It was another hot day on the island that had come to be known as Gilligan's Island and as usual everyone was getting ready for the many tourists that would be arriving. Ever since the group of seven passengers had been found Gilligan and their group had run a tourist trap.
The money was great and Mr and Mrs. Howell had financed the tourist attraction. The island now boasted a large beach, a small cafe great fishing and many trails for biking or hiking. People came from all around the world to see their little island.
The original huts had been kept for the tourists as had most of their few valuables and items that the crew had used to survive on those long five years. Everyday nearly one thousand people would come to their once deserted island to enjoy the place Gilligan and his friends had once considered their home.
The cruise ship had arrived the night before and the passengers would be getting off starting at 9 am. The skipper and Gilligan always met the passengers and stood still for hundreds of photos. The photos drove the skipper crazy but they got 3.00 per photo and the money was very good.
As the captain came out of his home that stood on the top of a hill overlooking the entire island he thought to himself 'how did I let this happen? We are now just a sideshow for tourists. I know the money is good and my family will never want for anything physical, but' and he smiled as he went down the stairs to meet with the rest of his crew.
As more and more cruise ships arrived, nearly on a daily basis, the work on the island had become much more complicated and they had to hire several new workers. Mr. Howell had been a big help with this and they now had an extra crew of twenty-five people, now making the total number of permanent inhabitants at thirty-two.
Breakfast was always the best meal of the day for the old castaways. They missed some of the privacy that they had lost when they had been discovered. Mary Ann and Ginger now lived in a modest house just a few hundred feet from the Skipper and Gilligan while behind them lived the professor and John the first man that they had hired to work on the island who hadn't been a member of the original castaway crew. The Howell's lived in a mansion just a few hundred yards up the street and had several servants.
Just below their homes were three four bedroom homes for the full time workers on the island. Several of the workers had been there for a few years and had no plans of ever moving. This was now an island of dreams and warm weather. It rarely rained or stormed and when it did it was during a certain season. The rest of the year the island was a tropical paradise.
But things were now going to change forever Mary Ann and John were to be married. John was a wonderful man with a kind spirit and had been hired as a handyman. He and Mary Ann had started off as just friends but the friendship had blossomed.
The newleyweds were to need a new home and so one was built just down the way from the main homes of the island. It was a small two bedroom home but there would be room for add ons if needed later.
Mary Ann awoke to the sun shining into her room and smiled. 'Saturday is to be John and my wedding day. She looked over at the wedding dress that she had made herself hanging on the closet door. It was a beautiful white dress with a long train and flowers to be placed on it on the day of the wedding.
"Good morning sleepy head." Ginger smiled as she watched MaryAnn come into the kitchen with a dreamlike smile on her face.
"Good morning to you. It looks like things are starting to move down by the pier. They soon will be hungry for our barb-q food. It just seems that we are in a rut now. Everyday it is the same thing. Lots of tourists lots of mess and loads and loads of photos." Mary Ann remarked.
"Well, at least we will be closing for your wedding. Everyone who will be coming will be just family and friends from this Thursday on. I am looking forward to seeing my mom dad and sister again. Your mom and dad and two brothers will be coming too. There will be so many of our friends coming it will be great." Ginger remarked.
"That is true. We will have four days in heaven. No tourists just friends and the prettiest place on earth. The weather is suposed to be hot and dry, just a normal day on the island" Mary Ann remarked with a smile.
As the walked out the door they were met by their friends. It was rare that they all got together now. With all the work and thier busy lives the seven original members of the crew found it harder and harder to find the time to spend together alone. They all headed down to the beach in a happy mood.
The cruise ship that had arrived that morning was from the United States and carried a passenger list of over fifteen hundred. There would be plenty for them to do as they had paddleboats water skiing parasailing, for the sports enthusiasts. They had two large beaches and one good fishing spot. They had snorkeling and then the bike and hiking trails. There was a small gift shop for memories. and then the little villiage where the seven castaways had lived so many years ago.
