Seborga in St Martin

In the Marina Royale in Marigot, I came across this sign:


Consulat de Seborga - Seborga Consulate

I am pretty good in geography, and yet I had never come across a place called Seborga before. Googling promptly ensued.

Little did I know that Seborga is steeped in somewhat comical history. It's a municipality in northwest Italy that has claimed a micro nation status, harking back to the Middle Ages and the sale of an independent principality that was never legally registered. According to Wiki:

"In the early 1960s, Giorgio Carbone, then head of the local flower-growers co-operative, began promoting the idea that Seborga retained its historic independence as a principality. By 1963 the people of Seborga were sufficiently convinced of these arguments to elect Carbone as their ostensible head of state. He then assumed the self-styled title Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga, which he claimed thereafter.

Carbone's status as prince (although without any legal power) was further supported by locals on 23 April 1995, when, in an informal referendum, Seborgans voted 304 in favour, 4 against, for the principality's constitution, and in favour of independence from Italy. Carbone reigned until his death on 25 November 2009. The prince was known locally as Sua Tremendità ('Your Tremendousness')."

I love the flamboyant title! Your Tremendousness! You go, Seborga!

As of 2009, around 20 states recognized Seborga as an independent entity - the first one was Burkina Faso. Consular representation is maintained in 10 countries. I guess St Martin, though not a country, is one of them. Or it could just be an overzealous Seborga native having vacationed in St Martin and planting the flag and the consular plaque smack in the middle of the capital? Who's to say no?

Off the island!

My dear friends up in the Northeast and I decided to treat ourselves to a girls-only weekend in Miami. All very last minute, as I only found out two weeks ago that my mother-in-law would be visiting us, thereby presenting herself both as a built-in babysitter and a husband-feeder.

I was excited to be off island for a few days, without having to brave the cold up further north. Miami was colder than I expected however, with gusty winds and occasional showers. It was great fun, still, to be able to just hang out with girlfriends, window shop without a kid hanging onto my leg or whining, linger over cafe con leche, and chat by the pool. And while my friends enjoyed spa treatments of deep tissue massages and pedicures, I opted for an hour long session at the CVS on Lincoln Road - it was no Target, but it was just the therapy that I needed.

Not sure what possessed me, but I also agreed to rent a bike on the last morning to ride along the beach. I hadn't been on a bike since 1997 during a backpacking trip through China. Miami Beach was slightly less intimidating and I did have fun moments on the bike, but I was glad to get them back to the rental place with all my bones still intact.

A friend of mine told me that when you live on an island, you need the means to get off the island once in a while. You are glad to leave, and then you are glad to come back. That's exactly how I felt this time around.

Good bye, Miami - till next time!

Another Beautiful Sunset

One thing we do not lack in St Maarten is a good sunset. Manolee and I often toast watching the sun go down. Here's to another day gone by...