May 17, 1986
May 17, 1986

I know I haven't posted in a little while.  My husband and I were so blessed to be able to take a cruise to celebrate our 30th anniversary so we were away for awhile. I can't believe that we have been married for 30 years.  I cannot even tell you how wonderful those years have been.  There is nothing like being married to your best friend.  That is not to say that we haven't had our challenging times but with the Lord's help we have always come through them stronger as a couple and I am so grateful for that.  I cannot imagine my life without this wonderful man in it.

So now that you have had a little laugh at the "80s" wedding picture.  It was windy that day and my poor hubby was suffering something terrible from his allergies.  He really wan't crying about marrying me.

DSC_0072

My husband planned the entire trip just as he did for our 25th.  We visited the British Virgin Island of Tortola which was very rustic.  They are just beginning to welcome cruise ships there.  The people are wonderful and we got to ride to the top of their highest peak (1700') then hike for a mile around the top.

Then we spent a day at St Thomas and St John which are American Virgin Islands. Here are some fun facts.  In Tortola they drive on the left side of the road but the currency is the American dollar.  In St Thomas and St John they also drive on the left side of the road even though they are American territories.  There is only about a distance of 20 miles or so between Tortola and St Thomas/St John so they are more related to each other than the countries who they are territories of.

After we arrived at St Thomas we took a boat over to St John to explore there.  The island was known for it's sugar production.  We visit one of the old processing plants where slaves were used to cut and work the sugar cane.

The tall structure in the last picture was a windmill.  The top is gone now but when the wind blew it turned the crusher to get the juice out of the sugar cane.  If the wind wan't blowing they used donkeys.  There are now feral donkeys running around the island that have come from the days of using them for the sugar cane.

 

Feral Donkey
Feral Donkey

When we got back to St Thomas we had a couple of hours before we had to be back to the ship.  They have a sky tram so we decided it would be fun to ride that.  It gave us a great view from the top.  There were a few little shops so we bought a couple of "island" things to bring home.

Finally we stopped for the day at Disney's Private island, yes we took a Disney cruise, Castaway Cay.  We rented bicycles and peddled all over the island.  It is amazing how blue the water is in the Bahamas.

Castaway Cay
Castaway Cay

The great thing about Disney is that although you think of kids when you think of them they do a lot for adults as well.  There is a whole section of their ships that are for 18 and older so if you don't want to be where the kids are you don't have to be. The same thing applies to their island.  We were on the adult side where they have a beautiful beach and this is what came walking up the white sand.

DSC_0189

Yes, that is Jack Sparrow.  The guy in white had to keep him from getting too out of hand.  He was totally in character which was fun.  He teased people, pushed them in their hammocks and rolled an inner tube down the beach.  It was a really relaxing day.

When we got back to our stateroom our hostess had decorated for our celebration.

DSC_0149

Those are even real rose petals.

We were very blessed to have a young lady be able to stay at the homestead and take care of the chickens,dogs and cat so that we were able to take this memorable trip.

Homesteading takes a lot of time and effort but sometimes you just have to take a little time away.

Blessing,

Merrie