The "Clothing Optional" Story

It was an ordinary day. Kind of! We are sitting on the beach at Club Orient. Club Orient is a naturist resort on the northern end of Orient Beach on the french side of St. Martin. Place has been here forever it seems. We started coming to St. Martin ten years ago and it was here at that time. The Club is a resort which has a variety of accommodations situated on or near the beautiful white sand beach that fronts the azure blue Caribbean Sea. For years Carol and I walked the length of the beach in the mornings and often wondered what it would be like to be on a nude beach. We would always see the sign that declared it was Club Orient and that you were not allowed cameras or cell phones on the beach. Well, today we are headed to Club Orient to give it a try. We talked it over and decided that what are the chances that you would meet someone you knew on a nude beach thousands of miles from home. We follow the signs to the parking for day visitors and find a space for the car. After passing the guard station, we walk through the beautiful resort. Villas and chalets are very nice. the grounds are kept immaculate. Soon we arrive at the beach. Yep, this must be the place. Most are nude! But, we were expecting gorgeous, muscular tan bodies. Seems that most everyone is in their 50s, 60s, 70s and some in their 80s. The very few who look younger seem almost out of place. Wow! We will fit in nicely. The chairs are orange and the umbrellas yellow. We find two chairs, pay the "clothed" attendant and decide what to do next. Well, I guess the next thing to do is take off our swimsuits. You can't imagine how hard that is to do when you have never been to a beach where everyone is naked. Off they go and we quickly sit on our lounger. Easy so far. Actually, very few can see us parked in the back row. But, the sun is baking us and we now face the problem of getting in the water. We head toward the water, watching to see if people are staring at us. Nope! They are talking, reading or napping. It's as if we aren't even there. Pretty easy and the 85 degree water matches the 85 degree air temperature. It feels so different without a bathing suit both on the beach and in the water. Kind of like a new found freedom. Something like the bold and the beautiful. No, no, no ........ make that the bold and the old. Now, our next problem. Fish!! All those extra dangling parts which are not covered with textile seem to be bait for the fish. Luckily the water is crystal clear, even at 10 feet, so you can see if you have attracted any fish. It seems that if you talk to someone, protocol says that you should be making eye contact, so when we start talking to a couple in the water we keep this in mind. Their names are Larry and Mimi and are the same age as us. And ...... they live about 40 miles from us. OK, getting too close for comfort. We talk about things old people talk about and part ways. And then we face the next big problem. Time to get out of the water! And after an hour in the water, "shrinkage" is a major problem. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. PS - pixs from the top are: sign on the beach as you enter Club Orient, walk from the car to the beach, aerial view of the resort and beach, and chairs and umbrella at the resort.