Moving cruises to future dates…Dealing with unknowns in time of Covid-19…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 10, 2020 with 0 Comment

Dozens of school kids walked along the beach while on a field trip to celebrate the end of the school year in Sumbersari, Bali, for a one-month holiday. When they return to school, they’ll enter the next grade as they continue their studies. Wearing school uniforms is required with a color change on different days of the week.

At present, we have four cruises booked from November 2020 from Lisbon, Portugal to Cape Town, South Africa, and three in and around Japan between February 2022 to May 2022.

The final of the three cruises ends in Vancouver, Canada, at which time we’ll spend time in the US for a family visit, flying from state to state to visit everyone.

Beautiful colors and scenery at high tide from our vacation villa.

For now, we’re thinking in terms of the upcoming cruise from Lisbon, Portugal, to Cape Town, South Africa, which is scheduled to embark on November 10, 2020. Every few days, we check Amazara Cruise Line’s website to see if the cruise has been canceled based on Covid-19. After all, that’s only five months from now.

When we originally booked the Azamara cruise for 22 nights, we’d done so early enough to book it for a reasonable price for the unusual itinerary with ports of calls on the western coast of Africa, a route rarely taken by cruise ships.

The kids were happy and playful as they chatted with one another on their field trip.

This cruise appealed to us with its unique ports of call and the resulting disembarkation in Cape Town, where we’d planned to spend a few days and then head to Marloth Park, with visa restrictions allowing us to stay for the remainder of 90 days less than those we spent in Cape Town.

We’ve never visited Cape Town and decided this cruise would be an excellent opportunity to visit one of the most popular tourist locations as one of the “most beautiful cities” in the world.

The colors and shadows change in the constant daylight sunshine.

When we booked this particular cruise two years ago, we hesitated a little over the price since Azamara’s smaller ships with 690 passengers are considerably higher than larger cruises, often with thousands of passengers.

But, we were fortunate to lock in an excellent early booking price of IDR 950992, US $12,598 (for two). Now that same cruise is listed as IDR 1388819, US $18,398, a difference of INR 437828, US $5,800.

This breathtaking view never ceased to amaze us.

This is all well and good, but we are confident this original cruise will be canceled. As we approach July 7, 2020, when the final payment is due and, if the cruise line hasn’t yet canceled the cruise, to hold our best pricing, we’d have to pay the balance in full, less the INR 83036, US $1100 deposit we paid at the time of booking.

If they cancel after we’ve paid the balance in full, we could end up waiting three months or more to get a refund. We don’t want them holding our money for so long. On another note, if they cancel and we don’t ask for the money back, most likely, they’ll offer a 125% credit toward a future cruise. What happens next?

Each day, we’ve rescued many grasshoppers who were drowning in the pool. Once we take them out, they dry off for a while and then fly off. Some appeared dead but often came to life in no time at all.

They’ll raise the price of the 2021 similar cruise (of 21 nights as opposed to 22 nights), and if using our 125% credit (if we chose not to get the money back), we will end up paying a higher price for the similar cruise.

However, if we move our booking for the November 2020 cruise to a similar cruise in 2021, our best booking price will roll over to the transferred booking. I hope this makes sense.

This grasshopper was lethargic after I rescued them from the pool but soon flew away.

The disadvantages of this cruise are the differences in some ports of call and the fact it arrives in Cape Town on December 22, 2021 (the day before Tom’s birthday), making arrival at Christmas time tricky. Last night, considering the time difference, we requested the change with our rep at Vacations-to-Go. We should be receiving a new confirmation for the 2021 booking ending in Cape Town by this evening. We’ll deal with that later.

So, here is a possible scenario for now. We leave India as soon as both borders open to fly to Marloth Park via Johannesburg and then on to Nelspruit with a one-hour drive to Marloth Park. We’ll spend three months there with additional travels in Africa to extend the visa by going in and out of South Africa.

The view, directly in front of our villa, as the tide rapidly washed closer to the edge of the infinity pool. Logs and ocean debris often accompany the incoming tide, which later disappears as the tide rolls back out to sea.

We’ll plan to work our way back to Lisbon, Portugal, for the eventual sailing in 2021 and then back to South Africa for another visit. At this point, with India and South Africa borders closed to international travel, we have no idea how long it will be between our first and second arrival in South Africa. We’ll figure it out as we go.

As for the remaining three cruises in 2022 in and around Japan, we’ll play it by ear and see what transpires over the next many months. These cruises are all on Celebrity with much higher passenger counts. Later, we’ll decide if they are safe in light of Covid-19.

A praying mantis on the glass door.

Thanks to many of our readers with suggestions for future posts after yesterday’s post asking for suggestions, shown here. We so appreciate your valued input, and many of you will see your offers in posts to come.

Hang in there, everyone! Hopefully, soon, these challenging times will pass.

Photo from one year ago today, June 10, 2019:

Happy on a hill, cows in Connemara, Ireland. For more photos, please click here.

Foraging for fodder…Not easy in almost three months of lockdown…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 9, 2020 with 0 Comment

Water spewed out of this giraffe’s mouth after taking a big gulp of water.

Tom often teased me how I never was stricken with “writer’s block” after years of writing new posts each day. Today’s post is #2861 since the onset of our site in March 2012.

