Day #273 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Part 2…Christmas wishes…Chanukah wishes (belated)…Kwanzaa wishes…Boxing day wishes!..

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In an old vehicle, Us is located at the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, as in the movie of the same name. For that post, please click here.

Today’s photos are from the post on March 7, 2020, the date of our 25th wedding anniversary, which we celebrated while in India on a private tour, before the lockdown, with several photos of us from other dates. For that post, please click here.

Are we celebrating Christmas? It’s a distant memory for us. The last year that we celebrated with all the family, decorations, baked goods, gifts, and numerous social events was in 2011. We left Minnesota on Halloween in 2012 to begin our world journey. Do we miss all the commotion?

We’d be lying to say we don’t miss many aspects of it all, particularly the part when we were all together. But, over the last few years, while in Minnesota, Tom and I often found ourselves alone on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, a reality of the extended families of our three grown children and the creation of their own Christmas traditions.

But, even so, Tom and I created a series of traditions of our own, including special meals we prepared, always steak and lobster on Christmas Eve, and other such special treats for Christmas Day. Our home was filled with the intoxicating smells of scented candles, potpourri, and the burning wood in the fireplace. Christmas music played in the background. Our hearts were filled with the anticipation of seeing everyone soon and enjoying the festivities.

With Tom’s birthday on December 23rd, we added another reason to celebrate and that we always did with aplomb! We often visited with friends, and they with us, on the days before and after the holidays. Of course, our close neighbors played a vital role in adding to the Christmas spirit with numerous celebratory occasions,

And now? Not so much. Over the past several years, we spent two Christmases in Marloth Park, once in 2013 and another in 2018. There was no shortage of parties and celebrations surrounding the holidays, particularly at the bush home of friends Kathy and Don, on their third-floor veranda, overlooking the Crocodile River. The views were exceptional, the food fantastic, and the companionship and celebrations divine.

When it’s just the two of us in any international location, we will prepare special meals, enjoy some low-carb snacks, wine, and cocktails and listen to Christmas music. But, there’s no tree, no decorations, no baked goods, and getting together with locals. When staying in a country for three months or less, it isn’t always possible to make many friends quickly enough with whom we’d spend Christmas.

But, we’re pretty fine during these periods, and we’ve made the best of every day, every holiday, every anniversary, and every birthday finding ways to feel a sense of celebration while on our own, often laughing over the irony of our situation, so far removed from our old lives.

On our way in December 2019 to the Vegas Golden Knights game with son Richard. Thanks, Richard, it was an enjoyable night! Here‘s the post from that night.

With Tom’s birthday upcoming in two days, I racked my brain trying to think of something special for him. He’s been working hard to lose weight, and although slowly, he doesn’t want to “eat cake” and gain it back after all his diligent efforts over the past month. So special food or drink is out of the question. There’s nothing the cooks here could make that would keep him on track. Also, we don’t leave our floor with many unmasked guests here, so there’s nowhere to go, certainly not to the dining room or bar.

I considered buying him some type of gift on Amazon India. But, as mentioned in a prior post, we’ll be unloading “stuff” from our luggage when facing some strict and costly baggage fees, not adding to it. He’s OK with this reality as I am, too, based on his positive attitude.

Our primary concern right now is getting on that flight to South Africa in 22 days and arriving safely and healthfully in Marloth Park in 23 days. This morning, there was news out of Germany stating that all flights to and from South Africa have been suspended. Hopefully, we won’t see such information from India before we can depart.

Have a safe and healthy holiday season!

Photo from one year ago today, December 21, 2019:

With no new photos taken on a year ago on this date, we’ve included this photo from 2013 while on the way to Nelspruit with our driver and dear friend, Okee Dokee. She stopped to buy lychee nuts from this adorable girl, who was selling them on the side of the road with her mom. For the story from one year ago, please click here.

Day #272 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Part 1…Christmas wishes…Chanukah wishes (belated)…Kwanzaa wishes…Boxing day wishes!..

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We were thrilled with our excellent seats on a balcony in this photo, prepared to watch the Hindu ceremonies on the Ganges River in Varanasi, India. What an experience! We wished all of our family, readers and friends, a very happy holiday season.

Today’s photos were posted on February 20, 2020, which happened to be my birthday, creating an incredibly spiritual and cultural experience in Varanasi, India, at night on the Ganges River, which proved to be one of our highlights in India experience. For the story and more photos from this post, please click here.

Over the next several days during the Christmas season, we will be sharing some photos of us and sightseeing venues, as we savored unique and fascinating experiences while on our planned initially two-month tour of India, cut short weeks early due to Covid-19.

The priests were primarily young and agile, performing the ritual perfectly synchronized and with grace and ease.

It’s ironic how over the past nine months in lockdown, we have spent little time rejoicing over the exquisite Indian treasures we observed during the tour. Now is the time to do so. Once the lockdown began, it seemed our focus had been getting out of confinement and moving on in our world travels. It’s been a long and arduous challenge.

Last night, Tom and I discussed how grateful we are to have weathered this challenge, getting along so beautifully, overall staying upbeat, and avoiding feeling hopeless or depressed. Many of our readers have written and asked why we’ve been able to get through this unscathed, but the answer isn’t as straightforward as one might think.

