Day #194 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Package from hell…

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We’d been thrilled to see the intricate beauty of a red dragonfly that visited each day in Bali.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2015 while staying in Sumbersari, Bali. For more on this date, please click here.

Over the past several days, we’ve gone back and forth with FedEx India about receiving our package from the US, which was shipped here in July and had been sitting in New Delhi since then. With dozens of email messages back and forth, often waiting a week for a response, phone numbers on their website that don’t answer, don’t work, or the lines are always busy, we are at our wit’s end.

Bonfire on the river next to the beach.

The value of all of the items we insured was around US $800, INR 58658. As a result, we rounded it off and insured it for US $1000, INR 73322, as a precaution. Based on the insured amount, they value the contents, and we are being charged US $947, INR 69406 in customs taxes and fees. Oh, good grief. It’s frustrating. We will never order another package from the US again! We’ve had our fill of these frustrating and stressful situations.

Even plain leaves may be symmetrical and beautiful.

Today, we received a notice stating the package was delayed further since we haven’t paid the customs fees. There is nowhere online at their site to pay the fees! They then suggested we pay in cash!  We don’t have that kind of money on hand in rupees. We’d have to go to seven ATMs to get enough money that would expose us to the virus, seven times over. Why can’t we pay with a credit card?

The endless varieties of “growing things” Mother Nature bestows upon our earth is astounding.

This morning, when I went downstairs to pay this past month’s bill with a slip of paper, I asked the front desk for their help, including the amount, the tracking number, and phone number. The management staff emphatically stated they must take a credit card. They are working on resolving this for us.

When we first arrived for our second stay in Bali, I noticed this red dragonfly, as shown in today’s main photo, fluttering around the two koi ponds by either side of the front entryway. Much to my delight, it returns almost every day to the exact location.

When we’ve called, there is a language barrier making communication difficult. Hopefully, soon, the hotel staff will call us back with a resolution. This is so frustrating we both could scream.

Many varieties of coconut trees are found throughout the world. These are a different variety than we’d seen in other countries, with a softer flesh.

Also, in the past 24-48 hours, I’ve received zillions of email messages from our readers who haven’t received our automatic daily email messages with the latest post. I’ve tried to respond to each one when finally, as of this morning, our web developers had resolved the issue. What a relief! Thanks! If you are not receiving the emails and have signed up, please let me know by email.

The tiniest and most straightforward blooms can be breathtaking.

We’ve finished our US taxes with our accountant in Nevada, our home state, paid our tax bill, and can put that behind us until after January 30 pops up again. Also, yesterday I worked on #4 of the required five 2000 word posts for website optimization and will be done by Monday. From there, I’ll have one left, which I’ll complete next week. Only then will I sigh with relief, especially if we have received the package from FedEx by then.

This frog is not unlike the frog visitor we saw almost every day in South Africa over the years.

Today, the front desk informed me that the restaurant would be opening soon while I paid the recent bill. This isn’t necessarily of interest to us. We have felt safe dining in our room these past many months. Not wearing a mask while eating doesn’t necessarily give us peace of mind when people we know have contracted the virus from dining in restaurants, as far as they could tell. We’ll continue to dine in our room for both breakfast and dinner each day.

Plumeria is often used to make leis in Hawaii. In Bali, they’re also used for religious offerings and decorations.

Could our level of frustration be higher than usual right now due to our circumstances? Most assuredly. But, as always, we’ll pull ourselves “up by our bootstraps” and get it together. Receiving that package containing our new passports will surely let us relax while we continue to wait out our options.

We’ve found these pretty flowers throughout the world, from the bougainvillea in Kenya to Bali.

Have a peaceful day! We’re working on it!

Photo from one year ago today, October 3, 2019:

 This photo of a lamb on the farm in Witheridge, Devon, England, sent us swooning with delight. For more photos, please click here.

Day #193 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Hawaii, almost seven years ago…

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Here we are at Liliuokalani Gardens in Hilo, Hawaii, in 2014. Sam, our friendly taxi driver, took the photo.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2014, describing a port of call at Hilo, Hawaii, the Big Island, while on a cruise through the Hawaiian Islands. For more on this date, please click here.

One may wonder why, in 2014, we chose to embark on a cruise through the Hawaiian Islands, when in fact, we’d be staying on four islands for a total of seven months. We’d always been curious about the 9-night Hawaiian Islands cruise which sailed from Vancouver, British Columbia, ending in Honolulu, Oahu.

The scenery along the shores of this river in Hilo is lovely.

