I will try to make this short lol

Flights: Traveled on Us Airways from Chicago to Charlotte and on to SXM. Our first flight arrived a bit early so we immediately went to the gate for an earlier flight to SXM. We inquired about standby for this flight and were informed they did have seats but it would be an additional $150 to get on the flight. I should also say we only had carry on luggage so no worries about checked bags. We decided we weren't willing to pay additional money. About 1 1/2 hours later, we learned our flight was oversold and they were asking for two volunteers at $500 credit per person. Hmmmmmm, wouldn't it have been cheaper to allow us on the earlier flight for free?? Oh well. On the way home, our flight was delayed and we were very worried about going through customs in time to catch our next flight. We would have missed the connection but the second flight was delayed as well. I will say customs actually moved pretty quickly and we were through in about 45 minutes.

Mont Vernon: We stayed in Mont Vernon this time and our apartment was in the St. John building (on the back side with no view). Other than a very loud air conditioner the apartment was clean and very comfortable. I won't say much more about the apartment as although we really liked it and would return, the owner's son was going to move in after we left so it won't be available for renting again. I will say the process of renting it was very easy and the owners and their family were very nice. We loved the pool and spent one full day there when it was very windy at Orient, and a half day there when it rained all morning but was sunny in the afternoon. The location worked very well for us as we spent the majority of our time either at Orient or in Grand Case. A couple of nights we were too lazy to leave for dinner and got pizza from the little pizza place there; the pizza was good. The road coming into Mont Vernon is full of pot holes and definitely needs to be repaired! We got used to it after a bit but it was the only bad part about staying there.

Beaches: We had planned on going to several different beaches but ended up spending the majority of our days at Club O. I guess it's the allure of the "all over tan" and spending time with old (and new) friends there Sand gravity also played a large factor in this. We are usually the type to have a beach day, then an active day, etc., but this year we pretty much spent our days lounging and reading. We did spend a couple of different days in Simpson Bay but that was pretty much it. I will say one morning we went to Maho to watch the planes and have a Mango Colada at the Driftwood. It was INSANE there! We had our drink and left and went to Buccaneer Beach Bar and had a snack and drinks. We will probably avoid this area in the future unless it is late afternoon or evening.

Meals: We had two fantastic meals at Al Dente (we returned after the first time because the food was so good!). The second time, the place was packed and the service went down a notch because they were overwhelmed. We will definitely be back next year at least once or twice.

Calmo's - ate here twice, both times we had fantastic food. The second time for a late lunch I had a special, which was fish in a lemon butter sauce. I can't for the life of me remember what kind of fish it was, but I will say it was the best fish I have had in my entire life!

Ocean 82- We made reservations on Sunday for a Tuesday night. We were seated immediately and had a fantastic ocean view. The food was outstanding (I had mahi mahi and Mike had beef tenderloin) and the service was very attentive but not overbearing. The price was surprisingly reasonable! We will definitely be back.

Orange Fever - Ate here for lunch with friends. I had the fish sandwich (grouper) and Mike had the beef kebobs, Our friend P had the fish sandwich as well, and J had the nicoise salad. We all were very happy with our meals and the service again was fantastic. We will be back!

Little Italy - We were planning on going to Le Piment for dinner one night, but a wonderful woman (the owner?manager?hostess?) stopped us and explained the menu and specials. She was so friendly we decided to eat there for dinner. I will say they had run out of our first two choices but we did enjoy the meals we ended up with, and would definitely return. Again the service was fantastic, and the limoncello was the perfect ending to the meal.

Dreams - Fantastic birthday dinner after Raspy's party, where we also had very tasty cod fritters as a free appetizer Mike loved them so much he decided to order more at dinner, which made it hard to finish our food. I had the rotisserie chicken and I can't remember what Mike had (some kind of meat I'm sure) but again we both loved our meals and the service was fantastic. We do still want to spend a day here and plan on doing that next year.

Greenhouse- Ate in Philipsburg twice, once for the get together on the 16th, and again when it was raining on a Sunday. Both times great food and service. Also stopped in at the Simpson Bay location for happy hour drinks and some appetizers. Always love it there

Rancho Del Sol- Ate here twice, first time was carry out pizza (very good) and second time for a sit down dinner. I feel bad that I can't remember what we ate but I know it was good, and the service was quick. We will be back.

We also ate at the Perch (burgers) and had some fries at Buccaneer Beach Bar. We had drinks and appetizers at Karakter (baguette and coconut shrimp). We wanted to drive over on a Thursday or Friday for dinner and music at Karakter, and come for the fire ball at BBB along with music at La Bamba, but it is hard to get up the motivation to drive at night all the way from Cul de Sac, so we never made it.

Our favorite meal on the island was cooked by the Larmony family at the Dove's Nest. We stayed there for our last trip and were invited for dinner this year thanks to our friends P and J, who always stay there. I have to say we were so excited to return! The lobster as always was absolutely fantastic, along with all the fantastic side dishes and two cakes and ice cream for dessert. We have our fingers crossed for an invitation again next year! We would love to return to the Dove's Nest to stay, but they are booked solid for the weeks we always travel.

Tiko Tiko: our only excursion of the trip, so glad that Mike thought we should spend our first day "on island" doing the "around the island" tour, as the weather was fantastic and the seas were calm that day. There were only a couple of calm/non windy days so it worked out perfect for us. Also met some new friends on our first day which was great! As usual had wonderful food and service.

Lessons learned: We don't really like to travel on Saturday, but we learned that there is a non-stop flight on Saturdays on United from Chicago to SXM with really no difference in price. This is definitely in our plans for next year.

We need internet and a cell phone - it was very hard to communicate with anyone while we were on island. We are planning to buy a cell phone on the French side next year or use a chip in my phone. We will do this on our first day next year so others can get in contact with us.

We liked our location- It was very nice to drive over to Club O, find our chairs and drop off our towels and cooler, go back to Mont Vernon and get ready for the day, then walk down the beach. Our daily ritual was to stop at Yellow Sub and get a baguette and croissant (love this place!)

Next year 3 weeks? - We decided that although we love the French side and will continue to stay there, we could not get motivated to drive over to the Dutch side. We have several favorites over there as well. I have already mentioned it to Mike several times without argument and I'm hoping to convince him to stay for a week on the Dutch side, then for two weeks on the French side next year. Fingers crossed!!

Janet