Sightseeing day!..Stop back tomorrow for photos!…Paying upcoming balances for cruises…Fares for seven upcoming cruises…

The sign at Savusavu Hospital reads, “Harvest the Wellness Within You!,” a good motto to follow. Many Fijians suffer with diabetes with a diet rich in sugar and high amounts of starchy foods.

Cruises have become an integral aspect of our travels. It provides us with an opportunity to visit more countries and their points of interest than any other means of travel.

Also, as we’ve attempted to avoid the “big bus” experience with a preference for the six or eight-person van excursion, it’s given us a better opportunity to make new friends during a day’s outing and to see the sights with more ease and level of enjoyment.

On some cruises, we’ll continue to attend group excursions such as next year’s Mekong River cruise where all excursions are included in the cost and others, when safety in numbers may be advised.

As we look over our upcoming cruise list, we’re enthusiast over the wide range we’ve selected to ensure we’ll have seen most of the major cities in Australia, New Zealand and many islands.

Each cruise is unique in its own way, although there are a few repeated ports of call from cruise to cruise, locations we’ll have already visited, unavoidable when attempting to circumvent the huge continent of Australia and its surrounding islands. For an example, a few of these cruises, have the port city of Suva, Viti Levu, Fiji as a port of call.

The entrance to the hospital in Savusavu.

After four months in Fiji, we may not be interested in touring Suva when its a city we’ll be visiting biweekly for shopping when we move to Pacific Harbour, Fiji, located on the main island, an hour’s drive from the house we’re renting.

Nadi (pronounced “nan-dee” in the Fijian language), where the airport is located, won’t necessarily be on our radar either with its increased levels of crime and population as mentioned in yesterday’s post.

During those repeated ports of call, we may decide to stay onboard the ship to enjoy the glorious quiet while many passengers have gone ashore to board those big buses for excursions and shopping.

Following is the list of upcoming cruises, the number of days of the cruise  and dates for which we’re booked all the way into 2017:

 Sydney to Aukland            USD $4,771 14 1/5/2016 1/19/2016
 Sydney to Singapore         USD $3,869 14 4/16/2016 4/30/2016
 Sydney to Perth                 USD $4,557 16 10/31/2016 11/16/2016
 Hanoi to Ho Chi Min City  USD $6,597 15 7/8/2016 7/22/2016
 Singapore to Sydney         USD $4,144 14 10/31/2016    11/14/2016
 Sydney to Sydney              USD $4,820 12 3/1/2017 3/13/2017
 Sydney to Seattle              USD $5,995 24 4/22/2017 5/15/2017

It may seem that 2017 is a long time away, especially when we arrive in the US in May, 2017. But, its only 19 months from now until we land on US soil at the port of Seattle, Washington to make our way to Minnesota and Nevada to visit family and friends.

The total cost for all of the above cruises (for two, in select balcony cabins only) is USD $34,753, FJD $74,037, undoubtedly a huge chunk. Based on our budget, we tend to look at this total on an annualized and monthly basis which in doing so, averages at USD $1,819, FJD $3896 per month.

On a more remote island one may worry that their aren’t readily available medical services. We’re always pleased to discover hospitals, ambulances and adequate medical care in case of an emergency.

Based on having selected this vast number of cruises, we’ve been extra careful in selecting vacation homes, car rentals and general expenses to ensure “doing what we love” (cruising) doesn’t create any undue financial stress in going over our budget.  In no case, do any of these cruises result in a deficit impacting our quality of life.

Without a doubt booking this number of cruises has a bearing on the vacation homes we select. However, we tend to stay in a general range for each location based on our needs, practicality and budget. 

We don’t require a luxury four-bedroom house with a full staff, although at times, we’ve been fortunate (and will be so in the future) to have negotiated a price befitting our budget for such types of vacation rentals. 

Here in Vanua Levu, Fiji at USD $2,000, FJD $4,260 per month, we have all we need or want while we’re able to maintain our average monthly/annual cost to offset the cost of the cruises.

Yesterday, we paid the balance of USD $3,871, FJD $8247 of the first cruise on the above list, after paying a deposit of USD $900, FJD $1,917 when we booked it some time ago.

Its that very cruise that ends in Auckland, New Zealand on January 19, 2016 where we’ll stay for 89 days, renting a car in Auckland to drive to the north island city of New Plymouth where the farmhouse awaits us, again an affordable property.

Several emergency vehicles were on the hospital property. Locals don’t hesitate to call in an emergency and feel the local care is adequate for many conditions.

Typically, final payments for cruises are due 80 days before the departure dates. Vacations to Go (still our preferred cruise booking agency) keeps a credit card on file for us, using it automatically to make the payments when due. 

When booking multiple cruises such as the above, we consider the spacing and the dates the balances are due.  Our next cruise final payment won’t be due until January 23, 2016.

In most cases, we’ve paid the required USD $900, FJD $1,917 deposit at the time of booking the cruise with our preferred cabin number. If its a ship we’ve never sailed in the past, Tom reads reviews on cabin numbers in Cruise Critic and other resources while looking at the posted “deck plan” listed in the Vacations to Go website.  Selecting the right cabin is vital to a good experience (more on that later in a future post).

On certain cruises, we’re able to purchase “deposit vouchers” for USD $200, FJD $426, that can be used in place of paying the USD $900, FJD $1,917.  Why would we want to cruise line to be holding that sum of our money for these extended periods?  If we can pay a smaller deposit, it is preferred.

Of course, there’s always the added “bill” we get at the end of each cruise for any extras: Internet access, cocktails for Tom, specialty restaurants and a rare  purchase in the shops. 

Many times tips and alcoholic beverages are included in the fare when offered as a special promotion. We’ll share the inclusions and extras as we cruise on each of the above.

Then again, we often pay huge deposits on vacation homes booked way down the road. Its the nature of the beast, a constant outflow of cash paying for services well into the future.

In reality, its not unlike the lives of many of our worldwide readers who pay monthly for rent or mortgage payment, utilities and maintenance. The only difference for us is the fact that we pay for all of this well in advance. In Fiji, until January, when we depart from Sydney for the first listed cruise, our rent and airfare is already paid in full.  We continue to pay in advance for the many upcoming months and often, years.

