This was our 12th trip to the island and second time staying at Club Orient. For those of you who do not wish to read the "day-by-day play-by-play", I will list some general things at the beginning and those who wish to read the whole thing can carry on.<br><br>BEST THING:<br>After 12 trips to the island we can say without reservation that the best part of this trip was the people we meet. Some we have known for several years and others we have just met. All of them are top people and were the highlight of our vacation. I will not list them here and hopefully will not miss any in the 'day-by-day play-by-play'.<br><br>SURPRISES:<br>The lolos were closed, we did not know this before we left May 10. It was a big disappointment for us as Talk of the Town is one of our favourite grazing places.<br><br>Mount Vernon was closed.<br><br>We have never seen the island so lush and green, some places we hardly recognized because of the vegetation. Rainfall was largely at night with only a few showers during the day.<br><br>The beach erosion was a shocker, although we did read about it before we left... you have to see it with your own eyes! Some places lost ground while we were there. Other areas of the beach at the north end had 30-40 yards more sand than we remember before.<br><br>NEW FINDS FOR US:<br>Les Brasseries des Iles - see MAY 19<br>Johnny Under the Tree - see MAY 13/14<br><br>BEST PLACE FOR LUNCH<br>The best bar in our view is BAYWATCH. We have known Andy and Cheryl since Surf Club South in Grand Case. For a liberal dose of Hugs, Kisses, and Handshakes this is the place to go. The food is superb and the prices are reasonable...and it is right on Orient Beach. For a food review - see just about every second day.<br><br>RELIABLE AS ALWAYS<br>Club Orient<br>Ma Doudou<br>Tiko Tiko - although the price has gone up, still the best day out<br>AAA Car Rental - although we did have a slight problem with the car, Alain was right on with his service - see MAY 14.<br>Bulldog in the morning.<br><br>CRIME<br>Didn't see any and didn't hear of any, nor did we feel uneasy at any time<br><br>THINGS WE INTENDED TO DO BUT MISSED<br>Buccaneer Beach Bar<br>Uncle Harry's<br>Rhino Riding<br>Mary's Boon<br><br>HELPFUL HINTS FOR TIMESHARE PESTS<br>If you do not want to be bothered by people selling time shares, tell them you are CANADIAN, they will back right off. Worked like a charm 3 times within 20 minutes in Marigot. They just pull the card away and say "have a nice day".<br>-------------------------------------------------------------<br><br>The following is an account of our daily adventures. To save some money we try to eat breakfast in our studio and maybe lunch every second day, although this year the lunch really didn't work out as planned, largely due to the lure of Baywatch.<br><br>MAY 10 - Arose at 2:30 am, left home at 3:00 and arrived at Pearson Airport in Toronto at 4:20. There was a short lineup at checkin and we were through very quickly. We boarded the aircraft and the flight left exactly on time at 7:25 am. We were supposed to be flying with Air Transat but they turned the flights over to WestJet and that is a good thing. Although there was no movie, music or hot food, it was worth the sacrifice to have extra leg room. The seats were very comfortable and we did not feel like sardines. The flight crew was very relaxed and informal. The captain introduced himself as Grant and his co-pilot was Jeff. Upon our approach to St. Martin the captain came on and said: "Ladies and Gentlemen, we will be landing in St. Martin in approximately half and hour, the weather in St. Martin is....well, we don't really know, but I just looked out the window and it looks OK".<br> We cleared customs quickly, retrieved our bags and met Myra of AAA Car Rental who drove us to Alain's yard where we received a DARK BLUE Mitsubishi Lancer (with lots of dents as per my request) and we were on our way.<br> While checking in at Club O we met Larry and Sherry (SXM_Couple) who we knew from the last 2 years. We were assigned Studio 21 - same as last year. We deposited our bags and clothes in the studio and headed for Papagayo for that first Carib...OK, first and second, we had a thirst that you could photograph. I think our tongues soaked up the first one! Took a walk along the beach where we met Pete and Ann, Chris and some others we knew. Headed back to Papagayo for another Carib and then back to our room for some rest, however, that did not last long so we headed back to Papagayo where we met Frank and Anna. We had dinner with Larry and Sherry and by 8:15 we all started to fade away. Back to the room for some ZZZZ, it has been a long day.