My First Royal Caribbean Cruise

My First Royal Caribbean Cruise 2013      

 by Joan S. Hust 

May 2013 I went on a one month cruise with my girlfriend. We use to double date.  I married Bill, and she chose to remain single. I flew on Southwest Airlines from Spokane, Washington to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. It was 55 degrees when I boarded the plane, and it was 80 degrees with buckets of humidity when I walked off the plane in Ft. Lauderdale. 

We went on the Royal Caribbean Vision of the Seas ship via Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to Ponta Delgada, Portugal, Paris (LeHavre) France, Cork (Cobb) Ireland, Zeebrugge, Belgium, Amsterdam, Holland, Oslo, Norway and Copenhagen, Denmark.

 The ship docked at all of the above cities.  The ship always arrived at the port early in the morning so after a very nice breakfast there were many options when we walked down the plank.  Would we walk into town or would we board a bus, or would we team up with a couple of ladies and hire a taxi to drive us to and from the city?

The weather on this excursion was in our favor daily as the sun was always shining but it was cold.  I wore a lovely white sweater, and a black and white waterproof windbreaker jacket with a hood in Russia that I wore daily everywhere.  I enjoyed meeting people from many countries and I played Trivia every day with a team of seven or eight folks on the ship. It was such fun. There were several teams that would play. The team I was on won a couple of times, and we would get a prize. My favorite prize was a Royal Caribbean hat.

 I really enjoyed going to the movies in the evening as they had the latest movies flown in from NYC.  The library selections of novels and magazines were wonderful. I attended art auctions daily.  I enjoyed the lectures of the history of the paintings. I did not miss an auction so as a prize I received a free print of my choice which was a water color country setting.  It was mailed to me and I  received it in the mail when I returned home.  It is now being framed  at a local store in Coeur d'Alene.

I am always asked where and what was your favorite place.  Well…My favorite in Ponta Delgada, Portugal was the statue of the Archangel Michael; in Cobb, Ireland it was Cork Harbour; in LeHavre, France it was the paintings in the Museum of Fine Arts, in Zeebrugge, Belgium. Village on the coast is quite quaint, in Amsterdam, Holland it was the house of Corrie Ten Boom because having read her book THE HIDING PLACE, stayed one week at a Bed & Breakfast and the owner went out of her way to make me comfortable driving me to see the Keukenhof flowers and not only did I have breakfast but dinner as well.  I was a guest of a lovely couple that raised Icelandic cows in Warnsveld.

 Oslo, Norway it was the architect of the local churches, and of course The Little Mermaid sitting on the rock in the harbor is quite significant in Copenhagen, Denmark.

 It was an occasion I will never forget as during the time I was in Amsterdam when Queen Beatrix who reigned for thirty three years stepped down and inside the Nieuwe Kerk Church and outside the Dam Square she signed the Act of Abdiction, and her son Willem-Alexander became King of the Netherlands with his beautiful wife, Maxima, as Queen and their three daughters.  The new King and Queen of the Netherlands with his mother, Beatrix, greeted the people from on board a ship on the canal. It was a sight to behold. I felt they were personally waving to me.  The new king and queen's eldest daughter, Catharina-Amalia, became Princess of Orange and first in line to the throne. 

Returning home I stayed for a week with JoAnn in her lovely condo in Ft. Lauderdale, met some of her nice, fun friends, attended a ballet performance, and the Sunday morning service at her Southern Baptist Church in Hollywood, Florida.

I feel most fortunate and blessed that I was able to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise, visiting so many countries, and meeting so many lovely people.

Was I happy to return home to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho?  You bet I was and I am blessed to have such a wonderful husband of 49 years to welcome me back.   

China Mission Trips • Joan Hust

I have been to China 3 times.  I really enjoy meeting the people, eating many different kinds of food, learning more about Bless China International, visiting the leprosy villages, speaking at a local secondary school, traveling with a local resident by bus seeing and meeting people in the Grand Canyon of China that was a friend of a family living in Coeur d’Alene where I live with my family, visiting an orphanage in Beijing where I now send boxes of children and adult books, visiting the hospitals in the country and in the cities, teaching English in a secondary school in Jing Hong, walking the streets in the city and country, staying in a local hotel in the city and also in the country, staying in places where there are no tourists, shopping and having a local tailor make me a dress and 3 piece suit, eating a variety of delicious food prepared by the local people in the country and cities,  and providing children care so teachers could attend educational and inspiring classes. I was fortunate to make many new friends that influenced my walk with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

CANADA • Joan Hust

I have always liked Canada.  I first started visiting Canada when I was a young child with my parents.  We lived mostly in Dearborn, Detroit, and Cleveland then and it was easy to cross the border and travel around Canada in our one seat Chevrolet or Ford.  My dad traded in his car every year as you could do that than for only one hundred dollars I was told by my mother.  So we always had a new or practically new car.  I knew we were in Canada when I saw the big red leaf. My mother would always say that we were now entering the world’s second largest country.  When she said that my dad and I would automatically holler WHOOOPY.  My very favorite place to go was Niagara Falls.  We would stay all day till it got dark just so we could see the colorful lights get turned on and it was such an unbelievable beautiful sight with every ray imaginable of color.