As we traveled the world, even while staying in certain areas for three months or more, there was always a plethora of topics, whether meaningful or inconsequential, a topic and subsequent story easily slipping off my fingertips to the keyboard of my laptop.

An appropriately named Fish Eagle stood to watch over the “catch of the day.”

At times, in a public arena, Tom would kindly praise me for being able to spew a topic in a matter of moments as I began each day’s post. When asked how this was possible, I answered, “I have the world at my fingertips. It’s impossible to run out of topics.”

Oh sure, on occasions, I’d contemplate for a moment or two by checking out the world and local news. But, to keep our site from being politically motivated, topic options were slim from the outside world. Instead, we often looked within our little world at the time.

While viewing the Crocodile River in Kruger National Park from Serena Oasis, aka Amaazing (spelling is correct for this restaurant) River View, we noticed this solitary giraffe approaching the water.

Much to our surprise, even when the topics were somewhat infinitesimal, our loyal readers still “came to call” to see what was transpiring in our little world, often a vulnerable reveal of our thoughts, concerns, and dreams. We thank you for that.

However, when the lockdown in Mumbai began months ago, I knew for a while we’d have no trouble coming up with topics as life settled into its new, relatively boring state of being. But, now, all this time later, we’ve hit a wall.

Several times, he bent down, preparing to take a drink but hesitated, standing and looking around. Giraffes are most vulnerable to predators while bending down to drink. The only times they bend down other than to care for a newborn.

It’s a wall so massive that today, after a bad night’s sleep and my brain operating on “slow” mode, the very topic has become “it,” the hitting of that wall.

Last week there was a cyclone. Tany weeks earlier, we weren’t allowed to leave our floor, having to dine in our room, which in itself became a topic for several posts, eventually bleeding into several other posts.
That gave us a few days of fodder.

Many of our topics have included repeats of old topics going back as far as 2013. At times, while on the 27 cruises on which we sailed since 2013, I worried I’d run out of topics, especially on the longer cruises from 24 to 33 nights. Somehow, something transpired each day to elicit a new post the following day easily.

Lions, cheetahs, leopards, and crocodiles may attack a drinking giraffe.

While spending a total of 18 months in Marloth Park out of the first seven years, I was concerned that the endless flow of wildlife photos and stories would eventually bore our readers. Apparently, they didn’t, when our readers continued to visit, day after day, month after month.

While in 2019, spending months recovering from open-heart surgery while in South Africa and beyond, unable to go out and about, you stayed with us when I whined about not feeling well and the slow recovery. But, even then, you stayed with us.

He didn’t stay down for more than a few seconds, well-aware and fearful of his vulnerability.

And now… Here we are, entering the third month of a mandatory lockdown in a standard-sized hotel room in Mumbai, India, with no new photos and no new events other than the mundane realities of our current status, and yet, you are still here.

No, I don’t say this as a prelude to ending our daily posts. We will continue as long as we have access to a decent WiFi signal and the electrical power to supply a router’s operation.

Carefully bending his knees, he gracefully dipped for a drink.

The fact you have stayed with us drives us to continue regardless of how profound the topics may or may not be. Our lockdown status could conceivably last for a few more months, maybe as far as September when we speculate we’ll be able to fly somewhere in this world.

Please, dear readers, feel free to email us with any topics you’d like to see, regardless of how vulnerable and sensitive they may be. Through all of this, we can only say “thank you” with all of our hearts. It’s YOU who have held us steady in our commitment to say “hello” one way or another every day.

That morning, I was cutting vegetables for roasting when a Vervet monkey entered the house. There were two apples near this pan. He took one of them. We had to chase him back outdoors.

Please stay strong, safe, and healthy. We will follow your lead.

Photo from one year ago today, June 9, 2019:

What a face on an adorable lamb in Connemara, Ireland. For more photos, please click here.

Sure, we’re living in the moment, but reveling in the past for entertainment during the lockdown…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 8, 2020 with 0 Comment

While on a walk in the neighborhood, while in Sumbersari, Bali, in 2016, we spotted this friendly neighbor (she spoke no English) making bowls as shown that are used for offerings at the Hindu temples.

It’s terrific for us, now more than ever, to review our past posts to easily be reminded of the fantastic experiences we’ve had in the past seven years, eight months.

Perhaps at some point in the distant future, we’ll look back at this period in lockdown, recalling how we managed to get through it, still laughing, while still having some good times amid the madness.

Each time we walked by her home, we’d find her working a few blocks from the villa.

As we review our old posts, we easily laugh over the peculiar situations, feel a new sense of awe over the incredible experiences and smile from ear to ear over the wildlife and scenery we’ve been blessed to see in the process.

If we had to stop traveling by no fault of our own, we’d still feel we’ve had an expansive view of the world during this extended period of travel. And yet, both of us long to continue to those wished-for experiences we’ve envisioned on the horizon.

This is a temple in the neighborhood where locals congregate for prayer and meditation.

We realize that some of the experiences we’ve imagined may be curtailed due to changes in travel due to Covid-19 and my ongoing cardiovascular situation. These facts will always be a consideration when we doubt if either situation will ever change in its entirety.

