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After five years of experience…Even we can be fooled!…Car rental warnings….More Atenas Farmers Market photos…Stunning sighting from the veranda…

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A farmer with several coolers of homemade sausage cooked us a sampling of his Italian sausage, which we have trouble finding in many countries. After tasting the delicious, perfectly seasoned sausages, we purchased six packages to use for our next batch of low-carb pizza.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

From this website: “The owl butterflies, the genus Caligo, are known for their huge eyespots, which resemble owls‘ eyes. They are found in the rain forests and secondary forests of Mexico, Central and South America. Owl butterflies are enormous, 65–200 mm (2.6–7.9 in), and fly only a few meters at a time, so avian predators have little difficulty in following them to their settling place. However, the butterflies preferentially fly at dusk, when few avian predators are around. Therefore, the Latin name may refer to their active periods; caligo means darkness.”   
This morning’s sighting of this Owl Butterfly sent us both to the moon with sheer delight! Can you imagine the magic of this amazing creature with spots that appear to be eyes resembling an owl to keep predators away? Wow!
After tasting the above Italian Sausages, as shown above, we purchased six packages from the farmer.

When we spotted this butterfly on the front veranda this morning, I couldn’t grab the camera quickly enough. Tom witnessed it flying, but by the time I grabbed the camera, it had landed in this spot by the sliding glass door.

The small but fun-filled Atenas Farmers Market.

We’ll be sharing more photos of butterflies over these upcoming months in Costa Rica due to the fact we’ve seen more butterflies here than in any other part of the world. So please check back for future stories.

There are plants for sale along with produce and handmade goods.

Speaking of our remaining 85 days in Costa Rica, yesterday’s experience at the car rental facility in San Jose will be emblazoned in our minds forever. Never once in the past five years of world travel, having rented cars for approximately 50% of the time, have we ever had such an outrageously awful experience.

Sure, we anticipated the US $9 (CRC 5,169) a day rate (included all taxes) would never end up at that rate when we went to pick up the car. In addition, we anticipated add-on charges for our age which were listed at US $5 (CRC 2,871) per day, per person. But even at the US $19 (CRC 10,912), we could live with that with both of us able to drive. 

We were impressed with the elaborate displays.

In many countries, we’ve rented cars for around US $600 (CRC 344,574) to $700 (402,003) for a monthly rate which we’ve always felt has been fair. But, the discovery we made after our taxi ride from Atenas to the Europcar facility (franchise owned) next door to the Walmart store in San Jose, where we planned to pick up a few items after getting the car, threw us for a loop.

Huge bananas picked in giant bunches caught the eye of many shoppers.

It all started fine when the rep behind the counter began processing our booked rental, asking for our passports, driver’s licenses, US address, etc. Of course, we’d brought along the printed documents with our confirmation number and pertinent information to ensure nothing would infringe upon our getting the decent rate we’d derived online at our usual rentalcars.com, a reputable company.

Belts, wallets, and other leather goods.

And, we’ve used Europcar at least 10 times over these years, expecting they’d honor the online pricing without gouging us. But, after finding they were franchise operations and subject to any peculiar laws in a country (so they say), we were shocked over the “bait and switch” tactic we were presented.

Local farmers and butchers have a wide array of beef, pork, and poultry for sale.

Aad has warned us about “bait and switch” type rental situations frequently occurring in Costa Rica, the reason why we’d chosen to do the five-day rental through his regular guy from “Thrifty.” Having used Europcar many times over these past years, we didn’t anticipate any problems.

Refrigerated cases with traditional and uncommon cuts of meat.

Here’s the prices we’d have had to pay, had we taken the tiny car yesterday:

1. the US $9 daily rate, plus the US $5 (CRC 2,871) for one driver over 64 years old (Tom) PLUS…an additional US $44.95 (CRC 25,814) per day for insurance (we already have insurance through our credit cards and a separate liability policy) for a total of US $58.95 per day (CRC 33,854) for a total for US $5,070 (CRC 2,911,444) for our remaining days in Costa Rica.
2.  Plus, they wanted a letter from our bank stating we have sufficient funds to pay for the car in the event of an accident (what the heck was the US $44.95 (CRC 25,814) per day supposed to be for?
3.  Plus, they required a US $9,000 (CRC 5,168,610) deposit!!!

Specialty flavored sea salts.  We purchased a similar item in Tasmania, smokey Himalayan salt which we continue to use and enjoy.

Why in the world would we pay any of this? But, of course, none of these above three would send us walking out the door in a huff, which I did, this time, not so much Tom. Yep, I was the “overly grumpy” traveler this time, appalled by this unbelievable trickery. 

I couldn’t resist buying one of these containers of two dozen quail eggs.

Sure, if someone were renting a car for a one-week holiday, it wouldn’t seem so bad, but still, they’d required the outrageous deposit! Who’d be willing to put a US $9,000 (CRC 5,168,610) deposit on a credit card?  Not us!

Over a period of a few days, I boiled these tiny quail eggs and had them in my taco salad. They’re tiny and fun to pop in one’s mouth for a tasty treat.

We left…no car…as frustrated as I’ve ever been in our years of world travel.  We walked across the road to the Walmart store, our yellow Costco bag in hand with a shortlist of items we needed to find, some of which we did find and others we did not.

For illustration purposes, I placed one large regular chicken egg atop the boiled, peeled quail eggs. About four quail eggs are comparable to one chicken egg.  I ate all 24 of them over a period of three days. Tom didn’t care for them, although they taste almost identical to a regular egg.

Until tomorrow, folks, when we share the story of what transpired at the pharmacy at Walmart that left me with a dilemma for which there’s no logical solution. However, by the time we paid for our few items, we were both in a better state of mind, and we found a taxi outside the store that drove us back to Atenas. 

Since Tom’s been eating fruit, we purchased this watermelon which he hadn’t eaten since we left Minnesota. So today, I used this cauliflower as an ingredient in my favorite meal; Chicken Sausage and Cauliflower Bake. Could you email me this amazing recipe?

Round trip taxi fares from Atenas to San Jose?  The total came to US $54.83 (CRC 31,485), which actually wasn’t as much as we’d expected. That was one pricey trip t0 Walmart!

We used these small purple onions in taco salad over these past few days.

No one ever said it was ever easy. So we’ll be back with more.

Photo from one year ago today, August 29, 2016:

Final photos of Chalong Beach in Phuket, Thailand, are preparing to depart on September 1, 2016. For more final photos, please click here.

Settled into the cool and comfort indoors…Easy living, although outrageously hot hot hot weather!….

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The white lattice pergola provides shelter from the scorching sun.

