Finally, a cooler day!…Load shedding continues…We’re losing water…Off to see old friends for dinner…

Posted by worldwide-admin on November 9, 2021 with 0 Comment

Gordon Ramsay, our newest bushbuck visitor, visits daily after discovering the goodies we offer.

Marloth Park is practically a disaster area right now. Some residents have been without power for four or five days. Many others have no phone service, TV service, and WiFi, especially if they have Vodacom (we do not). Tom, who usually takes a shower at 3:00 pm, 1500 hrs, each day, is taking one now at 10:00 am before our water runs out, as it has for many others in the park.

The electricity that services the pumps that run the water system is out, impacting everyone in the park. We can only imagine the frustration for those residents who’ve been without power for four or five days. Indeed, they’ve lost all their perishable food in the fridges and freezers by now.

For those of us who still have electricity, load shedding is at Stage 4, which translates to 7½ hours per day without power, spread over three 2½ hour sessions. That’s nothing compared to those who haven’t had power since last Wednesday. Plus, being unable to be online or make a phone call is a terrible hardship for those residents.

Sure, an unsympathetic type could say, “If this was the mid-1800s and earlier, people had none of these services for the majority of their lives. They managed,” But, that isn’t comforting at all. Our lives are adapted to modern technology, and we shouldn’t have to be without that which has become an integral part of our lives in this day and age.

Here is Sylvia, named after my mother. She’s a loner, as are most bushbucks.

Imagine the frustration for those who continue to pay for the services and yet have none whatsoever. They’ll play hell trying to get credits for the periods they’ve been without the services. After all, TIA, “This is Africa,” and such infrastructure failures are expected as the norm.

And yet, for now, we choose to be here. No, we’ll never buy a house here, nor would we live here full-time if we decided to stop traveling and settle somewhere. Both of us agree to this without hesitation.

Our holiday house uses a different WiFi company, Tech Connect, and we’ve had no issues recently. We have Google Fi on our phones and can easily make calls if necessary and access data. But, Google Fi shares towers with many of those that aren’t operational at times, and we may not have services.WiFi is out mainly because of the ongoing theft of the batteries at the stations that run services from the towers. Thieves come to the park in the middle of the night and steal the batteries.

Vodacom is sick and tired of replacing stolen batteries for its towers. They need to come up with another plan for those who are impacted. How about an impenetrable storage system for the batteries? It’s not rocket science. But again, TIA and things don’t get resolved like they do in many other parts of the world.

Our entire garden is now muddy due to the much-needed rain over the past week.

One might say, “Move away if you don’t like it.” But, in this and many other African countries, people can’t afford to leave when the cost of living is lower here than in many other parts of the world. Permanent residents, including retirees in Marloth Park, have no chance of moving away. With load shedding issues throughout the country, they’d have to move to another country that is not affordable or sensible for most.

For tourists, such as our friends, Rina and Cee, meeting today for sundowners and dinner at Amazing Kruger View. It is challenging. One spends money to come here for a holiday, enjoy the wildlife and end up without water, power, WiFi, and phone service. Such occurrences can easily impact tourists’ future decisions to come to Marloth Park. A lack of tourists affects property owners who need holiday rental income to cover their living costs. It’s a vicious cycle.

The cement pond, which we’ve kept free of water due to breeding mosquitoes, is now filled with water.

We accept the reality of the situation and must continue to do so for the next 74 days until we depart for Florida, US, where we’ll be spending 75 days, until our cruise sails across the Atlantic Ocean from Fort Lauderdale Southampton, England. No, we don’t wish time to fly by quickly. We are savoring every moment.

While we’re sitting on the veranda on a cooler, cloudy day, Froggie, who lives in the rafters above our heads, is entertaining us with his frequent croaks. Lori and Barbara (from Shark Tank) are sitting in the bush with an eye on us, waiting for the next visitor to our garden to whom we’ll toss some pellets. They’ll move in, scare them away with their bossy personalities and take over the eating of the pellets.

Our power just went out due to load shedding, but we’ll be fine during the 2½ hours. We’ll still have WiFi due to our inverter. Thanks to Louise and Danie for providing the valuable device for us during our year-long stay. Gordon Ramsey (bushbuck) just showed up for some pellets and cabbage. I’d better run and get his lunch!

Have a good day!

Photo from one year ago today, November 9, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #231. Tom checked in at the reception desk at the dental office in Savusavu, Fiji, while we waited outside with no indoor seating areas. The dental office was located on the hospital grounds. For more, please click here.

Four weeks from today…Savoring the moment…Food obsessions…

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 23, 2021 with 0 Comment

A new bushbuck to our garden, Short Horn. Notice the size difference between his right and left horns.

It’s hard to grasp the concept of us leaving Africa in a mere four weeks from today. Tom asks me why I keep track of how many days we go, especially when leaving is not my preference. Well, the answer for me is simple. As detail-oriented, I am a “numbers” person. I keep track of all kinds of numbers in my brain, some important, some useless.

But doing so doesn’t mean I am not savoring every last moment, capturing pictures in my mind and on the camera. Only moments ago, I was cutting up carrots, cabbage, and lettuce for the bushbucks and kudus. They love the cool crispness and moisture in the vegetables. It’s one of those daily tasks I do with love.

Warthogs don’t care for cabbage and lettuce. They prefer the sweetness of the carrots. Already this week, we’ve gone through 10 kg, 22 pounds of carrots. The most recently purchased huge bag contained many small and large carrots with many pieces that I didn’t have to cut for the smaller bushbucks, like Holy Moley, Big Spikey, Little Spikey, and Baby. They savor every morsel.

