We’re here!…Late posting due to WiFi issues out to sea…

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The beaches of Australia are pristine and unspoiled, even during these warm summer months. (It’s summer in the Southern Hemisphere).

We would have been late posting even if the WiFi issues hadn’t occurred when everyone aboard the ship was indoors trying to get online at the same time.

With a busy morning of socializing over a late breakfast and not even having a moment available to see if we could get online, finally seven hours later than we usually begin posting, we had a connection.

Overall, this is unusual. During our past 11 cruises, we’ve managed a good signal while out to sea allowing us to post with a few photos. As it turns out we won’t be able to post more than five or six photos a day with the slow service we’re experiencing. 

Yesterday we’d decided to stay on the ship knowing we’ll be back in Melbourne on other upcoming cruises.

Otherwise, we’re having the time of our lives. Tom’s abscess continues to improve and although I’ve picked up a bit of a cough over the past three days, I’m feeling relatively good. I supposed after three days, I must be less contagious especially when I’m not sneezing at all or coughing in public and, not touching others while learning to use the “Howie Mandell handshake” of bumping elbows.

I’m able to entirely contain the cough by taking deep breaths when the urge arises and by washing my hands at least once an hour, hoping not to infect others. If it doesn’t get any worse, I’m good. I can’t seem to escape getting the cruise cough these days. Most likely it’s entirely due to our lack of exposure to germs on a day-to-day basis, except when we fly or cruise. 

The remnants of an old pier no longer used.

“They” (whoever they are) say a little exposure to germs is the best way to toughen the immune system. But, our quiet lives spent mostly just the two of us certainly keeps us free from much exposure to the germs of others. 

Tom’s already on antibiotics for his abscess so it’s unlikely he’ll get any type of bacterial infection from me or others.

Most illnesses on cruises and from flying on airplanes are viruses, not bacterial infections. Antibiotics don’t work for viruses unless it turns into a bacterial infection, for example, a strep throat, bronchitis, or a sinus infection.  Thank goodness, none of that so far.

Melbourne appears to be a lovely city, although considerably smaller than Sydney.

As for our good time, it’s unbelievable. With mostly Aussies, Kiwi’s (NZ) and Americans on this ship, we’re amazed by how many wonderful people we’ve met and interacted with up to this point of only three days since embarking. It’s astounding! 

In each venue we engage in pleasant and meaningful conversations ending in our having handed out dozens of business cards which will enable us to stay in touch after the cruise. 

How does this happen? Is it anything about us, we ask? Not necessarily. Although a genuine smile and a warm and sincere “hello” can go a long way in starting conversations. A cruise is no place for shyness, never an issue for either of us.

View of a major overpass in Melbourne.

This cruise appears to have about 20% of its passengers under age 40, about 3% children under 16 with the rest falling into the middle age and senior category.

We don’t necessarily spend time with only seniors. This morning we had a blast in the Café el Bacio with a group of six from Sydney, all in their 40’s with all of their children along who’d busied themselves with a variety of kid-friendly activities.  

Tonight, we’re having dinner with a fabulous Australian couple from the Gold Coast that is in our age range that we met a few nights ago at the Ensemble Bar. We clicked instantly and have gabbed with one another several times in between. Tonight, we’ll meet at the main dining room at 6:30 for dinner.

The ship holds 2850 passengers (crew of 1250) and we suspect it’s filled to capacity. Although a little larger than our preferred under 2000, it still feels cozy enough to have an opportunity to meet people, running into familiar faces on many other occasions.

After a great night’s sleep last night in the comfy bed, most likely we’ll be able to stay out a little later than last night. We’ve yet to attend the shows held nightly in the Solstice Theatre nor have we had time for a movie or down time in the cabin. We’re simply too busy for such events. 

A buoy marking the bay in Melbourne.

Having fun is having fun. Where and how we have it is irrelevant to us. It’s certainly no wonder why we love cruising, cruise cough or not. With our included beverage packages, Tom is drinking in moderation and we’re both continuing to enjoy the coffee bar as our primary socialization spot during the day. 

The specialty teas are a luxury for me and I can’t seem to drink enough. Tom continues to enjoy the Caramel Macchiato a few times a day which I doubt he’d have tried if it wasn’t included in the beverage package. 

Not that he’s a total tightwad but at US $6, AU $8.49 he’d probably have ordered a cocktail over a coffee drink. Without the beverage package, most likely, I’d have opted for the complimentary teas as opposed to the specialty teas rather than spending US $5.50, AU $7.79 for a small pot barely filling my mug.

Well, folks, that’s it for today. Tomorrow, we’ll be back with a special email we received from a reader we’d loved to share with his permission granted to do so. Our readers throughout the world are wafting along with us, nautical mile after nautical mile. 

We’re grateful for your friendship, support, and continuing attention! What a gift!

Photo from one year ago today, January 8, 2015:

The cloud obstructed moon over the Big Island, one year ago caught our attention for this “packman” type shot. For more details as we approached our last week on the island of Hawai’i’, please click here.

The freedom to choose…Tom trying new things…

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At dinner last night, he really stretched himself trying and very much liking this liver pate, another first for him, saying it reminded him of Braunschweiger.

With five more upcoming Australian cruises in the next 15 months, we don’t feel compelled to get off the ship at every port of call on this cruise. The nice part about cruising is we can do whatever we want. There is no schedule we have to follow. Our dinner reservations can be “whenever” we’d like. 

With a variety of functions in which we can choose to participate, most can easily be attended with a last-minute decision. Most often there’s room for two more. 

We love this freedom to decide.  In part, this sense of liberation and lack of feeling of being encumbered, owning “stuff,” had been instrumental in our decision to travel the world.

Tom, for the first time ever, ordered a Caramel Macchiato and liked it very much, ordering another while we sat in the Café el Bacio again today preparing today’s post.

Now, aboard this ship, we’re totally entrenched in this feeling of choice and freedom, exactly how we feel when we’re settled into a vacation home for a few months or more. 

There is no feeling of entrapment, no schedules other than those we freely choose with no obligations than those in our little world except for the responsibility for our health and well-being, taking care of the houses we’re renting, fiscal responsibility, record keeping, and future planning.

As for the “responsibility” of taking photos and posting each day, it’s done without any sense of obligation or pressure. It almost feels as if I have a remote in hand each morning and I select “play” as the process flows through my fingers with ease and purpose. 

If someone would have ever told me I’d have to conceptually write an essay every day of the week, 365 days (or this leap year’s 366 days) including adding new photos daily, I’d had said, “Bite me! I’m not doing that!”

His next “outside the box” new drink, a Café Diablo with Courvoisier VS, Grand Marnier, Sambuca and hot coffee.

And yet, day after day, without stress, without boredom, without “writer’s block” it all comes easily to me.  Motivation is a powerful thing. Documenting this year’s long journey, having the ability to look back and see what we’ve done day after day, sharing it with family, friends and the people we don’t know throughout the world has been all the motivation we’ve needed.

Onboard the Celebrity Solstice now for the past 48 hours, we’ve already had more fun, met more people, engaged in more lively conversation as we’ve wandered about the ship thoroughly entertained together as a couple as companions, shipmates, and lovers. Without even trying, cruising is romantic in its own unique way. 

Last night, as we sat on bar stools at one of the popular bars, The Ensemble Lounge, with a jazz band playing in the background, we were not only reminded of times long past but, of past cruises when conversations on a bar stool are especially memorable. 

Tom was drinking his usual Courvoisier with Sprite Zero while I sipped on plain bubbly water in a tall glass with lots of ice, a lime, and a straw. I miss drinking alcohol but my health is better without it. Last night, my glass looked like a “cocktail” while I almost felt a pleasing buzz from the power of suggestion.High on life? 