However, we feel confident to be able to adapt future travels to consider these scenarios. For now, our goals are simple… Get out of India to a place where we can cook our meals, live in a more spacious environment, be able to look out a window or door to pleasing scenery, and have the opportunity to be outdoors to enjoy our surroundings.

Low tide from the second story of the villa.

With all this walking I’ve been doing since the lockdown, the thought of being able to walk in the fresh air, breathing in the scents of nature, and seeing plants, trees, and hopefully, wildlife, is utterly exciting.

Of course, if we were in Marloth Park right now, with lions on the loose in the park, caution would be imperative when walking. But, the excitement of the possibility of spotting the female lion and her cubs along with a wandering male would make the sacrifice well worth it.

Abandoned old barns and buildings were tucked away behind vegetation.

The concept of visiting with friends in South Africa brings a massive smile to our faces. A glass of wine or cocktail, the great companionship of our friends, a tasty dinner cooked on the braai along the sights and sounds of the bush makes my heart flutter.

It’s not as if we didn’t appreciate it while we were there (or anywhere for that matter). We cherished every moment, every interaction with friends and nature, along with the innate magic of this remarkable place.

Most Hindu homes have an elaborate family temple on site.

There’s news floating around the internet that South Africa may open its borders as early as September instead of February 2021. This would be fantastic. Knowing this, if confirmed, would make the next three months easier to bear, especially once we also know Mumbai will open its borders to outgoing international flights.

All of this is still up in the air. For now, we’re holding our own, checking numerous sites with updates on borders opening in countries throughout the world along with the status on Covid-19 and which locations would be safe for us to visit down the road. Right now, we have plenty of that! Time will tell.

We enjoyed walks in the neighborhood, although early mornings were best before it became too hot.

Stay safe and hopeful!

Photo from one year ago today, June 8, 2019:

Rainbow view from our window in Connemara, Ireland. For more photos, please click here.

Stop whining about wine!…The taste, the socialization, the pleasant warmth….

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 7, 2020 with 0 Comment

By the time we returned from our visit to Funchal, Madeira, in four hours, this was the view from the veranda of our holiday home in Campanario. It wasn’t quite as beautiful as the usual ocean view, but exciting nonetheless.

Note: To all of our readers visiting our site via a smartphone, please click the “View web version” tab under the word “Home” at the bottom of the page to access the web version enabling you to access all of our archives on the right side of the page. We’ll be updating our site in a few months, making these extra steps unnecessary. Thank you.
Today’s photos are from June 7, 2014, while living in Madeira, Portugal. See the link here for more photos.

While we were staying at the SunNSand Hotel before it closed and kicked us out, on March 21st, we purchased enough beer to last for a week, never thinking we wouldn’t be able to buy more down the road.

On the way back to our holiday home, we stopped at the local grocer for a few items. While I shopped, Tom purchased a few muffins at this bakery next door.

It had been nine years since I’d drank a beer when implementing a low-carb lifestyle in 2011. Beer is made with hops, a byproduct of wheat, which I don’t consume in any fashion. Under these unusual circumstances in India, I decided to bend the rules and drink beer. It tasted excellent.

But, when we arrived at this hotel, Courtyard by Marriott Mumbai Airport, on March 24th, the day the lockdown in India began, we were told we’d have to drink the beer in our hotel room, not outside on the veranda since they weren’t allowed to offer any form of alcohol to their guests.

There were puffs of fog on the road, as shown in the left lane.

A few days later, when we ran out of the beer, we decided when and if we could purchase alcohol again, we wouldn’t bother. Neither of us cares to have a drink in our room.

We’ve never ordered beverages in our hotel room in any of the hotels in the past years of world travel. If we feel like a beverage, we’d either go to the hotel bar before dinner or order a drink at dinner in a restaurant. Most often, for me, it would be a glass of red wine. For Tom, he’d order a Cognac with Sprite Zero on ice.

At points along the drive, the fog was only visible at a distance. The 80 on the speed sign is in kilometers per hour, equivalent to 50 miles per hour.

While on cruises, we’d rarely order a cocktail during the day unless we were attending a special event hosted by the cruise line. At times, a perk included in the cruise fare will consist of the drink package when Tom may order a frothy drink during the day. Since I don’t consume sugar, I avoid those drinks entirely and get too sleepy if I drink wine during the day.

With our priority status on cruises, we’re entitled to complimentary cocktails for 2 to 3½ hours in the early evening, depending on the ship’s priority club’s policies. On more expensive cruises, complimentary cocktails are offered during meals only, and on other cruise ships, free drinks may be available at any time.

A terraced farm on a hill.

But, here and now, we’re alcohol-free, although liquor stores (called “wine shops” in India) are open for delivery. In other words, at this time, we could order wine, beer, or alcohol to be delivered to us at the hotel.

Over the weeks, we’ve lost interest in ordering any beverages because, as mentioned above, we don’t care to drink alcohol in a hotel room.

Having lived away from the ocean in Minnesota, we rarely saw fog and low-lying clouds such as this.

This doesn’t mean we won’t enjoy a wine, beer, or cocktail after this is all over. But, after what may prove to be many months since we’ve had any alcohol, I imagine we’ll discover we’ll easily become intoxicated with only one such beverage. That first glass of red wine will surely knock me for a loop, for Tom, not so much.

