Saturday, October 29th. Birthday Day! Had breakfast in the room and then headed into Philipsburg to visit the jewelers. Got a beautiful large-carat pear-shaped tanzanite with inlaid Australian opals on the sides with channel set diamonds. Opal is my birthstone, so it is meaningful to me.

Of course, you know what happened. http://www.traveltalkonline.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/290126/so-that-happened.html#Post290126

After that, while my ring was being sized, the jeweler sent us to lunch (on them) at a new place called Bold Buddha. You can enter either from the boardwalk or through the breezeway of the Horizon Hotel. I needed a drink. Or three.

The owner spoke with us and attempted to calm us down by regaling us with her stories of having owned a shop before the restaurant. To say that it did not settle my stomach would be an understatement. Her shop had a deadly shooting. The details she relayed were not something that I needed to hear. Though I suppose in her way she was saying what we had just gone through was a walk in the park.





I ordered a Long Island Ice Tea, and hubby had a Mai tai. It was a lovely little lunch. We ate gouda rings and then an assorted platter of Indian kabobs—nicely spiced ground turkey and then fried tofu with veggies and peanut dipping sauce.









Saturday night, we did not even go out for a birthday dinner. We were both zapped of energy and just wanted to go “home.” Dinner was everything leftover in the fridge from La Villa, Dinghy Dock, Spaghetti House, and Da Waterhole. Added a homemade salad, and it was fine.

Sunday! Brunch day! We had an absolutely WONDERFUL brunch at 978 Sanctorum. It was amazing. This is a local family’s villa they have opened for day passes to use the pool, and they serve lunch. They also have theme nights of jazz or local Caribbean music and, of course, the Sunday Brunch. She also took over her uncle’s beach bar (Kali) on Friar’s Bay and changed the menu entirely.

There is everything you could ever want for breakfast items and a creole spread. Viennese pastries, breads, fried or baked Johnny cakes, teas, creole coffee, local honey, punches, unlimited mimosas, pancakes, syrup, scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, and home fries. On and on.
THEN came the delicious local foods. Grilled snapper in a sauce, oxtail, curry chicken, locre, steamed vegetables, white rice, rice and peas, macaroni and cheese with ham and veggies.

You MUST try this place. We left so incredibly stuffed (like a tick) that it became our only meal of the day. It is located in Rambaud, which is through Marigot, and one right turn past the turn to Columbier.




























Next…the kitten carries on. Meow.