the globe says
Caribbean Netherlands
Fly from Sint Maarten onto the world's shortest commercial runway — 400 meters ending in cliffs on both ends — or take the ferry if your nerves prefer.
A gingerbread cottage guesthouse in Windwardside, all white-and-green wooden trim.
A five-square-mile volcano with no beaches, four villages connected by a road engineers said was impossible, diving on underwater pinnacles, and 2,000 people who all know your name by day two.
Climb Mount Scenery's 1,064 steps through cloud forest to the highest point in the Netherlands — then dive or snorkel the pinnacles.
December to June
English is the language — with a lilt found nowhere else.
Saba Silhouettes by Julia Crane — oral histories of the island's improbable life.
Statia (Sint Eustatius) next door — the 18th century's richest port, now its quietest ruin.
That landing is real — watch a video first so it's a thrill and not a shock.