Smoke from the fire rituals wafted through the air.

Amid all this Covid-19 madness, my dear sister Susan passed away in August, with three members of my immediate family falling prey to the virus, each eventually recovering. Another stress-inducing situation was the design and development of our new website. Day after day, over many months, we experienced frustrating interruptions preventing our site from being “alive” and functioning as usual.

Fortunately, we worked with a beautiful, knowledgeable Indian company, SEO Company (based in the USA with operations in India), who was quick to respond and address the complicated issues as they appeared. Part of our service with Kate and Mital, our two tech people, is to provide a complimentary first year’s service to change and adjust aspects of our site as needed.

A well-lit boat on the Ganges River.

A few days ago, they added a vital “plug-in,” an app that prevents us from seeing or receiving spam comments. We were getting no less than 10 of these each day, primarily pornographic spam, which required me to handle each one separately. Now, they are gone permanently, thanks to their assistance.

Of course, during this period, we’ve been concerned about a visa extension for India. But, finally, according to the country’s immigration website, visas for foreign nationals will be automatically extended up to and including 30 days after the international airport re-opens. That has not happened yet but may transpire by the end of the year.

The young priests are highly skilled in presenting this ceremony every evening.

How did we get booked on an Emirates flight to South Africa for January 12, 2021? Some airlines and countries had special arrangements to be able to fly in and out of India. The option for South Africa didn’t appear until recently. We could have left a week earlier, but, in light of Covid-19, we chose not to travel so close to New Year’s, which undoubtedly would result in larger crowds at the airports and on flights.

Again, ironically, it was exactly nine months ago today that we had a flight booked to South Africa and were turned away at the Mumbai airport in the middle of the night, ending up returning to our original Mumbai hotel, which closed a few days later, leaving us without a place to stay.

The crowds filtered into the area earlier in the evening as many boats moved closer to the ceremonies.

The stress of those 24 hours until we worked out details to stay here at the Courtyard By Marriott Mumbai International Airport for this duration. During the first three months or so, every day, we worried that the hotel would be forced to close with the lack of customers or Covid-19 restrictions, and once again, we’d be left with nowhere to stay. As the months rolled on, we finally were able to relax.

So, yes, we are grateful this holiday season and extend our warmest, heartfelt wishes to all of our family/friends/readers, regardless of a spiritual/religious affiliation or not, to embrace this time to reflect, refresh and renew as we make our way into a New Year, in only days to come.

Chanting and music bellowed from this historic temple.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and embrace gratefulness.

Photo from one year ago today, December 20, 2019:

On this date in 2013, we spotted this white mass in a tree hanging over the pool, only 15 feet, 4.5 meters from where we sit each day, waiting for visitors. It turned out to be a tree frog’s nest, which magically appeared overnight. For the year-ago story, please click here.

Day #271 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Where will we go for visa stamps while in South Africa?…

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“Puerto Madryn (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpweɾto ˈmaðɾin]; Welsh: Porth Madryn) is a city in the province of Chubut in Argentina, Patagonia. It is the capital of the Biedma Department and has about 93,995 inhabitants according to the last census in 2010.”

We toured the oceanfront village on foot on this date in 2017.

Today’s photos are from this date in 2017 while visiting the port of call, Puerto Madryn, while on a South America cruise nearing the end. For more details, please click here.

Unfortunately, as many of our long time readers are well aware, we can only stay in South Africa for 90 consecutive days. With our desire to stay in Marloth Park as long as possible over the next year, this will require that we leave the country and/or apply for an extension as often as three times.

Another abandoned seafaring boat on the beach in Puerto Madryn.

We have a cruise booked for next November, sailing out of Lisbon, Portugal, that sails along the western coast of Africa, ending in Cape Town, South Africa, enabling us to return to Marloth Park once again. Will this cruise be canceled? At this point, we have no idea.

If it is, we may want to stay in Africa longer, visiting other countries every three months for the visa stamp, allowing us to stay another 90-day segment at a time. Our three months on this upcoming trip for which we depart on January 12, 2021, arriving in Johannesburg before midnight, leaves us with the requirement of departing again by April 10, 2021, 89 days later. We leave a day earlier than the 90 days, in the event of a potential layover in Johannesburg that may take us into the 90th day.

This could have been a street in any beach town.

The tricky part about flying out of South Africa and avoiding the five to six-hour drive to the airport in Johannesburg, an area with a certain risk of carjackings and corrupt police, is to fly from Nelspruit/Mpumalanga/Kruger airport (an hour from Marloth Park), fly to Johannesburg and go anywhere in the world from there, often with multiple layovers.

Unfortunately, the tiny airport, which considers itself an “international” airport, actually only flies to two countries besides South Africa, including Zambia which we already visited twice in 2018 on two very enjoyable tours of Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia and also Mozambique (which borders SA and won’t provide us with a usable visa stamp). At this point, returning to Zambia to drive to other countries holds little appeal to either of us when we’ve already visited the sightseeing highlights of Chobe National Park, Chobe River, Victoria Falls from Zambia, and also the Zimbabwe sides, Zambezi River cruise, and more.

Statue at Puerto Madryn Beach.

