Fantastic day with a dear friend from the 1980s…Louise sent a precious photo from Marloth Park…

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Our dear friend Lisa on the left, and her friend Vicki on the right. We had a fantastic day and evening!

Yesterday was delightful, seeing our old friend Lisa, whom I met in the 1980s in Minnesota. Now a Florida resident, it was such a pleasant surprise to have an opportunity to see her again. The last time we saw Lisa was in 2017 when we got together with her and her now ex.

Over the years, Tom became a good friend of Lisa’s too, which has been the case with many of each other’s friends since we met almost 32 years ago. How fortunate we are to have such good friends all over the world. And now, being in Florida, having the opportunity to see many of those friends.

Lisa’s friend Vicki, whom we met for the first time, also from Minnesota, drove here with Lisa, almost a 90-minute drive, and we had a fantastic day with the two of them. They arrived at 1:30 pm, and we all sat in the comfy living room and chatted, reminiscing over many experiences we had together.

We felt terrible for Vicki having to listen to our seemingly endless trip “down memory lane,” but she was a good sport and laughed along with us over our many memories. The time flew by quickly, and by 4:00 pm, we headed out in Lisa’s car and headed to City Fire in Brownwood Paddock Square.

With no available seating outdoors, we headed inside the restaurant and were seated at a booth where we ordered drinks and later dinner. Again, the conversation flowed with ease, interspersed with much laughter. It was a lovely evening. By 8:00 pm, we returned to our house and said our goodbyes.

As it turns out, Lisa will be in Minnesota while we’re there in September, and we’ll definitely get together again. This time we’ll be in Minnesota a little longer than usual while we await our upcoming cruise to Galapagos, and we’ll have more time to get together with old friends. There are so many people we’d love to see once again.

Also, while in Minnesota, we’ll be appearing on TV on a morning news broadcast scheduled for September 22. We’ll update you and post the details and a video when the time comes.

On another note, this morning, after our walk, we called dear friend Louise in Marloth Park, South Africa, to wish her a happy birthday. It was wonderful talking to her. After we spoke, she sent me a photo that made me squeal with delight, as shown below:

This photo was taken at Louise and Danie’s home in the bush; Norman, Nina, Natalie, and the Babysitter (a female bushbuck who follows them as they roam their territory).

Louise told me that Nina was pregnant again. Before we know it, the Nyala family will consist of five members: Norman, Nina, Noah (who was scooted off to his own territory when Natalie was born), Natalie, and the new baby, who should be born shortly before we arrive next June. An unrelated female is being released in the bush as a mate for Noah, which miraculously, he will surely find. Then, there will be more babies.

Yes, I know, I sound like I really miss the bush, and I do. But, we are enjoying each day in The Villages as they come and look forward to our upcoming adventures in the meantime. In no time at all, we’ll be back on our way to South Africa.

Today, we’re hanging around the house, and we’ll head to Brownwood late this afternoon for another evening of fun and dinner. Most likely, tonight, for a change, we dine at one of the other restaurants in Brownwood.

Have a fantastic weekend, and be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 24, 2013:

Tom, dressed for warmth on a chilly day, enjoying time on the veranda in Boveglio, Tuscany, Italy. The WiFi signal was so poor there that we had to be outdoors for a decent connection. Nonetheless, we had a great time. For more photos, please click here.

Sad loss of life for an adventure…OceanGate’s Titan submersible disaster…An interesting perspective…

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The few photos we’re sharing today as those we copied from various news sources posted yesterday and today that are readily available online regarding the loss of five lives, venturing in a small submersible, the Titan, to the bottom of the sea to the location of The Titanic, which sunk on April 15, 1912. (Many photos I tried to copy were security locked. For more photos, please search online).

Today’s story is for those who live in countries where the news of this event may be limited or for those who don’t necessarily watch or listen to world news. Surely, those in the US who do watch the news have been bombarded with a constant stream of news on TV regarding this sad story.

First, as sad as the lives of these five adventurers are, so is the loss of any of our beloved family members and friends in many types of disasters worldwide that never hit the news or draw attention to the media. All lives are precious, regardless of one’s notoriety or wealth or the cause of death. But, stories such as this become highly newsworthy based on the uniqueness of the circumstances.

I am not here to espouse any opinions on the reasons for this event. Each of us is free to formulate our own opinions. Also, with no expertise in this area, there’s no need or benefit for me to express personal views on how or why this event occurred. I am only sharing the news gleaned from a variety of news sources.