A few years ago while on a cruise, he tried frog legs, enjoying them again as an appetizer at last night’s dinner.

From meeting new people while sharing our mutual stories, a unique connection aboard a ship is generated hour after hour. We spend little time in the cabin. At the moment we’re situated in comfy chairs in the Café al Bacio, our newly discovered coffee/tea bar.

On our last cruise on this same ship, we rarely lounged in this area while posting instead spending time outside in warm weather. We’d never tried the coffee or tea. Tom has since tried a few coffee drinks as shown in today’s photos in his attempt at “trying new things.” 

It was exciting to find they offer my favorite oolong tea which I can drink all day when every beverage and sweet treat (for Tom only) they offer in this area is included in the two drink packages included on this particular cruise via promotion through Celebrity: free gratuities (usually charged at US $13, AUD $18 per person per day), free classic drink package for two (Tom’s cocktails, specialty coffees, imported teas, and a wide array of bottled beverages which is usually US $59, AUD $83 per person per day), and a cabin credit of US $100, AUD $141 to be used however we’d like.

Once on the ship we immediately signed up for the unlimited Internet packages which don’t allow sharing unless one goes offline while the other is online.  his plan, at US $244, AUD $345 per person (if we didn’t want to share, which we don’t) resulted in our paying a total of US $488, AUD $690 to ensure we both could be online at the same time.

Tom’s dinner was less adventuresome, tournedos of beef with red wine reduction with potatoes, green beans, and carrots. He found the entire meal and beverages to be pleasing to his limited palate.

With Tom enjoying time online while I spend the better part of each morning preparing the post, sharing is not an option for us. Plus, while I prepare the post, he assists with exchange rates, searching for links, and researching pertinent information while I’m in the process of posting. Having to go offline after each of my many questions is not for us.

Most likely, our final cruise bill will only include the above WiFi fees and a few odds and ends for any purchases we may make. The almost dried-out Max Factor mascara I’d purchased in Sydney made me drool over the prospect of purchasing a three-pack of Lancôme Definicils, my old US favorite for US $72, AUD $102. Gee…I haven’t purchased something this pricey and extravagant in a long time. 

I’ve gone back to the ship’s cosmetic store a few times looking at this potential purchase hesitating to buy it when for the past three-plus years I’ve used what I could find at a local chemist or supermarket. 

My “girlie” mentality hasn’t entirely wafted away while living this life and I’m glad for it. Who said I had to give up everything? No one. The freedom to choose is gratifying. 

No, I don’t own a handbag. I have only two pairs of jeans and five total pairs of shoes. We make do with what we have. An occasional splurge now and then reminds us that we do have the freedom to choose and that most often, we choose that which is relatively frugal and practical.

Today, we decided to stay on board the ship. We’re currently docked in Melbourne (pronounced “mel-ban” here in AU) until 5:30 pm. We may walk off the ship or we may not since we’re certainly enjoying the quiet while other passengers are off the ship shopping, riding in full buses, and sightseeing. 

We’ll be back here on another cruise in November. Knowing this, it’s easy to choose to stay onboard, simply because we feel like it. There are two upcoming ports of call for which we’ve booked all-day small group tours.  That’s enough for us. We had no commitments for today. When we return to Melbourne we may plan a small group tour or take a taxi tour. However, today, we’ll take a number of photos of Melbourne to share here tomorrow. 

So please check back, if you choose to…

Photo from one year ago today, January 7, 2015:

When daughter-in-law Camille and granddaughter Madighan stayed behind a few days before returning to the mainland, Madighan and I made the gingerbread house we’d been too busy to make before Christmas  For more photos, please click here.

Another possible medical emergency a few hours before boarding the ship…Thank goodness for a previous posts saving the day!

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The ship is still decorated from Christmas.

Yesterday morning, shortly after I uploaded the post, Tom told me his tooth abscess had returned overnight.  While in Fiji we’d decided dealing with it other than with the use of antibiotics was not necessarily the best course of action after our visit to the dentist’s office. We feared their equipment may not have been up-to-date and the most sanitary.

In November, when Tom was treated for the abscess at the dentist office in Savusavu for a fee of FJD $6, USD $2.78 with two free antibiotic prescriptions and a dose of Ibuprofen, we thought if he could last until we arrived in New Zealand, he’d visit a dentist shortly after we arrived.

Most likely we’ll find a good dentist in the nearby town of Taranaki which appears to have several dental offices.  Of course, we’ll ask the owner of the house we’re renting for a recommendation.

This wonderful chemist saved the day!

With only two hours until we had to vacate the hotel room, after requesting a late checkout, we knew we’d better come up with a plan. An abscessed tooth could become serious while on a two-week cruise. We didn’t have enough time left in Sydney to make an appointment to see a dentist and follow up with any treatment or prescriptions.

The previous day, we’d visited a local chemist for toiletries and a variety of preventive over-the-counter meds, meeting Peter, the most friendly chemist on the planet. 

Yesterday, after Tom finally told me about the abscess returning we decided to go back to see him, a short walk in yet more rain, a few blocks from the hotel. Our plan…ask him to refill the same antibiotic prescriptions Tom had taken in Fiji which seemed to work within a few days.

The tiny chemist shop had more products than one could imagine would fit in the tiny space.

Our plan to get him to agree to refill the prescriptions without a new prescription from a local dentist was simpler than we anticipated. Once we arrived at the store, we’d ask him to bring up our website in November 10, 2015, where we’d posted a photo of the pills he’d received at the Savusavu dentist. Click here to read that particular post if you missed it. 

Below is the photo we showed Peter which he accepted as a valid prescription worthy of being refilled. We couldn’t have been more relieved. Immediately, Tom said it was “safari luck” that we had the photo on the post to refer to in order to show the chemist we had a valid prescription. 

Luckily, Peter was able to read the labels on these two antibiotics enabling Tom to take another emergency round to last until we arrive in New Zealand in a few weeks.

This photo would never have been accepted in the US as valid proof for a refill. But, in Australia which is still relatively strict with prescription laws, this case precipitated a solution with kindly Peter accommodated since we’d already built a connection with him on the previous day’s visit. He knew we weren’t buying the medications to resell them.
 
Practically jumping for joy with relief we quickly made our way back to the hotel, prescriptions in hand, to load up our gear and head out the door to the ship.  Oddly, we could see the pier across the street from the chemist but, it was too difficult a walk with all of our bags in the rain and attempting to maneuver down a steep flight of stairs.

The doorman hailed a taxi and for a fare of USD $14.33, AU $20, the driver dropped us off at the Port of Sydney with our two large bags, one medium bag, one duffel, one Costco bag, rolling cart, and computer bag. (We’re able to maneuver the load a short distance on our own with careful stacking and use of the rolling cart). 

Busy Sydney Harbour.

Somehow, in these past months, we’ve lost our bungees making securing the rolling cart difficult. Once at the pier, we had a relatively long line in which to handle the bags were normally at most ports, the moment we step out of the taxi, our bags are tagged with our cabin number and whisked away by port personnel too much later be delivered to our cabin.

In less than an hour waiting in various lines for check-in, customs, immigration, and security, we were on the familiar ship, the Celebrity Solstice, excited for the 14-day journey itself to New Zealand, and for the upcoming three months we’ll spend living on an alpaca farm.

By 2:00 pm, we’d dropped off our carry-on bags in our cabin, our hands were free and we roamed about the same ship we sailed on September 23, 2014, when we cruised from Vancouver, British Columbia to Oahu, Hawaii.  That seems so long ago in one way and like yesterday in another.

The ship was being fueled, maintained, and dumping sewage.