The wildebeests, kudus, and warthogs can easily chew an entire carrot, but a few in the bag were so large I cut them to avoid a possible choking hazard.

Yesterday, when I tossed carrots to Little and his new girlfriend, Mom and Babies, one carrot landed in the cement pond, now filled with sand, dirt, and rocks. The carrot landed in a tight spot. Last night, Little knocked off almost every large boulder surrounding the cement pond, intended as a border, but could not get to it.

This morning, he remembered that the carrot was there and again tried to get to it. Success! He managed to get the hard-to-reach carrot. I can imagine Little thinking about that carrot all night long. That’s Little for you! He’s quite the “pig.” I suppose at times in my old life, and I may have thought about a remaining piece of a pie in the fridge and finally got up in the morning to eat it with my cup of coffee. Did that make me a pig? I suppose. We all have our various food obsessions.

Helmeted guinea-fowl and four of her chicks.

Tom is on a salty, roasted peanut kick right now. We purchased good-sized bags of peanuts on Monday, and two are left. Indeed, by the end of the weekend, they will be gone. Since I began a low-carb way of eating in August 2011, improving my health so much that we decided to travel the world. I’ve only had a few occasions where I have “cheated.”

Please don’t give me credit for a tremendous amount of self-control and discipline. I have been highly motivated. If I went back to the typical American low-fat, high-carb diet, undoubtedly in no time at all, I would be in pain and unable to continue on our journey. That’s how this significant change worked for me. It may not work for everyone. (However, I am not exempt from experiencing painful conditions, such as my current painful dry socket from a tooth extraction ten days ago. Nope, it’s not better yet).

With this degree of motivation, it’s been relatively easy for me to give up my old food addictions, such as; eating a big bowl of high-carb, fat-free, sugar-free ice cream at night after dinner or eating high carb, high sugar winter squash with dinner almost every night, which was an excellent way to get full, while eating piles of green vegetables with small amounts of lean protein. It kept my weight down but made me have high blood sugar and be pre-diabetic.

Benny, Henny, and Lenny stop by less frequently than many other warthog families. Where’s Penny?

If I ate like that now, I’d surely be diabetic based on a solid propensity from family genetics. My blood pressure and blood sugar spike if I eat too many vegetables, unsweetened Greek yogurt (which I love but don’t eat), and fruit. I suppose I am one of few who checks these readings every week to ensure I am doing ok. After all, I have coronary artery disease, which is exacerbated by high blood pressure and high blood sugar. I am trying to stay alive. No food is worth increasing my risk of a heart attack or stroke.

On the other hand, Tom naturally has shallow blood pressure and blood sugar. He can eat anything he wants with little impact on his blood sugar or blood pressure. His family history is primarily longevity and good health. Of course, that doesn’t mean he won’t gain weight when eating high carb and sugary foods. Like everyone else, he can easily suffer from the effects of excess weight and body fat, and other conditions commensurate with being overweight.

At 4:00 pm (1600 hrs), we’re heading over to Rita and Gerhard’s for sundowners. Their holiday home is located on Hornbill, a house we rented while here in 2013/2014. I won’t be drinking any wine today and haven’t for days since I am on pain medication for the dry socket. Hopefully, it will heal soon, and I can enjoy being pain-free and back to my “old self” once again.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, September 23, 2020:

We posted this photo one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #184. The Golden Temple Amritsar, India, is seen through a decorative archway on the religious grounds of the historic Sikh location. Please click here to see more photos from Amritsar. Please click here for more on the year-ago post.

Hahaha, it’s so busy in the garden, I can’t get anything done!!!…It was almost two years ago…Can’t stop thinking about it…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 23, 2021 with 7 Comments

I am sitting at the big table on the veranda and can’t stop laughing. There are so many animals stopping by I can hardly type a word for today’s post. Between Little, Broken Horn, ThickNeck/BadLeg, Spikey, and his mom, 25 helmeted guinea fowls, Frank, Go-Away birds, and other warthogs and bushbucks, I can’t sit still long enough to type a word. I keep getting up for more pellets and seeds.

The sights and sounds of the bush grab my attention, especially knowing that in 59 days, we will be leaving South Africa, unsure as to when we’ll return. It could be one year. It could be two. It’s all subject to what transpires with Covid-19. We do know that beyond the end of February, after friends Karen and Rich’s wedding in Florida, whether or not our cruises to Japan sail or not, we will be leaving the US to continue on our journey.

A few Go-Away birds have been hanging around for days. We love their funny sounds.

Of course, if Covid continues to rage throughout the world, and if there is nowhere safe or without restrictions for us to visit, we may have to rethink the possibility of plans outside the US. The alternative has been our long-range plan to travel to the US, and in the worst case, the time to do that may be coming sooner rather than later. At this point, we don’t have a clue.

As for most of us, Covid-19 determines our future fate, especially regarding travel. We’ve often thought about renting an RV to eventually travel the US when we were getting too old for long-distance travel, hauling heavy bags, and flying on countless red-eye flights. Is the handwriting on the wall and that time may be sooner than we’d hoped?

This tiny bushbuck couldn’t have been more than a month old but already knew about pellets. Her mom is in the background.

It will be less than two years ago that we stayed in Apache Junction with Tom’s sisters. We particularly loved the days and evenings we spent with them, socializing and having fun. Now, as the days tick away for us to leave Africa, where we’ll be soon, looms heavily on my mind.

But, the days in-between those delightfully fun social interactions were hard for me. It reminded me too much of what our lives would be like if we gave up our journey and settled somewhere in the US. After all, we’ve seen and done. Such a thought is far removed from our reality. The trips to the supermarket, Walgreens, Target, the bank, and more remind me of a life I struggle to embrace at this point.

