Our 2nd trip to SXM didn’t quite turn out to be the trip we’d hoped, but wasn’t the total disaster it so nearly could have been. I’d intended to write a brief report but I’ll apologise now for boring the pants off you, & thank you in advance if anyone reaches the end without falling asleep.

Sat 23rd Oct. Up & Away or Not?
Up 02:30am, but definitely not awake, 03:00am left hse, drove to Dublin Airport, parked car & checked in by 04:30am.
1st flight (Aer Lingus to Amsterdam) Check-in Agent offered to book us all the way through Amsterdam to SXM, even though our flight from Amsterdam was with KLM & booked separately – wow ! That’s a good start we thought – little did we know what was to follow….
Flight to Amsterdam was good, arriving at 09:15am.
KLM flight to SXM due to leave at 12:45. Boarding was late, passengers settled in seats & then the announcement: Due to adverse weather conditions on SXM this flight would be going to Curacao only, passengers were invited to remain on board but must make their own transport arrangements to get from Curacao to SXM. Alternatively, passengers could disembark & KLM would ‘try’ to get them on the next flight, which we knew was already fully booked. Asked if KLM would provide hotel accommodation & were told ‘No’, 5mins later another passenger asked & was told ‘Yes’…. Many people left the plane, after being assured they would be on the next one… Total confusion for staff & passengers….
We remained on, arguing that KLM had a contract to get us to SXM. After a while a 2nd announcement: All SXM passengers were ‘strongly advised’ to leave the plane. Hotel accommodation had been arranged with transport to & fro, luggage would not be returned to us as it was already checked in & we were effectively ‘in-transit’, over-night packs were handed out, Duty-free purchases were supposed to be returned.

Buses took us to a nice Hotel, which seemed miles away from the airport but in reality probably only 15mins away. Dinner was appalling; thankfully we didn’t have to pay. Breakfast was almost as bad.

During this whole episode we were chatting to various people on the flight (as you do) befriending Terry & Lynette (Lyn) from London. Lovely, friendly, funny people who’s company we totally enjoyed throughout the rest of the holiday.

Sun 24th Amsterdam
Noticeboard in reception informed us that buses would return us to airport by 10:00am for flight departure at 12:30.
After re-checking in, found the flight was yet again delayed – to 17:00. When finally boarding started at 17:30, we couldn’t really believe it. Took off at 18:00 & landed in SXM at 20:50
Taxi to Flamingo, check-in was quick & efficient, threw the luggage in room & 22:00 headed down to BBB for a well-earned carib, where we should have met Jill & Carl at around 18:00, sorry guys! We were delighted when J.D. arrived – great to see you ! & at last meet your wife & friends.

We felt sorry for the flight attendants as they were being told nothing definite by the ‘management’ & were basically left to deal with angry passengers as best they could. We were told the problem was due to high tail winds or winds in the wrong direction, meaning the KLM jumbos couldn’t land.

Mon 25th Relaxing day followed by Dreadful Dinner
Flamingo - lovely apt. 4th flr, wonderful views of ocean, stayed on Flamingo beach most of day.
Dinner at La Vista – no - forgot it was closed, walking back we met Taff & Carol from UK (also on KLM flight) invited them to join us, headed for PegLegs. Very disappointing, requested my pork chops were cooked ‘well-done’ but were pink inside, Taff requested steak ‘very well-done’ again it was pink, when we sent both back to the kitchen they came back to our table exactly the same. Neither of us could finish the meal. They offered a ‘drink on the house’ which we declined. We paid for 3 of the meals. We’ve had excellent food before & were very surprised as well as embarrassed having invited Taff & Carol.

Tues 26th Local Transport Day !!
B/fast at La Vista – scrummy !!
Enquired about our apt. next wk, thinking we were booked into LVB as per the prize we won last year. Informed that we’re allocated a room in LV & not LVB, also told our room was on 2nd floor with excellent views. Disappointed but accept that it’s the T&C of the ‘prize’ & we hadn’t read the small print properly.
Mini Bus to Philipsburg, anyone who’s not too happy about driving on the ‘wrong side’ of the road should try these out – they’re great fun & cheap at $ pp per ride. Caribs in the shade of the bar on the broadwalk, can’t remember the name – sorry!
Visited the Museum – very interesting reading the history of the isle & people, they also have some lovely ‘individual’ souvenirs.
Dinner with Lyn & Terry at Hot Tomatoes – a real success ! seated outside, the food was excellent & the service v. good.