Going to Mackinac Island

My last trip to Canada was to visit Miriam and Dennis Brubacher.  We met the Brubacher’s in Chingola, Zambia as they were Brethren missionaries on their way to Sakeji to teach at the Brethren School where Jacob was most fortunate to have Dennis as a teacher in 6th grade. Jacob came home (12 hour drive mostly not paved) between semesters and was so excited as he said that every day he learned something new in his class. He loved the food at Sakeji and could not say enough about what a good cook Miriam was at the school. Miriam’s mother met us at the airport and when we tumbled into their car she gave each one of us a shiny red apple.  First apple we had seen in three years. 

I was in awe when I saw the huge 220 foot long pool that Esther Williams was daily swimming in at the Grand Hotel.  She was really friendly, and when she smiled at me I was so happy not realizing that there were many folks behind me and her smile was not just for me.  What I could not get over was that there were no cars on the island. The Grand Hotel gave everyone that walked around snow cones for free.  My favorite thing to see beside the swimming pool is what they called the Arch Rock.  It was huge and it had a big opening that you could walk through.

BRAZIL • Mission Trip

 I went to Brazil in 2011, and loved every minute that I was there.  The team I was with was under the leadership of Dr. Dan McIver from Canada who is with CPE which stands for CHURCH PARNERSHIPS EVANGELISE,   and evangelize is just the word to describe our time spent in San Paulo, Brazil.  My testimony was translated and used as part of a Gospel tract.  I partnered with local believers to share the gospel on pre-arranged appointments.  CPE was wonderful to work with as their motto is to engage the Body of Christ in Evangelism, Discipleship and Church Planting around the world.   Pastor Sergio and Regina Pinto of the Vista Verge C& MA church in Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil was our hosts.  What a lovely couple to get to know and their children plus their vibrant CMA Church.  There were 5 Canadians, and two from the USA which included me.  I went house to house cold turkey with an interpreter and gave my testimony.  Some accepted Jesus as their personal Savior, and some did not.  I was happy to hear that many that accepted Jesus are attending the local church now.  Pray for them, and pray for the ones that need more encouragement to attend the local church and to fellowship with believers.  I absolutely love Brazil, the people, the churches, and the warm welcome I received from everyone.

Coal Miner's Granddaughter • Book by Joan S. Hust

For some of you that can't believe I wrote a book here is the proof.

Coal Miner's Granddaughter: Childhood Memories

TEACHING IN ZAMBIA • JOAN HUST

  TCCA

Jim Hess was a Brethren missionary in Chingola.  He drove me every week to Ndola to teach at TCCA (Theological College of Central Africa).  He taught a course in mechanics, and I taught the book of Romans, Outlining, and the Psalms. One day we were early as there were no police checks on the road so he was going to the bakery to buy a treat for the students.  I decided not to go back in town as I wanted to hear the testimonies of the students in preparation to have them speak on my weekly television and radio program.  Just as Jim was driving onto the road we heard a gunshot. The bullet hit the back window and went through the passenger seat. He jumped out of the HI Ace and the officer in charge knocked the soldier to the ground.  The soldier was on drugs. I correspond with two of the students, and one of the students come to the states annually to preach the Gospel in honor of Jim Hess who led him to the Lord. 

HE takes care of HIS children.

NCHANGA CONSOLIDATED MINE SCHOOL (Grades 1-7)

This school was for the children of the Copper Mine employees in Chingola.  The headmaster was from Great Britain as were most of the teachers.  I was the only one from the USA.  There were three terms. Jan-March and April was a holiday.  May-July and August was a holiday.  September-November and December was a holiday.  It worked out well.  The clerical staff was Zambian ladies.  They were dedicated to their job and were most supportive of the teaching staff.  My classes were fourth and fifth grade students. The mine provided transportation to my Clubhouse weekly program on TV and radio in Kitwe, and Ndola, and I would have them on my program.  They would recite poems, Bible verses and sing in English and Bemba.

Would you believe that two of those students live near me in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and five of them live in the Seattle, WA area where my older son works for World Vision? It has been so much fun to make contact with them.  Not long ago I met up with another one of my students that was on the Clubhouse program weekly when I was in California. I had a call from NYC this past year and he was from Chingola and was on my weekly program.

SACRED HEART CONVENT SCHOOL

Sister Mary Crucifix was the Headmistress. She was from Long Island, New York. I taught fifth grade, and the afternoon sessions I taught music and crafts. There were two Zambia nuns on staff, and several ex-pats. There was a catholic church in Chingola. Mother Superior stationed in Lusaka would visit the school once a year. She was a lovely lady and had a great sense of humor especially the time I locked up most of the statues from the school garden.  The reason was that you had to being them in the building every day so no one would take them.  The teachers and staff would walk around all the statues and say prayers.  My plan was to put them all out when she visited the school. I was not expecting her the day she arrived unannounced.  All went well but Sister Mary Crucifix smiled when she told me to check the office so I would know the next time to expect her so I could have all the statues out.

When I returned to the States I called Sister Mary Crucifix and Pam Steyne’s mother and I had lunch with her at a small Italian restaurant in the neighborhood where she was born on Long Island.

As the various students come to my mind I pray that HE will use them for HIS glory.  I am so fortunate to be a part of their lives.