I won’t be drinking beer going into the future when, most likely, the wine will be available when we get settled in our following location. Hopefully, there will be a veranda or outside area to add to the ritual. If not, we doubt we’ll drink since the ambiance is all a part of the ritual. for us

It looked like smoke, but it was fog. I took most of these photos from the freeway through the car’s windshield.

If the hotel bar opens while we’re still here, we won’t be making use of it. The ongoing risks of Covid-19 will keep us away from all public gathering places, any more than necessary which mainly, for us, will be at the airport when we’re finally able to fly away.

I drool a little when I see a glass of wine when streaming British shows, which often includes many scenes with tea and wine drinking. But, I remind myself that for about 20 years, I never touched a drop when I’d lost a taste for it in the ’90s.

While we were in Funchal, Madeira, the dense fog rolled in.

It was only after we started cruising and attained priority status that I finally had red wine and somehow, again, acquired a taste for it. Now, it’s genuinely a ritualistic treat.

With the hotel providing us with about 5 liters of bottled water each day, consuming plain or making tea, coffee, and Crystal Light Iced Tea, we have all the beverages we need. We drink coffee and green tea (for me) throughout the day with the provided little packets of decaf, regular, and powdered cream, products we’ve only used while in lockdown, preferring real cream in “normal” times.

Statue in the city of Funchal.

But, these aren’t “normal” times, and until they are, our consumption of beverages will remain as they are now, free of alcohol, fresh coffee beans, and natural cream.

Stay safe and enjoy your beverages, whatever they may be, during times of Covid-19.

Photo from one year ago today, June 7, 2019:

Lisa took this selfie of all five at the bar/restaurant in Carna, Tigh Mheaic. At the bar, Lisa, me, Tom, Barry and their friend Chuck. The boys drank Guinness, and Lisa and I enjoyed part of a bottle of cabernet sauvignon. after drinks, we moved to a comfy booth and enjoyed lively chatter and dinner. For more photos, please click here.

Air India opening up international flights but see the caveats here…Why we’re excluded…We can handle this…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 6, 2020 with 0 Comment

While in Campanaria, Madeira, Portugal, we heard the music coming from the fish guy’s truck and raced up the hill to his trucks. He held up a tuna for us to inspect. It was smaller than some of the others but, this size was perfect. It weighed 7.7 kg, 17 pounds, and the cost was INR 2569, US $34. He cut them into portion-sized pieces, wrapping each piece individually.

Note: To all of our readers visiting our site via a smartphone, please click the “View web version” tab under the word “Home” at the bottom of the page to access the web version enabling you to access all of our archives on the right side of the page. We’ll be updating our site in a few months, making these extra steps unnecessary. Thank you.
Today’s photos are from June 6, 2014, while living in Madeira, Portugal. See the link here for more photos.

Many of our concerned readers (thanks for your interest and support) have been sending us messages about international flights opening up via Air India or other countries. It all sounds well and good.

But, here are the countries to which they are flying per this news story:

“Air India will operate around 300 flights to Europe, Australia, Canada, the USA, the UK, and Africa between June 10 and July 1 during phase 3 of Vande Bharat Mission.”

Next, they weighed our tuna. It was slightly under 8 kilograms, approximately 17 pounds.

First off, in most of Europe, all of Canada, all of Australia, and most of Africa (including South Africa), the borders are closed to US citizens, regardless of the fact we’ve been in India since January 31, 2020.

Now, as India’s number of cases escalate, the fact that our passports indicate we’ve been here during the worst of the pandemic, there is an additional whammy against us entering many countries.

With the number of cases in Europe continually increasing, we have no interest in going to Europe at this time. In 2020, we spent three months in Ireland and two months in the UK and had no interest in returning at this point with their ongoing increases in the number of cases.

First, he removed the head and tail using a huge knife.

But, all of the above is a moot point when we read this news today at this news story:

“The national carrier (Air India) posted at 8.20 PM on Friday on Twitter: “Bookings for select destinations in the USA, Canada, UK & Europe, etc., under Phase3 of #MissionVandeBharat opened at 5 pm today. Around 60 million hits were received till 7 pm on our website & 1700 seats were sold through the website alone in 2 hrs. Bookings continue & tickets are being issued.”

Only 1700 seats were booked for the above locations, and they received 60 million hits. Their website crashed. Most of these flights were designated for Indian citizens and others returning to their places of residence, not for “tourists” like us trying to leave India to go to another country to continue our travels.

The flights involving Africa for repatriation purposes are as follows from this site:

“Phase 3 of this repatriation drive covers around 17 African countries — Air India will operate flights from Egypt, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, Seychelles, and South Africa and charter services for Djibouti, Morocco, Sudan, Morocco, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, and Sierra Leone.”

All of the above country’s borders are closed to US citizens. All of these flights are for repatriation. This does not include us unless we’re interested in returning to the US for repatriation. As mentioned, we are not. We’d rather wait it out here for many more months to come than return to the US, with no US health insurance, no home, and the high cost of living.

He reached into the cavity and started removing the entrails.

If we were to return to the US and rent a home, we’d have to buy a car, outfit the property, sign up for US Medicare Part B and supplement, and give up on our dream to continue our lifestyle of world travel.

