Happy New Year!…A new day…A new dawn…Final posting of our new itinerary…

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It’s a New Year for worldwide travel and adventure.

It is a new year for all of us, but it is significant for Tom and me because we will soon commence our worldwide travels after a long health hiatus. Nothing could please us more as we enter the New Year with renewed health and hope for the future.

We wish you health, well-being, and opportunities for new experiences, big or small, and a better year on the horizon for all of us.

We are saddened by the horrific events in New Orleans on New Year’s Eve, killing 15 and injuring dozens of others. We offer love and prayers for the victims, their loved ones, the police, and healing for the magical city of New Orleans, which will feel the ravages of this heart-wrenching event for years to come.

Again, here is our new itinerary, first posted on Christmas Day. Today is the last day we will post it, but we will post it again as we add more bookings.

 Location or Ship  Days Dates
 Road Trip to Nevada 4 12/14/24 – 12/18/2024
 Lake Las Vegas, Nevada Condo 73  12/18/24 – 3/1/25
 Flight – Las Vegas to Nelspruit/Marloth Park, South Africa 2  3/1/25 – 3/3/25
 Marloth Park Holiday Home 90  3/3/25 – 5/31/25
 Flight – Minneapolis, Minnesota 2 5/31/2025 – 6/3/2025
 Hotel – Minneapolis, Minnesota 14  6/3/2025 – 6/17/2025
 Flight – Minneapolis to Nelspruit/Marloth Park 2  6/17/2025 – 6/19/2025
 Marloth Park, South Africa Holiday Home 90  6/19/2025 – 9-17-2025
 Flight to Barcelona to Spain Holiday home 40  9-17-2025 – 10-27-2025
 Cruise – Barcelona, Spain to Cape Town, South Africa  18  10/27/2025 – 11-14-25 
 Cruise –  Cape Town, South Africa to Singapore  17  11-14-2025 – 12-1-2025 
 Cruise – Singapore to Brisbane, Australia  12  12-1-2025 – 12-13-2025 
 Flight – Brisbane, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand 0  12-13–2025 – 12-13-2025
 New Zealand Holiday Home 60  12-13-2025 – 2-12-2026
 Flight –  New Zealand to Tasmania 0  2-12-2026 – 2-12-2026
 Tasmania Holiday Home 60  2-12-2026 – 4-13-2026
 Flight –  Tasmania to Brisbane, Australia 0  4-13-2026 – 4-13-2026
 Cruise – Brisbane, Australia, to Seattle, Washington  24  4-14-2026 – 5-8-2026 
 Flight – Seattle, Washington to Minneapolis, Minnesota 0  5-8-2026 – 5-8-2026
 Hotel – Minneapolis, Minnesota 38  5-8-2026 – 6-15-2026
 To be determined…
Total Days 546

Today will be a quiet day for us. It’s cool today with a high of 53° and a low of 35°. With our limited warm clothing, we’ll undoubtedly stay indoors today.

Have a safe and Happy New Year.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, January 1, 2015:

On this date, there was a high surf warning. For more photos, please click here.
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Part 3 (of three parts)…Month by month, emotional and memorable events from our world travels in 2023…Happy New Year!…

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Happy New Year to all of our readers, friends, and family. May your new year be filled with wondrous surprises, health, and well-being. We love you all!

Last night, New Year’s Eve was more festive than anticipated. With Tom still not feeling well, we’d agreed to lay low and stay in for the night. Yesterday, when I was in the fitness center working out, I met a lovely woman who told me that at 9:00 pm, there would be music by a DJ and fireworks shot off over Lake Las Vegas.

Thank goodness, it wasn’t as cold as it’s been, and the distance to the DJ stage at the beach was only a five-minute walk after we went down one flight of steps, all downhill and a little more challenging coming back when heading uphill to that stairway. It was worth every step when we were amazed by the crowds, the twinkling lights, the oldies music, and the energy from the hundreds of people waiting for the big event beginning at 9:00.

Suppose I hadn’t been in the fitness center, most likely. In that case, we’d have figured it out when we saw all the people downstairs, eventually hearing all the fireworks blaring into the air. We are glad we went. In a way, it was magical. If only Tom had felt better, we could have celebrated with everyone else.

In any case, Happy New Year everyone! We didn’t quite stay up until midnight and nodded off about 11:30. It would have been difficult not to kiss one another at midnight, which we always do when we were afraid I’d catch his illness. Instead, we wished one another “Happy New Year, Lover,” with the utmost warmth, love, and sincerity.

This has been a busy morning. We slept until after 8:30, and I bolted out of bed to begin making pizza, which took a while. I made a separate pizza with less cheese and more veggies using a new low-carb crust recipe called Paleo Pizza Crust. Here’s the link to the recipe. I took a taste when the crust was done cooking and loved the taste.