The day and evening were even more enjoyable than expected.  We met many other passengers, mostly from the US and the UK. There seem to be considerably fewer Aussies than anticipated. As a result, there are no “Shed” meetings for Tom to attend, but he’s rather content with all the people we’ve met so far, engaging in lively conversations. And, as always, we’re having lots of fun together.

The abscess is already improving from a few doses of the antibiotics. We’re not thrilled he has to suffer any potential ill effects of taking antibiotics twice in such a short time span. But, we had no alternatives other than to cancel the cruise or risk a more serious infection, building over the upcoming few weeks. 

Last night’s dinner was OK. Since it was my first meal in the Epernay Dining Room they had few options available for me other than a tiny plain shrimp cocktail (no sauce), a Caesar salad without dressing, a steak, and a few steamed veggies. I ordered sides of New Zealand seasoned butter and full-fat sour cream, dipped everything on my plate for added flavor. 

All other entrees had been prepared in advance using vegetable oil, sugar, soy sauce, starches, flour, and other items I can’t have. Last night, I ordered my meal for tonight and this morning’s breakfast of two hard-boiled eggs, smoked salmon with capers, and crispy streaky American bacon. It was fine.

Last night we experienced rough seas during dinner subsiding later in the evening. As always, it had no effect on either of us, although it certainly was noticeable.

When we returned to our cabin for the night we noticed Tom’s suitcase hadn’t arrived yet. We’d received all the other bags in the late afternoon. 

We spotted a message on our phone. Within minutes, we headed to Level 2 to security to respond to their request to show up if we wanted his bag which had been confiscated due to a power strip. They tagged it, made him sign for it, stating we could have it back at the end of the cruise. This wasn’t the first time this has happened. We’ll manage just fine in the interim.

Tom’s busy “trying new things” which we’ll share in our photos to come.  With the slow WiFi on the ship, we’ll only be able to post four to six photos per day. He always surprises me when he suddenly decides to be adventurous with food and beverages. After all, his inclination toward adventure is certainly pleasing to me regardless of what he decides to eat!

Happy day!

Photo from one year ago today, January 6, 2015:

One year ago, daughter-in-law Camille and granddaughter Madighan had a chance to pet one of the chickens at a local resort where they stayed for one night when Madighan had an allergic reaction to something in the house we were renting. The next day, they left for Kona to get ready for their upcoming flight to the mainland. For more details, please click here.

New booking to share…Packing day is upon us…

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On our three years of travel anniversary, we visited the Namale Resort for a tour and luncheon celebration. It was a great day!

Yesterday, I told Tom that if we had to pack with short notice in 20 minutes, I could do it. That’s how uncomplicated the process has become. I’ve already refolded all my clothes in the cupboard and with nothing on hangers (no closet bar here), it’s a breeze.

Add the bathroom items, power cords, digital equipment, and the few toiletries in the bathroom and we’re good to go. In the early days when we had so many bags, I had to begin a week in advance. It’s easy now that we have it narrowed down to three bags and a variety of carry-on bags. 

Tima and Ratnesh when they took us on the tour of the waterfall.

Over these years, I’ve become used to having such a small amount of clothing, although it’s a bit challenging on cruises when there’s a certain expectation for attire, especially for dress-up nights. Some cruise lines are lightening up the dress code for formal nights. This works for us.

Speaking of cruises, yesterday we booked another cruise, leaving us with 8 booked upcoming cruises. Since January, 2013 we’ve sailed on 11 cruises. Yep. We like cruising as we’ve mentioned countless times in the past. 

The egg guy at the Farmers Market where we purchased 2 1/2 dozen free-range organic eggs for FJD $12.50, USD $5.82 each week.

Our budgeting revolves around our ability to cruise as a top priority resulting in living relatively frugally in affordable vacation homes and in renting cars only when necessary. We enjoy cruising enough to make some sacrifices. But, we’ve hardly diminished the quality of our lives to do so. One only needs to check out the photos of the vacation homes we’ve been fortunate to find and make work for us.

So, here’s the new cruise upcoming on May 17, 2017, after we arrive in Seattle (from Australia) by a cruise on May 15, 2017, when we’ll get to Vancouver (a three-hour drive) where we’ll stay in a hotel for two nights and then board the Celebrity Solstice.

View from one of many overlook points in Namale Resort on the day of our anniversary visit.

Once again, we’ll spend a few nights in Vancouver as we did on September 17, 2014, to September 23, 2014, when stayed in a wonderful condo complex overlooking the harbor. This next time, we’ll stay at a hotel close to the port based on it only being two days.

Then off we go to fulfill another item on our to-do-list, a cruise to Alaska, while we happen to be in North America in 2017. This cruise will transpire before heading to Minnesota to see family and friends for about a month, planning that the grandkids will be out of school for the summer, allowing us to spend more time with them.

Bana, the Dive Master, at Namale Resort.

This new cruise ends in Seattle on May 26, 2017, at which point we’ll rent a car and begin the drive through the northern states toward Minnesota, taking our time with a plan to arrive around the end of the first week in June. 

Most Alaskan cruises are for 7 nights only. This particular cruise we selected on the day it was posted is for 9 nights. The early-in-the-season sailing in these frigid waters constitutes a better price but doesn’t limit what we’ll be able to see. We’ll bundle up with sweatshirts and jackets and be able to watch the wildlife and ice floes from the deck. 

Filo, our tour guide at Namale Resort provided an amazing tour.

Here are the cruise details for those who may be interested. We selected an upgraded balcony cabin, which price isn’t listed here. The prices listed are for the lowest priced options in each category. 

The cabin and class selection we’ve made brings our total to USD $4,452, FJD $9,495. Our rep at Vacations to Go is working on adding perks. As Celebrity adds more perks over this extended period, we’ll be able to add them to our cruise package but it’s up to us to frequently research when such options are added based on a “best price guarantee.” Here are the details:

9 nights departing May 17, 2017 on
Celebrity’s Celebrity Solstice
Cheapest Inside $1,399
Cheapest Oceanview $1,649
Cheapest Balcony $2,049
Cheapest Suite $4,099
Click for additional rates: Singles Rates
No brochure rates were provided by Celebrity. The prices shown are US dollars per person, based on double occupancy, and subject to availability. They include port charges but do not include airfare or (where applicable) airport or government taxes or fees.
ITINERARY
DAY DATE PORT ARRIVE   DEPART
Wed May 17 Vancouver, BC, Canada 5:00pm
Thu May 18 Inside Passage, AK (Cruising)
Fri May 19 Ketchikan, AK 7:00am 4:00pm
Sat May 20 Juneau, AK 9:00am 8:30pm
Sun May 21 Skagway, AK 7:00am 6:00pm
Mon May 22 Hubbard Glacier, AK (Cruising)
Tue May 23 Sitka, AK 7:00am 4:00pm
Wed May 24 At Sea
Thu May 25 Victoria, BC, Canada Noon 8:00pm
Fri May 26 Seattle, WA 7:00am

Perhaps in years to come, we’ll return to Alaska for a long summer stay. For now, the prices are simply too high to book a long term vacation home during the short summer. We’ve done considerable research to no avail, deciding a cruise would be a better option for now. 

We’ve heard many avid cruisers extol the virtues of an Alaskan cruise and we couldn’t be more thrilled to add this cruise to our itinerary. As for the Celebrity Solstice, we’ll be on that ship in a little over a month sailing from Sydney to New Zealand. 

The beach for guests at Namale Resort on the Koro Sea.

Over a year ago, we sailed on the Solstice from Vancouver to Hawaii. The boarding process was the longest and most frustrating of any boarding process, we’d experienced due to US immigration taking almost three hours from the time we arrived at the pier until we entered the ship. At least this time, we’ll be prepared for the waiting time.

