Our new home in Fiji…A few nuances…A few photos…

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The galley kitchen, small with little counter space, works for me. We purchased the tiny cutting board when the one in the cupboard was a little too used for my liking. The tiny coffee pot only makes two cups at a time. We make two pots, one for each of us. To the far left is the portable oven with the microwave above. Other than a few items we’ll purchase next week, we have everything we need.

There are no words to describe how thrilled we are to have windows with screens. Fresh air day and night, has an enormous effect on one’s state of well being. Even now as I write on a Saturday morning with it raining off and on, the cooling breeze is refreshing and invigorating. 

The living room. 

After three months with no breeze and little fresh air in the house in Australia without screens, we feel renewed. Also, there’s something magical about living on a fairly remote island with the quaint village, the friendly local workers, the vast array of birds and wildlife that is particularly appealing to us.

There are no poisonous insects or any snakes in Fiji. Centuries ago, snake eating mongoose was brought to the islands. They proliferated in vast numbers ultimately wiping out the entire snake population.

The bed with the new pillows and bedding. There no hanging closet space. We left the items we usually hang neatly folded in the luggage.

That’s not to say there aren’t other creatures slithering around the house and grounds. We’ve had several of those yellowish almost clear looking (comparable to a pale yellow gummy) geckos running on the walls, pooping and making their peculiar noises. But, years ago we stopped paying much attention to geckos. They’d be unlikely to crawl on humans or go onto the bed at night. 

This morning I cleaned several gecko poops off the stovetop. We’ve seen a few large spiders, other insects, and an endless supply of mosquitoes. We’ve yet to see a single fly.

The kitchen table where we dine. We moved this lamp (the only lamp in the house) from the bedroom putting it on this table enabling us to see our plates better while dining.

Based on a report Tom read online many months ago, I started taking 100 mg vitamin B1 supposedly to aid in the reduction of attracting mosquitoes. After one month on the B1, I noticed an improvement, seldom being bitten during the remaining time in Australia. I still use repellent when we visit rain forests as will be the case here when we’re outside for extended periods.

Sitting on the veranda seems to attract a swarm of mosquitoes around one’s head so we pick and choose the best times to venture out avoiding dawn, dusk, and cloudy days. 

A large porcelain sink in the bathroom. The small spoon atop the plastic container is for scooping baking soda to add to toothpaste for whiter, cleaner teeth.

On our first shopping trip, we purchased a bottle of locally manufactured repellent and it seems to be highly effective in combination with vitamin B1. I’ve only received two mosquito bites since we arrived on Tuesday. I can’t guarantee this would work for everyone but, somehow it seems to be working for me.

Not having a car is an adjustment. As Mario had described, the steep hill to the property would be impossible to navigate without a four-wheel drive. I doubt we could even walk the hill up that hill when even the fittest 20 year old would struggle.

This is a good-sized shower.

With the cost of a four-wheel-drive vehicle at no less than USD $40, FJD $87 per day plus fees and taxes we’d decided against a rental. With the hourly rate Rashnesh quoted at USD $13.81, FJD $30 for tours,  we can go anywhere we want for much less than we’d pay for a rental, especially when we’re paying for days we don’t use it.

For a round trip to the village Rashnesh charges USD $9.20, FJD $20, dropping us off at one market and picking us up at another location at either a designated time or when we call on our now working phone containing a local phone SIM card. If we went out every day, the taxi fare with Rashnesh would still cost less than 25% of the cost of a rental car.

The living room with our stuff. 

We explained to Rasness that we’ll pay him each time we go out and tip him all at once at the end of our stay in December, giving him a good chunk toward his Christmas holiday. He seemed to like this idea. 

With the high cost at an ATM and with many local services requiring cash and, with the choice we made long ago (for safety purposes) to only be able to receive USD $300, FJD $652 per day per card, we’ll probably need to get cash every few weeks to pay for dining out, the farmer’s market and the meat market. The grocery store clerk explained there is a 2.5% fee for using a credit card. 

The screened window in the kitchen. Sitting on the sill is chalk “ant stick” which we use after washing the counters after cooking hoping to keep the ants away.

With the cost of getting cash exceeding the cost of the grocer charged credit card fees, it makes sense to use the credit card at the grocery store. With 1% cash perks for purchasing groceries on the card, it all works out in the end. 

As for the house, Mario and his wife Tatiana provided us with additional items we needed: six dish towels, one washcloth (all they had available) a large skillet and bowl, a medium-sized pot, a sharp paring knife, three plastic reusable containers,  a knife sharpener, and a broom. We still need a metal spatula and a cookie sheet which we’ll purchase soon.

The screened window in the living room with cooling breezes. No AC here. Outside the window, you can see our dishtowels hanging to dry. With no washer, and laundry done by Charlotta a few times each week, we’ll be hand washing kitchen towels and underwear as needed.

Many months ago, I wrote to Mario that we’d need an oven. He immediately went into town to find a good-sized countertop oven which seems to work well. We are very grateful for the oven, the bed, and all he’s done for us. 

Yesterday afternoon, I made Tom’s breakfast dish, which he cuts evenly into 18 squares to be frozen in bags of three. Once he has the last of the three portions over three days, he takes out another bag to defrost overnight in the refrigerator. This way, I don’t make his breakfast for 18 days and he loves having this item at his leisure each morning, while I’m busy with the day’s post. 

The huge pan of Tom’s breakfast eggs dish, the first item we baked in the new oven.

Yesterday, it took about an hour to prepare the large pan of breakfast since there’s no grated cheese available in the market. Grating the cheese by hand and also cooking the required 18 slices of bacon, five at a time in the microwave is an equally slow process.  

The countertop oven cooked the large dish in 50 minutes using a tin foil pan we’d purchased. We soaked and washed the tinfoil pan to be used again. With no parchment paper available in the stores, soaking and scrubbing baking pans will be required while we’re here. How I wished we’d shipped a roll of parchment.

Overall, the house is ideal. Getting in and out of the low-to-the-floor bed is challenging and good exercise for the legs. Tom says he needs “pet steps” to get in and out. 

For more details on this vacation rental, please click here.

The toilets are higher in other countries as opposed to the US. When we arrived in Boston by ship a year ago we were flabbergasted by the low toilets, almost falling over each time.

We’ll continue with more of the nuances of living in Fiji as time goes on. The WiFi is working again today. Since it’s raining we see no reason to go out. Surely, there’ll be plenty of sunny days in the near future allowing us to explore the island. We’ve arranged for some exploring on Monday with Rashnesh picking us up at 10:00 am, hoping for such a day.

So far, in four days we’ve had insects in the bed, a five-hour power outage, and an all afternoon WiFi outage. More of these types of inconveniences will undoubtedly occur. When they do, we’ll “suck it up” as we always do, putting a smile on our faces knowing it all “goes with the territory.” This has become the norm for us.

Tomorrow, we’ll share outdoor photos of the exquisite views surrounding us.

Our heartfelt condolences to those in the US who lost loved ones in the tragic events of September 11, 2001, a day we’ll always remember with heavy hearts.

Photo from one year ago today, September 12, 2014:

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We dined in a specialty restaurant on the ship, Giovannia’s, with Judy and Gary a lovely couple Tom had met on cruise critic. We enjoyed several get-togethers with them over the cruise. For more details, please click here.
Day #171 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Is a donut a fair trade-off?

Adapting to life in a new land with hiccups along the way…

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The ferry docked at the edge of the village makes a daily trip to Viti Levu, the largest island in the Fiji chain. It’s an overnight journey, arriving at 4:00 or 5:00 am. Since we’ll spend our last month on that island, we see no reason to take the ferry and will again fly on the commuter plane when it’s time to leave.

We feel compelled to share a story we’d considered not writing to avoid embarrassment for the owners of the property.  However, after careful consideration and the unbelievably fast response from the owner, Mario to resolve the problem, our comments will only enhance the perception of how lucky we are to have Mario as our landlord and how quickly he responded to our needs.

Long ago, for many years, I owned rental properties throughout the Twin Cities. Even Tom had been a landlord for almost six years when he rented his old house after he moved in with me and, prior to daughter Tammy buying the house.

The dock is available for use of boats in this small harbor.

We both realized as landlords that maintenance issues and general problems may not be known to a landlord if they aren’t reported by disgruntled renters living in the property over a period of time. 

Such was the case here in this charming ocean view house we’ve rented for three months in Savusavu, Fiji, an issue unknown to the owner based on no complaints from prior renters. Also, many vacation homes have renters for only a few days at a time.