No doubt, we enjoyed the two trips, but returning doesn’t make sense. We don’t look forward to flying to Johannesburg to go anywhere else. However, we have no choice but to do so. One of those three above-mentioned visa stamp requirements will most likely result in us applying for one extension during this period which we’d done once in 2018. It’s all tricky, costly, and time-consuming. Traveling to a country bordering South Africa doesn’t count as “leaving the country.”

But, for us, the monkey business (no pun intended) is worth it. With the low cost of living in Africa, compared to most other parts of the world, we can comfortably budget the added costs for these side trips. Plus, it gives us an opportunity to visit other countries and expand our horizons.

A whale carving at the beach.

In the past few days, being hopeful that we’ll be able to leave India in 24 days, we’ve been researching flights for possible countries in Africa we’d like to visit. A few considerations are Zanzibar, (Tanzania), Madagascar, Reunion Island, and more, all of which require flying out of Johannesburg, which we finally accept as the only way we make this work.

The island of Zanzibar in Tanzania is probably our first choice since we don’t want to embark on any 24-hour travel times. Now, we begin the process of searching as to what’s available in the way of hotels or holiday homes, depending on how long we may decide to stay, which is up in the air at this point. We’ve accumulated quite a few free hotel nights by using Hotels.com on our site which we can save for such a trip.

Typical apartment building in Puerto Madryn.

A few years ago, we were determined to see the gorillas in Rwanda or Uganda. However, after the diagnosis of severe cardiovascular disease, it doesn’t make sense for us to go to such a remote location, which requires a challenging mountain trek. Sure, my stamina has greatly improved walking so much for the past nine months, but it hasn’t reversed my condition and such an expedition might be foolhardy.

There’s still plenty of world left for us to see, traveling to locations that won’t be outrageously physically challenging. Walking, we can do. Steep mountain treks may be out of the question. We both accept this reality.

Protesters marching on the beach boulevard.

Once we get situated in South Africa, we’ll book our plans for April and be able to rest easy for the remaining days of our stay in Marloth Park, until again, we’ll hopefully be able to return.

There was a big party in the hotel last night with a DJ resulting in loud thumping music until 11:15 pm. It settled down shortly thereafter when finally, we were able to sleep barring the sounds of doors slamming next door to our room for several hours, Oh, well. Soon enough.

Stay healthy, safe, and content amid the madness that continues to rage throughout the world.

Photo from one year ago today, December 19, 2019:

 

Photo from this date in 2013 which was reposted one year ago today: Of the nine members of this warthog family, there were two moms; one with four babies and the other with three babies. From watching this family almost daily over a period of 18 days, we believe the mom shown above is the mom of the three babies, which if you look closely are all nursing. (It was hard to see the third piglet). Thus, the baby on which she is resting her chin belongs to the other mom who is nearby and seems comfortable with this situation. We couldn’t have laughed more when the fourth baby, whether hers or not, provided this neck resting spot. For more photos from this date, one year ago, please click here.

Day #270 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Replay of fabulous food photos from cruise…

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This window box display was a part of the “Favorites” choice on the menu at Qsine on the Celebrity Infinity in 2017.

Today’s photos are from our post on this date in 2017 while sailing on the Celebrity Infinity along the coast of South America and dining in the fantastic specialty restaurant, Qsine. For more photos not shown here today, please click here.

Sharing these food photos for the second time, under our current situation, is certainly going to be a mouth-watering experience. To think, in less than a month, we’ll be preparing and dining our meals, one of the many highlights of getting out of here.

Tom dined on one of these “Lava Crab” dishes I avoided due to the flour content. He described it as outstanding.

As we are reminded of the exceptional dinner we had on that cruise in 2017, and how much fun specialty restaurants are on cruises, we wonder when we’ll ever be able to cruise again. The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine may be influential in re-starting cruises in some countries, but many developing countries won’t offer such a luxury.

If any of the cruise lines with whom we have five booked cruises into 2022 requires evidence of a vaccine, we may be out of luck. Africa will be one of the last continents to have access to the vaccine. We’ll see how that rolls out in time. If we were to fly to another continent at some point to receive the vaccine, we’d have to stay three weeks for the second dose.

Tom held his menu tablet while deciding what to order at the Qsine specialty restaurant while at sea on Celebrity Infinity. Nine Celebrity ships were offering this exceptional dining experience.

Perhaps in time, they’ll develop a single-dose vaccine that will make it easier for those in similar situations to ours. If we decide to continue on our world travels for considerably longer, we’ll have no choice but to return to the US to receive the vaccine. Maybe we can do so next time we visit family, which we’ll do once the virus settles down in the US.

This report, updated daily, the USA has 23% of the world’s cases and 19% deaths. Considering that statistics are being recorded in 220 countries and territories, this is an outrageous number. As we’ve mentioned many times in past posts, returning to the US at any time shortly is entirely out of the question.

From the “Sushi ” choice were these “lollipops.” Although we didn’t order this option, we loved this gorgeous presentation.

As for today’s photos, our topic returns to food. Yesterday, while I was working on the errors in past posts, of which I’m only one-third of the way through the over 3000 posts, I encountered comments I’d made about a reader commenting that they were sick and tired of my food comments and recipes. Hum, isn’t traveling in part about dining in one way or another?