Wed 27th ‘ Wipe Out’ & Help the Blind Day !!
Lyn & Terry caught the bus with us to Mullet Bay, not many on the beach. Beach chairs ready for action later, we strode into the sea. Waves in excess of 10ft hit us immediately. Terry, Jim & I were wiped out, swept under the water, Terry was momentarily stunned & I lost my precious glasses leaving me as blind as a bat… Lyn was hit by the next big one !! all of us were lucky to survive & that’s no exaggeration !! Luckily Lyn had a spare pair of glasses, which helped me see enough to get to the Optical Caribe Opticians in Simpson Bay. Told to return on Thurs with a prescription, they would then make up new glasses within a day.
Returning to Flamingo, we faxed the Opticians in Ireland & hoped for a reply asap. Phoned J.D. to see if he would know where to get an eye test done, ‘yes – medical centre in Simpson Bay’ was the response & being the absolutely superb friend that he is, he drove us there, waited over an hour & took us back to Flamingo. Thanks very much, J.D. we both really appreciated this.
Optometrist was a lovely friendly Frenchman who did a thorough eye test & prescription for just $40 – cheaper than home.
Someone the previous day had also been wiped out & drove back to his apt wearing his dive mask ! Jim & Terry told me to wear my (prescription) mask for the rest of the day, yea right – thanks for the help, lads !

Thurs 28th
Took prescription to Optical Caribe in Philipsburg, lucky we did that instead of going back to Simpson Bay - that shop was shut for the day! Ordered & paid for new glasses which were to be ready in Marigot Fri. (btw, at $408.00 they’re cheaper than at home)
Dinner with J.D. & Ronalee, Gill & Charlie, Terry & Lyn at La Vista – food was excellent except that it arrived slightly cold. Restaurant was quite busy & service outstanding as always. We enjoyed the company of all & only wished it could have lasted longer or carried on another night but J.D. & party were returning home the next day.

Fri 29th Dawn Delight
Terry & Lyn hired a car & invited us to Dawn Beach. Ribs were delicious !! Beach was lovely, not too crowded, plenty of chairs/umbrellas, waves just right.
Afternoon Tea (especially for Lyn) in Capt. Oliver’s restaurant – It looked an interesting place to have dinner, with animals above & below ground !
On the way back called into Marigot, Optical Caribe – no FedEx delivery, hence no glasses – definitely Saturday.
Back to Apt.. Dinner once again Hot Tomatoes. Jim & Terry opted for the big 20oz Cowboy’s steaks which were absolutely delicious. Service seemed a bit slow, but we put this down to my steak needing a bit longer than anyone else’s (cremated as Jim calls it).

Sat 30th All Change ! Moved from Flamingo to La Vista.
Moved out & stored luggage with Lyn & Terry.
Drove to Marigot, Optical Caribe – still no glasses – try again this afternoon !
Drove on to Pinel Island, boat trip ($5 return) was quick. Lovely clean beaches, plenty of umbrellas/chairs for $15, snorkelling was excellent. Big plate full of Ribs, chicken & fries was absolutely delicious, cheap too.
Called in to Optical Caribe again – now we’re told FedEx don’t deliver on Sat. Mon is French Bank Holiday so it’ll absolutely & definitely be Tues morning.
At La Vista, having enquired earlier in the week (Tues) we were very disappointed to now find our room was actually on 1st floor & didn’t have any real view (when the ‘bell-boy’ eventually found it – La Vista isn’t that big !!). Disappointed, fed up & ready to go home, we asked to be moved & were given apt. 33 - a lovely 1br at the very top. Thank you very much LV for your understanding.
Dinner again at La Vista – the food & service are always exceptional.

Sun 31st Lazy day
Stayed at apt. most of the day. Drinking caribs in the sunset on LVB – wonderful. Met Ron (Texas?) who challenged Jim to a game of Backgammon, sorry for beating the pants off you, Ron, you’ll get a return game next year.
Dinner - Indiana’s - comprised of a reasonably eatable Burger & Cesar Salad. Service wasn’t fast –they weren’t even that busy.
Called in to Hollywood Casino, hoped to gain enough to pay for my glasses, what a vain hope!!

Mon 1st Out & About
The Rhino Ride, Lyn had provisionally booked for us all, postponed due to high winds, booked again for Thursday & hopefully I’ll have my glasses.
Butterfly Park, entrance fee $12 per adult, some think it’s a bit steep, but the tour is interesting, if a little short. It’s a fascinating place for kids both big & small, as well as giving superb opportunities for ‘up close & personal’ photos of beautiful creatures.
Lunch on Orient Beach at The Pirate – the chicken BBQ wraps were finger lickin’ delicious (Andy & Cheryl were closed)
Marigot – just to check if Optical Caribe were closed – yes.
Coffee & cake in Port Royale Marina – gorgeous but very very expensive !
Snorkelling off Flamingo – great fun as there’s loads of fish around the rocks.

Tues 2nd To Se(a) Again?
09:30am called into Optical Caribe – no delivery yet.
Continued to Pinel, another superb day as before.
Terry & Lyn dropped us back at Optical Caribe around 14:30 – guess what ? still no glasses. The excuse? FedEx thought that all Marigot shops were still closed & it wasn’t delivering there until Wed. Totally annoyed with this we insisted that they do something & the v. nice young man arranged for someone to collect the parcel from FedEx in Simpson Bay & deliver it to him. We waited 2hrs in the café opposite. At last I’m able to see again – what a difference !!
Caught bus back to Atrium, stopping for a drink at BBB, just to enjoy the views.
Dinner at Jimbo’s – what a meal ! it was absolutely awesome & we all enjoyed it ! their speciality dessert is to die for !! an absolute must.

