Let's Cruise Baby

To continue my catch up. . .
After we went to Idaho, we came home for less than 48 hours and then left for Ohio.  We spent about a week in Ohio with the whole Hansen family.  And then we left to go do this . . .

 I've always wanted to go on a cruise and with a month of time from when Mike graduated until work started, we decided to do it.  The Caribbean for 6 days, with 5 islands and all the food you can stuff into yourself.

Our port was in Puerto Rico, so the night before our ship left, we went on a kayaking tour.  You paddle through some mangrove trees and watch the sun set on the lagoon and then when it was dark, the water lights up like a glow stick whenever you disturb the water.  Bio luminescence- it's pretty awesome.  Apparently there plankton/algae/I'm not really sure what small organisms living in the water and when you disturb them, they lite up as a defense.  The marine biologist explained it much more eloquently. 

 We rented a car in Puerto Rico so we could drive to the kayaking.  Our flight into PR was late, so we only made the kayaking tour with 10 minutes to spare!  Mike was a great driver.  I, the navigator, managed to tack an extra hour onto our time back to our hotel.  Oops.  Sorry. 

 The morning before the cruise we got a bite to eat a a place called Pinky's.  If you are ever in San Juan, I highly recommend it.  Try the Mango smoothie!  We also went and saw a couple of forts in Old San Juan.  Pretty cool. 

 The is the Solarium on the boat.  We spent a lot of time just hanging out and reading here. 

 Our first beach in St. Maarten.  We tried snorkeling here, but the waves were quite rough and we were both feeling sick.  Mike threw up.  Awesome.  Once our stomachs settled, it was great. 

Day two was St. Kitts.  These monkeys were everywhere.  We even saw a Bob Marley guy riding a donkey on the highway with one of these monkeys.  It was a memorable sight. 

 Mike reading at the beach.  I got a massage on the beach and Mike saw a sea turtle snorkeling. 

 Day three was Antigua and our favorite island.  Beaches with water this blue do exist!  For real!

 Beautiful!

 We sat right by this tree.

 Day 4- it just keeps going.  We took a tour of St. Lucia.  The island is very volcanic and mountainous.  We drove through the rain forest and saw these mountains- the Pitons.  Remind anyone of the Teton's?  The whole area was a lot like Yellowstone- only tropical.  Sulfur springs, Calderas etc. 

 What is a cruise without a picture of the food?

 Mini golf on the ship.  We won't say who won.  Alright. . . I'll admit- Mike slaughtered me. 

 Waterfall in the rainforest of St. Lucia. 

 Planning the next day adventure in our cabin.

 Dinner.  Fancy.  Great waiters.

 St. Lucia- the photographer in me coming out.

 Our last day we sailed on a Catamaran and went snorkeling.  Then we swam with sea turtles.  They were really cool!

 The ship also had a rock wall.  I loved it.  Mike tried it too and did great. 

 Another waterfall.  This one was in the Junque rainforest in Puerto Rico.  We had some time to kill before our flight back.  But even with all that time- we still missed a flight in Miami and this is how we finished the cruise . . .

Nothing like ending all the glamor by sleeping on the floor at the airport- using our swimsuits as blankies. 
When all was said and done- we had a great time- lots of memories.  I can now say I have been out of the country.  I loved seeing the different cultures and the beautiful beaches- however, I did learn a few things.  You don't have to travel thousands of miles to see beautiful things.  There are beautiful things all around you.  The leaves are starting to turn here in Michigan and that is not a beach, but it has it's own magnificence.  I also learned that you don't have to spend a wad of money to have a great time.  Some of the funnest things on the cruise didn't cost a thing. The enjoyment was just being together with Mike.  It was reinforced that our lives are not about the things we own, but that the people we love are our most valuable possessions.  I became more thankful that I live where I do.  America is a fantastic place.  It has it's problems, but I sure like the land of the free.  And finally, God loves all of us, all over the world and the world is a very big place. 
And now, I need to do laundry, pull out the sweaters because it is starting to get cold, do some grocery shopping and pick up Colton from preschool.  My next post- our move!