St. Lucia, you’re a babe.

This is a post that I have really been looking forward to. I’m a sharer, perhaps even an “over-sharer” when it comes to aesthetically beautiful things and/or moments. This moment? Our honeymoon.

If you saw my Instagram post regarding our choosing of St. Lucia, you probably noted how I stated it was hard to choose a honeymoon destination. It’s the strangest thing! So many different logistics to work out – travel time, all-inclusive options, weather, food, drinking water. We came across St. Lucia thanks to CheapCaribbean.com and ultimately booked through their website, too.

Friends … I cannot say enough about St. Lucia, but mostly, I cannot say enough about our resort, The Windjammer Landing. We had no idea what to expect since the place barely sells itself in photos. Which, come to find out, we appreciated the quietness of the resort. So, below are some photos from when we started out towards St. Lucia, still holding our pasty Midwestern “tan” and excited smiles.

 

I should mention that the resort is located on the side of a mountain, so a lot of leg work is necessary to make your way down to the beach. Thankfully, we were on the “first” landing of the resort, so we had a shorter walk and did not even need to take a shuttle to get down.

I brought two different books to read on the ‘moon. We Too Sing America by Deepa Iyer deserves its own post for its brilliance and thought-provoking material. I was equally shocked, angered, and saddened at our country’s reality when it comes to discrimination and racism. While I do not have to go far to witness it or read about it, Iyer does a great job breaking down its history and the governments role in it. Coming from a privileged background, it can be hard (or rather, impossible) to find relation with others who have immigrated from another country. Iyer speaks mainly to South Asian, Arab, Muslim, and Sikh immigrants, but also of the African American community (She quotes Dante Berry, “Black people need co–conspirators, not allies. Let’s scheme together to all get free!”) This is one of those books that everyone should read and digest slowly. What’s also interesting is Iyer’s prediction of racial intolerance and the political uproar that it would eventually cause – something a generation hasn’t seen since the 1960’s. She predicted that discrimination and prejudices against Muslim communities would be used for political purposes with a fear-based agenda. This was before Trump even announced his presidency!

 

One night we were out and decided we wanted to make friends. We met Jackie and Will, two little lovely adventurers out of Minnesota on their way around St. Lucia. After drinks, tequila shots, and more drinks, we said our goodbyes as they headed off to another part of St. Lucia the following morning.

The resort had a ton of “homeless” cats. Running into the itty bitty kitties made me SO happy!

On Thursday, we took a catamaran sunset tour. The boat picked up from various different resorts, so we got to meet couples from all over. Strangely, they were all American! We took the boat out to the Piton Mountains where we snorkled beneath them. Guys, I’ve never witnessed such beauty like I have looking beneath the water! Protect our reefs!

My second read was The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder. It was so beautifully written. I felt heartbreak and tragedy throughout the pages as Wilder wrote of a fictional bridge in Peru breaking and killing the five people that crossed it. Delving into the story of each human lost was incredibly touching – each character wanted peace in their lives, and by the time they found it, they were crossing that bridge….

This was our last day at the resort. Hence our clothes on the beach. It was so sad to leave on such a perfect day.

We said our goodbye to St. Lucia and it was hard. Returning to reality is all at once exciting and scary … and well, real. We returned at 12AM on Sunday and went to church in the morning. It was so fun for us to see friends and even get a shout-out from Jeanne on stage. (We returned to a sermon on Partnering Well in Marriage!)

My sweet sister-in-law asked me last night what three words I would use to describe the honeymoon. I chose Sexy (duh), Restful, and Quiet. Restful and Quiet were exactly what both of us needed. We harbor introverted selves, so we tended to that part of us throughout our time on our honeymoon. One big sigh after the wedding planning season.

Much like our wedding day, it was all so perfect.