We prefer not to stay at anyone’s home. We have our unique routine, which may be annoying and frustrating for those who might invite us along the way in our world travels.

With the utmost of kindness and generosity, many people we’ve met have invited us to stay with them when we travel to their country, but, in each case, we’ve graciously declined.

Chaise lounges we hope to use if the temperature cools down a bit.  Right now, it’s too hot to sit in the sun for our usual short stint.

Whether it’s our constant need for reliable WiFi and the necessity of being online, my restrictive way of eating, or our mutual inability to avoid feeling “in the way,” we continue to decline such invitations.

In the recent case in Minnesota, our three adult children didn’t have room in their homes for us to occupy a bedroom and bath, nor did we feel it would have been prudent to spend six weeks in anyone’s home, regardless of the availability of space.

Comfortable seating with fire pit for cool winter nights in the desert.

The single exception to that is staying with son Richard in Green Valley Ranch in Henderson, Nevada, a bachelor with a charming newly remodeled home with a private guest area, pool, and the latest and greatest home technology is doable for us.

When we arrived on Friday, after unpacking and getting settled, we headed to Smith’s Market for some groceries. The idea of cooking was appealing when I hadn’t cooked a meal since April when we were still living in Fairlight, near Sydney, Australia.

Most lots in gated communities in Las Vegas/Henderson are small.  Landscapers and pool designers are creative in making the most of the limited space.

I was shocked by the reasonable prices, which were much lower than in Minnesota based on the few trips I’d made for a few items while we spent the six weeks in Plymouth at the hotel. It was exceptionally reasonable for organic produce, eggs, and dairy.

Here again, in upscale Henderson, we continue in a state of culture shock considering the abundance of literally everything; products in stores, numbers of restaurants, shopping centers, specialty shops, movie theaters, freeways, and gated neighborhoods. 

Outdoor kitchen by the pool.

One need only to conceive of an item they’d like to purchase and can readily look online to find it.  How easily we recall being unable to find shredded cheese, lettuce, celery, mushrooms, parchment paper, coconut oil, and an endless array of non-food items. 

We’ll continue to purchase some necessary items that we’ll collect from our mailing service before we leave in 23 days. Also, while there, I’ll be picking up my “Africa” boots which I’ve kept stored in an oversized mailbox at the mailing service. I’d shipped the boots there a few years ago, hoping we’d return to Africa someday. 

Hot! Hot! Hot!  This photo was taken yesterday of a TV monitor during the weather report.

Now, with only seven months until we return to Africa, I’ll be thrilled to wear once again my ideal-for-the-bush boots I had specially altered before we left the US to ensure a tight fit on the calves and thus avoid insects slipping down into the boot. I still can’t believe how our South African friends walk about in the bush wearing flip flops!

That’s it for today, folks! We’ll be back at you soon!

Photo from one year ago today, July 9, 2016:

The bright red color of this Hoa or ethnic Chinese wedding dress is intended to bring happiness, good luck, and a prosperous future. The Hoa in Vietnam continues to maintain customs from their provinces of origin, mainly in Southern Chine. Many Hoa is involved in trade in urban areas, primarily in Ho Chi Minh City, where we were headed the next day. For more details, please click here.

Tom’s US haircut…Disappointing?..Prices throughout the world….Another family outing today and fun evening tonight with friends…

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Maisie and Tom in front of Cost Cutters.  We arrived at 10:30 am but had to wait for the late-arriving employee.

Tom’s had haircuts worldwide, from his first in Belize in 2013 to his most recent in Fairlight, (Sydney) Australia, with another a few days ago here at a Cost Cutters located in Minnetonka, Minnesota. 

He’s paid from a low of US $1.85  (plus a $.93 tip) in Savusavu, Fiji, in 2015 (as shown in the photo below) to a high of US $32.74 (plus a $5.00 tip) in Singapore in 2016. The price for Cost Cutter’s was US $15.50 (plus a $3.00 tip).

As indicated in the photos, the cut cost seems to have little bearing on the quality of the haircut.  Honestly, I think the Cost Cutter’s cut was the least desirable in appearance with much trepidation. 

The recent cutting accuracy was satisfactory, but the styling was lacking, and Tom’s having a heck of a time keeping me from teasing him about it. I try to keep my trap shut, but it’s nearly impossible every time we get under the bright lights of the elevator in the hotel.

In Fiji, the hot, humid weather inspired Tom to go for the shortest cut he’d ever had. Here’s the odd part…the cost for the haircut taking almost 20 minutes costs a paltry FJD 4, $1.85!  Tom left another FJD 2, $.93 tip, which Kumar greatly appreciated. See this link from November 5, 2015.

He politely reminded me that he never teases me about my hair or wardrobe. Although on occasion, if my lipstick is smudged or something else is askew, he’ll kindly point out that it needs immediate attention. I appreciate his observations.

When we were on a cruise ship early in the year, and he pointed out that a piece of TP was hanging out of the bottom of my shorts, I certainly appreciated it while turning around and wondering how many people had noticed that.

Years ago, my friend Lynda and I were at a wedding, and a man in a lime green leisure suit came out of the restroom with a long stream of toilet paper attached to his shoe. Lynda and I had to leave the area due to our uncontrollable laughter. 

At the time, after I mentioned his embarrassment, she said: “No one will ever remember this.” But, here I am 40 years later, and I still remember his lime green suit and stream of toilet paper. Now, more mature, I’d have pointed it out to him rather than let him return to the reception hall in such a state.

In Singapore, a cut by a stylist in a pricey salon was the only option. The haircut was SGD 44, US $32.74, which included a 20% discount and was more than he’s paid anywhere in the world thus far. Click here for the link from that post. 

However, Tom’s haircut is certainly not comparable to the TP incidents. Although, each time I look his way, I can’t help but giggle. He keeps “giving me the look,” reminding me to cease the relentless observations along with the comments. I’ll see what I can do.  Sometimes, we have to laugh.

As for activities over the past 24 hours…Tom, Tammy, and Vincent attended Vincent’s gun safety certification ceremony at his camp. The three of them took off for lunch at Chipotle (Vincent’s favorite) and then to see the movie Wonder Woman. As mentioned, I’d already seen it with Maisie and stayed behind to work on a few things.

When Tammy offered to drive and return Tom to the hotel at the end of their day, Tom tossed me the keys to the red SUV, and there I was without any specific plans and an afternoon to myself. How odd.
After uploading the post, I dropped off my laptop in our room, filled my mug with Crystal Light iced tea and ice (I can now drink more liquids as my gastrointestinal issues have improved), and headed out the door. Forget the idea of staying in the room to work on Tom’s clothes. I was a woman-on-a-mission.
Tom, before his haircut on Thursday.