The Titan Submersible.
The Titan submersible. OceanGate Expeditions is one of the only companies that offer the tours, with tickets costing up to $250,000O. OceanGates photo.

As for opinions, here is an article from James Cameron, director of the movie, The Titanic, that I find interesting, which may present a perspective based on his vast experience that is worth reading for those of you who may be interested. For those of our readers uninterested in this story, we apologize for spending an entire post on this story and will be back to our usual content tomorrow.

Here’s the article about James Cameron from the BBC article found here. (I made no corrections in this text).

“Titanic director James Cameron accuses OceanGate of cutting corners

By Rebecca Morelle
Science Editor, BBC News

Hollywood film director James Cameron, who directed the 1997 movie Titanic, has told the BBC the team who built the submersible, which imploded with the loss of five lives, had “cut corners”.

OceanGate, the parent company of the Titan sub, “didn’t get certified because they knew they wouldn’t pass”.

“I was very suspect of the technology that they were using. I wouldn’t have gotten in that sub,” he said.

Cameron has completed 33 submersible dives to the Titanic wreck.

Titan was built from carbon fibre and titanium.

In 2012 Cameron used a different technology for the Deepsea Challenger submersible expedition in the Pacific, which took him down to 10,912m (35,800ft), the deepest known oceanic trench.

The Titanic wreck is 3,810m (12,500ft) down.

Cameron said that when he learned the sub had lost both its navigation and communication, he immediately suspected a disaster.

“I felt in my bones what had happened. For the sub’s electronics to fail and its communication system to fail, and its tracking transponder to fail simultaneously – sub’s gone.”

He said that on Monday, when he heard the sub had gone missing, “I immediately got on the phone to some of my contacts in the deep submersible community.

“Within about an hour, I had the following facts. They were on descent. They were at 3,500 metres (11,483ft), heading for the bottom at 3,800 metres.

“Their comms were lost, and navigation was lost – and I said instantly, you can’t lose comms and navigation together without an extreme catastrophic event or high, highly energetic catastrophic event. And the first thing that popped to mind was an implosion.”

On Thursday, an official from the US Navy told the BBC’s partner CBS News that the navy had detected “an acoustic anomaly consistent with an implosion” shortly after the Titan lost contact with the surface.

The official said the information had been relayed to the US Coast Guard team, which used it to narrow the radius of the search area.

Cameron suggested that there was a “terrible irony” in the loss of Titan and its crew, likening it to the loss of the Titanic itself back in 1912.

“We now have another wreck that is based on, unfortunately, the same principles of not heeding warnings,” he said. “OceanGate were warned.”

Cameron said that some within the deep submergence community, not including himself directly, had written a letter to OceanGate saying they believed, in his words, “you are going on a path to catastrophe”.

A letter sent to OceanGate by the Marine Technology Society (MTS) in March 2018 and obtained by the New York Times stated, “the current ‘experimental’ approach adopted by OceanGate… could result in negative outcomes (from minor to catastrophic)”.

Separately, US court documents show a former employee of OceanGate warned of potential safety problems with the vessel as far back as 2018.

The documents show that David Lochridge, the company’s director of marine operations, raised concerns in an inspection report.

But the co-founder of OceanGate insisted however that Titan had undergone rigorous testing.

Guillermo Sohnlein left the company 10 years ago and told the BBC that the 14-year development programme had been “very robust”.

“Any expert who weighs in on this, including Mr Cameron, will also admit that they were not there for the sub’s design, for the sub’s engineering, the sub, the building of the sub and certainly not for the rigorous test programme that the sub went through.”

The Titan sub was not certified, but then this is not mandatory.

In a blog post about it in 2019, the company said the way that Titan had been designed fell outside the accepted system – but it “does not mean that OceanGate does not meet standards where they apply”.

It added that the classification agencies “slowed down innovation… bringing an outside entity up to speed on every innovation before it is put into real-world testing is anathema to rapid innovation”.

Cameron told BBC News the past week had “felt like a prolonged and nightmarish charade where people are running around talking about banging noises and talking about oxygen and all this other stuff”.

“I knew that sub was sitting exactly underneath its last known depth and position. That’s exactly where they found it,” he continued.

He said anyone venturing to the Titanic wreck should be fully aware of the risks, as “it’s a very dangerous site”.

“Agree to those risks, but don’t be in a situation where you haven’t been told about the risks of the actual platform that you’re diving in there.

“In the 21st Century, there shouldn’t be any risks. We’ve managed to make it through 60 years, from 1960 until today, 63 years without a fatality… So, you know, one of the saddest aspects of this is how preventable it really was.”

