Touring the Island, Turtles and more

Today we toured the entire island of Reunion starting by heading north from our beautiful accommodations.  There were a troop of us on this venture.  Nine in the rented mini van, five in Julia's mother's car, and then a car with her aunt and uncle and a few cousins.  First stop a church.  The island is predominantly Catholic with some Hinduism.  This old church was definitely Catholic.  Then on to a long suspended bridge that had been used for traffic for many years but now is only used for walking.  We noticed right away that the island changed dramatically as we went over to the eastern side in it.  It became much more lush with greenery-typical of most islands.  From there we went to the Cascades.  This is why people say Reunion looks like "the Garden of Eden" - beautiful waterfalls all coming off the sides of the cliffs, beautiful large trees, the ocean waves lapping up to the shore, walkways bordered by flowers!  Everywhere you looked there was beauty!  We only wished the sun was shining.  It was cloudy that day.  After eating there ( all 20 or so of us which took quite awhile) , we headed down to walk the lava bed from the active volcano on the island.  Last stop was to see a point where the Indian Ocean comes slamming into the shoreline creating giant displays of water over the rocks.

The next day we elected to all head to one of the cities on the island to shop a bit.  Again we were with a large crowd so nothing goes quickly.  When we sat down to eat a lunch on the beachfront, again it took over an hour and a half.  Rain showed its face in the afternoon , so we headed to a turtle sanctuary. An excellent visit as we learned how the people of Reunion are helping to protect several species of endangered sea turtles.

Afterwards, we all headed to back to the "Braby house" to relax before going out to dinner. The "kids" all went out as a big group. We took Joelle and Mario out to thank them for such a wonderful
time. Pictures to follow later.

Wedding Day

 After the town hall ceremony was over and a few pictures taken, we headed back to our home away from home to relax before going to the sharing of their vows and reception. Both were held at a golf resort overlooking the Indian Ocean. Absolutely stunning landscape! The outdoor ceremony was so beautiful and very meaningful for all in attendance. The weather was picture perfect! After the ceremony was completed, no one could seem to locate the new bride and groom. Then, literally out of the blue, we saw a helicopter flying overhead and coming straight to our group! It hovered over the area where we were all waiting, touched down, and voila!! Rusty and Julia climbed out to rejoin the party. Everyone applauded as they made their way back to us. Pictures with the sun setting was next up, followed by appetizers and then a superb three course dinner with lots of dancing -mostly to Reunionese and French music with lots of line dancing- between each course. This was all done in the Island tradition. Russ and Julia surprised everyone with a choreographed version of Uptown Funk ( how do like that one,Janis!)  and then Rob and Alice (Julia's sister) joined them.  That was very entertaining for everyone.  Julia also entertained the crowd with two other gals on performing official Reunionese dancing with flowing skirts and swinging hips!  We lasted until around 12:30, but the party went on into the wee hours of the morning. Today, we following tradition, and have a second party at one of Julia's aunt's beach house.

It's official!!

This morning, everyone headed over to the town hall in La Possession for the official marriage ceremony. The deputy mayor and the town clerk presided over the ceremony. About 30 family and friends attended the ceremony. Later this afternoon the civil ceremony will be on the beach with the reception to follow. We are planning on taking a nap as we are told the reception normally goes to 3/4 in the morning! Sunday is another celebration at the beach house. Whew, we are already exhausted.
A few pictures.........

Dinner with Julia's extended family

Last night we carpooled up the mountain to Julia's Aunt's house. Reminded us of driving in Puerto Rico i.e. narrow roads, no lights, very many twists, turns, and switchbacks, not to mention lots of round-a-bouts. But thanks to Mario's and Joelle's driving skills, we all made it safely. After many introductions and attempts to communicate in English, French, and Creole, we enjoyed some adult beverages and appetizers. We then sat down, all 25 of us, for a wonderful dinner. Afterwards we celebrated with numerous toasts. We learned a new version of how to toast. You clink your glasses and say "chin-chin". It is a very old saying that goes back to the French kings. I am sure it is spelled much differently than chin-chin, but that is how you say it. Here are a few pictures........

Arrived Reunion Island

We arrived yesterday to bright sunny skies and temps in the 80's. Had dinner with Julia's parents last evening. We enjoyed some wonderful Creole and Chinese based dishes. We feel very welcome here in Reunion. Today we relaxed around the pool and spent a little time at the beach. Tonight we have a big dinner at Julia's aunt's house. A few photos of our "home" for the week.....

Dublin arrival

Hello all,

After a long day/night of travel, we arrived in Dublin around 9:30 Monday morning. We checked into our room around noon and then proceeded to hit downtown Dublin's Temple Bar area. Lots of neat things to see, places to eat and of course fun shopping. We were only able to touch on a few things. Trinity College is a must see if you are ever here. One highlight for me was enjoying a beautiful draft pint of Guiness at the original Temple Bar. Well, make that two pints! We also enjoyed some smoked trout on traditional Irish soda bread, that was excellent. The whole Temple Bar area is very quaint with lots of cobblestone streets and colorful buildings. We took a few pictures........Mike Madigan will note my Irish green, I'm sure! Will post them soon, I hope!

3 days and we're off to Reunion Island

Welcome to all who are interested in following our next adventure to our son's wedding in Reunion Island. It is located off the tip of Africa, east of Madagascar Island. The Island is French with a relationship to France similar to the of Puerto Rico and the U.S. It is a beautiful place with around 800,000 inhabitants. If you have time try a Goggle search on You Tube for "Amazing Reunion" and/or try this link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NeBr2GwhrQ.

We will be adding pictures and posts as we go along, so be sure to check back in

Merci and for now, Au Revoir
Dave et Jan