The decision proved worthwhile when we had an opportunity to see a few ports of call we wouldn’t necessarily visit while staying in Oahu, The Big Island, Maui, and Kauai. We spent the first 13-nights staying in Waikiki Beach in a condo, one of few holiday homes we didn’t enjoy. The photos on Homeaway looked good, but the tiny, expensive suite was dated, worn, and overall uncomfortable.

An enchanting footbridge in the gardens.

Another lesson was learned at that time…avoid taking property at face value, based only on its photos with only a few good reviews. We’d faltered in that area when we booked our first holiday home in Placencia, Belize, in early 2013, moving out a week later due to many inequities and issues with the property, undisclosed by the owners. We’d lost the rent money and didn’t feel like taking legal action right at the beginning of our journey.

We entered the Port of Hilo, Hawaii.

As time passed, we became more and more particular. Fortunately, the holiday homes on the other three islands were excellent and, as stated in the online listings. With our kids and grandchildren coming for the holidays to the Big Island for Christmas, we were satisfied we’d made decent choices for the two houses we rented, next door to one another, with room for all of us.

The park was lovely.

But, today’s photos are only from that one-day port-of-call on The Big Island to the oceanfront city of Hilo, a modern metropolis of typical US demeanor; lots of malls, restaurants, tourist traps, hotels, and shops lining the boulevards. In our travels, our goal has always been to stay away from busy, crowded cities, but at times, this was impossible to avoid.

The last time we went to a Walmart, a store we never visited in our old lives, was in Mexico on January 6, 2013, when we got off the ship, the Celebrity Century, to purchase our first camera. Here’s Tom in front of the Hilo, Hawaii Walmart.

That day in Hilo, we accidentally got on the wrong bus (very much unlike us to make such an error), ending up at a Walmart store. We took advantage of the fact we needed some items, making a few purchases. Not usually Walmart customers, we found the prices to be good for Hawaii where most things are overpriced.

After our short shopping spree, we decided to take a taxi back to the ship but instead landed a great taxi driver in the Walmart parking lot, who took us on a tour of some of the highlights in Hilo. It proved to be a good decision when we enjoyed our unplanned time, as shown in today’s photos.

Leis for sale in a refrigerated case at the Walmart store.

Later on, staying on the Big Island with our family, we visited Hilo a few more times, mainly for food shopping for our big group at the two houses and a trip to the big mall with one of our daughters-in-law. How the time has flown! Gosh, that seems as if it was a long time ago when it was almost six years ago.

Today, I had a late start working on the post and found myself a little distracted. I spent the entire morning, after oversleeping to 9:00 am, going back and forth with our accountant in Nevada, working on our taxes for 2019, for which we’d filed an extension. When we were first in lockdown in this hotel, I didn’t have to gather the tax information to send to our accountant, so we asked him to file an extension. The filing is due on October 15, and now, thank goodness, we’re done.

Our ship is behind the Pacific Princess in the foreground.

On top of that, I am still working with our web developers on problems with some, not all, of our readers signing up to receive our daily posts but not receiving them. We’re working on a solution to figure out why. If this has happened to you, please check your spam folder and accept our incoming posts. Also, you will be sent a confirmation email which you must accept to receive the posts.

Please let me know if you aren’t receiving the emails within a week while we figure out the issue. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Have a great day. Be well. Be safe.

Photo from one year ago today, October 2, 2019:

After considerable guidance, they guided the sheep to the barn on the farm in Devon, England. He was a competent shepherd. For more photos, please click here.

Day #192 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Is Hawaii an option for us?….

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This bleeding heart so well depicts Hawaii’s gorgeous colors.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2014, while we were in Honolulu, Hawaii. For more on this date, please click here.

Today, several flights have opened up that will be allowed to fly out of India. They include; Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai, and Bahrain. None of these options are appealing to us for the following reasons:

  1. Singapore: We’ve been there twice, staying for a week the second time. Singapore is a clean and safe country but offers no countryside and is all cement with tall buildings, although with many added trees and flowers. We saw what we wanted to see there, and based on the population and crowded venues, we’d have no interest in returning.
  2. Malaysia: We’ve been there in the past. Very pretty in some areas. Very crowded. Low incidence of COVID-19. But, Malaysia doesn’t appeal to us at this time.
  3. Dubai: We spent two weeks in Dubai in 2013, living in a high-rise condo complex and visiting most tourist hot spots. Lots of cement, high-rise buildings, and no countryside. It was not appealing to us for a return.
  4. Bahrain: We’ve never been there but aren’t interested in visiting the Middle East at this time.
Wow! The greenery and flowers in Hawaii amazed us as we walked the streets of Honolulu taking these photos.

Also, yesterday, a newly published document from South Africa has banned travelers from India and the US, a double whammy for us. Also, there are no flights out of India to Africa at this time. Otherwise, we’d visit other African countries and wait to enter South Africa.

