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Saturday, June 4, 2011

The "Villa Bonita" Story

It was an ordinary day. Just arrived at Princess Juliana airport in Sint Maarten. The airport is on the Dutch side of the island. After going through customs and getting our luggage, we exit the airport and hunt for Leslie Bruce, the local that we rented our car from this year. Asked someone if they had seen him and they pointed toward the airport parking lot. "Just look for the skinniest guy on the island," we were told. Sure enough, there he is, coming towards us. And the guy was right! Got our dented Totota and off for the French side and Villa Bonita. We visited this villa last year during our vacation and thought we would enjoy staying in it this year. Stopped at Cap Caraibes to let the realtor know we had arrived and she grabbed the keys and off we all went to the villa. Magali, our realtor, showed us through the villa, gave us the keys and off she went. Time for a dip in the pool. Weather was overcast, but that doesn't effect the water. Warm water felt good after seven hours of travel. The villa overlooks Orient Bay and naturally Orient Beach. We could see the islands of Green Key, St. Barts, and Saba off in the distance. The flowers around the villa were in full bloom, but then they are always blooming in the tropics. Reds, yellows, oranges, whites: they were all giving different smells to go with their vibrant colors. Villa Bonita is a three bedroom villa, but we are only staying in one of the bedrooms, so we pay a reduced rate for our time in it. Very modern interior with a Swedish style kitchen, Caribbean living room and bedroom, ugly bathroom and the most amazing views from the outdoor living area (I called the the porch!). We had some minor issues with the operations of some of the items in the house, but they were promptly overcome. Hey, we're in paradise! The inclined driveway to the villa was a real challenge, but after a day or two, I became a pro at it. Except for all the black rubber marks I left on the driveway during our stay. The entrance to the villa, off the main road, had been damaged before our arrival (it really wasn't me!) and it took workers the entire time we were there to rebuild the wall that someone had evidently run into. We had many meals sitting on our porch, looking at the many shades of blue water in front of us. Villa Bonita was our home away from home for 16 days, and it certainly did not disappoint. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. PS - photos of the villa with a brief description of each one follow.

Entrance to Villa Bonita is at the bottom of the hill and off to the right

Outdoor living area as seen from the driveway

Pathway to the front door is located by the side of the pool

Outdoor living area and the pool

Looking toward the villa from the pool area

Looking toward Orient Bay

Outdoor living area for relaxing

Outdoor living area looking from the kitchen and living room

Very modern kitchen and dining area

Bedroom

Now this is vacation!

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