First, I headed to one of my favorite stores from my old life, Old Navy, to find a few light summer tops, knowing that the skimpier, the better, would be ideal for heat in Marloth Park upcoming in eight months. 

I remember sitting on the veranda in the scorching heat and humidity all day, waiting for “visitors” wearing clothes that were too hot.  Although I don’t wear tank tops in public (too old for such skimpiness), they’re helpful when we’re by ourselves in hot weather. 

Well, not surprisingly, I was able to purchase seven good-quality tops for a total of $46. Wow!  What a deal! I’d never find such a bargain outside the US. Next, I headed to TJ Maxx to purchase some cover-up for the cool evenings on upcoming cruises. 

The modern salon finally opened while we waited.

I didn’t want to buy a bulky space-hogging sweater but found a lightweight roll-in-a-ball cover-up that will help keep me warm in the chilly AC on ships. At $15, I was thrilled to have found the perfect solution. Then I was off to my final destination, a quick stop at a Lunds/Byerly’s grocery store (they merged since we left) to buy more heavy cream for my coffee and an appetizer to bring to tonight’s party at friend Sue’s home.

Before entering the market, I called my sister Susan in Las Vegas to tell her we’d be arriving in a mere three weeks. As always, it was beautiful to hear her voice. Speaking through the navigation system in the red SUV, we chatted for over an hour, anticipating seeing one another soon with sheer delight.

Finally, we said goodbye, and I headed into the market for the few items I needed. I couldn’t recall the last time I shopped in a grocery store without being concerned that Tom was waiting for me outside while sitting on a bench or in a rental car. 

Tom didn’t want a buzz cut this time.  With temps predicted at 120F (48.8C) in Las Vegas this upcoming week, a buzz cut may have been ideal.

He’s never rushed me when I’ve shopped, but I’ve always been mindful and considerate that he was waiting.  Most recently, in Fairlight, Australia, not only was Tom waiting but so was Bob, our delightful landlord. He always insisted on taking us grocery shopping during our six weeks in his holiday home. I had two kindly men waiting for me to get done during that period, with nary a complaint.

As I was nearing the hotel, I rang Tom to discover he’d returned to the hotel after his day with Tammy and Vincent. Upon hearing he and Vincent shared one of those giant popcorn buckets during the movie, I didn’t say a word about when we’d go out to eat. I knew he wouldn’t feel hungry for quite a while.

The final product resulted in a neat trim, but the styling wasn’t as good as usual.

By 6:30 pm, we were back in the red SUV heading to the same restaurant we’d visited several nights ago, Avenida, a fusion Mexican/Asian establishment with excellent food. Tom had the Asian, and I had the Mexican, modified to my diet.

Back at the hotel, we lounged and watched two episodes of Scandal. By 10:45, we dozed off for a good night’s sleep. Today, at noon, we’re meeting Greg and the grandkids at the annual St. Louis Park Parktacular event.  Later in the day, at 4:00 pm, we’re off to friend Sue’s new home and the gathering she’s put together for our benefit. 

We’ll be back tomorrow with photos of this busy day. Enjoy your weekend as well!

Photo from one year ago today, June 17, 2016:
This group of cute Balinese kids stopped for a photo with their white horse. For more details, please click here.

Sitka, a surprising Alaskan experience…

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The cloudy scenes were appealing, although a sunny day in Sitka would have been nice.

Please note: We’re finalizing the headcount for the “Meet & Greet” for our readers in Minneapolis on June 9th from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm at:

Grizzly’s Wood Fired Grill at this location in Plymouth, Minnesota:
220 Carlson Pkwy N, Plymouth, MN 55447
Please RSVP if you plan to attend and haven’t already done so.  Hope to see you then!
It’s not easy to describe Sitka, Alaska. It’s a combination of rustic cabins, many worn and tattered, ocean front homes of varying sizes and value and a few more modern properties built or being built by those seeking refuge from the hustle and bustle of life in more populous areas in North America and other parts of the world.
The “Welcome to Sitka Alaska” sign greeted us as we disembarked the ship.
However, it’s easy to see how Sitka may become the chosen place to-run-away-and-hide from the rigors of big city life. The surrounding scenery is some of the most exquisite in the world, rife with wildlife, lush vegetation, mysterious little islands and some of the world’s most prolific fishing suitable for all skill levels.
There are thousands of small islands in the sea surrounding Alaska.
Here are some fun facts we found on Sitka from this website:

  1. Sitka is the first and oldest city in Alaska, some sources say it is 10,000 years old

  2. For 63 years Sitka was a major Russian port. (Fur trading)

  3. Sitka was the site of the signing of the Alaska purchase on October 18th, 1867.

  4. The City and Borough of Sitka, Alaska, encompasses 4,710 square miles, making it the largest city in the United States.

  5. Sitka, Alaska is the 4th largest city in Alaska by population after Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau. (Population around 9,000)

  6. Sitka was featured in the hit US movie, “The Proposal” with Sandra Bullock, although most of the scenes of the city are actually filmed in Boston

  7. Smithsonian Magazine named Sitka number 9 in the 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2013

  8. Travel Channel Recently Featured Sitka on their popular show “Bizarre Foods”

  9. James Michener lived here while writing his epic novel Alaska

  10. John O Connell Bridge between Baranof and Japonski Island is the first cable-stayed bridge in the Western Hemisphere

We were the only ship in port and the crowds in the town weren’t wrong.

As is the case in each location we visit, we ask ourselves the interminable questions, “Should we return here for a two or three-month stay or could we ever live here?” Yes, to the first question. No, to the second.

Our bus driver explained that most days it was so foggy and cloudy a scene such as this would have been impossible.

We’ll never live in such a cold and snowy location after spending a lifetime in Minnesota for Tom, and over 40 years for me, in the frozen tundra that so well describes the winter months in the cold northern state, bordering Manitoba, Canada.

Walrus tusk decorator items.

Then again, the bigger question becomes…”Will we ever “live” anywhere permanently?” Highly unlikely, based on our current joy in living as nomads, a lifestyle we’ve easily adopted, hopefully for the long haul.

Me in another giant bear chair.

Yesterday, after uploading the post, we bundled up in warm clothing and made our way to deck two to depart the ship for the free bus shuttle to downtown Sitka. 

Is this some type of Bison?

Getting off the ship was relatively quick and easy but the line inside the visitor’s center waiting to board the free shuttle buses was long and slow. We waited for no less than 20 minutes. 

Me, posing in yet another bear chair.

