Report from Flamands

PeterLynn

Senior Insider
Arrived Saturday for our (now) annual May vacation and once again am staying at the VDD on Flamands. Put the deposit down last summer, so been wringing our hands since the hurricane. Can report that the villa is back as good as ever. Inside you'd never know a hurricane blew out all the windows and filled the place with sand. Outside things have definitely changed. The water line is the same and am typing this as the waves are crashing on the beach as before. Close to the villas, most of the palms are gone as are the sea grapes. The Cheval Blanc is a mess. Construction is underway, but any opening seems a long way off. Oddly, the next several (very large) villas are fenced off and little to no activity appears to be taking place. The passageway at this end is also gone, so we've seen few if any people down there. The Langouste has faired well and doesn't look any different. Our first dinner there was wonderful, although no Benjamin to greet us. The remaining 4-5 villas are back and rented.

Could write more and (will) post some pictures, but 7pm reservations await us at Les Bananiers.
 
We went to Flamands yesterday and were the only ones on the beach. There is still so much work to be done but it was encouraging to see the repairs being made.
 
happy to hear that VDD is in great shape, we are due to come for our fall vacation in November
please post some pictures
 
Here are a couple of pictures with a similar shot from last year.

VDD-2before.jpgVDD-2after.jpg

VDD-1before.jpgVDD-1after.jpg
 
Here are some more pictures of the hotel end. The Cheval Blanc , and especially the old Taiwana, took a huge hit. Not too much activity apparent from the beach, but when coming down the road, the scope of the project is in full view. Much more of a massive reconstruction project than mere repairs. Going to be quite a place when they are done, which I can't imagine being anytime soon.
 
Here another picture of a typical villa between the Cheval Blanc and the Baie des anges. Most seem unchanged from the day the fences went up.Flamands3.jpg
 
Glad to see VDD is back in operation. Kim and I had a wonderful stay there two years ago. Hopefully soon all the vegetation is back giving the villa the privacy we enjoyed. Have a great remaining vacation. We will be on island in a hopefully short 41 days (but whose counting)!
 
From what we saw in February when we were there, it was clear to us the Flamands took the biggest hit. We are glad your Villa is 'Up to Snuff' and that you are enjoying your time on the island! Love the rebirth photo!
 
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