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FUN in the SUN Nov.5 - Dec.5 2013 Part 1

Nov.5- Arrived today to warm sunshine and had a very good flight which touched down 30 minutes early. Maureen and Larry were on the same flight so it was nice meeting up with them at the airport in Toronto and having a great chat before boarding. The airport was relatively quiet today and we were through immigration very quickly. Jeannie had already made her delivery so the beer was cold and everything neatly put away! Thanks Jeannie for your excellent service once again! Since the kitchen was well stocked, we chose to dine in and enjoy some cocktails. We are now unpacked and settled in to our new home and look forward to spending a month in paradise.





Nov.6- Got up and had a leisurely breakfast in the condo and enjoyed the magnificent views from the balcony. Our condo at Blue Marine is on the fourth floor and we get spectacular views of the entire surrounding area. We have two spacious bedrooms, three bathrooms, a living room, dining room and kitchen with everything imaginable for a comfortable stay. There is a very large balcony with dining table, large grill and comfortable outdoor furniture to relax.

We spent most of the morning just relaxing and contacting some friends. Around noon time, we ventured out to Buccaneer Beach Bar to see Wanda and have our first BBC and a delicious lunch. We lingered there for a couple of hours and then made our way to Prime to pick up some extra water and more refreshments. The prices there are very good especially liquor prices. We stopped in to see Adrianna and Dave at their place on Welfare Road, but there was nobody around so we continued on to Market Garden for a few things we forgot to order from Jeannie.

We returned home to enjoy a cocktail or two before going out to the Dream Pool Bar to meet up with Annie and Elaine and Bill and enjoy Happy Hour. We had a nice visit and afterwards Annie joined us for dinner at Taco Macho. The food and service there were very good and the restaurant was packed. David took Annie back to her condo and we went to the Dunes Casino to make a contribution to the St. Maarten economy. We closed the evening with some Rum Jumbie Splash and drifted into dreamland.




Nov.7- We awakened to beautiful sunshine and enjoyed a cooked breakfast in the condo. Somehow everything tastes so good with a view of the water!

After breakfast we ventured into Philipsburg to meet Dave from Happy Island Tours and took some pictures of his new place beside Chesterfields. Tequila has really grown and is guarding the business now and earning his keep! The new location is excellent to service the cruise ship passengers and soon another location will be established in Simpson Bay if all goes as planned. We wish them much success with this new venture.

We continued on and stopped for a delicious lunch at Paradise View. We both had crepes and salad and some cold beer to wash it down. After lunch we spent some time with Bernadine at her rum boutique and made a donation to help her care for her adopted animals. I checked out the shops and found some interesting treasures all offered at 1 to 1 prices.

Following lunch and shopping, we went to Orient Beach and spent the remainder of the day soaking up the sunshine. We stopped at the Taste Factory on the way home and got some delicious croissants for sandwiches which we thoroughly enjoyed for dinner. The day ended with drinks on the balcony enjoying a slight breeze and NO MOSQUITOS!






Nov.8- The day began with coffee on the balcony followed by breakfast of cereal, juice and croissants. We continued to just hang out and enjoy a quiet morning overlooking the pool and gardens and planning the rest of the day. We had a light lunch in the condo and then went to Mullet Beach for the afternoon. As is usually the case for us, Mullet was rough with huge waves! We have not had many calm days at this beach in all our 20 years of visits. I guess Mother Nature got the message we are on the island now! We enjoyed watching all the surf boarders, but resisted going in the water ourselves. It was also extremely hot there today with not a breeze to be found.

The beach has lost a lot of its sand and only two rows of chairs today and not many people at all. In fact the fewest people we have ever seen at Mullet!

We left the beach around 4:00 P.M. and finished the day at the pool at Blue Marine. We enjoyed a splendid sunset from our balcony and some cocktails before going out to dinner at Bavaria. Tonight was the German Sausage Fest and they featured four different kinds of sausage served with sauerkraut or potato salad and great German beer on tap. The food and service is always good there and they have many returning clients.

After dinner we stopped at Splash Jewellery to have some jewellery repaired and then went next door to the Hollywood Casino to try our luck. Tonight I doubled my money, so I can gamble again tomorrow night guilt free. We arrived home around midnight and enjoyed rum jumbie splash cocktails (rum jumbie mango splash, orange juice and cranberry cocktail) and drifted into dreamland. The end of another perfect day!



Nov.9- After a restful sleep, we were blessed with abundant sunshine. We enjoyed a relaxing breakfast and then set off to spend the day at Karakter Beach Bar. There was lots of available parking when we arrived and we got front row chairs with a great view of the ocean. Soon the beach filled up and everyone settled in for the day.

FLOW was the drink of the day and it sounded intriguing so we started the day with two of those. We had a delicious lunch which consisted of crab cakes, an Ocean Karakter and a Mediterranean Karakter and two beers to wash it all down. They have expanded seating there since our last visit and all seats were full for lunch. After lunch we went back to the beach chairs and limed away the afternoon. Upon our return home, we spent a short while at the pool and watched the sunset, before getting ready to go out for the evening.
Buccaneer Beach Bar is the place to be on Saturday evening for good music and chatting with friends. We met up with Bill, Elaine, Annie, Ann, Steve, Linda, Dennis and Michelle and had a lovely time. The night passed quickly and we realized we had not had dinner and it was now almost 10:00 P.M. so we left and went to Abu Ghazi for shwarmas and drinks. I had the chicken and David had the lamb and they were delicious. They close at 4:00 A.M. so we know where we can pick up some good food late at night!