No doubt, this event is very sad and terrifying when thinking of the fear the occupants of the Titan must have experienced if they were alive after the malfunction of the vessel.

For many, taking risks for the sake of highly charged adventures poses the potential for injury and loss of life. To a degree, we appreciate and understand the desire for some individuals to put their lives at risk for such an adventure. Although we’ve never taken such a massive risk as this, we have embarked on certain adventures that elicit an element of fear coupled with excitement that truly can be a life-changing event, adding to one’s personal growth.

We’ll be back with more tomorrow, with friends visiting today.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 23, 2013:

The café and entrance to the only restaurant within a 1/2 hour drive from Boveglio, Il Cavallino Bianco, is quaint and charming. For more photos, please click here.

More stormy weather…Ten years ago…Boveglio, Tuscany, Italy…

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This Bed and Breakfast is a few hundred feet from our door. See the post here.

With storms moving through each day and the golf cart being our only means of transportation, we haven’t been out yet this week. The last time we were out was dinner on Sunday night with Lea Ann and Chuck when we returned to the Blue Fin in Brownwood Paddock Square.

I am getting a touch of cabin fever, although we’ve thoroughly enjoyed the past days staying in. We always do. A few days ago, Tom asked me if I was bored. I assured him I am not bored at all. He isn’t bored, either. We always seem to be busy when we stay in, totally entertained.

Here it’s 10:00 am now. Tom has been talking to daughter, Tammy, in Minnesota for the past hour, and I’ve got laundry going. As soon as he’s off the phone, we’ll walk since it’s not raining right now. Yesterday, we missed the walk due to the weather. It was windy and rained all morning.

Initially researching Boveglio, we were excited that this bar and restaurant was within walking distance. Unfortunately, we never asked the owners of our house, Lisa and Luca, if it still was in operation. It has closed down as a public facility, now occupied by its owners. The economy has spared no small businesses in Italy, as we discover as we travel the world.

If the rain stays away for a few hours, we may head out to go to the post office. I have been ordering a few things from Amazon to take on the upcoming cruises. Usually, Amazon delivers directly to us at the house. But, the items I ordered were from an outside vendor, and they only shipped for free using the United States Postal Service, which doesn’t deliver to the houses in The Villages, which is weird.

Instead, there are mailing stations at each of the various villages, and snail mail for us comes to the Fernandina postal station, which is about a ten-minute golf cart ride. We’ll head out once our Kroger grocery order arrives today between 11:00 and 12:00 am.

We love getting our groceries delivered. When I go to the big supermarkets in the US, I buy too much since I am in awe of all the products I haven’t been able to buy for the past several years. By shopping online, I am less tempted to buy products I may not be able to use in time before we depart.

The houses across the street from us.

It’s been fun shopping online at Kroger. When I notice I am low on a particular item, I add it to my Kroger shopping cart on my phone or laptop. We can use coupons online by simply clicking on the coupon. The credit card we use to purchase groceries has a program whereby they offer discounts on grocery items as they are purchased. We’ve saved hundreds of dollars since we’ve been shopping online while here.

On July 14, dear friend Karen is picking us up to return to their new home we haven’t seen. We’ll spend the weekend with her and Rich, and she’ll bring us back on Monday. We appreciate her willingness to transport us both ways when it’s a two-hour drive each way. We’re excited to see their new home on a river and enjoy what surely will be a fun weekend with them.

Tomorrow, our dear friend Lisa (we’ve been friends since the 1980s) and her friend Vicki will arrive at 1:30. We’ll hang around here for a while and then head out to dinner. We’re also looking forward to seeing Lisa again. We hadn’t seen her since 2017 when we all went to dinner in Minnesota.

Flowers were blooming near our exterior door.

We loved seeing our friends here more than we ever expected when we booked the house in The Villages. We’ve had a great time with our old and new friends.

Tonight, we’ll finish our Chinese food left from yesterday’s takeaway and have another pleasant evening. Life is good.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 22, 2013:

In this area, a diagonal line crosses the village’s name as one leaves a village. Notice the hairpin sign, one of many on our ride down the mountains to Collodi, the town large enough to find groceries, a pharmacy, supplies, and sundries, roughly a 30-minute drive from Boveglio. For more photos, please click here.

We have our passport renewals in hand!…Summer solstice today…

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Photo from one year ago today from this post. When Bad Ear walked along the dirt road, as soon as I call him, he makes a sharp turn and came to visit. It only took him a few days to learn the sound of my voice and his name.

