Saturday 3/26/05. Arrived on Delta: Cincinnati/Atlanta/ SXM. Flight delayed due to Florida weather pattern. Prime rib buffet night at the Divi was terrific! Walter, Geraldine and Marisol made sure that our service was good.
Sunday/Easter. Saw a lot of islanders waiting to be picked up by friends/buses to be taken to church services. Italian buffet night at the Divi was tasty and i was careful not to eat too much. During the day visited Maho, Mullet, Cupecoy, Plum, Rouge, Friar's, Happy and Orient Beaches. I was shocked by the condition of the beach at Cupecoy.
Monday. Monday following Easter was a holliday here. Mullet and Friar's beaches were very crowded with local celebrants. Cars were parked everywhere as the lots were full.
In the evening we attended the TTOL Party at the Wharf . Belair (Kathy) was a terrific, enthusiastic host of the event. Met Roy Boy from Canada who picked up one of the lobsters by the midsection (the lobster was huge!) Some people are fearless. Also met Suzanne and her husband Pat, who are staying at the Pointe Blanche area. Had a great conversation with them , and also with Anne Hansel, of Jewelry Studio, who had terrific insights on local restaurants and landmarks. Anne had previously lived for a period of time in Botswana, Africa. Deepti was there also talking trade with Anne. It was a thrill to see her as I have heard so much about her on TTOL. I had red snapper and a pina collada.
Tuesday. Roslyn & I ate at the Peg Leg. I was on a previously scheduled Sunset Beach Bar Webcam appearance for the benefit of friends back home. The pina collada I had there was the best. Roslyn won $250 on the slots at Casino Royale and I took a $40 loss on blackjack. Marigot was busy as I was told this was market day. Traffic was tied up for 30 minutes as the drawbridge opened for at least four sailing ships.
Wednesday. Ate at Cheri's. Had a pina collada, which was excellent. Topped this off with ice cream at Hagendaas. Roslyn won $50 on the slots (bless her) and I lost again at blackjack, while winning at draw poker slots.
Thurday. Island Barbeque night at the Divi. Steel drums etc. were very entertaining. I located the future site of the Marriott on the far end of Dawn Beach. Also found French Cul De Sac, where passengers were about to ferry to Pinel. Also located the overlook at Anse Marcel, where I took pictures of the Meridian. The sand had returned to some extent at Cupecoy Beach.
Friday. Ate at Hot Tomatoes where we had Havana Jerk Chicken Pizza, which was very tasty. Also took pictures of the boats docked behind the restaurant. Spent most of the day at Orient, Rouge and Mullet Beaches. The sand at Cupecoy reversed itself and rock was exposed the full length of the beach. I arrived at 1:30 pm and found the beach totally deserted. The beach was unsafe for swimming.
Saturday. Ate at Cheri's again. Had a mango collada, which was very tasty. Drove past Mary's Boon (had called there the day before for the menu, but no one answered the phone). Shopped at the new grocery mart at Mullet. Met Marius of St. Louis Car Rental at the airport, and I must say the car and service were quite good. We will use them again.
Comments: The new airport addition will hopefully relieve the congestion we got into. Secondly, the traffic between Grand Case and Cupecoy, and Mullet and Phillipburg is much worse. Fortunately, we found the drivers to be very curteous and would let us into the stream of traffic, and we returned the favor. Without the cooperation among drivers there would be total traffic chaos. Perhaps the only answer is a high gasoline tax????
A great trip from start to finish. Again we want to thank our party host Belair (Kathy) <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/Cheers.gif" alt="" />