<br><br>MAY 11 - Woke up early, walked the beach and reserved our chairs (which was not really necessary). Returned to our studio to find a pack of dogs running around. Two of them got into a fight so I dumped our foot bath water over them which broke it up (didn't see many of those dogs after that day as I believe they had owners). Went to Orientique for some supplies and then back to the beach. Baywatch for lunch with Frank and Anna and Larry and Sherry and met James and Lisa (Xjames423) and had lunch with them. I wasn't feeling too well, I think I made the coffee too strong that morning, so I just had a grouper burger and Toddy had a meatball sandwich. After the burger and about 3 Caribs I started to feel a lot better. Spent the afternoon on the beach and I did some snorkeling. Back to the room for cleanup - drove through Orient Village and was surprised by the lushness of the vegetation. Drove through Grand Case just to see for ourselves that the lolos were closed, then on to US Imports in Sandy Ground - surprised to see that they were charging 17% on the US dollar...I paid in Euros. Dropped our groceries off at Club O and then on to Ric's to catch part of the New Jersey/Ottawa game. Toddy had a burger while I had Ric's ribs - not bad! Also tried Rum Jumbie for the first time - Toddy really liked it. Stopped at L'Esplande to see if Anna and Frank were in but made a wrong turn and ended up at the top of the hill - tough job turning around, especially with dogs chasing us! Back to Club O - Papagayo was almost empty, talked with Larry and Sherry for a while and then bedtime.<br><br>MAY 12 - (at this point I will try and switch to point form) Up at 6. walked to old building (they are actually working on it) down by Mount Vernon. Breakfast in room - beach time - I left for airport to pick up Jim & Carmen (Jbroderick01876)- their flight arrives on time and we go to air cargo to pick up Jim's medication, which pretty much fills the car (more details from Jim I am sure) - back to Club 0 for a few welcome drinks at our studio - Larry (sxm_couple) stops by to report the Madoudou factory was closed when he went there. Watched the Tiko Tiko come in with Anna and Frank aboard - Frank didn't fall down-this time! Stayed for Happy Hour and then had dinner: She; spaghetti, Me; American burger - service was very slow - happy hour did us in - back to room.<br><br>MAY 13 - Up at 6:30 - breakfast in room - no walk - beachtime in am - Baywatch for lunch with Carmen and Jim, Carmen and I had the ribs, Jim a hero sandwich, Toddy had the Buffalo chicken fingers - HOT (although we live about 30 miles from Buffalo, we did not realize that "Buffalo" meant hot - we are used to ordering all kinds of different "temperatures") - these weren't overly hot, about a 2 Carib on the 5 scale! - Beach time - Toddy and I went to Peg Leg Pub to get some T shirts for Carmen and Jim - stopped at Johnny Under the Tree, I had chicken, ribs, rice and salad and Toddy had chicken, rice and salad, a diet coke and Carib came to a grand total of $17.25 - I think my quest to find the cheapest meal on the island ended here! Back to Club O and met Larry & Sherry, Jim & Carmen, and Pete & Ann at the dance. The place was fairly dead and the service was extremely slow (perhaps the reason it was dead?). Anyway, we closed the place.<br><br>MAY 14 - Slept in until 7:30 - skipped breakfast. We had made plans with Jim and Carmen but when we went to start the car, the battery was dead. I called Alain Arnell who responded immediately and send Myra and another person to start the car, they arrived and jump started the car and left us the car that they came in, it was pretty much a "mobile tin can" but got the 4 of us up all the hills we required. Total down time only 90 minutes...in my opinion very good service! We delayed the trip to Marigot - went to Baywatch for lunch - I had Andy's Seafood plate - great stuff!<br> During the afternoon we had some entertainment (as mentioned in Anna and Frank's report) when two men from a cruise ship got way too friendly on one of the swimming rafts. When they finally came ashore security told them to leave the beach. They left separately and tried to act nonchalant...but all eyes were on them - some people really have the wrong idea of what Orient Beach is about. Attended the Wine and Cheese party and then to Johnny Under the Tree with Jim and Carmen - 3 chicken dinners and 1 fish dinner + drinks = $29.oo. Jim and Toddy went to Dolphin Casino while Carmen and I went to Bamboo Bernies for the "Adult Dairy Queen". Soon joined by Jim and Toddy who did not do so well at Dolphin - back to Club O.