On the night we arrived, this past Tuesday, we were exhausted from a long 24 hour period of flurried activity with only five hours sleep in between. On three separate flights, overnight in Sydney, hauling our heavy bags and little food, by the time night fell on Tuesday, we were ready for a good night’s sleep. 

As we wandered through the busy local farmer’s market, open daily, it was hard to decide which vendor to choose for our purchases. We purchased the following for FJD $22, USD $10.12: 2 red bell peppers (also called, capsaicin, here); 6 medium-sized aubergine (eggplant); 3 heads cabbage; and 8 large carrots.

Tom usually stays up an hour longer than I do, so I was the first to fall into bed to read the book on my phone to hopefully lull me off to sleep.  As soon as my head hit the pillow in the darkened room, I knew something was wrong. There was an awful, undefinable smell emanating from the pillows and blankets.

It reminded me of a small one would find in blankets that had been stored in a cupboard for many years, never to be used.  I jumped out of bed, turned on the overhead light, and pulled back the covers. In the dim lighting, I couldn’t see a thing. 

Again, I lay back down but found myself having difficulty breathing. Was I feeling anxious due to lack of sleep?  Not one prone to anxiety, I’d felt a bit panicked and confused. I simply could not allow myself to lay on the pillows. 

These are breadfruit often used in curry dishes, popular in Fiji.

No matter what, in the morning we were asking Mario for four new pillows. If we had to, we’d go out and purchase them ourselves. Again, I got out of bed, grabbed a large bath towel from the bathroom, and wrapped it entirely around one pillow, tossing the second pillow on the floor.

Shortly Tom came to bed. I didn’t want to alarm him to have an effect on his quality of sleep but I did ask him if the pillows smelled funny. He said “no” and lay down, quickly falling asleep. From sheer exhaustion and the help of one Tylenol PM, I finally drifted off, sleeping fitfully for a mere four hours, dreaming I was being bitten by bugs. I was.

Jumping out of bed at 5:00 am, I awoke Tom asking if he was OK. He, too, had a bad night, feeling as if something was crawling on him and awoke several times scratching. 

These are the sizes of the aubergine we purchased. These adjoining bowls contain a variety of hot peppers which I’d love to try but Tom doesn’t care for spicy food. 

We turned on the overhead light when daylight had yet to arrive to find zillions of tiny ants crawling all over the sheets, the blanket, and in and about the four pillows. At that point, we expected they were bedbugs. But, they were visible to the naked eye and looked exactly like miniature ants.

Bolting out of the bedroom, I stripped off my nightshirt and dashed under the shower into the hottest water I could stand. How were we going to wash off the hundreds of nibbles these creatures took on our bodies all night long? Tom showered right after me. 

We worried about everything we’d unpacked, our clothes in the closet, our luggage in the corner of the room, everything we owned possibly subject to an infestation of these tiny ants.

These are some type of sweet potato.

Trying not to overreact, as soon as it was a reasonable hour, I sent Mario an email explaining what had transpired. Our thoughts were running wild. Would we have to move out, find a hotel, lose the entire rent we’d paid for three months if we couldn’t live with the situation? 

Our thoughts ran back to the dreadful first seven days of living outside the US in Belize when the little house had no screens and thousands of no-see-ums (sandflies) were in the house biting me and there was running water only a few hours a day. It took us a week to find another property while we lost the entire first month’s rent when the owner refused to return even a portion to us.

Well, within minutes of my email to Mario, he was at the door, worried and concerned for our well being. Within a few hours, the mattress (it’s common in most countries outside the US that beds don’t have box springs) and all the bedding including the pillows were long gone. The bedroom was treated for ants and completely wiped down with vinegar and water. By noon, a new mattress and all-new, never-used bedding were on the bed, beautifully made, awaiting that night’s much-needed rest.

We haven’t seen an ant since and we both slept like babies for no less than eight hours over the past two nights, awakening both mornings back to our old cheerful selves, full of energy and enthusiasm. 

Coconuts peeled of outer shell were readily available in the market.  If we had a machete, we’d buy a coconut for the delicious meat inside.

Yesterday, we’d called our new driver, Ratness, to take us to town for more shopping when we’d done poorly on the day we arrived in our tired condition, unable to think well enough to find items we needed in the sparsely equipped little market.

Prior to visiting the grocery store, the vegetable market, and the meat market, we stopped at the roughly built Vodafone outdoor hut to buy SIM cards, one for the phone so we can call Ratness to arrange outings and another to enhance the slow wifi in the house, typical for this small island. 

When we couldn’t get the data SIM card, for which we purchased 32 gigs for Fiji $110, USD $50 to work in either of our old hot spots, I spent time online figuring out how to use Tom’s phone as a hot spot (router) when mine was already set up as a phone. Finally, I got it to work but the signal is awful. 

Tom will use the equally slow connection in the house while I’ll use the SIM in his phone, preventing us from having to share the poor signals. Next week Mario will be working on improving the quality of the connection to the house. In the interim, we’re only able to post a few photos each day when today it took over an hour to upload what we’ve shown here.

We weren’t certain of the significance of this tower a vendor was creating.

Yesterday, we shopped at a different grocery store, New World IGA, with much better selections to accommodate the remaining items on the list. We headed back to the meat market for more grass-fed meats and spent considerable time in the fabulous all organic farmer’s market which is open all week where we’ll shop for produce in the future as well.

Back at home by 1 pm, I happily put away the groceries, washed veggies, and prepared most of our dinner. It’s a little odd without the news on in the background keeping us abreast of the latest affairs of the world, but we’ve settled into a nice routine, thoroughly enjoying this wonderful little house, its terrific views, and the sounds of nature. 

With daily maid service and laundry, other than cooking and dishes, we have nothing to do but revel in our new lives as we look forward to exploring this gorgeous location.

So far, we’ve been unable to find cream cheese on this island which I often use in making a sauce for some dishes we make. But, I found funny little tinfoil bags of Marscapone I’ll use instead. Improvise. That’s us.

Tomorrow we’ll be back with photos of our new home and surroundings.

Photo from one year ago today, September 11, 2014:

It was raining most of the day on our 4X4 outing in Iceland. At the end of the countryside tour, we drove through Reykjavik to see downtown. For more details, please click here.

Our travel days continued…Flying in a small prop plane to Savusavu…Tomorrow’s post, our shocking first night in Fiji…

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Tom was standing in front of the tiniest airport we’ve seen to date, except for the dirt landing strip with no airport in the Maasai Mara.

Peering out the scratched window of the plane to Fiji’s exquisite terrain below to make our world seem infinitesimal and insignificant. The 19 seat passenger plane with only 14 seats occupied, along with two pilots in the cockpit, reminded me of only a few weeks ago when we were packed into the semi-submarine in the Great Barrier Reef. Tight quarters.

It was windy during our flight as shown in this photo of me at the Savusavu Airport. In less than three months we’ll return to fly back to Nadi to live on the larger island of  Viti Levu for one more month. We’ll certainly gain a good perspective of life in the Fijian Islands.

At this point, I believe I could fly in an aircraft of any size having accepted this mode of transportation as necessary in our desire to experience life in somewhat remote areas of the world. 

That was the plane we flew on from Nadi Airport to Savusavu Airport.

Who are we but a dot in the horizon for anyone on the ground as our lives are suddenly predicated by two pilots, sometimes one, navigating an aluminum tube with two props, our lives in their hands?

Unlike our first such flight in an even lesser sized plane on October 5, 2013 while on our way to a photo safari in the Maasai Mara in Kenya, I’m no longer afraid.

The captain made a safety speech before we took off.

Once we were above the clouds unable to take ground photos, I felt compelled to write, in a similar manner I’d written while flying two years ago. Was it a diversionary tactic on my part to avoid thinking about our current mode of travel? Or, was it my voluminous expectation that the situation prompted my more creative self?

I’ll opt for the latter while my heart fluttered with excitement as we embark on yet another remote adventure, those that make me feel most alive.

Tom and I sat below the wing.

With childlike wonder, Tom continually diverted my attention to look below at yet another pulse-pounding scene. With the camera in his hands he snapped away with a burst of creative thunder to take more of those magical shots he’s become known for in my eyes and at times, in the eyes of others.

He too, was in the clouds with me, literally and figuratively. This is the dream we acquired that grew within us in a short span of time, none of which we possessed a mere five years ago.

As we left the Nadi Airport from the largest of the Fijian Islands, Viti Levu to head to the second largest island Vanua Levu.

