Inaugural St. Maarten Arts in the Plaza Festival Attracts Over 600 Spectators

On December 22, 2010, the Inaugural St. Maarten/St. Martin Arts in the Plaza Festival attracted more than 600 spectators to the Porto Cupecoy Plaza. Locals, tourists, government officials and celebrities witnessed a Caribbean evening filled with magical fire performances, towering stilt walkers, beautiful opera singers, three-step polka and ballet dancers, gumboot performers and serenades. The next St. Maarten Arts in the Plaza Festival will be Wednesday, January 26, 2011 from 7-10 p.m. at the Porto Cupecoy Plaza. Visit www.stmaartenlife.com to review the schedule or for festival updates "like" us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/artsintheplaza. Notable guests included Ida Zin-Fa Leu, president of tourism department (French side); Rhonda Arrindell, minister of sports, culture and education (Dutch side); Thierry Gombs, director of sports, culture and education (French side); Clara Reyes, founder of the Imbali Center for Creative Movement; Roland Richardson, often called the "Father of Caribbean Impressionism," along with his wife Laura Richardson; and Neville York, one of the most recognized steel drum players in the world. Orient-Express, (www.orient-express.com) the name behind an elite collection of travel experiences, first came into being in 1883 as one of the world's most exciting and indulgent train journeys. Today that evocative name also embraces hotels, cruises and other luxury rail adventures in 24 countries, across five continents. The Company has offered exceptional luxury travel experiences since 1976, when it first purchased Hotel Cipriani in Venice and then shortly afterwards, recreated the celebrated Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, linking London, Paris and Venice, along with other European cities. Today, the company owns or part-owns and manages 50 businesses, 41 of which are highly acclaimed hotels, each unique in style, from the Mount Nelson in Cape Town and Rio's Copacabana Palace, to the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg and Maroma Resort & Spa on Mexico's Riviera Maya. There are six luxury tourist trains, two river cruise operations and '21,' one of New York's most iconic restaurants. Orient-Express real estate developments draw on over 30 years of experience in the creation of luxury resorts and travel experiences. The company's overriding commitment to providing the highest quality of service, products and amenities in its hotels, trains and cruises is also a standard in its real estate developments. In addition to Porto Cupecoy, Orient-Express is currently offering luxury lifestyle residences at The Villas at La Samanna (St. Martin), Keswick Estate (Charlottesville, Virginia) and Napasai (Koh Samui, Thailand). The company owns developable land in Madeira; Riviera Maya, Mexico; and St. Michaels, Maryland.