For the first time in ages, I burned Tom’s two pizza crusts in the oven, which cook separately from the actual pizzas. It cooked much faster and hotter in the oven here, so I have to start that all over again. Oh well, at least I have plenty of ingredients to start over. I was not about to ruin his favorite dish with burnt crusts.

I’m back after putting the two new crusts in the oven to bake, lowering the temperature and cooking time. I’d instead jump up to check them every three minutes than burn them again.

Today will be a rest day from working out, which I’ll take once a week. I will take plenty of steps by cooking, tidying up, and folding the dry laundry out on the rack on the veranda. Tom’s napping now on the sofa at noon, and soon, I will search for the Las Vegas Golden Knights hockey game starting in two minutes. I love watching these games. It’s pretty fun.

Today will be the final day we post photos from the past year for our “year in review.”  As it turned out, after reviewing the post, we traveled a lot more than we thought. It was a busy year, filled with challenges and health issues, but now we are content to be staying put for the next few months, taking life easier than ever in this beautiful location,

So here are our photos from where we left off yesterday as we wrap up 2023. In many ways, it is “good riddance” for some.

Be well.

September 2023 – Henderson, Nevada and Eden Prairie, Minnesota

With a horrible WiFi connection on the two cruises, one to Norway and the second to Greenland, we didn’t post many photos of the few weeks we spent back here in Henderson, Nevada. Below are some of the friends and family members we saw while in the above two locations, which ultimately are more important to us than scenery photos.

Our grandson Vincent and Tom after skeet shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Grandson Vincent, daughter Tammy, and daughter-in-law Tracy joined us for dinner and trivia at Pizza Luce, walking distance from our hotel in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
Our granddaughter Maisie when she and I went to dinner for a “girls’ night out.”
My former business partner and dear friend, Theresa.
My dear friend Chere, whom I always manage to see several times when we visit Minnesota.
Our friends and Tom’s nephew Kevin and Kristi, whom we’ve seen a few times in the past year.
Our dear friend Sue, her husband, and our dear friend Chip (who passed away before we left) were wonderful friends and neighbors for many years.
Our newer friends, Gary and Marilyn, whom we met in Marloth Park when as readers of our posts, came to visit us in Henderson while we stayed at the Green Valley Ranch Spa and Casino. They live in Utah. We will see them again in July when they return to Marloth Park.
Tom, on “White Night,” sailing through Norway’s fjords on the Azamara Journey.
Our dear friend Connie, second from the right, invited us to a special dinner for the one-year anniversary of her husband and our friend Jeff’s passing at our house in Marloth Park on September 21, 2022.
Here are long-time friends, also years-long readers of our site, Rita and Gerhard, whom we met in Marloth Park and flew from Washington (state) to see us for eight hours while we were in Henderson last September.

We have been so blessed to make such amazing friends and have such loving family members, and many more not shown here, who have become integral people in our lives over the past years, before and after our world travel.

October 2023 – Eden Prairie, Minnesota ( to see family)

Heather and my son Greg at a Mexican restaurant in Chanhassen, Minnesota. We are so happy they are together and enjoying their loving relationship.
Miles, 15, and Mad,14, two of Greg’s three children and our grandchildren. It’s always wonderful to spend time with our kids and grandchildren.
Tom’s son TJ’s lake cabin in northern Minnesota, where he stayed with TJ and daughter Tammy while in Minnesota.
While on a cruise in The Galapagos Islands, Tom was seated on a bench surrounded by giant iguanas.
Baby tortoises will grow to be giant tortoises, a highlight to see in The Galapagos.

Tom was thrilled to get this photo of whitetip sharks in a channel. Whitetip reef sharks are one of the most abundant Galapagos reef sharks. They can be seen from the surface to over 300 meters under the ocean. Although they prefer shallower water and are rarely seen deeper than 40 meters, they occasionally venture into open water from the reef.
Photo of blue-footed boobie also prevalent in The Galapagos. If you’d like to see more Galapagos Island photos, please check our archives for October 2023.

On October 31, 2023, we celebrated our 11th anniversary of traveling the world while we were already staying in Mirador San Jose, Ecuador, which was not our favorite location during our travels. We didn’t do anything special that evening since there was nowhere to go for dinner within an hour’s drive. It wasn’t safe to drive in the dark on the highway.

November 2023 – Mirador San Jose, Ecuador

We spent all of November in Ecuador at the house on the ocean. We don’t have any particular photos we’d care to share, especially since it was so recent. Please our archives for more photos.

December 2023 – Mirador San Jose, Ecuador – Lake Las Vegas, Nevada

We spent half the month waiting to depart Ecuador and look forward to arriving in Lake Las Vegas at this beautiful location and condo. We couldn’t be more content to be here and spend time with Richard and his SO and relax and unwind after a very busy and complex year.

