13 days in Paradise for John and I and our 20 yr old son and 13 yr old daughter. This was our 4th trip, our son’s first, and our daughter’s second. We spent the first week in a garden chalet at Club Orient, the next 6 days at Seaside Retreat, a villa near the end of the peninsula in Beacon Hill.

Our flights, USAir PIT-CLT-SXM, were uneventful. We decided to do carry-ons only, 3 of which included snorkel sets. We knew we’d be able to do laundry, so that made it easy to pack fewer clothes.

Wheels touched down at PJIA at 3:10. Marius was waiting for us with our Kia Sephia, and we were on our way by 3:30. Unfortunately, it took longer to get out of the airport parking lot than it did to get off the plane and into our car! We had originally planned on stopping at Grand Marche and then heading to Orient, but the lack of room in our car for groceries (we did have 4 carry-ons and 4 personal items) called for a change in plans – so we headed to Club O, got checked in before the office closed and I was on the beach sitting on my beach chair looking out over Orient Baie by 4:30. There is no place else I’d rather be and no other view I’d rather see. We stayed on the beach for about an hour and then decided that we needed to shop for groceries, bring them back to the chalet (had to get my Cinnamon Etna Ice Cream in the freezer) and then go out for dinner. As we were getting ready to leave for dinner, we saw Bob and Pam, who were staying right across the road from us. We had met last year at a TTOL party and it was great to see them again. The following day we caught up with Bill and Elaine on the beach, and had the chance to meet Lynette and James and Marc and JoAnn, with whom we would be sailing the next day on the Tiko Tiko. Also, the next evening, socalcpl2006, Ryan and Jennifer, stopped by to say hi! Their chalet ended up being directly across from ours!


My must do list for this trip:
Tiko Tiko – We had made plans weeks before the trip to book with Bob and Pam and Bill and Elaine. It turned out to be a TTOL trip with Lynette and her husband James and JoAnn and Marc. We left the kids back at the chalet with lots of money and told them to do whatever they wanted and we set out to have the most fun we could have possibly have had with some of the most wonderful people we could ever have met. We hope to see all y’all again next summer!


Parasailing - Actually, this was on my daughter’s must do list and I had to go along for the ride. I do not care at all for heights, but it turned out to be a blast!


Sundress by Luiz – After our February trip, I had seen a dress that Luiz had made for someone that we had met and I immediately knew that I wanted to have one made. Once again, Luiz did a wonderful job. I love it!


Belgian Chocolate Shoppe – some women have to have jewelry, I have to have chocolate. We bought a large sample box and had to start sampling immediately. We did manage to make it last through the week. (Though I did buy a very small piece of jewelry. Our favorite place is Riviera Jewelers in Maho, and there I found a cute toe ring that they had made into a pinkie ring for me.)

MaDouDou – But not for the rum. My must have was their coconut body oil. I had brought back 2 bottles from our last trip and it was almost gone. I love putting it on right after showering. It is better than any kind of moisturizing lotion that I have ever tried. It became a challenge to bring it home (the ban on liquids in carryons started the day after we arrived, so we decided to check all of our bags) but after carefully packing each of the 6 bottles in separate snorkel fins, they made it home intact.




TTOL Party – Thank you Bill and Elaine and Wildbill and Pat for hosting a wonderful evening. I tried to talk to everyone who was there, but I know that I did miss a few people. Had my first drink out of D toilet and had to have a BBC! We ended up staying and having dinner here as well.

Our first week was pretty much the same routine every day. Up at sunrise to walk the beach, back to the garden chalet for breakfast and catching up on email, and then we’d prepare for a day on the beach. We’d go down to the beach while the kids slept. After they got up, they’d come down to the beach, swim, snorkel and when they had enough, they’d head back to the chalet and to their computers (we brought 2 laptops!). The biggest decisions of the week were what to do for lunch and dinner. We had decided to move to a villa on the Dutch side for week 2, so that our kids would have the opportunity to see other beaches. If I am staying on Orient, there is no way I’m leaving to go to any other beach.