<br><br>MAY 15 - No Breakfast - walked the beach - made a run to the MaDoudou Factory. The lady there knows me I am sure - bought so much she gave me a free 40 ouncer. When I told her it was only a week's supply she didn't believe me. Carried on to Marigot to look around and then back to Club O. Again Baywatch for lunch...the day before Andy had promised to make pasta so this was a must do, Toddy had pasta and said it was wonderful, I settled for Andy's fabulous fall off the bone ribs - best ribs on the island (imho). Back to chairs for some beach time and socializing - this time Security found a guy in the bushes with a video camera - turned out to be a local French man - some people just don't get it! Great entertainment once again. Back to the room for cleanup. While heading for Happy Hour met Bill (Bill_S) and Ron who had just arrived. Linda and Beth were already at Happy Hour - hugs and kisses all round - a great reunion. Toddy and I headed into Maho for a short Casino Run at Casino Royale. I actually came out ahead $5...stopped at Ric's and met up with our friend Tom from Toronto who we watched hockey with last year when the Leafs were in the playoffs. Had one of Ric's fish burgers and then back to Club O to watch the eclipse of the moon - really interesting but just too late to stay up to watch the whole thing.<br><br>MAY 16 - Up at 7:00 - breakfast in room - socialized on the beach - went and said our goodbyes to Peter and Ann, damn it hate it when people have to leave - Lunch back at our studio (chicken from Bounty) - more beach time then a nap which is really rare for us - off to Frank and Anna's with the rest of the gang - Frank and Anna graciously hosted a wine and cheese get together and gave an opportunity to see L'Esplande, absolutely gorgeous view. 10 of us (Larry and Sherry had other plans) went to Repaire du Pirate - this was our 4th time there in the last 2 years and it is always a fun place. We were greeted by Marcel who brought us all Planter's Punch before we ordered. Toddy and I shared the flaming camembert cheese appetizer, she order beef kabob and I had the red snapper - both excellent. After dinner Frank was appointed pirate and was required to dispense the after dinner drinks from the pot called "Mort". He did this with great flair and then proceeded to dispense drinks to the other guests as well. Don't remember what our final bill was...too many drinks dispensed by Frank the Pirate. Back to Club O...a great time was had by all!<br><br>MAY 17 - Up at 7 - breakfast in room - walked down to Bikini Beach Bar and back - met Bill who had reserved enough chairs for us all (8) - said our farewells to Larry and Sherry who were moving on to Statia - the weather was overcast so we shopped at Orientique - finished Bounty chicken for lunch - weather still overcast in the afternoon - after a short time on the beach we were warned by beach chair guys a storm was coming in - everyone congregated at our studio and the MaDouDou flowed - just one of those great impromptu things that just happens naturally! Cleanup time and then on to Papagayo for dinner and karaoke (the service was much improved from last week) - Frank and Anna's last night - we closed the place. Later on a storm rolled in and we had plenty of rain.<br><br>MAY 18 - Woke up just after 7 - there was a "care" package left by our door from Frank and Anna, we had missed them - can't believe Frank would miss and opportunity to wake someone out of a sound sleep (LOL) - walked down the beach and met Bill then saw that the Realite was washed up in front of Baywatch. Beach time and then on to Baywatch for our TTOL get together. Went a little early to eat first - I had Mussels a la Andy for the first time, now, I am a big fan of Andy's ribs and it is difficult to get me away from them - the Mussels were superb (I was tempted to lick the container they came in) - I didn't think he could outdo the ribs but he did! For the TTOL get together there was the usual gang of Toddy and I, Bill and Linda, Ron and Beth, and Jim and Carmen. We were joined by Nanette and Jack (Nan2sxm) and their friends Cathy and Bill. Again more beach time and snorkeling - Bill and I then went to the Watersports to sign up for Tiko Tiko on Tuesday. That evening Bill and Linda hosted a BBQ at their mini-suite with Porterhouse steaks they had brought from Maryland. The rest of us kicked in with potatoes, salad, wine, MaDoudou, Rum Jumbie, etc. - Bill sure knows how to cook a steak! One thing about eating a meal like that and sitting around afterwards at Club Orient...you don't have to loosen your pants!