The ride to the center of the small town was another 15 minutes but the breathtaking scenery on the way and the informational chatter of the bus driver kept us occupied.

St. Michael’s Cathedral is also known as the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel“.

It’s nearly impossible to take good photos from a fast-moving bus. However, once we arrived in downtown Sitka, the photo ops were plentiful as we walked around the town bumping into other cruise passengers along the way, occasionally stopping to chat with others we’d met on the cruise.

View of St. Michael’s Cathedral from the main road.

As we wandered through the tiny town, my interest in visiting Sitka increased. The cozy small town feel, the handcrafted items in the shops, the playfulness of its residents whether the bus driver or shop owners, all play a significant role in making Sitka a desirable location for visitors.

Alternate view of the church.

We’re totally convinced that the “flavor” of Alaska is hardly perceived on a cruise. Yes, its’ a decent way to catch a few of the highlights but it’s hardly the perfect medium to fully embrace the vastness and beauty of this magical place.

Shops in the center of Sitka.

Hopefully, someday when the time comes to explore North America, Alaska will be on our itinerary if we’re able to find affordable vacation homes in a few different areas or, as our friends Chere and Gary did a few years back, rent a motorhome/caravan and explore on our own.

A pretty scene from the shoreline in Sitka.

Today is a sea day. We’re comfortably situated in Cafe al Bacio on deck five in perfect seats for viewing the upcoming Egg Drop Contest, whereby ambitious passengers make contraptions from which they can competitively drop raw eggs from upper decks to the atrium floor on deck three. It’s a silly but fun event we always find humorous to watch.

View of the bay in Sitka.

With no breakfast this morning, we’ll head to lunch after the Egg Drop Contest, the Captain’s Club happy hour from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, dinner in the Epernay Dining Room by 7:15 and later head to the 9:00 pm show in the Solstice Theatre. At 10:15 pm, we’ll stay up for the adult comedy show.

The dense fog in the forested hills.

Between preparing today’s post, managing our many photos, chatting with passengers, my working out in the gym, the sea day and evening will be packed with plenty to keep us occupied and entertained.

Tom, by our ship.

Tomorrow is packing day. In 48 hours, we’ll be disembarking the ship to grab a taxi to the Sea-Tac airport to fly to Minnesota. How the time has flown!

Be well.  Be happy.

Photo from one year ago today, May 24, 2016:

A year ago we had the opportunity to meet Gede’s our house man’s gracious parents who live in Lovina, Bali where we went to extend our 30-day visas. For more details, please click here.

Busy organizing, packing and socializing day!…Baggage fees for Delta…Two days and counting..

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St. James Train Station in downtown (known as the CBD, Central Business District) in Sydney.

This morning I began packing the third and smaller of our three checked bags. With no concerns with over-weight restrictions, since we’re boarding a ship, not a plane, I still felt committed to lightening the load and reorganizing the contents. 

A night view of a few of the buildings in Circular Quay, Sydney, taken from the Manly Ferry.

We won’t have to be concerned about the weight until the end of the upcoming Alaska cruise when we fly from Seattle to Minneapolis on May 26th. Somehow, I can’t wrap my brain around the fact that we’ll be preparing for that flight in only 36 days.

Sydney Opera House at night taken from the Manly Ferry.

During that 36 days, we’ll be packing and unpacking a total of eight times which includes:
1.  Packing for the cruise – now
2.  Unpacking in our cabin for the cruise to Seattle – April 22nd
3.  Packing to disembark the ship in Seattle – May 15th
4.  Unpacking at hotel in Vancouver for two-night stay – May 15th
5.  Packing to depart hotel – May 17th
6.  Unpacking in our cabin for the Alaskan cruise – May 17th
7.  Packing to disembark the ship in Seattle – May 26th
8.  Unpacking at the hotel in Minneapolis where we’ll stay for six weeks – May 26th

A night skyline view of a small portion of downtown Sydney.

It’s this tight schedule that prompted me to be diligent in organizing our stuff and packing neatly. As a result, upon repacking and unpacking, we’ll do so with the same diligence as on each prior occasion. 

Luckily, as stated above, we’ll only be concerned with the weight of our bags on one occasion…when we fly to Minnesota. In the interim, I’ll certainly consider what items we can toss along the way to lighten that load.

Historic building in Circular Quay area. 

After checking Delta Airlines baggage fees, it appears it will be AU 33.35, US $25 for the first bag for each traveler, and an additional AU 46.69, US $35 for any other bag as shown below:

DELTA COMMON BAGGAGE FEES

The most common fees for traveling in a domestic, Main Cabin seat are:

The maximum weight, as shown above, is 23 kg, 50 lbs.  In the past, we’ve had no problem keeping the three bags within this weight range. But recently, we each added some new clothing and supplies.  

Office buildings along the Sydney Opera House Walkway including many shops, offices, restaurants, and condos.
This added weight will leave us committed to lightening our load of older items along the way before May 26th. However, one can never become complacent when it comes to baggage weight.
A portion of the Sydney skyline on a cloudy day.

As for today at 2:00 pm, Bob will drive us to the Manly Wharf, where we’ll walk across the road to walk the Corso to a pharmacy for a few more items we’ll need for the upcoming 36 days. 

Clock Tower in Sydney.

At 3:30 pm, we’ll return to the wharf where we’ll meet Christine and Colin, who’ll be arriving from Sydney on the Manly Ferry. We’ll head to a restaurant and relax for what indeed will be a pleasant get-together with the lovely couple, originally from the UK, having lived in Australia for the past 23 years.

One of our favorite Kookaburras.

In the evening we’ll return by bus to our holiday home as we spend one of the last two nights in Fairlight. It has been a great location, but we’re excited to be moving on.

Have a lovely day and evening!

Photo from one year ago today, April 20, 2016:

There was no photo posted one year ago. We were sailing on Royal Caribbean Voyager of the Seas and the WiFi.

It was so slow we couldn’t post any photos. Ironically, last night when we happened to look outdoors, we saw Voyager of the Seas heading out to sea from Sydney Harbour. Here’s that photo!

Last night’s photo of Royal Caribbean Voyager of the Seas leaving Sydney Harbour. Here’s the link to the post (without images). 

Wow!…An interesting visit to the home of a local collector…Three days and counting…

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Brett has spent the past 40 years building his beer memorabilia collection.

On January 9th, we received the following email from Brett Allison, a neighbor of Terry’s whom we’d yet to meet. Upon reading the following email, it was easy to assume that such a collection could be modest or consist of boxes of empty beer cans along with a few other items.