Moving Day – We are beach people and cannot bear the thought of leaving the beach to go shopping or sightseeing or anything else. So we decided that moving day would be a good day to get some of that other stuff taken care of. After saying our goodbyes to Bob and Pam and Ryan and Jennifer, we checked out of Club Orient and were able to check in early at our villa. We dropped off our stuff and headed to Philipsburg. First stop was Rima’s. After that, we were fortunate to find a parking spot in the new lot along the pond. We walked up the Boardwalk, stopping at Get Wet Beach Bar (next to Passagrahan Hotel) for lunch. We had very good Ribs and fries, and Caesar Salads (one with chicken). We then made our way to Front St., not looking for anything in particular, simply strolling along. We did stop in the Guavaberry Emporium and tried ‘mash up’. 80 proof instead of 70; apparently it’s from the bottom of the barrel after is it processed. (We did not have to worry about buying and bringing home Guavaberry this trip. In June, we decided to order a case online and split it with friends, to save us the hassle of carrying it back home. It’s a bit more expensive, but so worth not having to worry about carrying it home. In light of the new liquid restrictions, I am so glad that we did it that way.) Made our way to Olde St for my Belgian Chocolate and our shopping trip was complete.

Later in the week, on Saturday, we stopped by and took a walk through the Marigot Market on our way to the beach at Friar’s Bay. I was looking to purchase some type of St Martin garnet jewelry. I had seen it in all of our previous trips and thought that I’d finally get something this trip. We found the booth and I chose a necklace. Mission complete.

Week 2 at the villa -
Our choice to stay here was based on several things. We wanted a private place with a pool that faced the east to get the morning sun, which we could enjoy while the kids slept. We also wanted to be near a decent beach to walk in the mornings. Simpson Bay was nice to walk, but having to encounter small groups of stray dogs, barking and chasing after us, became more and more unpleasant as the days went by, so that we didn’t even walk the last 2 days. Everything else about staying there was really great (except for the road in and out!)


Beaches


Maho

Stopped here to swim and to do some plane watching. Our son loved it! It was the first time in 4 trips that I had ever stood there as the planes landed directly overhead.

Baie Rouge – First time here for all of us. We all swam a bit and they snorkeled down through Devil’s Hole; had lunch at Gus’. [img]http://img454.imageshack.us/img454/8485/dsc02686rz3.jpg[/img]

Pinel – Our original plan was to ferry over, get chairs, snorkel, have lunch, and spend the whole day there, but we decided instead to pack a lunch and hike over to the north beach. On the way to Cul de Sac, we stopped at Le Bounty for some sandwiches, pizza and drinks. We thought that after lunch, we’d go back to the main beach, get chairs and do some snorkeling. (As we were enjoying the beach here, we watched a couple climbing the rocks, heading our way…turned out to be Ryan and Jennifer!) It was so hot, that after lunch, the kids were ready to leave to go back to the villa. So we hiked back over, found some shade, [img]http://img454.imageshack.us/img454/4079/dsc02734os0.jpg[/img] ordered a couple of nice, cold drinks [img]http://img366.imageshack.us/img366/2220/dsc02736we0.jpg[/img]
and waited for the next ferry. [img]http://img454.imageshack.us/img454/1715/dsc02708gs9.jpg[/img]

Friar’s and Happy Bay – As soon as we parked at Friar’s, the smell from the pond was apparent. It was good that we had planned on hiking to Happy Bay first and then coming back to Friars for lunch. We found the path and made our way over the hill. My son’s only comment was ‘this better be worth it’. Being a Saturday, we thought that there probably would be more residents enjoying the beach, which was the case. A large group of children were up at the far end. The real surprise was to see cars parked there! Someone knows a way in and out without having to hike over. I think that it may have been people who live up on the hill, but that’s just a guess. After swimming here for awhile, we made our way back to Friar’s but the unpleasant smell made it easy for us to decide to head back to the villa.