<br><br>MAY 19 - Usual breakfast in room - Let Boo Boo (the dog who adopted us who we nicknamed "Whiner") out - we let him stay with us overnight as the weather looked bad the night before. Walked down to check out the sailboat Realite that had blown ashore - no progress as the insurance adjuster had not arrived yet. Went shopping in Philipsburg - actually Toddy, Linda, Beth and Carmen went shopping - Jim, Bill and I went to the Casino - no winners...except the jewellery store. Back by noon - lunch in room, then beach time - met Diane "mypearly" and Tim "timo" on the beach and discussed the Leafs and Flyers playoff series - later that afternoon we had a conference on where to go for dinner - Grand Case won out but when we arrived most places were closed. It came to a toss up between Il Netuno and Les Brasseries des Iles, Carmen said Les Brasseries des Iles and away we went...what a brilliant decision. This is the one restaurant review I will attempt to do.<br> LES BRASSERIES DES ILES - I will deal with our meal only but this place serves everything from snacks like pizza right up to full course meals. I believe it is usually frequented by the local French, however, the waiter spoke very competent English and was quite charming and funny. For an appetizer Toddy and I shared at seafood salad. This thing came on a PLATTER and included lettuce, salmon, pickeled herring, mussels, shrimp and tuna - this thing was huge (9 Euros)! For the main coarse Toddy had Calzone which was so large (larger than a football) that it could easily have fed 3 people. I had red snapper which came with rice, asparagus and salad - shared a crème brule for dessert - 2 rum and coke, 1 glass of wine, 1 bottle of water and 1 coffee = $60.00 US - incredible value!<br>Back to the room to collapse.<br><br>MAY 20 - Tiko Tiko Day - up at 7 and Boo Boo was outside our room waiting - if anyone does not realize it, Studio 21 at Club Orient comes with a dog. Met the Tiko Tiko group at Papagayo which included Bill and Linda, Frank, Linda(too), Bob, Marty and Bruce and Dana who we met on the Tiko Tiko 2 years ago. All had been on the Tiko Tiko at least once before - for Toddy and I it was our 8th time. Did the usual things on Tintemarre, explore, snorkel, float around and refresh ourselves from the cooler, etc. After lunch I told Phillipe I would do the mud bath. During the mud bath Linda(too) said she would like to know how to make the mud bath, we nicknamed her "the apprentice" and I took her to the hill to get the mud and then made another mud bath, carefully removing all the stones. She liked it so much she went and made a third on her own - thereby earning her wings! Three mud baths in one afternoon is a lot! The Disney cruise ship was in that day and in the morning the Golden Eagle was on Tintemarre with a load kids and adults. In the afternoon there were 2 Golden Eagles on Tintemarre each loaded with kids and adults. I hope they were warned about what they might see. I fear that if it becomes a confrontation between Disney and Tiko Tiko that money will win out. Anyway, a great day as usual on the Tiko Tiko and Phillipe and Phillipe were great hosts. The whole key is the people you are with and we had a very fun-loving group. Back to Club O to clean up and head for the TTOL party at Hot Tomatoes with Bill and Linda - not an easy feat after being on the Tiko Tiko all day. We were greeted by Dicky and Frank and immediately handed one of Dicky's coconut drinks (great stuff), Frank quickly resumed his nap and only awoke for a few photo sessions. Met TTOLers Ed and Sandra, Tim and Diane ("Timo" and "Mypearly") and the charming Deepti (Diamond Princess) and her brother Jeff. We also met Brad, one of the owners of Hot Tomatoes. Tiko Tikoitis was setting in so said our farewells and headed back to Club O and Papagayo for a hamburger, it was dance night but there was hardly anyone there, walked the beach and then completely faded away. <br><br>May 21 - Up at 6:00 and went out to the beach to take photos of the erosion - amazing how many people are on the beach at that time. Took a beach walk and the Realite was still there - picked up some supplies at Orientique and had breakfast in the room. Made another MaDoudou run, the Madoudou lady couldn't believe I was back again, she said if I need any more to come back soon because she was going on holidays on Friday ;-) - Lunch at Baywatch, we both had the ribs (this is getting to be a very nice habit) - this day it looked like the Realite would finally be towed away - the owners and their friends were having lunch at Baywatch and as the boat was about to be towed their friends got flowers and threw them on the boat, at this point Steve (the owner) could not contain himself