Part 2…You can run, but you can’t hide…We couldn’t escape it!…

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We still are experiencing symptoms of Covid, but in the past 24 hours, we have noticed a vast improvement. We no longer have headaches, brain fog, sore throats, and coughing. We both still feel tired, but a quick nap now and then seems to help. Hopefully, by tomorrow, we’ll both test negative and can proceed with the upcoming cruise as planned.

Tom suggested we wait to document our potential backup plans should we test positive on Saturday and Sunday. Thus, we haven’t planned what we’ll do if the Sunday test is positive. It will be over a week for Tom and one day short of a week for me, so we are hopeful.

At this point, Tom is trying to stay optimistic that we’ll be able to board the ship, while I am not so sure. Having to change everything would be time-consuming and frustrating. Nonetheless, we both are hopeful we can proceed with our plans.

While in Southampton, we’d intended to meet with friends/readers for dinner, but now she has Covid and has been suffering from similar symptoms but is also on the upswing. Based on my pre-existing cardiovascular disease, my biggest concern was that it may hit me hard. That concern has dissipated as I am feeling on the mend.

Since I don’t eat fast food, finding a suitable meal was tricky. Last night for dinner, we ordered takeaway food from Deliveroo, a food delivery service here in England. Tom’s food arrived from TGI Fridays without issue. Deliveroo failed to deliver my meal from a different restaurant.

I contacted Deliveroo to explain that my food hadn’t arrived, and they said the driver waited at the hotel for nine minutes and we never came down. I instructed the front desk to call us when the food arrived. Either the driver didn’t come inside, or the reception desk staff didn’t contact me as required. Now the company will not issue a refund. This frustrates me.

For my dinner, I ordered food from the restaurant/bar in the hotel, which proved to be an excellent meal, albeit pricey. But, after yesterday’s delivery fiasco, we’ve decided to eat in the hotel this evening. We wore our masks to breakfast and will do the same for dinner if we choose to eat in the bar at a distant table. The incubation period for Omicron is about three days, which we have passed, but still, we are being careful to avoid others.

In contacting the corporate office, supposedly, they are working on a resolution. If I don’t hear back today, I’ll have no choice but to get the credit card company we used to see if they can do something about it. Most often, they can. We’ll see how that rolls out—another minor annoyance to address.

Of course, while we are here in Southampton, we won’t be doing any sightseeing as initially planned. There’s no way we are feeling chipper enough to venture out, nor would we under the circumstances. We’re comfortable in this hotel room and only hope our last night here will be tomorrow.

So that’s it for now, folks. We won’t know our test results until tomorrow night when we do the test, but we will report the results here as soon as we know them.

Thanks to our readers who have written to us with the warmest of wishes for a speedy recovery so we can continue with our plans in the future. There aren’t many photos to share right now, and honestly, I do not feel up to taking any right now.

Be well.

Big Daddy is such a handsome animal. Photo from one year ago today, April 22, 2021:

We purchased six of these two-test self-administer kits using our unused cabin credit while on the ship

Serious travel dilemma…What shall we do?…

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Narrow and The Imposter, who imitates Tiny, but Tiny overpowers him, hence the name.

As we approached the seven-day countdown of leaving Marloth Park, we’ve encountered a serious problem. After spending hours online, we cannot find a location in Minnesota where we can get the Covid-19 vaccine, including any-type let alone the Johnson and Johnson single dose, which we’d prefer, that we’ve heard is more effective against the South African variants.

Peter, Paul, and Mary visit us often.

Since Minnesota recently opened up the vaccine for those over 16 years old, including seniors, we didn’t realize how difficult it would be to get the vaccine when we arrived in Minnesota. It looks a little easier in Nevada but that doesn’t help us for the time we’d hoped to spend with family in Minnesota.

Plus, we noticed that Covid tests in the US are US $385, ZAR 5664, per person since we don’t have US insurance. We only have international insurance, which won’t pay in the US. We’d hoped to get tested every few days while in Minnesota visiting family. We’d also hoped to get the vaccine and be tested every few days to be safe when visiting family. But at these prices, it makes no sense to get tested three times a week. That’s outrageous!

This leaf-like insect stopped by for another visit.

After checking dozens of sites with varying information, we found that the best time to book appointments in Minnesota is between midnight and 4:00 am, their time. This morning, we bolted out of bed in plenty of time to begin the search during their suggested time frame based on the time difference. Nothing was available anywhere in Minnesota

Some sites stated that appointments aren’t booking out any further than April 7th, but even in that case, no appointments were available for any upcoming dates. It’s not looking good.

Encountering giraffes on our way to Jabula for dinner.

Our concerns about infecting our family and/or being quarantined for 10 days after we arrive, make this a very difficult scenario. We’d only planned to stay for 15 days. We are in a tough situation. Many of Tom’s family members, whom we’d see, the majority of which are in their 80s and 90s years. We cannot risk infecting them or even other family members.

Of course, our risks of getting the virus are exponentially higher after traveling for 37 hours, spending over 12 hours waiting in airports, and the remainder of the time spent in flight than one would spend during a one-leg flight. When we arrived in South Africa on January 13th, we’d spent 59 hours in transit.

Zebras prefer to drink from the pool as opposed to the birdbath.

We’d hoped to visit Tom’s sister, Sister Beth, who is a nun in a nursing home, in Milwaukee during our stay. Now, that is entirely off the table. Also, Tom’s eldest brother Jerome is in a nursing facility and the same requirements for visitors are in place. We’d be unable to visit either of these siblings, let alone the others who, as mentioned, are senior citizens as well.

Sure, we should have done more research before booking a return to the US. But, who knew we wouldn’t be able to get a Covid-19 vaccine and also have no choice but to pay these outrageous sums for frequent tests. A test here in South Africa is US $50, ZAR 735.

Tiny, searching along the perimeter of the garden for a possible stray pellet.

Of course, we are in a quandary, unsure, at this point of our next step. We will report back tomorrow, which, by then, definitively, we will have made a more comprehensive decision, safe for all of our family members and ourselves.

These are times of Covid-19. Everything we knew is different than in our old lives. We must proceed with caution and concern for others and for ourselves. As for the visa issue, we are less concerned in that area. The South Africa immigration department has extended all recent visas to June 30, 2021. But, that wouldn’t be an issue beneficial to us since our intent has been to get the vaccine in Minnesota and see family.

Please check back tomorrow!

Photo from one year ago today, April 1, 2020:

There was always a chicken on the beach in Kauai. For more year ago photos, please click here.