Now with full tummies, we dropped in to the Hollywood Casino to return the money we had won last night. They were reluctant to take it so we came back with money in our pockets! Nice folks there!

After a night cap we said “au revoir” to another day.



Nov.10- We really didn’t get moving today until after 9:00 A.M. and it really felt like vacation time! We have had such a hectic schedule before we arrived that it just feels great to relax and have some “down time”. We had a light breakfast and caught up on some correspondence and then got ready to go out. We had no definite plans today and decided to see where the winds took us. There was actually not much wind at all, but we landed in Oyster Pond and spent the afternoon on Dawn Beach. We enjoyed a late lunch at Mr. Busby’s. I had a grilled chicken sandwich platter and David chose the ribs. We had Amstel Bright to drink and priced at $1 each, it is cheaper than water!

There were a few cruise ship folks on the beach, but the beach was fairly quiet. There was no trouble with parking there in the lot, for dining or using the beach. Others have commented about the problems doing that, but we have never encountered any in all of our visits there.

We visited the shops in the Westin and then continued on to Grand Case. Since we were still in our beach clothes, we decided to stop at the Lolos for dinner. We found a parking spot on the street right beside TOTT and since the sun was just setting, we got some nice shots from the beach. We chose to dine at Talk of the Town as they have the best Ti Punch on the island and I was ready for some. If you haven’t tried Ti Punch, you really must! We ordered two and thoroughly enjoyed them while waiting for our meal. I had the rib platter with three sides and David ordered the ribs again too. When I mentioned he had ribs for lunch, he told me he wasn’t superstitious! Also the Johnny cakes there are the best- always fresh and hot!

Now with full tummies we headed home, stopping briefly at the Maho Market for some breakfast foods.
We finished the day with cocktails on the balcony and a visit by the sleep angel!



Nov.11- We awoke to sunshine again today, but there was a bit of haze over the mountains. This is St. Maarten Day today and is a holiday on the island so we expected more traffic than usual as there were festivities planned during the day and fireworks at night in Festival Village in Philipsburg. After breakfast we decided to go to a beach on the French side as we felt it probably wouldn’t be so busy. In Maho we encountered lots of bikers during a tour around the island and once they passed through, the road cleared. We passed a few of the beaches in the Lowlands and decided this was the day to stop at DREAMS, Bruno’s new beach area in Nettle Bay. We parked in the spacious lot and upon entering we were greeted by the hostess. Then Bruno spotted us and immediately came over and took us to a nice area with chairs and a cabana. It was a bit windy today and the cabana provided a good shelter and was amazingly comfortable. With a cold drink and his kindle, David was in heaven! The chairs are so comfy and I settled in to soaking up the sun and listening to the waves on the shore. The beach service was attentive and the hostess reserved a table for us for lunch at 1:00 P.M.

Lunch today consisted of a club sandwich platter for me and David chose the French burger platter with lots of cheese. We had the NO NAME dessert which was absolutely delicious! Chanticlair in Marigot used to have this on the menu and I’m so happy to see it resurface again! Presidente was the drink of choice. After lunch we returned to our chairs on the beach and relaxed for the rest of the day. Upon our departure, Bruno offered some complimentary rum which they had made there and it was delightful. We arrived back home in time to see the sunset and enjoy a cocktail on the balcony.

Since we were still not hungry, we decided to forego dinner and had some fruit and snacks and chose to spend a quiet evening at home. The Casino is calling, but no response tonight! The end to a special day 11/12/13!





Nov.12- After having breakfast and taking care of some correspondence, we got ready to meet Maureen and Larry at Karakter. It was a beautiful sunny day and there was a nice ocean breeze which added to the comfort zone. We settled in to our chairs and enjoyed two Rum Runners which were the cocktails of the day. Each day Karakter features special drinks which are interesting and usually very tasty! Since we were situated right by the runway, we saw the King and Queen arrive around noon. Around 1:00 P.M. we went up to the deck for lunch. I had the chicken wrap with salad and David chose the fish cakes, all of which were very good. Wine and beer finished the meal. Maureen and Larry were not hungry for lunch since they had a late breakfast at the Yacht Club. Maureen and I walked down the beach to the spot where some workers were measuring the lot a couple of days ago between Karakter and Mary’s Boon. There was no activity today and the chairs were still in the same spot as they were a couple of days ago. Things don’t happen too quickly on the island so we will have to wait and see what will transpire there. We continued to enjoy the sunshine and got a good portion of vitamin D. We left the beach about 4:00 P.M. and decided to do some grocery shopping at Le Grand Marche before returning home.
I prepared a spaghetti dinner at home tonight and we enjoyed a nice bottle of red wine compliments of our condo owner. After dinner I decided to do a load of wash and enjoy some cocktails before retiring for the night.
Our first vacation week is completed and now we will proceed to week #2.

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