Sint Maarten

:"For the island of St. Martin on the whole, see Saint Martin, for the French side, see Saint Martin (France) and for other uses, see Saint Martin (disambiguation)."Infobox_Country
native_name = "Eilandgebied St. Maarten"
conventional_long_name = Island area of Sint Maarten
common_name = Sint Maarten

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national_motto = "Semper pro grediens" (Latin)
national_anthem ="O Sweet Saint Martin's Land"
official_languages = Dutch, English, Papiamento
capital =Philipsburg
latNS=N |latd=18 |latm=01 |longEW=W |longd=63 |longm=03
largest_city = Philipsburg
government_type = "See Politics of the Netherlands Antilles"
leader_title1 = Administrator
leader_name1 = Franklyn Richards
area_rank =_
area_magnitude =1 E7
area_km2=21.07
area_sq_mi=13.1
percent_water = Negligible
population_estimate =35,000
population_estimate_rank =_
population_estimate_year =2006
population_census =33,119
population_census_year =2004
population_density_km2 =974
population_density_sq_mi =?
population_density_rank =_
GDP_PPP =$ 400 million
GDP_PPP_rank =_
GDP_PPP_year=2003
GDP_PPP_per_capita =$ 11,400 (2003 est.)
GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank =_
sovereignty_type = constitutional monarchy
sovereignty_note = part of the Netherlands Antilles, separate country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands as from December 15 2008
HDI =n/a
HDI_rank = n/a
HDI_year = 2003
HDI_category =unranked
currency =Netherlands Antillean guilder
currency_code =ANG
country_code =
time_zone =
utc_offset =-4
time_zone_DST =
utc_offset_DST =
cctld =.an
calling_code =599
footnotes =

The island area of Sint Maarten (Dutch: "Eilandgebied Sint Maarten") is one of five island areas ("Eilandgebieden") of the Netherlands Antilles, encompassing the southern half of the island of Saint Martin/Sint Maarten. At the 2001 Netherlands Antilles census, the population of the "Eilandgebied" was 30,594, for a population density of 900 inhabitants per km².

"Sint Maarten" borders the French overseas collectivity of "Saint-Martin", which occupies the northern half of the island.

Urban areas

* Philipsburg with 1,228 inhabitants
* Lower Prince's Quarter with 8,123 inhabitants
* Cul de Sac with 7,880 inhabitants
* Cole Bay with 6,046 inhabitants
* Upper Prince's Quarter with 4,020 inhabitants
* Little Bay (Fort Amsterdam) with 2,176 inhabitants
* Simpson Bay with 736 inhabitants
* Lowlands with 232 inhabitants"Simpsonbay", "Madame Estate", "Dutch Cul-de-sac", "Duch Quarter", "Cole Bay", "Oyster pond", "South Reward", "Saint-Peters", "Pointe-Blanche", "Middle Region", "Cay hill", "Upper Prince's Quarter" and "Lower Prince's Quarter".

Politics and Government

Sint Maarten is an "island area" ("eilandgebied" in Dutch), a component of the Netherlands Antilles comparable to a municipality. The Netherlands Antilles are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands though not in the European Union. Its currency is the Antillean guilder (however, the United States dollar is widely accepted). A planned restructuring of the Netherlands Antilles on December 15, 2008 will see Sint Maarten become a separate country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands (like Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles are now). This dissolution is still planned, but has been postponed to an indefinite future date. [ [http://www.thedailyherald.com/news/daily/k006/steer006.html St. Maarten-St. Martin - Consensus, but no date set for new status ] ]

The island area of Sint Maarten is ruled by an island council, an executive council, and an administrator ("gezaghebber" in Dutch) appointed by the Dutch Crown.

Colleges and Universities

*American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine (AUC), founded in 1978, was previously located on Montserrat. Because of the eruption of the Soufriere Hills volcano in 1995, AUC moved its campus to St. Maarten later that year. A permanent campus was completed in 1998 in Cupecoy.

*University of St. Martin (USM) in Philipsburg. USM is an affiliate of Johnson & Wales University.

Popular Tourist Destinations

* Border Monument in honor of the 1648 Treaty of Concordia.
* The Philipsburg Historical foundation museum.
* The Heineken airline Jet-Bar/Restaurant (aka Air LekkerBeck) (at Philipsburg).
* Fantastic jumbo jets low landings (at Maho Beach).
* The zoo park with animals from the Caribbean area (on Madame estate Pondfill).
* Fort Amsterdam and Fort Willems (at Philipsburg)
* Sightseeing on Dawn Beach road.
* Emilio Wilson Historical Park (Cul-de-sac)
* Butterfly Farm
* Hiking to Pic Paradise
* The Courthouse on Frontstreet
* The newly renovated Boardwalk spanning the beachfront on Frontstreet,Philipsburg

ee also

* Saint Martin, the Caribbean island.
* Saint Martin (France)
* History of St. Martin, the Caribbean island.
* List of Sint Maarten governors.
* Culture of St. Martin, the Caribbean island.
* "O sweet Saint-Martin's Land" (bi-national song/anthem of Saint-Martin/Sint-Maarten )

External links

Government

* [http://www.sintmaartenchamber.org St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce and Industry] — Official site
* [http://www.governorsxm.com/index.php Lt. Governor of St. Maarten] — Official site

Organizations and schools

* [http://www.aucmed.edu/ American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine]
* [http://www.usmonline.net/ University of St. Maarten]
* [http://www.stmaartenlibrary.org/ Philipsburg jubilee public library]

Tourism

*wikitravel
* [http://www.st-maarten.com/ St. Maarten Tourist Bureau] - Official site
* [http://www.zebrabot.com/ St. Maarten Search Engine] - Official site
* [http://www.flysxm.com/ Arrival / Departure Info Princess Juliana International Airport] - Official site