As soon as we entered Brett’s home to find this circular entryway, we anticipated something interesting and unusual was on the horizon. We weren’t disappointed.
We walked past this hallway to the stairway to the lower level to see his massive collection.

“Hi, I’m from Penguin, and I know Terry Owens. I actually live near opposite his place.  I’m a collector of breweriana and I was wondering if you were interested in viewing it. Its a rather large collection of anything to do with beer.. plus I have travelled extensively in Australia and over seas so I’m always interested in hearing what other people’s views are … I’m home tomorrow, (I have another collector calling at 9.30 am tomorrow they should be on their way by mid-afternoon),Wednesday and Thursday then I go to Hobart for the Australian “convention” which we have in January each year at a different state.. looking forward to your reply , cheers Brett Allison.”

As soon as we entered Brett’s lower level our mouths were agape in sheer wonder over his extensive collection of beer-related memorabilia called “breweriana.”  Who knew such a hobby even existed?
His collection of breweriana includes hundreds of tap handle knobs neatly organized and displayed in his handmade glass cabinets.

After word was out that we were sharing stories of various local businesses, we were all over the opportunity to highlight one more business as our time in Penguin dwindled down to less than a week.

There are literally thousands of empty beer cans, drained from the bottom to preserve the integrity of the flip tops.

We planned to arrive at Brett’s home between 1:00 and 2:00 pm.  However, the short drive and ease of finding Brett’s house (nothing is hard to find in Penguin) led us to believe we’d be in and out in no time and on our way back to our vacation home in time to prepare an early dinner, after a quick stop at the local market for a few items. 

He has a wide array of draft beer handle knobs.

Upon entering Brett’s home, he directed us to the ground floor level, after we’d walked up a flight of stairs to enter at his front door.

Many homes in Australia have what we from Minnesota consider a basement when in fact they are ground-level areas with the living areas above. In many cases, this allows for “tuck under” garages, work and storage spaces.

Tom was thoroughly enjoying this collection, although he’s not an avid beer drinker. It’s a guy thing. I found it particularly interesting due to Brett’s organizational skills and the vast nature of the collection.

As we entered this area, our mouths were agape at what we saw before us…a collection like none other we’d ever seen or imagined.  We were both in awe of the professional manner of Brett’s vast collection and organizational skills.

Every wall in the ground level of his home was highlighting his enormous collection.

Not only was his collection neatly displayed but he’d handmade most of the cabinetry displaying his priced collection. Immediately, he and Tom embarked on a lengthy discussion of beer, breweriana and of course, beer drinking in general.

His collection consists almost entirely of beer memorabilia from Australia.

Brett offered us beer, but we both graciously declined. I don’t drink beer (due to the hops derived from wheat), and Tom only drinks beer on rare occasions 

An enthusiastic and experienced world traveler, Brett often travels to “can” shows throughout Australia and the world.
Adding to the unique collection, the ceilings were decorated with beer-inspired serving trays.

Other than that one night, we joined Terry, Fran, and Gerard for happy hour at the Renaessance Café (click here for the post from that evening). In contrast, in Penguin and one other evening during which we sat on the front veranda sipping wine, neither of us has had any alcohol during our time here in Penguin.

Brett built these innovative folding cabinets in the past year o accommodate his growing collection and protect the cans from fading as the sun filters in from a skylight.

We’d had our fair share of complimentary alcoholic drinks on the previous 33-night cruise circumventing Australia and most likely won’t drink anything again until the next cruise beginning on March 1, 2017. 

These cabinets can be fully opened or displayed, as shown in this photo.

Expecting we’d stay at Brett’s home for a short period, I literally had to drag Tom out the door when we needed to be on our way and, to let Brett get back to the remainder of his day and evening.

A variety of toy beer trucks and service vehicles.
The beer cans were displayed with the precision befitting a library, organized, categorized with finite detail.

Needless to say, we had an exciting education on a topic we’d never anticipated we’d encounter in our world travels, breweriana. Thank you, Brett for sharing some of your beer collecting stories along with your vast experience in world travel.

Beer tapper and handle located in the bar area near his hundred signs.

Funny, it was almost a year ago when we were living in New Zealand that we encountered AmeriCARna (yep, spelled corrected) and traveled to a small town to see a collection of antique American cars. (Please click here for that post). Who knows what we’ll encounter in our travels? There are always pleasant surprises!

Tap handles and tap tops.

Have a glorious day!

Photo from one year ago today, January 13, 2016:

A ship sailed its way through Doubtful Sound in New Zealand. Unfortunately, it was a dreary day, but we all enjoyed the scenery anyway. For more photos, please click here.

Las Vegas…Here we come!!!…Gambling?…

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Often, we see motorbikes loaded with products being delivered to a variety of the tiny shops in the neighborhood, which sell candy, soda, cigarettes and snacks.

“Sightings on the Beach in Bali”

Colorful fishing boat with the crew at the end of a long night.

We don’t gamble, not in casinos. One could say we gamble with the quality of our lives every single day. We’ll agree with that. However, we have no interest in sitting at a slot machine or card table, giving away money we’ve carefully budgeted for many more interesting events in our lives.

Many people love gambling in casinos. Their occasional wins interspersed with more losses keep them engaged in the concept that it’s a worthwhile pleasurable activity. If one can do so without serious consequences in their lives, have at it! 

Decorative hand-carved door in the neighborhood.

If we gambled and lost US $300, IDR 4,001,250 at a poker table that would be groceries for two weeks outside the US or 10 separate day trips with a driver in Bali or the cost of excess luggage fees on Qantas airlines for a flight to Sydney from wherever. 

Tom used to enjoy playing blackjack. Years ago, he gave it up when one day it dawned on him that his losses were greater than his wins and it just wasn’t a logical way to spend hard-earned money. 

Even I had my days, way back when, of playing on occasion at one of the American Indian owned casinos in Minnesota or in Las Vegas when visiting eldest son Richard, a successful real estate agent, who’s lives in Henderson, Nevada (a suburban city near Las Vegas) for over 30 years. 

A local gathering place and temple.

For the past 20 years, neither of us has played a single casino game, not in casinos, not on cruise ships, and not at a single slot machine at the airport in Nevada. Nada. None. That’s not to say we wouldn’t play a friendly game of cards or dice with family or friends. We’re OK losing a few bucks to people to love. That’s different.

Why are we discussing gambling? After yesterday’s posting of our plans for visiting Minnesota for six weeks beginning next May, we’d be amiss not to mention where we’ll be spending our remaining three weeks during the 2017 trips to the US. 

Statues to be mounted in front yard temple at a house construction site in the neighborhood.