Back then, if someone had asked, “How would you like to give up the life you’ve always lived for a life of travel?” I would have chuckled, saying, “That’s never going to happen!”

The views from the plane were impressive.

And yet, almost three years into it, we’re figuring its a mind-boggling head-scratcher. Who knew that these two relativity main stream overly responsible individuals would merge into a somewhat adventurous traveling machine, hell-bent on seeing the world before our inevitable end?

With the small seat and unable to move around, the scratched window, and the location of our seats, we could only take photos that included the underside of the plane’s wing.  Nonetheless, the views made it worthwhile.

Sitting here now, copying the above words I’d written on my phone on the plane on Tuesday, the sun is blissfully bursting through the screened window with a lofty breeze cooling our skin, roosters crowing around us, and a vast array of birds chirping in harmony.

It’s ironic how at our ripe ages of 67 and 62, respectively, we’d thrive on gaining personal strength and integrity in experiencing less than convenient scenarios in the hopes of handling them with dignity and grace.

Fiji has an interesting terrain with scattered hills and mountain ranges, lush green valleys and endless waterways.

No delusions here. It’s not always easy. But, we chose this life, this life that allows our eyes to scan the vast ocean before us, the dense rainforest of Mother Nature’s finest vegetation, and the endless sounds of wildlife encircling us. 

In a sense it’s “heaven on earth” and God willing, when our time comes and we arrive at the Pearly Gates, we can say, “Oh, we’ve already been here.” 

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

In October of 1986, President Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev met for the Summit Meeting in this building in Reykjavik, Iceland which was formerly the French Consulate. The meetings broke down to be carried on at a later date.  See this link for details of that meeting. Please see our link for that day’s tour, please click here.

Reflections on a life on the move…Leaving Trinity Beach tomorrow afternoon…Total expenses posted tomorrow…Favorite photos…

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A dingo, a wild dog, is representative of the Australian Outback.

It’s impossible not to compare one location to another. Moving every three months or less, with only a single exception most recently in Kauai, Hawaii, where we happily lived for four months, leads us to the inevitable:  How does each location compare to another?

Love, companionship, and comfort are evident in the most unexpected species.

If it were based entirely, on the beauty of a location, our opinions would be very different. Some of the least attractive locations could be included in the most fulfilling. Were it based on the people we met and the memorable occasions associated with making new friends, it would be entirely different.

Mother koala in a tree with a view of her joey in the pouch.

As it turns out, not surprisingly, many factors enter into the equation of what proves to be the most pleasurable places we’ve experienced on earth thus far. With so more much to see, we’re premature in listing them by preference. 

Mom and Joey…precious.

If we were to say that “convenience” would be a factor in determining the quality of our experiences, we’d be kidding ourselves. Some of the most inconvenient, lackluster locations proved to be the most meaningful.

In no time at all, joeys become adept at hanging on to eucalyptus trees.

In a way, it’s similar to having a preference in the “type” of person we want as a partner. Often in life, as in mine and Tom’s case, we end up happy with the polar opposite of what either of us would’ve expected in a mate.

What a gorgeous pelican.

No more than we can control whom we fall in love with, falling in love with a location almost becomes a matter of chance provided it has the basic necessities we require in our travels: access to a grocery store, running water, electricity, an indoor working toilet, and shower, fresh air, comfortable clean property with a lounge or living room, a good bed, a kitchen, somewhat of a view, warm weather, a reasonable means of transportation and wireless Internet or the ability to buy SIM cards. On the wish list? Screens on doors and windows, a pool, an ocean view. We no longer require air conditioning even in hot climates.

Most beaches in Australia are pristine sand. Even the few locations with a rocky shore are beautiful.

Once we find we’ve accomplished the above in a new location, we settle in making adjustments and adapting as needed to best enhance the experience. Anything beyond these basic comforts is a bonus: pleasing sites to visit, great views, friendly people, convenience for shopping and entertainment, and an easy means of local transportation. 

Australia is not only abundant in unique wildlife but also in unusual vegetation. 

With all of these factors in play in varying degrees, it’s not easy to classify one location as better than another.  It all boils down to one single fact: did we have a good experience? If so, we’re content.

One of Tom’s many sunrise photos.

In Trinity Beach, we had a good experience. We saw the sites we wanted to see; we had all the “creature comforts” we needed; we had a great view and surroundings with some access to wildlife; and the people were as warm and friendly as they could be, although we never had a chance to socialize to any degree.

A flower with a face.

Would we come back to this area?  In reality, we’ll return to Cairns on a future Australian cruise next year during which we may stay aboard the ship. Why pay for a tour when we’ve already spent three months in the area? With so much world left to see, repeats aren’t on our radar right now (except for South Africa for me, for which I’m chomping at the bit to return).

Shade is common along the many beaches from many varieties of trees.

Easily, we leave Trinity Beach with a sense of comfort and accomplishment, grateful for the experience which only enhanced our love of this country which over the next 20 months we’ll further explore with six more cruises circumventing the continent. 

A huge banyan tree in Port Douglas.

By the time we’ll sail away from Australia in April 2017 to head back to the US for a short visit, we can feel confident we’ve seen as much as we wanted of this huge continent and the South Pacific, content to continue on to visit new continents, new worlds we’ve yet to explore.

Today, we share some of our favorite photos of this area, and tomorrow, the final expenses with the balance of the favorite photos.

Thanks to all of our worldwide readers for sharing our first Australian experience as we continue on to the vast South Pacific for more.

Photo from one year ago today, September 5, 2014:

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We visited the final port of call visited by the Titanic in the town of Cobh, Ireland. As a tribute to the Titanic, each cruise ship that enters and departs the port is greeted by these ladies dressed in the era of the Titanic. For more photos of the Blarney Castle, the villages of Cork and Cobh, Ireland, and fun times out with friends we made aboard ship, please click here.

Final new photos from Trinity Beach…Tomorrow, our favorite photos in Australia…Next day…final expenses and we’re off…

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This morning I shot these gorgeous yellow flowers.

As we wind down the remaining two days in Queensland, Australia, we’re planning the posts over the next several days. With many of our readers one day behind us, please keep that in mind when reviewing our upcoming posts, when we say it’s Monday, it will be Sunday in your part of the world.

We plan to post each of the next following days with photos. On Monday, with an afternoon departure to Sydney, we’ll have time to post our final favorite photos and total expenses for the three months we spent in Trinity Beach.

Trinity Beach, another sunny day at the sea.

On Tuesday, with a 6:30 am departure from Sydney to Fiji with a connecting flight between islands, it’s likely we may not be able to post based on information we read for wifi at the Nadi, Fiji airport. If it’s available, we will post photos.

In the worst case, we’ll be missing one post on Tuesday (perhaps on your Monday). Otherwise, we’ll be back on Wednesday with an update on our arrival and photos of our new home. 

The stairway leads to an overlook.

We can hardly wait to have these two travel days behind us. Neither of us enjoys flying, mostly due to the waiting and the baggage commotion. Then again, boarding a ship isn’t the most pleasant experience either, spending considerable time waiting on either end.

Cove at the beach where a little blue tent protects a beach-goer from the intense sun.

Travel days are stressful for Tom, even if everything goes well. At times, there’s an issue with our baggage or another matter that sends him into a tailspin although, there have been a few flights that have been seamless and he stayed calm. My rationale is simple, get us there safely and I’m content. The rest? Hopefully, it will be over in no time at all.

The sun rising over Yorkeys Knob, photo taken from our veranda, another excellent view we’ll remember in years to come.

These last few days always feel a bit unsettled. Mostly packed, we don’t have much we have to do. We’ve totally lost interest in sightseeing at this point and have begun to fill our heads with thoughts of our new location and getting the travel days behind us.

Yesterday, I prepared everything for our final meals for tonight and tomorrow night. I’d purchased and made exactly the correct amounts for Tom’s breakfasts and midday snacks. 

The kangaroos and wallabies that we’d previously seen at this nearby spot have moved on to greener pastures. We only spotted these two at a distance when we visited the area for the last time.  We visited this spot many times in the past three months.

I plan to have a late lunch before we depart on Monday since the airline food is never right for me even if I list my requirements on the airline’s website. As a result, I no longer bother to enter the information, giving Tom whatever they serve me.

Various types of fern trees are common in Australia.

In the past when I’ve requested a special meal, they always served me fruit and processed meats, of which, I eat neither. I don’t expect nor am I disappointed that the airlines aren’t able to accommodate my way of eating. It’s too peculiar for their constraints and I fully accept this.

Flowers blooming over the pool area.