We couldn’t afford to maintain a comfortable lifestyle in the US while continuing to travel the world. After all, as we’ve mentioned, we are not wealthy, nor is our retirement income sufficient to support both ways of life at any given time. Sure, we could go on a trip or two each year, but that is not what we want.

No, we’re not like everyone else in this regard. We understand and respect how the majority of the senior population find comfort and pleasure in their retirement, living in a retirement community (or not), and filling their days with what they enjoy the most. It’s just not us.

He was highly skilled, most likely as a result of years of experience. Plus, he had all of his fingers.

So, after 7¾ years of world travel, if we have to spend 8 or 9 months in lockdown while we emotionally and financially continue to handle it, be it. No, it wasn’t easy living in other countries, with over 40C, 104F temperatures without air-con (except at night). It’s a lot easier here in this hotel in India. We can handle this.

If we survived my dreadful experience of having emergency open-heart surgery in a small hospital in a small town in South Africa with numerous complications, we could handle this.

Even if we wanted to take advantage of one of these 1700 available seats on Air India, how would we compete with the 60 million hits on Air India’s website, all clamoring for these relatively few seats?

This was our remaining tuna after we gave Judite, our cleaner, and Gina, our property manager, each a good-sized bag, some of which we’ll cook over the next few nights and the remainder, which we sealed in Ziploc bags and froze for future meals.

Once international flights open up in India for some of the areas we’d consider, who then have open borders to US citizens, we’ll wait a few weeks for the “rush” to settle down and then book our preferred locations as they become available.

I check this ticker for the number of cases, the new number of cases, and new deaths each day. We realize it may not be 100% accurate, based on reporting procedures in various countries. But it’s easy to see why we aren’t interested in visiting most of the countries mentioned above when the risks are so high and why we are interested, if possible, in waiting it out to go to South Africa (#24 on this list) or certain other African countries or islands in the Indian Ocean, while we wait.

Yes, it’s possible that at some point, India could require us to leave with the only option available to return to the US. If that were the case, we’d go for a short period, stay in a holiday home or hotel, and then we’d fly away, continuing our journey. The less time we spent flying in crowded airplanes, the better.

We can handle this.

Photo from one year ago today, June 6, 2019:

Cows in the garden. As we drove down the shared driveway between ours and the owner’s house, we noticed we had cattle on both sides. The owner allows a local farmer to let the cattle graze in her grassy fields. For more photos, please click here.

Living in the moment, avoiding whinging, gratefulness, and hope..

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 5, 2020 with 0 Comment

This was our holiday home in Campanario, Madeira, Portugal, high on a hill, as are most homes here. We took this photo as we walked down the steep road in front of the house.

Note: To all of our readers visiting our site via a smartphone, please click the “View web version” tab under the word “Home” at the bottom of the page to access the web version enabling you to access all of our archives on the right side of the page. We’ll be updating our site in a few months, making these extra steps unnecessary. Thank you.
Today’s photos are from June 5, 2014, while living in Madeira, Portugal. See the link here for the story and more photos.

This is not easy. We are not brave during this challenging experience. We are not adventurous during this harrowing experience. We are not much different than any of you would be during this challenging experience. We are doing the best we can.

What keeps us from falling into a pit of depression or anxiety? Only one thing… The fears of falling into a pit of depression or anxiety. We choose an alternative as the most accessible means of getting through this trying time… Living in the moment… Avoiding complaints, possessing a strong sense of gratefulness… Having hope for the future.

This rose was growing in front of the house on a narrow stone planter box.

How could we possibly enjoy living in the moment when that moment consists of being stuck in an average-sized hotel room 24 hours a day, every day with no respite?

Oddly, we do. The “moment” is the reality that we are safe. The “moment” is finding ways to occupy ourselves to avoid dull periods of “over-thinking” and worrying.

A neighborhood walk resulted in seeing many gorgeous flowers, including this pink rose in full bloom.

The “moment” is maintaining a positive attitude coupled with maximum tolerance with one another, avoiding disharmony at all costs. Being “right” during these times is pointless. We are never going to look back at this period and say, “Oh, I am so glad I was “right” about this or that.

We’ll look back with an added sense of confidence in ourselves and as a couple for the grace and dignity we’ve shared during such trying times. We also learned this when Tom was my caregiver after open-heart surgery, doing everything for me for many months. Neither of us complained, not me for my discomfort, not him for the constant requirements facing him.

Four goats lived on the hill next door appearing to be a mom, dad, and two babies. Every morning we’d step outside and do a loud “baa,” to which she responded in a louder “baa” as she looked our way.

We knew my return to health was most certainly influenced by my state of mind and our state of mind as a couple. Now, we make every effort to maintain a positive and supportive foundation with one another.

Some may say, “If you feel it, express it!” But for us, we’ve found that avoiding spewing negative thoughts and feelings to one another (and, in our minds) regularly only leads to emotional upheaval in the best of times, let alone now during times of Covid-19.

Even imperfection has a certain beauty.

If one thinks about it, complaining/whinging doesn’t provide any genuine benefit. Keeping our negative feelings and thoughts in check helps us avoid dwelling in a negative mental state.

Gratefulness has been a significant factor in helping us move through this period and will aid us well into the future. We continually discuss how fortunate we are to be safe; have air-con; good WiFi; have good, although repetitive food prepared for us twice a day; can stream shows we like to divert our attention; can afford to live here long term, and we have each other. What more could we ask for besides the eventual freedom from this small space?