It’s hard to be in Las Vegas and not visit some of the new hotels we’ve yet to see while wandering through casino after casino. We’re confident we won’t have any trouble avoiding the tables and slot machines.

By the time we arrive in Las Vegas on July 7, 2017, we won’t have been there since December 2012 when we rented a vacation home in Henderson not far from Richard during which time three of Tom’s sisters and two brothers-in-law came to stay with us. 

Also, members of my family visited for Tom’s birthday on December 23rd and for Christmas a few days later. It was a memorable time spent together especially when we were only days away from leaving the US to begin our world journey.

If cows can be pretty, we thought this is quite lovely.

(By the way, when we count how long we’ve actually been gone, we consider the day we left Minnesota on Halloween, October 31, 2012. We spent two more months in both Scottsdale, Arizona, and Henderson, Nevada making final preparations to leave the US. 

On January 3, 2013, (here’s the post from that date) after driving to San Diego, California we sailed on our first ever cruise which fulfilled one of Tom’s dreams of traversing the Panama Canal. Son Richard and sister Julie said goodbye at the pier which meant so much to us).

This road we walk in the neighborhood has a fair amount of motorbike traffic.

Next July after we’ve completed the six weeks in Minnesota we’ll be visiting son Richard in Henderson, sister Susan in Las Vegas, and seeing sister Julie, who’ll fly in from Los Angeles for a visit while we’re there. During the three-week stay (until we fly to Costa Rica to our next vacation home in our itinerary on July 31, 2017), we’ll stay with Richard at his home in Henderson. 

Three weeks is a long time to stay in the home of others. Many have offered that we stay with them during these past years but we’ve always turned them down politely, appreciating the kind offer. 

There are several factors that make staying with Richard easier for all of us:

1. He doesn’t have a cat. I’m allergic. I can spend a few hours in a home with cats but never overnight when allergies are always worse.
2. He has room for us.  We refuse to ever allow any family member to vacate their room, their personal space for us. It’s simply not fair, especially for extended periods.
3. He doesn’t cook and doesn’t expect or want us to prepare food. We’ll either bring in something or eat out, hoping he’ll join us when it works for him.
4. He has a pool. We love pools.
5. He has a weekly cleaning person. There’s no expectation that we’ll be “earning our keep” by cleaning.
6. He’s gone all day working and we’ll have the house to ourselves with less time for us to annoy him with our daily routine.
7.  He has a hysterical pug, Monty, whom we adore. It will be enjoyable taking him for walks and hanging out with him. We wonder if he’ll remember us from almost five years ago.

Elaborate front yard temple.

For these above reasons, staying with Richard will be relatively easy. No doubt, it’s never easy to stay with anyone in their home for three weeks. I’ve heard nightmarish stories from friends when family came to stay for extended periods. However, we’ve stayed with him in past visits and it worked out well.

So, there it is folks, our US visit wrapped up in two neat little bundles with a goal to spend most of our time with family and also to spend some of our time with our dearest friends, many of whom we’ve stayed in close touch over this long period. 

We hope you’ll spend quality time with those you love, especially on Father’s Day in the US tomorrow. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there!

Photo from one year ago today, June 19, 2015:

Trinity Beach, Australia has a lot to offer; ocean, mountains, and plains with gorgeous scenery. We enjoyed our three months in the lovely, relatively serene area. For more photos, please click here.

Today is our 4th anniversary of posting…

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These beautiful tree clusters create a nice foreground for our photos at sunset.

Yesterday, as I was uploading the post, the date dawned on us as the upcoming anniversary of our first post.  As it turns out, it was four years ago today, on March 15, 2012, that we posted this site for the first time.

Here is the link to our first post on March 15, 2012.

At the time we began posting, we weren’t leaving Minnesota for over seven months until our departure date of October 31, 2012 with much to plan and handle in attempting to undo a lifetime in Minnesota and 26 years in our home.

Each room in our house was decorated and appointed with mementos, treasured and decorator items, all with a story and special meaning only to us. The two walk-in closets in the master bedroom, three upstairs guest room closets, and a large attic were filled to the brim with years of collection and accumulation. 

There’s a sliver of moon in this photo.

Certainly not, “hoarders” we still had our fair share of stuff. The thought of disposing of it all much of which our kids had no interest with their own house filled with their “stuff”, we made up bins of memorabilia for the each of the grandkids.

We arranged a professional estate sale for the rest, donating the items which didn’t sell. It was a daunting task I’ll never forget, along with the sale of the house and both cars.

In addition, we had to research and plan insurance, medical, immunizations, financial matters, digital equipment needs and of course, enough upcoming travel arrangements to give us peace of mind in knowing where we’d be traveling for the first few years.

Taking photos of sunsets is always tricky when the sky changes by the seconds, not minutes.

Tom was still working up until departure date. Being able to document the process was both therapeutic and rewarding, especially when people from all over the world began reading our posts, much to our surprise and delight. How did they find us? 

At the time, we did little promotion to acquire more readers. Magically, they appeared and continue to do so through “word of mouth” and our occasional promotion on other websites. 

When readers started writing to us about enjoying their “armchair experience,” reading our story on their ride on the train or bus ride to work, during a coffee break or at the kitchen table, our enthusiasm escalated to hopefully provide a worthwhile experience.

It was almost completely dark when we took this shot.

Many changes have occurred over these past four years.  Early on we hired a web designer, Brooke Woodall with http://www.smittenblogdesigns.com/ to help with the nuances since I have little time or interest in web development. 

Eventually, we added advertisers although we earn little revenue from the links but never did so with the intent in making enough to support us in any manner. Most likely, that will never occur. 

As time passed, around February, 2013, we found ourselves posting every day and attempting to perfect the quality of our photos. Since we began posting daily, we’ve hardly missed a single day, only due to internet connectivity or on travel days. 

With the mountains blocking our view of the actual sun setting we’re able to see the beauty in the sky at sunset on clear nights.

Over these past few years we’ve made an attempt to prepare the final day’s post to be scheduled to upload on travel day. That process seems to be working well preventing us from missing any days.

We realize that some days our stories are “thin” and not as content rich as others.  Its the “nature of the beast.” If someone told me I’d write a several page “essay” with photos every single day, I’d have said it wasn’t possible due to lack of content and/or motivation.

Nothing stop us, not lack of content, motivation, illness or planned activities. On cruises, we often go our on tours early in the morning. We either prepare a post the prior day or post upon return with new photos. 

Moments later it was pitch dark.

Our dedication and commitment has never wavered mainly due to our loyal readers commitment to continuing to stop by to see “what’s happening.” We are eternally grateful for our readers. 