At Woolie’s, I purchased a bag of raw almonds for snaking during dinner on the flight, if I’m hungry after the late lunch. With this way of eating I’m seldom hungry and at times, force myself to have a meal, especially if I’d eaten anything within the past eight hours. What’s the point of eating when one isn’t hungry? Our bodies have a magical way of letting us know when we need food or drink. 

Impatiens continue to flourish in the yard.

Today, a sunny day will be perfect for a short stint in the sun. Now that the packages are sent and packing is under control, there’s little else to do but lounge and enjoy the fresh outdoors as much as possible.

Our final photo overlooking the rainforest to Double Island.

We’ll be back tomorrow with our favorite photos we’ve taken in Australia. Thanks to all of our worldwide readers for staying with us during these quiet, less exciting times especially as we wind down the last few mundane days in a location. Soon, the excitement will be ramped up as life in a new country begins!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Photo from one year ago today, September 5, 2014:

One year ago today, we visited the Blarney Castle in Cork, Ireland. Tom had visited Ireland twice in his life before we met but, he was excited to show me this historic site. For more details, please click here

Beauty is subjective…We’ve changed our perspective…

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Midday sunlight filtering through the trees.

Kenya was dark in its mystery, its eerie sounds, its dry, dusty plains, and its sudden pelting rains. At night, we’d hear a freaky indescribable sound, comparable to the tones in the movie, “Close Encounters of a Third Kind,” a sound that impacted the way we felt about it, a little frightened, a lot in awe. 

The full moon rising as it made its way through the clouds above Yorkeys Knob.

In many ways, Kenya was far removed from our familiar, as familiar as one can feel traveling the world with the certain ungainly expectations we’ve adopted as we’ve continued on. Nothing was the same from that point on.  We’ve changed.

We aren’t as afraid. We learned to live outdoors for 16 hours a day with no living room or lounge area inside the house, no screens on our outdoor living room, a spacious veranda with a wide array of venomous insects always in attendance. I was stung on the thigh early on and a year later it still hurt when I touched the spot. We’ve changed. 

The moon offers up quite a show.

Now, as we prepare to move to Vanua Levu, Fiji, where we won’t be able to rent a car when only a 4×4 is able to manage the steep and rocky roads near our vacation rental, too expensive to rent on this remote island. 

Compared to most of the remaining nine months we spent in Africa, we’ll have a driver, not as convenient as having a car, but manageable for our needs, shopping, dining out, and touring the area.

The esplanade in Trinity beach doesn’t disappoint with easy facilities for visitors of all ages.

One may ask, “Why make ourselves uncomfortable?” It’s not our intent to be uncomfortable. It’s simply a part of the experience as a way of life, not what one would want or expect from a two-week vacation or holiday. 

In our old lives, if we’d taken a two-week trip and had no AC, no screens, no place to be indoors if desired, with insects scampering about the floor, we’d want our money back. 

Signs were posted with the history of the area.

It’s different now. This is no two-week vacation or fluffy holiday. This is taking things as they come as we saunter about the world with expectations in check striving for the “experience.” Some of the best experiences we’ve had are when we’ve “toughed it out” which ultimately changed who we are, who we’ve become.

The beauty? It’s subjective. Kenya is its own right was beautiful; the Indian Ocean a short walk from our home in Diani Beach, the most pristine beaches we’ve ever seen; the plains; the Masai Mara; the Mara River; the acacia trees, flat on the top, an exquisite sight in the horizon; the wildlife; a gurgling hippo in the early dawn…it all was beautiful.

Few cars drive along the esplanade when most of the visitors are on foot, currently staying in resorts along Trinity Beach.

I use Kenya as an example. It would be easy to go on and on when many other countries hover in our minds contributing to the changes in who we’ve become. What about Jordan, UAE, Italy, Egypt, Iceland, and more?  But, that’s not our intent today. 

Today, I think of beauty…again, words from an old favorite song, “Love the one you’re with.” Those words convey so much to us;  love the moment, live in the moment, cherish our surroundings, cherish each other. We do this.

Hotels, resorts, and vacation homes line the esplanade along with several restaurants.

And, when we were on the boat from Green Island last week after visiting the Great Barrier Reef and we spoke to a few tourist couples, an Australian woman from the Gold Coast said, “Oh, we don’t like Cairns.” 

A few cars were parked in the convenient beachside car park.

Suddenly, I felt protective and blurted out in defense of our perceptions of beauty, “Cairns is lovely. We’ve loved every moment.”

There were plenty of shady spots for those preferring to stay out of the sun.

We have loved the beauty of the area in which we’ve lived for nearly three months; the tall fields with sugar cane growing along the roads, the endless sandy beaches, the cockatoos squawking overhead, the quaint shops along the various esplanades, the ever-changing skies, the Hawaii-like vegetation and of course, the relatively predictable weather, sunny and warm almost every single
day.

The annoyances that may frustrate a “vacation/holiday” traveler have been in essence insignificant to us; living without screens, the insects, the noisy curlews all night long; the steep driveway requiring an athletic event to take out the trash. We’ve easily managed it all here and comparably, in other countries.

The sand looks lumpy in this photo when in fact is fine and soft underfoot.

As we grow to admire the pleasing perspective of the beauty of those we love, both of us find the same ethereal beauty in our surroundings. Whether it’s a flower, a hummingbird, a koala, a sunrise, or an expanse of sea, it all matters, it all fits into our realm of beauty.

Now, as we wind down our stay in Queensland, Australia, we have no regrets. We saw everything we wanted to see. We did everything we wanted to do and we leave here fulfilled and appreciative for this beautiful place and its equally beautiful people.

It was quiet at Trinity Beach with only a few more visitors than we’ve noticed in the past.

The next step in our year’s long journey takes us to a remote island with bumpy roads, open markets, no TV with the news of the outside world, friendly people, and a lack of many of the conveniences we’ve enjoyed in Australia. Without fear, without apprehension, we continue on with open hearts, open minds, and an eye for beauty. Without a doubt, we’ve changed.

Photo from one year ago today, September 2, 2014:

It was one year ago today that we had the profoundly moving experience of visiting The Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Normandy, France.  The photos and stories continued over a few days.  Please click here to begin.

Thanks to many heartfelt responses from our readers via comments and email…

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Parasitic plants growing on trees are a fascinating way nature provides for a plant that must “borrow” nutrients from thriving trees of many varieties.

What a pleasing response we had yesterday after our post concerning some negative comments from a reader.  We hope the many responses we received in the past 24 hours indicate a general consensus among our readers.

This is where we park the little red rental car.  The door to enter our property is slight to the right of the red car. Since we’re on ground level we have a full wall of windows overlooking the Coral Sea and the beauty of Trinity beach. Andy and Sylvie have two cars, one of which is their sports car shown here.  The open stairway to the right is access to their property above us.  (For security purposes I edited the photo removing the license plates).

If you’d like to read some of those comments, please check the end of yesterday’s post by scrolling down this page, bearing in mind that many readers prefer to remain more anonymous, preferring to send an email.  Either method of communicating with us is appreciated. 

Each day more and more of the leaves on these leaves turns orange. Although it’s winter now, the weather in Queensland is never cold enough for a feeling of a full fall season.

If at any time, you’d like to express an opinion or comment and prefer to do so privately, our email links are listed above the feature photo of the two of us at right top of the page. You can count on a response within 12 hours with the exception of our travel days.

In the US, we had houseplants of this type called Pothos, which were hearty plants that did well without much sunlight and only occasional watering.

Speaking of travel days, a few more are rapidly approaching. In a mere 17 days, we’ll be departing our comfy cocoon here in Trinity Beach to head for an overnight in Sydney, although we’ll be arriving in and out in the dark at 8 or 9 pm and flying out at 6 am with no time to revel in the beautiful city as we did when we arrived on June 11th.  Click here to see our photos of Sydney.

We aren’t disappointed to be unable to spend time in Sydney this time since, over the next 20 months, we’ll be back in Sydney seven more times! Surely, we’ll be able to see the city in more detail during a few of those between-cruises-overnight visits. Sydney is quite an exciting city and although we aren’t big city enthusiasts for the long term, it’s fun to see a big city in shorter stops.

Another tree similar to a houseplant growing on the trunk of a large tree, although the tree itself is of a different variety.

When our ship arrived in the Sydney Harbour early that morning of our arrival, we couldn’t get outside quickly enough. It was a breathtaking experience and most certainly, we won’t be able to resist posting more photos each of these upcoming seven times, the exception being this extra short eighth visit in a few weeks.