We continue to receive thoughtful email messages from our readers stating they’ve read about the countries we may be able to visit that have opened their borders. However, we’re out of luck if India, particularly Mumbai, doesn’t offer flights to those countries. The international airport is still officially closed in India. As of now, there’s no discussion as to when it will re-open.

Many exquisite flowers bloom year-round in Hawaii.

If, at some point, we get tired of waiting, we’ll always have the option to return to the US. But, until there’s a viable vaccine or the numbers of cases drop considerably, we feel safer staying in the safety bubble of this hotel. If something comes up, we’d be ready to leave in 24 hours, although most countries require a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 72 hours of arrival to enter.

In that case, the hotel driver will take us to a drive-up testing center, and we’ll receive our results by email the same day. Now, we await our package from FedEx before we can consider leaving, regardless of possible flights becoming available.

We seldom find orange flowers, but in Hawaii, flowers are prevalent.

We’ve considered the possibility of returning to the US to stay in Kauai, Hawaii, until the virus issues settle down. Overall, Hawaii has had a low incidence of COVID-19. As US citizens, we wouldn’t have to worry about visa restrictions. However, we’d need to get health insurance for me which would be very costly since I never signed up for Part B Medicare, and to do so now would be more expensive than if we’d signed up seven years ago. There’s a penalty for not signing up at 65 years of age. Go figure.

Also, groceries and dining out are expensive in Hawaii, as well as rental cars. At the moment, we’re living here for approximately 40% less than it would be in Hawaii. In Hawaii, vacation home rentals usually result in taxes and fees of an additional US $1000, INR 73417, per month over and above the rental rates.

Tom is thrilled to be in Hawaii.

If we wait to travel to Africa, we can live there for approximately 20% less than we’re paying in this hotel in India with meals. At this point, we’re living well below our budgeted amount. Hawaii would exceed our budget. So, as appealing as this idea is, we have to shelve it.

I can’t recall seeing yellow hibiscus.

In other states in the US, holiday home rentals are very high, especially in warmer climates. We’re not interested in staying in a tiny condo in a snowy, icy location at this point. Few US states have warm weather in the winter months, at least none of which appeals to us right now. Plus, the lockdown and amount of COVID-19 in many states are also off-putting. We don’t want to trade this weird situation for another, not much better.

Beautiful!

Instead, we’ll continue to wait, dealing with our mountains of “paperwork,” website-related tasks, finalizing our taxes with our accountant in Nevada. And of course, dealing with FedEx on the still-undelivered-package from the USA. Nonetheless, we’re grateful for what we do have right now, as opposed to what we don’t. We’re safe, cool, partially entertained, fed with no housework. Plus, we have each other. That’s a huge benefit!

Stay well.

Photos from one year ago today, October 1, 2019:

One year ago, we posted photos from 2015 while we were In Fiji. While there, we stopped on the road to take photos of the sea, but my eyes caught something moving at a distance. Getting out of the car where there was no fence to keep these piglets contained, we squealed with delight, as did this little white piglet who seemed happy to see us. For more photos, please click here.

Day #191 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…The US Presidential Debate???…

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The flowers that lined the walkway from the main building at Lantana Galu Beach in Diani Beach to the outdoor path were absolutely breathtaking.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2013, while we were in Diani Beach, Kenya. For more on this date, please click here.

Note: Yesterday, when editing our 2000 word post on my chosen way of eating low carb/keto, I’d made a few errors on the links for the recipes. Last night, a few of our readers/friends brought this to our attention, when we made all the corrections. You may review the edited post here.

My dinner that night: Seasoned grilled red snapper with sautéed non-starchy vegetables

Currently, in the background, we’re listening to the US Presidential Debate. With the time difference between the US and India, it wasn’t available to us until this morning on YouTube. As always, we do not express political views on this site. Subsequently, we’re not expressing any comments or views. We respect each individual’s views and fully believe in a friendly, opinionated, and lively discussion. But, our site is not an arena for such conversations. Thank you for understanding.

I listen to countless podcasts unrelated to politics and often find myself annoyed by the podcasters using their podcasts to espouse their own views. Whether I agree with them or not, I switch to another podcast. If I want to listen to political pundits and often questionable news, I am free to do so, even while here in India.

Notice the lack of veggies on Tom’s plate? He requested they be placed on a separate plate to be handed over to me. I did the same with my potatoes, handing them over to him as shown at the far right of his plate..

Each time I walk the corridors I listen to a variety of podcasts, mainly centered around health and well-being. I can’t learn enough. After yesterday’s 2000 word post on the low carb/keto way of eating, we’ve adopted since 2011, we were thrilled and surprised at the positive response we received.

