Well…….we enjoyed 2 weeks of complete relaxation at Port De Plaisance (PDP) from June 4 through June 18. After visiting SXM off and on for the past 25 years, what can I say? I guess I’ll say this:

FLIGHT: We live about 35 minutes from Newark Airport, so we flew Continental from Newark non-stop using FF miles. Traveled down with our friends and had an empty seat between us. Had a perfectly comfortable flight and arrived on time. Met Leslie from Kenny’s about 15 minutes after the plane touched down and filled out the paperwork in about 2 minutes and away we went! Our friends were off to La Samanna and we were off to PDP. Traffic: nothing to speak of (at that time).

CELL PHONE: I used my un-locked GSM tri-band phone and procured a SIM card from TelCell. For $30.00, I got the card and $20.00 worth of outbound calling time (inbound calls were free). Worked out great for 2 weeks – everywhere on the island – including Grand Case.

PORT DE PLAISANCE: The place looked great! Pool was as enjoyable as ever. Maintenance was busy – replacing tiles, painting, etc. I was told occupancy was about 30% the first week and 60% the second. No problem for us – we had the pool to ourselves most mornings before our daily outing to the beaches and towns. Security was a bit tighter as Jimmy Cliff was staying there with his entourage – he was there with other Reggae performers and a film crew, making several videos at Club Q and other venues.

RESTAURANTS: First night was our traditional first stop at Tropicana at the Marigot marina. We met our friends from La Samanna there, and had a wonderful dinner. No one for one, but no problem as the food and atmosphere more than made up for it. Also, we noticed that after dining there for over 10 years, the menu and prices haven’t changed! 1995 prices in 2005. Over the 2 weeks, we dined at: Le Cigale (excellent/$$$$)Le Cottage (excellent/$$$, Citrus (very good/$$$), Le Tropicanna (excellent/$$$), Pineapple Pete (good/$$), Peg Leg Pub (good/$$), Los Gauchos (new location) (excellent/$$), Bikini Beach (very good/$$). We tried Laylas for lunch – after sitting for 10 minutes and not being acknowledged by the staff – who were chatting among themselves, we got up and left. They couldn’t care less. Also, I had called Le Chanticler and made a reservation by leaving a message on the answering machine – along with my cell # for any problems. We arrived during a thunderstorm, dripping wet and happy to be ready for a good experience. I saw the owner and announced myself. She then apologized by saying that she had a group booked for the whole restaurant that night and “forgot” to call me back. She could not accommodate us that evening. Disappointed, we just walked over to Tropicana, where Christolphe happily sat us – even though he was also hosting people from the same group. Needless to say,Le Chanticlere is off our list of restaurants – not due to the food (we never had a chance) – but due to the lack of good sense of the owner who failed to notify us of her inability to accommodate us. The other restaurants mentioned were excellent. Le Cottage was 1:1 for cash, as was Bikini Beach. Also, Le California (twice) was excellent ($$$). They were also 1:1 for cash. Go ther 20 minutes prior to sunset for an unbelievable experience.

TRAFFIC: No problems anywhere – except from Cole Bay into Marigot. Seems like they were laying pipelines along Rue de Holland in Marigot and stopping traffic from time to time. The 1 mile trip from PDP to Marigot took over 45 minutes several time. On one occasion, we drove the other way – past Cole Bay, Simpson Bay, the airport, Maho, Cupecoy, Sandy Ground, into Marigot – just to avoid the traffic.

RESTAURANTS AGAIN: Sorry, but I forgot about the Lolo’s. Went to Talk of the Town once (OK), and The Rib Shack (aka Cheryls) twice (excellent). My standard order is 2 racks of ribs ($4.00 each) and a Carib. Sandie gets a chicken, small salad, and the plaintains (total $8.00). You can’t go wrong!!

GOING HOME: At 10AM, we had our going away lunch at the unit at PDP. For me – 2 more racks of ribs, taken out the evening bfore from Cheryl’s, and a carib. Sandie had her usual also, Now that we were fortified for the flight home. We drove to the airport, where we met Leslie from Kenny’s. He inspected the car and found a broken tail-light. After a quick round of negotiation, we settled on a fair $$ amount, and off we went. Plane was on time. Again, empty seat between us, and off we went! Plane landed at 5:30PM. We were home by 7:30PM – with 2 baskets of mail waiting for us and many happy memories.

Now, time to plan for our next visit!

Marty and Sandie