We weren’t able to get a direct flight to Vanua Levu, Fiji without waiting for many hours at a tiny airport on the mainland of Fiji.  Instead, we chose the overnight, albeit short, stay in a hotel in Sydney, located at the airport. We’ve found it less stressful and exhausting to try to sleep for a few hours in a hotel than try to sleep in a chair at the airport.

We spotted these red plants in Hawaii on all four islands called Ti Plants. From our loyal reader, Annie: “Cordyline fruticosa probably was native originally to SE Asia and Papua New Guinea, but was carried throughout much of the Pacific by early Polynesians who used the starchy rhizomes for food. Today ti occurs in eastern Australia and on many of the larger islands in the tropical Pacific, including the Hawaiian Islands. They seem to thrive in tropical climates.”  Thanks, Annie for the update!

We recall our intentions in our travels:  ease, joy, and simplicity, a part of our logo which should have included “low stress.” With all the most organized of plans, events may occur beyond our control. If the areas over which we have control are seamless, the unforeseen event will be more manageable. 

With upcoming plans to live in Bali beginning on April 30, 2016, we’ve stayed apprised of the numerous issues regarding canceled flights to and from Bali as a result of the continually erupting volcano, Mount Raung. These frequent eruptions have grounded all flights on countless occasions. 

We don’t recognize this plant with leaves green on one side, burgundy on the back of the leaf.

Should this occur when we travel to Bali, rather than spending days waiting at the airport, we’d prefer to get a hotel room wherever we may be and wait it out enjoying our time until we can board a flight avoiding feelings of stress and worry. 

That’s a luxury we’ve afforded, not due to willingness to spend the money but, more of a desire for stress avoidance which for us becomes a vital aspect of our health and well-being. Sure, there’s a price to pay for that option but we’ve budgeted for such occasions and don’t flinch when the necessity arises.

These sparse trees will be in full bloom once winter is over.

As we continue the remaining time in Trinity Beach, we’ve decided we prefer to continue to visit local sites as opposed to expensive boat trips or overnight mountain excursions. To date, we’ve seen quite a bit of the general area and would like to save a few activities for the future return to Cairns by cruise, hopefully planning an outing with other cruisers we meet aboard the ship or on cruisecritic.com.

It’s Friday here, Thursday for many parts of the world. Whatever day it is for you, may it be an excellent day that finds you well and content.

Photo from one year ago today, August 21, 2014:
Seeing this favorite photo again this morning made us smile when one year ago we visited Highclere Castle, the subject of the well-loved British TV series, Downton Abbey. Although no interior photos of the exterior were allowed with the owners still in occupancy, we took many photos of the gardens and exterior which can be found here. Tomorrow, in our one-year-ago photo, we’ll be sharing a photo and link of the quaint Bampton, the village where the in-town footage was filmed. Charming!

Negative comments from a reader…Torn about responding…

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Sunrise over Trinity Beach.

It’s a rarity that a reader sends us a negative comment. When it does occur, perhaps once a year, I struggle over whether or not to post the comment or to ignore it.

Long ago, we wrote that the intention of our site is about joy and fulfilling dreams, not an arena for negative comments and bantering back and forth in disagreement over topics or comments we’ve made. That doesn’t mean we shy from a discussion. But, in doing so, kindness is always of the utmost importance.

We don’t express political or religious views or present any negative comments regarding any person’s beliefs or preferences. From time to time, I may discuss frustration over the food industry’s money orientated goals of presenting chemical-ridden foods at us in the US markets. If this offends anyone, that’s never been our intent.

Over these past 41 months, since we began posting, we often mention the recovery of health I’ve experienced from changing my diet, a choice I’ve made for life. Tom joined me in this path except when on cruise ships and dining in restaurants.

Through sharing recipes and resources through books and medical research documents, we’ve had an enormous response from readers all over the world who have chosen their own path through their own research. 

In dozens of cases, readers have written to us via private email requesting the book list we compiled that helped me discover my own path which if they choose, may prove to be beneficial for them. 

We never claim to be medical professionals or experts in any of these fields. We always encourage readers to seek professional assistance in choosing their path to improved health. 

We’re simply laypeople, literally hungry to learn ways in which we can extend the quality of life in our senior years, which ultimately adds to the joy of continuing our world travels, hopefully for years to come.

Yesterday, when I received this comment, I struggled over whether or not to upload it to the site. The reader wrote:

“Your husband is right. You obsess over food. It’s annoying and will probably mean I quit reading altogether. I read only about the first couple of paragraphs of this page, scrolling down, and when I came to the recipe, scrolling faster.”

Here is the link to the post on which the above comment was made. (Oftentimes, readers are “catching up” reading posts from months or years ago). This post was uploaded in March 2014 but the comment arrived yesterday. If you’ll click the link to this post and scroll to the bottom of the page, you’ll see comments made by other readers at that time. 

I didn’t post the above reader’s comment online in the “comments” section at the end of the post. I didn’t since it included her name and to avoid publicly using a person’s name to address an issue, I am posting it here without the name.

Now, for my response to the reader which I assure you is done so, not with the intent of criticizing the reader but to address what may in fact be an issue for some of our other readers…our ongoing discussions of food:

Undoubtedly, I make frequent references to food including the shopping, quality of products, my perceived healthfulness of products, our way of eating, recipes, and often photos of meals we’ve had in restaurants or cooked “at home.”

As all of our readers are aware, changing my diet changed my health to such a degree it allowed us to travel the world. Had this not happened, we’d never have been able to travel. I won’t go into all of that again. Most of you know the story.

But, traveling the world is often a story about food and culture. In reading many travel sites, we often find ourselves admiring food photos and stories since for many travelers, it’s all about the food, the great restaurants, the fabulous finds of the “tucked away” spot that filled their bellies and hearts with love and joy, often a treasured story they’ll tell for years to come.

For us and the limitations of my way of eating, we tend to stay away from restaurants in some countries which are more inclined to use flour, sugar, and starch in the preparation of food. 

This reality definitely hinders our experience to a degree. In a way, it’s a limitation, not unlike those that many people experience at some point in their lives. And, we chose to adapt to the best of our ability…finding homemade food, grocery shopping, and recipes bringing us that same kind of pleasure.

Yes, I’m obsessed with food. Always have been. Always was a great cook and loved to entertain. It’s a hobby. It’s a passion. Food is love. And now, for us, food is medicine. And yes, Tom occasionally reminds me about my passion, obsession, and hobby as he gobbles us the next plate of fabulous food, thanking me for a good meal.

Another important point for us, perhaps beyond our personal enjoyment of food is the hundreds that have written to us over these 41 months that have asked for booklists, information on medical research, and recipes that they may decide to peruse in their own search for renewed health. 

If in this process, only one person through gaining inspiration in reading our posts has found a solution through a diet that has improved their health, every single one of the 1112 days that we’ve sat here writing and researching will have been worth it. 

As for the recipes, there are literally hundreds of people that have written to us requesting recipes for a meal we’ve mentioned or a food photo we’ve posted. Instead of spending the recipe via email, knowing there are others less inclined to write, we post the recipe online.

If this above-mentioned one reader decides to stop reading our posts that’s a personal choice and we’re saddened by that decision. It’s easy to scroll past those points that one may find less interesting or desirable to their owns tastes and interests. 

Our goal is not singularly about food. If you’ve had an opportunity to read the posts of the last several days regarding safety it’s evident that is the case. We strive to provide a wide array of topics that may appeal to all ages, those who sit at their kitchen table each morning, a cup of coffee or tea in hand, that travel along with us. 

We feel your presence and appreciate every single one of you.

Photo from one year ago today, August 20, 2014:

We visited the Victoria and Albert Museum for an excellent educational day. For more photos, please click here.

Both of us had a great day at the museum.

Australia’s crime stats…World Crime rate stats…Travelers, please read…

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View of Double Island at a distance.

With all the strife, wars, natural disasters and horrific incidents on the news each day, we’ve particularly enjoyed the Aussie TV news when the majority of it is fun and informative tinged with the typical Aussie playful sense of humor.

Of course, they do report on the heart wrenching international and local news keeping us well informed on worldwide events. A portion of the Aussie news consists of small stories, such as a biker in Brisbane falling off his bike and breaking his arm. Although we felt sorry for the biker, Brisbane is a long way from us and we chuckled over the how the national news carries such a simple news story.

Extra parking in the driveway where we live in Trinity Beach.

Australia’s entire population spread out over this vast continent is over 23 million, comparable to the population of the cities of Beijing or Karachi.