Have a fantastic New Year that fills your heart with great memories and your mind with unforgettable adventures, big and small, wherever you may be. Tomorrow, we’ll share our photos from New Year’s Eve.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, January 1, 2014:

Last night at Jabula Lodge, bringing in the New Year. For more photos, please click here.

Part 2…2020…A new year…a new decade…Our travels, a year in review…

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At the New Year’s Eve party a few nights ago.

Today’s post is late. Since this morning, we have been distracted when we met our new neighbors who moved into the unit behind us. Coincidentally, they are also from Minnesota, and it was fun sharing stories with the two of them.

View of hotels along the beach from the ship on our way back to the US in Nassau, the Bahamas from this post.

No doubt, we’ll see them both again soon. The socialization at the park is over the top. No less than three or four evenings a week, we get together with family and new friends to chat, laugh, and share stories.

Socializing is different here than it is on a cruise ship when most passengers are frequent travelers from all over the world. All the seniors (55+) we’ve met thus far are from all over the US, many from the Midwest and other cold climate locations.

Out to dinner With dear friends Karen and Rich for a “thank you for hosting us at your home” at Gianni’s Restaurant in Wayzata, Minnesota. For more from this post, please click here.

A few nights ago, we met a lovely couple from Arkansas while standing in line for the New Year’s Eve party, where winter climates are temperate. However, the draw of this simple life is appealing to seniors from all over the country.

And now, as we have rolled into the New Year, with more and more people coming here to stay for the winter, no doubt we’ll meet more residents, and like the couple we met this morning, those staying in a rental unit such as ours.

Tom won the last game, Bingo Coverall, winning $200 when we were out to lunch with Karen and Rich, where bingo is played at a bar on Saturdays mornings only. He looks tired from little sleep from coughing all night while in Minnesota. For this post, please click here.

For the remainder of the year, Today’s photos were all while we have been in the US since November 8, 2019, almost two months ago. Being in the US during this time has been great, seeing family and friends.

Now we’re gearing up to leave the US again and most likely won’t return for another two years. We have many worlds left to see and look forward to the next leg of our journey.

As mentioned yesterday, 2019 was the most challenging of our seven years of world travel. We’ll never forget what we went through, but we take the memories with us and hopefully have learned from our experiences as we move into the future.
Our next stop was Nevada, where I had the opportunity to visit my sister Susan. This is her pup, Chase, an adorable little guy. See the post here.

Sure, there’s a bit of trepidation in the future. Will we be close to competent medical care? Are the risks of future issues with my health going to hold us back in any way? We could easily make ourselves stressed contemplating these raw facts.

However, we choose to free our minds from stress and to focus on the good fortune we’ve had in discovering my heart issues in time to avert a possible life-changing event and, of course, our ability to continue.

Tonight, we’ll lay low and enjoy our delicious leftovers from last night’s successful dinner party. The sisters and brothers-in-law came to our house around 3:30 pm and stayed until close to 9:00 pm. 

It was wonderful to meet up with old friends Jerry and Vicki. It was amazing to see them so many years later when we’d met in Kauai in 2015. For this post, please click here.

As often the case, the conversation was filled with stories of experiences they all shared about their years of growing up in a large family. They are quite an entertaining group. 

We’re attending another party at 3:00 pm on Saturday by the fire pit. It’s warmed up a bit, and when the sun is shining, it’s pretty comfortable being outdoors. Tom is picking up Margie at the Mesa airport on Saturday. It will be great to have her back with the six of us.

Have a wonderful day!

Photo from one year ago today, January 2, 2018:

Last year on this date, we posted “year in review” with this photo of two female rhinos on the trail of a nearby male. See this link here for more from the date this photo was taken. Click here for the year-ago post.

Part 1…2020…A new year…a new decade…Our travels, a year in review…

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In Devon on a farm, Tom had the unusual experience of shepherding 150 lambs. For that post, please click here.

Since we’ve posted so many photos from Africa, we’ve decided not to post favorite photos from 2019 that include our time in Africa. Our readers have seen them over and over again. We appreciate your patience and interest.

While in Ireland, we got a good shot of this pair of cows, most likely a mom and baby, from this post.