It’s all of YOU who drive us to get out, see more, have more experiences, create more stories to write and take more photos to share. This, dear readers, even after four years never and I mean never, leaves us feeling pressured or stressed to prepare the next day’s morsel.

We enthusiastically continue to share our lives of two somewhat daring, somewhat crazy, sometimes boring seniors citizens of the world dedicated to living life to the fullest for as long as we are given the gift of good health.

Thank you for these past amazing four years.  Thank you to our readers who’ve stepped in along the way.  Thank you to our new readers who may be here for the first time today.  Each of you inspires us to continue on…

Photo from one year ago today, March 15, 2015:

We didn’t post a photo one year ago today when instead we wrote about our original post on March 15, 2012.  Please click here for details.

An unexpected AmeriCARna 2016 event in New Zealand!…A road trip like none other…Photo shocker at end of page…

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This 1946 Chevy had “Tom” on the license plate.  Go figure!

When we noticed a brochure under the doormat outside the front door a week ago we decided attending this American only traveling hotrod and classic car show could be fun.



This map we keep in the car confirmed the easy route from New Plymouth to Opunake.

Although we’ve never attended any car shows in our travels, especially now that we don’t own a car, attending the AmeriCarna 2016 event in the Taranaki Region held special interest for us as Americans.  To be able to see the Kiwi’s enthusiastically waving the American flags was delightful, beyond all expectations.


The quaint town’s variety of farm and implement stores were decorated with American flags and banners.

Detailed information on the many stops the 650 classic cars make on their journey through the Taranaki Region provided many options with one in particular that appealed to us, the hour drive along the ocean to the quaint town of Opunake on the Surf Highway (SH) 45.


Before the cars arrived at the event centre some were parked along the street while owners stopped for coffee and breakfast at the various cafes.

Other options included a litany of locations where the parade would travel over the full three day event, beginning on Thursday, February 25th, ending today, February 27th with no locations more than a few hours from downtown New Plymouth.


The main street was lined with US flags and decorations.

Based on the location of the farm the most logical venue for us was the show was yesterday’s event in Opunake.  Neither of us are big on crowds and traffic, avoided when possible. Opunake provided the most suitable opportunity appealing to our preferences. 


Even the local bank got into the festivities.

The biggest and most crowded events (with all the same cars) were last night (Friday) and again today and tonight in downtown New Plymouth where the  main streets are closed for the parade and the later parking of the vehicles for viewing. 


Tom dashed across the street for this photo op.

Street vendors with fabulous smelling burgers and fried foods is a vital part of the festivities.  If we attended the evening events, we wouldn’t be able to dine when nothing would be appropriate for my way of eating.  The visit to Opunake was perfect when during the day, we easily bypassed the delicious smelling food vendors to later head home to our own tasty dinner.


As we wandered down the street we continued to be amazed by the festivities and enthusiasm of the locals.

Yesterday, in Opunake, we had the benefit of both the full parade and later the parked viewing on all of the cars which had made the drive as we had.  We left an hour earlier than the cars were due to arrive in Opunake leaving us time to visit with many owners of the shops and restaurants that lined the streets of the cozy town.


The café owner stopped to say hello as she finished decorating this mannequin.

After our tour of the town, we found a great parking spot close to the Sandford Event Centre and we were able to watch each of the cars as they arrived twice, once as they entered a nearby intersection as they headed to the event centre, again as they drove into the event centre and a third time while parked on the grounds of the event center.

The procession of car began from the highway to the event centre while we stood with the crowds at the intersection.  We started taking more photos when they were actually heading into the event centre at a much slower pace. More photos tomorrow.

Although the event in Opunake was crowded we were freely able to park, move about and be up close and personal with the cars.  It was ideal when we had to opportunity to talk to some of the car owners as they proudly displayed their own unique vehicles. 


We couldn’t have been more surprised to see this Minnesota State Trooper vehicle (we’re from Minnesota, USA) at the show especially when we didn’t see such cars from other states.  Ironic, eh?

From the AmeriCARna’s website: “Americarna’s first event was in February 2007 and limited to 550 vehicles.  We wanted the event and every aspect to be about quality not quantity.  From those who attended the inaugural event, you (the public) told me we had it right.”


Tom couldn’t resist being in this photo!

As Americans, it was a special day for us, away from endless political spewing on the news and sad state of many US and world affairs.  The waving of the American flag by the joyful Kiwis, driving their American cars and having the time of their lives, made it a special day for us we’ll always remember as one many meaningful experiences we’ve had in this magical place.

More car photos with a new story will follow over the next few days. Please stop back!

CARpe diem!

_________________________________________


Photo from one year ago today, February 27, 2015:

One year ago on a last night out of town in Kauai, a little strip of clouds added to the view of the setting sun in Poipu Beach, Kauai.  For more photos, please click here.

Quite a day in the neighborhood…”Looking up”…

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This seaweed was offered for sale at the Farmers Market for FJD $5, USD $2.32 for a kilo (2.2 pounds). We didn’t purchase this.

Where do I begin? Yesterday, was quite a day. First off, it was the hottest day we’ve had in Fiji to date. It wasn’t only the temperature, which hovered around 90F, 32.2C, it was the humidity that also hovered around 90% on an otherwise sunny day.

In order to dry off after showering, we used the fan in the bedroom to get the sticky moisture off our skin. With no AC in the house, by the time we headed out the door at 1:00 pm for our weekly shopping trip to the village we were sweaty and sticky.

In our old lives, we often suffered from such humidity amid the worst of Minnesota’s summer heat, especially before and after a bad storm when the power was knocked out, often for days at a time. Once we got the generator going, the first to power up was the refrigerator and the AC.

Since the onset of our travels over three years ago, we’ve either didn’t have access to AC or didn’t use it during the day. If we had AC, to avoid high electrical costs for the owners of the properties, we seldom used it. There were AC units built into the wall in the bedrooms of only a few houses we’ve rented along the way.

Are we used to the heat? If we didn’t get used to it in Kenya, we never would. To a degree (no pun intended) we finally were able to tolerate it without complaint, accepting it as a part of our new lives. 

Yesterday, I sat on a bench waiting for Tom to return from the ATM after I’d purchased data from the Vodafone kiosk. He’s on the sidewalk across the street wearing a white shirt, carrying the Costco bag on his right shoulder.

Living in Kenya was two years ago and yet today, this much later, we still feel the brunt of the heat and humidity although not as badly as in the beginning. It’s kind of like hunger, thirst, or the need for sleep, it’s constant. I suppose the tolerance comes when one makes a decision not to notice it or discuss it as often.

