The progression of a moonlit night over Madeira…Scroll down to listen to a humorous Minnesota podcast where Tom’s is mentioned…A year ago trip to Ephesus, Turkey and a fashion show…

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Last night’s view of the moon and the lights from our veranda over Campanario, Madeira. 

I often walk up the steep hill that begins outside our door, snapping photos along the way, puffing and panting less and less each time. The lack of activity in Morocco greatly reduced my level of fitness, now returning with painstaking effort. 

The moon making an appearance on Wednesday which ended up clouded over after dark.

I needed to do this hard work. With no health club nearby once again I’m left to my own resources in an effort to stay fit which is easier now that we do our own day-to-day housework, laundry, and cooking. Tom, prefers not to exercise at all, except for necessary walks.

Last night, the moon began its ascent over the top of the mountain.

His exercise (besides household tasks) consists of standing up several times a day, walking to the kitchen to get two more Oreo cookies, walking back to the sofa, sitting down, and eating them. Oh, how happy I’d be if he’d give up the gluten and sugar. 

It rose so quickly, we could hardly look away for a moment.

I only want him to be healthy in order to continue this journey for years to come. He’s betting on his good genes. Recently, I read that good genes only attribute to 10% of one’s health and longevity. The rest is based on lifestyle choices. Our meals are healthy but, I can’t control what he puts in his mouth in between. We don’t argue about this nor do I nag him. He knows.

Only a minute later, we had a full view.

Yesterday, after posting here, we busied ourselves checking airfares from Funchal, Madeira to Paris, France on July 31st, a mere 48 days from today. The quickest flight left us with only a 45 minutes layover between Funchal and Lisbon, not enough time to go through customs. 

Tom insisted I point the camera in the opposite direction over the sea to capture the colors in the sky as the sun set and the moon arose.

Instead, we booked the safer bet, the flight with a two-hour layover in Lisbon, arriving in Paris at 5:15. By the time we’ll get to our hotel, it may be 7:30 pm or later, after another long day of travel. Then, we’ll quickly shower and change, heading out for our first dinner in Paris. How exciting!

The sky began to darken as a puff of clouds swept into the moon’s view.

Many travel days are ahead of us over several months after we leave Madeira on July 31st, not settling into another “home” until October 5th when we disembark the cruise from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to Oahu, Hawaii.

Again, Tom remembered to catch one last shot of the sunset on the opposite side of the island.

Again, we won’t be cooking our meals for a combined total of 66 days while dining in restaurants during a month of cruising and several weeks in hotels in Paris, London, Boston, and Vancouver.  

As the sky cleared we knew that soon the moon would too high to get any good shots.

In the interim, we’re loving life in Madeira, especially after last night’s full moon which will be reaching its peak tonight when we’ll be dining out at a higher elevation. Hopefully, another relatively cloudless sky will bring the moon into its full glory into our sight once again.

Our last shot of the evening as it made it way to the heavens.

A full moon on Friday the 13th may bring out the superstition in some. But, for us, it’s another opportunity to revel in the beauty of the world surrounding us as we remain grateful for each and every day.

Here’s the link to the humorous podcast from Minnesota from June 12, 2014, where Tom is mentioned. 

His mention comes up in the first five minutes of the first hour in the podcast, making it unnecessary to listen to the entire podcast.

Very funny!  
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Photo from one year ago today, June 13, 2013:

Spending part of the day in Ephesus, Turkey was not as interesting as we’d hoped. Seeing ruins after ruins had finally begun to wear thin. After we left Ephesus, we were taken to a runway fashion show. What???? For details of that story, photos of Ephesus, and the fashion show, please click here.

Tom’s evening photos…Fine tuning future bookings…One year ago today….Multiple photos from Mykonos, Greece…Wow!

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Tom’s getting good at taking these sunset photos.

Shopping for food is more productive when by myself than with Tom pushing the cart. No offense intended for my DH who’s intentions are always thoughtful and supportive.

Sun and shadows, typical of the island of Madeira.

I prefer to push the cart myself in my less than a methodical pattern of flitting from one spot in the store to another in a somewhat haphazard pattern only I can understand. Yesterday, I asked Tom to bring his phone in order to read his Kindle book while waiting in the car for 40 minutes while I shopped. He made no objection. He hates to shop. 

A distant view of our house which is to the left of the white house next door to us, both of which are owned by Gina’s brother Carlos.

I slipped the half Euro coin into the slot to release the red plastic shopping cart and off I went. Having learned where most items are in the medium-sized grocery store, my cart was full by the time Tom found me 40 minutes later. With only a few items left to add as shown in the grocery shopping app on my phone, we were done in no time.

White hydrangeas.

Two hours from the time we’d left the house, the groceries were put away, the vegetables were washed (in bottled water) and drying on paper towels. I had put a dent in the chopping and dicing for dinner and finally, we could get to work on the future bookings that had been nagging at us these past few weeks.

The following items were on the “to do” list:
1.  Book tickets on the Eurostar, formerly known as the Chunnel, the under-the-English-Channel-train from France to the UK. (Apparently, it’s tacky to continue to call the train, the Chunnel). On August 16th we’ll be leaving Paris after a two-week stay to then make our way via the Eurostar to London for yet another two weeks. Are we really going to be in Paris in a little over two months?
2.  Arrange a driver from London on August 31st for a two and a half-hour drive to the pier in Harwich, UK for our next cruise, UK to Boston, USA. It’s hard to believe that we’ll be cruising again in a little over two and a half months.
3.  Rent another car online for our upcoming next 30 days in Madeira. On Saturday, we’ll return the current car and if possible, extend this particular car’s rental once we arrive at the airport in Funchal, which is easy to find.  (I apologize if this sounds confusing but, we must book the next 30-day car rental online first for the better rates). If we do it this way, we save 25 to 30% as opposed to extending the booking online or phoning. This is as a result of the long term booking.

It changes so quickly, it’s easy to take several photos.

Simultaneously, we went to work researching online in the above order, booking one after the other. With Tom’s experience in reading reviews on Cruise Critic, he found a suggestion on how to save on the price of tickets on the Eurostar at this link. We ended up paying US $210.89, EU $155.56 as opposed to US $300, EU $222, a savings of 30%.

Tom enjoys taking photos of the changing sky at sunset.