As the captain and Gilligan stood on the pier getting ready for the photos, they checked their uniform and surely as one could imagine Gilligan's hat flew off his head and nearly landed in the water. If it hadn't been for a small child running after it another hat would have bit the dust. Gilligan had lost so many of his hats that it was a joke among the workers. He needed a new hat at least once a week and the gift shop was always running out of them.
Emil was their photographer and was all set up when the skipper and Gilligan had arrived on the pier. Every picture that was sold he received 10 dollar and of that the captain and Gilligan got 3.00. This could make them as much as ten thousand dollars a cruise alone. The business was quite lucrative. By the time that the last tourist had stood for thier picture it was almost noon time.
The captain always made a point of meeting more of the tourists while they were enjoying the outdoor barb-q that his island had become famous for. They featured a coconut drink that the professor had invented duiring thier castaway years. Of course there were pineapples and a pig roast eveyday. 'Just two more days and we get a rest' he thought to himself. 'Mary Ann and John getting married, he couldn't be happier. They were two of the nicest people he knew. He wished them all the luck and happiness he could give them.'
Meanwhile the professor had been working at the villiage that he had come to think of as his home. He had lived in the small hut around the corner for a long time and had been on the island for over seven years now. He had gone back to the states for a short time after they were rescued but had returned shortly to find that most of his friends were returning also. Life in the outside world had not been the same and he had found himself in a life that he no longer wanted. For the most part the tourists were curious and polite. They always asked the same questions and the children were the most inquisitve.
Ginger and Mary Ann were in charge of the eating and spent many hours going over the menu, and ordering what they would need to have for the next group of tourists. Sometimes when it got very busy they would hep with the serving and cooking of the food still. However, they now had many workers and it was getting less and less often that they were needed to do this.
The Howell's were a little older than the rest of the crew and were coming down only for a few hours daily to mingle with the crowds. Mr and Mrs. Howell enjoyed having her picture taken, especially considering the money that they were making with each photo.
If it hadn't been for the money of the Howell's the island would have never become such a tourist spot. They had convinced one cruise ship to make this a regualar stop and the others soon followed. The island now had ten different cruise lines that came to the island on a daily basis. It was rare that they had any days where no cruise ship was arriving. The island had made the innitial investment back many times over and all of the seven original castaways found themselves very well off financially.
Every morning Nael and Maul would take a cruise around the island in their small boat. It had the capability of carrying up to thirty-five people and the cruise would take about two hours. They would take three cruises everyday and the cruises were nearly all sold out before the cruise ship even arrived.
That evening as the cruise ship headed off to its next destination the seven original castaways all waved them good-bye. This had become the custom and the passengers always waved wildly and the ship would let her horn blow.
The crew looked down at the mess that this crew had left. Just by the fact that over one thousand people had been on thier island there was always a mess to clean up. This had to be done right away as there would be another cruise ship at the island in the morning, and the same routine would happen again tomorrow.
Mary Ann and John were sitting outside on their porch watching the water and waves and listening to the near silence that they craved for. It was a beautiful night and they were in love. The new home that they would be living in was finally finished and decorated. Mary Ann was a great sewer and had made all the curtains and linnens herself.
John looked down at his bride to be and beamed. She was everything he had ever wanted in a woman kind sweet but strong. She was a pretty woman with dark hair and freckles. At 29 she was a perfect age for him as he was 30.
Maryanne looked up at her fiancee. He was tall six feet one and one hundred and eighty pounds. He had dark hair and eyes and a very tanned body. 'Woah I sure can pick them' she thought to herself.
Mary Ann and John just sat outside on their swing and sighed. This is the life they thought together.
As they walked to thier perspective homes waving to the Howell's as they walked by their home Mary Ann noticed a strange ship approaching thier island. She called to the skipper and he came out with his spyglass in his hand. "Why that is the Lula from Hawaii. That ship isn't assigned to come to our island until next month." the skipper remakred.
