We recently returned from our 9th trip to SXM. This trip we did relatively little beside beach time, eating and drinking! Sand gravity hit almost immediately.

[color:"blue"]Accommodations[/color]

We split our time between the Dutch and French sides of the island. On arrival we proceeded to Mary’s Boon for our fourth stay there. We had a beautiful beachfront room (14). The room and service were both as we remembered from previous trips – great.

For our last 3 nights we spent our first time at Club Orient in a mini-suite. The room was nice - more than adequate for our needs - and the location cannot be beat. It was just so convenient to walk out the door and be right on the beach.

[color:"blue"]Car Rental[/color]

Once again we rented our car from Marius at St. Louis. We made our reservation for the car through St. Martin Rentals which included some discount coupons. The car was a well-used, navy blue Kia Optima. Quite a few scratches and dents, an air conditioner that struggled to keep up, and a terrible grinding sound each time the car was started, but none of these hindered us in any way. We told Marius’s representative about them when we turned the car in at the end of the trip.

[color:"blue"]Flights[/color]

We flew Continental non-stop from Newark both ways, originating and ending in Cleveland. The most worrisome part of our trip was trying to leave Cleveland on Monday evening, due to the storm threatening New England. Our flights were changed and delayed many times, but in the end we left Cleveland close to our original time and arrived in Newark around 6:30 p.m. We overnighted at the Holiday Inn and left Newark on Tuesday morning on schedule. We landed in SXM a little ahead of our scheduled arrival. An AA flight arrived shortly before us, so the immigration lines were a little long and slow. We had to wait for our luggage as well.

[color:"blue"]Beaches[/color]

We visited only 3 beaches this trip – Orient, Maho and Shoal Bay on Anquilla. All were beautiful. Shoal and Maho were very rough with big waves. Orient was mostly calm and warm – in a word, perfect!

[color:"blue"]Dining[/color]
I’ve tried to recall what we ate each day and an approximate cost.

[color:"green"]Breakfasts[/color]

[color:"green"]Baywatch[/color] $24 – cheese omelets with ham, French toast, oj, water
[color:"green"]Baywatch[/color] (again) $27 – omelets and water
[color:"green"]Sarafina’s Bakery[/color] (Marigot) $15 – croissants, water, oj
[color:"green"]Le Sucriere[/color] $8 – ham/cheese croissants, pastries and water
[color:"green"]Spinnakers[/color] $32 – eggs benedict, toast, bacon, fruit plate,
juice and water. We caught an early bridge opening (only 2
boats)
[color:"green"]Zee Best[/color] $18 – French toast and eggs, juice and water
[color:"green"]Papaguyo’s[/color] $??? – melon and croissants, eggs and toast

[color:"orange"]Lunches[/color]

[color:"orange"]SSBB[/color] $15 – shared cheeseburger/fries and beers (1/2 price VIP)
[color:"orange"]SSBB[/color] (again) – chicken sandwich/hot dog drinks (1/2 price VIP)
[color:"orange"]SSBB[/color] (yes, again) – chicken strips and cheese sticks (1/2 price VIP)
[color:"orange"]Perch[/color] $20? – hot dog, chicken and fries, drinks
[color:"orange"]Perch[/color] (again) $24 – cheeseburger, drinks
[color:"orange"]Uncle Ernie’s[/color] (Anguilla) $21 – ribs and chicken, fries, coleslaw, 2
drinks. Nothing special – meat was dry and not very tender.
[color:"orange"]Baywatch[/color] $??? – philly sandwiches, beer, water
[color:"orange"]Baywatch[/color] (again) - $40 lasagna/salad, sausage/peppers beers
[color:"orange"]Boo Boo Jams[/color] $35 (no 1:1 exchange) cheeseburger, fries, salad, beers
[color:"orange"]Pedro’s[/color] $30 – ribs, salad, rice/peas, beer, diet coke

[color:"purple"]Dinner[/color]

[color:"purple"]Peg Leg Pub[/color] - $55 (included $20 BOGO discount) strip steak and
mango chicken. We almost didn’t include this, due to poor service
and just average food the last 2 visits. Shaun greeted us and treated
us exceptionally well, and the dinner was delicious. The discount
was definitely our incentive to give it one more try, and we’re glad we did.