When most of us travel, one of the first things on the agenda is checking out the local cuisine, booking reservations from highly rated TripAdvisor reviews, visiting local food trucks, cafes, and diners, and the possibility of the safety of eating street food? While dining out during a holiday/vacation, how many of us have entered a grocery store to check out the cultural differences in food, pricing, and at times, to purchase snacks, liquor, or treats?

Many items from the “Soup & Souffle” menu were served “tapas” style, small servings such as these two souffle chefs Chantal prepared for me.

That’s a big part of the enjoyment of traveling. And even with my limited options due to my way of eating, it’s still quite enjoyable to dine out, purchase groceries, and prepare our meals while living in holiday homes. Oh, well, that was only one reader, and I’m sure by now, they no longer read our posts at all, especially after our boring content over the past nine months.

If they thought “food” was boring, how about our frequent comments, whining, and observations about living under these most peculiar circumstances? As our long-term and new readers know, we strive to “tell it like it is” and not pander to those who may prefer a more “fluffy version” of our lives.

The “Taco Royale” presentation could easily have been a full meal for me with its make-your-own guacamole and beef taco salad.

Sure, this meal we’re sharing today in photos looks stupendous, and we’d love to be able to savor such a meal now. But we can’t. Instead, we focus on the fact that soon enough, we’ll be preparing big juicy rare/medium-rare steaks on the braai with a cocktail or glass of wine in hand, sweating up a storm on the veranda, batting off the flies and mozzies, and smiling from ear to ear. Hopefully, in a little over 25 days, when we depart India for South Africa.

Happy day!

Photo from one year ago today, December 18, 2019:

From this site: “The famous fountain in Fountain Hills, Arizona: Built-in 1970 by Robert McCulloch, the fountain is one of the largest fountains in the world! The fountain sprays water for 15 minutes every hour at the top of the hour. The fountain uses 7,000 gallons per minute, and at its full height, it can reach 560 feet in the air. The plume rises from a concrete water-lily sculpture in the center of a man-made lake. At its full height of 560 feet, the fountain in the center of Fountain Hills is higher than the Washington Monument. It is 10 feet taller than Notre Dame Cathedral, 110 feet higher than the Great Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt, and three times as high as Old Faithful in Yellowstone Park. The white plume of the world-famous fountain is visible far beyond Fountain Hills. It can be seen from as far away as the Superstition Mountains, Carefree, and even from aircraft. The fountain is the focal point for community celebrations and the pride of its residents. If you happen to visit during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration, you’ll see the fountain transform to emerald green. The Fountain is extended to its full height on special occasions. For everyday viewing, the Fountain reaches a height of 330 feet! The World Famous Fountain runs every hour on the hour for 15 minutes from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. every day of the week! This fountain is a celebration of life and water where it is most appreciated – in the middle of the desert.” For more from the year-ago post, please click here.

Day #269 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Ushuaia, the most southerly city in the world…

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The sign reads, “fin del Mundo,” the end of the world.

Today’s photos are from this date in 2017 when our ship was sailing the coast of South America and docked in Ushuaia, Argentina, for the day. For more photos, please click here.

It was quite a day when our ship docked in Ushuaia, Argentina, when only a little more than a month later, we flew back to this fantastic city to board our cruise to Antarctica for an incredible expedition to see the wonders of our seventh continent we’d yet to see.

We were bundled up in Ushuaia. It was cold!

We decided to stay in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where the cruise ended on December 23, 2018, for a month while awaiting the Antarctica cruise, staying in a boutique hotel in the lovely Palermo district where we were able to go sightseeing and dine out daily. As we continue here through the holiday season, most likely, we’ll repost photos from that month while spending Tom’s birthday (December 23rd), Christmas eve and day, and New Year’s eve and day in Buenos Aires.

We stayed in that hotel from December 23, 2017, until January 24, 2018, to then fly back to Ushuaia, the most southerly city globally, to board Ponant Le Boreal (a luxury French ship/cruise line) to sail deep into Antarctica. It’s funny how we recall how challenging it was to be stuck in that hotel for a month, especially during the holidays.

An expedition ship was preparing to set sail for Antarctica. Soon, we’d be on such a ship.

It’s ironic that now, after nine months in this hotel, we appreciated going out for walks, dining, and seeing the sights in the fantastic area. Wow! Little did we know at the time, we’d be in a hotel with no freedom of movement, ten times longer.

While walking, I encountered a man coming out of his room, asking him to pull his mask over his face. He was very kind, and we began chatting. He is an executive on a two-month stint in Mumbai, opening a new location for his worldwide company, and he, too, was appalled by how few Indian people wear masks.

It was almost summer in Ushuaia, but it was cold, and the mountains were still snow-capped.

After all these months, it was nice chatting with someone, and it made me realize how hungry we’ve been for companionship and conversation with others. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed our daily interactions with the two of us. No offense intended for each other. But, it will be nice to chat with others.

Many of our friends in Marloth Park mention on Facebook about getting together once we arrive. It will be an entirely new experience for us. Of course, we’ll exercise the utmost of the usual precautions, wearing face masks, no hugging, social distancing, and most likely not dining together, as we’d done in the past.

An exquisite albatross sculpture. We especially enjoyed seeing many albatrosses in the port.