Instead, today (with more to follow tomorrow), as mentioned in yesterday’s post (click here), we’ll review where we’ve traveled over the last 12 months. Based on the fact my open heart surgery was in February, and we weren’t able to do much during the remaining three months we spent in Marloth park while I recovered thus, the dates are as follows:

January to May – Marloth Park, South Africa 
May to August – Connemara, Ireland (three months)
August – Flight to Amsterdam, where we spent two nights
August – September – Baltic Cruise – 12 nights
September to October – Stayed in four locations in the UK: Falmouth, Witheridge, Devon, England and, Chepstow, Wales, two of which included living in the English countryside on working farms.
October – Drove to Southampton, England, where we spent two nights and then boarded a ship for a 15-night cruise to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA.
November to December – Minneapolis, Minnesota, the USA to visit family (3 weeks)
November to December – Henderson/Las Vegas, Nevada, the USA to visit family (11 nights)
December – Apache Junction, Arizona, USA – the balance of December has been spent visiting family (Tom’s sisters and spouses)

While in Amsterdam wished we could post the identity of all of these great highlights on our canal boat tour, but it wasn’t possible as the boat moved along. For this post, please click here.
  • Number of Flights: 5 
  • Number of Cruises: 2 
  • Number of Vacation Home Rentals: 7
  • Number of nights in hotels: 4
  • Number of nights spent with family or friends: 32 (with friend Karen in Minnesota and son Richard in Henderson)
  • Number of Rental Cars: 5 
The luxury in the Peter and Paul Cathedral in St. Petersburg was indescribable. See the post here.

Considering the awful condition I was in until October, unable to walk from the surgeries and dreadful medications I later stopped taking. Then the dreadful virus we both caught on the cruise back to the US traveled quite a bit.

In Tiverton, Devon, these birds reminded us of the Helmeted Guinea-fowl we had in our garden in Marloth Park. For this post, please click here.

Now that we are both feeling well, we’re finally able to relax and focus our time with Tom’s family members and preparing for our upcoming trip to India in a mere four weeks from today.

In some ways, it was a good year. In other ways, it was frightening and disheartening. As the year ended last night at midnight, when we stood on the dance floor at the party here at the resort and shared a long kiss, we couldn’t help but smile for the New Year to come. 

This is the view from our veranda in Falmouth, England. For this post, please click here.

No, we can’t dismiss what we’ve been through this past year, but we can and have embraced a feeling of gratefulness and good fortune, to have made our way through a challenging time.

In the rain on the farm in Witheridge, Tom was using the wheelbarrow to bring the wood to Pond Cottage. See the post here.

The party last night was fine. We could have done a few nuances without, such as eating prime rib (which was good) with a plastic fork and knife. But, the people were relatively friendly, and the two of us had a good time together as always. 

Friends Linda and Ken from South Africa came to visit us while we were in Chepstow, Wales. Here’s a photo of the four of us, and here’s the post from that date.

We couldn’t resist staying until the stroke of midnight to hear and sing the traditional song, Auld Lang Syne. Oddly, one of the participants on the dance floor collapsed right at midnight. Shortly after the song ended, an ambulance came to take the poor woman to the hospital. We never heard what had transpired.

The tabletop is a plain white blank canvas, making such colorful presentations possible while we dined on the ship experiencing Le Lewtit Chef a digital dining experience. For that post, please click here.

Back at our park model (as they are called) by 12:15, we unloaded our bag of beverages and went off to bed. We both slept reasonably well,,, awakening to a new year, a new decade, and a new journey we’ll continue with joy in our hearts.

Today, we’re making dinner for the family: baby back ribs, mashed garlic potatoes, sweet corn, dinner rolls, salad, and dessert. Based on time constraints, we’ll continue this post tomorrow. Please check back.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Photo from one year ago today, January 1, 2019:

This is a two-year-old Rock Hopper Penguin on New Island in the Falkland Islands,,, yet to grow his full plumage when we visited Antarctica. Last year on this date, we posted favorite photos from 2018.Last year on this date, we posted favorite photos from 2018.Last year on this date, we posted favorite photos from 2018. Please click here for more photos.

Part 3…2018, “Year in Review” with favorite photos…They’re back!!!…Six years ago today…Itinerary re-post from one year ago.

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We were so excited to see the kudus and other wildlife returning to our garden as the holiday crowds dissipated.  

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

One of our two favorite frogs took up residence in this cute little decorative basket near the pool on the veranda.

This morning, two bushbucks, one duiker, five zebras, and three warthogs stopped by simultaneously.Last night before the pelting rain began, 12 kudus and three warthogs stopped by for a snack. We couldn’t toss the pellets quickly enough.  

Notice the pellet crumbs on her nose.  Often, there are lots of crumbs in the enormous bags of pellets. Most wildlife is happy to lap up the crumbs if we place them on the tile steps. See more here at this link.

We’re so excited the animals have begun to return to our garden. After all, that’s why we’re here, the wildlife and the people. They’re all wonderful and have made this past year fly by in a flurry of activity.

We couldn’t believe our eyes when we spotted this elephant digging a hole to access water in the ground below. Please take a moment to watch our video at the top of the page. See this link here for more.

The now working aircon in our main floor bedroom provided us with a good night’s sleep along with the fact the power stayed on for the past 36 hours. Add the fact that today, for the first time in days, the temperature is cool and comfortable at 21C (70F) and surprisingly doesn’t feel as humid as it had over the past several days. What a welcomed relief!