[color:"purple"]La Rosa Too[/color] (Maho) $92 with an automatic 15% tip added. We both had veal parmesan/spaghetti and salads, 2 drinks. Excellent meal in a quiet, cool (a/c) setting.

[color:"purple"]Jimbo’s[/color] $42 – shared a taco appetizer, chicken quesadilla and
Mexican shepherd’s pie, 4 beers. We haven’t been here in a few
years, but would definitely recommend it.

[color:"purple"]Stone[/color] $73 (included $20 BOGO coupon). An interesting experience.
Shared a cheese fondue appetizer which was excellent. We both had steaks. Food was delicious, but not sure we understood the concept of the stone. When our food arrived it was already finished cooking, and we had to remove it from the stone immediately. The restaurant is very small and was extremely hot – unpleasantly so – and was made worse by the HOT stones left on the table. Also the service was lacking. People who arrived after us were served before us, and little attention once order was taken. Again, the discount coupon was a nice incentive as we really did want to try here, but not sure we would return.

[color:"purple"]Pizza Pasta[/color] - $38. Shared a salad, spaghetti/meatballs and lasagna,
water. Restaurant was crowded and warm, but food was excellent as usual. Remember – no credit cards accepted.

[color:"purple"]Ric’s[/color] $15 – Once again BOGO coupon. Shared nachos, chimichanga,
and sub sandwich, beers. Food was pretty good, service a little slow.

[color:"purple"]Papaguyo’s[/color] 62 Euro (no 1:1 exchange) – Stayed for dinner after
the manager’s wine/cheese party. Appetizers were soup and salad,
chicken cordon bleu and duck breast with guavaberry sauce. Meals
were ok – nothing special. And they ran out of the special – osso
bucco. Glad we tried it, but probably wouldn’t return for dinner.

[color:"purple"]Brasserie des Isles[/color] (Grand Case) - $43 (no 1:1 exchange) Shared
tossed salad with an excellent spicy/hot oil/vinegar dressing, pizza
and pasta/meatsauce. 1 drink and water.

[color:"purple"]Le Chappelle[/color] (Orient Village) - $58 (no 1:1 exchange). Shared salad
with warm goat cheese, breaded chicken breasts with pasta and ream
or tomato sauce. Very good meal, large portions.

[color:"blue"]Other Places Visited for a Drink (or 2)[/color]

[color:"red"]Driftwood Boat Bar[/color] – had coupon for 2 free rum punches – the
best I’ve had on the island. Not pre-mixed.

[color:"red"]Mary’s Boon honor bar[/color] – always our first stop when staying there

[color:"red"]Sunset Beach Bar[/color] – numerous visits and always a bargain with VIP
card

[color:"red"]Cliffhanger[/color] – the only time we saw the beach at Cupecoy. Water was
rough with big waves.

[color:"red"]Westin pool bar (Liquid)[/color] – spent an enjoyable time at the Westin bar.
Drinks (beer) were $5 each. Pool area is lovely, but no shade (trees
or umbrellas) around the pool. Maybe in a few years the new trees
might grow up and provide some shade. There were a few cabanas set back a ways from the water. The Westin itself is nondescript – could be anywhere as there is no caribbean feel to it. Neither the casino nor Opal lounge was open. Overall we were not very impressed, especially for the price.

[color:"red"]Cheri’s[/color] – Stopped twice early in the evening (before dinner) just
for a drink. Made sure we were gone before showtime!

[color:"red"]La Moulin Fou[/color] – wanted to stop just to see what it was like. Very
nice inside. We sat outside overlooking Cheri’s. Since it was before the show it was ok, but I imagine that setting during the show would really ruin the mood for a quiet/romantic dinner. The menu had meals in the $20 to $28 range, except for the Kobe Beef special for $110! Needless to say, we declined.

[color:"red"]Sonesta Maho Palms Bar[/color] – Stopped for a drink while wandering the
grounds which are beautiful.

[color:"red"]Calmos[/color] – stopped one evening for a drink and to watch the sunset. It
was a beautiful night and we got some nice pictures.

[color:"red"]Portofino’s[/color] (Grand Case) – We were pleasantly surprised to find this
open again as it holds a lot of great memories for us from previous
trips. Only stayed for 1 drink as it was very hot. It did look like
they were serving food (at least there was a menu posted, we were
the only one’s there) and the prices looked reasonable.

