St. Thomas....sigh!

On Easter Sunday, Alan and I left Evelyn & Amelia in the care of family & friends (to whom we now owe BIG favors!) and headed to the Caribbean to celebrate our upcoming 10th anniversary. It is like no place I've ever been. Alan is a GREAT trip planner, and it was absolutely LOVELY.

We stayed in a Bed & Breakfast run by a couple who've lived on and off the island since the 1970's. Leslie is a teacher and when Steve retired early from journalism he decided that since he loved to cook and their home had a gorgeous view of Magen's Bay, he'd start a B&B. They transformed their downstairs into a guest suite--a modern kitchenette, a bedroom, and a screened in porch to die for--you can see our view from it in the first picture! How wonderful it was to have no TV, no computer, and this quiet place in the rain forest in which to settle into "island time."

Our flights down there were pretty bumpy and delayed by weather, so what a treat it was to be welcomed by a surprise--Jon & Courtney and my parents had upgraded our "welcome dinner" to a "dinner on the deck," in which Steve pulled out all the stops. He & Leslie were not only our hosts, but sat & ate with us, sharing interesting stories of their lives. It was like a taste of Hamiltopia had followed us to the tropics!









The beach pictures are of Magen's Bay (pronounced like the girl's name.) That is Alan walking out into the sunset in the one picture. "Virgin Islands National Park" is on the Island of St. John, to which we ferried on our second day. We hiked to secluded beaches, snorkeled in the rain, and then hiked up, up, up into the jungle to find this platform with a nearly 360-degree spectacular view. It is one of our favorite memories.











Another favorite memory is the day we spent on the sailboat, "Liberty," which is home to Ryan, his wife Mumfy, and their 6-month old baby, Helena. Ryan is a drummer and knew Alan from the jazz scene in Baltimore. He & Mumfy (I think her mom calls her Theresa, but I decided to call her the name by which she introduced herself!) sold their house in Canton, bought a boat, sailed for WEEKS in stormy, open oceans to get to St. Thomas, and have not looked back. They love it, and I was FASCINATED. It took all my pioneer-woman urges to a whole new level, and if there is ever a movie or book about their lives, I'll be the first in line for it!

Ryan plays gigs on the islands and Mumfy, a former teacher, writes curriculum from the boat. They also charter people for day trips, and they sailed us back to St. John for more snorkeling, although I'm not sure which was more intriguing--watching a nurse shark eat a squid or watching life on a sailboat with a baby! We were grateful to have spent time with such nice folks who also hailed from B-more.
Everything down there is painted bright, tropical colors, and there is a much more laid-back sense of living. The only thing NOT laid back is the driving. While the steering wheel is normal, they drive on the left side of the road. This would be ok were it not for the fact that there is no such thing as a flat or wide road. The whole island is a lumpy mountain, and everything is terraced precariously onto the hillsides, including the steep, windy roads.

We found out going through airport security that Alan's driver's license had expired, so that left me the designated driver. I was elated--I love this sort of adventure, but my elation was matched by Alan's disappointment, and we spent our time in the car rubbing one another's rough edges off as we practiced showing each other the Lord's mercy and grace. We had lots of practice! Ha!

The best part, by far, was just being together--in AND out of the car--and enjoying a few days in an other-worldly place with the person with whom we've chosen to spend life. We'd recently heard Bob Marley's Three Little Birds in a movie, and when that CD showed up in the stack of music in our B&B, it became our soundtrack. "Don't worry....'bout a thing....every little thing...gonna be alright..."

And every day we were surrounded by a beauty that we just don't experience every day. It was certainly hard to capture in pictures, even harder in words, but we at least know what the beauty was saying to us!
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech;night after night they display knowledge...Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world." (Psalm 19)