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" Charlotte Amalie " Denny and Jan reached a major milestone this year with their 40th Wedding Anniversary so we all decided to meet up in the U.S. Virgin Islands at St. Thomas to celebrate this joyous occasion. All the kids (Angie, Lisa, Cari, Matt) along with spouses (Jim, Mike, Bob) and the patriarch that started it all (Grandma Frances) made the long journey to this little piece of paradise. We found a nice place to stay on Magen's Bay appropriately named the Sand Dollar (see photos) allowing everyone to hang out in one location and enjoy the sun. We chose St. Thomas because Matt happened to be doing a rotation at the local hospital giving us a built-in-guide. Unfortunately Matt had only been there a couple weeks prior to our arrival and he only new the directions to all the bars. Upon arrival, the biggest challenge was remembering to drive on the left side of the road. A common chant in the car was "stay left, stay left, stay left ...". We miraculously survived without any fender benders and actually knew our way around by the time we left. Although the windy roads could take a toll after a big lunch (Bob - you still owe Angie a fish taco). One adventure that was a lot of fun was a deep sea fishing trip we took with a local boat owner. We had our sites set on Walter (blue marlin) but ended up catching a couple of his deep sea friends, 2 Wahoo and 2 Barracuda. The Wahoo put up a pretty good fight while the Barracuda wanted to jump in the boat. We had six people on the trip so that left a couple people without any fish stories, we'll let you decide who from the photos (check out the whopper Bob caught). But we had plenty of fish to eat for the week. The main event was the renewal of Denny and Jan's wedding vows on the beach at the villa. The setting was perfect, especially with the "no shoes allowed" theme. We weren't sure Denny could handle the official ceremonies but the sly devil came through with flying colors as he presented Jan with a new ring. After photos we retired to a reception around the pool to reminisce about the last 40 years. A very special occasion that we were fortunate to be a part of and will always remember. We spent the rest of the week shopping and exploring the various beaches around the islands. We took a day journey to St. John and found some great snorkeling at Trunk Bay. As with any vacation, it comes to an end way too quickly. We hit the "Udder Delite Dairy Bar" one more time before packing our bags. Thanks to everyone for the memories.
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