Tag Archives: Carnival

Wayfarer's Journal

Warm Places in Winter

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Wendy and I experienced an unprecedented amount of travel between November 2019 and February 2020. Ironically, one of the first trips on the calendar was a Florida and Caribbean cruise getaway with our friends Kevin and Becky. It was after this trip was booked that we decided to spend the holidays in the UK with our daughter, Taylor, along with son-in-law Clayton and grandson, Milo. Then, our daughter Madison’s wedding and Wendy’s sister, Suzanna’s wedding got added to the calendar. Add business travel to these family events and I spent 57 of 105 days living out of a suitcase between mid-November and late February.

Fortunately, the first trip we booked ended up at the end of the travel gauntlet. We were ready to escape the Midwest winter, the stress of travel, and decompress with friends.

We flew to Florida in late January and worked remotely from a lovely suite in Pompano Beach, FL, just across the street from the beach. Kev and Beck joined us mid-week. We then departed from the Port of Miami on Saturday, Feb 1 for a seven-day eastern Caribbean cruise on Carnival’s Conquest. Super Bowl LII was in Miami that weekend, so it was a little crazy!

Our ports of call were Grand Turk, San Juan, St. Thomas, and Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic. This was our first cruise on Carnival. Cruising will always be my favorite type of vacation. Being at sea fills something deep within me that this land-locked Midwestern boy can’t explain.

We loved our time with friends.

As for our ports of call, Grand Turk was okay. We shopped at the port and enjoyed drinks at Margaritaville. San Juan was, once again, a highlight for us. The old city is a favorite stop. We enjoyed lunch at the Choco Bar Cortes and Kev and I enjoyed a bevy and stogie at the Cigar House while the ladies shopped. St. Thomas was also an enjoyable port, and we really enjoyed a bevy at Taphus while shopping in the central business district. We chose not to get off the boat at Amber Cove, and enjoyed being on the mostly deserted ship.

The very best part of the cruise was, of course, our time with friends. We enjoyed the sun, fun, good food, good drink, laughter, love, and the making of so many memories. They are Kansas City Chief’s fans and it was a lot of fun getting to watch KC’s come-from-behind victory after dinner on Super Bowl Sunday.

We also enjoyed making new friends at the ship’s Alchemy Bar. The mixologists, Aleks, Brian, and Sonja became dear friends during the week. We learned from them and came to sincerely appreciate each one of them.

Below is a gallery of photos from our time in Florida and on the cruise. Enjoy.

  • Enjoying a stogie at “The Cigar House” in San Juan. They have a great humidor along with great environment and service.
  • Kevin jammed at Karaoke!
  • Doing my best Blue Eyes impersonation as possible.
  • Our dear friends from the Alchemy Bar (l-r Brian, Sonja, Aleks).
  • Loved the ship’s bow-to-stern art motif, complete with Degas’ dancers on every stairway.
  • Post dinner kisses in front of the Van Gogh inspired “Sunflower” dining room.
  • Enough said.
  • Sunset over Amber Cove, D.R.
  • Amber Cove, D.R. from the ship.
  • Amber Cover panorama
  • Taking the taxi to central biz district on St. Thomas.
  • This is the first view of the morning off our verandah in St. Thomas.
  • Loved the Monet and Van Gogh inspired embellishments.
  • Carnival Conquest in Port of San Juan.
  • Headed back to our ship after a lovely afternoon in Old San Juan.
  • Old San Juan.
  • This is the hotel bar where the Pina Colada was invented.
  • Old San Juan courtyard.
  • The Cigar House in Old San Juan.
  • A grilled cheese and chocolate sandwich at Chocobar Cortes in Old San Juan (AWESOME!)
  • Cold, chocolate loveliness at the Chocobar Cortes in Old San Juan.
  • St. Cristobal, at the entrance to the Port of San Juan.
  • Grand Turk, from our verandah.
  • You never know what you’re going to find when you return to your room.
  • Margaritaville, Grand Turk
  • Grand Turk is where Neil Armstrong splashed down after orbiting the Earth in Mercury 7.
  • Wendy consoles a 49ers fan as they fall apart in the final minutes.
  • Chief’s WIN!
  • Stogies on the stern.
  • Hours of the meaningful sharing of life, as the ocean rolls by.
  • First night at sea was rainy. We were alone under the cover on the Serenity deck.
  • Leaving Miami as the Super Bowl traffic heat’s up.
  • Dinner at Briny’s Pub in Pompano Beach, FL. Loved this place!
  • Small world. An impromptu, casual conversation with passers-by revealed that Henry here is a student of my sister back home at Des Moines Christian.
  • Morning quiet time. Much more enjoyable in FL than back home in sub-zero Iowa.
  • Pompano Beach, FL. The church in a pizzeria. A wedge of pizza and the Word of God for one low price. Talk about a “lunch combo.”
Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Isaiah 31

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Temptation. Repent, return, dear Israel, to the One you so cruelly abandoned. On the day you return, you'll throw away—at every last one of you—the no-gods your sinful hands made from metal and wood.  Isaiah 31:6-7 (MSG)

Growing up, there was an annual traveling carnival that came to town and set itself up in the parking lot of one of the shopping centers we passed on the weekly pilgrimage across town to grandma and grandpa's house. There were bright lights, thrill rides, tents with all sorts of games, and stands with cotton candy and snow cones. Driving to our destination, the carnival would always catch my eye and I would instantly beg my parents to pull off and take me to the carnival (which, they never did).

I reflect back on my journey and the many times I've abandoned the path and diverted from my destination to chase after bright lights, thrill rides, and to gamble on prizes which are worthless in the end.

Reading today's chapter, I'm reminded that following God requires repentance and repentance requires leaving behind that for which we diverted our journey. We don't get to pack up the carnival and bring it with us. "Hang on a minute, God. I want to load the tilt-a-whirl on a flatbed and bring it with us." We must throw away the worthless trinkets and abandon the cheap thrills which stirred the lust of our eyes and the lust of our flesh and led us away from the path.

Following Jesus is a journey of faith. Faith requires leaving things behind.

Creative Commons photo courtesy of Flickr and drewesque