nPostednNovember 11, 2013
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Therenis a Caribbean island named Saint Martin that is far smaller than the smallest state in the U.S. – but which is divided between twonnations:
Therenis a Caribbean island named Saint Martin that is far smaller than the smallest state in the U.S. – but which is divided between twonnations:n
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n1 – the French “collectivity” of Saint-Martin, and
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n2 – one ofnthe countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, SintnMaarten.
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nI don’t know about you, but that seems like a lot ofnconfusion for such a small island!
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nAtnany rate, today is Martinmas, the feast day of Saint Martin of Tours,nfor whom the island and both countries are named. So it stands tonreason that today is Sint Maarten’s national day. n
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n(Ofncourse, the reason that the island is named for St. Martin in thenfirst place is because Columbus and his crew discovered the islandnon St. Martin’s feast day, November 11, 1493. So maybe that’s why St.nMaarten’s national day is today! My head is spinning slightly justnthinking about it.
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nBynthe way…
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Speakingnof head spinning, one of the beaches of St. Maarten is YouTube-famousnbecause the jet planes have to come so low, so close to the ocean,nsand, tourists, and cars, in order to land! Check out jets landingnhere and here.
Speakingnof head spinning, one of the beaches of St. Maarten is YouTube-famousnbecause the jet planes have to come so low, so close to the ocean,nsand, tourists, and cars, in order to land! Check out jets landingnhere and here.n
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nThat’snenough to make my head spin and my stomach lurch!
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nThenairport with that terrifyingly short landing strip is called PrincessnJuliana International Airport. And close to the airport is a largenlagoon that is split roughly in half between the French and Dutchnnations. Luckily, there are two islands in the lagoon, one on thenFrench side and the other on the Dutch side. I do like things to benfair!
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nAnlagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger (andndeeper) body of water by a barrier reef or by barrier islands. In thencase of the Simpson Bay Lagoon of St. Martin/Maarten, there is a longnloop of land around the lagoon, with two channels connecting thenlagoon waters to the Caribbean. Again, all is fair – there is onenchannel on the French side and the other on the Dutch side.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nVeteran’snDay –nalso known as
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nArmisticenDay and
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nRemembrancenDay
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nAnniversarynof a record-breaking balloon ride
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nIndependencenDays in Angola and Poland
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nOrigami Day
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nPlannAhead:
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Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
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nn Novembern holidays
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nn Novembern birthdays
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- n Historicaln anniversaries in November
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nn Decembern holidays
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nn Decembern birthdays
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- n Historicaln anniversaries in December
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