Times are changing, albeit slowly, over how the low fat, high carbohydrate, low protein way of eating has impacted the lives of people all over the world with more and more Type 2 diabetes and other inflammatory auto-immune diseases. It could be another decade until these changes are universally accepted. I continue to follow scientists, doctors, and other medical professionals who’ve realized the way “we were told to eat” may have been wrong.

After our walk back to the main building, once again, we were mesmerized by these gorgeous fresh flowers.

OK, on to the FedEx package. We received the replacement credit card in the letter envelope, two months later, after filing lots of personal information with FedEx in order to receive it. In the interim, the box of supplies we ordered from our mailing service in July had recently begun the custom fees assessment, after we sent in the same personal documents.

Last night, Tom received an email from FedEx, stating we owed.INR 69406, US $940.56 in custom fees! The value of the contents is only ½ this tax assessment! How can the tax be 200%? We replied by email and await a response, notifying them that there must be an error. I looked online and custom fees generally don’t run more than 28%. Now, this becomes another frustrating hassle we’re hardly in the mood to tackle. Hopefully, today this will be resolved.

The buds for the sweet-smelling flowers were intoxicating, as in a fine perfume.

It’s hard to believe how much we’ve had to handle these past few months. You’d think that being in lockdown would limit one’s responsibilities. Alas, our perceptions were wrong. The reality remains…”You can run but you can’t hide.” Regardless of where we are in the world, we have to deal with filing taxes, paying taxes, handling insurance, website updates, paying bills, and other personal and financial matters.

Wouldn’t this make a lovely bridal bouquet?

Often people presume our lives of world travel consist of simple living in beautiful places all over the world. In some ways, this may be true. Embarking on this lifestyle, we had no delusions that responsibilities would follow us. Lately, in light of COVID-19, and its lengthy lockdown, it’s been a time when we’ve been busier than ever. Perhaps, staying busy has been good for us and when we look back, once we’re back out in the world, wherever that may, we may reflect on this time as productive and worthwhile.

Time to go now. I need to look up our credit card balances to pay them all off on bill pay, on the first of the month, go for another walk, make yet another call to FedEx, get to work on the remaining two-2000 word posts I’ve yet to start and on and on…

Just as we began to exit the main door, this red plant caught Tom’s eye.

We’ll be back…

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Photo from one year ago today, September 30, 2019:

These ducks and chickens are on a mission at the farm in Tiverton, Devon, England. For more photos, please click here.

Day #185 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Six months in confinement…Package hell…

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Sunset reddened clouds reflecting in the pool at our Bali villa.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2016, while we were living in Sumbersari, Bali, Indonesia. For more on this date, please click here.

When there was no post on this date in 2013 in Kenya, I scoured each year on this date and landed on our time spent in Bali in 2016. Seeing the above photo of the exquisite infinity pool in the villa overlooking the sea sent my mind into a tailspin. Oh, would we appreciate that now!

Many passersby carry needed supplies along the beach.

The total four months we spent at this villa were divided into two separate stays;  after the first two months we left and headed to Singapore to visit three embassies to acquire much-needed visas;  then from Singapore to Vietnam and Cambodia on a Mekong River cruise and land tour. From there, we spent 42 days in Phuket, Thailand, returning to Bali for the second two months.

We loved the villa in Bali, especially the veranda, pool, and cabana where we spent the majority of our days, lounging, talking, laughing, swimming, and watching a wide array of activities transpiring on the beach. Each new day presented unique and interesting scenes, unlike anything we’d seen on any beach in the world.

Gede explained that these plastic coverings are to protect watermelon from the hot sun.

Whether it was buffalo walking along the shore guided by a child with rope, no more than 10 years old; white horses on a walk; locals dressed in local garb walking along the shore; people bathing in the sand and rinsing in the sea; and children playing naked in a river that meets the sea only a short distance from us;  We were amused, entertained and motivated to take photos.

Today is the six-month anniversary of the date we checked into this hotel on March 24, 2020. During the first month, we were able to have our meals in the hotel’s dining room. But, in no time at all, India’s government banned dining in restaurants and room service was our only option for our two daily meals which has continued through today.

A typical small business building found in a village.

Purchasing and serving alcohol was banned for several months. Now, alcohol may be purchased and delivered, but with taxes at 38% plus delivery fees, the cost is outrageous. The hotel cannot serve alcohol and, with their upcharges on drinks plus taxes and tips, it makes no sense for us to imbibe at all. Also, neither of us has ever enjoyed having drinks in a hotel room. We’ll wait until we get to our next location, wherever that may be.