Customarily, in South Africa, when people get together, they each bring their beverages in a “chill box,” whether it’s a happy hour gathering or a dinner party. In these cases, it’s helpful that no one touches one another’s beverages and glasses, further reducing the risk of infection. I am sure we’ll figure it all out, especially by ensuring we gather in small groups only.

On the agenda today? We are going to book two more months for the rental car, so by the time we arrive at the Nelspruit/Mpumalanga/Kruger airport, we’ll sign all three contracts, paying in advance,  providing us with insurance on the rental cars included in our credit cards (in increments of one month). If this works, we’ll avoid the two-hour (round trip) driving time every 30 days to return the car and get a new contract. We’ll see if this works and report back later.

Most of the town is centered around seaport enterprises.

As for the remainder of today? It will be the “usual.” We’re enjoying watching the series “The Crown” on Netflix after dinner each night. One of our thoughtful readers sent us a message suggesting we watch, “Call the Midwife.” We’ll give that series a try this afternoon when we wind down for the day and, of course, wind down to the 26 days until we depart India!

May your day be safe and pleasant.

Photo from one year ago today, December 17, 2019:

Tom and I and Jerry and Vicki in Arizona last year. We met them in January 2015 in Kauai, Hawaii. It was amazing to see them so many years later. For more, please click here.

Day #268 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Another day in the life…

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This rock formation connotes where the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans meet at Cape Horn.

Today’s photos are from this date in 2017 while on a cruise along the coast of South America, where we sailed around Cape Horn on our way to the most southerly city in the world, Ushuaia. For the story, please click here.

In the post, as mentioned above, we wrote: “It was only 6:00 am when we were situated in Cafe al Bacio drinking our favorite coffee. The ship is humming with announcements over the loudspeaker with the enthusiasm of the passengers palpable as we sail from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean via Cape Horn, South America.”

Evening photo. The sun didn’t fully set until almost 11:00 pm.

It was another of those great adventures that some may dismiss as interesting and moderately eventful. Still, for us, it was another of those profound, memorable milestones as a part of our world travels. Many such experiences befell us when we had never even considered such possibilities.

Alas, our travels at any time could bestow upon us yet another experience that we carry into the future. Each day, as we search for the repeat photos from past travels to share in the newest post, we continually encounter many such events that make us smile and feel grateful for what we’ve experienced during the past eight years.

Tom said he was nearly blown away by high winds when he took this photo in the early morning as we approached Cape Horn.

We wonder, what will we remember of these ten months in this hotel room by the time we leave in January? What did we discover? About life? About ourselves? About confinement such as this?

Ideally, we’ll walk away from here with many new perspectives, emotions, and insights. At the moment, it’s difficult for us to embrace such thoughts when the majority of our daily lives center around telling other guests to wear a face mask. It’s outrageous!

Rock formations at Cape Horn.

Our frustration is palpable. I walk every half hour, occasionally longer to accomplish my 5 miles, 8 km, throughout the day. Tom does most of his exercises in one fell swoop, so he deals with it during that 40-minute segment. I realize this issue might be less annoying if I finished all my walking at one time. But, I’ve found getting up and moving around at least once an hour has a better health benefit for me, helping to reduce pain and stiffness from sitting too long.

When our room was being cleaned this morning, we both took off some exercise in the corridors. Immediately, we both encountered a group of three guests blocking the corridor. None of them was wearing a face mask. From about 15 feet, 5 meters, I kindly said, “Please put on a face mask!”. They didn’t move. Tom was ahead of me. They didn’t respond, move, or put on face masks.

Map of the most southerly tip of South America, Cape Horn, where we sailed.

Behind us were several cleaning carts blocking the corridor, making turning around nearly impossible. When they didn’t respond, Tom, in dire frustration, faked a massive sneeze, accidentally knocking his glasses off his face. He was hoping they’d learn to want to protect themselves from others. He managed to get past them. Next, it was my turn. But as I passed, one yelled out to me, “Hey, this is yours!” The man handed me Tom’s eyeglasses which had flown off his head during the fake sneeze. Tom hadn’t noticed this.

My first concern was holding Tom’s glasses in my left hand, my phone with earbuds in my right hand. Yuck! I had touched something from the hand of a person who didn’t and wouldn’t wear a face mask, possibly the most likely COVID-19 carrier. I chased Tom down. He wasn’t even aware that his glasses were gone! I suppose the face mask on his face prevented him from feeling that his glasses had flown off.

Many rock formations are named, but with the slow Wi-Fi right now, we cannot do much research.

As I caught up with him, I handed him his glasses and immediately turned on my heels to head back to our room to wash my hands. I encouraged Tom to do the same, but the cleaner was on his hands and knees washing the bathroom floor when we reached the room. I didn’t care. I kindly asked him to leave so we could wash our hands. He complied.

Ah, we’re only 27 days from leaving this hotel room to head to the Mumbai International Airport for South Africa. The days can’t come soon enough. In Marloth Park right now, daily power outages are resulting in WiFi outages (load shedding from the electric company), horribly high temperatures, zillions of insects, including malaria-carrying mosquitos, snakes (commonly seen in the summer months, often entering houses), and from the comments we’ve seen on Facebook, occasional water outages. Bring it on, baby! We’re ready to take it on!

