St Martin April 7-21 2008



We left STL at 6:15 am and got to Dallas in time to grab a breakfast sandwich…..BIG MISTAKE…I was sick the rest of the day. We boarded the plane on time….until the pilot said there was a panel missing and they would have to put us on another plane. This put us 3 hours behind schedule. We arrived in San Juan minutes after our plane had taken off for St. Martin. Luckily we were able to get on the LAST flight out for the day. I called Alain Arnell at AAA car rental and told him we would be late. He said… No problem and Myra was at the airport holding up a sign with our name on it shortly after we arrived. We got the rental car and drove to Club orient. We arrived at 11:45 pm. The office was open waiting for our arrival….I could not believe it! We were assigned room 142…..OUR VERY FAVORITE!!! We unpacked and CRASHED.



The next morning we got up at 6 and went to the beach to pick out our chairs and tag them. Then we went to breakfast at papaguyos. We were happy to see Patou was still there. We ate breakfast every morning at Papaguyos at a cost of about 18 euros. We saw Dennis the manager of club Orient everyday but this trip he never spoke to us. Friday is the managers breakfast…free croissants, juice and coffee….and it was the only day that the place had a crowd. Monday was the wine and cheese party which was well attended.



We had lunch with some old friends at Baywatch….we had Andy’s famous mussels.



It was our 36th anniversary so we went to la vien rose in Marigot where we also celebrated our 30th anniversary. The food was good but pricey….and we were the ONLY patrons.



We had great weather the entire trip. We had one afternoon shower and some wind but it was beautiful. The beach was in great shape. Most days they did use the tractor with a rake to turn the leaves into the sand. To my way of thinking a SCREEN would do a much better job of removing the leaves so they can be scooped up and be disposed of rather than mixing them back into the sand…but what do I know?



The maid service was great….the boutique staff was great…the office staff was great. Having an account is almost as good as being at an all inclusive resort. You just tell them your room number and sign a paper. They have a wonderful computer system that keeps track of everything.



We ate lunch at papaguyos a couple of times… both times with friends….they have the BEST cheeseburgers. Nancy is still there and is expecting a baby boy in August.



We ate lunch at Baywatch on Orient beach a few times with friends…ribs twice….once the best we had ever had…and once they were TERRIBLE…and one time we had a cheeseburger... Prices are American dollars.



We ate a sol e Luna in the cul de sac…FABULOUS…best meal of the week however also the most expensive.



We ate at California in grand case with friends….terrific food, good service and a good price. They take $1 for 1 euro cash.



We ate at Sunset café in Grand Case twice with friends. Good food, moderate prices good service….BEST VIEW EVER!!!!!



We ate at spigas in Grand Case with friends a couple of times. Terrific food, good service good prices and they take $1 for 1 cash or credit.



We ate a le France on the waterfront in Margiot with friends. Good food and service…moderate pricing.



Our last night we ate at sky’s the limit Lolo in Grand case….and it was FABULOUS!!!! And cost is less than $20 cash!!!!



Friends made lunch and dinner for us a few times…and that was very enjoyable.





We did some shopping at sexy fruits and Adam and eve. They took $1 for 1 cash.



The flight home was as bad as the flight getting there. We left Club orient at 7 am. We had told Alain to meet us at the airport at 7:45 to pick up the car. He had not arrived by 8 so we left the car and checked in. This is the second time this has happened. We had a long layover in San Juan…made even longer by a late plane. We barely made our flight from Miami by the skin of our teeth. We got home about midnight.





The Euro verses the dollar will certainly be a factor in our decision to return to St. Martin next year. It is very evident that many Americans are cutting back to St. Martin. Stores complained to us several times that business is down and restaurants that do not exchange $1 for 1 euro were quite empty.





We had a wonderful time and great weather. It was great to see old friends. This was the first time that we have vacationed 15 days and 14 nights…and to be honest…we were both ready to come home a couple of days earlier….so if we go back next year we will cut back on the days.