On another note, we ordered a package of supplies from our mailing service in Nevada, which includes our new passports, contact lenses, snail-mail, and odds and ends we can’t get in India. The package, along with a second item, a replacement credit card (due to fraud) was shipped at the end of July 2020 and we’ve yet to receive either item.

Rice is a huge staple in the Balinese people’s diet and is exported to many parts of the world.

I desperately tried to reach a human at FedEx India’s multiple phone numbers, but either the line was busy or no one answered. We each sent no less than a dozen email messages asking for assistance, always including the two tracking numbers and the urgency of receiving these two items. The replies always stated the same thing, “We’re working on it” or some variation thereof.

Finally, a few days ago, Tom received a reply from an upper management person with instructions as to how to receive the packages. It required that we send in copies of our passports, both bio pages and back pages, and our e-visas.

Not so quick. The trick was to get their website to work in order to be able to upload the documents. Once I did everything as they suggested, the photos in small-sized jpegs wouldn’t upload. Only a few would. I kept having to take the photos over and over again, to finally get them to upload.

Crossing a bridge over a river.

A few hours later, we received two emails stating we hadn’t sent incomplete files. They needed two letters, signed and sealed by the hotel manager, one for each item, stating we are staying here and can receive the items. That became quite a challenge when by human error, the tracking numbers and “case” numbers somehow got mixed up. The letters had to be redone.

After spending the entire afternoon on this, the system wouldn’t let me in when entering the “captcha.” Actually, the captcha was easy, only four clear jiggly letters but their system wouldn’t accept the login after I entered it. After five tries I was kicked out for 24 hours. Today, at 4:00 pm, I will have to start over once again. Ah, frustrating. We’ll report back on how this goes.

A Muslim holiday celebrated on the beach.

Based on the above circumstances, yesterday I never finished my walking, only accomplishing 5000 steps instead of 10000. I hope to do better today. Also, I hope to get back to work on the 2000 word post #3 sometime today. Our entire routine has been turned topsy-turvy by this package business.

OK. That’s all there is today, folks! Have a good day!

Minutes before the sun descended from view. Before dark, the security guy visits our villa turning on outdoor lights, returning at sunrise to turn them off.

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Photo from one year ago today, September 24, 2019:

This was our holiday rental, Pond Cottage in Devon, England at night. For more photos, please click here.

Day #183 lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…It’s a whining day!…

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Prior to sunset these flowers in their yard caught my eye. The combination of the pink and peach coloration is truly a gift from Mother Nature, whom we dearly appreciate.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2013, while we were living in Diani Beach, Kenya. For more on this date, please click here.

I am struggling to make myself sit down and write those 2000 word posts using keyword phrases as required by our web developers. Not a procrastinator, generally I attend to tasks in a timely fashion. But, I’m not sure what’s keeping me immobilized in regard to these three remaining posts.

Only moments before we left for Hans’ and Jeri’s home, we were finally able to snap a photo of the female to the little yellow birds that are so shy and quick that we’ve had trouble getting a shot. Apparently, their reticence is due to the frequent attacks by viscous blackbirds. Only a few days ago, Hans showed us where a blackbird had snatched baby birds out of a nest.

Could it be that doing so requires me to break away from our usual afternoon respite where we escape by binge-watching some favorite shows? When preparing these long posts, on top of the usual daily posts, my motivation is literally non-existent. Also, I’m still trying to work on the corrections on the past 3000 posts. I started in 2012, working my way forward beginning on page #148, and today, I’ll start with page #124. I have a long way to go when the most I can do in a day is one full page of 20 posts.

Gosh, I tell my usually motivated self, I did get our tax stuff done and sent to the accountant in plenty of time. Gosh, I worked with the developers on resolving seemingly endless changes over the past 60 days. Gosh, I’ve spent endless hours researching possibilities for us to get out of here, all to no avail, as did Tom. Gosh, I don’t feel like spending an entire afternoon writing a contrived post of 2000 words infiltrating the necessary keyword sequence as frequently as possible.

We arrived at our landlord’s home before sunset to find Hans preparing the fire on which to cook our dinner.

Sorry if I sound like I am whining, whinging, or complaining (whatever such words are used in your locale). But, I am. Each day, after working on and uploading the daily post, which, by the way, I enjoy doing, I am done, done, done. This wasn’t the case in our lives of world travel, in the days before lockdown.

If this project was presented to me then, I would have made my way through it in five days…five 2000 word posts. But, now everything is different. I can’t take a break and escape by jumping up and getting the laundry out of the washer to hang outside on the clothesline. I can’t head to the kitchen to chop and dice vegetables for dinner (or for wildlife).

