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| Whenever the sky is pretty straightforward, we look forward to the sunsets. |
“Fascinating Fact of the Day About Ireland”
“The Irish perform in the Tailteann Games, Ireland’s version of the Olympics.”
After all the excitement over the past week by finalizing several bookings for the upcoming year, we’ve now settled back into our day-to-day lives. The itinerary is almost filled in with only a few gaps for hotel stays. To see yesterday’s posted itinerary, please click here.
Not only has it been exciting for us, but it’s also been a huge relief. Not knowing where we’ll be in six months is daunting, especially as I continue to recover from open-heart surgery.
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| A glimmer at a distance. |
That is one of the essential aspects of world travel after all these years…knowing where we’ll be a year from now and perhaps the following year. This fact has been instrumental in our booking so far out over the past almost seven years.
Without a home, apartment, condo or place we can go to repack and regroup, this process must be completed while in the midst of our travels. This could be unsettling for many.
In the beginning in 2012, we were booked out over two years since we were well aware of the fact about the human condition is to be rooted in one (or more) locations.
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| The sunsets occur late here in Ireland, especially at this time of the year. |
Now, with experience, we’ve found if we know where we’ll be in a year is all we need to feel comfortable. However, we both acknowledge that most likely we’ll never be in a position to land in a new country without reservations. If we’d did, we’d figure it out and not panic.
But why put ourselves in that position? We’re not 20-year-olds backpacking it and staying in hostels along the way. We have certain expectations as to the creature comforts we require; a clean and well-maintained property; WiFi, heat, and aircon (if necessary), electricity, running water and a kitchen suitable for preparing most meals. A comfy bed and bedding is a bonus.
Anything beyond that is a plus we never fail to appreciate. We aren’t snobs and don’t require “fancy” and “modern.” While we stay in Apache Junction in the same neighborhood as Tom’s three sisters and significant others, it will be a fun for us.
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| What a sight! |
We chose to stay in Apache Junction near his family a few reasons, but mainly since Tom is the youngest in the family and wanted to have valuable time with his sisters, which we haven’t done in years.
Many of our travel experiences include what I suggest and would like to do. Good grief, do you think he wanted to spend over a year in South Africa, something we’ll never do again for such an extended period? He did it for me and ultimately enjoyed himself in the process.
When he suggested we visit his sisters for two months (a time we had to fill) in Apache Junction, Arizona living in their neighborhood in our own place, it sounded like a good idea. This is a collaborative adventure. Besides, I thoroughly enjoy hanging out with his sisters.
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| Old cement house along the highway to Oughterard. |
With a bit of time and effort and assistance from his sister Colleen, we were able to book a place within walking distance to his sister’s places. It is inexpensive compared to many houses we’ve rented at Euro 1327, US $1500 a month (includes WiFi and all utilities) and will give us an opportunity to recover some of our losses over the past year.
We’re both good with this. We didn’t want to spend the cold winter in Minnesota when we have no cold-weather clothing, can’t stand the cold or afford a hotel for such an extended period. It’s costly to stay in Minnesota.
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| Another man and a boy are fishing in front of our house. |
We didn’t want to impose upon son Richard by living in his house for two months (instead we’ll stay with him for 10 days). It’s a five-plus-hour drive from Henderson, Nevada, to Apache Junction, Arizona.
We’ll rent a car in Nevada, use it while in Nevada, drive to Arizona and return the car either to the airport in Nevada or Arizona, depending on our plans at the time. Tom has done some research and it appears the price will be the same if we pick it up in Nevada and drop it off in Arizona since both airports are very busy.
So much planning goes into each location. Fortunately, we continue to find research fun, rewarding, and not a chore. Should this ever change, we’ll have to rethink our lifestyle.
We hope you have a fantastic day!
Photo from one year ago today, July 2, 2018:
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| This flock of ostriches is often found in a particular area near the river we often visit when on daily drives. For more details, please click here. |