So, there it is folks. Now, we’ll concentrate on the packing for tomorrow’s departure as soon as Vika arrives to make the bed, the only spot in this house suitable for opening and loading the suitcases. Gosh, we’ve become lazy, not wanting to make the bed ourselves. That will certainly change at our upcoming location with a cleaning person only once a week over the four weeks.

Tom at the dentist’s office located in the hospital parking lot.  He was happy with the good service and the improvement in his tooth abscess which cleared up after taking the “free” antibiotics.

We already prepared tomorrow’s post with more great photos and with our final expenses for the almost three months we’ve spent in Savusavu which will be available online a few hours earlier than usual based on our early morning departure.

The day after tomorrow, Sunday for some of you, Monday for us, we’ll be back with photos of our new home in Pacific Harbour, Fiji! See you tomorrow and again the next day. 

Have a fulfilling weekend. Go Vikings.

Photo from one year ago today, December 5, 2015:

The first of two houses we rented in Pahoa on the Big Island had fabulous ocean views.  But, its close proximity to the raging surf created moisture problems in the house, contributing to wear and tear not visible in the photos. Overall, it worked out fine with a few adjustments and help from the cooperative owners.  For more photos, please click here.

Sightseeing day!..Stop back tomorrow for photos!…Paying upcoming balances for cruises…Fares for seven upcoming cruises…

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The sign at Savusavu Hospital reads, “Harvest the Wellness Within You!,” a good motto to follow. Many Fijians suffer with diabetes with a diet rich in sugar and high amounts of starchy foods.

Cruises have become an integral aspect of our travels. It provides us with an opportunity to visit more countries and their points of interest than any other means of travel.

Also, as we’ve attempted to avoid the “big bus” experience with a preference for the six or eight-person van excursion, it’s given us a better opportunity to make new friends during a day’s outing and to see the sights with more ease and level of enjoyment.

On some cruises, we’ll continue to attend group excursions such as next year’s Mekong River cruise where all excursions are included in the cost and others, when safety in numbers may be advised.

As we look over our upcoming cruise list, we’re enthusiast over the wide range we’ve selected to ensure we’ll have seen most of the major cities in Australia, New Zealand and many islands.

Each cruise is unique in its own way, although there are a few repeated ports of call from cruise to cruise, locations we’ll have already visited, unavoidable when attempting to circumvent the huge continent of Australia and its surrounding islands. For an example, a few of these cruises, have the port city of Suva, Viti Levu, Fiji as a port of call.

The entrance to the hospital in Savusavu.

After four months in Fiji, we may not be interested in touring Suva when its a city we’ll be visiting biweekly for shopping when we move to Pacific Harbour, Fiji, located on the main island, an hour’s drive from the house we’re renting.

Nadi (pronounced “nan-dee” in the Fijian language), where the airport is located, won’t necessarily be on our radar either with its increased levels of crime and population as mentioned in yesterday’s post.

During those repeated ports of call, we may decide to stay onboard the ship to enjoy the glorious quiet while many passengers have gone ashore to board those big buses for excursions and shopping.

Following is the list of upcoming cruises, the number of days of the cruise  and dates for which we’re booked all the way into 2017:

 Sydney to Aukland            USD $4,771 14 1/5/2016 1/19/2016
 Sydney to Singapore         USD $3,869 14 4/16/2016 4/30/2016
 Sydney to Perth                 USD $4,557 16 10/31/2016 11/16/2016
 Hanoi to Ho Chi Min City  USD $6,597 15 7/8/2016 7/22/2016
 Singapore to Sydney         USD $4,144 14 10/31/2016    11/14/2016
 Sydney to Sydney              USD $4,820 12 3/1/2017 3/13/2017
 Sydney to Seattle              USD $5,995 24 4/22/2017 5/15/2017

It may seem that 2017 is a long time away, especially when we arrive in the US in May, 2017. But, its only 19 months from now until we land on US soil at the port of Seattle, Washington to make our way to Minnesota and Nevada to visit family and friends.

The total cost for all of the above cruises (for two, in select balcony cabins only) is USD $34,753, FJD $74,037, undoubtedly a huge chunk. Based on our budget, we tend to look at this total on an annualized and monthly basis which in doing so, averages at USD $1,819, FJD $3896 per month.

On a more remote island one may worry that their aren’t readily available medical services. We’re always pleased to discover hospitals, ambulances and adequate medical care in case of an emergency.

Based on having selected this vast number of cruises, we’ve been extra careful in selecting vacation homes, car rentals and general expenses to ensure “doing what we love” (cruising) doesn’t create any undue financial stress in going over our budget.  In no case, do any of these cruises result in a deficit impacting our quality of life.

Without a doubt booking this number of cruises has a bearing on the vacation homes we select. However, we tend to stay in a general range for each location based on our needs, practicality and budget. 

We don’t require a luxury four-bedroom house with a full staff, although at times, we’ve been fortunate (and will be so in the future) to have negotiated a price befitting our budget for such types of vacation rentals. 

Here in Vanua Levu, Fiji at USD $2,000, FJD $4,260 per month, we have all we need or want while we’re able to maintain our average monthly/annual cost to offset the cost of the cruises.

Yesterday, we paid the balance of USD $3,871, FJD $8247 of the first cruise on the above list, after paying a deposit of USD $900, FJD $1,917 when we booked it some time ago.

Its that very cruise that ends in Auckland, New Zealand on January 19, 2016 where we’ll stay for 89 days, renting a car in Auckland to drive to the north island city of New Plymouth where the farmhouse awaits us, again an affordable property.

Several emergency vehicles were on the hospital property. Locals don’t hesitate to call in an emergency and feel the local care is adequate for many conditions.

Typically, final payments for cruises are due 80 days before the departure dates. Vacations to Go (still our preferred cruise booking agency) keeps a credit card on file for us, using it automatically to make the payments when due. 

When booking multiple cruises such as the above, we consider the spacing and the dates the balances are due.  Our next cruise final payment won’t be due until January 23, 2016.

In most cases, we’ve paid the required USD $900, FJD $1,917 deposit at the time of booking the cruise with our preferred cabin number. If its a ship we’ve never sailed in the past, Tom reads reviews on cabin numbers in Cruise Critic and other resources while looking at the posted “deck plan” listed in the Vacations to Go website.  Selecting the right cabin is vital to a good experience (more on that later in a future post).

On certain cruises, we’re able to purchase “deposit vouchers” for USD $200, FJD $426, that can be used in place of paying the USD $900, FJD $1,917.  Why would we want to cruise line to be holding that sum of our money for these extended periods?  If we can pay a smaller deposit, it is preferred.

Of course, there’s always the added “bill” we get at the end of each cruise for any extras: Internet access, cocktails for Tom, specialty restaurants and a rare  purchase in the shops. 

Many times tips and alcoholic beverages are included in the fare when offered as a special promotion. We’ll share the inclusions and extras as we cruise on each of the above.

Then again, we often pay huge deposits on vacation homes booked way down the road. Its the nature of the beast, a constant outflow of cash paying for services well into the future.

In reality, its not unlike the lives of many of our worldwide readers who pay monthly for rent or mortgage payment, utilities and maintenance. The only difference for us is the fact that we pay for all of this well in advance. In Fiji, until January, when we depart from Sydney for the first listed cruise, our rent and airfare is already paid in full.  We continue to pay in advance for the many upcoming months and often, years.

As “they” say, “it all comes out in the wash.” It works for us.

Shortly, we’ll be heading out for the day with Rasnesh for photos of more beautiful scenery in Vanua Levu, ending up at the end of the day for our usual shopping: Vodafone kiosk, the pharmacy that has everything (one only need ask), the Farmer’s Market, New World Market and Fiji Meats where Helen has a order we placed awaiting our pickup. 