Mullet & Cupecoy – We had planned on spending parts of the day at each of these beaches, but by now, even our kids have been spoiled by Orient. They are comparing everything to Orient and complaining about the sand being too hot or coarse, the shoreline too rocky, etc. We ended up deciding to go back to Orient for the day and only stopped here to take some pictures. [img]http://img366.imageshack.us/img366/5610/dsc02806vw9.jpg[/img] [img]http://img454.imageshack.us/img454/4681/dsc02813ho6.jpg[/img]
The Coconut Sorbet Lady was on her corner as we headed to Orient, so we just had to stop! [img]http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/2783/dsc02824zq6.jpg[/img]

Anguilla – We had planned on heading over on our last full vacation day. But the day before, our son told us that he really didn’t care if we went or not, and our daughter wasn’t feeling well. I thought that for the amount of money that it would cost just for the ferry and taxi, it wouldn’t be worth it, if we went and they would want to leave after lunch and an hour or so. So we decided to sacrifice it all and head back to Orient. Our son decided that he’d rather stay back at the villa, so he didn’t even come to the beach with us. Instead he walked to Sunset Beach Bar for one of the things that he enjoyed most about the trip – watching the planes. In case you missed the post I made with the link to a 6 minute video that he made, here it is again:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1809839478922719107



Restaurant choices – I just want to preface the report by saying that we are not into ‘fine dining’. The only places we’ve eaten in Grand Case are the lolo’s. My priority for the trip was to try to go to places where we’ve never been, though there were exceptions to that rule! The first exception was Dinghy Dock at Captain Oliver’s Marina. We go there every trip (ended up there twice this trip) and we had already decided that is where we would have dinner the first night. It was relatively close, nothing fancy and very good food, very reasonably priced. Our choices for the night were Steamed Red Snapper, Rib Dinner, Tuna Steak and FishnChips. On our second time there, we ordered Calamari and Onion Rings for an appetizer and our meal choices were Seafood Platter, 2 Tuna Steaks, and Chicken Breast Salad.

Lunches: a couple I already mentioned, but those I haven’t:

Baywatch – Andy has way too many choices! But Grouper was one of the specials, so we all had versions of it: Grouper, Grouper Parmesan Sandwich and Grouper with Spaghetti. Add a Caesar Chicken Salad and it was a great lunch!

Le Pirate – They were very busy here and we did have to wait awhile, but when you are looking out over that view, it really didn’t matter. Besides that, it had also started raining a bit. We had ribs and chicken, garlic shrimp and beef fajitas. Food was very good!

Dinners:

Rancho – This was our choice for dinner on our second night. I knew that our daughter would be happy here. But when I said that we were going to Rancho for dinner, she didn’t know it was a steakhouse. She thought it was Mexican. When we pulled up in front of the place and in bright yellow letters she read Ranch Steak House, she squealed “Steak!!!” The dinner here was very, very good. We had eaten at Los Gauchos last year and we liked this place a lot better.

Lolo – Germaine’s Place – In trying to keep to the trying new places rule, we had dinner here. We have previously been to Sky’s the Limit and Talk of the Town. Fish, Ribs and Shrimp Dinners. We still like Sky's the Limit best.

Yvette’s – We had planned on going to BooBooJam’s instead on this evening, but they were so crowded that it would have taken hours to get our dinner, so we went to plan B. Even though we had been here before, our kids hadn’t and it was a great decision. What a meal! First of all, there was only one other family there and secondly it was air conditioned! We started off with the seafood appetizer. Our choices for the evening were Steak & Shrimp, Garlic Shrimp, Seafood Platter and Steak. Johnnycakes, plantains, and rice and beans are also included with your meal. Last year I had wanted to try their homemade coconut tart, but I was too full after dinner. I had regretted it for a whole year. No matter how full I was, I was getting that tart, and I did! It was really good!

Papaguyo’s – After attending the Manager’s Wine and Cheese Reception, we stayed to have dinner here with some special friends that we had met last August and had seen again in February. Red Snapper, Spaghetti Taormina (vegetable sauce), Cheeseburgers and Steak rounded out our dinner choices. I know that in the past, there have been lots of complaints about the food and the service, but we found everything to be very good.