Several months ago, Tom also found a suggestion at Cruise Critic for a reputable company to drive us to Harwich, UK to the cruise pier. This was a bit pricey at US $252.21, GBP $150, EU $185.65 but was our only option unless we shared with others. We’d have gladly done that had it not been difficult to find passengers coming from the same general area in London.   

Next, we got to work on the link on our site to Expedia to book a rental from June 14 to July 15th. I handled this booking and totally screwed up the booking, making the dates from June 14th to August 15th, when we’ll be long gone from Madeira. 

At the end of the day, the ever-changing sky.

Good thing I caught my error (after the fact) and was able to cancel it in order to rebook it for the correct dates. Luckily, we weren’t charged in advance for the car rental making the cancellation seamless. I clearly knew the correct dates but I’d hit the wrong key.

He captured a puff of pink from the setting sun behind us.

The only other must-do booking in the next few weeks is our flight from Madeira to Paris on August 1st which is only a little over seven weeks away. It’s amazing to see how fast the time flies, especially when we’re loving Madeira.

By the time we finished these three tasks, it was time to finish making dinner, take a Skype call from my sister in Nevada, USA. 

Easter lilies growing nearby.

After dinner, I received another Skype call from my other sister living in California, a TV producer who was recently nominated for an Emmy Award (already a past winner).  Congrats, Julie!  Win or lose, you’re a winner in our book!

The evening zoomed by. By 11:00 pm, I was ready for bed while Tom stayed up until midnight as usual.

Colorful.  What are these?

Today, is another busy day with household tasks, laundry, and cooking, all of which I’m finding pleasant these days, more based on the expenditure of energy than the accomplishment of getting things done.

No complaints here. Not a one.
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Photos from one year ago today, June 10, 2013:

Mykonos was so amazing, we couldn’t resist posting multiple photos.
We walked through narrow paths like this for a few hours in a maze-like fashion, enthralled with the beauty of this island.
Mykonos was beyond our expectations. For more photos and details from that date, please click here.

Missing package?…Future plans in the works…the South Pacific…

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Check out the busy bee on this Bird of Paradise.

While still in Morocco, we ordered a number of items we needed, including a few clothing items for me, Crystal Light Iced Tea, a pair of shoes, and a number of miscellaneous items we needed.

After placing the shipping order through our mailing service to be sent to Gina’s home address in Funchal, Madeira fearing it would arrive before us, it has yet to arrive. It was sent on May 2, 2014, via international priority mail at a cost of US $150, EU $110.27. We have a tracking number.

It shows on the inquiry from our mailing service that it went through customs on:

Date &
Time
Status of
Item
Location
May 14, 2014 , 10:43 am Customs Clearance
PORTUGAL

Why we don’t have this yet baffles us. Goodness, we received a package in Kenya without issue.

These flowers are growing outside our front door.

Last week, we stumbled across a post office in Ribeira Brava asking their staff what’s to be expected for arrival from the US when mail is sent in this matter. They said two to three weeks should be plenty of time. 

She asked us, in good English, to bring the tracking number back to her and she’ll check online and give us an update. Today, we’re planning on walking out the door around 4:00 pm in order to get to the post office before it closes at 5:00.

Since we’ll already be out, we’ll stay in Ribeira Brave in order to have dinner again at Muralha. We’d hoped to try a new restaurant each time we go out but today, we’ll bring our laptops using their free WiFi while lounging by the sea to begin the research for vacation homes in Australia. 

More colorful flowers growing outside our door.

With only a year until we arrive in Sydney on June 11, we need to get on the ball, deciding the city in which we’ll live for the first 90 days.

Over the past several days, we’ve been researching visa requirements for Australia. They are clear and concise.  US citizens require a visa to enter the country and must leave on the 90th day or sooner. Visas may be applied for online and don’t require a paper copy. Once confirmed by email, the visa remains in their system. Nice.

The color blue is less common in nature than other colors.  These blue flowers are seen everywhere.

The difficult part is having to leave every 90 days when ideally with the massive size of Australia, we’d like to be able to stay longer while living in three of four cities over a period of a year. There is a possibility of a special “retiree” visa provided one buys a government-issued bond. We’d like to avoid that rigmarole.

After considerable discussion, we’ve concluded that the easiest and best solution will be to spend 89 days in our first chosen city (yet to be determined) and then leave Australia to visit another country in the South Pacific staying for 89 more days and then returning to a different city in Australia for another 89 days. 

 A pink house down the road from us. Most houses on the island are varying shades of pink, peach, white and beige. Most homes have orange tile roofs.

This plan enables us to visit some of the most desired hot spots south of the equator in the South Pacific.  Airfare between these locations appears to be reasonable. In addition, we’ll spend one of those time periods in New Zealand which has always been on our list of places to visit.

 Bora Bora is near to French Polynesia, a location we’ve dreamed of visiting, staying in those huts over the water. The trick will be to find one at an affordable price. 

In reviewing a map our options are many. For example, if we spend 30 to 89 days in Bora Bora, we’ll fly back to Australia to our next booked city, staying another 89 days, then fly to Vanuatu for a similar visit, then back to Australia and on and on. 

An attractive entrance to a nearby house.  We are located in a beautiful area.

Although this may sound confusing it’s no more confusing than a retiree living in the US, flying out for a vacation/holiday three or four times a year. For us, we won’t have the expense of paying for our “base station” while we visit the various other locations.

We’ll leave Australia when our vacation rental period ends, taking all that we own with us each time. This is not as big a deal as it used to be, as we continue to lighten our load. 

This a rooftop parking spot for a house that overlooks the valley and the sea, further up the steep hill from us.

Our only added expense is the cost of flights back and forth which appear to be rather reasonable, most of which fly out of Australia. In any case, we would have still had the added cost of flights flying within Australia between the various areas in which we’d like to live for the 89 days at a time. 

(BTW, we always plan to stay in a location for a maximum of 89 days in the event a flight is delayed or canceled to ensure we head out before our current visa expires).

All of this requires careful planning and timing which both of us are willing and excited to tackle. We look at it this way; we need a place to live. Where that will be is entirely up to our desires and budget. We do the work.  We get the desired results

The cozy bar, frequently populated opened day and night which is located at the top of the steep hill. My plan now that I’m feeling well is to walk this steep grade at least four times per week. It certainly gets the heart rate up meeting the aerobic criteria of my HIIT (high-intensity interval training) form of exercise. 