Overall, the crime rate in Australia is low:

“Australia is generally a safe country with a low rate of crime. Statistics show that the homicide rate has actually decreased in almost every state since 2002. Crime statistics are monitored by the Australian Institute of Criminology and the Australian Bureau of Statistics provides comparative breakdowns for different types of crimes.

As we plan to travel to new countries we check out the crime rate (primarily the murder rate) before booking anything.  Yes, we’ve made a few exceptions when motivated by certain aspects of a country we didn’t want to miss. 

Unusual flat leaves on a bush.

In reviewing the chart below, good placement on this chart doesn’t mean one can be laissez-faire with their wallets, cameras, luggage, personal effects, and personal safety. 

(Please excuse formatting issues on this chart due to poor connection, with rankings in far-right column and #218 numbering not listed). To see more detail on this site and inclusions for lost lives as a result of wars, please click here).

UNODC murder rates most recent year
Country Rate Count Region Subregion Year
listed		 Ranking
Burundi 8.0 790 Africa Eastern Africa 2012
1
Comoros 10.0 72 Africa Eastern Africa 2012
2
Djibouti 10.1 87 Africa Eastern Africa 2012
3
Eritrea 7.1 437 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 4
Ethiopia 12.0 11,048 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 5
Kenya 6.4 2,761 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 6
Madagascar 11.1 2,465 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 7
Malawi 1.8 279 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 8
Mauritius 2.8 34 Africa Eastern Africa 2011 9
Mayotte (France) 6.0 12 Africa Eastern Africa 2009 10
Mozambique 12.4 3,133 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 11
Réunion (France) 1.8 15 Africa Eastern Africa 2009 12
Rwanda 23.1 2,648 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 13
Seychelles 9.5 9 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 14
Somalia 8.0 819 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 15
South Sudan 13.9 1,504 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 16
Uganda 10.7 3,753 Africa Eastern Africa 2011 17
Tanzania 12.7 6,071 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 18
Zambia 10.7 1,501 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 19
Zimbabwe 10.6 1,450 Africa Eastern Africa 2012 20
Angola 10.0 2,079 Africa Middle Africa 2012 21
Cameroon 7.6 1,654 Africa Middle Africa 2012 22
Central African Republic 11.8 532 Africa Middle Africa 2012 23
Chad 7.3 907 Africa Middle Africa 2012 24
Congo 12.5 541 Africa Middle Africa 2012 25
Democratic Republic of the Congo 28.3 18,586 Africa Middle Africa 2012 26
Equatorial Guinea 19.3 142 Africa Middle Africa 2012 27
Gabon 9.1 148 Africa Middle Africa 2012 28
Sao Tome and Principe 3.3 6 Africa Middle Africa 2011 29
Algeria 0.7 280 Africa Northern Africa 2011 30
Egypt 3.4 2,703 Africa Northern Africa 2011 31
Libya 1.7 103 Africa Northern Africa 2012 32
Morocco 2.2 704 Africa Northern Africa 2012 33
Sudan 11.2 4,159 Africa Northern Africa 2012 34
Tunisia 2.2 235 Africa Northern Africa 2012 35
Botswana 18.4 368 Africa Southern Africa 2012 36
Lesotho 38.0 764 Africa Southern Africa 2010 37
Namibia 17.2 388 Africa Southern Africa 2012 38
South Africa 31.0 16,259 Africa Southern Africa 2012 39
Swaziland 33.8 416 Africa Southern Africa 2012 40
Benin 8.4 848 Africa Western Africa 2012 41
Burkina Faso 8.0 1,311 Africa Western Africa 2012 42
Cape Verde 10.3 51 Africa Western Africa 2012 43
Ivory Coast 13.6 2,691 Africa Western Africa 2012 44
Gambia 10.2 182 Africa Western Africa 2012 45
Ghana 6.1 1,537 Africa Western Africa 2012 46
Guinea 8.9 1,018 Africa Western Africa 2012 47
Guinea-Bissau 8.4 140 Africa Western Africa 2012 48
Liberia 3.2 135 Africa Western Africa 2012 49
Mali 7.5 1,119 Africa Western Africa 2012 50
Mauritania 5.0 191 Africa Western Africa 2012 51
Niger 4.7 803 Africa Western Africa 2012 52
Nigeria 20.0 33,817 Africa Western Africa 2012 53
Senegal 2.8 379 Africa Western Africa 2012 54
Sierra Leone 1.9 113 Africa Western Africa 2012 55
Togo 10.3 684 Africa Western Africa 2012 56
Anguilla (UK) 7.5 1 Americas Caribbean 2012 57
Antigua and Barbuda 11.2 10 Americas Caribbean 2012 58
Aruba (Netherlands) 3.9 4 Americas Caribbean 2010 59
Bahamas 29.8 111 Americas Caribbean 2012 60
Barbados 7.4 21 Americas Caribbean 2012 61
British Virgin Islands (UK) 8.4 2 Americas Caribbean 2006 62
Cayman Islands (UK) 14.7 8 Americas Caribbean 2009 63
Cuba 4.2 477 Americas Caribbean 2012 64
Dominica 21.1 15 Americas Caribbean 2010 65
Dominican Republic 22.1 2,268 Americas Caribbean 2012 66
Grenada 13.3 14 Americas Caribbean 2012 67
Guadeloupe (France) 7.9 36 Americas Caribbean 2009 68
Haiti 10.2 1,033 Americas Caribbean 2012 69
Jamaica 39.3 1,087 Americas Caribbean 2012 70
Martinique (France) 2.7 11 Americas Caribbean 2009 71
Montserrat (UK) 20.4 1 Americas Caribbean 2008 72
Puerto Rico (US) 26.5 978 Americas Caribbean 2012 73
Saint Kitts and Nevis 33.6 18 Americas Caribbean 2012 74
Saint Lucia 21.6 39 Americas Caribbean 2012 75
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 25.6 28 Americas Caribbean 2012 76
Trinidad and Tobago 28.3 379 Americas Caribbean 2012 77
Turks and Caicos Islands (UK) 6.6 2 Americas Caribbean 2009 78
United States Virgin Islands (US) 52.6 56 Americas Caribbean 2010 79
Belize 44.7 145 Americas Central America 2012 80
Costa Rica 8.5 407 Americas Central America 2012 81
El Salvador 41.2 2,594 Americas Central America 2012 82
Guatemala 39.9 6,025 Americas Central America 2012 83
Honduras 90.4 7,172 Americas Central America 2012 84
Mexico 21.5 26,037 Americas Central America 2012 85
Nicaragua 11.3 675 Americas Central America 2012 86
Panama 17.2 654 Americas Central America 2012 87
Bermuda (UK) 7.7 5 Americas Northern America 2012 88
Canada 1.6 543 Americas Northern America 2012 89
Saint Pierre and Miquelon (France) 16.5 1 Americas Northern America 2009 90
United States 4.7 14,827 Americas Northern America 2012 91
Argentina 5.5 2,237 Americas South America 2010 92
Bolivia 12.1 1,270 Americas South America 2012 93
Brazil 25.2 50,108 Americas South America 2012 94
Chile 3.1 550 Americas South America 2012 95
Colombia 30.8 14,670 Americas South America 2012 96
Ecuador 12.4 1,924 Americas South America 2012 97
French Guiana (France) 13.3 30 Americas South America 2009 98
Guyana 17.0 135 Americas South America 2012 99
Paraguay 9.7 649 Americas South America 2012 100
Peru 9.6 2,865 Americas South America 2012 101
Suriname 6.1 33 Americas South America 2012 102
Uruguay 7.9 267 Americas South America 2012 103
Venezuela 53.7 16,072 Americas South America 2012 104
Kazakhstan 7.8 1,263 Asia Central Asia 2012 105
Kyrgyzstan 9.1 494 Asia Central Asia 2011 106
Tajikistan 1.6 126 Asia Central Asia 2011 107
Turkmenistan 12.8 660 Asia Central Asia 2012 108
Uzbekistan 3.7 1,060 Asia Central Asia 2012 109
China 1.0 13,410 Asia Eastern Asia 2010 110
Hong Kong 0.4 27 Asia Eastern Asia 2012 111
Macao 0.7 4 Asia Eastern Asia 2010 112
North Korea 5.2 1,293 Asia Eastern Asia 2012 113
Japan 0.3 442 Asia Eastern Asia 2011 114
Mongolia 9.7 266 Asia Eastern Asia 2011 115
South Korea 0.9 427 Asia Eastern Asia 2011 116
Taiwan 3.0 686 Asia Eastern Asia 2011 117
Brunei 2.0 8 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 118
Cambodia 6.5 964 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 119
Indonesia 0.6 1,456 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 120
Laos 5.9 392 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 121
Malaysia 2.3 652 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 123
Myanmar 15.2 8,044 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 124
Philippines 8.8 8,484 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 125
Singapore 0.2 11 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 126
Thailand 5.0 3,307 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2011 127
Timor-Leste 3.6 39 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2010 128
Vietnam 3.3 3,037 Asia South-Eastern Asia 2012 129
Afghanistan 6.5 1,948 Asia Southern Asia 2012 130
Bangladesh 2.7 4,169 Asia Southern Asia 2012 131
Bhutan 1.7 12 Asia Southern Asia 2012 132
India 3.5 43,355 Asia Southern Asia 2012 133
Iran 3.9 3,126 Asia Southern Asia 2012 134
Maldives 3.9 13 Asia Southern Asia 2012 135
Nepal 2.9 786 Asia Southern Asia 2011 136
Pakistan 7.7 13,846 Asia Southern Asia 2012 137
Sri Lanka 3.4 707 Asia Southern Asia 2011 138
Armenia 1.8 54 Asia Western Asia 2012 139
Azerbaijan 2.1 194 Asia Western Asia 2010 140
Bahrain 0.5 7 Asia Western Asia 2011 141
Cyprus 2.0 23 Asia Western Asia 2012 142
Georgia 4.3 187 Asia Western Asia 2010 142
Iraq 8.0 2,628 Asia Western Asia 2012 143
Israel 1.8 134 Asia Western Asia 2012 144
Jordan 2.0 133 Asia Western Asia 2011 145
Kuwait 0.4 12 Asia Western Asia 2012 146
Lebanon 2.2 95 Asia Western Asia 2010 147
Palestine 7.4 312 Asia Western Asia 2012 148
Oman 1.1 34 Asia Western Asia 2011 149
Qatar 1.1 23 Asia Western Asia 2012 150
Saudi Arabia 0.8 234 Asia Western Asia 2012 151
Syria 2.2 463 Asia Western Asia 2010 152
Turkey 2.6 1,866 Asia Western Asia 2011 153
United Arab Emirates 2.6 235 Asia Western Asia 2012 154
Yemen 4.8 1,099 Asia Western Asia 2010 155
Belarus 5.1 486 Europe Eastern Europe 2010 156
Bulgaria 1.9 141 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 157
Czech Republic 1.0 105 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 158
Hungary 1.3 132 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 159
Poland 1.2 449 Europe Eastern Europe 2011 160
Moldova 6.5 229 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 161
Romania 1.7 378 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 162
Russia 9.2 13,120 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 163
Slovakia 1.4 75 Europe Eastern Europe 2012 164
Ukraine 4.3 1,988 Europe Eastern Europe 2010 165
Denmark 0.8 47 Europe Northern Europe 2012 166
Estonia 5.0 65 Europe Northern Europe 2011 167
Finland 1.6 89 Europe Northern Europe 2012 168
Greenland (Denmark) 19.4 11 Europe Northern Europe 2009 169
Iceland 0.3 1 Europe Northern Europe 2012 170
Ireland 1.2 54 Europe Northern Europe 2012 171
Latvia 4.7 97 Europe Northern Europe 2012 172
Lithuania 6.7 202 Europe Northern Europe 2012 173
Norway 2.2 111 Europe Northern Europe 2011 174
Sweden 0.7 68 Europe Northern Europe 2012 175
United Kingdom 1.0 653 Europe Northern Europe 2011 176
Albania 5.0 157 Europe Southern Europe 2012 177
Andorra 1.3 1 Europe Southern Europe 2010 178
Bosnia and Herzegovina 1.3 51 Europe Southern Europe 2011 179
Croatia 1.2 51 Europe Southern Europe 2012 180
Greece 1.7 184 Europe Southern Europe 2011 181
Italy 0.9 530 Europe Southern Europe 2012 182
Kosovo 3.6 64 Europe Southern Europe 2010 183
Malta 2.8 12 Europe Southern Europe 2012 184
Montenegro 2.7 17 Europe Southern Europe 2012 185
Portugal 1.2 122 Europe Southern Europe 2012 186
San Marino 0.7 x Europe Southern Europe 2012 187
Serbia 1.2 111 Europe Southern Europe 2012 188
Slovenia 0.7 14 Europe Southern Europe 2012 189
Spain 0.8 364 Europe Southern Europe 2012 190
Macedonia 1.4 30 Europe Southern Europe 2011 191
Austria 0.9 77 Europe Western Europe 2012 192
Belgium 1.6 182 Europe Western Europe 2012 193
France 1.0 665 Europe Western Europe 2012 194
Germany 0.8 662 Europe Western Europe 2011 195
Liechtenstein 0.0 0 Europe Western Europe 2012 196
Luxembourg 0.8 4 Europe Western Europe 2011 197
Monaco 0.0 0 Europe Western Europe 2008 198
Netherlands 0.9 145 Europe Western Europe 2012 199
Switzerland 0.6 46 Europe Western Europe 2011 200
Australia 1.1 254 Oceania Australasia 2012 201
New Zealand 0.9 41 Oceania Australasia 2012 202
Fiji 4.0 35 Oceania Melanesia 2012 203
New Caledonia (France) 3.3 8 Oceania Melanesia 2009 204
Papua New Guinea 10.4 713 Oceania Melanesia 2010 205
Solomon Islands 4.3 24 Oceania Melanesia 2012 206
Vanuatu 2.9 7 Oceania Melanesia 2012 207
Guam (US) 2.5 4 Oceania Micronesia 2011 208
Kiribati 8.2 8 Oceania Micronesia 2011 209
Micronesia 4.6 5 Oceania Micronesia 2012 210
Nauru 1.3 x Oceania Micronesia 2012 211
Palau 3.1 x Oceania Micronesia 2012 212
Cook Islands 3.1 x Oceania Polynesia 2012 213
French Polynesia (France) 0.4 1 Oceania Polynesia 2009 214
Niue 3.6 x Oceania Polynesia 2012 215
Samoa 3.6 7 Oceania Polynesia 2012 216
Tonga 1.0 1 Oceania Polynesia 2012 217
Tuvalu 4.2 x Oceania Polynesia 2012

