John and Toddy - Trip Report June 4–11

This is a somewhat abbreviated trip report as we shortened our vacation this year from 2 weeks to 1 week (financial considerations). Rather than my usual day by day account, I will divide this trip report into categories so feel free to skip to whatever interests you. This is our fourteenth trip to St. Martin and the last four have been for two weeks so this one seemed really short. Also this year I did not make notes because I was sure I could remember everything for such a short trip...two days at home now, big mistake!

GETTING THERE
This year we booked a package deal through American Airlines. What are Canadians doing booking through American when we have such great packages in Canada? It was an offer we could not refuse... $1200 US for flight and hotel...pretty good even by Canadian standards! Flight was from Toronto (6:45 a.m.) to Miami, 90 minutes in Miami, change planes and on to St. Martin. Arrived in St. Martin exactly on time (2:01 pm).

CAR RENTAL
We have used AAA for approximately seven years and have always been impressed with their service. We were met in the Arrivals area and whisked away to Alain’s yard. We were met by Myra who had me inspect the car to make sure there was “sufficient damage” on the car. I always request a dented and scratched car, I feel nervous driving a car in St. Martin with no damage. The car was a Nissan Sentra, the wheels went around, the radio worked and the air conditioning worked...my only requirements! We signed the papers and away we went.

HOTEL
Through the package the hotel was L’Hoste Hotel. We knew exactly what we were getting as we have stayed at l’Hoste four times in previous years. Everything at the hotel was as we remembered it, except that the vegetation was huge, far greener than we ever remembered it. The lobby was almost a tropical forest...a far cry from when we stayed there in 1996 after Luis when hardly a tree or bush was standing. Our room was on the bottom floor. 2 large double beds. The room had cooking facilities which we did not use (double burner hot plate and a microwave) and a bar fridge. Continental breakfast was included with the room which added to the savings. The hotel staff was very courteous and the maid service excellent. Beach chairs were also supplied at La Playa but we did not use them as we prefer the beach at Club Orient.

ISLAND CONDITIONS
The most striking thing we noticed on the trip to the hotel was how lush and green the island was, we had never seen it this green before. The hills we beautiful...which really tipped me off that there must have been a lot of rain! This was confirmed later in the week! Never heard of any crime while on the island and never felt threatened or uneasy at any time.

BEACHES
We used the facilities at Club Orient every day (rented chairs/umbrella, purchased drinks). We have stayed at Club Orient on our last 3 trips to the island and after reading previous posts, thought we may be treated as outsiders, but that was not the case. It was status quo as all other years. Apparently there are possible changes, but that seems to change like the St. Martin weather. For the first time in about 12 years we did not eat at Papagayo. No particular reason, it just did not work out that way. There was plenty of room on the beach and lots of chairs and umbrellas to go around.

WEATHER
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday were slightly overcast but tolerable for sitting on the beach. Wednesday was a beautiful beach day with hardly a cloud in the sky. Thursday started out great but deteriorated during the day and by late afternoon the monsoons set in with very little let up until we left on Saturday. Thursday night we also had a terrible lightening storm and it was a bit dodgy getting from the car into a restaurant between lightening strikes.

WHERE WE ATE
If you are a gourmet, then you may want to skip this part. On this trip we used our reliable old standards.

BAYWATCH - everything that can be said about Baywatch has been said...outstanding food and hospitality! It was wonderful seeing Andy, Cheryl and Adrian again and being treated like family. We ate there four times during the week (Ribs, Mussels a la Andy, Hero Sandwich, etc) and everything was up to their usual high standards. Our particular group of friends is very fond of Carib souvenirs and Cheryl really came through! I think she cleaned the Carib rep out! We did not eat breakfast there although the last two days the weather was so bad that we went down there in the morning, met our friends and had a Bloody Mary and talked to Andy.

THE PIRATE - On Monday we were forced to find an alternative for lunch as Baywatch is closed on Monday. Walking along the beach we were greeted by one of the waiters from the Pirate and decided to give it a try. Good burgers and $2.00 beers. Total $20 for two of us. Good place to go if Baywatch is closed!

RIC’s - Ric’s is one of our favourite places to eat. Ate lunch there once and the two of us shared the Nachos Grande...and they certainly are! It was all we could do to finish it. We also ate supper there on our casino crawl night (we are cheaping out here). Great burger and taco salad. One of the owners, Tamara, came over and introduced herself to us. After a long conversation she mentioned that they a looking for sports memorabilia for the restaurant as most of the other stuff was removed when the business changed hands. If you are a frequenter of Ric’s and would like to contribute some sports memorabilia (NFL, NHL, NBA, etc.) to their collection, I am sure they would be most appreciative.

PEG LEG PUB - Went to dinner at Peg Leg Pub with a group of 16 people, mostly TTOLers and people from Avalon. Great food and service. Near the end of the meal, owners Jack and Linda came in and greeted our table, they spent time talking with us and offered us all an aperitif or dessert on the house. A very nice gesture which was much appreciated. We have been to Peg Leg many times and will continue to do so. It is also one of our favourite place to drop in for a “cold one”. when travelling through Simpson Bay.

LES BRASSERIES DES ILES (Le Pub) - We also refer to this restaurant as the “cop bar’ or “the safest bar on the island”. They have the contract to feed the local Gendarmerie and most evenings you will find 8-10 gendarmes, usually seated at a table at the back. We ate there twice this trip and both times the food was excellent. It is frequented largely by the local French, however, the waitresses and waiters speak competent English and the menu has English “subtitles”. Typcially un-French is that the portions are massive! We have eaten there many times and we have learned that it is wise to split orders. One evening herladyship and I split a Caesar salad (served on a platter, not a small bowl), a Calzone (approximately 18 inches in length) and also a split a Creme Brule. Throw in a few drinks and coffee and the bill came to 36 Euro or 45 dollars. Excellent food and value along with local atmosphere!