The sun was shining when we awoke but the clouds have rolled in as I write this. If it rains, we’re still going! Over the past few days, it’s been hot, hot, hot. The mozzies and ants are on a rampage after the weeks of rain but we’re handling them. Our Internet is working well. Lots more new photos coming soon. We’re feeling great and life is good.  Hope its the same for all of you!

Photo from one year ago today, October 22, 2014:

Tom was looking for the daily visit of sea turtles at the shoreline outside our condo in Maui. The skies had begun to clear and we looked forward to walks along the shore, whale watching  and hanging out at the pool. It was on this date a year ago, that I drove a car for the first time in two years. I was still the same awful driver I’ve always been! For more details, please click here.

The advantages of early bookings…Upcoming US football season…Is Tom going to watch the Vikings games?

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This view could be a tropical island anywhere in the world.

Since booking our last three cruises over these past few months, Tom has noticed those cruise fares have increased substantially: one for US $1100, AUD $1484; the second for US $900, AUD $1213; the third for US $800, AUD $1078, for a grand total of US $2800, AUD $3774. 

Throughout our travels, we’ve often been asked why we book future travels so far in advance. This is the main reason. If booking a venue at a great price, we’ve never been contacted requesting we pay a new higher price.  In other words, when booking travels the lowest price at which we can “lock-in” the price, will hold until the booking occurs.

Deadman’s Gully is an ideal habitat for crocs.

However, booking airline tickets, car rentals, or vacation homes at a higher price will seldom allow us the benefit of a price reduction which may eventually be posted online. With penalties for canceling and re-booking these types of travel accommodations, we have to face the reality that price changes will occur from time to time. 

We could hear the birds hovering over this area which also is considered a natural habitat for birds.

In booking cruises, it’s different. On several occasions, it’s been to our benefit to request a price reduction on a previously booked cruise as long as it’s before the 90-day-before-sailing window or when the final payment is due. The cruise lines and booking agencies allow one to take advantage of fare reductions. It’s up to the customer to continually check for fare reductions. The agency or cruise line will not do this for the customer.

With seven upcoming cruises booked, Tom has gotten into the habit of checking daily for price reductions. This has served us well over these past 11 cruises and hopefully will continue to benefit us going forward. Ironically, he also notices fare increases as noted above, confirming that early bookings make sense.  

The beach in this area was desolate.

The only disadvantage of booking early for any travel-related event is the usual requirement to pay well in advance, as often as two years before the event occurs. 

Often, when booking certain hotels using the links on our site we get booking perks. Each hotel night we book accumulates points toward future hotel bookings. To date, we’ve received three free nights with more pending, keeping in mind that we seldom stay in hotels for more than one night, except for a year ago when we spent two weeks each in Paris and London.

A safe walkway into the rainforest in Clifton Beach.

Once we’re situated in Fiji next month we’ll begin to work on filling the holes in our schedule when doing so requires the expenditure of more upfront cash and a better wifi connection which we’ve been assured is the case. In the past few years, Fiji has updated their wifi country-wide with a supposed good signal for all residents.

With little heavy rain in these past few weeks, this area contained little water as compared to when we visited a few months ago.

On to another timely topic…Tom’s planning to watch the Minnesota Vikings football games, beginning with the first preseason game when it’s broadcast Sunday night at 8 pm central time. 

He won’t be able to watch the game here until Monday based on the time zone in Australia. If he waits to watch it, he can avoid the commercials but bears the risk of seeing the results online. He can actually watch it live on Monday morning at 11:00 am which most likely he’ll do. Tom is one of those that really don’t like to hear the results before watching the game. 

We’d hoped to see a kangaroo pop out of these woods but no such luck.

While we’re still in Australia he can plug in the HDMI cord into the HD TV to watch the games.  n Fiji, without a TV, he’ll have to watch the games on his laptop as will be the case for all shows we chose to watch while living in Fiji. 

These grill areas are available to any who’d like to use them at no cost. It’s pleasing to see how those who’ve used them, have left them in spotless condition. One wouldn’t find this to be the case in every country.

As many viewers chose, adapting to watching movies and other media on tablets and other small screens is easy. During most of our travels, we haven’t had access to an HD TV (or any TV for that matter) and have easily adapted to watching the small screen.

As for another matter, this morning, when I prepared to shower grabbing a towel off the stack of fresh towels on the floor in the bathroom (we’d filled the intended towel drawer with toilet paper and other toiletries leaving no room for the stack of towels) there sat the largest spider I’d seen since we were in Africa. 

Clifton Beach is a beautiful sandy beach with few visitors.

Sure, I could have gone to grab the camera for a photo, but I feared that it would get away before we got back.  Although I didn’t scream, squeal, or otherwise, I did ask Tom to put on his shoes and help dispose of them.  From reading online it could easily have been the relatively harmless large Huntsman Spider is known to eat household insects. 

The mailman stopped his bike to chat with us!

However, we couldn’t be certain as to the type with literally hundreds of species in Queensland. Tom grabbed the towel with the spider still on it outdoors to the wild area in the yard, shaking the towel to release it. 

We both been surprised by how few insects we’ve spotted indoors in Australia. The biggest annoyance has been  the flies that somehow find their way indoors even though the doors and windows without screens are always kept closed. 

We weren’t sure why these boulders had been placed at this spot on the beach.

This morning, we were awakened once again at 4:51 am from the screaming birds, the Curlews, living in the bush in the yard. It’s like no noise we’ve ever heard in the past.  One would think their legs are being torn off when in fact they’re happily living their lives, most active at night.

Life is unique wherever we may be. Adapting to the differences has become easy and familiar to us. Once we arrive in Fiji, we’ll experience an entirely new range of differences to which we’ll hopefully adapt in no time at all.  We’ll keep our readers apprised of these differences.

Happy weekend to all!

                                               Photo from one year ago today, August 9, 2014:

We didn’t post any other photos than the above on this date one year ago. We were out the door early to head to the Louvre. With such a busy day, we didn’t post until the next day. See the post here.

Living within our means…More new Port Douglas photos…

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A small pier for boaters at the marina in the Port Douglas harbor.

As we near the end of sharing our photos of Port Douglas, we begin to think about where we’ll visit next.  Quickly, time is marching on as we approach our final month in Trinity Beach when our departure date is September 7th (son Greg’s birthday) and arriving in Sydney. We’ll stay overnight in Sydney, departing the next day on September 8th, (daughter Tammy’s birthday) for Fiji.

We spotted this kilometer distance meter at a scenic overlook which illustrates distances to various cities throughout the world.

If we didn’t see another tourist attraction we can leave here happily knowing we experienced quite a bit and knowing we’ll be touring the entire perimeter of the continent of Australia via six upcoming cruises over the next less than two years. 

Buoys in the water off the beach in Port Douglas.

With seemingly endless ports of call on those six cruises, we’d like to leave a few of the highlights for the cruises, especially when we usually meet people with whom we’ll most likely enjoy touring the various points of interest.

Another Banyan Tree along the beach.

Another factor we must consider at this time is the fact that we’ve had to lay out enormous sums for upcoming vacation homes, cruises, and medical care resulting in the necessity of “tightening our belts.” We’re like the rest of the middle-class world, we must monitor our spending to ensure we don’t get in a tight spot.

A view of the Four Mile Beach from a steep road we drove above the town.

Since we live entirely off of our monthly income, laying out thousands of dollars in any given month makes us very mindful the next month or so. We use credit cards for all of our payments and expenses, attempting to pay them off entirely each month. 

At first glance, we assumed the red color in this tree was flowers when in fact it was the leaves changing colors.

