OK, so I'm finally getting around to writing our first ever trip report and it's getting pretty darn long. Here goes (be gentle)...

Day one, July 7th:
The trip starts out by Gina waking me at 4:45am, only about 4 hours earlier than normal! Since we were going to be gone for 36 days,we took a shuttle to Orlando Int'l which worked perfectly and was much cheaper than parking. We approached the American Airlines counter to attempt to change our seats since Gina MUST have a window and we were assigned inside seats. We were told that there were no window seats and the flight was oversold. The agent asked "would we like to volunteer" I asked "what's in it for us"! She offered to fly us through Miami instead of San Juan. We would arrive 1 hour later and she would book us in FIRST CLASS all the way. We said "OK"!!! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" /> What a great start to our vacation.

The only problem with this is that I was not smart enough to carry AAA Car Rental's phone number with me so I could not let them know. The flights were excellent and we arrived in SXM at 2:20, instead of 1:15. A taxi dispatcher was kind enough to offer to call AAA (he knew the number!). They were there to pick us up in 10 minutes!!! They had been there at our original arrival time and waited for us for some time. AAAs response to that, "no problem". In just a few minutes, the paperwork was done and we were off in our 2005 beige Corolla, as promised.

We proceeded directly to the Summit Resort, our home for the next 9 nights. Our room was ready on arrival. It was room #7, a single story unit with a great view. This was our third stay at the Summit.

We unpacked and headed over to the Kissing Fish Bar (KFB)just in time for happy hour! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/drinking.gif" alt="" /> We greeted Chloe and Thierry, whom we had not seen in a year...we were 'home'. It was a very long day, so we decided to just hang out and catch up with Chloe and Thierry. We met Lori and Judy, aka 'the Kentucky girls' and Jim and Carol, both professors at the medical school. After a few of Chloe's Cap'n n diets and a great cheeseburger grilled up by Thierry, it was time for bed.

Day 2, July 8th:
Woke up at the crack of 10:00 and proceeded to breakfast at the Kissing Fish. We just had to try the banana pancakes which were awesome. Then it was off to the Daily Extra in Cole Bay and the Food Express in Maho for groceries. Lunch was in the room. After lunch, we headed to Maho to the Good Life Spa to sign up for a one month gym membership (sounded like a good idea at the time <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />). Then went to see SXM Bill to sign up for internet for the month and then off to visit a couple of realtors.

We made it back to the KFB in time for happy hour (this may start to sound redundant!) where we were reacquainted with Pete and Natalie from NYC whom we had briefly met last year. They are great people and we are glad we got to know them better this trip. We also met Rick and Sue, a great couple from Ontario, whom we would see many more times over the next several days.

Again, we had dinner at the KFB. This time it was a great Mahi Mahi plate. After dinner, it was off to the Atlantis Casino for an hour or so, where we lost $2. Off to bed.

Day 3, July 9th:
It was breakfast in the room today and then off to the gym. We also had lunch in the room. We were supposed to meet a realtor at our room to go look at a property, but he did not show up, so it was off to the Sunset Beach Bar to watch the planes. It was hot, so I decided I wanted a frozen mudslide. The charge was $8.00 WOW, that's my last frozen drink from the SSBB! I knew that prices had gone up there, but that's a bit steep. We did have fun watching the planes land as always. The addition of the radio scanner was very nice. It was good to know who was coming in so we could be ready for pictures.

We then headed to happy hour at the KFB (pretty much our daily ritual). For dinner tonight, we went to Uncle Harry's with a local friend from the bar, Tom. Gina and I split a great Filet Mignon dinner. We ran into our friends, the Kentucky girls. That was enough fun for one day.

Day 4, July 10th:
Finally, we made it to Orient Beach for the day. We had forgotten what a beautiful place this really is! We brought lunch, but went to happy hour at the Perch for 2 BBCs for $6.50, now that's a deal. We saw Rick and Sue on the beach and made sure that they would be at the TTOL party at the KFB.

Made it back to the Summit in time for the last hour of happy hour. We had some discussions with Tom (Chloe's accountant) and Chloe about tomorrows party. We were reacquainted with Mike and Jan, whom we met last year. They come for 5 weeks every summer! We had dinner with Pete and Natalie at Bella Napoli in the Atlantis Casino complex. According to Gina, the pizza expert, they have very good pizza. I had Chicken Parmesan, it was also good. That was the end of another great day in SXM.

Day 5, July 11th TTOL Party Day!:
Gina delivered a fish flag to Chloe as a gift and then we were off to see our realtor at Sunshine Properties to see Aquamarina and the Rainbow Beach Club. We didn't really like the way Aquamarina was finished on the inside and the only unit at the Rainbow was a direct OF for $500,000, more than we wanted to spend, so we were a little bummed.

Then it was back to the Summit to rest up for our VERY FIRST TTOL Party at the Kissing Fish Bar. We went over to the bar around 4:00 to help Chloe finish getting ready for the party. Shortly after that, John "Vegasman" and Linda showed up. We introduced ourselves and we showed John and Linda our room as promised. They are great people and John did a terrific job arranging everything for this party! He also presented Chloe with a very nice fish picture for her bar. The night before, Tom and Chloe had decided that it might be easier to exchange money for tickets, so Gina and I agreed to handle that end. Pete and Natalie also chipped in. It seemed to me that that worked out pretty well. It wasn't long before all the TTOLers started pouring in and got pretty hectic at the 'ticket exchange' briefly.

The band set up and started playing Caribbean music and some Jimmy Buffett, etc, the party was on! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/Groovin.gif" alt="" /> What a great crowd! Everyone seemed to have a great time. At 7:30, the buffet was served. Chloe and Thierry did a great job with the food! The ribs were great and so were the fixing's (Chloe knows I love her homemade baked beans). The party went on until after 11:00. We met many TTOLers for the first time. I won't try to mention names as I'm sure I would leave someone out. This was our first TTOL party, but definitely not our last!

Day 6, July 12th:
It was off to Orient Beach today to hang out and recover from the night before. We ran into Vegasman John on the beach and a few others from the night before. We made it back in time for the end of happy hour. We hung out at the bar talking with the Kentucky girls, Pete and Natalie, and Chloe and Thierry. We were eating snacks provided by Thierry and talked right through dinner, so we had a sandwich in the room and off to bed.

Day 7, July 13th:
Got up early (for us) and went to the gym. Then we took Pete and Natalie to turn in their car and back to the SSBB for lunch and to watch their plane land. We took them to the airport and said our goodbyes and then back to the SSBB to hang out with Lori and Judy who were waiting for a friend and husband to arrive. Then it was off to happy hour at KFB. A strong rain shower came up and we left the KFB and went to the Sugar Cane Cafe for dinner and then it was gambling at Atlantis, we dropped 10 bucks.

That's the end of a very fun week one...