As “they” say, “it all comes out in the wash.” It works for us.

Shortly, we’ll be heading out for the day with Rasnesh for photos of more beautiful scenery in Vanua Levu, ending up at the end of the day for our usual shopping: Vodafone kiosk, the pharmacy that has everything (one only need ask), the Farmer’s Market, New World Market and Fiji Meats where Helen has a order we placed awaiting our pickup. 

The sun was shining when we awoke but the clouds have rolled in as I write this. If it rains, we’re still going! Over the past few days, it’s been hot, hot, hot. The mozzies and ants are on a rampage after the weeks of rain but we’re handling them. Our Internet is working well. Lots more new photos coming soon. We’re feeling great and life is good.  Hope its the same for all of you!

Photo from one year ago today, October 22, 2014:

Tom was looking for the daily visit of sea turtles at the shoreline outside our condo in Maui. The skies had begun to clear and we looked forward to walks along the shore, whale watching  and hanging out at the pool. It was on this date a year ago, that I drove a car for the first time in two years. I was still the same awful driver I’ve always been! For more details, please click here.

At long last, we have sunshine…Transportation…Safety…All new photos…

This morning’s sunny day.

Yesterday, we called Ratnesh to pick us up tomorrow at 11 am for a dual purpose; sightseeing earlier in the day, shopping after sightseeing. We’re excited to be getting out.

We’d hoped to get out on Tuesday, but on Monday, he called and canceled when he had a long-distance fare to Labasa, where another airport is located, a two hour drive each way from Savusavu.

When we first arrived, we offered to request his services for specific dates, and at times when it was most convenient for him with our schedule wide open. If he has a fare where he’ll make more than with us to various sites and the villages, we’ve encouraged him to take it.

View from our veranda to the three-unit vacation home as a part of this four-unit resort. The lawn guy is here today, mowing and trimming.

We hadn’t negotiated special rates with him when we arrived when the amounts he charges for trips to the village or for an hourly rate for sightseeing is so reasonable. As we’ve mentioned in the past, here are the costs of his services:

  • FJD $20, USD $9.39: Round trip to the village for shopping, dropping us off and picking us up when we call.  We add an additional FJD $10, USD $4.70 when he helps us carry our purchases to the house.
  • FJD $30, USD $14.09: Cost per hour for sightseeing. 

We’ve noticed when we do both, sightseeing and shopping on the same day, we’re charging for the trip to the village, plus the hourly travel rate. Ah, who’s to complain at these reasonable prices? If we’re gone for four hours at FJD $120, USD $56.35, it’s a very fair fare (no pun intended)!

When we recall paying for taxi fare in London in August 2014, when we visited the highly rated pub (Andover Arms) on two occasions, the round trip taxi fare was USD $50, GBP $32, FJD $106. In Fiji, that amount would give us almost four hours on the road!  

Colorful ocean view from our area.

Although four hours on the roads in Vanua Levu may sound exciting, on this remote island, it would be four hours of bumpy roads, dense greenery, and occasional ocean views, all of which we love and easily experience on shorter trips to specific destinations. We prefer aimlessly driving when we have a rental car, stopping as often as we’d like for photos and restroom breaks.

With the sun shining, we’re excited to get out more often, subject to the availability of the only driver in this village willing to tackle the steep road in this resort area. It would be impossible for us to walk down the long mountainous road. For mountain climbers and seriously fit hikers, it may not be a problem.

How easily we could feel trapped. But, long ago we decided, after realizing we’d need drivers in various countries, we accepted that there would be days we’d want to get out and weren’t able to do so, based on our driver’s availability. Sticking to the same driver or their designated co-driver has been important to us, particularly when safety has been an issue in several countries.

The bright blue of the bay is breathtaking from this elevation.

Upcoming in 46 days, when we fly to the next Fijian Island of Viti Levi, the larger main island, where we’ll stay for one more month, we’ll be renting a car at the Nadi Airport and driving two hours to our new location, again a private house. 

With high crime rates in the downtown Nadi area, when we booked Fiji long ago, we’d decided to stay in another more, remote location where the likelihood of crime is greatly reduced.

Many tourists stay in the Nadi area in resorts and hotels, generally insulated from criminal activities when on site. The risks for tourists escalates when out on the streets in the busy city, as we’ve been warned by the locals here who often travel to Nadi to visit family. Muggings, pickpocketing, and carjacking are not unusual.

Another ocean view from our area.

With our preferred choice of vacation homes as opposed to staying in hotels, we usually don’t have the safety net of on-site security as is often available in most hotels. Generally, one can feel relatively safe from crime in a hotel, although there are isolated exceptions.

Currently, we’re living in a resort but, in the only stand, alone vacation rental house on the property. Further up the hill behind us is a separate building with three apartments, including one penthouse type upscale unit on the top floor. Mario and Tayana’s private residence is off to the side as shown.

When Ratnesh picks us up, he pulls into the driveway of the three-unit building in this resort. The driveway near the steps down to our house below is too steep for stopping the vehicle, making getting in and out nearly impossible.

Junior is around during the day and Mario is on-site in his separate house to our left as we face the ocean. We feel totally safe and protected in this ideal location.

Criminal activity on this island of Vanua Levu is almost non-existent. When we’ve driven by the courthouse on several occasions, located on the edge of town, there are no cars in the parking lot. Most likely, they only open when they have a case. From what we hear, it’s a rare occasion.

Oceanfront view of Mario and Tatyana’s house, much larger than it appears in the photos.  We took this photo from the steep road.

The fact that we prefer living in smaller towns and villages in our travels has more to do with our lack of interest in crowds and the fact that we don’t shop other than for food and supplies as needed. We love the quaint charm and nature of small villages and the friendly, less harried lifestyle of their people. 

For the average tourist, staying in a more populous area in most countries provides endless opportunities to find that special item to bring back home, for oneself, and for gifts for family and friends. Also, easy access to restaurants is an important factor for tourists whereas, for us, it’s irrelevant.

Side view of Mario and Tatyana’s recently built house.