In the past few days, we paid off all of the credit card balances except one. Next month we’ll pay off that balance. We feel more secure when we have no balances on credit cards which occurs a few days after the first of each month with a few exceptions. Then we start charging again for all of our living expenses and future travels, racking up big balances again.

View from an overlook.

Most people don’t pay a portion of their rent or mortgage payment as much as two years in advance as we do. Often vacation rental deposits are as much as 50% of the full 90 day rental with the balance paid in full before arrival. 

Most recently, we’ve had to pay in full in advance for the river cruise on the Viking Mekong at a rate of US $6598, AUD $9440 which doesn’t sail until July 8, 2016, and huge sums for future bookings. Last month, we also paid out over US $2800, AUD $3694 for a variety of upcoming airline tickets.

Low tide changing the entire scene at the beach.

We chose to pay in full for this particular cruise since it offered a 2 for 1 sale if paid in advance which was irresistible. Neither of us could imagine laying out twice that amount for a cruise when soon we’ll start saving for the pricey future adventures we’re planning to book down the road after we leave the South Pacific.

Most piers are packed with tourists and locals enjoying the views.  We were surprised that no one was walking along with us.

When we start investigating some of the tourist attractions in this area, including train rides, gondola rides, and boat tours, we see how easily we could eat up another $1000 on only a few attractions.

The pier in Port Douglas has a stairway for boaters or an area for fishing.  We were the only visitors on the pier.

It’s the nature of the beast. We recently saw a lovely story on TV about a younger Australian couple that had been traveling for a few years, occasionally stopping to work to make money in order to continue on. Also, at times, they stayed in campsites sleeping in tents, stayed in hostels, sharing a bath, or staying for free in other people’s homes. They’re young and this works for them.

Low tide created an eerie view.

We don’t want to take odd jobs along the way, sleep in tents, or share a bath in a hostel although, we commend those who do. It’s just not for us. Instead, we prefer living comfortably, living life on our terms. Choosing to do so has a price tag attached to it which we’ve chosen to bear. 

This private catamaran was anchored in the sand at low tide.

That price tag includes us making some sacrifices and often this comes in the way of the “entertainment” category in our spreadsheet which we always include in the budget, which often is used for unexpected expenses.

In Australia, we’ve used that designated entertainment budget for all of our medical exams, dental appointments, and the prescriptions we purchased to last for an additional six months. It quickly added up.

A boat anchored in the bay.

Thus, for the remainder of our 35 days in Trinity Beach, we’re reliant upon continuing to find sites to see that don’t include fees and expenses. This isn’t too hard to do in this beautiful area as we continue our search.

We realized when we began this journey that our priority to see as much of the world as we can, for as long as our health holds out, had sacrifices associated with it, not only in what we left behind but in the quality of life we live each day. Doing so requires that we live within our means. For us, doing so is a small sacrifice in the realm of things.

So, we won’t go on a train ride or take a sunset cruise on a charter boat.  We don’t mind at all.  Each day of our lives is a treasure whether it’s last night’s moonlight, today’s Kookaburra sitting on the fence, or the simple beauty of a flower blooming. Or, for Tom, it’s beating me at Gin two games in a row!

Who’s complaining? Not us!

                                             Photo from one year ago today, August 3, 2014:

A smaller Statue of Liberty stands proud in Paris. We couldn’t believe that we were seeing the familiar sites we’d only seen in print. For more details and Paris photos, please click here.

A diverse and unexpected day out and about…Problems with men’s shirts…Many new photos coming!

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It was easy to find the shopping center in Cairns with only a few turns required off the main highway into town.

Yesterday morning, after uploading the post and in an impromptu manner I suggested to Tom that we head to Cairns, the closest big city for a visit to the largest shopping mall within hundreds of miles/kilometers.

We’ve giggled when we’ve seen signs mentioning Australia’s biggest “stocktake” sales, an expression that is definitely Aussie.

We each needed a few items, none of which we’d ever be able to find in the next many months after leaving Australia. We’d never be able to find our shortlist in Fiji and receiving packages is the island is outrageous after estimates we received from our mailing service.

Tom needed a new white dress shirt for formal nights on the many upcoming cruises. Often there are as many as three formal nights on a 14-day cruise. On longer cruises, there may be as many as five formal nights.

In the US, a similar store is called “Bed, Bath and Beyond.”

We’ve learned that we both can get by dressing “business casual,” him in a long-sleeved white dress shirt (no tie or jacket) with black pants with his more dressy Cole Haan shoes and me, in a long skirt with any of my tops belted or with a scarf and a bit of costume jewelry. 

Tom asked me not to take any photos of him wearing this same shirt from the previous day. But, I do laundry every day and he wore this shirt again while trying to wear out a few shirts before tackling the less used stack of tee shirts tucked away in his luggage. He eyeballed the old fashioned candy in this store, not buying a thing.

Once we’re seated at a shared table with eight to twelve other cruise passengers and have an opportunity to explain our limited luggage, then rest assured we aren’t totally uncouth as they dine with us many wearing their evening gowns and tuxedos. 

After all these cruises (11 so far) we don’t feel uncomfortable in our more casual attire. However, having a few items to enhance our attire is crucial to feeling acceptably dressed. For Tom, a proper fitting white shirt is essential.

We noticed a number of these tax preparer kiosks in the shopping malls. The Australian tax year-end June 30th and returns are filed by October 31st. If a taxpayer uses a registered tax preparer they may apply for an extension which it appears most of these people have done.

The problem with that is the fact that now that his weight is down within 10 pounds of his lowest, once aboard the ship he’s unable to resist the carbs and sugary foods and he usually starts gaining weight on the very first day, no matter how much we walk the decks. Within a few days his white dress shirt begins to fit tighter and tighter each day until finally, it doesn’t fit at all.

The mall is as huge as any we’d visited in the US (except for the Mall of America in Minnesota) including a multiplex movie theatre, food court, and undercover parking ramp, referred to as a “car park” in Australia, not a parking lot.

Oh sure, he could curtail his eating. But, if my way of eating wasn’t necessary for my survival, I’d have no will power on a cruise ship. Maintaining one’s weight isn’t enough of a motivator to avoid those tempting desserts, appetizers, poolside burgers, and fries and ice cream cones in unlimited amounts. 

In my old life, before eating this way, I’d never been on a cruise ship to experience the temptations of unlimited appealing foods. Although I’ve always been relatively slim, I was always “watching” my weight, occasionally falling prey to sweet temptations. 

Peering over a railing to view a huge book sale.

Now, it’s no temptation at all when it comes to my health. It isn’t even about self-control.  It’s about quality of life. We wouldn’t be traveling the world if I started eating one of my past favorites, doughnuts, as shown in one of today’s photos. Doughnuts, pastries, cookies, cakes, pies…in my old life I loved it all frequently baking and struggling to resist excess amounts.

For a Tuesday midday, the mall was very busy as shown here.

Back to the white shirt. The one Tom had been wearing on the past few cruises no longer works. If he lost the last 10 pounds, it would fit perfectly. It will never work one more time on a cruise. 

The problem in finding him a long-sleeved dress shirt is a problem many men have today which may include smaller neck size, shoulder width, and sleeve length and yet possessing a bit of fluff around the middle. 

Before we know it we’ll be in Thailand to experience authentic Thai food firsthand.

I’m not complaining about the fluff. My only concern is in regard to how that fluff may affect health in the long run. The same goes for women. Had I not been on this strict way of eating, I’d certainly have fallen into that same belly fat condition. It’s an age related dilemma that few are exempt from after 60 years of age.

Tom is always shocked by the prices at McDonald’s but it’s been a long time since he made a purchase. Prices have changed over these past years since we’ve been gone from the US.

