Windjammin' with Island Windjammers

I don't even know where to begin with this post...in fact, I have re-written the entry line about five different times and none seem to do it justice.  As you know, Scott and I are back from our week long "vacation" aboard s/v Diamant with Island Windjammers, and what a vacation it was!  Not being much of an all-inclusive vacationer and someone who is not a huge fan of cruise lines, I had no idea what to expect when I stepped aboard this beautiful vessel.  Let me tell you - this trip proved to be a highlight of our journey thus far.  We had the best time.  Where to begin?

First of all, the itinerary Island Windjammers follows is exceptionally efficient and you will get to see the very best the Grenadines has to offer: from unspoiled beaches to quaint Caribbean towns, from wildlife sanctuaries (where you swim with sea turtles in the wild!) to lively beach bars that serve only the best tropical slushy rum drinks, they cover it all.  Did I mention the ship is all-inclusive?  Yeah.  Trust me, you will not go hungry (or thirsty for that matter)!

Billed as "Freedom from the Ordinary", the voyage is just that.  It is a wonderful, laid back, and magical way to see this part of the world and, if you have always dreamed of cruising the Caribbean and prefer a more intimate setting as opposed to a giant cruise liner or an all inclusive resort, this is by far the best way to do it!

What really made this trip was the other passengers.  Our group consisted of us, a young American couple who now live and work in Trinidad (we're reuniting with them soon!), a fun and lively American couple who now live in Grenada, an interesting couple from Colorado who raise lamas, grow wine grapes, and have a penchant for race cars (to name a few of their hobbies), a honeymooning couple from Oregon who have been married three years and are incredibly entertaining (there's talk of a Youtube channel), and a lovely British couple (half of which is the Gentleman Joiner) who appear to be prim and proper and are anything but and kept us in stitches the entire time.  So many different walks of life, so many stories shared and so many laughs had!  What a gift!  I don't know the odds of twelve strangers getting along as well as we all did, but I don't think I stopped smiling and/or laughing once the entire week.  I already miss each and every one of them!  We really lucked out and sang our group praise about 100 times throughout the trip.  We almost wished we had at least one stick in the mud just to keep things interesting, but no dice (which, by the way, we played a lot of!).

Island Windjammer's say it best on their site:

Leave your real world behind, and surround yourself with sea, sand, and sails. Rediscover the simple joys of life—sun-soaked days, the snap of sails in the breeze, a wooden deck rolling gently beneath your feet—as you chart a course for a hidden island paradise...

It's now back to the "real world" for us - but since we live on a boat here in the Caribbean, our "real world" isn't so bad!

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