Cape Horn is not one single spot. It’s a series of islands and rock formations.

Stay safe, please.

Photo from one year ago today, December 16, 2019:

Even those residents with RVs in the park in Apache Junction, Arizona, may have fruit trees such as this orange tree in their front yards. For more, please click here.

Day #267 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…President of South Africa spoke last night…Holding our breath…

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Colorful trees were blooming in the neighborhood.

Today’s photos are from 2015 while living in Pacific Harbour, Viti Levu, Fiji, where we spent the Christmas holidays. For more, please click here.

The Christmas season is upon the world, and for most, this will be a very different holiday than most years. With gatherings being held to a minimum with COVID-19 restrictions, which we hope people will observe for their safety and the safety of loved ones and friends, it will be an unusual year.

Access to the Qaraniquo river in the neighborhood.

The rollout of the vaccine couldn’t come soon enough. But, from what we’re reading on the news (accurate or not), many developing countries such as South Africa will only have enough to vaccinate only one-tenth of the population, which ultimately won’t offer any global protection to its people and visitors.

This article explains that this developing country cannot afford the low-temperature equipment to store the vaccine at adequate below zero temperatures safely. With this in mind, we doubt we’ll be able to get the vaccine if we so choose while in South Africa. Emerging the virus will continue to rage in the country while we’re there. We’re hoping to remain safe in Marloth Park.

What happened to this tree? It appears there’s been a human intervention.

Last night South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa conducted a speech about the rise in cases. Here is the link to the full text of his speech. In Johannesburg, our dear friends, Linda and Ken, watched the speech on TV and reported the results to me by text. Of course, I was concerned the borders would be closed once again, shutting down tourism, subsequently preventing us from flying out on January 12, 2021.

Thankfully, no such action is being taken at this point. Many of the restrictions imposed by Cyril during the past nine months are again re-enacted as Covid-19 cases rise, such as no alcohol sold over the weekends, curfews at 10:00 pm, mandatory mask-wearing, handwashing, and social distancing in any public venues, shops, restrictions on the number of people attending celebrations, and more, all of which is subject to fines or six months in jail if violated.

Flowering shrubs line the boulevard.

However, we do not doubt that the first time we head to Komatipoort and its overly crowded streets and shops, that mask-wearing will be at a minimum. In that case, we’ll choose to shop in small, less well-stocked shops in Marloth Park as needed. We will drive to Komatipoort for pellets for the wildlife since this purchase enables us to stay in the car while the trunk is loaded with the 40 kg (88 pounds) bags.

We’ll figure it all out, even without the vaccine, and do our best to avoid contracting the virus, taking every possible precaution. At this point, our imminent concern is getting there safely when flying on three flights and going through four airports in the process.

We’d never encountered this particular flower.

Of course, everything could change in the next 28 days when we head to the Mumbai International Airport for our flight in the middle of the night. Suppose gatherings during the holiday season, resulting in even more outrageous increases in cases in South Africa. In that case, Cyril could easily decide to close the borders again, crippling the much-needed tourism business in the country.

Thanks to Linda and Ken for updating me late last night. I couldn’t fall asleep anyway, knowing this speech was imminent at 8:00 pm, South Africa time, and midnight here in India. By 1:15 am, I finally drifted off to a night filled with dreams about Christmas and buying gifts while living in various houses in my distant past.  Hum…

It was only a short walk from our holiday home to the river.

Have a pleasant day.

Photo from one year ago today, December 15, 2019:

We attended a brunch with Tom’s sisters and spouses at the resort in Arizona, highlighting “omelets in a bag.” Here is Tom’s three-egg omelet after it came out of the bag. For more photos, please click here.

Day #266 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Friends…Pigs in a pile, too!…

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Little told his friend that the “pickings” were good at this house, so they both climbed the six steps up to the veranda to the front door. 

Today’s photos that we enthusiastically share for a chuckle are from this date in 2018 while we stayed in Marloth Park for 15 months. For more on the post, please click here.

Friends. It’s incredible to be blessed with good friends. Without them, our lives would be different. Daily, we communicate with friends via email, text, and social media, many from our old lives and new friends we’ve made along the way in our travels.

The Big Daddies didn’t seem as interested in the lucerne as the female kudus, but this one managed a mouthful.

The two places in the world where we made the most friends were Princeville, Kauai, Hawaii, in 2015, and Marloth Park, South Africa, in 2013/2014 and 2018/2019. No doubt, an influencing factor in returning to South Africa is due to the number of friends we made there, most of whom we’ve stayed in close touch with since we left in May 2019, 20 months ago.

Knowing we’ll be able to spend time with so many of those friends when we hopefully arrive soon only adds to the excitement of getting out of this hotel room after ten months (as of our scheduled departure day on January 12, 2021). We realize that COVID-19 restrictions will be in place, even in the relatively safe Marloth Park, such as mask-wearing, social distancing, hand washing, etc.

“Pigs on the porch,” Pigs in the pond,” and Pigs in a pile,” and “Pigs in the parlor.” It’s “Pig Paradise in the Park.”