We don’t send our grandchildren trinkets from all over the world. Instead, we send gift cards or gifts that they’d like, not what we think they’d like from a foreign country. If we did, at this point, their bedrooms would be filled with useless touristy type items, eventually to be tossed away. 

Maybe we’re too practical in the minds of others. Then again, how practical is having no home, no stuff other than what fits into three suitcases, a duffel bag and a laptop bag and, changing countries and homes every few months or less?

Have a beautiful and meaningful day!

Photo from one year ago today, October 21, 2014:

We were entranced by this colorful Gold Dust Day Gecko, commonly seen in the Hawaiian Islands, particularly in Maui where we were living one year ago.  This gecko was located on the wall by the pool but, from time to time, we spotted them inside the condo, certainly no big deal. Generally, geckos are harmless if not annoying, leaving droplets of white poop and making peculiar noises. In Fiji, we see new gecko poop in the house every few days. For more details, please click here.

The driving force…Commitment to what seemed impossible…

Fiji’s version of a “quick and easy,” or a superette.

Five years ago, if someone had told me that every morning when I settled in with my mug of coffee, nestled into the comfiest spot I could find, that I would write an essay about my daily life including new photos, I’d have laughed out loud.

In my career when I prepared a letter, an advertisement, or an article for a publication, I labored over it for hours to ensure accuracy, correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Often, I’d reread the item dozens of times. 

Was the message clear and concise? Was the content open and vulnerable enough to appeal to most readers?  Did a professional persona encompass the content?

Until I was satisfied, the work drove me on until completion, rarely taking time out for anything other than grabbing another cup of coffee or tea. Seldom, did I ever leave a project unfinished for another day unless it was a lengthy training manual or proposal I was preparing, in which case I’d only end the day at the end of a chapter, diligently beginning again the following day.

This classic Billy Goat is tied up.

It’s different now. Adrenaline isn’t pumping through my veins nor is my heart racing. After my usual two mugs of coffee, I switch to water or caffeine free iced tea. I don’t need the push. 

My only concern for the day is having ample photos to post. Has inclement weather kept us from exploring? Are the readers tiring of photos of plants, trees, and flowers, my go-to when sightseeing photos are dwindling from our last outing? Bear with me, they will continue.

It’s not a task, writing each day. Nor is it in the category of brushing one’s teeth upon awakening, a habit one can tackle with little if any, forethought. I don’t awaken dreading what lies ahead, the job I undertake each and every morning when we’re not on the move on a travel day. Hardly.

Today’s post is #1174, not a milestone, just a number. How does a person do over 1000 of anything, other than the routines and habits we incorporate into our lives on a daily basis? It’s hard for me to grasp. Were they not numbered, I may have guessed at a lot less, had I not done them every day, year after year, with numbers rolling around in my brain.

Homes for Fijians along the highway. Most homes are this type, above the ground to protect from water seepage.

In thinking of our loyal readers, all over the world, I often wonder if they read our posts as if its a newspaper article they fancy, in a similar way I’d search for Ann Landers in my old newspaper reading days, wondering what tidbits of wisdom I could glean from other people’s lives or perhaps reaffirm the simplicity of mine.

For reasons only imagined, our readers continue to read, through the mundane activities of our daily lives with the same enthusiasm as the excitement of major life-changing events. We marvel as we watch the stats daily, amazed how any one day’s content has little to do with the readership all over the world.

We see the excitement of but a tiny portion of our future; the Pantanal in Brazil, the Galapagos Islands, and Antarctica, all on our “to do,” list, all of which we’re researching now to be booked in the next year or so.  There’s so much world left to see. 

We’re not adventure seekers. We don’t snorkel, scuba dive, or bungee. We have limitations due to my health and yet now, gratefulness washing over me daily for what I can do, as opposed to what I can’t.

Clothes dryers aren’t common in Fiji as in many parts of the world. The humidity these past weeks has made line drying a few day process.

We love life, relishing in each day of good health, of another day to take a “crack at it” to shape and mold our existence to one of joy, freedom, and accomplishment.

The driving force behind this daily exercise in words and photos? To leave a legacy for generations to come? To document a once-in-a-lifetime experience for however long we are able to make it last? To keep our family and friends informed? All of these.

Above all, the thought that even one reader, wherever they may be, can enjoy a daily read that makes them smile, shrug at our foibles, become annoyed with our occasional whining, and say to themselves, “That crazy life is not for me!” This, dear readers, is the driving force. Thank you for the inspiration!

Photo from one year ago today, October 20, 2014:

We took this photo one year ago from the shore at our condo in Maui after police on jet skis had rescued a diver who’d been attacked by a shark. For details on this story and published press photos, please click here.

Sleep…elusive?…Are we willing to change?…

These are so beautiful.

For those lucky people whose head hits the pillow for a straight seven or eight hours of blissful sleep, this post is not for you.

Please read on for the rest of us who thrash and turn fitful most nights, awakening many times, often sleeping no more than four to six hours or even less.

Note the moth or butterfly on the flower in the center of the photo.

Sleeping well became an issue for me many moons ago. In the days when I used to drink alcohol, a few glasses of red wine could easily put me to sleep but cause me to bolt awake during the night, heart racing, unable to sleep. 

When I decided to stop drinking all alcohol quite some time ago for health reasons, I was left with a bad habit, an inability to sleep through the night without waking numerous times or, in more recent years, awakening too early in the morning. 

I believe this is a papaya tree growing in the yard.

Knowing I’ll feel exhausted if I arise at 4:00 am, I struggle to fall back to sleep, if only for an additional hour. On occasion, I do fall back to sleep, but only after I’ve read a book on my phone for an hour or so.

Tom has been plagued with a similar issue, awakening around 4:00 am. He hasn’t had a drink since our last cruise ended on June 11th, when he’s been unable to find his favorite at any of the stores. Thus, our current sleep issues have nothing to do with a few cocktails, which can easily impede good sleep.

These red flowers with a white bloom appear to be in the poinsettia family.

We’ve read considerable information about poor sleeping habits, referred to as “sleep hygiene.” Give me a break! It’s hard to relate to sleep as hygiene! But, we can relate to sleep as a habit, one that we do have the power to change if we’re willing to go through the necessary steps repeatedly. 

