Hey!
A report from our recent 8 night trip to SXM.

The weather cleared up and was perfect. AA miles got us down on time in big exit row seats with exceptional service. We went through MIA and returned to MCO through SJU and MIA rather inconveniently, but on time. The price was right.

One week as first timers at Royal Islander LaPlage, one bedroom….ice cold air..great view, good room. Didn’t spend any time or $$$ there so I have no idea about the fine points. NEW beach chairs…if you’re going there please tip the beach chair guy….he looked after Michele very graciously. She spent every day on the beach….I shot pics.

The sun was from the north over MAHO and I got caught up on the plane pics which suffered during the last two trips this year. I spent most days at DRIFTWOOD BOAT BAR with a host of “drop in” buds, Elena the vibrant beach bar babe, Ginny the bustling chef and of course Guy….the man. Antonio is the back bar employee who kept watch on my stuff when I went “fencing” etc. What a great spot for people and plane watching. Never ventured to the other end of the beach.

Breakfast daily at MAHO FOOD EXPRESS with buds like Ray Minelli etc. who get up early. Buffet is the same as always…fresh baguette sandwiches, good coffee, ice cold drinks and SPOTLESS cooking area in plain view.

SMART “doggy mixer”..a blast. Pics coming on PBASE.
Buddy Matthew’s leaving bash…fun !
Uncle Harry’s Birthday party..recovering…
Moulin Rouge night at Piano…decadent !

Places to go to mix with locals and visitors safely, cheaply and good eats and drink:

Guy’s Driftwood Boat Bar
Buccaneer Beach Bar
Topper’s Maho ( Topper’s by the road )
Uncle Harry’s Happy Hour with Julio Bofill and Brigitte Bosch. WOW! What a crowd !

Paradise provided the shabby chic CHARADE mini tank at $124.00 out the door for a week..…we hardly used it but kept it underground at Royal Islander Terrasse for nightly outings. Left it open with keys under the mat, garbage strewn and untouched day or night…. I like the purple ones. Was going to taxi it but $10.00 to Toppers/Hollywood/Buccaneer etc. from RI was too much and the public transpo is sketchy after midnight.
Little traffic except regular bridge openings.

These reports may sound like broken records but we go to mix and mingle with as many Island buds as possible. We spend the majority of our evenings at Buccaneer progressing to Hollywood Casino and later to RED PIANO for the kind of entertainment that suits us. Sorry if there are few details about other venues, beaches or dining…we both quit “face food” recently and had no problem with salads and pastas, breads and veggies.

At last we met Island Residents Bill and Elaine and enjoyed their company. They are constantly on the go and always fun to be around.

The only negative issues I can comment upon were the “no see ums “ at RI as well as the mosquitos. Royal Islander has done a beautiful landscaping job at the beach side but has left many areas that are prone to standing water. Bring good bug spray with DEET if you wish to linger on the balcony in the evening. For owners there I would suggest writing to get them to spray daily where the water stands. The TORTUGA BAR was very active with $2.00 beer but the incessant mike play for bingo and other promotions is annoying starting at 3 p.m. We like to hear the surf…..

Denis & Michele

From the SONESTA MAHO roof Sunday afternoon..CORSAIR smokes it up on RWY 10/28 from CDG.






Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/27/2009 04:19PM by BIGDENX.

Thanks for your report. I agree the boat bar is nice place to hang for a few drinks. I don't care for the SCRATCHOFF sales people taking all the parking spots and bothering tourists.Bill & Elaine are great people to know and our recent trips wouldn't be as good without them.Nice picture. Bob

Great report Denis. So we'll be vegging out with you guys at our villa instead of meat and potatoes????

Welcome back Denis and glad you got to experience RI. We fell in love the first time we visited and haven't had a bad year since. And for someone who loves watching the planes, I can't imagine a better place. I can't wait to see your pics! We'll be heading there in December after our 1 week stay at our condo and we can't wait. And I agree, we couldn't have been given better "just down the hall neighbors" than Bill and Elaine! They're terrific.

Vicki

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/26/2009 09:03PM by John.

thanks for the trip report Denis.
man, you guys sure do a lot of partying!

[barcann.livejournal.com]

Great to finally meet you and Michelle too!

You made it to the birthday party? Due to traffic accidents - we got so stuck in traffic. We couldn't get past the airport terminal and finally turned around, so missed it.

Happy hour last evening was a blast, however!

Denis..since you were at RI, could you tell us whether the beach in front of the resort was useable or not. I am not sure whether you are familiar with what it has looked like in the past but someone is asking what the conditions are like now so since you've been there recently, I guess you would be the best to know what it's like now.

Vicki

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

Hey!

Sorry, no pics but therw was a beach, somewhat narrow, but a lot of folks using it. Nice new chaises were put out daily and the water wasn't too precarious...easy in and out. It could all have changed since Monday when we saw it last tho.

Michele thoroughly enjoyed it...I could walk from her spot over to DRIFTWOOD with ease.

Denis

Now that's a path I have also taken many times! LMAO Thanks for the description.

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.

Thanks for the report, Denis. Wish we could get to the island as often! Thanksgiving trip seems so far away!

mcinnamon Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks for the report, Denis. Wish we could get to
> the island as often! Thanksgiving trip seems so
> far away!

mcinnamon,

The good news is, it's already less than a half year away but I share your misery and your countdown.

Respectfully,

pat

Thanks Pat! That's the "glass is half full" spirit!!

mc

ENjoyed reading your report Denis. Thanks for posting. Looking forward to seeing all your pics. They are always great. Does Uncle Harry's have any "specials" for Happy Hour, or are you and your friends that make it special?

Uncle Harry's has a very dangerous 2 for 1 happy hour! Hoping he'll get some appetizer snacks to go with them soon.

Thanks Pat for the countdown! It didn't even occur to me. And this will be the year that we will hopefully get together.

[www.vrbo.com]

Life is not a child's game of follow the Leader. Instead, life is more about finding one's own purpose in life....your life's plan, and then making a positive difference on earth.