REPAIRE DU PIRATE - We try to visit Pirate at least once each trip and is one of our favourite places, especially for its uniqueness. It was decided on the beach one day that the whole gang of us would go to Repaire du Pirate for dinner. I was elected to make the reservation as Marcel, the owner, speaks very little English and I speak a moderate amount of French. I went into Grand Case in the morning and knocked on the door of the Pirate. I was greeted by a small barking dog and the door swung open. Marcel was pouring over a newspaper and drinking coffee. I explained to him in French that I wanted to make a reservation for 20! He looked at me incredulously and repeated...vingt?...oui, vingt, I said...twenty, he said in English...oui, deux-zero, vingt, I repeated. The pirate’s mood brightened considerably and the date was set for that evening. I think there were actually 22 people but the kitchen did a great job! If you have ever seen the kitchen at Repaire du Pirate, it is about as big as the galley on a Winnebago. However, everyone was served their entree within about a half hour. Of course after dinner, out came the “Mort” which Marcel graciously served. Marcel is very generous with the recipe for his Mort, but I am sure he is confident that no one will remember after having a couple! We usually have our pirate with us in Frank “Pirate of the Potomac”, but Frank was not with us this year....we missed you Frank!

Talk of the Town - Ate there a couple of times and spent $21 and $15 and that included a couple of drinks. Good food and a great way to save a buck! Try the coconut ice cream that they sell separately...it is fabulous!

THE BEST STUFF
The best part of course is the friends you meet, both old and new. We knew we would be meeting Bill and Linda and their lovely daughters, Katie and Kristen and their many friends from Avalon resort in West Virginia, all of whom we had met before. We thought Ron and Beth would not be there and were shocked when sitting of the beach Sunday morning, who should come walking up to us but Ron and Beth...they changed their minds at the last minute!

While staying at L’Hoste we met TTOLers Jeff and Bonnie and also Jerry and Joan who were hosting the TTOL party on Friday. Jerry and Joan and us have mutual friends in Frank and Anna and we had some great conversations with them over breakfast. Also met “Scottishgirl” on the beach.

THINGS WE MISSED
Mostly, we missed our good friends who could not be there this year or came at a different time, Pierre and Joanne, Jim and Carmen, Frank and Anna...we really missed you guys this year!
Bulldog and his Rude Awakening Show.
Not staying at Club Orient.
Morning beach walks (Herladyship is suffering from siatic hip and cannot walk far...except for shopping).
Tiko Tiko (we were scheduled from Friday and got rained out).

SHOPPING
We followed our rule of “never waste a good beach day on shopping”. We did go to Philipsburg a couple of times but largely to see the improvements...looks great! We did shop at Rimas for some gifts for our granddaughter, but no serious purchases. Visited DK Gems but made no purchases this year (remembering the budget). However, next year is our 35th anniversary so I think I will be in big trouble then.

Also did some minor shopping in Marigot at the market. Herladyshop bought a pair of garnet earrings from one of the local merchants and I bought a couple of bottles of MaDoudou type rum just in case the real MaDoudou place was not open. We did get to the MaDoudou ‘factory” to make our annual purchase. We found that the prices have gone up and the bottles are smaller and all are painted. I much preferred the “industrial size” 1 litre bottles (unpainted) rather than the 750 ml ones. I suppose that is progress. Herladyship also likes the MaDoudou candy and purchased 3 bags. When adding up the bill the candy was 4 Euros per bag. They are good, but not that good. We purchased them anyway...for the last time.

CASINOS
Visited various casinos: Colosseum, Casino Royale, Atlantis, new Dolphin, Sports Book. Not much luck. The Random Number Generation Gods were not smiling this trip.

TTOL PARTY
A very big “tip of the TTOL Hat” to Jerry and Joan for organizing the June 10 party at Buccaneer Beach Bar. It is estimated that there were about 50 people there. Neil had shooters set up in a toilet bowl on the bar. Our biggest regret was not getting a chance to talk to everyone but did get to meet James, “Indy” and Matt, and fellow Canucks Mary and JC and of course our hosts Joan and Jerry.

GOING HOME
Checked in early with AA at the airport and then went kill some time at a casino. Took the car back and were dropped off at the airport and had lunch. Did our “duty free” shopping and had a few farewell drinks in the upstairs lounge at the airport. Our flight was 1 and a quarter hours late leaving St. Martin which only left us 45 minutes to make our connection in Miami (read panic here) to Toronto! We did the “OJ Simpson” thing and actually made our flight with 15 minutes to spare, thankfully someone from American Airlines gave us the correct information and sent us through International In Transit. A bit of a run but we did make it! Once on the plane we wondered if our bag would make it as well, the stewardess assured us it would. We were then 45 minutes late leaving Miami because of a “mechanical problem”. Someone on the flight before us had inflated a life jacket under the seat! Incredibly and to AA’s credit, we arrived in Toronto exactly on time. However, our bag did not arrive...what about my MaDoudou? We filled in our lost baggage form with AA and of course lied to Canadian Customs about what was in the bag...no alcohol sir...we headed for home.
Our bag was delivered to our home at 10:30 the next evening...the MaDoudou was safe!

Sorry, but this report is a lot longer than anticipated, however, it is really easy to get carried away when you are talking about your favourite place in the world!
Already planning for next May at Club Orient!

John and Toddy <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/Umbrella.gif" alt="" />