Sleep “Hygiene” Tips

The promotion of regular sleep is known as sleep hygiene. The following is a list of sleep hygiene tips that can be used to improve sleep.

The CDC and the National Sleep Foundation recommendations:

  • Go to bed at the same time each night and rise at the same time each morning.
  • Make sure your bedroom is a quiet, dark, and relaxing environment, neither too hot nor too cold.
  • Make sure your bed is comfortable and use it only for sleeping and not other activities, such as reading, watching TV, or listening to music. Remove all TVs, computers, and other “gadgets” from the bedroom.
  • Avoid large meals before bedtime.

This is not to say we believe everything we read online. However, the above mantra is repeated time and again.

Looking up the names of plants and flowers uses lots of data. Thus, many of the plants and flowers we post remain nameless for now.

Item #5 is missing from the above: No overthinking and worrying in bed.

One of the most significant factors for us in our travels is the lack of a comfortable bed and bedding. Overall, most vacation homes don’t have comfortable beds. Plus, it’s hard not to think that other people have slept in this bed over often years and used this same bedding pulled close to their heads and faces.

These same thoughts can plague us when staying in hotels, where in many cases, many more travelers have slept in that bed and used that bedding than in a vacation home. Most of us try to avoid thinking about this reality by assuming that everything is washed and clean. We’ve had to let such thoughts waft away long ago.

These plants are often found in tropical climates.

Now in Fiji, the bed is outrageously uncomfortable. It’s a single odd-shaped mattress with little padding, lots of springs, all sitting atop a wood futon-type bed frame. The bedding doesn’t fit properly, causing it to bunch during the night. Of course, we’re very grateful that Mario immediately replaced the mattress when it was infested with ants on which we slept the first night.

In the village, we don’t see any household goods or bedding stores. The owners of vacation homes in more remote locations such as this make do with what’s available locally. We appreciate what we have. After all, we live in a sleepy little village on a relatively low population island in the middle of the ocean, far removed from many conveniences.

Then again, we never slept well in Kauai, where we had the best bed and bedding of any vacation home in our travels. The roosters awoke Tom each day, and I couldn’t wait to get up to see “Birdie” and his wife stop by for a song and a visit, nuts provided.

These gorgeous red flowers are growing in the shade beneath our veranda overhang.

Poor sleep is all about us. If exhausted enough, they can sleep in a chair, on the floor, or in an airplane.  It’s the tricks our minds play on us that generally keep us awake, and although we don’t worry and overthink our lives while in bed, we do think about one thing, why we aren’t sleeping?

In itself, it’s this contemplation about lack of sleep that becomes the nemesis, the driving force behind the middle-of-the-night angst and discomfort, noticing every bunched bottom sheet, every stabbing spring in the mattress, every sound in the background. It’s us. Entirely.

Are we willing to make the necessary changes to break the bad habit? For both of us, it’s the reading on our phones when we’re in bed and avoiding thoughts about our inability to sleep. I’ve tried several nights to no avail, surely not trying long enough to affect a change. We aren’t “willing” to do the work. 

Bananas continue to thrive in the rains.

We’re entirely “capable” of making the necessary changes. With all of the adaptation, we must exercise in each new country. We don’t seem to have the “willingness” to do what is necessary in this regard, such as stop reading books on our phones while in bed and stop thinking about “not sleeping.”

For many of us, it’s not unlike going on a diet to lose weight. We’re capable. We aren’t willing.

Photo from one year ago, October 18, 2014:

A Hawaiian Tree Snail, the size of the palm of a hand, was attached to a wall by the pool in the condo in Maui. For more details as we settled into our new home, please click here.

A day we’ll remember…Contact with the outside world…

We can only imagine how frustrating it must be for sailors and tourists hesitating to partake in boating activities during this rainy period.

Yesterday was unlike any other day we’ve experienced in our travels. No, it wasn’t a typhoon or a hurricane, but it could have been. The winds whipped around this house shaking it on its stilts that hold up the ocean side of the house, the balance wedged into the steep hill. 

The rain came down as hard as we’ve ever seen, steadily, hour after hour. At one point Tom said, “Gee, I hope there’s not a landslide!” I hadn’t thought of that. Then, after he said it, I did think of how possible it could be living on the side of this mountain, after rain falling day after day with only a few exceptions since we arrived 39 days ago. 

(After today, we’ll stop writing about rain for a while unless, of course, if there’s a typhoon or we do in fact, float away. We’re tired of it too, as most of you are into reading about it. You’ll see it’s ended when we post sunny day photos).

On the last partially sunny day, we drove through Yaroi, a small village further down the road from Savusavu.

It was a good thing we shopped a day earlier, avoiding the worst of it. This morning, still cloudy and outrageously humid, the rain is stopped at the moment, for however long we don’t know. For the first time in days, we can see across the bay through a shroud of haze and humidity.

If the sun appeared today, we’d still have to stay put for a few days to let the roads dry, never expecting Rasnesh to make it up the steep incline on the dirt road which by now, is all mud. 

Houses of the local villagers lined the highway.

The house is still intact with only a little water seeping in through the jalousie windows which we kept closed during the worst of it, wiping it up throughout the day. This morning, we were able to open the windows again for fresh air and yet the windows remain covered in raindrops unable to evaporate in the humid air.

Four days ago, I did some hand washing, and today it’s still damp. This morning, when I grabbed my pill case to swallow a few prescriptions and vitamins, most of them had disintegrated into powdery dust. I salvaged what I could and replaced the rest. Now our pill cases will remain in the refrigerator which is already packed to its limits as shown in yesterday’s post.

School for special education.

Two years ago, we thought the humidity in Kenya was the worst we’d ever seen. The zippers on our luggage turned green from the humidity. Since that period, we’ve become smarter and regularly zip and unzip the bags at least every few weeks whenever we’ve lived in humid climates.

Yesterday, Junior, soaked through and through, stopped by to see if we were OK. That’s the kind of service we get here. And later than usual, Shalote came with fresh towels and sheets to change the bed. She, too, was soaking wet. I wondered how her slim, lithe body would manage walking in the strong winds.