Bossy and Broken Horn, together in the garden.

We never imagined our life of world travel would end due to a pandemic. Who imagined they’d lose their jobs, work from home, home school their kids, and wear face masks every time they stepped out the door? Who imagined their social lives would be small and fraught with worry and concern over “catching” the virus?

Even those of us vaccinated are still proceeding with caution in everything we do, everywhere we go, when the media and even science continue to throw us curve balls on what we can and can’t do, what is safe for ourselves, and our family. Will a booster jab be necessary? No one seems to know for sure. When will the numbers come down? Are the numbers real or exaggerated? None of us knows for sure. We live in a constant state of limbo.

Many of our friends who usually spend time in Marloth Park never came here, frightened of their fate, their safety. Are we no different in deciding to leave when we don’t even know if it’s safer in the US or not? Based on the stats from Worldometer, the US is still in the #1 spot on the list of countries. Why would we assume it’s safer there?

Arizona, where we’re going in 59 days, is listed in the 12th position out of 56 states and US territories. There’s a large senior population in Arizona. From the web:

“The number of elderly (persons over the age of sixty years) in Arizona will grow from a current level of around 900,000 in 2000, representing some 18 percent of the population to 1.8 million and 24 percent in 2020 and almost three million and 26 percent of the population in 2050.”

If 24% of the current population in Arizona is senior citizens, what percentage of those are recent cases of Covid-19?

From this article:

Arizona’s older population could mean more COVID-19 deaths.

That’s a higher share of the elderly than some states that have so far seen more significant outbreaks than Arizona. About 18.6% of people in California are over age 60, 19.1% in Colorado, 20.6% in Washington, and 21.2% in New York.

“Those that are over the age of 60 or those that have other significant medical issues are the ones most likely to suffer that mortality rate from COVID-19,” Dr. Marjorie Bessel, chief clinical officer for Banner Health, said. “The age of a country or a state or even a town will determine the death rate.”

One Wart, a regular visitor to the garden.

No, we don’t dwell on this every day. Of course, we will continue to avoid a sense of doomsday and be optimistic for the future. But now, as the time to return to the US nears, it’s unavoidable to free ourselves of such thoughts when we are out in public and at gatherings, just as we’ve done here in Marloth Park.

And, as I sit here today, surrounded by our wildlife friends, I already feel the sense of loss I’ll feel leaving here. If it weren’t for the necessity of going every 90 days for a visa stamp, undoubtedly, we’d have stayed longer. But, without a doubt, we’ll have a good time in Apache Junction, Arizona, with Tom’s siblings and then on to Florida for the wedding.

Life goes on. Thank God for that!!!

Photo from one year ago today, August 23, 2020:

One year ago, this photo was posted in lockdown in Mumbai, India, on day #153. This is St. Mary’s church in Bampton, known as Church of St. Michael of All Angels, as shown in the series Downton Abbey, where Mary married Matthew, Edith was jilted at the altar, and eventually, Matthew was buried. For more photos, please click here.

“It’s always somethin’ Jane!”…

Posted by worldwide-admin on November 19, 2019 with 0 Comment

Six years ago today, on November 19, 2013, we posted this photo when we visited the Swahili Beach Resort for dinner at Diani Beach, Kenya.

We can live anywhere in the world, and wherever we may be at any given time, life isn’t free from worries and concerns for ourselves and our loved ones. As we spend more time with family while in Minnesota, we have a first-hand opportunity to witness the trials and tribulations of those we love, often centered around health problems commonly found due to aging and other causes.

With our dear DIL dealing with cancer and similarly one of Tom’s sisters and with Tom’s sister, Sister Beth, in the hospital with some unknown illness, we find ourselves worried. Tom spent the better part of the day at a local hospital with DIL Tracy, who tests for a problematic condition, yet unknown, we feel like health issues are everywhere. We hope and pray Tracy will be OK.

No one is exempt from the risks of acquiring health conditions. When Tom met for lunch with several railroad retirees last week, more than half of the group was suffering from one serious illness or another. Railroad workers are often exposed to toxic chemicals in their line of work which may result in severe health conditions later in life.

When we’ve met with his family over these past several days, it’s evident that many are in the throes of recovery from surgery or illness or in the manifestation of a new condition in itself.

What’s happened in this world? Why are so many people getting cancer, heart disease, and a wide array of other life-threatening illnesses? When I think of my situation, I can hardly blame it on lifestyle or pesticides. I’ve spent a lifetime eating healthy, fresh foods, avoiding sugars, starches, and now in the past eight years, grains.

Of course, there’s no easy answer. For many, illnesses may be age-related, lifestyle-related, environmental, and as in my case, genetic, the most difficult causal factor to change.

As research, unbiased of course, not funded by Big Pharma, continues in many of these areas, “they” are discovering more on the role genetics play in our health throughout of lives. Perhaps, not in our lifetime, but down the road, more discoveries will be made to attempt to avert some of these seemingly inevitable scenarios.

On this topic…as each day passes, I begin to feel a little better. My cough is about 20% better than yesterday, now day 4 of antibiotics and Prednisone. I can’t wait to be able to breathe more easily and sleep better at night.

They provided us with discount coupons for the meds! Amazing! Still, I remain grateful for the quality of care I had at the local Medexpress Clinic and, of course, the reasonable fees of $189, plus the cost of the various medications that weren’t too bad.

Next week on Wednesday, when I see the cardiologist for my early one-year heart check, it will be much more expensive, and we’re bracing ourselves for that. Since my heart feels good, I see no reason for a plethora of tests.

As one of the world’s worst patients, I tend to pick and choose what I feel is appropriate for me, not necessarily what the doctor may order. Many may disagree with this type of thinking, but we each have to be our advocates and do what we feel is suitable.

