TravelTalkOnline Forums Trip Reports (Read Only) SXM Trip Reports and Photos FUN In The SUN Part 3

Nov.21- We awakened to sunny skies and enjoyed coffee on the balcony taking in the beautiful view of the ocean with Simpson Bay in the background. David cooked breakfast and after I had washed the dishes , we got ready to go out to take Annie grocery shopping at Grand Marche in Cole Bay. We picked up a few more groceries and of course some extra bottles of wine and delivered Annie to Mary's Boon and we returned home to stock the pantry again.

We had a light lunch at home and spent the day relaxing and enjoying the beach.

In the evening we met Maureen and Larry for dinner at Chesterfield's in Philipsburg. We enjoyed four different fish dishes, all of which was excellent. My dinner was the fish sampler and contained four kinds of fish with french fries and salad. It was delicious and very filling so no dessert for me tonight. We enjoyed pinot gregio with dinner.

We left Philipsburg and on the way home we stopped at the Dunes Casino where David reaped the profits tonight. We got in around midnight and after a nightcap, we decided to retire for the night.



Nov.22- After breakfast, we decided to spend the day at the villa and just relax and have an "at home" day. We had a nice lunch of BBQ chicken and fresh salad with a bottle of white wine.

We were hosting our sunset party at the Greenhouse tonight so we got ready to leave by 4:00 P.M. to assure that everything was ready when the people arrived. Kyle, the manager on duty tonight, had all the tables ready and an area reserved for everyone. The folks there always make hosting easy and we thank them for all their efforts. We had 40 people in attendance and we appreciate all those who support our parties each year. There are always lots of friendly folks, many regulars and some new island visitors as well.

After the party was over, we stayed for dinner at the Greenhouse and had a lovely meal overlooking the pool. I chose the coconut shrimp platter served with two sides, and David had the crab cake platter. The food there is consistently good and all the tables were full proving this to be true!

We left there by 9:30 P.M. and came back to the villa to try to post all the great pictures that David took during the evening. Well , he worked at doing that until 1:30 A.M. without success. The internet here has been terrible and the pictures just wouldn't load, so we decided to go to bed and give it a try another day. We are spoiled as our internet connection at Blue Marine was fast and consistent. In the big scheme of things, I know this is only a small frustration!






Nov.23- Oh dear, the days are starting to fly past too quickly!

After a restful nights sleep, we had several cups of coffee and a light breakfast of toast and fruit. Today was a great beach day so we went off to join a group of friends at DREAMS. Georgia had organized everyone to gather around 10:00 A.M. and it was lots of fun. We had about 16 in attendance and although a bit windy, it was a beautiful day!

We all had lunch together and as usual there, the food was simply amazing.....a wonderful presentation, excellent service and friendly staff! Bruno and David were there to welcome everyone and Johnny, the beach boy took good care of us. If you haven't already done so, you must spend a day at DREAMS and I guarantee you will be back several times during your island visit!

A brief shower blew by around 4:00 P.M. so we all decided to pack up for the day and head homewards.

We spent the evening struggling with our internet connection and I tried for a few hours again to post part 2 of my trip report. Finally, I was able to upload the pictures and the report was successfully posted! Now time for a nice cocktail on the balcony before bedtime!



Nov.24- We got up early this morning as we had planned to meet Maureen and Larry and spend the day on Orient Beach. However, the weather was not totally cooperative as it looked a bit showery and a strong wind was blowing. Since sand blasting was not in our plans, we decided to spend the day in Philipsburg shopping and enjoying everything there.

It was the perfect day to do that as there were not any boats in port, and we had the city to ourselves for the day with the exception of a few other TTOL'ers who had the same idea. At one point we had a nice gathering of friends at the Hodge Marina and spent some time chatting!

We had lots of time to get everything on our list except David's favorite scotch so we will return again to get that and to pick up my ring at DKGems.

We had planned to have a late lunch at the 12 Meter Yacht Club, but when we arrived there, it was closed. I was dreaming of having their famous fish and chips , but my dream was not realized! The lady in the shop next door said they didn't show up for work today and it is never closed on Monday. Oh well, it is now 3:30 P.M. and we are getting hungry so since we had already parked there, we decided to go to the Greenhouse and have lunch.