Our passports arrived last week, but preoccupied with topics on past posts; we hadn’t mentioned we had received both passports by FedEx. What a relief! It’s good that we came to the US to accomplish this task, and now we’re good for another ten years. We’d considered ordering second passports while here; however, the amount of paperwork left us anxious for a break.

Sometime in the future, when we return to the US for an extended period, we’ll tackle that job. Next, we will renew our driver’s licenses in Nevada in September, as mentioned in past posts, and we’ll have these two big tasks out of the way.

Today, again, we’ll review all the countries we’ll be visiting beginning in August to ensure we don’t need to apply for any visas while we’re still in the US. Once that’s out of the way, we can sigh with relief and know that almost everything is in order. The only additional task is to sign up for travel insurance a week before we depart since the cruise line requires it, and we feel more at ease having emergency insurance while sailing and visiting other countries.

We’ll only sign up for the insurance a week before departure. I have our Cozi Calendar marked to remind me. Also, since we’ll only be outside the US from July 29 to September 1, we’ll only order the insurance for that period since the insurance doesn’t cover our time in the US, and we’ll be visiting family for about a month.

Then, when we head to South America around October 1, we’ll order the insurance again in three-month increments while we’re there. At this point, our goal is to return to South Africa on June 15, 2024, but we may decide to return sooner, depending on how much we’re enjoying the time in South America.

Big Daddy kudus and impalas in the garden, one year ago today.

As always, when possible, our plans are fluid. We love having the option to make changes if we desire when a location isn’t fulfilling our goals and objectives. We can do so now that airlines are more flexible about allowing flight changes. When it comes to booked holiday homes, there are penalties for cancellations in most cases.

As a result, we plan only to book a few months at a time while we’re in South America and remain able to book the unique locations that appeal to us the most in between holiday home rentals. This way, we don’t have to pay for a holiday home while on other adventures.

Again today, we planned to drive the golf cart to Brownwood to play bingo at City Fire American Oven and Bar at 3:00 pm. With stormy weather predicted all day, we don’t feel it makes sense to drive with the prospect of rain and winds, especially when the golf cart doesn’t have windshield wipers. It’s been raining in the past 24 hours, pretty hard at times.

Instead, we’ll stay in and order Chinese food for tonight and tomorrow. I love the steamed dishes and egg foo young, while Tom is a big fan of sweet and sour dishes and fried rice. Today, we ordered off the lunch menu and reheat the food at dinner time. Doing so saved almost $30 when ordering enough for two nights.

Chinese food is such a treat for us when it hasn’t been available to us for the past several years, except for the few times we’ve been in the US. We also like Mexican food, but it doesn’t seem easy to order it appropriately for my way of eating unless we dine in a Mexican restaurant. I can easily explain how it should be prepared for me, which we’ve only done once since we arrived here.

We’re fine staying in again today during the inclement weather. We’re as content as we could be. Today is the summer solstice as described here: “The summer solstice, also called the estival solstice or midsummer, occurs when one of Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere.”

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 21, 2013:

There were no photos posted ten years ago, but there is a post about an earthquake we experienced in Italy ten years ago on this date. Please click here.

Difficult to meet new people…No more company coming until Friday…

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When they returned to the property on Saturday night, holiday home renters in Marloth Park found this genet (wild cat) sleeping on their bed. This photo was posted on Facebook’s Marloth Park Sighting Page.

We’ve had a great time seeing so many friends since we arrived in The Villages seven weeks ago. With only a little over five weeks to go until we leave, we hope to see more friends and, if possible, make new friends while we’re here. We anticipated it would be easy to meet people when we go out to dinner on our own, but we’ve found it’s not as easy as you’d think.

Using Jabula Lodge and Restaurant as a reference for meeting people hasn’t served us well. There, it’s so easy to approach and be approached by other guests at bars and restaurants to engage in lively conversation. The commonality of loving nature and wildlife is an easy segue to initiate conversation and lively banter.

But, here, many locals are part of well-established groups and don’t seem to initiate or respond to communication from strangers like us. This was the same when we lived in the US almost 12 years ago. We could go out for years and never meet new people.

If we ask a question in an attempt to initiate a conversation, the response is usually a one-sentence answer, and the respondent goes back to what they were doing or otherwise private conversation.

Wildlife…in The Villages…a giant snail.

We still have many people we could contact to get together, but time is going by so quickly we may not get to everyone. Plus, we are enjoying free time for just the two of us with the easy pace of daily life. In the last two weeks, before we leave on July 28, we’ll be busy sorting and packing since we’re sending a suitcase to Minnesota to lighten our load for upcoming domestic flights we’ll be on in the next few months.