[color:"red"]Pasta Café and Rancho’s[/color] (Simpson Bay) – had not previously stopped
at either of these places. Both seemed nice, with a good menu. Maybe on a future trip we’ll try them for dinner.

[color:"blue"]Other Activities[/color]

[color:"pink"]Day trip to Anquilla[/color]. We arrived in Marigot early enough for breakfast and caught the ferry to Anquilla. Fare is $12 each way, with a $3 departure tax from St. Martin and a $5 departure tax from Anquilla. Took a shared taxi ride with 4 other visitors for a total of $10 each round trip. Spent the day on Shoal Bay. Walked the entire length to Gwen’s Reggae Bar and back. Stopped for lunch at Uncle Ernie’s. The beach is beautiful, but the water was very choppy. Not very good for swimming and certainly not good for the 2 snorklers we met.

[color:"pink"]Sunset Beach Bar[/color] – We made frequent stops here for drinks, plane watching
and people watching. We made very good use of the VIP membership.

[color:"pink"]Drove through Cupecoy[/color] on our way back from Marigot one day. So much construction, and it’s progressed quite a bit since our visit last year. I can’t imagine what it will be like when it’s completed. New roundabout is complete and may definitely be needed in the future.

[color:"pink"]Phillipsburg[/color] – We made one quick visit to Phillipsburg on our way to Dawn Beach/Westin. No shopping involved! Just wandered down Front Street and back up the Boardwalk. Not much has changed here.

Tried to stop at the [color:"pink"]Ma Dou Dou factory[/color] to pick up some vanilla extract (the best!). Found out it is closed on Saturday and Sunday. We were able to find
some at one of the shops in Maho.

Walked the beach on Sunday morning at [color:"pink"]Mary’s Boon[/color]. Very calm, very quiet and no one else on the beach with us. Don’t know why we don’t spend more time here.

Spent all day Saturday on the beach at [color:"pink"]Maho and SSBB[/color]. Free chairs/umbrella at SSBB (VIP). Watched a lot of planes taking off and landing. Surf very rough, big waves. I stupidly wore my (Rx) sunglasses in the water, and now they are somewhere in the sea. Lesson learned!
Stopped at the pool at Mary’s Boon afterwards, and it was nice to spend some time in the cool, fresh water.

[color:"pink"]TTOL Party at BBB[/color]. Attending Cassie’s TTOL party on Sunday night. Unfortunately, we never did find her. We were able to meet a few TTOL’ers: Pepcats, Beerman (and Mrs.), JPkemko, Charlie and PattyRose. There was live music and a lot of people. Not sure how many were from TTOL.

[color:"blue"]Weather[/color]
Weather was perfect – mid to high 80’s each day, mid 70’s at night, some breezes most days. The only rain we had was late Wednesday night and early on Thursday as we were getting ready to leave.

[color:"blue"]Traffic[/color]

We did not have much of an issue with, except for Dutch Election Day – what a nightmare! Campaigners were lining the streets early in the morning (we were trying to get from Simpson Bay to Orient). The ride home from the beach was even worse – very, very, slow! I guess the islanders were
enjoying their time off for voting.

[color:"blue"]Orient Beach/Club O Friends[/color]

On our last morning I woke early (thanks to the alarm clock) in order to actually watch a sunrise on Orient Beach. What an awesome sight. Usually I’m still sleeping at this time and only get to see sunsets. Well worth the effort to get up early.

Last, but certainly not least, we had a chance to catch up with friends we’ve met on previous trips to Orient Beach, and to meet some new ones as well. It was great to catch up with Paul and Deb (PaulZ), Bev and Dick (vebkid), and, naturally, her highness, Contessa. New friends included Brian, Deb and Tracy (peconic) (Stanley, too), Lee Lee, Becky and Tim, Tom and Michelle. My apologies to anyone who’s names I’ve forgotten to mention.

A special part of the trip was being included in the memorial toast on the beach to “Big Tom”. We never had the pleasure of meeting him or Lee Lee before this trip, but from the tributes being made it was apparent that he was quite a gentleman. He was obviously loved by all and will be missed. We felt privileged to be included in this celebration of his life.

All in all it was a great trip, and I’m sure we’ll be back again next year. It will be a tough decision whether it will be in April with this great group, or in May with some equally great friends we’ve made.

Frank/MJ