Louise and Danie joined us for dinner that night at Kambaku, the popular restaurant at the golf course in Komatipoort, as we celebrated their belated birthdays. We couldn’t be more grateful for all they’ve done for us.  See this link here for more.

Today, we’ll complete this three-part series of 2018, “Year in Review,” and return tomorrow with our regular posts and all new photos as we see more and more wildlife each day as the holidaymakers have begun to drift away.

Our photo of the blood moon was taken on July 27, 2018.  See this link here for more.

Holiday times are different in South Africa than in many other countries. In the US, kids return to school the first day after New Year’s Day. But here, the return to school varies from public to private schools but maybe as late as the middle of January. This fact determines when many of the holidaymakers leave Marloth Park.

Not a night passes without an opportunity to watch these adorable bushbabies enjoy the yogurt we place on their little stand. See this link here for more.

However, as we’ve seen from the gradual return of the wildlife to our garden, many may have left right after New Year’s Day. At this point, we’ll see how it transpires over the next week or two.

What an animal!  We feel fortunate to have been able to get lion photos. See this link for more.

This morning when Tom was reviewing past posts, he mentioned it was precisely six years ago today that we boarded our first cruise. See here for the link. (At that time, we didn’t post many photos and didn’t post daily). In 80 days, we’ll be boarding our 24th cruise in Santiago, Chile, ending in San Diego, California.  

Mom and baby love.  See this link here for more.

It’s even hard for us to believe how many cruises we’ve experienced in this short period, and other than a four-day back-to-back cruise in 2013 in the Mediterranean, we’ve loved every one of them.  

Every piece of art at WayiWayi Art Studio & Gallery was representative of Zambian culture. See this link here for more.

The four-day cruise was during spring break and was crowded with highly inebriated, loud, demanding, and pushing and shoving passengers. It couldn’t have ended quickly enough for us.  

We were excited to get a view of the leopard’s face after waiting for a considerable period while Samson, our guide in Chobe National Paek in Botswana, kept moving the vehicle for better shots. Upon careful inspection of this photo, you can see the pads of the feet of her kill in the tree near her head. See this link here for more.

Below included in our “one year ago today” feature, we posted the itinerary we’d included on today’s date in 2018. Certain aspects of our itinerary have changed, including the first year that has since passed. As we add more bookings in the next few months, we’ll be updating the itinerary and posting it here.  

Based on our position in the line-up of vehicles in Kruger, our photo-taking advantage was limited. See this link here for more.

As the years have passed, we don’t feel the sense of urgency to fill in the blanks and extend the itinerary beyond two years. It’s less about being lazy and more about feeling comfortable that all of it will work out as we go along.

Stunning female lion – as a part of the Ridiculous Nine, we spotted in a game drive in Marloth Park with friends Lois and Tom, who visited for three weeks. See this link here for more.

Tonight, we’ll be visiting Rita and Gerhard at their second condo at Ngwenya where they’re staying until tomorrow. Then, much to their delight, they’re moving back to the Hornbill house where they lived the first month they were here and will stay until sometime in March when they’ll be leaving Marloth Park.

After a highly successful game drive in Kruger, Tom, Lois, Kerry (our guide), me, and Tom. See this link here for more.

We’re hoping to see them in the New Year when they’ll come to visit us in Ireland during our three-month stay beginning in May. We’re also looking forward to Kathy and Don visiting us in Ireland as well.  How fortunate we are to have made such fine friends.

We encountered this stunning scene of zebras and wildebeest from the fence at Marloth Park. One reason zebras and wildebeests hang out is that they love to eat the taller grass and wildebeest the shorter grass – it’s a type of symbiosis. There is no competition regarding food. Also, wildebeests have a better sense of hearing, while zebras can see very well. It’s always great to have an ally to warn of any impending danger.  Another reason is zebras and wildebeest prefer to be in the open savannahs…the concept of safety in numbers comes into play.  See this link here for more.

Then upcoming on January 14, friends Linda and Ken will stay here with us for a week. They arrive from Johannesburg on the day that we’re having a birthday dinner party for Rita. We are grateful to have such good friends.

We’ve so enjoyed spending time with new friends Rita and Gerhard who came to Marloth Park after reading our posts years ago. They found the holiday home they’ve rented through our site and found Louise to help them get situated. They’ll be here in Marloth until March.
We look forward to many more exciting times together.  See this link here for more.

That’s it for today, folks. We’ll be back with more tomorrow. 

 May you find your day to be fulfilling and meaningful!

Photo from one year ago today, January 3, 2018:

 One year ago today, we posted the upcoming itinerary that included a total of 852 days, which is now down to 486 days since the first year of this itinerary has passed. Since that date, we’ve had a few modifications which we’ll include next time we update and post the itinerary. For details, please click here.

