A short time ago, we returned from our walk. Walking on the rocky dirt roads hasn’t been easy, but I keep forging ahead. Since the multiple surgeries on my legs, which became grossly infected after open heart surgery four years ago, my legs don’t work as well as they used to, especially trying to navigate on the rocky, uneven dirt roads in Marloth Park.

When we spent ten months in lockdown during the pandemic in the hotel in Mumbai, India, I worked my way up to five miles, eight kilometers each day. Hopefully, when we get to The Villages in Florida, walking on the smooth pavement will be much easier.

Walking on rocky, dirt roads adds stress to joints and muscles, requiring more effort. I’ve noticed my muscles tense and spasm when walking on the roads here, but I only have to do it for a little more than two weeks until we depart South Africa on April 29.

Once we arrive in Florida, get a good night’s sleep, and submit our passport renewal applications, we’ll start walking every day. By the time we arrive in Florida, the weather will be very similar to what we’ve experienced here in the summer, hot and humid months. If it is too hot there to walk outdoors, I’ll join the local health club, walk on a treadmill, and lift some weights.

We looked on the map for The Villages, and it looks like the closest health club is no more than a ten-minute golf cart ride. If I sign up, most likely, I’ll go five days a week and walk with Tom on cooler days. Based on my weather app, it appears the temperature in Florida during the period we’ll be there is comparable to the weather here in South Africa, hot and humid with a high dew point.

We’ll be there at the beginning of the rainy season and the tip of the hurricane season. Hopefully, we won’t experience much in the way of hurricanes since the location is 35 miles inland and 75 feet above sea level, as mentioned below. I found this interesting guide to the ten locations safest from hurricane activity, in case you are interested. See here for the full details. The Villages is listed as #7 as indicated below:

“7. The Villages

The number seven spot was previously held by Naples on the Western coast of Florida. However, due to the recent impact of Hurricane Ian, Naples has moved down on the list. The Villages now holds this spot as it’s located 35 miles from the nearest coast and has an elevation of 75 feet above sea level. The Villages is a large, gated, 55 and over retirement community of 81,000 residents in central Florida.”

It’s fun for us to do research for our next holiday home location. It’s been a long time since we booked a holiday home when we’ve spent the past 2½ years in and out of South Africa since we were able to leave India after the long lockdown. Before that,  the last holiday home we booked was in Shirenewton, Wales, in 2019.

The rest of the time was spent on cruises, staying in hotels (including the ten months in Mumbai, India), and spending a few weeks with friends Karen and Rich in Apollo Beach, Florida a little over a year ago.

Once we’re settled in Florida, we’ll start planning our upcoming adventures in South America for about a year until, again, we return to Marloth Park in June 2024 for a shorter stay, no more than six months total. We’re discussing possibly returning to Kenya to get a new visa stamp after the first 90 days and to embark on more safari adventures.

It’s wonderful to be thinking about the future with enthusiasm once again, especially now that we’ve received a clean bill of health for both of us. No, it’s not always easy, and we must continue to adapt to new locations and their nuances. From time to time, we experience health issues we must address, as may be the case for many seniors who travel frequently, but that isn’t putting a damper on our future goals and objectives, at least, not right now anyway.

Regardless of our age, none of us can guarantee what the future holds, but we can dream, can’t we? (Hmmm…that reminds me of a song from long ago).

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, April 13, 2022:

Due to a poor signal on the ship, there was no post one year ago.