Entrance to the school which didn’t appear to be in session.

Sure, we’re looking forward to getting out to see more of this island’s beauty and to take many more photos.  But, we’re easily maintaining an upbeat attitude keeping ourselves busy. 

This rainy period of time has given us the opportunity to investigate future travel options and slowly, we’re coming to a place where we’ll be able to pin down some decisions. Once we do, we’ll certainly share them here.

We weren’t able to determine if this old structure is occupied.

During food prep yesterday, I couldn’t seem to get my hands or the wood countertops dry no matter how many paper or cloth towels I used. By the end of the day, my fingertips were wrinkly comparable to spending a long period in water. 

Even the cloth furniture and our clothing felt damp. Thank goodness the temperatures remained cool enough to make the humidity a little more tolerable.

Most houses are on some type of raised structure in the event of inclement weather.

As for today, we continue to be housebound. With a 70% chance of rain hopefully dwindling over the next week, we’re content with the current situation knowing eventually, we’ll be able to get out and about. 

Tom’s been busy with his favorite pastimes; Ancentry.com, managing investments; connecting with his railroad cronies, family, and friends on Facebook; watching and reading US news; and listening to his favorite radio podcasts from Minnesota, KSTP 1500, “Garage Logic.” He used to wear earbuds when listening until recently when I’ve also enjoyed listening to the show.

Beaches are still eye-catching on cloudy days.

Yesterday, I downloaded 10 books in “Kindle Unlimited” at Amazon.com (USD $10, FJD $21 a month for all the books one can read, never having more than 10 “checked out” in any given time). In 24 hours, I’ll breeze through two books especially when my computer was busy downloading movies and TV shows on Graboid.com preventing me from doing anything else at the same time. In one day, I used five gigs of data, more than the average person may use in a month.

These online resources provide us with entertainment, information, and contact with the outside world. With our newly purchased Vodafone Internet dongles, we have a great connection, easily able to enjoy our pastime activities.

Have a peaceful or action-packed weekend, whichever suits your desires!

Photo from one year ago today, October 17, 2014:

A year ago today, we were settled into our new home in Maui, a beautiful condo overlooking the ocean with a pool and everything we could possibly need.  With the prospect of Hurricane Ana still looming, Tom decided he’d better check out the beach outside our condo before the deluge. For details, please click here.

A rainy and windy trip to the market…Rounding out the week’s menu…

Talk about tropical climate!  Today’s view from the veranda.
The muddy roads, the long, steep drive down and then back up this mountain was an adventure in itself. All we needed to do in the pelting rain, was to get to the village to shop at the Vodafone kiosk, the Farmers Market, the New World grocer, and Fiji Meats where Helen was holding some items for us.  

Helen often runs out of ground beef, referred to as mince in many parts of the world, requiring we call ahead to place an order for the meat and roasted chickens to ensure we can get what we need. Otherwise, she runs out of chickens by noon each day and other meats within a few days of her Saturday delivery.

All the meat in Fiji is grass-fed. The beef cuts are different than those we’ve found in other countries and the beef can be tough if not slow roasted. With only a countertop oven and no large roasting pans, slow roasting is not an option, especially when it would use considerable power to run. (We try to stay mindful as to how much power we use, wherever we may travel).

As a result, the only beef we eat is the grass-fed mince, ground pork, and free-range chickens, which we’ve found to be excellent. We’ve narrowed our weekly menu down to a science, carefully planning each day’s meals. 

The tiny freezer contains meat for the week, streaky bacon, bagged portions of Tom’s daily egg dish, homemade low carb flax and almond meal lemon poppy seed muffins and low carb coconut cookies. Also, ice, ots of ice.  We Americans like ice with our cold tea.

After trying various cuts of the beef we’ve determined we prefer the taste and texture of the mince better than the other cuts of beef. It’s not your usual “ground beef.”  It has a texture and flavor far beyond the red-dyed ground beef we’ve had most of our lives. It’s comparable to a rough grind of the finest steaks in the world, even a bit chewy as if roughly ground at home. No dyes, no chemicals. The way we like it. 

To add fat to the beef, we often include ground pork, “pork mince,” making some of the most delicious “mince” dishes we’ve had to date. We have a variety of recipes we alternate, never becoming bored with the varied options. 

Unable to purchase fish, other than huge whole fish caught fresh daily, we haven’t had fish once since our arrival. With little room in the tiny freezer, buying an entire fish makes no sense, nor are the knives here sharp enough to filet a fish, even if there was room in the freezer. 

The freezer door is also jam-packed. I’m not as organized in putting food in the fridge. Its not my “thing.” I stuff it in. If the door closes, I’m happy. Notice the ice pack, just in case, we old-timers, have an achy joint. Thank goodness, we haven’t had to use it since we left Hawaii.

Having beef and pork, including occasional pork chops, five nights a week and chicken two nights has been how we’ve rounded out the week’s menu. Of course, there’s a degree of repetition, but with the good recipes we’ve found or created, we hardly flinch at having a particular dish time and again.

There’s a favorite recipe, Mushroom Burger Scramble, that we particularly love, making it as often as the ingredients are available. The recipe requires fresh mushrooms which are only available on occasion at the New World Market. Mushrooms aren’t a popular ingredient in Fijian cooking and aren’t available at the Farmers Market.

The recipe, which I borrowed from a low carb site, (click here for the recipe) also requires cream cheese. For weeks, there was no cream cheese at the market. I asked the store manager, Sarah, if they ever get cream cheese and she said they do, but not often. A few weeks later, there was a dozen packages of Philadelphia Cream Cheese for sale in the refrigerated case.

A few weeks ago we finally found cream cheese at the market. Now, they keep it well stocked. Also, I’d asked for a “turner” and a few weeks later, it was there.

Yesterday, after our usual purchases at the Farmers Market, we walked over to the grocery store to find Sarah smiling when she saw us. They had a huge bin filled with fresh mushrooms. We grabbed all we could, changing our menu for the upcoming week to include the above recipe, now that we’d have mushrooms.