All seven of the castaways started down the hill and met the boat at the pier. The captain was a good man and greeted them all with a smile. "I am sorry that I didn't radio you with my intentions, however when I was in Hawaii I ran into someone special and thought you might like to see this person early."
At this time a man appeared on the deck of the Lula with a big smile. It was the Captain's brother. He had come to see the wedding of the year at his brother's island. "Jonas, I hope you don't mind me coming a little early to the celebration." he told them and as all the castaways each gave him a hug and handshake.
"Of course not." the skipper said to his brother Sam. "We all know you and we were expecting to see you sometime tomorrow anyways."
Everyone was talking so fast and they were all excited Sam was a good friend to all of them and they were happy that he was going to be able to enjoy the wedding. Mary Ann was starting to get nervious about who would be coming for sure and that everything would be ready for the big day.
The girls of the island would be very busy picking different types of flowers and setting the small chapel up for the wedding. Mrs. Howell was to be in charge of the wedding book her sister would be her maid of honor and Ginger would be her bridesmaid. The captain was to be the one who married them and Gilligan was to be the best man. The professor was to be a groom and Mrs. Howell was going to be a bridesmaid. Of course everyone of the original crew was to be busy doing something important for this big day. Neither Mary Ann or John wanted to leave anyone out of thier big day.
The next day was much the same as all the others on the island. A large cruise ship arrived and the day was filled with fun for each of the passengers. Toward the end of the day Mary Ann found herself quite nervious as of tomorrow her family and friends would start arriving.
Since the island was quite isolated all the members of the wedding party were going to be arriving together on a rented yacht. This would leave room for forty guests. The ride from Hawaii was a two hour ride and quite a beautiful one at that. It was so kind of the Howell's that for a wedding present they were paying for the yacht. Mary Ann and John were not sure of the cost but knew that the cost was way out of their budget.
Mary Ann couldn't wait to see her family. She hadn't seen them for over two years. John was very excited about meeting all of her family, as he had not met her two brothers as of yet. John had been away in Hawaii visiting family of his own when Mary Ann's family had come for a visit to the island.
The crew got the call from the yacht Thursday evening just after 8pm. The yacht would be arriving at about 9 pm just an hour after the last cruise ship left. The lights of the yacht lit up the ocean around it and it was quite a beautiful site.
All of the seven members of the original crew and John ran down to the pier to meet their friends and family. It was quite a sight meeting and greeting eachs other. John's parents and Mary Ann's parents had become good friends while in Hawaii. This was of great relief for Mary Ann and John. John's parents were business people from the island of Hawaii and her parents were farmers from the midwest. Both the bride and groom were nervious that they might not get along since thier cultures were so different.
Mary Ann's mother Jean and John's mother Amy were looking around at the island where their children would soon be married. It was a beautiful island, one that some people would call a tropical paradise. Jean wondered how her daughter had ever managed to survive on such an island with no contact from the outside world. It was definately a beautiful place, but so lonely.
Amy looked at her tall dark son with pride. He had always been an outdoorsman and had gladly accepted the job offer that had been handed to him while he was at work on the piers of Hawaii. 'John has made a good choice. Mary Ann seems to be a wonderful girl. Maybe they will make me a grandmother soon.' she thought to herself.
Meanwhile the two fathers were busy carrying the bags up to the house. The two couples would be spending the weekend at the Howell's home. As they placed the suitcases into the tram they looked around. It was a beautiful island and both of them were looking forward to doing some fishing. Mary Ann and John had told them about the ship that would take them on a tour of the island.
Mark didn't know if he wanted to take another look at the primative living arrangements that his daughter had endured for those three years. He had been to the villiage before and was horrified to see the type of living conditions his daughter had been forced to endure.
John's father Jim was tired. He had been running for the last few days taking care of all the little things that needed to be done to get ready for the wedding. He was glad to see that they now had a tram to take them up to the Howell's home.