There is no country, city, locale, or venue that is entirely safe. We need only keep an eye on the news to discover this reality. For us, a vital aspect of travel has been being as diligent as possible in regard to our personal safety, and yet, we still run the risk of becoming victims of crime, no matter where we may travel. 

After all, our own home country, the US is ranked #91 on this list, certainly on the higher end of the scale.  Seeing Australia ranked as #201 is not surprising to us. Also, with Fiji ranked at #203, which we’d checked long ago before booking Fiji, gives us peace of mind.

The beginning of the driveway heading down the hill doesn’t look steep in this photo, but it’s very steep.

Although we don’t spend time worrying about crime, we feel that knowledge is power. Protecting our stuff has been relatively easy with all the safety measures we have in place, which we’ll be sharing in tomorrow’s post along with a horrific vacation rental story that was in the news. It’s in protecting our physical selves that leaves us at the most risk.

Traveling to relatively safe countries certainly reduces those risks and staying away from high-risk cities, especially at night reduced the risk. No matter how diligent any of us maybe we’re never exempt from risk.  We often hear of tourist attacks on the news and pay considerable attention. The fact that we seldom dine out, walking streets at night to get to our car or a taxi, also reduces the risk. 

We’ve yet to use the hot tub in the yard for a few reasons, neither of us cares to use hot tubs and secondly, the cost to heat the hot tub and to keep it heated, if we used it, would be outrageous for the owner who pays all the utilities. 

We’re not implying that one shouldn’t dine-in at restaurants. (We tend to avoid restaurants when the food is a potential risk for me which varies from country to country based on how they season and add sauce to their protein sources. Australia is big on marinating and saucing their food). However, it may be safer dining out during daylight hours and avoiding dark spaces at night. 

The side yard off of the kitchen. Many of the huge plants in Australia are used as small houseplants back in the US.

Then again, we hear horrible stories of daylight hours incidences in cafes and on buses. One could make themselves crazy worrying about every potential situation. We ran some of the same safety risks in the cozy town where we lived in Minnesota, USA.

It’s difficult to climb up to the rainforest in the backyard.  Without trails, it would be tricky to explore.