At this point, our enthusiasm is as fierce as it was in the beginning if not more. We now have experience, are less apprehensive and have pinned down the features and amenities most important to us:  an indoor living room, decent WiFi, a view of water (when possible), a relatively well equipped kitchen, working plumbing and electricity, AC in the bedroom in extremely hot climates and a property in reasonably good condition. 

We can handle bugs as long as we can buy repellent. We can handle daytime heat. We can live without a TV or a microwave. We can handle crowing roosters, cooing pigeons, baaing goats, church bells ringing outside our door, call to prayer six times per day, and an occasional snake at our feet as long as we don’t get bit. 

One of the four goats that live next door.

We’ve learned to wear the same clothes (clean, of course) over and over, never giving it a thought. We’ve learned to use bottled water for brushing our teeth and for all of our drinks and for washing vegetables. We’ve learned to communicate with gestures and hand signals and, also managed a few words in the local language.  

We’ve learned tolerance and acceptance of other cultures so far removed from our own. We’ve learned to be meticulous money managers with nary a moment of weakness in making an impulsive unnecessary purchase. 

We’d never seen vibrant red Gladiolus such as these while on a walk in our neighborhood.

We’ve learned to manage our health without the necessity of a single doctor appointment since December 2012. (Although we’d seek medical care if we felt it was necessary). 

We could go on and on as to what we’ve learned since we left the US on January 3, 2013. As we travel, we’ll learn more and more, embracing every adventure for what we can glean from it carrying it with us in our hearts and minds as we continue on…
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Photo from one year ago today, June 3, 2013:

Due to the fact that we were busy packing to leave for Italy, there was no post on this date one year ago today.  Soon, we’ll avoid mentioning that there are no posts for a particular date. At a certain point, we began posting every single day regardless of what we were doing or if we were on the move and, posting photos on every occasion.

Plans for the future revealed!…A new continent…From Hawaii May, 2015 to ????

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Yesterday, we’d planned for dinner in Ribeira Brava, a 20-minute drive through tunnels and mountains. With my equilibrium still whacked from the recent illness, I had to back out of our dinner plans and head back home, to dine in.  However, we managed to make it to this beautiful garden in Campanario. 

In the past year, we’ve spent many hours looking at the world map trying to decide where we’d ideally like to travel after our last booking in Kauai, Hawaii ending on May 15, 2015. 

After tiring of long flights and thinking back to our original plans of cruising to destinations, first, we picked a country or continent we’d like to visit. Then, we began the search for possible cruises that could take us to our chosen continent/country, even if it meant a fight in between.

How handy that a Honey Bee stopped by.

We worked on this premise for a while as we contemplated our options. The problem needed to be revolved due to the fact that we had more than one possible preferred location. Over these past months we had three options:

Our choices included:
1. Alaska
2. South America
3. Australia/New Zealand

The beauty of the terraced hills and garden in Madeira. Astounding!

A huge factor in the location we’d ultimately choose is the cost of living including the rent for vacation homes.  As it turned out, as hard as we tried, we couldn’t make Alaska work in the summer and there was no way we’d consider Alaska during at any other time of the year.

For a decent house, condo, apartment, resort, or lodge, the lowest rent for a property we’d find suitable started at US $5000, EU $3668.91 a month. Let’s face it, living in a less expensive run down the basic cabin for months in Alaska was not our cup of tea. Plus, Internet accessibility is an issue in many areas of Alaska.

We were unable to get a clear shot of the worn verbiage on this sign which we’d hoped to later translate.

With the size of Alaska, we’d have to move no less than three times to get a fair sampling of the huge state. With only three months of good weather, we’d feel rushed.

Through our travels, we’ve determined that our goal is to rent a house with a lake or an ocean view if possible.  Doing so in Alaska made it all the more unaffordable. 

Love these!

Based on our lengthy research these past few years, so far Alaska and Switzerland were the two locations in the world that we found to be the most expensive in which to live.

A month ago, we decided to let go of our hopes for Alaska at this time, which continues to have much appeal for us with its considerable wildlife. We’ve decided to save Alaska for the future when we hope to eventually tour the US and Canada.

It is surprising that cactus can grow in this cool climate that rarely tops 78F, 25C at the hottest point of summer in August and September.

Next, we went to work on South America, starting in Ecuador in order to visit the Galapagos Islands to see the wildlife, eventually settling in Ecuador for three months after discovering that many US ex-pats live in certain areas. 

We were able to find affordable housing in Ecuador on the ocean that fit our criteria. At one point, we’d also considered a trip to Machu Picchu in Peru but with the masses of tourists now traipsing through the lengthy trek, we lost interest.

Oh, that I wish I knew names of flowers to share here. Never the gardener, always the admirer, we’ve never learned the names of many flowers. To research each of these and to post them here, is not a task I care to undertake with “other fish to fry.”

After Ecuador, we’d move to another South American country, staying up to three months in each of several locations over perhaps a period of a year. Of course, a cruise on the Amazon River has definitely been on our list of desired future experiences. 

No matter how hard we’ve tried, we couldn’t get excited about South America at this time in our travels. At some point, we will. Also, we hope to return to Africa to visit Victoria Falls, go on another safari, see the gorillas in Rwanda and return to Marloth/Kruger Park, South Africa. (My heart sings as I write about returning to South Africa).

We do know this is a rose.  Wow!

In reality, we only have so much time. I’m 66 years old, Tom is 61. Will our health hold out? We can reasonably envision another 10 years of traveling Beyond that, who knows?

So folks, with much enthusiasm, we’ve decided on Australia and then later, off to New Zealand! Last night, we booked an 18-day cruise from Honolulu, Hawaii on May 24, 2015, heading to Sydney, Australia arriving on June 11, 2015, where we’ll stay for a few days (very pricey big city) and then move to the first of several homes we plan to rent on the continent. 

Could this be a poinsettia?

We’ll have an extra nine days “to kill” in Oahu, Hawaii, most likely in a hotel while we wait for the cruise to depart from Honolulu.

Now, we’re excited! Wildlife, the outback, the ocean, the friendly Aussies, and with many affordable houses by the sea in the smaller communities, we couldn’t be more thrilled.