Once the two cruises are over, with the final cruise disembarking in Boston, we’ll see my cousin Phyllis for dinner one night, and then we’ll fly to Nevada and Minnesota. Tom is checking costs for baggage right now as I write this to determine if shipping the bag makes financial sense.

As it turns out, the excess baggage fee for multiple flights is $374. If we ship one bag to our upcoming hotel in Minnesota by a company called “Luggage Free,” we can save $186.

We brought one extra bag to accommodate the almost one year we’ll spend in South America, including warm weather clothes and safari clothes we’ll need for our various wildlife adventures.

Also, we needed to bring warm clothes for our time in Norway, Greenland, Iceland, and Canada, where it will be cold even in the summer months. Then, when we get to Nevada, it will be sweltering in the summer months, as high as 110F, 43C. Most of the time, we’ll be indoors at the Green Valley Ranch Spa and Casino in air-conditioned comfort, but we’ll be heading out to dinner with son Richard, and to the DMV to renew our driver’s license.

Fortunately, we could now book appointments for our driver’s license renewals. Several years ago, we couldn’t do that, and we had to get in a long queue outdoors for over an hour. This time, with an appointment, we should be able to enter the building upon arrival.

Tonight, we’re staying in for dinner and a quiet evening of streaming our new fantastic binge-worthy drama series on Apple TV, The Morning Show. If you haven’t seen this series, I assure you, it’s well worth watching.

Have a great day, and be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 20, 2013:

See the two blue chase lounges at a distance at the house in Boveglio, Italy? That is another patio for our sunning time every few days. Due to the dense vegetation, there are lots of bees. Tom and I both have allergies to bees, thus limiting our time in that spot. For more photos, please click here.

More fun times with friends in The Villages…

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We’ve had a great time with friends Lea Ann and Chuck.

Lea Ann and Chuck arrived at the house exactly at 3:00 pm as planned. It was wonderful to see them. Although we’ve talked and stayed in touch via social media over the years, we haven’t seen them in six years. How time has flown! As mentioned in yesterday’s post, we met them on a cruise in 2017 on a cruise from Sydney to Seattle.

We’d only spent a few hours with them since the cruise was about to end, but the four of us hit it off and stayed in touch. When they arrived yesterday, we picked up right where we left off, and the conversation flowed easily and enthusiastically.

Us, last night at the Blue Fin while waiting for an indoor table with Lea Ann and Chuck.

As frequent world travelers, they both had similar stories to ours, although they have a home in Florida. They thanked us for encouraging them to embark on their travel journey and have spent a lot of time in places we’ve visited in the past. They even stayed in the house next door to the holiday home we rented in a remote area of Bali in 2016, loving the experience we had as well.

We’ll be anxious to hear about their nine-month world cruise beginning in December, which we discussed in yesterday’s post. They are very excited about this unique opportunity.

We get a kick out of customized golf carts.

We sat in the living room and chatted for an hour or so and then headed to Brownwood, where we once again went to the Blue Fin for dinner, a repeat after Friday night when Karen and Rich were here. Since it was Father’s Day and the restaurant was packed, we had a long wait to get a table but sat outdoors on their veranda, having a great time, and each had a drink while we waited for a table indoors.

We were finally seated indoors. It was hot and humid outdoors after the previous day’s rainstorm, and we all agreed that dining indoors would be more comfortable, and it certainly was.

My dinner was a shrimp salad. It was ok. I don’t like curly lettuce like this.

Back at the house by 8:30 pm, we served dessert, and again, the four of us lounged in the living room, telling endless stories of our travels, including some outrageous experiences that are unavoidable during long travels. It was interesting to hear their similar ups and downs, knowing we weren’t alone in the challenges one meets traveling long term.

By 11:30, I started fading and headed to bed, and Tom joined me about an hour later while the three of them continued the lively conversation. I wished I could have stayed up longer. As I write here at almost 10:00 am, Lea Ann and Chuck are still sleeping. As soon as they awaken, we’ll make breakfast.

Lea Ann and Chuck both had the grouper topped with crab and a white sauce.

This afternoon, they’ll be back on the road to return to their home in Dunedin, which is a two-hour drive from here. Once again, we’ve had a fantastic time with friends. In the past 24 hours, I heard from my dear friend Lisa whom we haven’t seen since 2017. On Friday, she and her friend Vicki are heading here for a visit.

