We were sitting on Orient Beach 48 hours ago – now we’re in 8 inches of snow. I figured I would write this trip report to help me forget shoveling and remember paradise.<br><br>Third trip to SXM; first staying at Club O. Things we learned:<br><br>- schedule boat trips like Tiko Tiko or Celine early in your stay. That way you can meet people early and visit them later, and if anything goes wrong you can reschedule.<br><br>- Try to get a schedule of activities at Papagayos, or wherever you’re staying. That way you’ll know when best to go to the casinos, and when to stay at home.<br><br>- There’s really good snorkeling off the floating pier closest to Pedro’s.<br><br>- Be friendly!! The more you say hi, the more people you’ll meet!<br><br><br>The details:<br><br>Wednesday, Nov 27th<br><br>We weren’t sure what to expect at the airport for the day before Thanskgiving, especially when Philly was forecasting snow, so we got to PHL parking at 6 am for our 9:45 flight. There were some lines, but we ended up with tons of time to kill. USAir direct flight was uneventful; first time we didn’t need to connect via SJU. Used our Mr. SXM voucher for a Hertz rental car, again no problems, stopped at Ram’s Food World for groceries, then checked in at Club O and stripped. Went to the wine and cheese reception and met a few people. Decided to go to Grand Case for a nice dinner to start our trip. Ate at Il Neptuna, which was good as usual. Wife raves about the veal. Crashed early due to our early flight. Weather beautiful and sunny.<br><br><br>Thursday, Nov 28th – Thanksgiving<br><br>At the wine and cheese reception we felt very untanned, so decided to spend the day on Orient Beach. The beach was essentially gone in front of Papagayos, and from Pedro’s to Kon Tiki. (You either had to walk in ankle deep water or cut through the restaurants.) The rest of the beach was fine, and we had plenty of space to amble. Ate French pizza at Kakoa for lunch – very good. Had reservations for Thanksgiving dinner at Bikini Beach, and went there for a good meal of Turkey, stuffing, potatoes, etc.. We heard there was also a good time had by those at Papagayos – and there was a greater variety of food. Decided to hit a casino while we were out, and stopped by Princess. The video poker area seemed a little seedier than normal, and it was pretty quiet, so we were there for just about an hour and headed home.<br><br><br>Friday, Nov 29th<br><br>We had heard that the boat cruises around the protected harbor were very nice, so we had Noelle at the Club O office book us a Sunset Trip on Celine for that afternoon at 4:30. We also decided that we should eat some of the food we bought, so we made egg sandwiches for breakfast and PBJ for lunch. Spent the day at Orient Beach sunning and snorkeling – decided the area off the raft closest to Pedro’s was the best. Left the beach at 3:00 to head to Turtle Pier for the Celine trip. Got there at 4:15 – no boat -- at 4:30 we were told that the boat had just received new engines and would be there at 4:45, and were given a free Carib. Free beer – I’m not complaining. At 5:00 the sun was starting to get lower, and we were told the boat was expected at 5:30 and would go after dark. We didn’t see the point of doing a scenic sunset cruise at night, and they offered to reschedule us for Tuesday. We were departing the island on Tuesday, so we just got our money back and headed over to SSBB for sunset. Spent the rest of the evening at local areas – Bamboo Bernies for dinner (good sushi, but the piped in crickets were a little unneeded), Cheri’s (cornier every year), and Soprano’s (very good time). <br><br>Saturday, Nov 30th<br><br>Since we couldn’t do the Celine tour we decided to book Tiko Tiko. (We’d never done it, and were shy at the start of our trip.) Saturday was booked, Sunday they didn’t go, so we booked for Monday – our last full day. Went to Marigot for the market, breakfast and shopping, then to Cupecoy Beach. The area reached via the broken road had plenty of sand and was quite nice, and we took a nice break from shopping. After sunbathing, went into Phillipsburg for some quick holiday shopping; did happy hour at the Greenhouse, then we decided to go to Captain Oliver’s in Oyster Pond for some dinner and dancing. Learned that Saturday was buffet night, and weren’t in the mood. While we were in the area decided to go to Mr. Busby’s, which had a guitar player doing covers and had a good meal (of lobsters!). Hung out on the beach looking at the stars and had a nice mellow evening. Got back to Club O at around 9:45 and heard a DJ playing at Papagayos and headed over to see people dancing, only to find out that the band ended at 10pm. Oh well.<br><br><br>Sunday, Dec 1st<br><br>Our ‘naked’ day. Breakfast in the room, lunch of PBJ, dinner at Papagayos, reading on Orient Beach. Paradise. The people sitting next to us on the beach had done Tiko Tiko on Friday and had a great time; gave us lots to look forward to.<br><br><br>Monday, Dec 2nd<br><br>Packed the night before for Tiko Tiko, and woke up at 7am to the sounds of a tropic storm. Uh oh. Went to Papagayos for breakfast, and then were told the trip was postponed until Tuesday due to a small craft advisory. Un oh. Next time we’ll book early in the trip. It stopped raining, so we decided to go to Ilet Pinet. It was dead – maybe 10 people total – we snorkeled a little, but the waves were too rough for us. Went back to Club O, lunch at Pedro’s (the ribs really are good), tanned a little between the rain drops, then went back to our room when it got cold. Since we needed to get dressed (it was cold) , decided to go to Ric’s Place for Monday Night Football. Went back to the room to prepare for our final day.<br><br><br>Tuesday, Dec 3rd – departure day<br><br>Got up early, packed and checked out, backed the rental car against fence near Papagayos so the trunk with our luggage couldn’t be opened. Spent the day on the beach – very windy and cool early, but it finally got nice around 11am. Early lunch at Papagayos, then back to beach – the day cleared up, the wind stopped, and the beach was really nice in the afternoon. Left the beach at 1:45, showered behind Papagayos, got dressed, drove to the airport and returned the car at Hertz. Got to the airport 2 hours early as requested, and took 2 minutes to check in. Had a beer upstairs while waiting for the plane, checked in and had an uneventful direct flight home. (Thanks, USAir.) The pilot seemed to take pleasure in telling us the temperature at home was 24 degrees Fahrenheit. Landed, took the Priority shuttle to get our car, put heater on full and headed home listening to the forecast of snow. Trying to decide whether our next trip will be February 2004, or if we can do it sooner.<br><br> <br>