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| This is where we’ll lounge in the chaises at Madafoo’s in a guarded area, overlooking the Indian Ocean each Wednesday going forward. If it rains, we’ll either wait until it stops or go the next day. |
It’s Friday morning. The sun is shining. The temperature is currently 82F, 28C the humidity is about 75%. There’s a slight breeze. If we listen carefully, we can hear the singing of no less than 10 bird species, many with what have become familiar “tunes.”
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| This appealing view enticed us to make Madafoo’s a regular spot to visit. |
The goats in the yard are silent at the moment soon to begin their intermittent “baaing,” pleasing to our ears. A few days ago, the mom goat, jumped over the stone wall, running around the neighborhood. With the homes enclosed by the tall security gates and walls, she’d be found. Hesborn searched, finding her a few hours later. While she was gone, the baby goats cried constantly, loudly, persistently. We couldn’t help but laugh.
A nearby rooster crows throughout the day, not only in the morning. The doves don’t start their cooing until after 1:00 pm, continuing until dusk.
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| The swing that visitors are welcome to use. Guards hovered in this area patrolling both the resort and the beach. |
The bottoms of our feet aren’t black anymore. The mosquitoes seldom bite me now with my scheduled application of the non-toxic lotion and BugsAway clothing at night. The giant black wasp continues to visit several times a day. But we don’t nervously move away, instead, keeping an eye on it until it flies away. It always does.
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| A birthday cake and the traditional song were presented by the staff at Madafoo’s to celebrate a patron’s birthday. |
We’re managing our meals with limited ingredients, accepting that there will be repeats almost every week The ice cube bin is kept full by our frequent emptying and refilling of the tiny trays, one of which is ours, that freeze quickly in the miniature freezer. I’ve become used to drinking homemade ice tea and Tom has been drinking plain bottled water since the Crystal Light ran out weeks ago.
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| Leaving Madafoo’s for the long trek home, we took a photo of their sign where many visitors come to rent surfboards, arrange for para-sailing and other water activities. |
With no TV, there’s no news running in the background keeping us aware of US and world events. With data limitations, we aren’t able to stream radio to stay informed. Instead, we read news articles online.
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| Stepping onto the beach, we were ready to tackle the soft sand for the long trek back. |
With Hesborn only doing laundry once a week, we manage our clothing by hand washing anything we may need. It takes two days to dry. We re-use our bath towels, hanging them to dry, finding them still damp the next day, only to use them one more time to reduce moldy wet laundry.
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| The cleanliness of the uncluttered beach made us feel as one would if taking the first human step onto an uninhabited island. |
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| The local fisherman, working in the sea to earn a living, catching fish they sell to the restaurants. |
Next week, we’ll have been in Kenya for a full month. We’ve adapted. Finally. So we’ll carry on, enjoying each day as it comes, striving to live in the moment when not required to plan for the future. It’s all good.
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| Once again we were walking on the long pathway from the sea. |
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| This pod baffled us. Any ideas as to what this is? |
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| Back to our entrance, we were grateful for our time away. But we were also glad to return to strip down to our bathing suits, drink more water, and relax after the long strenuous walk in the heat. Of course, I couldn’t wait to download the photos to see how they came out! |
The pictures you've been posting are breathtaking! The sight of the ocean always leave me in awe. I I'm sure it was fabulous walking along that white sandy beach. I'm wondering if you feel like kids again?! Discovering new sights, sounds, smells, tastes every day must be wonderful. Back home in MN the leaves are turning from green to orange and red. It's warm today but most days are cooler, you can tell it's fall. I greatly enjoy reading your blog daily 🙂 Stay cool! ~Ashley
Ashley, my heart did a flip flop reading your comments. Yes, we do feel like kids again experiencing an endless array of unfamiliar aspects to life in foreign lands. At times, I find myself jumping up and down, squealing with delight when seeing an animal, a new flower or tree, or simply a woman walking down the road with a pot on her head. Tom often tells me to "settle down" and not make a fool of myself in front of the locals. But, they too delight in seeing enthusiasm for the simple aspects of their lives. In all of our travels, the only structures that gave me such sheer joy was seeing the Treasury in Petra, Jordan and, the Panama Canal.
Many don't understand why we don't make a huge effort to see old buildings. We are traveling to see "life" and our goal will be further achieved in only 8 days when we go on our first safari to the Maasi Mara. Hopefully, we'll get plenty of great photos to share.
Please continue to "travel along with us" and know that we take great comfort in knowing our reader friends are out there, sharing this journey of "life" with us. Thank you so much.
Warmest regards,
Jess & Tom
I agree with Ashley about the beauty of it all. Those lounging chairs look so inviting. I guess the beauty and the new sights and sounds made me think of vacation time. But, as you mentioned, you have a lot of responsibilities that you would not have on vacation. I hope I did not offend you by not realizing all the stuff you have to do everyday. I do know it takes a long time to download your pictures and write the blog everyday and answer all of your emails and keep up with your family on skype or on line. When I sit at home looking at your pictures and reading your blog, it all looks so carefree and lovely, even with the inconveniences. You and Tom are certainly real troopers and we admire how you are able to adapt and do not want to give up on your adventure traveling the world. I am sure Dan and I would not do as well.
Take care,
Pat
Of course you didn't offend me!!! I'm never offended by comments we receive except for a few weirdos now and then who's comments I don't post so I don't offend YOU! You wouldn't believe what we get sometimes which I'm sure is the case all over the web.
Actually, we had no idea what it would be like traveling the world, how much work it would be. Fortunately, its the type of work we both enjoy doing, not like mowing the yard or painting a room. Don't gt me wrong. I love doing the blog.
Each morning once dressed, hot tea in hand, the first thing I do is check the blog stats, read email and start writing. It never feels like work. It's purely delightful, especially when we get feedback from friends and readers like you and yesterday from Ashley too.
I guess the bottom line is that many perceive that we're rolling in dough, we're not…or that we're spending our retirement and will be broke when its over…which we're not. We are like everyone else. We get money in, we pay rent, expenses, food, transportation, entertainment, etc with a goal of staying within our budget. Perhaps we have a more strict budget than others in some ways. We pay off all of our credit cards in full each month to ensure we can use them for future travels. This further tightens the budget. All this planning requires time and effort, none of which we mind doing.
The only job we have to do that we don't like is packing. I like unpacking but packing is loaded with stress.
At one time, we never would have imagined living as we do. You'd be surprised how resilient we can become when we chose to. I bet you and Dan would be fine. Maybe take a month long trip to experience it. If its not all hotels and dining out, it becomes a lot more relaxing and affordable.
Thanks for calling us troopers! That wouldn't have been a word to describe us a few years ago.. At this point we have no desire or need to stop. We feel that our health may make the decision for us down the road but hopefully not too soon. All is good right now.
Now that the power is back on, I can write a little something on the blog today. We'll have photos to post tomorrow but none today. We won't be out until tonight when we''ll be clicking away once again.
Have a great weekend. Hugs to you both.
Warmest regards,
Jess & Tom