Sarah and I have chatted on each of our weekly visits. Yesterday, she invited us to her home for dinner. I felt badly having to decline when she was so kind to offer. I explained, profusely apologizing for declining, that my life-changing way of eating would make it impossible for her to prepare traditional Fijian foods that I could eat, when most include starches and sugar. 

How we’d have loved the experience. But, I always remind myself  that we wouldn’t be traveling the world if it weren’t for my way of eating totally changing my life. By now, surely I’d have been in a wheelchair or living like my dear eldest sister with the same condition, who’s been lying in bed 24/7 in horrible pain for the past 10 years. I was heading down that path a mere four and a half years ago. Today, I’m pain-free and active.

The black bag contains the remaining chicken which we’ll have tonight. Today, I’m making the muffins and Tom’s green beans. Each day we stay in, I cook a portion of the foods we eat regularly, spacing it out to ensure I don’t have a single day that requires all-day prep. Messy? No matter.

After the market, Ratnesh picked us up and we headed a kilometer down to the road to see Helen at Fiji Meats to pick up our order: two roasted chickens, several packages of the finest streaky bacon on the planet and numerous packages of beef and pork mince. 

We’d need to eat the two small roasted chickens over two nights when the fresh mushrooms needed to be used as soon as possible when they don’t stay fresh more than a few days.

Since we loaded up on extra products they happened to have in stock, we spent more than usual for a total, between the three markets, of USD $228, FJD $484. This included two packages of ground coffee which is referred to as “plunger coffee” as shown in the photo below. 

The plunger coffee sells for FJD $14.89, USD $7.03, for a 200 gram bag which lasts for a week. Each package has a complimentary little package attached.  The coffee is grown in Fiji and compares to the finest we had in Hawaii.

New World has been out of plunger coffee for the past two weeks. While I shopped, Tom ran out to the street to two other markets looking for plunger coffee, thrilled to have found these two packages, the only available.

Soon, we were back on the road home. It had rained during our shopping trip. We were wet but not “to the bone” as expected. We hung our parkas to dry on the backs of the dining chairs (no hanging rods here) and the dampness in our clothes soon dried.

Getting up the steep muddy road to the house was equivalent to “Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride” as Ratnesh expertly maneuvered his way up the muddy rocky climb. We couldn’t help but squeal and laugh with the roughness of the drive up the mountain.

To begin the shopping trip each week, Ratnesh drops us off at the Vodafone kiosk on the street picking us up later after we call from the market as we’re checking out. As a final stop, he waits for us while we collect the meat at Helen’s store. 

Today, I’ll work on making more room in the refrigerator to fit these eggplants. A few times each week, I make a huge wok of vegetables, stir-fried in ghee, well seasoned, often including eggplant, peppers, onion, carrots (small amount) and lots of fresh garlic. Tom won’t taste it. For him, I make a batch of fresh sautéed green beans with onions, streaky bacon and spices, also cooked in ghee.

He helps us carry our huge haul up the long uneven walk to the house. Lately, with his help, we’ve been able to carry everything to the house in one trip. As a result, we’ve paid him FJD $30, USD $14.13 for the round trip as opposed to his usual FJD $20, USD $9.42. 

Many of the local businesses only accept cash payments. The New World market is the only store that accepts credit cards, charging an additional 2.5% fee on the total bill. 

Between the Vodafone store, the Farmers Market, the meat market and the driver, all requiring cash only, we spent FJD $435, USD $205. (This total included FJD $150, USD $71 cash for data). At New World, we paid, FJD $260, USD $123. 

With the fees charged by our bank for using the ATM in a foreign country and the charges the local bank charges for using the ATM machine, it pays to use a credit card at the grocery store.

Its raining so hard we can’t see the ocean.

Once back home, as always, I spent the better part of an hour washing and sorting all the produce and making room in the tiny refrigerator, the same size we’ve had many times in the past. We’re getting good at this.

We never left the house the remainder of the day when the rain continued non-stop as is the case again today.  So be it. We have plenty of food, plenty of “strong signal” data, lots of books to read, and now a plethora of movies and TV shows we’ve recently downloaded to watch in the evenings. We’re almost tied at playing Gin.  What more could we possibly need or want? 

Photo from one year ago today, October 16, 2014:

One year ago today we flew from Honolulu, Oahu to Maui. Many flights had been canceled due to warnings for possible Hurricane Ana. Luckily, our flight made it through and after picking up the rental car, we headed to the Costco store in Maui, where we loaded up on food and supplies we may need if the hurricane hit with power outages. For more details, please click here including the final total expenses for the 11 nights in Waikiki Beach. 

Who’ll Stop the Rain…

Horses on the grounds of Namale Resort.

The Credence Clearwater Revival song, “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” came to Tom’s mind when early this morning, I asked him about a piece of rain-related music as, once again, the rain continued. He’s a “rock and roll” kind of guy, choosing this song.   

Today, we have to get out. Mother Hubbard’s cupboard thing… it’s bare. We don’t have anything left to eat except for three cans of tuna and two dozen eggs. Yeah, I know tuna salad which we prefer in hot weather, not when it’s cool and rainy.

Here’s the 10-day forecast for Fiji.  It looks like we’re in for a lot more rain. 

The sign near the Namale Resort & Spa entrance where we’re booked for our anniversary and photos.

My bill hat and parka are ready to go, although neither is waterproof.  There’s no umbrella here or in our luggage. Besides, we’d look foolish with an umbrella, although many older Fijians carry umbrellas as a parasol to protect themselves from the heat of the sun (when it’s shining). The Fijian people don’t seem to mind walking in the rain. 

We’ve been soaked many times during these past three years. This time won’t be any different, and we’ll carry on as we have in the past, getting drenched to the bone. In no time at all, we’ll be back home, changing into dry clothing.

Speaking of these past three years, in 16 days, on October 31st, it will be our third anniversary since we left Minnesota to begin our journey. We decided to celebrate and, in doing so, hopefully, create some good photo opportunities along the way.

The Blue Lagoon beach is near Namale Resort.  We’d taken these blue sky photos when we were out on a partially clear day a few weeks ago.

