainting.

The lacy carvings often form patterns that could remind the fairy-tale children of the witch’s house built of bread and decorated with cakes. But instead of hiding a wicked witch waiting for them to nibble, this West Indian gingerbread in many cases has been converted into shops, boutiques and restaurants.

Philipsburg is on a narrow strip of land between Great Bay and the Salt Pond, a source of wealth for early settlers who shipped great quantities of salt to Europe.

The French capital of Marigot is scarcely a 20-minutes drive from Philipsburg, along the short coast of Simpson Bay Lagoon. The long loop around the lagoon leads to Juliana Airport and some of the grand resorts and beaches of Sint Maarten/Saint Martin.

The border crossing wouldn’t be noticed if you didn’t see the monument built in 1948 to memorialize

300 years of peaceful coexistence. There is no customs or immigration station, or any other visible frontier.

On Nov. 11, the annually renewed pledge of friendship begins an island festival of sports and musical events. Islanders have suggested that the United States and the Soviet Union hold a summit conference here in a gingerbread house, perhaps with a sipping of guavaberry liqueur, the island liqueur produced in private homes for at least 200 years.

There is a story that when a Dutchman and a Frenchman were designated to decide on the island’s border, the Dutchman sipped a bit too jovially and fell into a slumber. As a result, the French have about 21 square miles compared to some 16 for the Dutch, but nobody really cares.

Before Columbus

The Arawaks and Caribs had been here for centuries before Columbus discovered the New World. Whether or not he set foot on this island, he is believed to have sighted and named it on or about St. Martin of Tours Day, Nov. 11, 1493. Pirates did base here, and the island was in the ebb and flow of the Spanish, Dutch, French and British empires.

When the Spanish fleet sailed away, it is said to have left behind nine foreign seamen, four French and five Dutch who worked out the agreement to divide this island. History does agree that a conference of nine settlers signed the agreement on March 24, 1648, at Mont des Accords, Agreement Mountain. It is believed to be the oldest agreement between two nations still being observed. The French population today is about 18,000.

Marigot could be a French village overlooking a Mediterranean bay. Its bay has a new marina. Terraces overlook sailboats and small cruisers. Cafes around the marketplace offer a warm croissant and strawberry gateau for a morning or afternoon break.

Grand Case, north of Marigot, has a restaurant row of gourmet places to dine. By latest count, there were more than 150 cafes and restaurants on both sides of the border.

Cruise visitors who will be tempted to return for a vacation can take with them a list of accommodations that include the major resorts with casinos, smaller hotels, inns and guest houses, apartments and villas.

Mullet Bay Resort & Casino has 600 guest rooms and suites in 172 acres of tropical gardens. Guests have a choice of six restaurants, two swimming pools, a complete water sports center on the beach, 16 tennis courts and an 18-hole golf course.

Summer rates that hold through Dec. 19 offer eight days and seven nights at $473 per person, including three breakfasts and three dinners, airport pickups and daily use of a car with unlimited mileage. Hideaway guest houses offer beachfront doubles at $48 through Dec. 20. Summer rates begin again in April.

Divi Bay, Great Bay, Maho Reef, Burgeaux Bay--the island beaches are ringed with a poetry of resorts and inns. One of the newest is Sol Ambiance Hotel at Oyster Pond on the French-Dutch border. It consists of eight pastel-colored bungalows in West Indian gingerbread style.

As an indication of winter rates on the island, a bungalow with bedroom, bathroom and complete kitchenette will be $150 a night from Nov. 1 through next April 15. The new Azur Royal Beach on Nettle Bay just outside Marigot has set its winter rates at $88 for a sea-view double room.

36 Beaches on Island

The 37-square-mile island has 36 beaches. Dawn Beach with its offshore coral reefs is one of the most popular with snorkelers and divers. Orient Bay around a turquoise cove is a nudist “clothing optional” beach.

Rental cars to see all your island options are about $25 a day; bikes and motor scooter rentals are also available.

When you finally do get back to duty-free shopping along Front Street, the bells of the Little Switzerland crystal, china and jewelry store will be ringing out every 15 minutes.

Check with your travel agent about air fares and cruises to Sint Maarten/Saint Martin, and for information on where to stay and what to do. The St. Maarten Tourist Office in New York is at 275 7th Ave., New York 10001, telephone (212) 989-0000. For more information on the French side of the island, contact the French West Indies Tourist Office, 610 Fifth Ave., New York 10020, telephone (212) 757-1125.