I practically had to get on my knees and shoot upward when this flower was drooping toward the ground.

And, this is where hope comes in. We accept and do not dismiss that having hopes for the future may be impossible and unrealistic for those suffering from a terminal illness with no possibility of a remission or cure. We exclude those horrific situations from this conversation. Short of that, there’s always hope for the rest of us.

But is hope something that magically occurs upon us? I don’t believe it is. Hope is a choice we make to bring us relief while we struggle through any situation. Hope is described as “a feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen.” We can choose that, can’t we?

Although we were quite a distance from the ocean, watching the boats from afar was fun.

From this foundation, we didn’t necessarily discuss or plan. It is magically helping us get through this and other harrowing experiences. We are not brave. We are not adventurous. We are not unique in our efforts to maintain balance during this unusual time in history. We are practical, logical, and determined. That’s it.

We’ve found a way to find comfort by living in the moment while avoiding complaining, having excess negative thoughts, feeling grateful, and, above all, having hope.

May all of you feel hopeful for the future.

Photo from one year ago today, June 5, 2019:

One year ago today, we booked this holiday home in Wales. The simple design was pleasing to the eye, along with its affordability. For more, please click here.

Are killer bees next?…We survived Cyclone Nisarga unscathed…Photos of damage in Mumbai…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 4, 2020 with 0 Comment

This is the first such storm to hit Mumbai in over 100 years. Dark clouds hang over the city ahead of cyclone Nisarga making landfall in Mumbai.

Today’s photos are a result of damage caused by Cyclone Nisarga from this site.

Neither of us had experienced a cyclone/hurricane in our lives. Living in Minnesota, we had plenty of experience with severe storms, and on occasion, tornadoes. But, a cyclone was a new experience, and we had no idea what to expect.

The FedEx MD-11 plane skids off the runway while landing during heavy rain as severe cyclonic storm Nisarga made landfall at Mumbai Airport.

Fortunately, (and sadly) there was only one fatality when it could have been many more. As it turned out, Mumbai planned well, and many lives were saved by evacuating thousands of residents and getting fishing boats docked at the shore rather than out to sea.

The damage from high winds and flooding was substantial, but overall the city survived well. Our hotel didn’t incur any apparent wear from what we could determine.

Sea waves strike at a slum near the Arabian sea as cyclone Nisarga makes its landfall on the city’s outskirts in Mumbai.

During the worst of the storm, we stayed hunkered down in our room, never having the necessity of waiting it out in the corridors. I continued my hourly walks, which allowed me to look out a few windows at the ends of the corridors to see the roofs and parts of buildings flying in the wind.

We are grateful and sad for those who suffered and were disrupted during the storm, especially Covid-19 patients who had to be moved from makeshift tents and outdoor facilities. One can’t imagine their terror when being moved while they were suffering from the devastating effects of the virus.

The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) shows NDRF personnel clearing fallen trees from a road in Alibag town of Raigad district following cyclone Nisarga landfall on India’s western coast. Cyclone Nisarga ripped roofs off homes in a coastal village near Mumbai after officials ordered offices and factories to shut and told people to stay home, reversing a move to ease a coronavirus lockdown in the Indian megacity.

This morning, my son Richard texted (tongue in cheek), “Will it be killer bees next?” I wrote back, “Maybe it will be a meteor rushing toward Earth, or Godzilla roaming the streets, or even Sharknado with sharks flying all over the city of Mumbai?”

We say this to inject a little lightness into this otherwise challenging situation. I guess I’ve spent too much time watching “disaster” movies, and now real life is even more frightening than such movies as “Contagion.”

A family was looking for shelter during rainfall ahead of Cyclone Nisarga’s expected landfall in Navi Mumbai. Heartbreaking.

It’s still raining very hard, and we still can hear thunder as we’re sitting safely ensconced in our comfy chairs with the darkening drapes closed with lamps on in the room. Most days, we’ve kept the drapes closed to keep the room cooler, but in the past few days, we’ve done so to provide some protection from the wall of glass if high winds caused any issues.

We watched the movie “Rocketman,” entertaining us for a few hours during the day and at night, we’ve been binge-watching two TV series; the Scottish show, “Dr. Finlay” and the 60-episode Australian show, “A Place to Call Home” on Acorn TV on Amazon Prime, a genuinely addictive show we’ve found exceptionally entertaining.

A corporation worker works to clear an uprooted tree that fell on the road during Cyclone Nisarga at Juinagar in Navi Mumbai.

Right now, anything we can do to “get out of our heads” for a few hours each day is worthwhile. As mentioned, at 3:00 pm, we start streaming our favorite shows.

We pause the shows once an hour for my corridor walks, donning a face mask, putting my shoes back on, and carrying my phone with a headset to listen to podcasts to make the walking time pass more quickly. The latest time of the day I embark on the walk is 6:00 pm. Some days, I can finish earlier once I log ten walks for a total of 2 miles, 3.2 km.

Vehicles get damaged by uprooted trees due to strong winds after cyclone Nisarga at Sanpada in Navi Mumbai.