Hans built a roaring fire to which he later added a grate in order to cook a full beef tenderloin without the use of charcoal or lighter fluid. Check out that moon smiling down on us!

In our travels, we never binge-watched shows during the day. That was an after-dinner or bedtime pastime, winding us down after another pleasant and often exciting day. In Marloth Park and most other holiday homes, we rarely turned on the TV or streamed a show during our entire stay, while now, it’s on all day (with the sound off and captioning turned on) to allay the boredom, except for those times Tom is listening to his favorite podcast from Minnesota, Garage Logic. (The sound of the podcast in the background doesn’t bother me at all while I’m busy writing).

Their yard was aglow not only from candles scattered about the lawn but also by landscape lighting focusing on the exquisite vegetation.

Perhaps, I need these diversions and distractions to help keep me centered when tackling challenging projects. We all have our own way of handling difficult tasks and I’m certainly no exception. Possibly I require more detours than most. Now, as I’m sitting here writing these words for this daily post, the podcast is on, I’ve already walked in the past 30 minutes  (the timer is set for the next 30 minutes) and I’m contemplating making a cup of tea.

Now, with a cup of herbal tea at my side, I’m ready to begin again. (Gee, I’d love some real cream, to add to a cup of coffee-not available here, or a big salad, or a juicy steak on the grill, or knowing a glass of red wine is awaiting me at 5:00 pm or, or, or…). It’s a whining day! Please humor me!

The table was set on the well-manicured lawn. With the balmy breeze and the fire roaring, the mosquitoes stayed away, although we were well-armed wearing our BugsAway clothing.

Whew! It’s good to have that off my chest. Many of our readers praise us for being so tough and strong under these dire circumstances. But, we’re no tougher or stronger than any of you who have had to live with the constraints established by your state, your county, or your country during times of COVID-19. It’s been a challenge for all of us in one way or another.

The dinner table for 4 was set on the grass, well lit with candles, beyond their inviting veranda.

The 30-minute timer is about to go off any minute when I’ll head out the door once again to walk the corridors while listening to educational podcasts of my own, mostly centered around health and fitness instead of past episodes of Dr. Phil, 20/20, or Entertainment Tonight which, at one time could entertain me while walking.

That’s all I have to say today. I have to start thinking of what I’ll write for the next keyword phrase with 2000 words for post #3, starting in an hour or so.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, September 22, 2019:

The acreage on the farm in Devon, England is diverse and beautiful. We were grateful to be able to spend time enjoying the many facets of the farm without doing any work. For more photos, please click here.

Day #182 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Making decisions…

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Yes, I know. Photos of us in 2013 often show us wearing the same clothes over and over. After ditching most of our clothing to lighten our load, we have no choice but to do so. We try to wear the same items frequently in order to wear them out for disposal, saving the newer items for the future. So far, nothing has worn out. With no clothes dryers available, the thinnest tee shirts seem to “live” forever.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2013, while we were living in Diani Beach, Kenya. For more on this date, please click here.

We laughed over the night depicted in today’s historic photos of the night on this date seven years ago that we went out to dinner in Kenya and were the only diners in the entire restaurant.

Ah, moonlight!

It was a beautiful moonlit night and we recall it as if it was only yesterday. We made a reservation at the Blue Marlin Restaurant located on the beach on the Indian Ocean. It was a long walk from the security entrance to the actual restaurant on uneven pavers and we were grateful for our LED flashlights to guide us along the way.

This spot was ideal for relaxing after a guest drank too many Margaritas!

We arrived at 7:30 pm at TripAdvisor’s highly rated restaurant, surprised to find we were the only guests on the premises. The staff was plentiful and the service and food was excellent. At the time we couldn’t recall ever being the only guests in a restaurant during dinner hours, but we shrugged it off, assuming sooner or later, other guests would appear. It never happened, much to our surprise after experiencing the delicious meals, drinks and service.

The chalkboard at the Blue Marlin listed the daily specials.

As a result, we had an opportunity to take some photos with the staff who were thrilled to oblige. We handed out several of our business cards knowing full-well they’d be searching for their photos on the next day’s post, perhaps making them feel a little like celebrities. It was endearing.

We had a chance to interact with their two “house dogs” who couldn’t have been more friendly. Of course, when we returned back to our holiday home, Han’s two dogs, Gucci and Jessie, were waiting for our return. It’s always been a treat to be able to adopt a dog or two that resided near our vacation homes at the time.

The Blue Marlin offered a relaxed, comfortable outdoor environment for diners.Notice an actual blue marlin on the wall.

It was hot, humid and windy, when we returned to the house. By the time we reached our outdoor living room, the veranda, we both decided to change into as minimal clothes as possible, covering ourselves with repellent and staying outdoors until bedtime. It was another good night.