anymore, what a very sad time, everyone else at Baywatch had tears in their eyes, but the towing was short-lived and Realite remained just off shore. More beach time in the afternoon and then to the wine and cheese party at Papagayo. It was Carmen and Jim's last night and the eight of us (Bill & Linda, Ron & Beth) went to Dolphin Casino - again no big winners. We were going to go to Bamboo Bernies but when we exited the casino it was raining quite heavily. Bill and I braved the downpour and got the car and picked up the others. The decision was to go somewhere dry so we headed for PEG LEG PUB. Arrived at PLP and Sean was in great form. We found the service excellent - we all had our meals within 20 minutes and were very satisfied with the quality of the food - Sean is a real gem! Back to Club O to pass out<br><br>MAY 22 - Makeshift breakfast in our room - getting low on supplies but I managed to find enough for grilled cheese sandwiches - took our first full walk right to Mt. Vernon and back - checked on the progress of Realite, they were trying hard but not much movement - beach time - met up with Nanette (Nan2sxm) Jack, Bill and Cathy - they invited us all to view their villa at Mt. Rouge later that day - drove Jim and Carmen to the airport for their flight home - stopped in Grand Case to pick up lunch at lolos opposite Portofino - this is a new one and seemed OK - a rib or chicken dinner is $8 - all was OK until the salad was being placed in our container, the person preparing it just stuck their hand in the lettuce, tomatoes, etc. and just assembled the salad with their bare hand...after just handling raw fish...we didn't eat the salad - bring back Talk of the Town! While in Grand Case we made reservations for 8 for Friday at Bistrot Caraibes. Ate lunch in room - beach time - cleaned up and went to visit Nanette and company at Mt Rouge with Bill/Linda, Ron/Beth and Bruce/Dana. What a beautiful place and quite a drive to get to. Our hosts had wine and cheese ready for us and we toured the villa - this place has to be worth millions - halfway up the mountain overlooking the lagoon (I will post photos on MSN communities when I sort them out). The eight of us then went to Poulet d'Orleans, we were the only ones there and again had a delightful time - great food at very reasonable prices - total bill for 8 people $143.00. Back to Bill and Linda's for a night cap and then off to bed - late night 11 pm!<br><br>MAY 23 - up at 7:30 - this is our last full day and the weather does not look good - breakfast in room - off to Philipsburg shopping - went by Bobby's Marina to see if Realite was there but could not see her - went to DK Gems (Deepti's place) where we met her brother Jeff - purchased an ankle braclet then headed to Jump Up Casino for a last try - I broke even again and Toddy did not - drove back to Orient via Oyster Pond - hadn't been there for a few years - Orient was still very windy and overcast - beach time - Lunch at Baywatch with the gang and this time Tim and Diane joined us - Toddy and I ordered ribs and mussels and then split them (best of both worlds) - said our goodbyes to Cheryl (hugs and kisses) - some beach time but still windy - back to our room at 3:30 to get a head start on packing…there is a lot of MaDoudou to pack - hit happy hour and then clean up and head to Grand Case - Dinner for 8 at Bistrot Caraibes, great place and the two owners are wonderful hosts - it was nice to see the restaurant full - I had French Onion Soup - Grilled Salmon - Crème Brule (can't remember what everyone else had) but the prices were very reasonable - for all the two of us had it was still under $100 - and their after dinner drinks are great! This time we went back to Bruce and Dana's beach chalet for a night cap and then off to bed - long day tomorrow.<br><br>MAY 24 - Up at 6:30 - Breakfast at Baywatch, Andy was by himself and we had a chance to talk with him for a while - back to studio to pack - said our goodbyes to everyone - checked out of Club O - gave left over beer to the Security guards (I tried to bribe them to not let me out) - Drove to AAA yard where Myra was waiting for us and then on to the airport - had our traditional Gouda cheese and ham sandwich - our 1:10 flight was an hour late leaving but no big deal - again flying with West Jet (just love the leg room) and arrived in Toronto at 7:00 - no problem with customs (lucky, because I had 10 bottles - mostly MaDoudou - in my suitcase).<br><br>As soon as I am able to get my photos sorted, I will be posting them on MSN Communities.<br><br>Again, to all our friends and all the people we met…you guys made our vacation!<br><br>John (and Toddy)