Summer Vacation 1997

Seven Day Cruise in the Southern Caribbean

On June 21st, 1997, my mother, sister, aunts, uncles, cousins and I traveled to Pittsburgh to begin our family vacation. This was the beginning of the 8th Broadwater Family Cruise. We began this journey with much anticipation and a great bit of sorrow since the leader of our group, my grandfather, passed away this April. We flew from Pittsburgh to San Juan, Puerto Rico, with a stop over in Charlotte, North Carolina the next day.

San Juan, Puerto Rico

After a short bus ride to the docks, we boarded the Seaward (Norwegian Cruise Line). I spent some time learning the layout of the ship and then unpacked my luggage. At 6 p.m. it was time for one of the highlights of any cruise, dinner. I stood on the deck and enjoyed the view as the Seaward sailed out of the San Juan Harbor at 10 p.m.

The first port that we visited was Santo Domingo, which is the capital of the Dominican Republic. Founded in 1496, Santo Domingo is the oldest European-founded city in the Western Hemisphere. We spent the next day at sea and I enjoyed the day playing cards and trying my luck at the poker machines. The Captain's Cocktail Party was held Tuesday evening.

Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic

St. Lucia

Wednesday's port was Castries, St. Lucia. The island is about 250 miles north of the South American coast. St. Lucia is a mountainous island with tropical vegetation. The main agricultural products are bananas and coconuts.

Views from Brimstone Hill on St. Kitts Basseterre, St. Kitts was the next stop on our trip. The shore excursion that I took went to the old fort on the top of Brimstone Hill. The fort was built by the British in the 1700's. The growing and processing of sugar cane is the major product of this island nation. St. Maarten, our next port, is an island which is divided into parts. The southern portion is governed by the Dutch and northern part is ruled by France. Tourism is the largest industry on the island. On Saturday we visited the "shopper's paradise of the Caribbean," St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sunday we returned to San Juan to begin our journey back to West Virginia.

My picture was taken by my sister,
in the Butterfly Room, Tuesday evening.

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