Taking drugs that cause me to be exhausted, in pain, and feeling ill is not on the horizon for me. Quality of life is of the utmost importance, and I continually strive to build and maintain such a lifestyle to enhance that possibility.

That’s it for today, folks. Please stay tuned for more mundane updates on family matters. In nine days, we’ll be in Las Vegas. Certainly, there will be a few more photos ops and forms of entertainment to share with our readers.

May you be well, healthy and content.

Photo from one year ago today, November 19, 2018:

Kudus in the garden. It was always important to feed the animals during the dry summer months in South Africa, during a drought. Vegetation was at a minimum, and they often depended on offerings from the visitors living in the bush. For more, please click here.

Southampton, England…A great hotel for two nights…

Posted by worldwide-admin on October 23, 2019 with 0 Comment

Image result for leonardo royal southampton grand harbour

The Leonardo Southampton Royal Grand Harbour hotel. (Not our photos).

Fascinating Fact of the Day About Southampton, England:

From this site:

“Southampton is a port city on England’s south coast. It’s home to the SeaCity Museum, with an interactive model of the Titanic, which departed from Southampton in 1912. Nearby, Southampton City Art Gallery specializes in modern British art. Solent Sky Museum features vintage aircraft like the iconic Spitfire. Tudor House & Garden displays artifacts covering over 800 years of history, including a penny-farthing bike.”

The hotel we selected in Southampton for two nights is the Leonardo Royal Southampton Grand Harbour is located only minutes from the cruise terminal. For these dates, the nightly rate is GBP 180, US $231.

The hotel at night.

We used accumulated points in Expedia and only paid GBP 145.50, US $187.06 for both nights in a king room with breakfast included, which we prepaid at booking.

Yesterday, taking our time on the drive and stopping for a light lunch, we arrived at the hotel later than expected. Subsequently, we dined in the hotel’s restaurant. Unfortunately, the lovely couple, Kim and Keith, whom we’d planned to meet for dinner, canceled due to Kim’s lousy cold. They didn’t want us to catch it, which we appreciated. There are plenty of germs on cruises as it is.

One of the many seating areas in the hotel.

As typical for hotels, the meal in the restaurant was good, not great, with prices commensurate with what we’ve observed in the UK these past few months. Tonight, we may go out or dine in the bar, which has an excellent menu for my way of eating.

Food is not so important to us when we have the cruise ahead of us where they’ll make everything befitting my restricted diet. In any case, we don’t make cruising about the food.

For us, it’s the opportunity to socialize with other travelers from all over the world that make cruising unique—now, situated in the hotel bar preparing today’s post at a table close to an electric outlet without much social interaction. We’ll make up for it soon enough.

My fast dying laptop (almost five years old) requires that I work with it plugged in with the battery on its last leg. On the upcoming cruise, we’ll have to find a spot close to an outlet.

Typical English breakfast served buffet-style in the main dining room.

We’ve been able to find an excellent place to sit near an outlet on several past cruises. Cruising on this particular ship, Celebrity Silhouette is new to us, and we’re hopeful we’ll find a spot close to all the action.

We prefer not to be isolated when working on the post, especially when other passengers stop by to chat. It may take six or seven hours for me to complete one post with all the interruptions, but we love the interactions with other passengers and, from time to time, crew members.

Cruise ships are often waiting in this harbor for enthusiastic cruise passengers.

It’s funny how passengers will say when they see us working on our laptops, “Couldn’t you have left the work at home?”

We laugh and often say, “This is “home” at the moment.”

Yes, we continue with our daily tasks, handling photos, the posts, financial matters, banking, and so forth wherever we may be at any given time. It’s the nature of our peculiar lifestyle.

I don’t have anything in the way of photos today. It’s raining, and we don’t care to walk in the rain, nor do we want to pay a taxi to take us around when we’ve already returned the rental car.

This is where we’re seated now as we prepare today’s post.

Yesterday, when we arrived and couldn’t get a signal on the phone and thus we drove around Southampton (population 253,651) and had a good look. After these quiet months in the English (and Wales) countryside, it’s a lovely city with too much traffic and commotion for us.

The cruise will be the perfect segue back to a crowded environment. Afterward, we’ll be on Minnesota highways with plenty of traffic, horn honking, and impatient drivers, typical for any large city.

Map of our hotel and its proximity to the harbor. Regardless of the weather, we’ll still have to take a taxi to the cruise terminal.

We always say the most courteous drivers in the world are in South Africa. The slower vehicles always move to the shoulder to let others pass on both highways and dirt roads. We’ve never ceased to be amazed by this phenomenon.

(Yeah, I know…I miss it, and every day I wonder if immigration will allow us to return and if we can rent the Orange house again…and then if “you know who” will return to see me.)

Well, folks, tomorrow is another “day-in-the-life” of these two nomads as we board yet another cruise, this time a transatlantic crossing.

Happy hump day to all the working people, and happy any day to the retirees!

Photo from one year ago today, October 23, 2018:

Single file, from matriarch to baby. For more photos, please click here.

Life on a farm…An experience like none other…Once again, adapting…

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 22, 2019 with 0 Comment

John, our exciting and attentive host farmer, has beautiful stories to tell. A former physician and world traveler, he’s a wealth of information. He took us on a partial tour of the 150 acres farm. On another day, we’ll see more.

Fascinating Fact of the Day about Devon, Cornwall:
“Devon County Council is responsible for 8,000 miles of road – the longest network in the country. The county is home to everything from single track rural lanes across Dartmoor and Exmoor to major highways like the A38 and A30 – as well as the M5.”