Each time I head out the door, I attempt to walk faster than the last time rather than increase the distance. Keeping track of my stats on the Fitbit, I’d purchased in the US has also been a good diversion.

Much to my surprise, Tom has also been exercising by climbing the stairs in the stairwell near our room. He does this each day while our space is being cleaned. It’s good to see him up and moving around instead of sitting in one spot day and night.

Damaged billboards due to strong winds triggered by Cyclone Nisarga, at Bandra Reclamation in Mumbai.

Today, we’re back to our usual routine, now that the worst of the cyclonic storm is moving through with minor damage.

Yesterday, we read a news story that South Africa won’t open its international travel borders until February 2021. Oh.

People scramble to enter a truck during an evacuation of a slum on the Arabian sea coast in Mumbai on Wednesday, as Cyclone Nisarga makes landfall.

Have as pleasant a day as you can as we all continue to make our way through this pandemic.

Photo from one year ago today, June 4, 2019:

Front door view from this property we’d booked one year ago, from August 23, 2019, to September 6, 2019. The cost for 14 nights is Euro 2125, US $2395.96, which averages to Euro 151.75, US $171.14. This amount is higher than we’d usually pay, but we’ve balanced the budget by choosing varying prices on all four properties. For the listing on this cottage, please click here. For more details from this post, please click here.

Battening down the hatches…Cyclone Nisarga is on her way to Mumbai within the hour…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 3, 2020 with 0 Comment

Nisarga Cyclone Live Tracking: Know The Current Location of Cyclone, Get Movement Alerts

This morning’s weather map of the anticipated course of Cyclone Nisagra. As you can see, Mumbai is located on the map in the dark green area indicated as the cyclone’s path.

It’s morning in Mumbai, June 3, 2020. Cyclone (hurricane) Nisarga is expected to make landfall in Mumbai in the next few hours. There’s nothing we can do other than to stay put in our hotel room, away from the full wall of glass windows, heading out to the corridor if it becomes dangerous to our safety.

At this point, with varying news reports online, each stating different information, we have no idea about the specifics other than what we feel is accurate on IndiaToday TV news.

There hasn’t been a cyclone of this magnitude in Mumbai in 129 years. However, it appears they’ve evacuated almost 100,000 people living in high-risk areas where their homes consist of tents, huts, and lean-to-type properties. As a result, disaster control may not have the necessary experience in handling this type of disaster.

This leaves millions of citizens in danger who reside in less sturdy buildings whose roofs and entire properties may be subject to the ravages of this untimely disaster.

Covid-19 patients in tents and less secure properties have been relocated to areas with generators to ensure ventilators and other mechanical life-support systems are protected by using generators.

Last night, we called the reception staff to inquire if the hotel is protected with generators. Like most major hotels, they assured us we would have a continuous power source if the local infrastructure fails during the storm and after that.

However, there is no guarantee that WiFi will continue if local towers are felled during high winds, expected as high as 125 km, 78 miles per hour, or more, with definitive speculations unknown at this time.

Last night, after we’d gone to bed while watching the news, we got up at midnight and packed, in the event we’d have to evacuate in a hurry. We doubt this is a possibility.

On the fourth floor of this large 334 room hotel, we’re anticipating we’ll be safe. However, we’re relatively close to the Arabian Sea, from where Cyclone Nisarga is rapidly gaining speed and intensity.

On the news at the moment is a video of the thousands of fishing boat owners getting into the sea to secure their boats further, covering them with makeshift tarps and coverings. This is their livelihood. Losing their boats to this storm will only be yet another disaster after Covid-19 has left so many low-income families suffering.

We’re not adding any online news reports to today’s post when each publication is vastly different from others, except for the following, seeming factual information from this site which doesn’t allow me to copy and paste their story.

Instead, as we watch the TV news, we feel well informed as to the progression of the storm. The area most at risk where the “eye” of the cyclone will hit is Alihab, a mere 90 km, 56 miles from the center of Mumbai. The cyclone itself is over 125 km, 78 miles wide.

Thus, if the cyclone eye hits its exact anticipated target of Alibab, a suburb of Mumbai, this area will be significantly impacted. As we know of hurricanes, cyclones, and storms, their path can change at any point.

As I upload today’s post shortly after 12:00 pm., we’ve begun to feel the beginnings of the storm. In an hour or more from now, the full brunt of the storm will reveal itself. It’s raining heavily at the moment, but the winds are yet to come.

If you don’t see a post from us over the next several days, please know that we’ll be back online as soon as we are able.

Prayers for all the people of India and the world, on this frightening day, during these frightening times in our lives.

Photo from one year ago today, June 3, 2019:

What an adorable Poll Dorset lamb on the property on the farm we rented in Devon, England, one year ago. Please click here for more details.

Update: Cyclone (hurricane) hitting Mumbai within 24 hours…Just in case..

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 2, 2020 with 0 Comment

Dear Readers,
In the event you do not see a post from us tomorrow or days beyond, it will be due to WiFi and/or power outage. A powerful cyclone (same as a hurricane) is expected to make landfall in Mumbai in the next 24 hours.

A cyclone hasn’t hit Mumbai in a decade. Go figure.

We will return with a post immediately upon the restoration of services. To all our Mumbai and Indian readers, may you stay safe along with us. Please write to us with updates from your area once the WiFi service is restored.