Will we be able to hug our friends when we see them next month? We aren’t sure at this point. I suppose doing so will be predicated by the presence of COVID-19 upon our arrival, which can change on a dime. At this point, there are few known cases in MP and certainly no major outbreak, but we will remain cautious, even in the presence of the people we know and love.

With Marloth Park a popular tourist location, an outbreak could happen at any moment. We wonder if we’ll be able to go to Jabula for dinner, although they have ample outdoor seating. It’s one of those scenarios. We’ll simply have to play by ear. But, without question, our top priority will be protecting ourselves and, if it limits socializing and dining out, so be it.

“Little” was checking out what the kudus were eating. 

Our animal friends will surely visit in any case. The thought of sitting outdoors awaiting their arrival is a massive appeal and comfort to us now, a far cry from being stuck in this room a day longer than we have to. Speaking of wildlife and friends, I couldn’t resist posting today’s main photo of our friend Little, champion warthog, bringing a friend with him to visit us at our bush house in 2018 to share the bounty we so freely offered daily.

We laughed out loud then and over again over the past 20 months from this unique scenario many times. I think it’s easy for us humans to believe we are the only creatures on earth possessing the depth of emotion to develop friendships with our species. And yet, we’ve often seen this ability to make friends in our pets, for us, most often dogs.

Piglets in a pile.

In our old lives, we often laughed over the friends our dogs made over the years. We lived on a private road, not requiring our dogs to be on a leash, with just about every house on the peninsula with friendly little dogs. Some became friends with our dogs, and others did not. But, it was not uncommon for our neighbors or us to have ours and their dogs in our houses visiting one another.

Some animals in the wild are no different. They find companions that they become attached to as much as their family members, especially, as we’ve witnessed after spending considerable time in the bush observing wildlife daily. We often observed this behavior in warthogs, usually two females with or without piglets and males who often visited in pairs rather than large groups.

A male ostrich’s flattened feathers after a downpour.

They may, or may not, be related. Many wildlife species hang out together in large family groups such as impalas and mongoose, giraffes, and others, while many twosomes we observed were mating pairs. But warthogs and pigs are consistently rated in various studies as one of the most intelligent animals in the animal kingdom, as indicated in this article. Pigs are reportedly smarter than dogs. And we all know how intelligent our dogs are!

In any case, we’ll be back amongst “friends,” both human and animal, in a mere 30 days. We hope.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, December 14, 2019:

We sat outside on the veranda several times during our stay in Apache Junction, Arizona, frequently using the gas grill. The weather is warm and sunny most days. For more photos, please click here.

Day #265 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Bollywood dancing in Fiji…

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The couples were in sync while dancing the traditional Bollywood type performance.

Today’s photos are from a post on this date in 2015 while out to dinner at a resort in Viti Levu, Fiji, where performers were dancing Bollywood style. Please click here for more details.

With 37.5% of Fijians of Indian descent, it wasn’t unusual to see Bollywood dancing at a resort we visited for dinner on this date five years ago. Ironically, Tom and I discussed the event yesterday, and here it pops up today as our highlighted photos.  It was a lovely evening at the beach with good food and entertainment.

The Bollywood dancers prepared for their performance.

Gosh, that seems so far away from our current reality at this point when the only meals we’ve had for months have been repeated in our room, day after day, night after night. I don’t know when I’ll ever feel like eating a piece of salmon or grilled chicken breasts which I alternate every other day.

I’ve never been a fan of chicken breasts. Due to lack of fat and flavor, I’ve always preferred dark meat. I don’t think we’ll give up eating “flatties” (a whole chicken cut to lie flat) on the braai (grill) once we get to South Africa, although it may not be right away.

The locals perform their routine on Saturday nights.

When Tom and I share an entire flattie, he eats the white meat while I have the dark. My mouth kind of waters at the thought of a juicy leg and thigh on the bone, something I haven’t been able to get here in India at this hotel. They de-bone all the chicken here, which often results in a dry piece of grilled meat.

Not surprisingly, I’ve already made a grocery list for our arrival in South Africa. Perhaps, doing so is a bit lofty at this point, but since Louise has generously offered to shop for us while awaiting our arrival, this will allow us to stay put the first few days without venturing out.

Many of the guests joined in the dancing. It’s never us on the stage! Neither of us likes to participate “on stage” during performances of any type.

We’ll need such items as pellets, coffee, cream, block cheese, eggs, bacon, butter, and meats for the first few nights’ dinners and, of course, some wine for me and brandy for Tom. Typically, in South Africa, I only drank Four Cousin Skinny Red Wine which has zero carbs and low alcohol.

This lighter wine was ideal for me then and will be excellent once again since I won’t have had any wine since February 20th, on my birthday in Khajuraho, India. In reviewing our past posts, we realized I didn’t drink any alcohol until the cruise 33-night back-to-back that circumnavigated the continent of Australia.

Another view of the astounding sunset on Saturday night at the Uprising Beach Resort.

It had been over 20 years since I’d drank alcohol in a feeble attempt to be healthier. Not doing so, in moderation, wasn’t particularly beneficial. I suppose the key is moderation when imbibing any alcoholic beverages, regardless of what they are. We both are very capable of only having “a few,” especially when it’s been relatively easy for us during this lengthy lockdown.