There are chickens, ducks, and geese on the property, along with many Dorset sheep. (Photos coming soon of these adorable sheep which are kept for their wool, not for slaughter.

Many of us have ancestors that farmed. In Tom’s case, it’s undoubtedly true when both of his parents, grandparents, and some of his siblings were born on a farm. I would have no idea if any of my ancestors were farmers.

We both love living on a farm. It must be in our DNA. It’s hard to imagine living in a typical city when over the past weeks, we’ve lived on two farms, reveling in every aspect. Of course, part of the enjoyment is based on the fact that we don’t do any of the work.

The acreage is diverse and beautiful.

People we’ve met along the way have asked if we “house sit” or work on farms as compensation for living quarters. As much as they may be appropriate for some travelers, it is just not quite our thing.

We travel as retirees, although we spend hours preparing and working on our posts, taking photos, and conducting research. As we mentioned many times in past posts, we don’t feel our site is a “job” based on the enjoyment and benefit we derive from writing our stories each day.

If the weather were warm, we’d certainly use this pool, but it is very calm and frequent rains, as it is today.

Should our level of enthusiasm or interest in continuing to post each day ever changes, we may have to reconsider. But, for now, we can no more imagine ending this process than we can in ending our world travels.

We can only strive to be healthy, diligently watch our budget and be adaptable to the many nuances properties and locations present to us along the way. Nonetheless, we’ll always encounter situations that aren’t ideal.

A small pond near their house and the barns. Soon, we’ll share photos of the pond outside our door of the “Pond Cottage.”

In this new location, a well-built former barn renovated to perfection still has some nuances which we must adjust to, primarily small things such as a difficult-to-navigate stairway to the second floor where the bedrooms and bathrooms are located.

There’s a tiny under-counter refrigerator that requires bending over to access (although there is, much to our delight, a separate under-counter freezer). The bed is somewhat low and not as comfortable as we’d like. To avoid being nitpicky, there are other small things not worthy of mentioning here.

John planted 600 sequoia seeds many years ago, and now there are over 400 trees.

But, we’re living on a gorgeous farm and in a beautiful house, and we appreciate being here more than we can say. The owners are over-the-top wonderful, and the nearby villagers are kind, welcoming, and friendly. We couldn’t ask for more.

Funnily, neither of us feel compelled to get out sightseeing right now as we’re immersed in the quiet solitude on this gorgeous property. Tomorrow we’ll head to Tiverton to check out the bigger of the villages in the area.

No doubt during our three weeks here, we’ll get out to see the local points of interest, most of which is beautiful scenery. There is so much to explore here at the farm that we can stay busy for days. Also, the hills and rolling terrain are ideal for me to build strength in my legs.

This is a young sequoia tree, but it may become as massive as many seen in Northern California in generations to come.

Yesterday, our tour with John was exciting and informational. His and his lovely wife’s love of their farm is evident in every acre of land, the well-kept nature of every building, and the loving care of their barnyard animals. We’re honored to have the opportunity to be here, with them only a short distance away and all the beauty and wonder surrounding us.

Soon, we’re off to Exeter Airport to return the rental car and get another. We’re hoping the rain stops and the sun comes out so we can explore on the return drive.

May your Sunday be blessed with joy and wonder!

Photo from one year ago today, September 22, 2018:

“Gee…the eggs are all gone, but I think I’ll lay in the bowl to let them know we want more.” Bands of mongooses came to see us almost every day. Tom would scramble raw eggs for them and serve them in this bowl. When the eggs were gone, lying in the bowl was an excellent way to express their enthusiasm. For more details, please click here.

Dealing with a lack of motivation…

Posted by worldwide-admin on July 22, 2019 with 0 Comment

A sailing regatta near Roundstone at dusk.

Fascinating Fact of the Day About Ireland

“One of the most well-known facts about Ireland is that Dublin is home to
the world-famous Guinness Brewery. In 1759, Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000-year
lease for the land.”

________________________________________

From time to time we all feel unmotivated to tackle tasks that must be completed, whether or not we have a timeline. Lately, these past five months, I’ve been seriously lacking in motivation to do paperwork that is piling up.

Throughout our years of world travel, I’ve never failed to scan receipts and log expenses into our spreadsheet. When we left South Africa almost three months ago, I had logged everything from our time there but I’d failed to mention the total numbers in a post.

At this point in time, I doubt I’ll ever get to that. For those of you anxious to see what we spent during our 15 months in South Africa, I can say it averaged about Euro 4457, US $5000 a month, including rent, rental car, fuel, groceries, dining out, tours and safaris, travel and miscellaneous.

There was no less than a dozen sailboats we could see.

These figures exclude massive medical expenses and lost deposits and payments for future travel we had to cancel. However, the totals include the two trips we made to Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana to safari and tour, in order to renew our visas and, have more fantastic experiences.

When 2018 tax filing was due on April 15th, I’d only been out of the hospital for a short time and literally could not even conceive of gathering the information for the tax prep necessary to send to our accountant in Nevada. He filed an extension for us, good until October 15th, 2019.

I’d promised myself I’d tackle this big task before we left Ireland but I think I will hold off until we get to the UK in August. Hopefully, by then I’ll feel up to tackling this daunting task. Most likely I can complete this task in two days.

Most of the sails were dark red.

This week I’ve promised myself to scan the receipts we’ve accumulated for Ireland and enter them into the spreadsheets. Our scanner died but the camera takes decent photos of receipts.

What makes this task more time consuming is converting from Euros to US dollars. Of course, we have an app for that on my laptop but it still takes time to do each one. I do all of the currency conversion first, writing the US dollars on the receipt, separate the receipts by category and then enter them. I will do this task in the next few days.