Tom, overlooking the sea. Nice shot of him wearing the same shirt he often wears in an attempt to wear it out.  No such luck!

Checking out the weather, possible safaris, and vacation rentals, we’ll soon continue our search for where we’ll live, locking them up with deposits as we make our selections. 

We’ve already found several excellent options. However, this is a time-consuming process that will take months to accomplish. As we book each property, we’ll list them here with details and photos.

The warmth of the sun made it possible to take off my jacket as we perused the garden. I’ve been wearing my warmest long-sleeved BugAway shirts while feeling cold since we arrived.

Traveling the world is comparable to having a “job” requiring diligent research and planning. As anyone with a “job” we have free time to enjoy spending time where we are living at the moment. Mix it all together and we love all the parts; the research, the planning, and most of all, the living.

Having this decision resolved for the moment, we can sit back and “love the one we’re with,” the beautiful island of Madeira!

Tomorrow, we’ll post the details of the cruise to Australia, the ports of call, the cost for our balcony cabin, and the details as to how and why we chose our cabin. With eight cruises under our belts since January 3, 2013, we now have three more cruises to anticipate over the next 12 months.  Stay tuned.
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Photo from approximately one year ago today, May 28, 2013:

A side view of AIDer HQ, an office building in Dubai, UAE. This photo was posted on May 30, 2013, when we toured Dubai and Abu Dhabi the prior day. For the story for that day, please click here.

Nights in Madeira…Breathtaking!…A new day…whew….Hello, Madeira!…

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This is the nighttime view from our veranda! Tom said it looks like Las Vegas with all the lights. Not quite. These street lights stay on all night on the entire island.  This must be quite the view from a ship. Soon, we’ll take another nighttime photo when the stars are shining bright, but last night was cloudy.

This morning I awoke to a new day after a 12-day illness. I reminded myself of a goofy little dog we adored for 12 years who passed away five years ago, Ben. 

Each time we gave him a bath we washed his often troublesome “poopy butt,” a common affliction of little dogs after which he’d run around the house as fast as he could, excited to be free of his tangled butt. He was happy.

Last night, our living room. The lights cast a cozy glow.

This morning I awoke with a desire to run around the house like Ben, happy to be feeling better from the recent illness, not from being free of a tangled butt. Finally, the splitting headache and heaviness in my head are almost gone along with the glassy eyes, dizziness, and general feeling of malaise. Yeah!

Of course, the tendency is to go wild doing everything we’ve missed since we arrived in Madeira 11 days ago. But, I’ll be wise and gradually increase my level of activity building back my strength and stamina, sorely missing after days of being sick.

This morning’s view of the sea with white caps as the wind whistled through the hills.

Last night, we’d intended to dine out only for me to change my mind at the last minute when I couldn’t muster enough energy to go out. We ended up making a meal of scrambled eggs with Portuguese sausage, onions, mushrooms, and cheese with a side of green beans and salad. 

Late this afternoon, we’ll head to Ribeira Brava to walk along the boardwalk, peer into the windows of the shops and later try another restaurant. We’re both excited to get out, see the local “flavor,” take photos, and experience more delicious Portuguese food.

A freighter passing by.

Over the past several days, we’ve been planning our future travels when all of our reservations run out on May 15, 2015, a year from now. It’s hard to believe that with all of the advance planning that we’re less than a year away from the end of our bookings.

Now is the time to begin booking well into 2016 when many of the great vacation homes getting booked well in advance. Many have asked why we don’t “wing it” and wait until closer to our travel dates. The answer is clear to us.

What appeared to be a pleasure boat pulling a smaller boat.

We’ve learned that the best-priced vacation homes get booked well in advance. If we waited, we may end up paying more than we’d prefer or unable to find what we’d like for the quality we’d like at an affordable price. As it’s turned out, the planning well in advance has worked out well barring a few locations that weren’t necessarily ideal.

Our bedroom is above these heavy sliding doors with its own small veranda.

Hopefully, today or tomorrow we’ll wrap up the beginning of our planning beyond May 15, 2015, which we’ll share with you as each booking occurs. We’ve spent hours of discussions and researching our options as to where we’d like to go next. 

Gladiolus on the veranda a few days ago.

We take these decisions seriously to ensure we will be making the correct choices, now well-armed with experience and, most of all, knowing what appeals to each of us, the most. We feel confident we’re making the right decisions after many months of research.

Tomorrow, we’ll be back with photos of today’s outing. See you then!

This morning, the gladiolus in full bloom. 

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Photo from approximately one year ago today, May 27, 2013:

With no story or photos posted on May 27, 2013, here is a photo of one of the jeweled (real jewels!) chandeliers in the Sheikh Zayed Mosque that we visited on May 29, 2013, for which we posted photos on May 30th. More will follow in days to come. No link is available for this date.

Fun date night in the souk…An attitude adjustment hatched…

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This gorgeous rose was growing in one of the many flower beds in the restaurant where we dined last evening.

The souk and the Big Square of the Medina of Marrakech change at night. The energy level ramps up, the shopping crowds are less frenzied though crowded and the mood goes from “let’s rush” to “let’s have fun!”

Dining on the rooftop, we spotted this familiar Minaret Tower.

As we walked by a shop, a vendor yelled to Tom, “Hey, Grande Mustache! What you buy for the madam?” Tom returned, “She has it all!”

I giggled, as we women often do when our loved ones make assumptions that we already have everything we could possibly want.

When we asked for a dinner menu, the server brought this huge chalkboard for our review.

Yesterday afternoon, an attitude adjustment was born out of our magical way as a team, of making a conscious decision to “reframe our thinking” (words used by motivational speaker Tony Robbins from years passed) by returning to our usual cheerful and enthusiastic selves.

We’d been in a bit of a funk for this past month, mostly precipitated by one of us more than the other, looking for all that wasn’t right, as opposed to what was right, invariably sucking the other into the mood. As hard as the more positive one tried to stay upbeat, the at times more somber partner quietly refused to partake in rampant bouts of cheerfulness.

Plants, trees, bushes, and flowers were on display on the restaurant’s rooftop.