Yesterday, we booked a special tour and lunch at Namale Resort, owned by the world-renowned motivational speaker, Anthony Robbins, whose seminars son Richard and I attended over the years. Namale Resort is where hungry-minded travelers come from worldwide for the costly and inspiring seminars held on-site at the exclusive resort in Savusavu. 

The all-inclusive resort doesn’t allow entry from non-guests for dining or tours. I wrote to the marketing department, and they’ve agreed to let us do a story on the resort (after they checked out our site) and will host a lunch for us to celebrate our third anniversary.

We’ve chosen lunch instead of dinner to ensure we’d be able to take photos in daylight. Besides, the steep, uneven, and unlit walk from the road to our house would be too dangerous to tackle at night in the dark.

Another popular resort in the area, Savasi Island Resort. Prices aren’t posted online.

We considered an overnight stay at a resort or a boat charter but, it didn’t make sense with the constant rain and expense. What a disappointment it would be to have arranged and paid for a boat charter when it could quickly be raining. We’ve certainly had that experience many times over these past years.

As for booking a night or two in a resort to celebrate our anniversary, that idea didn’t make sense when we’re already living in a lovely spa with an ocean view, a pool, housekeeping services, and basically, all we need. What would be the point of paying for two resorts simultaneously? 

Our tour of Namale Resort has been arranged with open arms, and we look forward to sharing details of the upscale property where a standard ocean view room is around  US $2000, FJI 4273 a night.  We look forward to sharing the details and photos of the experience as we celebrate yet another year in our lives of travel.

As for upcoming photos, we’re chomping at the bit. With enough on hand to get us through another ten posts, we’re looking forward to getting out on a sunny day or at least a partially clear day. 

The beach along the road near Namale Resort was lined with vegetation.

Many throughout the world live in climates with frequent, if not daily rainy weather. Here’s an interesting slide show of the ten rainiest places on earth, including two in Hawaii. We lived in both of these locations this past year.

While in Kauai for four months, it rained to some degree almost every day. The mountain and waterfalls shown in this slide show were in our view from the backyard in Princeville. 

When we soon head out at 1 pm for the trip to the village, we’ll bring along the camera as always. One never knows what treasures we may find.  We’ll be back tomorrow with more.

Have a fine day!

Photo from one year ago today, October 14, 2014:

USS Missouri photo was taken from the launch to World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. For more photos, please click here.

Planning for the future …Error correction from yesterday’s post…Lots of boats, now and then…

Cars and trucks can easily fit inside the ferry. Prices vary by weight as shown here at the ferry company’s website

In yesterday’s post, I’d placed a caption under an ocean view photo that sleeping accommodations weren’t available on the ferry that travels overnight from Vanua Levu to Viti Levu. 

I was wrong in my assumption that there were no cabins available after hearing from locals about passengers sitting up all night for the overnight crossing. Usually, we’ll have investigated such facts and reported accordingly.  We apologize for the error.

The ferry travels from Savusavu to Viti Levu once a day. It leaves in the afternoon, arriving at 5 am.

This was nagging at me as being inaccurate. This morning, I researched online, now able to do so with a good connection, to discover there are cabins available on the local ferry departing from Savusavu as shown below with the information available at the ferry company’s website

From what I can determine, these prices may not have been updated since 2011. Please call or check further for updated pricing:

                                                            SUVA-  NATOVI – SAVUSAVU RATES
PASSENGERS    VEHILCES 
 Suva/Natovi/SSV   VEHILCE  Suva/Natovi/SSV  RETURN
CABINS SENIBUA 1 $256.00 (Ret-$512)   TYPE 1 WAY  
  SENIBUA 2 $256.00   40 Footer $1,800.00  $2,400.00
  SENIBUA 3 $256.00   20 Footer $1200.00 $1,600.00
  SLEEPER $86.00 (Ret – $172)   12 Wheeler $825.00 $1100.00
        10 Wheeler $825.00 $1100.00
        9   Ton $675.00 $900.00
        7   Ton $650.00 $850.00
        5   Ton $525.00 $700.00
        4   Ton $525.00 $700.00
        3   Ton $490.00 $650.00
ECONOMY CLASS ADULTS $55.00 (Ret-$110)   2   Ton $360.00 $480.00
19 – 25 yrs STUDENTS – UNIVERSITY $45.00(Ret – $90)   1  Ton $365.00 $350.00
14-18 yrs STUDENTS-SECONDARY $35.00(Ret – $70)   Under 1 Ton $265.00 $350.00
6 – 13 yrs STUDENTS-PRIMARY $30.00 (Ret – $60)        
3-5 YRS TODDLERS $15.00 (Ret- $30)        
2 yrs and Below Infants FREE

Most likely, locals prefer not to bear the added expense of reserving a cabin when they’ve become used to the overnight crossing in order to visit family on the main island. The above prices are for a one-way crossing. 

As shown, the cost of transporting a car can be pricey, although many locals don’t own cars, instead, using public transportation when visiting most of the villages on this island.

When we travel to Tasmania in 2016/2017, we may decide to take the ferry from Australia with or without a rental car, depending on which proves to make more sense at the time. We have plenty of time to decide.

Many boats are moored in the harbor, some for rent for tourist’s experiences.

For now, we’re thinking down the road. We’ve located a possible rental to fill the last gap in our schedule while we’re in Sydney and will share details within a few weeks. We’re still checking out a few others possibilities and hope to make a decision soon, sharing details here.

In the past, we’ve found we prefer to be booked for a period of two years. At this point, we’re discussing possibilities once we leave the US in the summer of 2017.  For most, this seems a long way off. With our way of life, booking well in advance is a necessary element to ensure there are good options available to us. 

Sailing is a popular activity in the Fijian Islands.

We’ve definitely decided on South America as our next foray into the unknown. With an endless array of options, we’ve been drawn to the massive continent for some time. After South America we could begin repeat visits to various continents but, we’re determined to explore Asia and its vast and varied options.

Upcoming next year, we’ll have a glimpse of Southeast Asia when we tour the Mekong River, a cruise we’ve already purchased and paid in full for with a two-for-one rate. Then, of course, we’re booked in Phuket, Thailand in 2016, another country in Southeast Asia.

One of the ferry boats servicing the islands.

