St. Maarten: French Find

Tuesday, we started off in the water after a light breakfast of pastries and coffees. Now Matt and I's favorite thing about our resort is the access to the bay and the ability to done on snorkeling gear and head off into the ocean. We knew we wanted to do an excursion and swim with the turtles, but we also wanted to get Randy and Michele comfortable with the water. 

So we rented gear and got them suited up. I know Michele had some anxiety about getting in and swimming out but within no time she had jetted off! The water was perfect for starting with ankle waves and we explored the edge. I saw some fish, a few sand dollars, a beach chair that I'm sure the hurricane drug out, and a sting ray. 

After drying out, we headed into Phillipsburg for lunch and shopping. We did a bit of wandering before we settled on a waterfront location. We had a bucket of beers and the rib pork pieces at the Honky Tonk Bar, which we'd read great reviews on. We ended up settling on the Firehouse because of their special. Unfortunately there were only two crabbacks so Randy and Matt had those and Michele and I had stewed oxtail. I know Michele actually wanted curried goat, but our server never got the message. We meandered thru the shops a bit.

We heard of St. Martin Lolo's which we had heard two different definitions, 1) it's the name of the grill that the food is cooked on 2) it's local frequented by locals and is low cost. However they get their name, they may be a brilliant idea. We had to travel on the opposite side of the island from the resort, but it was worth it. The spot where quite a few are is at Grand Case. We arrived as the sun was setting and the water was gorgeous. 

We had a few options but heard The Sky's the Limit is one of the best and since Talk of the Town was closed until the season opened, we hedged our bets. Randy and Matt ordered the Chicken and Ribs special, Michele ordered the conch, and I ordered the whole snapper, which came bones, head, and all. We did start with Johnny cakes but this meal was amazing. Not only was the main course phenomenal but it's was the experience that added. Their was live music and the artist knew all my favorites. The plates came filled with sides, a salad, coleslaw, spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, rice, vegetables....we were not prepared for the amount of food we were getting. This could easily be called one of Matt's favorites and it was exactly what we'd been searching for the previous year. We watched the ribs chopped right behind us and prepare the food. So good. I ate so much I know I hurt that night!

Walking to our rooms at the resort
Michele (to Randy while looking up their hill): Wannah race?

Day 5