Without prodding, criticizing or any form of recrimination, the more cheerful one had an idea: Let’s start planning  our travels from May 15, 2015 into the future for the somber one’s first choice of the next stop along the way. And then, magic happened! We had a light bulb moment.

We have no home, no stuff and no idea where we’ll be in 13 months when on May 15, 2015 our last booked rental ends. Imagine that such a thought could be disconcerting. 

These tables were rather low suitable more for children than adults.  We sat in a corner managing to get comfortable.

Add the fact that present circumstances don’t necessarily keep us entertained and busy without the day to day responsibilities of managing a household to some extent; planning and shopping for meals, cooking and creating a familiar routine and ambiance, had left us both with too much idle time on our hands. As a result, idle time…la la la…idle mind (or whatever they say).

With the utmost excitement, we both began researching online with a greatly improved WiFi signal, thinking, discussing, and planning. An animated conversation ensued along with a renewed sense of “why we’re doing what we’re doing.” 

The views from the restaurant’s third-floor rooftop.

Over our next 30 days in Marrakech, we’ll enthusiastically continue our search, already with a decent plan in mind as we strive to make it affordable, exciting, and befitting our dreams of continuing on in our travels

Although much of the Medina is well maintained, the age of many of the buildings result in many distressed buildings.

Instead of dining during the day, as we often do, last night we walked the short distance from our door to the souk with a spring in our step, determination in our hearts on a mission to find a new restaurant serving mostly French or Italian cuisine and have a lovely evening.

The restaurant’s name was displayed in white stone in the backyard.

After a 20 minute walk through the souk, we discovered exactly what we were looking for, a three-story restaurant we’d noticed on prior walks, one which we’d never tried. We weren’t disappointed by the décor, the food, the service or the prices at Terrasse des Espices or, of course by the conversation. OK, their credit card machine battery was dead. No big deal. We paid in cash.

Here again, more old and worn buildings mostly unoccupied.

As I enthusiastically type fast and furiously while voraciously pounding on this uncooperative keyboard, once done here today, the search will continue. Over the next few weeks, we’ll book the remaining five flights for our family members for Hawaii, book a car and flight for Madeira, while we continue to research our options for future.

More rooftop views.

And, of course, once we start booking for the future, we share the details with our readers.

This Arabic symbol Hamsa, protection from the evil eye.

Once again, we’re our old (yes, old) cheerful selves filled with determination and enthusiasm for today, tomorrow, and times yet to come. 

“Hey, Grande Mustache,” I mutter with a huge grin on my face, “Thanks for sharing a great day, delightful date night and yes, you’re right..she does have it all!
____________________________________________

Photo from one year ago on April 15, 2013:

Tom coming down the slide of the ship’s pool. For details for the post from that date, please click here.

The upcoming itinerary for the next almost 500 day..Also, an upcoming road trip in South Africa…Yesterday’s unlikely visitor…

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Aptly named Clive by Facebook friend Peggy, (feel free to ‘friend me” in Facebook using my email address: jessicablyman@gmaiil.com), we considered that he may be the same ostrich we’d seen on December 7, 2013, (click here to see that post) only a week after our arrival.

Leaving Minnesota 431 days ago, with the next almost 500 days planned, it reminds us of how much planning we’ve actually done. Beyond the end date of our planning thus far of May 14, 2015, we’ve yet to decide where we’d like to go next.

Last evening slightly before 6:00 pm while busy indoors chopping and dicing for dinner, I did my usual checking outside for wildlife every 10 to 15 minutes. At first, all I saw was the oblong ball of black feathers of this ostrich. He appeared to be leaving, but when I called out in my high-pitched voice, he turned and came our way with little fear of us. At one point, he was within 5 feet, 1.5 meters, from us. 

Some readers have assumed it may be the end of our worldwide travels, when in fact, health providing, we look forward to many more years to come. However, we’ve determined that planning more than two years in advance is unnecessary. 

Early on in the process, we booked as far as 2½ years in advance. Why some have asked? Perhaps, it was a part of making the commitment, to dig deep, to ensure we would stick to it, giving ourselves ample time to adjust

After he’d turned around, he wandered close to us.  Although not apparent in this photo, he was at least 8 feet, 2.44 meters tall, weighing as much as 295 pounds, 134 kg.  His cheerful disposition was evident in his confident demeanor, causing us to laugh while enjoying every moment with him.

Adjust, we did.  Now, if we had to wait 30 days in advance to plan, emotionally, we could do it. Financially, it could be a challenge when last-minute planning ultimately is more expensive. Also, we’d sacrifice certain options; lesser accommodations, taking the “leftovers.” There’s no need to put ourselves into a potentially stressful last-minute situation.

In the next six months, we’ll begin tacking on to the end of the 2015 date, as yet to decide where we’d ideally like to travel. Leaving from Hawaii at that point does precipitate certain distance challenges that we’ll manage to figure out.

His feathers looked silky up close.  His funny knee joints are backward, compared to ours and most other animals. His flat two-toed feet were steady and he walked with confidence. “Though they cannot fly, ostriches are strong runners. They can sprint up to 43 miles (70 kilometers) an hour and run over distance at 31 miles (50 kilometers) an hour. They may use their wings as “rudders” to help them change direction while running. An ostrich’s powerful, long legs can cover 10 to 16 feet (3 to 5 meters) in a single stride.”

So here’s our firm itinerary, including the remaining days in Marloth Park but not including side trips we’ll take from various locations, such as the upcoming three-day outing to the Blyde River Canyon, a 3½ hour drive, on the famous Panorama Route, stopping to see the many sites along the way.

Itinerary                                                 # of days         Dates

South
Africa Rental – Marloth Park/Kruger Park House – remaining		 53 12/1/2013-2/28/2014
Flight South
Africa to Marrakesh		 1 2/28/2014
Marrakesh,
Morocco House		 75 3/1/2014-5/15/2014
Madeira,
Portugal House		 76 5/15/2014-8/1/2014
Flight
Madeira to Paris, France		 0 8/1/2014
Paris
Hotel 		 15 8/1/2014-8/16/2014
Tunnel
(Chunnel) Paris to London		 0 8/16/2014
London
Hotel 		 15 8/16/2014
-8/31/2014
London to Boston – Cruise 14 8/31/2014
– 9/14/2014
Hotel Boston 3 9/14/2014
– 9/17/2014
Flight Boston
to Vancouver		 0 9/17/2014
Hotel
Vancouver 		 6 9/17/2013
– 9/23/2014
Vancouver to Honolulu – Cruise 12 9/23/2014
– 10/5/2014
Honolulu/Waikiki
Rental 		 11 10/5/2014
– 10/16/2014
Maui Rental 57 10/16/2014
– 12/1/2014
1st house
Pahoe Hawaii Rental 		 46 12/1/2014 – 1/14/2015
2nd house
Pahoe Rental  (family visiting)		 0 12/20/2014 -1/3/2015
Kauai Hawaii
Rental		 120 1/15/2015-5/14/2015
Number # of days remaining
before adding future  plans		 504
Over the next several months we’ll begin to add to the
continuation of our travels.

