By Laura Bijnsdorp
“And this is Persia, a ball python,” says Juewellz, who nonchalantly places the metre-long snake around my neck. Juewellz is 13 years old and has been volunteering at the zoo for over a year now. Her favourite animal is the python, which, as I am trying to conduct my interview, slowly crawls around my neck. Juewellz sees that I am getting a bit nervous, so she picks up Persia and places her around her waist as if a belt, comfortably telling me more about herself and the zoo.
Snakes seem to be a favourite at Sint Maarten Zoo. As soon as Juewellz leaves, an eight-year-old boy, who I later learn is the son of the new manager Brice Gobert, proudly displays a baby boa constrictor a few inches from my face. “Sean, go and show these nice people around,” calls his father. Sean happily rattles off in French, proudly showing off his new backyard (which just happens to be one of the best zoos in the region) to a few zoo visitors.
Brice Gobart, his wife and two kids officially took over management of the zoo on May 1. Brice: “My family and I used to come to the zoo all the time. There isn’t much for kids to do on the island besides go to the beach. The zoo provided a different experience for my kids. We are all animal lovers so we loved spending the day interacting with the animals.”
Brice’s family has been living on Saint Martin for years and run various restaurants and businesses on the island. Brice and his wife used to run a snack bar in Hope Estate. During Hurricane Gonzalo, the zoo took quite a hit. Brice and his wife were shocked at its state and instantly wanted to help revive it.
Brice: “It was sad to see the zoo in such a bad state. While we were debating on a few ideas for the zoo, we also joked around about opening a restaurant. A few conversations and months later, that joke turned into an actual possibility. So we sat down with members of the Zoo board and came to an agreement. Now we live and work at the zoo, one of our favourite places on the island, and the best playground we could ever give to our kids!”
Since then the Gobert family and dedicated zoo-staff have been transforming the zoo into a true animal theme park. The enclosures, buildings and fences have a new colourful coat of paint, debris from the hurricane have been removed, the largest playground on the island is renovated, the petting zoo has been extended, two new water-activities including a “splash pool” and “lazy river ride” are open, and visitors today can also have breakfast and lunch at the zoo!
The new restaurant offers delicious snacks, meals and drinks in a charming patio overlooking various animals at the zoo. Besides eating delicious burgers, playing on the huge playground, splashing around in one of the pools or strolling through their gardens, you can of course see lots of animals! At the zoo, you can see and learn about hundreds of mammals, birds and reptiles. With help of guides and educational signage, you will learn more about the animals living in the zoo, their habitats and lifestyle. The zoo also often hosts birthday parties and other events for holidays, such as Easter, Halloween and Christmas.
As I was sitting there, watching families having a good time, I reminisced about the time I spent at the zoo as a kid. Although it had been almost 20 years ago that I ran around the various enclosures and played on the slides, the zoo is still a perfect spot to relax, have fun, learn and enjoy the outdoors today. I’d advise everyone to come and take a look and spend the day at the new and improved St. Maarten Zoo!
St. Maarten Zoo can be found in Philipsburg on the northern edge of the Great Salt Pond. Tickets are $5 for kids ages 2-11 and $10 for ages 12 and up. Treat your family to a day full of activities, education and animals at the zoo! For more information, surf to www.stmaartenzoo.com
