Week Two: It keeps getting better

Written by: Caroline Dougherty

Sunday started another great week here in Saint Martin. We decided to have a calm and productive day by sitting by the pool and doing some schoolwork. Then we ate a quick dinner at Mama’s before prepping ourselves for a busy week.

Monday was a lot of fun for us. We started the day by going to class, listening to Hayes talk about Quid and social media analytics. Followed soon after by Huff, who talked about how to formulate questions to interview people for later in the week. We then gathered a large group and decided to go to Mullet Bay Beach. We tanned and listened to music. We then walked back and got ready for our favorite part of Monday nights. Karaoke. We started with the national anthem, followed by a lot of other great performances. Huff, Vance, and I sat up on a new high-top counter they just built and pretended to critique all of the songs like America’s Got Talent judges. Once karaoke was over, a group of us went out to dinner at Spaghetti House. I got chicken fettuccine alfredo. We then danced and walked back, and ended with a peaceful night’s sleep.

On Tuesday, we had a planned excursion. We got picked up by Andre and went to Marigot. We spent a couple of hours walking around and exploring the French capital. Kira and I did a bit of shopping at some of the local markets too, and got 2 rings and we got matching anklets. We also practiced some negotiating skills to lower the prices. We then got back on the bus and went to Phillipsburg. The largest cruise ship (Icon of the Seas), with 7,600, was taking a stop there, so we got to see a difference in how people were marketing their products with more people present. After our excursion, we relaxed for a little bit before heading to dinner at Fat Tony’s. Haley and I got on the mic and sang Home while we were there, as well as making sure to sign our names on the wall. Haley, Vance, Ben, and I walked back and met up with some others for a little hangout before heading to bed.

Wednesday was another day of class where we learned some more about analytics. After class, Kyla, Emily, Gabby, Haley and I sat out by the pool and tanned. We also bought a ball to throw back in forth while we were in the pool. After the pool, we headed to our room to take a well-deserved nap, followed quickly by getting ready for dinner and pictures. A group of 16 of us all ate at Yami Sushi and then hung out before exploring the nightlife of SXM. Our topic for our campaign for Huff’s class is nightlife, so we did some interviews and research of people actually experiencing it.

Thursday was a big day for our campaigns and research. We started with Hayes’ class in the morning. Then, all of us got picked up by Andre, and each member of our group got dropped off at a different location around the island. I was dropped off at Maho’s shopping center. I got 7 interviews and learned a lot about nightlife in SXM! Once we got a good number of interviews, Izzy, Maddox, and I got lunch at 3 Amigos. I got an amazing chicken bacon wrap with Izzy. Then we headed back and got ready for an early wake-up for St. Barth’s!

Friday was one of my favorite days so far (besides the catamaran day last week). We woke up super early and headed over to St Barth’s. We got a stamp for both Sint Maarten and St Barth’s, which was super cool. Once we got off the ferry, we ate a little brunch at a cute outdoor café, and it was really good. We then did some shopping, and I bought a hat and a postcard for a little picture collage I am making back home. By far my favorite part of the day was meeting a man named Nitin. Ben, Vance, Kira, and I sat and talked with him for over 2 hours, just picking his brain about all things AI, entrepreneurship, marketing, and sales. We connected on LinkedIn and might get the chance to talk again the next couple days. We all went up to Hayes and Huff after and talked about how awesome he was and how much we learned by networking with him.

Saturday was our day off from class and we sure made the most of it. A group of about 15 of us went to a floating restaurant. It was a lot of fun watching everyone try to walk around and fall all over the place. We listened to music and just enjoyed being in each other’s company. My favorite moments of the trip were when we all just talked and got to know each other on a deeper level, and made fun trips to visit each other when we got back to school in the fall.