This portion of the trip report covers Club O, Orient Beach and the Tiko-Tiko. Part one covers everything else. The trip was a great success but after 3 weeks it is very hard to come back home. Club O continues to be a great place to stay in SXM.<br> <br><br>Club O: We stayed in # 62, which is a beachfront chalet. It is not as pleasant as the others we have stayed in. It has an excellent location. It is one of, if not the closest, to the beach. There are problems. 1) There is a serious infestation of fire ants around the chalet. It was difficult to get from the car to the door without getting stung. If you were on the patio in back, the ants would also come after you. On one occasion, they entered the chalet around the electrical wires that enter through the concrete. We were constantly spraying raid ant killer on the patio and the nests. Fire ants, of course, are very difficult to control and require special insecticides to kill the queen. Club O is going to have to address this problem. After two weeks back, my bites are still visible. In the past the mini-suites have had plenty of fire ants, but this was the first time we had them on the beach.<br><br>2) # 62 has the smallest shower of any Club O chalets/suites we have ever seen. It measures about 28” x 28” and one has a tough time taking a shower. Fortunately there is an outside shower with both hot and warm water, with real faucets that don’t have spring closers. Of course not everyone would want an outside public shower!<br><br># 62 was one of the last chalets to get air conditioning. According to the guest book, as late as March, it was AC free. I don’t think I would want to stay in it without AC. We noted that beach front chalet # 52 (three chalets closer to Papagayos than #62) and Garden Chalet #56, (directly across from #62) both have two air conditioners. All other Chalets have AC in the bedrooms, but not elsewhere.<br><br>As has been noted by others, the Brinks have added a fence at the high tide line to more clearly define the official resort property. I think this helps the security force keep non-guests off of the private parts of the resort.<br><br>There is also an effort to increase the amount of grass on the sand/beach near the chalets. They were setting out plugs of grass and watering it continually. Seems a little strange, I would have opted for sea oats and sea grape as better able to withstand hurricanes. They also planted a lot of palms while we were there. Some of them were quite large. Maintenance is an on-going process and is generally better than most other Caribbean resorts.<br><br>The chalet directly behind Papagayos was torn down while we were at Club O. This was the only Beach Chalet that survived Hurricane Luis in 1995 and thus was the only remaining wooden structure on the beach. As we were leaving, they had begun to rebuild it as a poured concrete structure.<br><br>The Brinks have done an excellent job over the years in developing and operating this resort. Even though there were a few quirks with #62, we still had a great time.<br><br>Tiko-Tiko: As is our custom, we took the Tiko-Tiko cruise at the beginning of our second week. This is normally crewed by Philippe and Emmanuelle, but on that day Philippe took the day off and we had Gulliume as our captain, just like the old days! The day was cloudy and there was even a small amount of rain but a great time was had by all. There were two cruise boats in town and we were treated to several loads of black socks on Tintamarre. They seemed shocked.<br><br>Club O Spa: Club O has a small spa facility on premises. It consists of a central weight room, two massage rooms and a treatment room. During this less busy season, some of the therapists take their vacations. I always wonder where SXM residents go on vacation. We did notice that Dinah was not at her location next to the perch. There were no treatments offered during this time period other than massage. I had a massage each of the three weeks by Ana. I herniated a disc a few years ago and find this really helps, especially after sitting in a beach chair all day. Of all the therapists I have tried over the years, Ana is clearly the best for my back needs. Club O massages are $35 for a ½ hour and $55 for a full hour. You must make an appointment. We suggest that you make your appointment as soon as you arrive, as all of the therapist’s schedules fill rapidly.<br><br><br><br><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Administrator on 10/29/01 02:16 PM.</EM></FONT></P>