Lisa and I have been friends for about 35 years, meeting in the late 1980s. Over the years, we, too, have stayed in touch, and it will be wonderful to see her again and meet her friend Vicki.

We haven’t had much of an opportunity to get together with all of the readers who contacted us. We apologize for this. We assumed we’d have plenty of time to do so, but time has slipped away as it often does. In only 39 days, we’ll be on our way to Scotland. How wonderful that we’re so enjoying our time here and yet, have so much awaiting us in the future.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 19, 2013:

My bathroom in the 300-year-old stone house in Boveglio, Italy, where we stayed for three months. Tom took the smaller bathroom in our bedroom. There’s no tub, and the shower is small, but it serves its purpose. For more photos, please click here.

Happy Father’s Day to Tom, our sons, family members and friends…

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Today, Father’s Day is celebrated around the world in many countries. I wish I could have made this day special for Tom, but we decided not to fuss over our birthdays and holidays long ago. We don’t have room in our bags for gifts, and spending money on cards and decorations makes no sense.

Usually, I make a special meal and dessert for Father’s Day, but today, our friends Lea Ann and Chuck are arriving at 3:00 pm, and a few hours later, we’ll be heading out for dinner to one of the town squares. Since Lea Ann is a pescatarian, returning to the Blue Fin in Brownwood Paddock Square makes sense; where we dined with Karen and Rich on Friday night and enjoyed an excellent dinner.

What is a pescatarian (for those who don’t know), it is the following:

“The pescatarian diet is a vegetarian diet that includes fish or other aquatic animals. The word “pesce” means fish in Italian, so those that emphasize fish in their plant-based diets have come to be called by this term. Sometimes these healthy eaters are also called pes-co-vegetarians or pescetarians.”

Pescatarians eat the following:

Pescatarians Do Eat

  • Whole grains and grain products
  • Legumes and their products, including beans, lentils, tofu, and hummus
  • Nuts and nut butter, peanuts, and seeds
  • Seeds, including hemp, chia, and flaxseeds
  • Dairy, including yogurt, milk, and cheese
  • Fruits
  • Vegetables
  • Fish and shellfish
  • Eggs

Nowadays, it is essential to ask what type of diet works for guests coming for a meal. They’ll have dessert with us tonight when we return from the restaurant and breakfast in the morning. Depending on when they’d like to go out, I may make a cheese, vegetable, chip, and dip platter at the last minute. I have plenty of items that will suit Lea Ann’s way of eating.

Tom, in the archway at the 300 year old stone house we rented in 2013. See the post here.

They, too, have been traveling the world extensively over the past few years, and although they have a home in Florida, they are frequently on the move. We met them on a cruise in 2017 and have stayed in touch since then. Early on, they picked our brains for world travel tips.

In no time at all, they had it all figured out. It’s been fun to see their countless excellent posts and photos on Facebook and their website, found here. They’ll sail on a world cruise from December 2023 to September 2024. It will be fun to follow along with them. What an adventure this will be for them!

We’ve often thought about doing a world cruise for many months (in their case, nine months), but both of us feel that for us, such a long cruise will detract from the enjoyment of shorter cruises which still are a novelty to us. Being on a ship for so long doesn’t appeal to us, but someday I may eat my words.

Many of these world cruises sail to many locations where we already sailed, so there would be a lot of redundancy. It will be fun to hear Lea Ann and Chuck’s feedback when it’s over, which I am sure we will.

This morning we walked, had a lovely breakfast of mushroom, cheese, and onion omelet with bacon, and laundered our bedding. Yesterday, we did the guest room bedding and cleaned the bathroom, and everything is ready for our next round of guests.

Since we don’t have a house cleaner more than once a month, each morning after breakfast, I clean the kitchen. The only issue I have with doing so is the front of the refrigerator which is stainless steel, and every little smudge or fingerprint shows. I can’t stand for it to look dirty, and cleaning it without streaks is a real challenge.

The best solution I’ve found so far is using a stone and steel cleaner the owner has available here and spraying only a tiny amount, and then wiping gently with paper towels applying only a small amount of pressure. If I rub too hard, it streaks. Go figure. Please let me know if any of our readers know of a better solution. We’ve never experienced this issue.

That’s it for today, folks. To all the dads, have a special day with your loved ones.

Be well.

Photos from ten years ago today, June 18, 2013:

This is the 300 year old stone house we rented in Boveglio, Italy, for three months beginning on this date ten years ago. For more photos, please click here.