Zaa Zaa, our friendly companion for the evening, lying at our feet as we dined.

On another note, yesterday’s post was the first of the five 2000 word posts I wrote, to which our web developers will be editing in the background for purposes of website optimization. Yesterday, I wrote the second of five posts and that should be ready to post tomorrow. I apologize for any redundancy in these long posts since its imperative they contain the content represented in the keywords.

Tom drank two bottles of this local Tusker beer.

There’s only five such posts and we should be done with them within a few weeks. Otherwise, on all other days, our regular less-wordy posts will appear as usual. No worries. No impact on your regular reading. Thanks for your patience.

Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of skuttlebutt online about the possibility of South Africa’s borders opening soon. At this point, it appears US citizens and anyone entering from India will not be allowed to enter. Another reality is that the Kruger Mpumalanga Nelspruit Airport we usually fly to, won’t be open for some time.

The chef insisted we take a photo together!

When we can travel to South Africa, we’ll fly into Johannesburg, rent a car and drive for five hours to make our way to Marloth Park. None of this concerns us. What concerns us is when the borders of both South Africa and India open enabling us to leave.

Tom’s appetizer of bacon wrapped jumbo prawns. I pointed out the bulging eyes. He asked, “Why’d you tell me that?”

Yesterday, we had a much needed discussion, considering these facts and both have agreed we are willing to “wait it out’ here at this hotel in Mumbai, India. There’s no point in adding more COVID-19 exposure in flying to the US to wait it out, nor is hovering around various airports, as they are just beginning to open, many soon.

My appetizer was a delicious creamy crab salad.

By the time we’re allowed to leave, protocols for COVID-19 will be firmly in place, after more experience, and we’ll have a better chance of avoiding infection. Of course, if India opens to other countries we’d be willing to travel to, and South Africa isn’t open for us, we may opt to head somewhere else to wait, as long as its to a location we’d find worthwhile and interesting. Otherwise, we’ll stay put.

Tom’s dinner consisted of a sizable portion of Swahili Fish, most likely a type of snapper. Bone free and lightly seasoned with a rich buttery coconut sauce, he had no trouble devouring every morsel.

Nothing much has changed around here. The corridors are a little less crowded now. The staff is working on reducing the noise at night from our next door neighbors (ugh!). And, we’re fine. As I write here now, Tom is watching the Minnesota Vikings football game on the TV using the HDMI and his laptop. As usual, they aren’t doing well. So it goes.

Look at the size of these calamari rings! I, too, savored every morsel on my plate.

Be well.

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Photo from one year ago today, September 21, 2019:

An otter lounging in the sun in Tiverton, Cornwall, UK. For more photos, please click here.

Day #178 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…The challenges of a new site…Photos from Fiji in 2015…

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Yesterday, Tom took this stunning photo of the coral reef in Fiji from a high peak he climbed with our friendly neighbor, Sewak.

Today’s photos are from the post on this date in 2015, while we were living on the island of Vanua Levu in Savusavu, Fiji. For more on this date, please click here.

Firstly, I felt compelled to share a challenge I am facing over the next few weeks, one I am not in the mood to do whatsoever. in order to acquire new traffic on our new site, This is called SEO which is described as follows:

What is SEO?

“SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is the practice of increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search engine results.”

Sewak’s home of over 40 years includes a separate Hindu temple area and family shrine which he happily showed us.

This is a normal process to accomplish on most websites, especially in our case, when our newly revised site looks forward to further enhancing our traffic than we experienced in the past on Blogger. Why more traffic? Our goal for the upcoming years is to increase the revenue on our site by more clicks on our advertisers. The more clicks, the more revenue we’ll generate.

Once this is accomplished, I’ll begin to work on adding advertisers to our YouTube page. There, also, we’ve had millions of readers, but this is another opportunity to generate more revenue, a normal part of having an online presence.

The hilly side yard at Sewak’s home.

Over the years, I’ve mentioned we weren’t doing our site to earn a living or to fund our world travels. However, we’d like to generate enough income to pay for the cost of maintaining our new site, including ongoing developer support, promotional costs and design enhancements.

This will not impact your continued readership in any manner. You do not have to buy a thing or even use our advertiser links if you prefer not to. However, we appreciate the tiny commissions we may earn if you do so, keeping in mind, you do not pay a penny more from using our advertisers than going directly to those sites from Google or another search engine.

Sewak drove us up this steep hill in his truck for this view. It was outrageously steep.