Why am I so lacking in motivation? For those readers following our posts on a consistent basis, the answer is clear. For new readers, the reasons are easily found here beginning on our posts from the later part of February. This post explains it all along with all the posts that follow to present day.

What do I do all day? I spend the better part of each day walking in the house. It requires an enormous effort to walk 5,000 to 10,000 inside on the main floor.
Recently, I added climbing the steps as many times a day as possible, not necessarily consecutively. It’s getting a little easier each day.

The wind speed seemed suitable for the race.

Spending all morning researching and preparing the daily post, dealing with photos, cooking dinner and taking care of laundry every other day takes up the better portion of the day. Incorporating the walking and step climbing into the daily routine also monopolizes a good portion of each day.

By the end of the day, I’m done. After dinner, all I can do is sit in my comfy chair and watch a few shows on my laptop, sent to the flat screen TV via our HDMI cable. It’s my favorite time of the day when I allow myself to totally relax and unwind.

Every so often we sign up for various streaming services for a period of time. Right now we have CBS All Access through Amazon Prime for Euro 2.63, US $2.95 a month, other free shows available through Amazon Prime and Graboid, a for-pay streaming/downloading service we’ve used for years.

Some nights it takes everything I have to stay awake. But, Tom is good at saying, “Are you awake?” He’s well aware that sleeping in front of the TV can seriously impede a good night’s sleep. With daylight lasting so long in Ireland, we often don’t head upstairs until after 2300 hours, 11:00 pm.

A nicely horned sheep with a dark face with a white body.

And you may ask, what does Tom do? He cooks breakfast each day, helps with dinner, does all the dishes and kitchen clean up, all the heavy lifting, vacuuming floors, booking travel-related venues, and checking daily to see if any our booked cruises have had a price reduction.

A few days ago, he saved us Euro 401, US $450 the day before the final payment was due on the upcoming cruise from the UK to the US at the end of October. Once final payment is paid on a specific cruise, the cruise lines won’t honor the benefit of a price reduction. Tom is able to get these reductions on many of our booked cruises by watching daily pricing and informing Vacations to Go to lower our price for the same cabin cate.

In addition, he literally waits on me without an attitude or complaint. If he sees my glass of water or ice tea is low, he’ll refill it for me. If I didn’t do all the exercise and other tasks, it would be wise for me to turn down his help to force myself to perform more tasks. At this point, I’m doing all I can. His help is greatly appreciated and I’ve had to learn to graciously accept it.

Most people have ultra-busy days and nights in this world we live in. Whoever thought retirement would be relaxing was kidding themselves. As we’ve heard endless retirees say, they are busier now than when they worked. How did this happen?

Hope you find time to relax, get in a little exercise, enjoy a great meal, good companionship and appreciate every day of life. Join me in this, dear readers.

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Photo from one year ago today, July 22, 2018:

Male bushbuck can be dangerous with their sharp horns. See this article where a farmer was gored to death by a male bushbuck. We loved for them to visit but we kept a sensible distance. For more photos, please click here.

Part 2…Kylemore Abbey…A romantic gift lives on…A tough walk required to explore…

Posted by worldwide-admin on July 17, 2019 with 0 Comment

The view across Lough Pollaacapull is seen from the castle’s veranda.

“Fascinating Fact of the Day About Ireland”

“One of the most curious facts about Ireland takes place in the town of
Killorglin in the Reeks District. Here, a festival known as the Puck Fair sees a goat crowned as King Puck for three days. The Queen of Puck, traditionally a local young schoolgirl, crowns the goat.”

The story continues today with photos and the history of the Benedictine Nuns of Kylemore Abbey. Here is the link to the property’s website with a wealth of information if you’d like to read further.

Unfortunately, due to the walk up a long and steep hill to the actual abbey, we could only enjoy the views from afar, which didn’t produce good photos due to the distance.

As we approached the enchanting Kylemore Abbey Castle.

Below is a photo that we borrowed from their site of the exterior of the Neo-Gothic Catholic Church.

“For more than a century, Kylemore has been the romantic nineteenth-century Irish castle overlooking a lake in the West of Ireland. Just a five-minute (steep) walk along the shores of Lough Pollacapull lies Kylemore’s enchanting neo-Gothic Church.

Kylemore Abbey’s Neo-Gothic Church was built in the style of a fourteenth-century. Described as a ‘Cathedral in Miniature,’ this elegant building is a lasting testament to the love of Mitchell Henry for his wife, Margaret. On your visit, you may be lucky enough to enjoy one of the many musical performances that take place here throughout the year.”

Please excuse the blurry photo (not our photo) of the neo-Gothic Catholic Church located on the ground of Kylemore Abbey.

“Benedictine nuns of Kylemore Abbey

The present Benedictine nuns of Kylemore Abbey have a long history, beginning at Brussels in 1598. Following the suppression of religious houses in the British Isles, British Catholics left England and opened religious places abroad. Several monasteries originated from one Benedictine house in Brussels, founded by Lady Mary Percy in 1598.

Houses founded from Lady Mary’s house in Brussels were at Cambray in France (now Stanbrook in England) and Ghent (now Oulton Abbey) in Staffordshire. Ghent, in turn, founded several Benedictine Houses, one of which was at Ypres. Kylemore Abbey is the oldest of the Irish Benedictine Abbeys.

There are numerous religious statues and displays throughout the castle.

The community of nuns, who have resided here since 1920, has a long history stretching back almost three hundred and forty years. Founded in Ypres, Belgium, in 1665, the house was formally made over to the Irish nation in 1682. The purpose of the abbey at Ypres was to provide education and a religious community for Irish women during times of persecution here in Ireland.