 Location 
Days
  Dates 
 Buenos Aires, AR – Prodeo Hotel 
20
 1/2/2018 -1/23/2018 
 Ushuaia, AR – Ushuaia, AR – Antarctica Cruise 
16
 1/23/2018 – 2/8/2018 
 Buenos Aires, AR – Prodeo Hotel 
2
 2/8/2018 – 2/10/2018 
 Marloth Park, South Africa – Bush home selected
89
2/11/2018 – 5/11/2018
  Zambezi River Cruise – Victoria Falls 
8
5/11/2018 – 5/19/2018
 Marloth Park, South Africa – Rent a bush home
89
5/19/2018 – 8/16/2018
 Uganda – See gorillas and the “Cradle of Mankind.” 
7
8/16/2018 – 8/23/2018
 Marloth Park, South Africa – Rent a bush home
89
 8/23/2018 -11/20/2018 
 Mozambique, Africa (get visa stamped) 
1
 11/20/2018 -11/21/2018 
 Marloth Park, South Africa – Rent a bush home
89
 11/21/2019 – 2/17/2019 
 Valparaiso, Chile – Rent vacation home or hotel
36
 2/17/2019 – 3/24/2019 
 Cruise – San Antonio, Chile – San Diego 
14
 3/24/2019 – 4/8/2019 
 San Diego, CA – Fly to Minneapolis, MN – Family visit
13
 4/8/2019 – 4/21/2019 
 Cruise – Fort Lauderdale, FL- Dublin, Ire (1-day hotel stay) 
15
 4/21/2019 – 5/6/2019 
 Ireland – Rent country house – Research Tom’s ancestry 
90
 5/6/2019 – 8/1/2019 
 Amsterdam, NLD – Hotel stay 
11
 8/1/2019 – 8/11/2019 
 Cruise, Baltic – Amsterdam, NLD – Amsterdam, NLD 
12
 8/11/2019 – 8/23/2019 
 England – Rent country home
62
 8/23/2019 – 10/24/2019 
 Southampton, UK – Fort Lauderdale, FL
15
  10/24/2019 – 11/8/2019 
 Henderson/Las Vegas, NV – Los Angeles, CA -Scottsdale, AZ 
25
 11/8/2019 – 12/3/2019 
 Ecuador – Galapagos – Rent vacation homes on islands
89
 12/3/2019 – 3/1/2020 
 Peru – Machu Picchu – Rent vacation homes, visit site 
30
 3/1/2020 –  3/31/2020 
 The Pantanal/Amazon River Cruise – Brazil (2 cruises)
30
 3/31/2020 – 4/30/2020 
 Number of days  
852

Part 2…2018, “Year in Review” with favorite photos…An important decision has been made…

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Two female rhinos on the trail of a nearby male.  See this link here for more.

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

On Monday, we were hopeful when we had 13 kudus in the garden, thinking perhaps the traffic in Marloth Park was thinning out. Today, we’ve had several kudus, bushbucks, and the warthog mom and four babies.

Yesterday was another hot and humid day, leaving us soaked in sweat throughout the day. Today, it continues. Luckily, the power didn’t go out, and we slept in one of the upstairs bedrooms with a working aircon.

Linda, me and Kathy.  It was these two thoughtful friends that took me to lunch on my birthday four years ago. Now, we’ll all be together again to celebrate my 70th. Wow! See this link here for more.

We’re hopeful the repair guy will come today and repair the aircon in our main floor bedroom, where we have a dust-mite-free mattress, pillows, and covers. The bed upstairs is double, and although we’ve slept in double beds throughout the world, a queen-sized bed is much more comfortable, especially when we both tend to hog the center of the mattress.

Ken, Tom and Don making big faces for the camera!  See this link here for more.

We’re looking forward to aircon comfort in our main floor bedroom, hopefully, available by this evening. From there, we hope the power stays on as it has for the past 24 hours.

We’ll always remember this birthday as a special event for both of us; celebrated life, health, our experiences, and the fine friends we’ve made along the way. See this link here for more.

This morning, it rained. A nice soaking rain was needed in the bush at this point. We were discussing the frustration many holidaymakers felt after coming to the bush with lots of expectations, only to be sorely disappointed by some events that transpired.

While in Kruger, we spotted a rhino mom and her baby, born this season and still closely attached to the mother. See this link here for more.

It’s been boiling, humid and there have been more power outages than we can count.  Kruger National Park has been difficult to enter, with the crowds going as far as making reservations for a fee to enter. Once inside, they’ve had to deal with all the vehicles blocking the roads during a sighting.

This was a “tower” or “journey” of the eight giraffes who made their way to the only paved road in Marloth. Note the eighth giraffe is to the far right in this photo. See this link here for more.