Yesterday around noon, when we entered the lavish shopping mall in Cairns,  Cairns Central, finding a new shirt for Tom was highest on our priority list. We’d seen online that Myer, a department store where we’d most likely find a wide selection of dress shirts.

After perusing many racks and noticing that most of the white dress shirts were marked “slim fit” we were ready to walk out until finally, a lovely saleswoman was available to assist us. In Australia, sizing is different than we were used to and honestly, we weren’t sure what size would actually work with his shorter sleeve length and smaller shoulder measurements.

Considering that a double-sized burger is AUD $9.70, the US price of $7.21 doesn’t seem that high to me.  Is that higher than in the US?

The trusty saleswoman shipped out a tape measure, quickly checked his measurements arriving at a size that would work for him all the way around. I was skeptical but kept my mouth shut as he tried on a shirt in the Aussie size of 43/86. Go figure. We’d never have figured this out on our own.

Hungry Jack in Australia is actually the same as Burger King in the US.

In a matter of minutes, we were walking out the door with a perfectly well-fitted shirt with room for “cruise food,” in a carefree fabric that was considered wrinkle-free and yet has a quality designer feel. 

At a meager USD $37.08, AUD $49.95, for the fine shirt, we were couldn’t have been more pleased. He’d easily have been willing to pay twice as much for such a great fit. I suggested he purchase two identical shirts at this price but, weight restrictions always prevail in any of our purchase decisions.

These prices appear considerably less than McDonald’s.

At that point, we were off to look for a few items on my shortlist. How shall I diplomatically say “undergarments,” simply put, panties. (What a weird word to put in writing!) I only share this tidbit of information as part of our travel experience.

This donut shop reminded us of Dunkin’ Donuts in the US.

Us girls (and guys) always have a preference for a particular fabric and style. The last time I purchased panties (ouch) was when Okee Dokee and I headed to Komatipoort in South Africa to a women’s shop in February 2014. Click here to see that post. 

I purchased eight pairs in South Africa in varying fabrics, none of which will survive one more washing. The bra I purchased at that time, later ended in a donation pile when it itched while wearing. Tom suggested commando.  I declined. No women my age goes commando unless they’ve “forgotten” to include these when dressing. I’m not there yet!

My mouth watered checking out these donuts. Tom had little interest in them since he doesn’t like the frosted or sugar-coated types. I’d have eaten any of these in my old life.

As we perused the shops in the vast mall we stumbled upon a shop, Body Cairns, that caught my eye. My eyes flitted over the wide array of workout wear and also, a table of panties not unlike one would find in Victoria’s Secret store in the US.  I purchased five pairs and, two Capri length workout/leggings that are perfect for everyday wear as well as trips to the fitness center. 

Here’s Tom’s new long-sleeved white dress shirt for which he paid USD $37.08, AUD $49.95.

After paying USD $59.31, AUD $79.90 for all seven items I was pleasantly surprised by the quality, selection, and prices, although a little confused by the sizing. A friendly young woman assisted me encouraging me to try on the leggings which I did, happy with the fit.

Purchases completed, we decided to wander through the remainder of the mall, checking out the stores and the food court. Although I encouraged Tom to have lunch, there was nothing he felt like ordering after his big breakfast at home. In any case, it was fun to see the shops and fast-food restaurants popular in Australia.

Here are my seven-item priced at AUD $79.90, USD $59.31.

After leaving the mall, we drove around Cairns on a self-directed sightseeing tour for the remainder of the afternoon enjoying every moment even on the cloudy day. We’ll share more photos over the next few days including a totally unexpected and somewhat peculiar find in tomorrow’s post.

Thanks to so many of our reader friends who wrote to us via comments and email to wish us well with the good health reports. Your interest in our well being means the world to us!

                                               Photo from one year ago today,  July 22, 2014:

One year ago, we posted photos of the morphology of the banana tree with progressives photos of a bloom. Please click here to see these photos.

Booked three more cruises…Returning to US for a family visit…New beach photos…

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Surfboard menu at a local restaurant in Trinity Beach.

There was no doubt in our minds that sooner or later we’d return to the US to visit family. We visited my cousin and uncle when our cruise ended in Boston staying for three days last September. We’d chosen that specific cruise in order to see them with my uncle who’d recently turned 95 years old. Who knows when we’d ever be back in Boston? It was a wonderful visit and then we were on our way once again.

Holloways Beach.

At that point, we didn’t stop in Minnesota since most of our kids and all of our grandchildren were coming to see us in Hawaii for Christmas, only seven months ago. 

A two week stay in Minneapolis can easily run over US $5000, AUD $6734 with the high cost of hotels, rental cars and meals. With the cost of bringing 12 family members to Hawaii, we had to tighten our belts and stick with the budget and the itinerary (as we always attempt to do) preventing us from any other stops along the way at that time.

House on a hill in Yorkeys Knob.

It will be wonderful to see our family and friends and most assuredly, our stay will be a flurry of non-stop activity however long we may stay. As time nears, we’ll pin down the dates we’ll be in Minnesota, Nevada and Los Angeles.

Planning this far in advance is crucial for us when we notice cruises posted as “sold out” or cabins we may have wanted to book already taken. Early booking is vital, especially around the South Pacific, where all of these newly booked cruises will be sailing. Aussies love to cruise.

A sunbather on the beach.

Not counting the upcoming Vietnam cruise next year we have six cruises booked in the South Pacific. After considerable research, we discovered that Australia is too huge to tour by car with visa restrictions preventing us from staying more than 90 days. 

With Australia the size of the US with the major points of interest around the perimeter, driving for foreigners like us is not a likely nor affordable way to see this massive continent. Cruising is the ideal way to see it. Two of these cruises we booked over the weekend, visit the entire perimeter of Australia.

A camping area in Trinity Beach.

We’ve seriously investigated renting an RV but the cost, is outrageous, more than the daily cost of cruising.  And, honestly, driving an RV for months no longer appeals to our way of life. We don’t liked feeling locked in for so long.

As much as we prefer not to bring up expenses as often as we do, the reality is clear…there’s no way to do what we’re doing long term without constantly being aware of the expenses. 

Camping and caravanning is popular in Australia.

There’s no way we’d want to put ourselves in a position of “worrying” about finances. Currently, the way we budget and carefully follow that budget, we have nothing to worry about. We remain concerned and diligent neither of which elicits a sense of worry in our case.

Rather than list the finite details of each cruise here, which can be less interesting for those who don’t cruise, tomorrow we’ll post a brief synopsis of these three new cruises. 

This sign is posted outside a restaurant in Trinity Beach.

Soon we’ll be posting our general upcoming itinerary which encompasses over 600 days, including two gaps we’ve created by booking these cruises which we’ll fill in time, most likely staying in Australia or its surrounding islands. 

The interior of Lunico restaurant in Trinity Beach.

Tom has been busy for weeks planning all of these cruises busily typing away on his laptop on Cloud 9.  He loves doing this. On the other hand, I have little interest in booking cruises. Point me in the direction of a cruise ship and I’m content.

This reminds us that we could dine out on occasion.  But, with my restricted way of eating its not so appealing.

Thus, the total number of cruises we have booked at this time, including the Mekong River cruise is a total of seven. This reminds me of our early days when we had eight cruises booked right out of the chute even before we originally left the US. 

Sitting outdoors at the restaurant overlooking the ocean is appealing now that it’s not raining almost every day as it has since we arrived one month ago.

We’ve loved every single cruise each with their own unique merits, including the experience of three days and nights of raging seas, on the Norwegian Epic in 2013.  It’s all been a part of our vast experiences of traveling to see the world.