Down through the centuries, Ypres Abbey attracted the daughters of the Irish nobility, both as students and postulants, and enjoyed the patronage of many influential Irish families living in exile.

Mitchell Henry, digitized portrait who built the castle for his beloved wife, Magaret Vaughn Mitchell, in 1867.

At the request of King James II, the nuns moved to Dublin in 1688. However, they returned to Ypres following James’s defeat at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. The community finally left Ypres after the Abbey was destroyed in the early days of World War One.

The community first took refuge in England and later in Co Wexford before eventually settling in Kylemore in December 1920. At Kylemore, the nuns reopened their international boarding school and established a day school for local girls.

Margaret Vaughn Mitchell’s digitized portrait.

They also ran a farm and guesthouse; the guesthouse was closed after a devastating fire in 1959. In 2010, the Girl’s Boarding School was closed, and the nuns have since been developing new education and retreat activities.”

The property’s peaceful environment, including the Victorian Walled Garden, left us smiling, grateful we’d taken the time and effort to see what we were able to see.

Riding boots. Horseback riding was prevalent in this period.

I suppose this is how it will be with tours at ports of call during our upcoming Baltic cruise. I can’t imagine I’ll have a lot more improvement in the next three weeks when we head to Amsterdam. But, I’ll continue to do the best I can to increase my stamina.

Visitors aren’t allowed to view the second floor occupied by the nuns.

Have a fantastic “hump day” for those still working. And a great “all-of-the-days-of-the-week-are-the-same” for us retirees!

Photo from one year ago today, July 17, 2018:

That morning’s 17 kudus in the garden. See the video at this link for details.

Yikes!!!…A snake in the bedroom???…Or, what?…Adults only photo today.

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 24, 2018 with 0 Comment

A waterbuck with it’s circular-shaped marking on its rear end.

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

Only 3% of birds on the planet have penises. For a scientific perspective, in an article entitled “Ostrich penis clears up an evolutionary mystery,” please click here.

Yesterday on the N4 Highway not far from the entrance to Marloth Park, a male lion was spotted on the highway and reported as follows:

A lion spotted by motorists along the N4 near Marloth Park in Mpumalanga has been darted and captured.

A spokesperson for the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency, Kholofelo Nkambule, told SowetanLIVE that the lion would be returned to the Kruger National Park from which it is understood to have escaped.

“The lion has been found and darted. It is ready to be sent back to the park where it escaped from‚” said Nkambule.

The lion was sighted in the early hours of Sunday by motorists who posted a video and pictures on Facebook.”

This story created quite a flurry of activity on the various Marloth Park pages on Facebook. We followed throughout the situation, pleased to discover the lion had been darted and returned to Kruger National Park by helicopter. Thanks to all the local people, including Marloth Park rangers, for participating in this successful recovery.

Ostriches strutting their stuff!

Our friends Lois and Tom will be arriving here in 15 days traveling on that same road from the airport. We didn’t send them this link to avoid any concerns before arriving here and becoming more informed and familiar with such occurrences.

Crossing the road…

None the less the situation caused quite a stir on social media in Marloth Park, and of course, we enjoyed reading about it throughout the day.

Also, yesterday a Marloth Park resident posted the above photo of a venomous boomslang snake devouring a lizard from her veranda. Quite an interesting sight to see.

This morning when the power had been out for several hours, and we weren’t able to finish the post, we jumped in the little car for a drive through the park.

Giraffes, like most animals in the wild, are always on the lookout for food. From this site: “In Africa, there is a rainy season which allows giraffes to feed on fruits, leaves, twigs, and water, but there is also a drought season when they will try to forage for all that they can, mainly acacia trees and bushes. During these rainy months, they eat deciduous plants, and during the dry season, the evergreen plants are more consumed. They eat between 34 and 75 kg of vegetation every day.”

At the Crocodile River, we spotted five lions, but we were too far away for good photos. Now back at the house at almost 1:00 pm, we’re settled in for the remainder of the day and evening.

From this site: “The giraffe’s main predator is the lion, which can accelerate to almost 50 miles per hour. His second worst enemy, the hyena, can reach 35 mph. If a lion and a giraffe ran a race side by side, the lion would beat the giraffe to the finish line. However, the giraffe is not about to give a predator an even start. He uses his great height and excellent eyesight to spot a pride of lions as far as half a mile away and gets a head start. Lions can sustain their top speed for only about a hundred yards, so they run out of gas before the giraffe does. Hyenas can be more dangerous because they hunt cooperatively. They can take turns sprinting to keep the giraffe from slowing down to catch his breath.”

It’s not as hot today as it had been several days last week. It’s a paltry 30C (86F), but oddly, with no rain for months, it’s humid today. The holidaymakers are beginning to leave after the long weekend, but many remain.

Giraffes move quickly, so when we spot them, we always stop for photos and observe their fascinating behavior.

There are many cars on the road, and more will come when the school holidays begin this week. As a result, we’re hardly seeing any visitors other than bushbucks, helmeted guineafowl, mongooses, and a few warthogs.

Giraffes crossing a dirt road in Marloth Park.

Once the commotion thins out in a few weeks, it will be quiet and peaceful, with visitors clamoring in our garden for pellets, carrots, apples, and eggs. We’ll stay busy in the interim doing our favorite pleasurable activities; daily drives to the river; dinner out each week at Jabula Lodge & Restaurant where the food and companionship are divine; socializing and entertaining friends for dinner (this coming Saturday); and continuing to post stories and photos every day.

It’s dark in our bedroom. Upon awakening, with Tom already outside on the veranda, I looked out the window to see if we had visitors. Then I noticed this and backed up slowly and calmly.