As the group approached the home of the Howell's they were impressed by it. The home was a large sprawling home with lovely terraces. As they approached the front door they were greeted by a butler named George and a maid named Carey. The butler and maid took their bags and showed them to thier rooms.
Jim and Amy found themselves in a large room with a private bath a king sized bed with mosquito netting and a full view of the ocean. It was the lovliest room that either one of them had ever seen. Carey showed them all of the amenities and told them that she would be glad to unpack thier bags for them.
Jean and Mark found themselves in a room much like Jim and Amy's and to their pleasure they found that they were next to the library. Since Jean was a big reader and had a large interest in the literacy, this was a good choice.
The following day was to be dedicated to spending the day together as a family. More guests would be coming in as the day went by and there would be the wedding rehearsal tonight. The family enjoyed the day at the beach and tried everything that the island had to be offered. It might sound strange but because the island was always full of tourists it was rare that the seven original inhabitants of the island would get a chance to spend the time actually enjoying the different touristy things.
The rehearsal dinner was to be in the cafe where there were usually a large group of tourists from the cruise ship. However, this night the cafe was decorated for the wedding party and there would be a large roast beef for dinner. Beef was a rare commodity and was very expensive. But, for the wedding it had been decided that this was appropriate for the wedding party, the night before the big day.
As the day went on more and more friends of Mary Ann and John's came to the island. Many of their friends had not been on the island before and were very impressed. The yacht was staying at the pier and with a little switching around John and Mary Ann were able to find sleeping quarters for everyone.
A few of John's friends owned boats that were approriate for a journey such as the journey that the Minnow had taken those many years back. As they approached the island and arrived at the pier the island became lively with people again. All in all over seventy-five people came to the island to enjoy the wedding, so that with the original seven and the twenty-five workers from thier own crew there would now be over one hundred guests.
They had built a chapel some years ago in honor of different people who came to their home to enjoy the weather and scenery. It was not going to be large enough to hold the over one hundred guests, so it had been decided that the wedding would be held outside. The reception would be held in the cafe.
A long white rug had been placed in front of the alter so that Mary Ann could walk down the aisle. Her bridesmaids were dressed in long pink gowns with flowers on the sleeves. There would be many flowers at the wedding. Mary Ann had gone out of her way to try to get every single type of flower that the island had to offer. She wanted it to have a tropical theme. All of the bridesmaids outfits had been made by hand by her also. She looked at each of the women and thought to herself 'they look good'.
The entire island had been done over for the wedding. The wedding would take place under the light of a full moon that night and the stars were shining brightly. The lights from the yacht lit up the water and gave the wedding a mystical look.
The Skipper was dressed in his best unform and was all done up. He and Gilligan would be keeping a sharp eye on the wedding party. Gilligan had been busy the entire day helping with everyone and unfortunately getting more in the way than helping. This was the normal way for him to be Gilligan was just too uncoordinated and everytime he tried to do something nice it turned on him.
Amy had chosen a pale blue dress for the wedding. She was wearing low shoes as the walking could be long and heels were just not comfortable enough for her to wear the entire day.
Jean had decided on a light green dress and she too had decided to wear comfortable shoes. There would be hours after the wedding and the terrain just wasn't made for heels. Besides that as the wife of a farmer Jean was used to wearing sneakers.
The island didn't have an organ so unfortunately the wedding theme so they had hired an orchestra to play the tune and also play at the reception. The music was a little different but it would work.
As the guests stood up to watch Mary Ann walk down the aisle John watched her with a big smile on his face. She was gorgeous and he couldn't wait for them to start thier lives together. Mary Ann was wearing a long veil that covered her face completely. She had kept the dress from John and he had not ever seen it. She was nice and sweet also.
The wedding went off without a problem and Mary Ann and John used the usual traditional promises. Maryanne had even agreed to obey, something she thought about hard and long.
As the skipper announded that Mary Ann Summer and John Cummings were now husband and wife there was a loud cheer and their life together was to begin.