Time creeps up on you surreptitiously. Somehow the number 40 has crept up on us and we are celebrating our Ruby Anniversary. Where did those young people go?
We were married in July 1982. I had to live in the parish where we were to be married for 2 weeks before the ceremony so I moved back with my parents while I left my husband-to-be to make arrangements for our honeymoon. We had decided on Paris. He booked Amsterdam.
It was not entirely his fault. Paris was booked up and the travel agent suggested Amsterdam as a last minute alternative.
And so for the princely sum of £420 we had 4 days in Amsterdam, including flights. We were young and poor! But we had a wonderful time. The Jan Luyken Hotel prepared a room for us with complimentary gifts including traditional Dutch gold bols drinks to celebrate our wedding.
We took one tour to Delft and Rotterdam. Unfortunately, the tour stopped for lunch (not included in the price) at the Hilton hotel in Rotterdam. We were mortified! We had no money to spend on lunch so we had to share a fruit salad before re-boarding the coach back to Amsterdam!
And here we are, 40 years later. How does time pass so quickly?! To start our special celebratory holiday we decided to revisit a little of our past by booking our first stop once again at the Jan Luyken Hotel. The hotel has changed hands over the years and has been remodelled, yet is surprisingly familiar.
We are very grateful to the staff for our warm welcome and thoughtful gifts. We thoroughly enjoyed the complimentary fizz, sweets and celebration balloons and decor. Our love has survived the tests of time and we are appreciative of the years we have grown together. We just don’t understand why we are no longer 21 years old!
We are not quite as poor as we were 40 years ago and much water has passed under our bridges. We are very grateful for all the friends and family who have supported us thus far and hope we can celebrate a few more years together while we also wonder we’re all the past years have gone.
Significantly Different 