Way down the road, we hope to find our way back to Europe and Africa with so much more calling to us. The world is a huge place. There’ll never be a point we’ll be able to say, “We’ve seen it all.” 

We face the reality that in years to come, health issues may have a bearing on this degree of travel and simply, may be too taxing for advancing age. We often mention our first cruise outside the US on January 3, 2013, when at dinner in the main dining room we met a lovely couple, well into their 90’s, continuing to travel the world.  They were both still full of life and enthusiasm. 

Captain Cook cruise ship that tours the Fiji Islands, based out of the main island of Viti Levu.

The older couple inspired us, giving us hope that with diligent efforts for continuing good health, careful planning, and a positive state of mind, we could possibly continue on for years to come. 

We remain grateful and, hopeful, as we treasure each moment, rain or shine, each and every day. Yep, it’s raining again today. But, we don’t mind at all. The nearby baby goat is making its usual plea for attention; the nearby cow is mooing, a multitude of roosters are crowing and the birds are singing.  We don’t mind at all.

Photo from one year ago today, October 14, 2014:

With a bad cough and cold one year ago, I decided not to go to Pearl Harbor with Tom.  I’d toured it many years ago, long before I met Tom. He ended having a great experience on his own taking, his time reading every printed word without me tagging along. For more, his excellent photos of Pearl Harbor, please click here.

Photos taken this morning…An early morning on another rainy day…A blazing year ago photo below!

Breadfruit growing in the yard, a popular item in the islands. Here’s a good article on breadfruit. We’d love to try this which is the size of a grapefruit but, it contains 26 grams of carbohydrates and 11 grams of sugar in 1/4 of a fruit.

Cabin fever hasn’t set in yet. We’re good. The cool breezes, the sound of the rain pattering on the tile roof, the birds singing, and the contrast of colors in the bright green vegetation inspired me to take photos at 6:30 this morning.

Already showered and dressed after a 5:45 bolt out of bed, following Tom’s 5:30 rising, our day began on a bright note, as usual, rain or shine. With 70% to 90% rain expected over the five-day forecast, we keep our chins up, knowing eventually this will end. 

Part of us accepts the premise that nature needs the rain as we watch the vegetation bloom and brighten into a plethora of shades of color. Each rainy morning, we notice subtle differences as they escalate into a splash of colors some hardly recognizable to our eyes. Who’s to complain?

The kitchen towels never dried in the rain.  Today, we’ll hand these off to Usi with our dirty laundry and she’ll dry them.

When the sun shines again, we’ll begin to tackle the list of sites to see during our next outing with Ratnesh.  In the interim, we’ll continue our regular and highly entertaining visits to the village, rain, or shine. No doubt, it’s good to get out. 

Not having a rental car could be challenging for most long term travelers.  Somehow, we established a level of acceptance of this fact, that sometimes renting a car doesn’t work. In the case here, as we’ve mentioned in the past, a four wheel drive vehicle would be required. 

Such a vehicle is outrageously expensive in the long term on this small island, higher than the rent on the house. We were well aware of this when we booked this location when Mario had explained in an email that we’d have a great driver. We have no regrets now.

Ratnesh is comparable to having a personal tour guide. Having lived here all of his life, he’s educating us as we travel about, not only on local customs and lifestyle but also, on the scenery. Also, many rough roads are best avoided on one’s own, due to navigability issues. On our own we wouldn’t have had a clue as to which roads to avoid, driving beyond the Savusavu area.

The local ferry travels from Savusavu to Nadi in Viti Levu. It’s a long overnight trip arriving at 5 am.  Sleeping cabins are available for an additional cost.

We’ve had drivers in Belize, Kenya, South Africa, and Morocco. Not having a rental car in these countries never impeded our ability to embrace our surroundings and in most cases, enhanced it with the competency and knowledge of our drivers. 

How easily we recall Okee Dokee in South Africa, with whom we’ve stayed in touch as she prepares for her upcoming wedding. We happily watch for photos and the progression of her plans on Facebook and also write back and forth in email. We couldn’t be more thrilled for her!

The times we spent, the three of us, driving through Marloth Park and the surrounding areas will always remain as some of the favorite memories of our world travels. At times, we all laughed so hard, we cried. 

Our single chaise lounge is available for sunning when the suns appear.

Each week she and I traveled the long distance to Komatipoort to grocery shop and to purchase more data.  During those drives, we engaged in typical “girl talk” as well as stopping for wildlife photos. She’d help me find items at the market which often left us in fits of laughter.

Often, we stopped to check out the products offered by farmers and vendors who’d sit on a box on the side of the road for hours at a time. She’d purchase lychee nuts and I’d purchase avocados in a huge bag of 10, always more than I could eat which I shared with her and the household helpers. We’ll always remember those special times with Okee Dokee.

Each country we’ve visited has left us with special memories. We anticipate this will be the case as we continue on our journey. When perusing our itinerary this morning, I couldn’t fathom how quickly the time has passed and how soon we’ll be in New Zealand (in three months) and Bali (in less than seven months).

Having the experience of seeing so much of the South Pacific by the time we depart in 18 months, with six upcoming cruises a few of which will circumvent Australia, surely we’ll feel satisfied that we’ve had a good perspective of this part of the world.

A colorful little orange flower blooming on this white lily.

So much more of the world awaits us. Had we started this journey 20 years ago, we’d still have only been able to see a portion of what the world has to offer. The time we have left is in the hands of our higher power and the degree to which we can maintain a level of good health.

With our diligent budgeting, which we’ll continue to adjust for inflation and the value of the dollar throughout the world, we expect it will become more challenging to find affordable options in years to come. Rather than risk our financial stability, we’ll continually adjust our expectations accordingly.

For today as we sit back on yet another rainy day, we’ll resume our search to fulfill the one remaining gap in our schedule (39 days) over the next 18 months. From there, we’re watching for new cruise postings yet to appear, to take us back out to sea to continue on our chosen path.

Have a happy and fulfilling day!


Photo from one year ago today, October 13, 2014:

How can it be a full year ago that we took this photo in Waikiki Beach?  The time has flown. For more details as we wound down our time in Oahu, soon to move to Maui, please click here.