All of the above locations have been booked with deposits paid, a few of which have been paid in full. Forms of transportation far out have not been booked which is impossible this far in advance.  

However, the complicated flight from South Africa to Marrakesh, Morocco has been booked with only 53 days until departure, details of which we’ll share in a future post. Also, we’ve booked three hotels for short stays and as shown, two cruises.
The time had come for Clive to leave. Hoping he’ll return again, we watched as he lumbered his way down our long dirt driveway, obviously content with his visit.
As for this month, we’ll stay at the Blyde River Canyon Lodge from January 15th through the 18th, as we work our way along the renowned Panorama Tour that enables us to see some of the wonders of South Africa including the third deepest canyon in the world, rich with scenery and wildlife and to see the famous, “God’s Window.” Hopefully, the skies will be clear!
We’ll post photos of our experiences every step of the way, sharing them daily with hopefully, an adequate Internet connection. Leaving in only nine days, we continue to treasure every moment in Marloth Park.  
He looked back at us a few times as he followed the path..
Soon, the tourists we’ll leave after their holiday visits. The exquisite quiet we experienced when we first arrived in Marloth Park on December 1st will return.  
Kruger National Park, a 30 minute drive, will also be on our “to do” list of what is considered a “self game drive” where one pays the park entrance fees, driving through the park and returning to one of the many entrance gates by no later than 6:30 pm when the park closes. If one is on a guided tour, they may remain in the park until 9:00 pm as we’ve done on two game drives ending in Bush Braai dinners.
Goodbye, Clive!  He fluttered his wings as he wandered away.
Busy? Yes! Content? More than we could ever have dreamed. One might ask, how can we consider ourselves ‘busy” when we spend most days on the veranda, waiting for wildlife to visit? Waiting for wildlife requires diligent attentiveness, quiet and the desire to continually scan the area.
Besides, a short trip into the house could easily result in having missed the glorious opportunity to have met our new friend, Clive. 

The nuances of booking hotels throughout the world…Expected costs for hotels meeting our criteria…

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On our first cruise and venture outside the US on January 3, 2013 on the Celebrity Century, an “Old Hollywood” style ship through the breathtaking Panama Canal.  This cruise line and particular ship still remain as our favorite, even after an additional 7 cruises that followed. Our all-time favorite bartender is shown in the far right, Juan.  What a guy!

Over the next 12 months, we will be staying in hotels for short periods while we’re between modes of transportation or, between pre-booked vacation homes. We’ve shared some of that information with you in prior posts.

But as time marches on, we realize how reliant we are on available hotels and the criteria we’ve established that fulfills our goals including:

  • Free WiFi (when possible)
  • Laundry facilities in room or in the building
  • A sofa in room (it’s tough to sit on the bed typing on my laptop for hours posting photos and writing)
  • Convenient location: to our next destination (when possible), for sightseeing, (if time allows) and for local modes of transportation for dining out, grocery shopping, etc.
  • Kitchenette or full kitchen for longer stays (when possible)
  • Reasonable cost (in most cities a decent hotel room will run from US $175 to US $200 per night or more with city taxes and fees
  • Air conditioning (we seldom, if ever, will travel in cold climates)
  • Safe in room
  • Good view. For us, this is important. If we’re to pay US $200 a night, we want a good, if not great view.
  • Great reviews by recent guests for a 4.0 rating or higher. Tom will read from 30 to 50 recent reviews to satisfy our objectives.

Researching online is a laborious process when trying to achieve all the above criteria, although filters are allowing us to select most of these features. However, we choose not to use the filters in the event we may be willing to forego features when the remaining aspects are more than befitting.

We tend to use the advertisers on our site, which includes: Hotels.com and Expedia.com for the best rates and convenience. We’re signed up for points and perks at both of these websites as is the option for any travelers. Feel free to use these and any of our other readily available links.

In our early planning stages, we’d hoped to avoid hotel stays as much as possible due to the added expenses, not only the cost of the room but also the necessity of dining in restaurants for all meals, extra cab fares, and tips which add up quickly.

So far, the necessity of booking hotels is for the following dates and cities (reasons are listed)

1.  November 30, 2013, Johannesburg, South Africa: With a 12-hour layover on our way to Mpumalanga, South Africa, we chose to stay overnight rather than wait in the airport. 
2.  August 1 to August 16, 2014, Paris, France: With a one-month layover in Europe while we await our transatlantic cruise out of London, we decided o the two-week stay we described in a prior post.
3.  August 16 to August 31, 2014, London, England: This period is the second half of our one month waiting period for our upcoming transatlantic cruise out of London on August 31, 2014, arriving in Boston, Massachusetts, US on September 14, 2014.
4.  September 14 to September 17, 2014, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. We’ll stay in Boston to spend time with family and to visit the cemetery where my father is buried, who passed away when I was 12 years old in a tragic accident. On September 17th we fly from Boston to Vancouver.
5.  September 17 to September 23, 2014, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. During this period, we get to know Vancouver while we’re awaiting our upcoming cruise from Vancouver to Hawaii, sailing on September 23, 2014, a partial Pacific Ocean crossing.
6.  October 5 to November 30, 2014, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. At this point, we’re looking to fill this period with a hotel booking in Honolulu for a possible 2 weeks with the remaining period in vacation homes on other Hawaiian islands.  Hawaii is expensive, more than any other location we’ve researched thus far. We shall see what we find, posting our bookings here when completed.