For us, we choose to opt on the side of seeing that which we’d love to see, whether it’s a busy high-risk marketplace, a stroll along a potentially risky beach, or a visit to a country in which we can see wildlife. After all, we’ve already been to Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Jordan, Tanzania, and on and on…all in the higher-risk categories.

We’ll continue to stretch ourselves to see that which appeals to us.  Last night on TV, we watched a fabulous TV show, “The Lost City of Petra (Jordan)” which seeing in person was one of the major highlights of our journey to date. We’d have missed this life-changing experience had we let fear rule our decisions.

Had we been too cautious in our travels, we’d have missed the opportunity to see this unbelievable site and to enjoy our photos for the rest of our lives of The Treasury in Petra, Jordan. For our Part 1 Petra on this memorable day, please click here. For Part 2, please click here.

If you have the opportunity to review these two above referenced posts, it becomes evident why we often choose to pull something out of the “bucket list” although there may be some risks, resulting in an extraordinary experience that we’ll never forget.

We continue on tomorrow with a scary vacation rental story, a must-see for all travelers who use online vacation rental sites.

Photo from one year ago today, August 17, 2014:

The Eurostar formerly referred to as “The Chunnel.” We were excited for a chance to travel on this train, one year ago, when we needed to get from Paris to London. Traveling on a train under the ocean was definitely a mode of transportation we anticipated with excitement. We weren’t disappointed, although many of our perceptions were dispelled.  For more details, please click here.

Nuances of vacation homes…One year ago…Total expenses for 16 nights in Paris…Check it out below!

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This cockatoo settled on the fence at the pool.

Only once, since beginning our travels outside the US, did we vacate a property when we weren’t happy with the accommodations. We stayed for a painstaking week while we furiously scoured every possibility to find another affordable rental. Prices were high in Belize during the season, winter in the northern hemisphere.

Belize, located in Central America, had become popular over the prior decade with its relatively short distance from the US making it a popular mid-winter vacation destination. Availability was limited on the more affordable properties especially with our short notice request for occupancy.

We discovered a new beach on a return drive from cairns, Machans Beach which is a modest beachside community the closest beach to Cairns City. Travelers staying in Machans beach usually do so to escape the busy hustle and bustle and a large number of tourists that flock to Cairns and many of the other northern beaches each year. Due to staunch protests from the locals at Machans Beach tourist infrastructure such as hotels and resorts have remained at bay creating a tranquil and unspoiled hippie-style beachside community.
There were several issues with the property, making it inhabitable for us.  The city water was shut off most of the day (a long term, ongoing situation), on for about one hour and then off again. We were supposed to collect water to use for the toilet when the water would be off for the remainder of the day and night.  If we didn’t shower when the water magically came on at an unpredictable time to a dribble, we were out of luck. 

Doing the laundry was nearly impossible. Simple things like washing our hands become a luxury. We felt dirty and our surroundings felt unsanitary. It only took a few days for us to realize we had to leave permanently as fast as possible. 

Although Machan’s Beach has been subjected to substantial erosion that has been rectified by a rock wall and the slow but gradual return of lost sand, there is still plenty of beaches to enjoy and a lush grassy playfield by the beach that is great for playing sports, picnics or spending time with the family.

On top of it all (long term readers, please excuse the repeated story) the no-see-ums were swarming us when there were either no screens or the holes in the few screens were too large allowing the sand flies them to freely enter. It was hot, humid and we wanted the windows open which was impossible. 

I had no less than 100 inflamed sand fly bites making me miserable both during the day and at night. I was unable to sleep for more than a few hours a night for an entire week. 

It was an awful seven days until we finally found a fabulous resort to rent for the remaining two-plus months and quickly moved out, losing our first month’s rent which the owner had promised to refund.

Recently, the completion of the rock wall ended with a well deserved party for the locals who tolerated the trucks coming and going over an extended period as the wall was built.

Of course, we’d never have rented the property had we known of these issues. We weren’t naïve in assuming that living in other countries would be easy. But, we weren’t willing to risk our health as a result of improper sanitation and lack of cleanliness without water. We’d purchased several huge jugs of bottled water at times having no choice but to use it for the toilet and cleaning what we could.

We never saw a refund. What were we to do? Sue them? Did we want to start our world journey with a lawsuit in a foreign country? Hardly.

If you’re interested in reading the story about the fiasco in Belize and seeing the photos from this period, please begin by clicking here.

A lone sea bird at Machans Beach.

That was our first vacation home outside the US. At that point, it would have been easy to pack it up and head back to the US. But, that never occurred to us. We knew we’d encounter some less than desirable situations and we were committed to figuring them out along the way.

If money were no object, we’d run into less of a risk by renting only upscale properties. And, although at times we’ve been able to negotiate some upscale properties, most of our vacation rentals are in the mid-range and overall, very nice with amenities we’ve found to pleasing.

Here in Trinity Beach, Australia, this property has been much more desirable than we’d expected. We’ve learned to keep our expectations at bay and were pleasantly surprised when we arrived continuing to further appreciate it here the longer we stayed. 

Dozens of cockatoos have been swarming the yard over several of the past late afternoons, stopping to check out the pool.

The owners, Sylvie and Andy, have gone overboard to ensure we have an excellent experience and unquestionably, we have. The well equipped property; the cleanliness; their providing additional items we’ve needed; their vacuuming and washing the floors for us every two weeks (while we sweep and dust in the interim) and their warmth and friendliness, all have contributed to a highly positive experience.

When we look back at past vacation rentals, overall, we’ve had great experiences once that first week in Belize was behind us. Now, as we look to Fiji, we realize were in for a totally different way of living than we’ve experienced thus far in modern, abundant Australia.

These birds are very noisy wasting no time in announcing their arrival.

I added a measuring cup and measuring spoons to my next grocery list to include in the box of food items we’re accumulating to ship to Vanua Levu, Fiji.  People don’t bake while on vacation/holiday. We don’t expect there to be a muffin tin, baking papers or lemon extract for our Low Carb Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, one of which we have each night with dinner as the ultimate two carb treat providing us with that sense of a small bread item with the meal.

We won’t have a clothes dryer and will hang our clothes outside to dry as we’ve done in most parts of the world. Having a dryer here has been a rare treat. We won’t have a TV and unable to hook up our HDMI to watch our shows, nor will we be able to watch news which we often have on in the background on a staying-in day. 

The biggest challenge will be not having a car. Mario, the property manager, explained that navigating the steep hill to the property requires a four-wheel-drive vehicle which to rent for three months would be outrageously expensive. He further explained that a highly competent driver will be available for our all of needs at reasonable rates. 

With the fees we’ve paid for rental cars in the past, we can easily use a driver five times a week for less than we’ve paid for the rentals. Most likely, we’ll negotiate set fees with the driver (to include a tip) to various locations avoiding the necessity of discussing the rate each time we go out.

This appears to be an agave plant. Agave sugar was the rage a few years ago. But, now its been found to cause a higher spikes in blood sugar than high fructose corn syrup causing weight gain and inflammation.

Also included in Fiji is daily maid service which is a mixed bag for us. I like running around and tidying up. I don’t even mind cleaning and making the bed, tasks we both share. With daily maid service, each day, we’ll have to get out of the way for whatever time it takes for the maid to clean up. 

Since both of us arise early and are showered and dressed by 7:30, most likely we’ll arrange a set time making it easier for all of us. While living there, my household tasks will consist of cooking and laundry while Tom will continues to do dishes.

The remainder of our time will be spent doing what we love to do; posting here, sightseeing and taking photos, searching for future travels, shopping at local markets, walking the beach and enjoying the tropical climate and the beautiful surroundings. 

Wildflowers growing in the yard.

Some have mentioned, based on personal experience, that they don’t like Fiji mainly due to the poverty. We’d decided long ago to accept the reality of poverty we’ll see throughout the world. 

Although we don’t necessarily live in the poverty-stricken areas, we often shop in the same markets and make purchases from the same vegetable stands and from the same vendors utilizing the products and services offered by these hard-working locals.

Not every vacation home has all the amenities we’d chose in a perfect world. In essence, its the imperfections in the world that ultimately we find the most interesting and its our own imperfections within that world that we strive to improve as we adapt to yet another new way of life.

Photo from one year ago today, August 16, 2014:

Tom’s last dinner out in Paris ended with this banana split. While dining out during the month we spent between Paris and London, Tom ate whatever his heart desired. It wasn’t until we settled into our next vacation home in Maui, Hawaii in October 2014,  that I started cooking again and he joined me in my way of eating.  For the final expenses for our costly 16 nights in Paris, please click here.