We were hot after our shopping marathon so we first ordered two Carib to cool our engines. Super cold Carib..... so refreshing! I had the most delicious Philly cheese steak with crisp golden fries and a lovely green salad and David had the hamburger platter which he very much enjoyed.

We finished our meal just as Happy Hour was starting so we decided to stay and enjoy a couple more drinks and watch the sunset over the water.

We stopped at Grand Marche on the way back to the villa to pick up a few things and got back around 7:30 P.M.

Now time to relax, listen to Caribbean music and pour ourselves a drink. The waves crashing on the beach might just be the music we need to lull us into dreamland!





Nov.25- Another beautiful day in paradise! We had a light breakfast of fruit and yogurt as Maureen and Larry were joining us here for lunch and we were scheduled to eat at noon. They arrived at 11:30 A.M. and we enjoyed drinks on the balcony before having lunch which consisted of BBQ chicken and arugula and spinach salad. A nice bottle of Pinot Grigio accompanied the meal. After lunch we relaxed and enjoyed their company as they were flying back home today.

After they left to check in for their flight, we spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach until sunset.We waved farewell as their flight departed and flew right in front of us on the beach. We have an amazing seat for departing flights at Beachside!

We had been invited to join friends for dinner at The Palms tonight, but they were meeting at 6:00 P.M. which is early for us, and David had planned on cooking steak on the grill so we decided to stop by The Palms for drinks later to see everyone. After the others left, we stayed and had another drink with Greg and his Mom and left there around 9:30 P.M.

We stopped at the Dunes Casino on our way home and David won on the slots tonight. I ended up losing $5 so all in all , a good night.



Nov.26- There was a brief shower this morning upon wakening, but the sun came out soon afterwards and it was a glorious day.

After a breakfast of eggs, fruit, toast and coffee, we decided to spend some time here again on the beach.The beach at Beachside is very wide and very clean and one of the few beaches which is not covered with the sargasso seaweed. The beach chairs provided are new and very comfortable and we have our own umbrella to provide shade from the sun. It was a bit breezy today, so we didn't put it up.

It was soon lunch time and we had salad and sandwiches with Carib on the balcony. After lunch, it was pool time and we spent a few hours there relaxing in the sunshine and taking pictures of the planes departing.

At 4:30 P.M. we got ready and went to Marty's Bar for Happy Hour and to say good-bye to Ann and Steve who are going home tomorrow. More delicious mango colodas and a beautiful sunset!

We left Marty's at 7:00 P.M. and decided to try AVANTIKA, the new Thai Restaurant in Puerto Del Sol for dinner. It is owned by John the original owner of Paanlan and has a very upscale decor located on the second floor of the building.

There are numerous stairs up to the restaurant, but their are two elevators available for those who can't do stairs. I had the giant prawns with ginger crystal noodles and David had the chicken curry. We shared some delicious spring rolls as an appetizer and enjoyed a nice bottle of Rose wine. The service there was excellent and the food was amazing! Most of the staff are the same as he had at Paanlan.....all very friendly and efficient!

We ended the day with cocktails on the balcony while listening to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach. We are so blessed!





Nov.27- Today is the American Thanksgiving and since living in Florida several years ago, we have celebrated both the Canadian Thanksgiving in October and the American Thanksgiving in November. We are usually in St. Maarten in November and our tradition has been to celebrate here with our American friends. Today was not the usual turkey dinner we have so often enjoyed at the home of Bill and Elaine Miller. They were off island to visit family, so we joined other friends and spent the day at one of our favorite island beach restaurants, DREAMS. We joined the Benners, the Langtons, Katie and Annie for a lovely round table of eight. I had the Caribben salad and David had the carbonara and we odered a very nice bottle of rose wine called Irresistible.....very fitting indeed. As usual, the food and service was fantastic as well as the company and the amazing view. Thanks to all for your friendship; we really had a lovely day!

Upon arriving home, we relaxed with cocktails on the balcony and watched the ships leaving port and going out to sea in the sunset.

Around 7:00 P.M. we thought we should have some grilled chicken and some vegetables to keep up the food pace and it too was very tasty!

We finished the evening on the balcony watching our neighbor swim alone in the ocean in the dark! Not something we would choose to do, but he seemed to think it was fun.I wanted to shout "SHARK ATTACK", but I refrained!
Thus ended another beautiful day in our little piece of heaven. Thank you Lord for our many blessings!


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