Trip Report, 8-12 Dec 2001<br><br>Before starting this report, a word of kindness to everyone who posts to this forum, and to the moderators. The information so generously provided made our first trip delightful and problem-free. Special thanks to the man with the cashews, Carl Stone, who made us feel at home our first night.<br><br>We flew on AA from the midwest, changing aircraft in SJU. Dec. 8 marked a changeover day from the old TWA reservation system, and snags were predictable but short-lived. We and our bags arrived without incident in SXM. One of the things that might be worth letting rookies know about is that there is only immigration—no customs—at SXM. We took a taxi to Club Oriënt. As an aside, this was not only our first trip to SXM, it was also our first clothing-optional holiday.<br><br>SXM proclaims itself to be the “friendly island”, and we can only agree. Although our local contacts were limited to taxis, Club O staff, folks at Pedro’s, Baywatch and the staff at Restaurant Sebastiano in Grand Case, we were warmly welcomed without exception. Tourism is the lifeblood of the island, and everyone seemed keen to ensure that our experience was as pleasant as possible.<br><br>Given the short duration of our stay, we confined ourselves to Orient Beach. Our strong impression is that OB is really two beaches, namely the tranquil Club O end, and the more active (parasail, jetski, live music, water trampoline,…) beach north of Pedro’s. The perspective may be colored by the fact that we were staying at Club O, and comments on this point are invited.<br><br>If you are at all like us and have not been to Club O, you have wondered why you would want to go to a C/O resort, what your spouse would think of the idea and so on. Some items worth considering. First, few go to Club O once. About 85% of their business is repeat, and it is not unusual to find people on their tenth visit. We did not understand this until we experienced the place. We’ll be back. Second, clothing-optional means exactly that. No one notices, no one cares. Those who remove their clothes are simply removing the last bits of structure in their lives. To be sure, the majority choose to go bare—it’s why they have selected Club O as their vacation venue. Third, this is couples country—thirties to seventies—and the Club O experience is largely about rediscovering and renewing your relationship with the one you love. One of the most delightful aspects about Club O is that couples hold hands. They hold hands strolling the beach, walking to the restaurant, and just across the beach chairs. Such was certainly the case with the TTOL couple TwoHearts, who I had the pleasure of meeting on the beach.<br><br>We did venture out to Restaurant Sebastiano in Grand Case, which was lovely. It is not inexpensive, but we felt that we had a truly memorable meal and got great value. Reservations are a necessity, and it’s worth asking when you make your reservation for a table on the wall by the windows. Every item on the menu tempted, and we chose two that were highlighted as among the owner’s favorites. Salad, main course, dessert, coffee and a bottle of higher-end wine cost close to $140 or so for the two of us.<br><br>On the beach, we ate at Pedro’s and at Baywatch. The ribs at Pedro’s were spectacular, the chicken parmagiana at Baywatch equally so. People watching is great sport, especially at Pedro’s, where the parking lot also serves as the jump off point for daytrips by people from the cruise ships. <br><br>We saw only a small sliver of what SXM has to offer in our brief visit, and we look forward to our return. The SXM sand gravity is strong, and unlike ordinary gravity, seems to get stronger as distance gets greater. Like others who post here, we’ll be counting down the days.<br><br><br><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Administrator on 1/4/02 01:04 PM.</EM></FONT></P>