Fantastic time with Karen and Rich…

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Last night, Tom enjoyed his fish and chips at Blue Fin Restaurant at Brownwood Paddock Square. I had tuna steak, Brussels sprouts, and asparagus.

Last night was probably our best meal since we arrived in The Villages. We’d eaten at the Blue Fin Restaurant with friends Carol and Mark when they visited about a month ago, and Tom and I hadn’t tried it again since. It was good that time but last night, it was even better.

The Villages are not known for having the best restaurants in Florida, perhaps due to the slightly lower prices than in other parts of the state. With 90% of the population over 60 years old and many on fixed incomes, a restaurant wouldn’t survive in this area at higher prices.

Many of the establishments are chain restaurants, which we weren’t familiar with since most are in the southern part of the US. After spending so much time outside the US this past almost 11 years, we are unfamiliar with many businesses, shops, and restaurants.

Karen had grilled trout, Brussels sprouts, and mashed potatoes.

It was wonderful to be with Karen and Rich again, for the second time since we arrived here almost seven weeks ago. Gosh, how time flies. The four of us are working on deciding on dates for us to stay with them for a few nights at their new home sometime in July.

Since we don’t have a car, they’ve offered to come to pick us up after they visit Karen’s mom Donna, who we visited a few weeks. Ago, Donna lives in Leesburg, only a 15-minute drive from us. Karen explained she’d be happy to pick us up when she leaves her mom’s after an overnight stay and bring us back a few days later.

We hesitated to let them do all the driving. It’s a two-hour drive each way. But, after being with them this past day and evening, we’ve decided we’d love to accept their generous offer. We’d love to be with them again and see their new home.

Karen and I have been friends for almost 20 years and have always been very close. The more time we can spend together, the better. And Tom and Rich have become good friends. Last night, after we returned from dinner, the “boys” sat on the lanai while Karen and I had much treasured “girl talk” in the living room.

Rich had fried calamari, sea bass, and Brussels sprouts.

Later, everyone had the apple crisp I’d made (not me) topped with ice and whipping cream. We all stayed up until after 1:00 am, which was late for us. Somehow, we all managed to get enough sleep. I didn’t doze off until 2:00 am and awoke at 4:00 am but returned to sleep, awakening around 8:00 am. I stayed in bed, playing with my phone, until Tom finally awoke at 9:45.

We bolted out of bed, and I showered dressed and rushed to the kitchen to make breakfast for our guests. After breakfast and a short chat, they needed to head out to see Donna, who was looking forward to their arrival. Once they left, we did a load of laundry, cleaned up the kitchen, and did a little planning for tonight’s dinner.

We won’t go out tonight since our next guests, Lea Ann and Chuck, who arrive tomorrow, and we’ll all be heading out to dinner tomorrow night. It’s a fun and busy weekend.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 17, 2013:

It was fun seeing the canals in Venice. For more photos, please click here.

Tom remembers everything…Guests arriving tonight…

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An excellent spot for relaxation.

It always makes me laugh when I prepare the “Photo from ten years ago today…” and ask Tom, “Where were we ten years ago today?”

Ninety percent of the time, his answer is correct. That amazes me. It’s odd how he recalls dates and locations and always leaves me with a smile on my face. On the other hand, I remember the names of small towns, people, and expenses. We can remember many aspects of our almost 11 years of world travel.

Sure, at some point, as we age further, we may not be able to recall as well. But, when we forget, we’ll only need to bring up a post from the date((s) of our experiences, and everything will be there for us to read, peruse photos and instantly return to a series of memories from any specific date and time in our lives.

If that were the only reason we did this each day, it would be sufficient enough for us to be grateful for our efforts. But, add to that the joy of sharing it with readers, family, and friends worldwide. The love and support we’ve received from readers has been indescribable.

When I try to explain this in conversation, I always add how grateful we are that we don’t have haters writing to us with toxic vitriol. Then, of course, the fact that our readers are so tolerant of typos, spacing issues, and writing flaws that I am not exempt from making on a daily basis. All of this means the world to us.

If someone had asked me 12 years ago if I would be willing to write an essay with photos every day of my life, I would have laughed, saying it was impossible. Sure, reporters and business and entertainment writers write the equivalent of an essay(s) each day when they prepare stories. But that is a job, and although some may love their job, nonetheless, it’s a job.

For us, we don’t look at it as a job. We look at it as a labor of love. Our love for traveling the world and living a home-free life has only been enhanced by sharing stories and photos with all of you. No, it’s not perfect, nor will it ever be. We don’t strive for perfection. If we did so, preparing posts would be a source of stress. In part, we chose this life to avoid stress.