As for the above photos of what, at first, appeared to be a snake, I called Tom into the bedroom, and he grabbed the huge telescopic pole he uses to chase off monkeys and baboons and carefully approached the scene.

When Tom grabbed the telescopic pole to pull this out from behind the wooden chest, he discovered this. See the story below.

Oh, good grief. It was his belt that had fallen behind the wooden chest. We couldn’t help but laugh out loud, especially as we’ve recalled the situation several times since that morning.

Do we ever get bored? Never. Certainly not in this environment. But, like many other retirees throughout the world, we occasionally conjure up some added activity to keep us enthused and thoroughly entertained.

Oops, gotta go! Ms. Bushbuck just arrived. The pellets are ready for her, along with some iced cold carrots, apples, and lettuce…her favorites.

Have a spectacular day!

Photo from one year ago today, September 24, 2017:

Elephant topiary on the church’s grounds and topiary in Costa Rica. For more photos, please click here.

Part 1…What to bring for an African safari….Lions…we can’t get enough..

Posted by worldwide-admin on September 12, 2018 with 0 Comment

Male lion checking his surroundings while he rests.

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

Lounging poolside.

As more and more travelers, especially retirees from all over the world, decide to fulfill a lifelong dream of going on a safari, tourism to Africa is increasing exponentially according to many online reports.

Many come to Africa for its beautiful beaches and luxury resorts, for business and surprisingly, only 15% actually come for tourism as shown here at this link, stating the following (see below photo):

Female lion at a further distance, hard to spot from afar.

“More than 30 million tourists visit Africa every year. Over half of the international arrivals are for business purposes and may partake in tourist activities as well, while 15% travel for pure tourism and 30% visit friends and family.”

As a result, many travelers struggle with what to pack to bring for, a let’s say a two-week visit to Africa, in order to go on safari. Of course, it depends on where you’re staying and the dress codes or suggestions based on your chosen bookings.

Female lion lounging.

While in Zambia, we discovered that the Royal Livingstone Victoria Falls Zambia Hotel by Anantara required male guests are required to sports coats to dinner in the upscale dining room and women must wear dressy clothing. During the day, the guests may be on safari and at night be prepared for a more formal dinner.

This may sound appealing to those seeking luxury accommodations but for most travelers intent on an all-encompassing safari experience, a more casual and laid-back environment may be more appealing.

The long-distance across the Crocodile River made taking photos a challenge

There hasn’t been one occasion in almost 17 months in Africa (combined two visits, one in 2013-2014 and our current stay) have we ever felt underdressed or too casual for any dining establishment.

Here in Marloth Park and Kruger National Park, all restaurants and venues allow wearing appropriately styled shorts, shirts, and women’s tops as long as they are in good taste. Sandals and flip-flops are generally accepted as proper footwear.

Male lion soaking up the warm sun.

One must always consider the weather which can change dramatically in minutes whether on safari, sightseeing, shopping, and dining. High winds, rain, and temperatures can vary considerably and one must bring suitable attire for those occurrences.

With our friends Lois and Tom coming to stay with us for three weeks beginning October 9th, yesterday we sent them a lengthy email making suggestions as to what to bring for their stay in Marloth Park, keeping in mind most likely we won’t be visiting any fancy establishments in the near proximity. This is bush country. Fancy is not required here.

Male lion at rest.

However, if one is staying at a resort or upscale bushcamp it might be worth inquiring as to any special dress codes when booking your stay. Thus, today’s suggestions are based on a casual environment, not those staying in upscale luxury resorts that may include packing a few extra items suitable for specific events and occasions.

The question always arises as to whether or not to purchase insect repellent clothing. Cost is a big factor here since most of these items can be expensive, as much as ZAR 1506 (US $100) each. We opted to purchase shirts, pants, and hats before we came to Africa in 2013.

Female lion lounging on the dry grass

It was a wise decision for our extended current stay and we’re still wearing those items on occasion today, especially when on safari or outdoors during the spring and summer mosquito season. In most cases, the special clothing will withstand 70 washing before losing its built-in repellent effectiveness.

Also, travelers can purchase permethrin which can be added to existing clothing for protection for shorter periods, which can save considerable cost. When we decided to return to Africa for our current long-term stay we purchased a few new insect repellent items on eBay, brand-new with tags. The cost was at least half as much as retail and we’ve been thrilled with our items.

Waterbucks are beautiful animals.

Clothing:
1. Shirts, pants, shorts, socks, good walking shoes (tennis shoes are OK) or boots.
2. A cool cotton scarf to cover one’s face in the event of an insect swarm and/or high winds.
3. Swimsuit, if sunbathing or swimming is desired.
4. Water repellent jacket (weight depending on the time of year) and other such cover-ups in the event of cold weather.
5. Hats to protect the face and neck from the sun and the elements. Some safari vehicles do not have a covered roof, although most do.
(During a self-drive into Kruger National Park, for example, one is generally not allowed to exit their vehicle, making one’s attire is of less importance. But, being prepared in the event of an emergency should be a consideration.
6. Clothing colors: Bright, colorful clothing is not suggested as it may attract insects. In keeping with the African theme, beige, tan, khaki, and white are most appropriate while on safari keeping you cool and less attractive to a wide array of insects.
7. Cool casual clothing/shoes for everyday living, dining, lounging, and sleepwear, if worn.

Impalas grazing on the bank of the Crocodile River.

Tomorrow, we’ll cover digital equipment needs, adapters and converters, toiletries and prescriptions, insect repellent, and miscellaneous items you may find useful.

Please check back for Part 2!

Photo from one year ago today, September 12, 2017:

Tom holding the broom (escoba) made of vegetation at El Toledo Coffee Tour. For more photos, please click here.