There are lots of pizza and pasta restaurants along the beaches.

What better way is there to see a lot at one time than cruising? Yes, there are crowds, germs, mediocre food and occasional periods of waiting to board and disembark. 

We always giggle over seniors partaking in “early bird specials.” Now that we’re in that category, we totally get the benefit of early dining, often finding ourselves at the dinner table by 6:30 at the latest. We’ve haven’t tried the 5:30 dining time yet but most likely its in the future.

Overall, cruising has provided us with many memorable experiences of making new friends and seeing so much of the world which far surpasses any potential annoyances. Plus, we had a blast with the Aussies on this last cruise to Sydney and we can’t wait for more social interactions with these warm and friendly people in this highly conducive environment.

The sky will be blue as shown in some of these photos and in a short period its raining again. Many days, I’ve put on my swimsuit in the morning, hoping the sunny day will continue and we can sit outdoors for 30 minutes (sun too hot here for longer) for a dose of Vitamin D. Invariably, by the time I upload the post, its cloudy or raining and I change into my clothes.

This afternoon, we’ll head back to the doctor for my test results and then get to work on Tom’s upcoming exams and tests. Hopefully, all will be good and we can continue on with added peace of mind.

We’ve been here over a month and how the time has flown. We like it here.  It’s an excellent place to live and we’re content. What more could we ask for?

                                               Photo from one year ago today, July 13, 2014:

Tom always says I don’t post enough photos of myself. I’m not your basic “selfie” type person obsessed with photos of myself. There’s a lot more interesting scenery than me posing for one of Tom’s less than stellar photos, many of which I’m compelled to delete. Here I am in front of a decorated tree trunk in Ribeira Brava, Madeira last year. For more details, please click here.

Planning ahead for the future…An ongoing process that never ends…Planning the future end of our time in the South Pacific…

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We searched online, but can’t seem to find the name of this grass or weed. This is commonly found along the highways and country roads in this and other areas of Australia.

With a plan to post and then head out sightseeing we realized we had to change our day when rain is pelting in buckets. Of course, the weather here can change on a dime so we shall see how the day rolls out. At the moment, the clouds and fog are so thick, we can’t see much further than beyond our house.

As I’ve mentioned recently and in the past, Tom is the official cruise planner in this family. He loves spending endless hours online calculating every option, pricing, and itinerary. 

Since my hands are full with other tasks, namely sitting at my laptop every morning posting and dealing with hundreds of photos, record keeping, and my share of the many tasks associated with simply living life; household tasks including laundry (which I like doing) and cooking.

Sunny day at the beach.

Tom does his share of tasks including handling the investments, heavy lifting, all the kitchen clean up, trash removal (which requires a drive down the steep road), and his endless pursuit of the next cruise or cruises.

Together, we clean the house once a week, tidying up daily and every other week Andy comes and vacuums and washes all the floors. It’s a perfect compromise of tasks and responsibilities with neither of us ever feel we are doing more than our fair share.

Plus, Tom drives me everywhere I want to go, nary with a complaint. I could never drive here, sitting on the right side of the car, shifting with my left hand (not coordinated), and maneuvering all the roundabouts. 

The boat launch at Holloways Beach leading to a river that leads to the sea. That’s not an animal hanging from the tree, just an unusual root clump.

Oh, good grief. Even when I’m the passenger I keep thinking he’s going the wrong way, when in fact he’s going the correct way. I’d end up going the wrong way on the road, risking life and limb. I keep my mouth shut to avoid startling him. 

It’s a good mix, us two. But, when it comes to cruises, he’s on his own. I only care about the price and the itinerary. He’s perfect at the rest, including figuring out the dates that fit within our already set itinerary.

We’ve been using Vacationstogo.com since we booked our first cruise. We adored working with our former rep, Joaquin, who later left the company. Since then we’ve moved around a few times to different reps, never quite getting that same kind of relationship we so loved with Joaquin.

This sign painted on the paved road at the boat launch says, “Be croc wise in croc country.” It would be rather terrifying to encounter a croc while launching a boat into the water

Preferring not to switch companies, we wrote to Anna, a manager, requesting a few things; one, find us a new person we can work with long term and two, we need them to match cabin credits we’ve noticed offered by some other online cruise booking agencies at times. 

This is not to say that we haven’t felt that we’ve received overall great pricing. We’re not foolhardy and won’t necessarily pay higher prices for loyalty on a regular basis. 

Any suggestions on the name of these flowers?

We look at the overall picture. Did they give us a special break on the last cruise that was beyond what anyone else may have offered? It all comes “out in the wash.” We keep good records, making it easy to look back and see what we’ve paid each and every time.

But, now as Tom regularly checks cruisecompete.com who actually has numerous companies “bid” for our business, we wondered if perhaps we can do better elsewhere.

This morning, we heard back from Anna and she’s agreed to allow our new rep to match any published price we find online including cabin credits. With this information, we look forward to a relationship with our new person and the best possible price in the world.

The pile of huge rocks appeared to have been placed at the edge of the rainforest to keep people out. 

After all, in the past 33 months, we’ve sailed on 11 cruises, have four more booked, and have an additional three we hope to book in the next week. Why do we like cruising so much? It’s a chance to see more of the world in a shorter time period and we love the people we meet aboard ships. It’s too much fun.

No, we don’t like the lines, the waiting to board and disembark, and the occasional “cruise cough.” After mentioning this to the doctor the other day, she explained that it’s not that we particularly have weak immune systems. 

The cough is a by-product of being in a “crowd” day after day in air conditioning and tight quarters.We’ve had the cough a few times out of the 11 cruises but have avoided the Norovirus entirely.

A pretty house as we drove along the beach.

We’ve also become infected with colds and flu while sightseeing in a crowded venue, while not on a ship. I suppose most people around children and crowds get a cold or virus once or twice a year.

While we were on the last cruise from Honolulu to Sydney on May 24th, arriving on June 11th, Tom had visited the future cruise booking department while I sat in the bar doing the day’s post. 

When he returned to the bar, he was frustrated when he explained that he was unable to purchase any future “open bookings” using their usual USD $100, AUD $134 per cruise per person, enabling us to avoid paying a larger deposit of USD $900, AUD $1207 deposit to book any cruise for two. 

This root laden tree is unusual, reminding us of Banyan trees in Hawaii although with smaller roots.

Why should we lay out that much money often as much as two years in advance if we don’t have to? By purchasing these “open bookings” we only pay USD $200, AUD $264 per cruise, paying the balance 90 days before we sail.

Over the past several days, he’d been in touch with Royal Caribbean explaining he’d been refused an opportunity to purchase any open bookings (meaning no specific cruise is selected yet) on the last cruise. They profusely apologized and agreed to book three “open” cruises for us using our credit card on file.  We were thrilled.

The outlay of USD $600, AUD $805 instead of USD $2700, AUD $3621 was a great relief. The transaction was completed. We worked things out with Anna and now we’re ready (Tom’s ready) to book three future cruises, the last of which will take us out of the South Pacific entirely, a long-term adventure finally ending.

Trees with unusual roots growing along the beach.

Once these three cruises are booked, we’ll share where we’ll be going on the third cruise, which may be surprising. However, we prefer not to mention future booking until all of the details are firmly in place.  Hopefully, over the next week, we’ll be sharing this information.

Tomorrow and the next day, (for us, Saturday and Sunday and for others, Friday and Saturday) we’ll be posting our long-overdue wildlife photos which we can’t wait to share.

Have a terrific day!

                                                Photo from one year ago today, July 10, 2014:

It was one year ago today, July 10, 2014, that we firmed up our booking for the house in Bali where we’ll be heading next April 30th. For more details and photos, please click here.