On top of that, there has been less wildlife visiting the properties over the past several weeks due to the added number of people and vehicles in Marloth Park, certainly adding to the frustrations.

When “capturing” the Black Mamba, it is imperative to immobilize the head close to the ground and raise the tail. Tom managed to do this while desperately attempting to escape during his snake-handling experience at Snake School. The Black Mamba is the fastest snake on the planet. See this link here for more.

As we often drive around Marloth Park for two-hour periods, almost every day, we see few animals in the gardens of holiday homes, other than an occasional kudu or warthog.  

At a distance, they saw Dad coming their way.  The chick’s pace picked up the moment she spotted him. Look at the far end of the dirt road to see him coming!  His feathers are dark. See this link here for more.

We can only imagine the frustration of the holidaymakers dealing with these issues and property owners and managers dealing with the renter’s demands as a result of their frustrations.  It hasn’t been an easy situation. Some tourists have left earlier than they’d planned.

 I awoke Tom when this thing was walking on me.  With the light from my phone, I saw it and must admit, a little scream escaped my lips as I shooed it off my shoulder. Yucky! Look at those spiky legs! Tom captured it in this plastic container and released it outside.  See this link here for more.

Today, we continue on with Part 2…2018, “Year in Review.” In yesterday’s post, found here, we covered our cruise to Antarctica and the many stunning photos we captured along the way. It was exciting for us, once again, to review each post for favorite photos to share in the post.

This was a common sight in Marloth Park a holiday weekend in April. It’s packed with tourists sitting in the back of a “bakkie” which is Afrikaans for “pickup truck.” Very dangerous. See this link here for more.

Today, we’re including photos and links from the first half of the year up to and including June 2018. Tomorrow, we’ll add Part 3 which, with so many photos, we found to be necessary.

Adorable baby Danie with his loving and attentive mom, Okey Dokey, our friend and driver from 2013 when she and her husband and baby came to visit.  He never stopped smiling and laughing the entire time they were staying.  See this link here for more.

Of course, we want to “save” some favorite photos to share on the last few days of our one-year stay in Marloth Park, including all the year’s expenses which we’ll include on the previous day, February 14, 2019. On that date, we’ll depart the park to spend the night in a hotel in Nelspruit, close to the airport for our early morning flight to Kenya.

This gorgeous feta, onion, and lettuce salad served by dear friends Louise and Danie when they invited us for dinner were enhanced with edible flowers, indicative of the attention to detail and creativity these two fine hosts possess. See this link here for more.

We made a critical decision in the past few days. We will return to Capetown, South Africa, via a cruise on December 2, 2020. However, we’ll fly to Namibia from there to spend three months and then return to Marloth Park.  

Alas, we arrived in Zambia to see the magical splendor of Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Later that day we also went to Zimbabwe to see the falls from that country. See this link here for more.

By then, the holiday season in Marloth will have passed, and we can avoid or at least diminish some of our frustrations during the holiday season. No doubt, Namibia will have some challenges, but we’ll have an entirely different set of expectations of our own.

None of the six of us or our guide Alfred could believe our eyes as we watched this male elephant build his mud pool in Chobe National Park. We’ve seen a lot of elephants in Africa, but this was a rare sighting for us. See this link here for more.

As for yesterday and today’s photos, many of our long-term readers certainly have seen them in past posts. However, we always have a new influx of readers and encourage them to click on the links we’ve provided along the way.

Crocs can replace each of their 80 teeth up to 50 times in their 35 to 75-year lifespan. Check out those teeth on a croc we spotted while on the Zambezi River cruise. See this link here for more.

It’s been a fantastic year, as we mentioned in yesterday’s post, and we continued to smile when we reviewed the year’s posts and saw all that we’ve accomplished and experienced along the way.

The harsh realities of the bush; here is a Bovine Tuberculosis infected kudu we spotted only the day after we were educated on this dreadful disease impacting mainly kudus in Marloth Park. See this link here for more.

And, there’s so much more yet to come in the New Year. Please stay with us as we continue on our exciting world journey.

This video will remain as one of our favorites in years to come, clearly illustrating the intelligence of elephants during a human intervention in “their world.”  Watch and you’ll see why.  See this link here for more.


 Have a spectacular second day of the New Year!

Photo from one year ago today, January 2, 2018:

We set up the tripod to take this photo of us in Costa Rica on October 31, 2017, the fifth anniversary of our world travels, which was posted in Part 2, our 2017 “Year in Review.” For more, please click here.

Part 1…2018, “Year in Review” with favorite photos…

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It was fun to hold up our US flag on the ice floe in Antarctica. See the link here for more.

“Sighting of the Day in the Bush”

Perhaps the holidaymakers are beginning to leave the park when yesterday we had no less than 20 kudus stop by throughout the day, including this adorable young male.