Please see yesterday’s full post below or here.God speed.

Jess & Tom

State of mind during the lockdown…Can we last for the long haul?…

Posted by worldwide-admin on June 2, 2020 with 0 Comment

Ascension Day performers visited us in our holiday home in Madeira, Portugal, in 2014, as represented further in today’s photos.

Note: To all of our readers visiting our site via a smartphone, please click the “View web version” tab under the word “Home” at the bottom of the page to access the web version enabling you to access all of our archives on the right side of the page. We’ll be updating our site in a few months, making these extra steps unnecessary. Thank you.
No more old videos will be posted at this time, although past photos will continue until we have new photos to post.
Today’s photos are from June 2, 2014, while living in Madeira, Portugal. See the link here for more photos.

I don’t know how we’re holding it together. This is not easy. If we knew when we could leave, that would significantly ease our minds with a plan for the future. But now, we don’t know when we’ll be able to leave Mumbai and where we’ll be able to go.

Many countries, considering opening their borders soon, are forbidding US citizens from entering due to the high number of cases of Covid-19 in the US. However, we’ve been in India since January 31st.

The procession began at this local Catholic church in Campanario, Madeira.

This could result in our staying here until the virus dissipates sufficiently in the US that Americans are welcome to cross the borders of other countries. This could mean that India could open its borders and commence international flights, but we’d still have nowhere to go.
The only option will be those few countries that seem less concerned about who enters their country, which is far and few between. Such particular countries may hold no interest to us due to large numbers of Covid-19 cases and lack of adequate security and screening.

Without hesitation, the celebrants barged their way into our house. We couldn’t wipe the smiles off of our faces.

As mentioned in yesterday’s post here, it’s conceivable we could be in this hotel in Mumbai until well into 2021. How will we emotionally handle this possibility? Sure, we always espouse “thinking positive” and staying “hopeful.”

But, these words can be meaningless for many of us while under this unusual type of stress due to Covid-19. It’s easy to spew words to ourselves and others in these times of great stress and worry, to “hang in there” or consider that “this too, shall pass.”

It was apparent they’d practiced their songs as they harmonized in unison.

Yes, this will pass in time. When I had open-heart surgery in 2019 with resulting life and limb-threatening leg infections from the grafts, requiring two additional surgeries and another hospital stay, somehow I prevented myself from feeling hopeless. In time, I recovered. But then, I didn’t know a timeline, nor did I know if we could continue to travel, not unlike our situation now.

Now, we ask ourselves such questions as:
1. Will we be able to continue traveling the world?
2. Will flying become so cumbersome and risky that we’ll have to limit ourselves to where we’ll be able to go?
3. Will we ever feel comfortable enough to sail on a cruise ship?
4. Will we still be able to acquire adequate travel insurance comparable to our current policy?
5. Will travel continue to be affordable as it has been during the past years?
6. Will holiday homes become less and less available when owners decide to sell in light of Covid-19?
7. Will we be able to wait this out?

The young accordion player was quite skilled.

You may think we could put a quick end to our dilemma if we embarked on one of the rare flights offered from Mumbai to the US through the US State Department to return to the US.

We’re not ready to give up, not out of stubbornness, but more out of precaution in an attempt to avoid contracting the virus when and if we’d enter the US without adequate health insurance. This could bury us, financially and literally. Why take the risk when we’re so safe here?

In one fell swoop, they were out the door and on the way to their next house.

So the question remains… How do we maintain a positive state of mind if this isolation, this quarantine, continues for six or eight months or more? Financially, we can continue indefinitely. Emotionally, we’re okay now. But what about in three, six, or eight months?

We’ve been in lockdown for almost three months, including time spent in the same circumstances in prior hotels with our self-imposed quarantine even before the official lockdown in India. We arrived at the Marriott on March 24th.

They left rose petals and wrapped candies on the floor. We left them with a well-earned donation. Of course, Tom ate the candy as I swept the floor.

So, the question remains, can we do this for months to come? I believe we can if we continue to focus on these factors: we’re safe; we’re together: we have food; we have air-con; we have WiFi; we can afford to stay here, along with a huge factor that contributes to our state of well-being… We have all of you!

The love, support, thoughtful suggestions, and encouragement from our readers are highly instrumental in helping us maintain a positive state of mind while longing for the day when we can again share stories and photos of our ongoing travels.

A procession made its way down the steep road near our house to the next house around the sharp turn.

We appreciate our circumstances for the above reasons, and we’re grateful to be safe, day after day, month after month. May all of you, along with us, embrace the concept of gratefulness for what we do have during times of Covid-19, as opposed to what we don’t have.

Photo from one year ago today, June 2, 2019:

Our favorite holiday home in the UK was the most expensive, but we couldn’t resist it. It was located in Cornwall, near Port Isaac, where Doc Martin, one of our favorite BBC TV shows, was filmed! On May 2, 2019, we selected this property for a two-week stay in September 2019 at the cost of Euro 2498.51, US $2707.94, an average daily rate of Euro 172.72, US $193.42, which was much higher than we typically pay. To compensate for this higher rent, we selected other properties at lower prices to balance the budget. To see details on the listing, please click here. For the remainder of our post, please click here.

Month: June 2020