The countless golf courses in The Villages create a beautiful ambiance in the area.

The only times we feel stressed is when something happens beyond our control, and we’re helpless to change it. But, even if we can’t change a particular scenario, we certainly can and do come up with plans to adapt (and accept) the situation. We have been tested over and over again, and yet, somehow, we maintain a sense of commitment and dedication to our lifestyle.

There are many bonuses besides the enrichment and pleasure of seeing new places worldwide, which generally revolve around people and wildlife, as most of our readers know so well.

This weekend will illustrate how enjoyable being with friends is when tonight, Karen and Rich arrive, and on Sunday, Lea Ann and Chuck. We are grateful for all our friends, whether we knew them from our old lives, like Karen and Rich, or we met them in our travels, like Lea and Chuck.

This morning we’re busy cleaning the house. Tom does the floors and his bathroom while I do the kitchen, dust, and clean our ensuite bathroom in our bedroom. This morning after breakfast, I got busy with laundry and baking a dessert for both evenings that our friends will be here. In a matter of minutes, we will finish the cleaning and laundry, and the desserts will come out of the oven. I made two separate pans of gluten-free apple crisp, and we have plenty of vanilla ice cream to go with it.

Have a fantastic weekend. We’ll be back with you soon.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 16, 2013:

As our ship made its way to the port of Venice, our mouths were agape in surprise as a feast before our eyes. For more photos, please click here.

Remembering Marloth Park’s treasures…Stunning photos posted by locals…Upcoming busy weekend with houseguests….

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Photo by Hanlie de Wit. Bushbabies were checking out the action.

Every morning, before beginning the post, I check out Marloth Park’s Sighting Page on Facebook for any new wildlife sightings, not so much to post them but to see what’s happening in our absence. Today, June 15, is the date we’ll return in 2024, twelve months from today.

It’s not that I wish the time to pass quickly while we’re away. We’re enjoying our time in Florida and will surely enjoy the three upcoming cruises. But, no doubt, I think about it often and miss our human and animal friends in the bush. Life is easier here, and the heat, humidity, insects, and other annoyances in the bush.

But, when we are there, all of that is incidental, and we find ways to stay comfortable and adapt to the surroundings since the benefits and joys are many. The weather here in Florida is as hot and humid as in South Africa. The dew point has been higher here many days than we’d ever experienced in Marloth Park in the summer months. The difference here is the whole-house aircon that stays on 24/7, keeping us cool and comfortable.

Photo by Meryl Venter. Lions in our old neighborhood.

It’s impossible to have a whole-house aircon in the bush with all the load-shedding issues and the unaffordable cost of electricity. It’s just not affordable for homeowners providing holiday homes with reasonably priced holiday rentals. Plus, it’s not practical with doors open and no bug screens.

When I checked Facebook this morning, I was thrilled to find the three new photos we posted today, giving credit to the photographers for such fine and unique shots. Taking pictures in The Villages is challenging. The houses are somewhat cookie-cutter from the exterior.

Next week, we plan to look at some houses for sale and prepare a post sharing what we’ve found. No, we aren’t looking for ourselves, but we thought sharing photos and pricing with our readers in a post would be fun. We’ve looked at some houses for sale at different points during our years-long travel journey since it’s interesting to both of us.

Photo by Meryl Venter. A leopard in Marloth Park, one of several.

On another note, we have a busy weekend coming up with two visits from separate couples, friends Karen and Rich on Friday and friends Lea Ann and Chuck on Sunday. No sooner than one couple leaves, we’ll hurry and wash the sheets and remake the guest room bed and clean the bathroom for the next visit.

In both cases, for these one-night stays, we plan to dine out for dinner to show our guests the fun squares we’ve visited in the past. We’ll most likely go to Spanish Springs Town Square and Sumter Landing on each of the two nights and have breakfast here in the mornings.

Soon our Kroger grocery store online order will arrive. We’ve included bread, fruit, and juice for our guests (which we don’t eat), along with eggs and bacon, sufficient for both mornings. Seeing our friends again and enjoying quality time together in this lovely place will be fun.

As for today, we have excellent leftovers from ordering Chinese food last night that was enough for two nights. We’re really enjoying the delicious food from Sunrise Asian Restaurant. It’s too far to pick up the food driving in the golf cart, so we’re taking advantage of the Grubhub free delivery we receive by being Amazon Prime members.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 15, 2013:

No photos were posted on this date, ten years ago. For the story posted, please click here.