Wed 3rd TTOL Party On !!! [color:"blue"] [/color]
Woke late, food shopped. Several times we’ve used the internet café down under Pelican ($4 for 15mins) & been impressed with the speed & friendly service (thanks Anne) but watch exactly what time you’re charged for as we were on from 15:32 – 15:37 & then again 15:44 – 15:47, printed 1 b&w sheet, Jim drank a ($1) carib & according to the owner (forget his name) it all totalled $15 !! Also, beware of viruses on the computers.
TTOL party at BBB was great fun & we enjoyed meeting loads of people – it’s great to match faces to names. Terry won a prize of $25 beverages at Spinnakers.
Walked with Lyn & Terry to Bananas for Dinner, very busy, I thought food was ok but others weren’t impressed, service was quick & friendly.

Thurs 4th Ride a white Rhino?
Up & out early, down to the dock for 08:30 we were the only two boats going out – great for us !!
The people who run this business are young but experienced, careful to fully explain all the rules & regs. We were revved up & raring to go !! What they didn’t tell us was exactly how bumpy a ride this is !! I was hanging on for dear life, praying & swearing in equal measures, my hands got cramp, Jim got cramp in his foot !, Our boat couldn’t keep up with the guide or Terry’s, we were lagging far behind & trying to avoid the big bumpy waves, Jim says he didn’t know I knew such awful language !!
When we arrived at Creole Rock the snorkelling was out of this world & made the ride worth the effort, but we dreaded the return trip ! Luckily it wasn’t soooo bad.
Back on dry land Terry smiling through gritted teeth said he & Lyn were loving it (yea right !!) Yes, we were sore for days – need I say where?
Dinner was to be Spinnaker but after walking there found they only do B/fast or lunch.
Walked back to The Boathouse, waited 30mins for a table outside by the window – good fun watching the fish outside. Busy but with plenty of waiters/waitresses service was still quite slow, food not as good as last year.
Calling into Hollywood Casino on the way back – Jim thought he’d broken a slot machine – wrong !! he’d actually won $180.00 – my glasses were almost paid for !!!!!

Fri 5th
Bus to Mullet Bay in the hope my glasses may have been found – no such luck…
Ribs under the Trees – absolutely gorgeous taste.
Tried snorkelling off beach behind BBB – couldn’t see anything as it was too sandy. Walked up to Flamingo & carried on snorkelling – it’s superb, saw loads of big & little fish.
Last night dinner – had to be our favourite Jimbo’s. Again we weren’t disappointed both the food & service were exceptional. We all loved it.

Sat 6th Flight Home
Up; packed & out of Apt. by 10:00, breakfast in LV. Down to Flamingo to get Terry & Lyn’s mountain of luggage; taxi to Airport for 12:30. Check-in wasn’t too busy but Lyn & Terry had a slight problem with the amount of excess luggage – the ol’ credit card took a serious hit.
Drinks in the bar upstairs. Boarding & take-off were roughly on time. Landed in Curacao for re-fuelling. Everyone has to leave the plane, file extremely slowly through the terminal, show passports & boarding passes ! get a ticket & then re-board the plane. What a waste of 90mins.
Flight took off again about 20:45 & eventually landed in Amsterdam at 10:30am Sunday.
After sharing a last lunch with Terry & Lyn we said our sad good-byes & they continued on to London. We waited in the lounge for our flight at 16:10. Exhausted we were hoping for a quiet, calm, relaxing Aer Lingus flight – no such luck - a party of Irish folk gathered in the lounge. Loudly talking, singing, dancing & generally very ‘well-oiled’ they were ‘befriending’ any young single girls on the flight. We prayed they wouldn’t be allowed on the flight (they were) or they wouldn’t be any where near us (about 5 rows back). We couldn’t get off the plane or get our luggage fast enough. Finally arrived home at 19:00.

Highs:
Actually arriving on the island after 30hrs delay
Meeting old friends (J.D. in particular)& making new ones (Terry & Lyn)
Favourite place – just has to be Pinel Island
Favourite ribs - at Mullet Bay & Pinel Isle – hard to choose between them
Best Snorkelling: off Creole Rock & Flamingo late evening
Best meal – Dinner both times at Jimbo’s
Winning at the Casino

Lows:
Not getting a chance to spend time with Jill & Carl – sorry !
Worst meal: Chops at Peglegs
Not getting to eat at any lolos (especially Johnny under the tree)
Getting eaten to bits by the mozzies – despite eating odourless garlic pills, using roll-on milk repellant. Finally, found the answer in a can called appropriately ‘Off’
Obviously, losing my glasses

The weather was cloudy several days but still lovely & warm, mostly it rained at night.

Despite everything - we had a wonderful time.

Tina (& Jim)