David and I left Wednesday, April 4th on an early morning flight out of Washington Dulles and connected in San Juan, all on American. After last year’s 6-hour delay, I’m pleased to report that both flights were perfectly on time, and we arrived on the island at about 12:30. <br><br>We rented this year from Best Deal Car Rental and will no doubt go back to them next year. They were honest, easy to deal with and rented us a 1997 Toyota Corolla with automatic transmission and a/c that was in excellent condition. (Last year we rented from Paradise and for the same price were given what can only be described as a Sprite can with a lawn mower engine.)<br><br>We immediately toodled on over to Grand Case, where we stayed in a nice little cottage right on the beach (next door to L’Escapade restaurant). Traffic going through Marigot was, as usual, very slow, but otherwise we had no problems with the drive. Anyway, the cottage in Grand Case was fine. Nothing fancy, but had a full kitchen, plenty of beach towels and a couple of nice beach chairs. We stayed in the cottage’s “twin” last year, and the beach directly in front has eroded quite a bit. You can no longer set up chairs there, but have to go a little bit south. Not a big deal but the erosion of the beach overall is a bit of a concern.<br><br>We did our grocery shopping at Le Bounty, a wonderful gourmet shop that’s across from the Grand Case post office. Then we got settled in, took a walk on the beach, a swim and a nap.<br><br>That night we had dinner at L’Alabama. It was the first time we’ve eaten there and definitely will not be the last. The food and service were absolutely superb. I highly recommend their warm goat cheese salad with walnuts…I think it’s the best salad I’ve ever had. David had a terrific rabbit dish. They have a nice wine list and we had a very good bottle with dinner. At each course, no fewer than 3 people stopped by our table to ask how everything was, and they offered us a free after-dinner drink of our choice. <br><br>Day 2 (Thursday) we spent on Orient (Club O end). Each day on Orient followed the same pattern: settle into chairs, read for a while, take a swim, read some more, go get a Pina Colada at Papagayo’s at around 11, read and swim, have lunch at Papagayo’s, read, swim, then head back to the cottage for a nap (pretty stressful, huh?). This particular day was the day of the TTOL party at Papagayo’s…what a huge turnout! We had a nice time meeting people and getting Carol’s sage advice on cruise ships (thanks for the tips about “repositioning cruises” and travel agents, Carol) and talking to Jeff and Sandy about good wine and good restaurants. <br><br>Thursday night we spent at home noshing on great bread, cheese and ham.<br><br>Friday we spent on Grand Case beach. Another day of perfect weather. We had dinner that evening at last year’s favorite, Chez Martine. Another terrific meal accompanied by a great bottle of champagne. Chez Martine is a very small, informal place that is right on the beach. Their food is, however, typical of the creative French fare you find in other Grand Case restaurants. The atmosphere is a bit more jovial and low-key, however.<br><br>After dinner we strolled along Grand Case Boulevard and stopped to look at the L’Auberge Gourmande menu and wine list. The maitre’d insisted that we have dinner there on Saturday night. Who were we to argue? After that stop, we strolled past L’Alabama, where our waiter from the previous evening waved at us as we walked by. <br><br>Saturday was another gorgeous day on Orient. For lunch, I had Papagayo’s fish soup (on Sandy’s recommendation). It was incredible! That night was dinner at L’Auberge, which was outstanding. My only complaint was that their portions were huge. After a “vegetable napoleon” appetizer followed by a veal chop (which was listed as veal loin on the menu), I thought I would burst! We enjoyed having Jeff and Sandy at the next table. Sandy was figuring out his brand new digital camera and having a good old time.<br><br>Sunday, Grand Case beach again. We had lunch at Talk of the Town…still the best ribs on the face of the earth. I had rice and beans on the side and David had coleslaw and macaroni and cheese (which turned out to be the Kraft kind). We also had Johnny cakes for the first time…yum!<br><br>We had dinner in…some simple pasta and a decent bottle of wine we bought at Le Bounty for next to nothing.<br><br>Monday, Orient Beach and lunch at Papagayo’s again. This time we each had a burger…the true cheeseburger in paradise! They do burgers right there…an American must have shown them how to do it. <br><br>Tuesday, our last full day (sigh). We spent the day on Grand Case beach and had another great lunch at Talk of the Town. That night we ate at Le Cottage. Another fabulous meal. I had roasted rack of lamb with basil; David had beef tenderloin with sautéed with crispy ginger, black olives, wild mushrooms, and potatoes. Wow! We had another good bottle of wine and were treated to not one but two free drinks at the end of the meal…two different types of dessert wine that the sommelier, Stephane, thought we would enjoy. He was right!<br><br>Wednesday morning we packed up and took a drive over to Cul de Sac then caught the beautiful view above Anse Marcel. Then it was off to return the rental car and check in for our flight. We continued our tradition of having a couple of beers and lunch at the little shanty across from the airport. The owner is Asian and serves some great Chinese food. Two beers and a huge order of shrimp fried rice cost us the princely sum of $8.50.<br><br>Unfortunately, our flights back home were on time and we returned to rain and fog in Washington (however, the weather is becoming warmer).<br><br>St. Martin is still a wonderful place for vacationing. There is plenty to do if you want to be active, but it’s also just as easy to sit around and be lazy on a beautiful beach. We had absolutely no problems with crime, nor did we hear of any while we were there. We continued to avoid leaving anything in our car and I’m sure that helped. <br><br>PS. (Almost forgot!) We had breakfast almost every morning at L’Isle Flottant, a little bakery right where Grand Case Boulevard intersects with the main road from Marigot. (It’s attached to Portofino restaurant.) Fabulous chocolate croissants and café au lait. Each morning’s breakfast cost about $5 total.<br><br>Also, mid-week travel was great. Flights in general and Juliana airport were much less crowded than on weekends.<br><br>Now the countdown for next year begins!!!<br><br><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Administrator on 4/17/01 02:55 PM.</EM></FONT></P>