For the best rates for many hotels, a prepaid, non-refundable price is an option. When possible, we prefer cancellable rates but often this runs as high as US $50 more per night. We weight each situation case by case, deciding, based on our options. 

Yes, we currently have paid out US $5100 in hotel pre-booking fees, US $3800 of which is non-refundable. This enabled us to get a fabulous room in an almost completely booked hotel at a considerably lower price. We decided to take the risk, which we won’t take in every case. But on occasion, it may be a decision one may choose to make.

As you can see, booking hotels (and vacation homes) is a time consuming, a thought-provoking process requiring diligence, persistence, and patience. I recall the amount of time I spent in our old lives, booking a hotel and air travel for a single trip. Now, faced with all of these, (some of which we’ve already booked), it can be a daunting task when looked at in its entirety. 

But, in line with our motto of “wafting through our worldwide travels with ease, joy, and simplicity,” we’ve chosen to take “bite-sized pieces,” nibbling away, in a manner we both find pleasurable and fulfilling. After all, the planning process is almost as much fun as “getting there.”

Three weeks from today…Off we go again!…We’ve only just begun…A typical Saturday morning in Kenya with animals in the yard…

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Look at those “bedroom eyes!” This was shot without zoom when I visited the goats in the backyard this morning. I was afraid to move in order to get a better shot. Sudden movements cause them to skitter off.

This morning this song was running through my head. When I mentioned it to Tom, he immediately found the YouTube video while I researched the lyrics. Tom, with his cup of hot coffee (yes, we have power) and me with my hot tea, sitting at the big glass table in our outdoor living room, are loving the sunny day after another night of pouring rain.

Each day as I write the post for the day, Tom is only a few feet from me. We share the process, me, writing,him, researching, us…talking, during the entire process. Never am I alone in a corner, typing away. It’s a tremendously enjoyable shared experience.

The babies were more curious about me. Most of the others, not so much.

Once completed and posted, Tom proofreads from the perspective of a reader looking for possible errors. He usually finds several which I promptly correct. We easily miss other errors as well, mostly those that spellcheck interprets as acceptable, some a result of our simply missing it. We don’t worry about it. We have a story to tell, photos to share, and writing every day means we’re going to miss some.

So, today, our story reminds us of this song, released in the summer of 1970, 43 years ago, a busy year for Tom, the year he graduated high school, the year he started working on the railroad, the year daughter Tammy was born.

Dad or utter? I say Dad. Tom says utter. Any input?

We didn’t meet until 21 years later, in 1991, each divorced with grown kids, ready to embark on a new life together.This song rang true for us in 1991 and is befitting again in our lives today. We’re sure many of our readers will remember and relate to this song as well.



We’ve Only Just Begun (video link)

by the Carpenters

We’ve Only Just Begun Lyrics

Songwriters: NICHOLS, ROGER S. / WILLIAMS, PAUL H.
We’ve only just begun to liveWhite lace and promises

A kiss for luck and we’re on our way

We’ve only begun

Before the rising sun we fly

So many roads to choose

We start out walking

And learn to run

And yes! We’ve just begun

Sharin’ horizons that are new to us

Watchin’ the signs along the way

Talkin’ it over just the two of us

Workin’ together day to day, together

And when the evening comes we smile

So much of life ahead

We’ll find a place where there’s room to grow

And yes! We’ve just begun

Sharin’ horizons that are new to us

Watchin’ the signs along the way

Talkin’ it over just the two of us

Workin’ together day to day, together, together

And when the evening comes we smile

So much of life ahead

We’ll find a place where there’s room to grow

And yes! We’ve just begun

In a perfect world, a few days before departing we’d start packing. Although the world is quite amazing, it’s not perfect. This is about the time we start thinking “packing.” 

One might think it’s no big deal. Fold the clothes, throw in the shoes, and miscellaneous items, and be done. Not so fast! Virtually, every physical item we own is in our possession!

Determined not to pay excess baggage fees this time, we’ve made a plan. When grocery shopping at the local Nakumatt the customer’s items are packed into cardboard boxes which we’ve been saving these past several trips.

When we grocery shopped yesterday, Alfred pointed out the local post office, which we’ll use to ship the packed cardboard boxes to our new home in South Africa, which will be a huge portion of our stuff, to ensure we don’t get slapped with excess baggage fees this time. 

This goat was definitely not camera-shy, practically stepping on my foot as she approached.

The risk of our belongings being confiscated or stolen is high. We’ll insure it, and let the chips fall where they may. By primarily packing clothing and shoes, if it is “lost” it won’t be anything we can’t live without. The cost of shipping within Africa will be considerably less than excess baggage fees between continents. Of course, we’ll send it the slowest possible way which we speculate we’ll receive the boxes within a month of our arrival.

All of our safari clothing, hats, and boots, everyday clothing, shoes, electronics, prescriptions, everyday toiletries will be in our possession. Our goal is to ship everything else to South Africa a week before we leave Kenya, in the event, it arrives quicker than anticipated. We’re able to receive packages at our new home much to our delight.

Mother and kid.

In the past, I’ve started sorting and packing at about this point. But, I’ve changed my mind, preferring to continue to enjoy our time here, to begin the process a few days prior to the trip to the post office. 

This is one more example in my own mind of “letting go,” of always working hard to be done with tasks way before it is necessary. Chill. The new me. It’s this same “freedom” mentality that allows us to not necessarily have everything booked more than a year in advance.

Many laughed at our pre-planning two-plus years in advance, imagining we were limiting ourselves by committing out that far. But, leaving our home, our family, our friends, and everything we knew and loved behind was a monumental undertaking. 

After days of rain, the flowers are blooming.

Many embarking on years of world travel have a storage facility or condo somewhere for peace of mind. Not us. 

Planning the first few years gave us a sense of comfort and peace of mind. Now, with a number of holes in our itinerary over the next 18 months (as far out as we’re booked so far) we no longer need the reassurance that we have a “home” in place for every single day of our travels. 

At this point, our motivation to book travel arrangements well in advance is predicated by how fast properties, flights, and cruises are booking up. At that point, we don’t hesitate in locking in locations and times.

Beyond, May 2015 when we leave Kauai, Hawaii, after having spent time visiting many of the Hawaiian Islands with hopefully lots of whale watching, our upcoming time is free. 