This has been one of the best years of my life. The adventures were many, the challenges endless, and the opportunity to see parts of the world we only dreamt of.

A one or two-year-old Rock Hopper Penguin on New Island in the Falkland Islands has yet to grow his full plumage. See this link for more.

Tom always says, “The best year of my life is yet to come.” OK, I’ll go along with that premise as well.  

  Closer view of King Penguin with a chick.  See this link here for more.

But, how in the world can we possibly top this past year visiting Argentina, Antarctica, spending a year in Marloth Park, and twice traveling to Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe…Chobe River, Chobe National Park, Victoria Falls, and cruising on the Zambezi River?  (More photos will follow in Part 2 tomorrow).

Tom certainly got it right when he captured this Black Browed Albatross chick with what appears to be a smile. See this link here for more.

Today, our photos focus on our Antarctica cruise, surely one of the highlights of both of our lives.  We left Palermo, Buenos Aires, Argentina, on January 23, 2018, to head to Ushuaia, Argentina, the most southerly city in the world, to board the ship, the Ponant Le Soleal.

It was stunning to see all these Albatross atop these pods in their massive nesting grounds.

When the cruise ended on February 8, 2019, we returned to Palermo for two more days before we flew to Marloth Park on February 11, 2018, to begin this year-long stay, ending on February 14, 2019, in a mere 44 days.

This elephant seal on Steeple Jason Island didn’t care for our photo-taking antics. See the link here for more.

Going from the cold and ice of Antarctica to the heat and dust of Africa was quite an experience in itself. But, in no time at all, we adapted to our new life for the year to come. And, it’s been a great year we’ll always treasure.

This is unreal…the Black Browed Albatross on Steeple Jason Island remove tall grass from these massive “pod-like” structures, adding mud and vegetation to make it a free-standing pod on which they can nest. Here’s a young chick making a little noise while atop their elevated nest.  That’s amazing!  See the link here for more.

By far, that cruise was the most expensive cruise or venue we’ve experienced in our six-plus years of world travel. It proved to be well worth the expense, and we have no regrets. We doubt we’ll embark on such a costly expedition in years to come.,

Standing among the King Penguins was an experience we’ll always remember. See this link here for more.

Last night we brought in the New Year at Royal Kruger Lodge, a four-star safari resort and spa here in Marloth Park. Our host, Flo, and JJ did an exceptional job at making us feel welcomed. We have been to several social events with Flo and JJ over the past year and found them a great couple, with three children, a teenage daughter, a son, and a college-age daughter, all of whom attended the party.

This has got to be one of our favorite Antarctic photos, a Chinstrap Penguin lying on the rocks for a short rest with what looks like a winsome smile on his face. See this link here for more.

Louise and Danie, longtime close friends of theirs, ensured we had an invitation, along with Rita and Gerhard. We couldn’t have had a more enjoyable New Year’s Eve.

We had to keep our distance from this delicate structure which would be a disaster for us in the small boat, where it to collapse near us. See this link here for more.

Also, we knew several other guests in attendance of the party of 30 to 40 guests, staged poolside, at their stunning property, surely one of the most beautiful resorts/game lodges in Marloth Park.

There we were, sitting on a Zodiac boat in Pleneau Bay sipping on French champagne. Was that ever fun!  See this link here for more.

We returned to the house at 1:00 am but didn’t fall asleep until after 2:00 am.  Fortunately, we both managed to get some sleep even without working the aircon, which hopefully will be repaired in days to come. Also, we were thrilled to find we had power and could at least use the portable fan.

Both of us are raising a glass in celebration of this special occasion. The ship’s staff created an ice bar on a small ice floe.  We used the Zodiac boat to arrive at the floe, all set for French champagne. See the link here for more.

Today, we’ll lay low and have a nice dinner on the veranda, hoping we’ll see as many visitors as we did yesterday before we left for the party close to 1900 hours (7:00 pm).  

Both of us are holding the “I crossed the Polar Circle” sign.  See this link here for more.

We had no less than 20 kudus stop by; Little and his best friend; warthog friends Mike and Joe;  numerous bushbucks, and female and male duikers. Even Frank and the Mrs. made an appearance. We hadn’t seen either of them in over a week. I suppose holiday traffic has an impact on francolins (birds).

A face only a mother could love. See this link here for more of our favorite photos from the  Antarctica cruise.

We’re wishing every one of our worldwide readers has an exceptional New Year, filled with the riches of life that even money can’t buy, the joys of nature and our surroundings, free for the taking, fulfilling in many ways.

 Happy New Year to each of YOU!

Photo from one year ago today, January 1, 2018:

Us, one year ago, at the boutique hotel in Palermo, Buenos Aires, Argentina, where we awaited the Antarctica cruise was beginning on January 23, 2018. For more details, please click here.