Before I begin, I do want to thank all of you who post on this board.... the information I received made for a most memorable first trip to SXM. It is a bit difficult for me to write this from a "critics" viewpoint because this trip was mixed with so many special and magical moments that I even enjoyed the bag of plantain chips that USAir served on the flight home!

Our flights to/from Dayton (through Charlotte) were uneventful and on time. Alain from AAA met us just as promised aat the airport. He evidently had overbooked his jeeps (the vehicle we reserved), but had another one in his lot within 10 minutes. His staff was friendly and even gave us $10 in gas and told us to bring the vehicle back empty. Check in at the Royal Islander was a breeze, staff was very cordial and our room was spacious and clean. Met Craig from Pack Light to pick up our chairs and snorkel gear just outside and after a stop at Ram's for groceries, etc., we ate our first meal at Lee's. Greg had the tuna and I opted for ribs. Food was great and service was excellent. As with almost every night, we were in our room by 11 and simply sat on the balcony almost pinching ourselves to make sure that we were really there.

We're early risers (up before 6:00), had breakfast and coffee in the room and headed out to explore the island by 8:00. Kept driving around looking for the beach that we wanted to try, and ended up on Orient our first day. Had a couple of Caribs with our lunch at Pirate Pete's (?) and ended up spending the entire day there playing and acting like kids again. I really can’t remember the last time I felt so carefree and just plain silly. Drove home around 4:00 and decided to check out the sunset at SSBB, but got sidetracked on our way there by the live music at Tortuga's (ok, it was just one guy with a karaoke machine, but it was still music!) Danced a bit (even a waltz!), had a couple more caribs and then headed over to watch the sunset. More music, more dancing there, and one of their famous burgers and we were ready to do some more exploring. Ended up at Bliss (with absolutely no one there) and had an entire oceanfront dance floor all to ourselves. I felt like a teenager again as we sat in the VIP section, talked about big things and small things, and danced under the stars.

Monday was back to Orient for the day. Ate at Baywatch and met the infamous Andy. Greg had one of their specials and I opted for the eggplant. Both of our meals were wonderful and the atmosphere was great. Wanted to make the TTOL party, but had already made reservations for the Pub Crawl that night which ended up being a lot of fun. We sailed from the Turtle Pier and made a stop at Lal's for some wonderful Indian appetizers (Can't for the life of me remember what they were called), Peg Leg for the most amazing swordfish, and back to Turtle Pier for ribs and conch. We met some fun people on board and had a great time. Greg and Neal (the captain) had some kind of male bonding thing going on (something about being the same age and having some of the same interests) and he invited us back to his boat for a couple more drinks and even invited us back on Friday for another crawl as his guest. He has some wonderful stories to tell...would highly recommend taking time to hear some of them.

Tuesday we tried two new beaches, Mullet and Dawn. Spent most of our time at Dawn beach, but did make it into Phillipsburg that day to try some shopping. I really hadn't planned to make my trip into DK Jewelers covered with sand and salt, but since Greg's not much of a shopper, I make the most of every opportunity. Even with our appearance, Jeff treated us with dignity and respect and we never once felt out of place. When we told him about TTOL, he called Deepti over and she greeted us as if we were royalty. She gave us a great price and Greg surprised me by buying me the most beautiful blue ring...my favorite color and a reminder of this wonderful island. Our plans were to head over to the TTOL party to meet the “people behind the names”, but didn’t get out of Phillipsburg until after 6:00 and then traveled up and down the road looking for signs to Buccaneer Beach Bar. After our third pass, we decided to just head back over to the RI so we could catch the sunset at SSBB. I noticed the "man with the hat" for the second or third time since we had arrived in SXM and decided I was just going to ask him if he was "Mr StMartin" which of course he was. Jack was very gracious and we ended up running into him and his son a couple of more nights (SNAPs the game!) For dinner that night we went to Peg leg and had coconut shrimp, filet mignons and a wonderful bottle of Merlot. Even with a couple of martinis, the bill was $80 with our buy one/get one free coupon we received with our rental car.

Wednesday we took the Random Wind Day sail. It was very windy and we weren’t able to actually sail for most of the trip, however it is an awesome way to see the island. Sailed up to Creole Rock for snorkeling, then down along the coast for swimming, a wonderful seafood quiche, mango chutney and salad for lunch, and of course all the rum punch, beer or soft drinks that you want. The trip is interesting not only for the scenery and unique way of seeing the island, but for the people you meet while sailing. We were with a couple that was spending their last day on the island after living there for two years teaching at the Medical University. They had great stories and lots of advice for travelers and those who want to stay in St Martin. Dinner that night was at La Romance in Grand Case. Greg had the Lobster special and I really enjoyed my tomato gazpacho and tuna steak. On our way out of the restaurant I noticed a couple that looked familiar and we decided to walk up and introduce ourselves to Ed and Sandra. They were extremely friendly and gracious and invited us to join them for a drink. We talked about beaches and restaurants and kids and travels. It was a very different experience…to be so familiar with absolute strangers, but that is definitely one of the things that I learned to enjoy about St. Martin, and the TTOL group.

Thursday was my favorite beach day. Packed our soft-sided cooler that we brought from home (picked up that hint somewhere on this board) with homemade turkey wraps, a bottle of wine, some cheeses and a special bottle of Key Lime Martinis (TTOL recipe) and we were off to Cupecoy. Parked in front of Monmartre and walked through one of the resorts to get to the beach. If it hadn’t been for the gentlemen sitting on the side of the road, we would never have found it. It was a bit of a hike with the cooler, chairs and towels, but it was more than worth it. The beach was breathtaking and with only a sparse crowd near the Cliffhanger bar area, the other end of the beach was totally secluded. Probably one of the most romantic spots we have experienced. Ended the day as usual, sunset at SSBB and then dinner in the room.

Friday was the only day I saw a rain cloud. Were on our way to Orient and saw the luminous sky ahead, so we ducked into Marigot to put the top up on our vehicle. Ended up finding Zee Best Café and had croissants and a breakfast crepe along with several cups of coffee. With the Frenchman sipping his coffee next to me, feeding his dog at his feet, the rain falling on the roof, and my husband’s hand to hold, I decided that rain in SXM can indeed be a very good thing. Of course all good things come to an end and the sun came back out (did I say that?) and after a bit of touristy shopping at the market, we headed to a full day at the beach. Saw our last sunset at SSBB, said our goodbye’s to Jack and Neil, and then to dinner at Hot Tomato’s. After a mango martini, we shared appetizers, a Caesar salad and crab back stuffed with shrimp and crab (delicious). I ordered the penne and Greg was feeling very hungry, so he had the cowboy special, 20 oz steak with mashed potatoes. The service was probably the worst we had on the island even though there were only a few people in the restaurant, but the atmosphere was great. A young man was having his 27th birthday party at the bar and shared his birthday cake with everyone in the restaurant. Don’t know exactly what it was, except that it was much different than our traditional cakes and his enthusiasm was contagious.

Last morning we packed up and were checked out by 9:00 AM. Flight didn’t leave until 2:40, so we spent the morning the by pool and on the beach at Maho. Last lunch was a burger at SSBB where we ran into another couple from California that we had met earlier in the week. Had a couple of Caribs, exchanged emails and said our goodbyes. Lost track of time and suddenly realized that we had only a little over an hour before our plane left, so we quickly changed clothes in the bathrooms at SSBB, and got to the airport where Alain’s staff was waiting to pick up the car. Saw some more people from the day sail and the pub crawl that we had met earlier…chatting and laughter and more goodbyes and we were on the flight home…reminiscing already… and enjoying that bag of plantain chips.