We’re considering many options that appeal to us in order to take us on our chosen path for our love of nature and wildlife. With continued good health, we have no desire or plans to stop. After all, we have only just begun. 

South of the equator…It’s spring here now…Monday was the hottest day so far…Power outages for over two days…Rain, rain and more rain…

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Three rainy days in a row.  Humid.

As I lay in bed this past Monday morning thinking of getting up after a fitful night, to turn on the hot water heater for my shower, the sudden sound of the overhead fan going off, alerted me once again to a power outage. How long will it be this time? 

Lizards live inside the webbing of the chair. I’ve tried to get a photo, but they move too quickly. Jessie and Gucci chase them when they exit, to later spend hours looking at this chair, hoping for more action.

Here it is, now Thursday with our power finally stabilized on Wednesday. During several periods of time, we had no juice left in our computers and our smartphones were dying rapidly, leaving us with nothing to do but play Gin, which with Tom constantly beating me, was getting dull.

When the power would return in an hour or less, we’d quickly charge everything, repeating this process throughout the days. How we managed to write and post the blog, escapes me. I must be online with power to write in the website. 

As long as he keeps smiling…

Feeling hot and sticky from the humid nights after several reapplications of insect repellent, I decided to go the cold shower route two days in a row, which in this heat,  wasn’t so bad after all. After drying off, the usual lathering up with more insect repellent is a must before dressing for the day in the most minimal of clothing, shorts and a tank top. Tom sits around in a swimsuit on most days.

When the power returned for short periods, Tom showered and we both changed into our BugsAway long pants and shirts for the evening outdoors. It’s not easy to put on warmer clothing after such hot days with temperatures in the 32C+, 90F+(very humid heat) but, it is worth it. 

The ebony handmade base to the glass table where we sit each day.

Although there’s a generator here it seldom fulfills our needs. Hesborn has managed to get the generator going from time to time but it becomes difficult when the power goes on and of so frequently, often for hours at a time. 

With the gas-powered generator serving both houses and the likelihood of running out of gas quite high, we suggested he hold off using it until dark if need be. With no one here having a car, going out to get “petrol” would be inconvenient, to say the least, especially at night. 

Hand washing our underwear and placing it in the kitchen window seems to dry it more quickly than hanging it anywhere else inside. I no longer use the clothesline. The last time I walked out back to hang a few items in the tall grass, I was stung on my thigh, resulting in a very painful huge welt that eventually turned into a huge black bruise, lasting for weeks. 

It’s been raining in buckets since Tuesday, all day, all night. On Tuesday, the outdoor switch for the generator to our house blew out from the rain, making a loud sound. Then, neither the electricity nor the generator was working. 

We waited for the electrician to arrive, but with all the problems in the area, we anticipated that he wouldn’t arrive by nightfall. This would result in yet another night in the dark, all equipment dead; laptops, MiFis, and phones leaving only candlelight. To date, he hasn’t arrived.

Gucci, a fabulous watchdog is always on the lookout, mainly for monkeys. When he spots one, he “tells” Jessie and they run to the walk toward the monkey. They never bark at the monkey, knowing that the barking will chase it off..  Quietly, they wait, never “catching” one, thank goodness.  A baboon would tear them to shreds in self-defense.

With plans to go out for on Tuesday night with the power still off, Tom had no choice but, the cold shower route. Plus, as we wrote yesterday, we got soaked on the treacherous long path from the taxi to the restaurant and back. 

As I was writing this a few days, the power went out again. I had to shut down my laptop to save “juice” so we can have something to do in the dark, perhaps watch a downloaded TV show or movie. I’ll continue when the power returns at some point. 

Now, here it Thursday, one of three of our usual dining out nights. Tonight, we’ve decided to eat in, not interested in getting soaked again. None of the local restaurants are indoors with a close drop off point. 

Jessie waits patiently for a sign from Gucci that a chase is on following him in a flash. Although I adore them both, she and I have a very special bond.  This fluffy little mixed breed, age unknown, was tossed aside by her original owner, taking up residency in Jeri and Hans’ yard and glomming onto Gucci.  Tom says that Jessie is Gucci’s pet.  She lives completely outdoors, day and night, only coming inside to look for us or to be fed.  In the mornings she comes to the door of our house, making a wild animal sound we’ve never heard, wanting us to open up for the day.  If I look outside during the night, I see her sleeping on the floor or looking at the door, waiting for us. It will be hard to say goodbye to these two dogs.

Today, our future planning continues. Although living on a safari game reserve in South Africa for three months will be exciting each day by not only going on game drives and game walks, but watching numerous animals visit us at our vacation home in a remote location, we still feel a desire to venture out while in Africa. 

At this point, we’re planning another flight on yet another tiny plane to spend three or more nights at another tented safari camp in Zimbabwe to finally fulfill Tom’s dream of seeing Victoria Falls. Guess I’ll jump into that dream!

Mid-January will be a good for this adventure, midway into our three months in South Africa. As soon as we book it, in the next month, we’ll share the details and of course, post days and days of photos of all-new wildlife and scenery. Hopefully, our “safari luck” will continue in Zimbabwe.

Last night flying ants were attacking our faces during dinner in our outdoor living room. I put on my BugsAway hat, wearing it during dinner and into the evening. Our surge protector and one major adapter was blown out by the generator. We found out we can receive a package in South Africa. We’re ordering replacements. The humidity is so high that it takes three days for my hand washing to dry. I noticed mold on a pair of socks I’ve been drying for days. Eventually, the sun will come back out and everything will dry. I finally found a bottle of bleach at the Nakumatt grocery.  I’ll bleach the socks.

A few mornings ago, I felt crunching under my foot when I stepped outside the bedroom door. I’d stepped on a bright green leaf-like insect that had come inside from the rain. I had recently started keeping my Minnetonka Moccasins inside the mosquito netting at the foot of the bed so I can put them on when I get out of bed, taking my LED flashlight with me. Glad they were on my feet that morning.

This is a False Katydid, the leaf-like insect I accidentally stepped on, which was too destroyed to take a photo. This is a “borrowed” photo as shown in the link.

For today, we have power, the temperature is in the ’70s for the first time during the day in over two months, we have plenty of food for cooking meals; Jessie and Gucci are at our sides continually making us laugh, my shoulder is getting better and the world. It’s a big place. Life is good.