Gutside – This is a great little local outdoor place on the road to Friar’s Bay. [img]http://img378.imageshack.us/img378/6229/dsc02570qx8.jpg[/img] Ordered a plate of ribs as an appetizer and in our opinion, they were the best that we had on the island - dry, not saucy, with a nice garlicky flavor. [img]http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/4413/dsc02586dv4.jpg[/img] 2 Shrimp dinners, Red Snapper and a Hamburger (guess who?) were the choices for the evening. We’ll definitely go back next trip.

Lee’s – First time here. Our son was in the mood for lobster so he and John shared a 2 pound one for dinner. [img]http://img313.imageshack.us/img313/6630/dsc02625dw3.jpg[/img] We also ordered the 2 specials they had that night – Seafood Combo and Prime Rib (guess who had which one!?!)

Lady C Floating Bar – Monday and Thursday, All You Can Eat Ribs. 3 rib dinners, 1 steak sandwich (do you see a pattern?). We were seated and had all of our dinners in about 5 minutes!

These last several restaurants are my daughter’s favorite places to eat in SXM. It became a family joke, when anyone mentioned dinner to yell out “Greenhouse…Peg Leg….Los Gauchos”… (Rancho’s is now on the list!) Of course, we had to accommodate her.

Los Gauchos – We had eaten here last year when they were located on the main road. We had a little trouble finding it, never having been in the Pelican complex before. (IMHO, that place is crazy…reminds me of Myrtle Beach or Virginia Beach…I know that a lot of people stay there and love it, but I never could!) We had a very nice meal; of course, everyone had steak of some kind. An after dinner passion fruit shot was a nice touch. The dinner and service was very good, but the ambiance in the new location leaves a lot to be desired.

Greenhouse – We love this place. Great Happy Hour with 2 for 1 drinks and reduced price appetizers! We parked at the new lot at Bobby’s Marina ($1 per hour) and walked over the canal bridges to the restaurant. We ordered a couple of drinks and conch fritters and jalapeno poppers for appetizers. Dinners were Shrimp Creole, Swordfish stuffed with crabmeat in a cream sauce, Chicken Breast in Mango Banana Salsa and NY Strip. Everything included 2 side dishes. The food was very good and the service was excellent.

Peg Leg Pub – We went here for lunch after we had checked our bags for our trip home. Our daughter kept bugging us to go to Subway. We didn’t tell her that we already had planned to go to PLP. We knew that we’d only get the USAir turkey sandwich on the way home and wouldn’t get a chance to eat until after 9 that night in Charlotte, so we ordered a big lunch. Started off with Nachos Grande and had meals of Fish and Chips (surprisingly, not steak!), Meat Loaf special, Swordfish and Turkey Sandwich. As we were eating, who walks in but Ryan and Jennifer…again!!! They, too, were getting lunch before their flight back to Los Angeles.

We then headed to SSBB to do some more plane watching until it was time to go to the airport. Even though we did carry-ons only, we decided to check all 4 of our bags to avoid the delay of having to have every one of them searched going through security. Well, little did we know that every one of them would also have been thoroughly searched at the gate! We figured that the worst case scenario would be that we would miss our connection in CLT, and if that happened, we’d just call our new friends Lynette and James to have a drink! Making our connection was not a problem. In fact, they held the flight for an additional half hour for some passengers who were running late. Was home and in bed by 1:30am.

The hard part now is not having our next trip planned. We had hoped to go back again in February, but we’ve already decided to skip that. We’ll definitely go next summer, just not sure when or for how long or with whom. It might turn out to be a 30th anniversary trip with no kids! In the meantime, I’ll have to settle for reading all of your trip reports and looking at your pictures!

I had originally planned on adding a lot more pictures to this post, but found out that I could only put 20 pics in. If you would like to see more, and/or you missed my photoshow posts for this trip, just click on the link just below my signature.