Without a particular plan in place, long ago, we decided to be as tough and resilient as possible, which over time has escalated bit by bit. We’re not totally mindless of physical discomforts, but we continue to strive toward that ultimate goal which may in fact never occur. After all, we are human. 

And, when Tom didn’t complain for days about his abscessed tooth and the resulting discomfort, knowing it was the weekend and there was nothing we could do or… When over the past several days, I was suffering severe pain in my neck from bending my head down for days working on my dysfunctional computer, I, too, kept it to myself until finally the ice pack came out of the freezer and I had no choice but to explain.

Of course, we each prefer to provide love, care, and support to one another during periods of discomfort or pain. But, we’ve found that our own tolerance level can be exacerbated by quietly figuring it out on our own for at least a short period of time.

With the ice pack as my giveaway, I told Tom the issues with my computer which appeared ready to crash, and the resulting “pain in the neck” over the past several days.

My neck joins in with the horrible spinal condition I’ve had for 25 years for which the pain in my back has been remedied by a diet in reducing inflammation. But, the neck, with overuse, seems oblivious to the diet, and every six months or so I find myself hardly able to move my head for a few days.  

The sunny day’s heat in Savusavu was one of the hottest and most humid to date. It felt great to enter the New World Market, which is located across the street at the furthest corner.

My solution to the neck pain is clear; stop looking down…ice often for 20 minutes every few hours…and much to my dislike, take Aleve (after eating) for a few days. This morning I’m greatly improved after ramping up my usual treatment plan.

Yesterday, when we headed out with Ratnesh, I was uncomfortable, in pain, and feeling the heat and humidity more than ever. 

“Let’s get this shopping over as quickly as possible,” I told Tom and also Ratnesh particularly with the intent of alerting him that it wouldn’t be a good day to leave us waiting outside New World market in the heat while he took another distant fare, leaving us to wait for 40 minutes. He readily agreed to pick us up within minutes of our call.

Luckily, the shopping zipped along quickly and easily with no queue at the Vodafone store; the vegetables we wanted were readily available in the Farmers Market; New World grocery had 90% of the items on our list, and Helen at Fiji Meats had returned from the bank and our meats and roasted chicken were packed in minutes.

A mere 75 minutes after we left we were back home. The AC in Ratws34wnesh’s car helped cool us off for a while and although still uncomfortable, we unpacked the groceries and I started the time-consuming process of washing the many bags of vegetables. 

With no pesticides or preservatives used in growing produce in Fiji, cleaning produce is a laborious process ensuring each and every bug is removed and the dirt is carefully washed away. With only 24 inches (.61 meters) of kitchen counter space to work with, the task is particularly challenging.

Yesterday morning, we posted an early photo of Sewak’s garden. In the afternoon, they brought us a bag of produce. Today, I’ll roast some of these for tonight’s dinner.

In many countries produce is sprayed with water and preservatives. When purchased it looks bright and fresh. In most countries we visit, produce isn’t washed arriving at the market straight from the fields, dirt, bugs, bug eaten leaves and all. 

Overall, we love this fact. Yesterday, with bags and bags of dirty, bug covered vegetables in front of me, the heat and humidity at the peak of the day, and my inability to “look down” into the sink, I decided to only do what I could, finishing the rest today.

Tom offered to do it. Since I’ve always handled this task, I knew his frustration level and the time it would take wouldn’t be worth the angst it would cause him (and me).  Luckily, earlier in the day, I’d made dinner’s side dishes; salad and mushroom casserole. With the roasted chickens we’d picked up at Helen’s, dinner would be easy.

Before tackling the task, Tom poured me a fresh mug of iced tea while I changed into one of my cool long sleep shirts. As I cleaned the veggies with my head up, never looking down, I thought about the problems with my laptop. I’m a big user. I usually download no less than 40 gigs of movies and shows a week utilizing many added downloaded apps. None of this should be an issue.

The simple fact is that Windows 8.1 touchscreen is an unstable operating system, plain and simple. After reading about upgrading to Windows 10, we decided against it when it still has numerous bugs yet to be resolved. “Love the one your with,” so I say. Next time we purchase we’ll have few options but for now, we do.

The facts were clear. I had to “refresh” my computer which would remove all my downloaded apps from various websites but would save all of my files and photos (all of which are backed up on a cloud and external hard drive). It would be a time-consuming fix, putting everything back in order and hopefully starting fresh. I started the process after I cleaned the bulk of the veggies.

Tom’s midday snack includes streaky bacon and slices of Haloumi cheese sautéed in ghee.

Sweating like crazy, still “looking up,” hair in a bundle, wearing my “pajamas,” I cringed when I heard voices along the side of the house approaching our veranda. Sewak and his wife, Lita, whom we’d yet to meet, who’d been visiting family in Australia, stopped by for a visit with Badal, our friendly nightly visitor, wagging his tail as they approached.

“Oh my goodness,” I whispered to Tom under my breath, “We have company.” There was nothing I could do but greet them in my nightshirt, sweat pouring down my temples and still “looking up.”

They’d brought along a bag of produce from their garden; white eggplant, tomatoes, and zucchini. They also offered us a bag of leftover sweets from Diwala, the Indian holiday celebration for which we posted a story last week. I sadly stated I can’t eat sweets or grains but was grateful for the kind offer. Tom grabbed the bag out of my hands saying, “I’ll eat that!” 

Offering them cold glasses of iced tea, they sat on the sofa and chatted for about an hour. Never mentioning my neck problem or discomfort, I cringed when I had to attend to my laptop a few times that required my attention as the “refresh” process continued. I apologized for the few moments I took my eyes away to attend to a few required clicks.

Then I cringed again when Sewak mentioned they were having trouble getting Skype to work on their ancient laptop which I’d fixed a few months ago. But, not unlike many seniors in today’s world and especially with technology relatively new to Fiji, they didn’t have a clue what to do when they couldn’t seem to be able to call their daughter.

Of course, I offered to fix their computer today at 1:00 pm. Hopefully, by then, the pelting rain will have stopped and I’ll be able to “look down” long enough to walk the treacherous path to their house and to be able to get their laptop working properly. If necessary, we’ll bundle up in our hooded jackets to make our way up the steep walk up the hill to their home.

My laptop is back in business, happily humming along with its “fix” along with the hours I spent late yesterday putting it all back in order. In the heat, I stacked two-bed pillows on my lap to raise it high enough that I only had to divert my eyes, not my neck downwards.

Today, again hot and humid the two pillows are still on my lap and after a fairly restful night, things are finally “looking up.”

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

Maui never disappointed with mostly sunny days, perfect warm weather, and gorgeous views. For more details on this date one year ago, please click here.