Again, my mouth waters over the concept of the first feel of the room temperature red wine crossing my lips for the first time, accompanied with a hearty chunk of beef of one cut or another. Tom, feels the same way, although he’s not a wine drinker, instead preferring Courvoiosier, brandy, or beer.

There was a post-blocking part of our view, but I didn’t want to obstruct anyone else’s view by standing.

These simple pleasures also will signify our freedom at long last, although we’ll still be predicated by lockdown rules in South Africa which we’ll diligently follow.

Speaking of birthdays, as mentioned above, Tom’s birthday is in 10 days. I’d love to do something special for him, but he insists he wants nothing at all; no cake, no drinks, no special meal (duh, what would that be?). I’d considered buying him a gift from Amazon India, but we’ll be unloading weight in our luggage before we leave, not adding to it.

So there it will be, another uneventful birthday, Christmas and New Year’, not only for us but for most of you throughout the world. We have made tremendous sacrifices during the pandemic, and we still have a long way to go. At least we have tentative peace of mind with the prospect of leaving India to fly to South Africa in the next 31 days. Please stay tuned.

Happy day to all!

Photo from one year ago today, December 13, 2019:

At a farmers market in Apache Junction, Arizona, we purchased five yellow and orange peppers for $1.99. The red peppers, as usual, are priced higher at $.79 each, still an excellent price. For more photos, please click here.

Day #264 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Will we take the COVID-19 vaccine?…

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We knew we had to be very cautious not only for our safety but also for his when this adorable zebra climbed the slippery steps to see what we had for him. If we startled him or told him to get down, he could have broken a leg on the slick tiles of the stairs to the veranda. Instead, we tossed pellets on the ground near the bottom of the steps.

Today’s photos are from this date in 2018 while living in Marloth Park, South Africa. We realize these photos may be redundant, but we couldn’t resist sharing these fun photos. For more, please click here.

Yesterday and again this morning, I had some work to do with one of our website’s advertisers and ran into a glitch on their site which kept me in a tizzy for two hours. I’ve contacted our web people to help, but they aren’t available this weekend. It will have to wait until Monday. It’s the nature of the beast.

We were busy working on our laptops and didn’t realize what was happening until we saw this zebra climbing up the veranda steps.

Speaking of beasts, I was definitely in the mood for some more “feel good” hormones, as mentioned in yesterday’s post here, smiling and laughing over old photos from Marloth Park in 2018. Yes, I’ve thought quite a bit about the possible redundancy of all the upcoming future photos when, again, we’ll be living in the bush among the wildlife.

Lately, while walking the corridors, I’ve been thinking of ways to add more exciting photos of that which we encounter living in the bush. The unusual shots, such as today’s repeated photos, add to the uniqueness and innovation. Regardless of how hot and “buggie” it is outdoors on the veranda at our new location, we plan to spend our days and nights outdoors, searching for photo ops such as those included today.

Just like that, he was on the veranda. The only reason we think this happened is that many residents feed the zebras on their ground-level verandas. 

It’s those special occasions that add so much to our experiences. Then again, for us, the simple, less interesting visits by wildlife add to our experiences daily. Of course, we’ll be venturing into Kruger National Park at least once a week when again, we’ll purchase an annual entrance pass, taking many photos of the “Big Five” and more.

Also, from time to time, we’ll head to the village of Komatipoort to shop but will avoid going more often than is necessary, due to COVID-19, which is more prevalent in the town than where we’ll live, which is 25 minutes away in the bush.

We gave him time to fulfill his curiosity, whispering, and with confidence.

As of now, we’ve booked our required COVID-19 PCR test with a local lab that will come to our hotel on January 10, 2021, between 8:00, am and 4:00 pm. We’ll have the results in our email within eight hours, which we’ll have the hotel print, and we’ll bring to the airport as required by Emirates Airlines and South Africa for entry without quarantine.

Several of our readers have written asking if we will be taking the COVID-19 vaccine. We are considering it, especially if it’s required for us to continue to travel. It won’t be available in India by the time we leave in January but, we expect we’ll be able to get it at some point in South Africa, either Dr. Theo’s office or the pharmacy in Komatipoort. We’ll see how that rolls out.

It was a shock to see him on the veranda, but we appreciated the photo op!

This plan will give us time to see if the vaccine is safe for our ages and my health conditions that include allergies, which, based on some news (accurate or not) that stated that those with allergies might not be good candidates. At least we’ll have time to figure it out when we observe what’s happening to recipients of the vaccines in the US and worldwide.

Yes, if it proves safe and effective, I’d enjoy the peace of mind after having the vaccine. After all, we’ve had numerous vaccines protecting us in our travels. One more won’t be much different if it is safe. However, it’s not an easy decision for any of us when many have opinions about the efficacy and safety of vaccines in general. Each of us can only choose a decision based on our own opinions and health, along with the views of our medical professionals.

He let out a loud whinny and took off for the pellets we tendered at the bottom of the steps. It was quite a pleasant visit, one we’ll never forget.

Tom awoke this morning and said, “Good morning, Sweetie. Guess what? It’s the weekend!” Duh?

Thirty-two days and counting.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, December 12, 2019:

It was fun to sit by the firepit with Tom’s sisters, spouses, and other residents in the RV park in Apache Junction, Arizona. For more, please click here.