In the interim, the web developer has given me “homework.” I have to write five new posts of at least 2000 words each, (twice our usual daily text count) to include the “keywords” we’ll be using. The last thing I feel like doing right now is writing additional posts, over and above those, I already write daily, a project I thoroughly enjoy.

Ensuring these SEO posts consist of this large word count will be challenging so I’ve been wracking my brain trying to think how I can make this fun for me and also, enjoyable for YOU to read once they are uploaded as five individual daily posts over five scattered days.

Some of my photos were slanted. I was standing on a steep hill and didn’t properly adjust for the angle.

The only way I could reframe this task was to find a sense of satisfaction in the knowledge that I’ll be summarizing multitudes of accumulated world travel tips that hopefully appeal to readers of all ages and from many parts of the world. These five posts will be a compilation of our vast travel experiences over the past almost eight years.

We’ll be focusing on tips to save money on travel; tips in regard to safety, health, and well-being while traveling; reveling in the safari experience and wildlife in general;  booking hotels, holiday homes, cars and flights and more. Each of the five posts will have their own theme.

The wind was blowing requiring Tom to hold this perfect flower for my shot while we toured Sewak’s grounds.

For our long-time readers, some of this information may be redundant. But, we’ll make every effort to make it light and refreshing in every manner possible. We’ll also be factoring in the new normal we are all facing in light of COVID-19 and how it may impact each of these topics.

As for today’s photos, last night, after watching the exciting new series on Amazon Prime, “The World’s Toughest Eco-Challenge Fiji.” It’s been special for us to once again see the warmth and kindness of the Fijian people as they assist the competitors along the way. Also, it’s been fulfilling to be reminded of the beauty of these exquisite islands. Fiji, info follows:

Fiji’s 300 islands

“The archipelago consists of some 300 islands and 540 islets scattered over about 1,000,000 square miles (3,000,000 square km). Of the 300 islands, about 100 are inhabited. The capital, Suva, is on the southeast coast of the largest island, Viti Levu (“Great Fiji”).”
Badal, Sewak’s dog, bounded up the steep hill with ease. Badal visited us every night for dinner. We made him a plate of the delicious meats we were having for dinner. We’d asked Sewak if it was OK if Badal ate meat with us since he is vegetarian as an Indo-Fijian. He assured us it was no problem. Badal arrived at our door every night about 30 minutes before we dined, politely awaiting his plate of food.
If you are Amazon Prime members you can watch this fascinating race at no additional cost. Lately, we’ve been watching many of Amazon’s original series, some of which we’ve thoroughly enjoyed while in lockdown, day after day.
Off I go now, for yet another walk in the corridor. The convention guests have left and the hallways have re-opened for us, making the walking a bit less boring. Anything to keep us from being bored while in lockdown, now on day #178, in this hotel.
Have a safe and pleasant day.

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Photo from one year ago today, September 17, 2019:

The church’s bell tower is similar to those seen on series, “Game of Thrones” and other historical movies and TV shows.For more photos, please click here.

Day #177 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Two spaces or one at the end of sentence?…

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Hans invited us up to his third-level veranda in Kenya for “happy hour” and to watch the sunset. As we enjoyed the view from up high, we all noticed this animal’s butt sitting inside a window of a thatched roof. Not a monkey with this type of tail, we anxiously waited for it to turn around. By the time it was dark, it hadn’t moved, leaving us all without a clue as to what type of animal it had been.

Today’s photos are from the post in 2013, while we lived in Diani Beach, Kenya, for three months. For more details from that post, please click here.

The sunset is beautiful everywhere. From the third floor of Hans’ house, we were thrilled to take photos of the progression of the sun’s setting on the horizon.

As I muddle through our almost 3,000 archived posts to make corrections, I continue to stumble across a dilemma. Do I remove two spaces after each sentence/paragraph and change it to one space or leave it as is, at two spaces? For us old-timers who learned to type on an old-fashioned typewriter, two spaces were the correct procedure.

Today, with the advent of digital means of typing, this simple dilemma may have changed. Subsequently, as I labor through post after post, barely able to get through 20 posts a day, I realize that the bulk of the corrections I am making in tightening up the space between two sentences.

Hans made Tom one of his unique local concoctions while I sipped on my usual ice tea while chatting with Hans’ lovely wife, Jerie.

Of course, I searched online for the answer, hoping to find a definitive solution. But, like many topics, the variations in opinions are overwhelming. Some dictionary sites say “one space,” and others say “two-spaces,” making the text easier to read. Oh, good grief. I’ve already spent hours correcting thousands of these.

At sunset, the lush greenery appeared brighter than during the day’s sun.

Here’s some information I found on this topic:

“Why should you or shouldn’t put two spaces after a period?
Hence the adoption of the two–space rule—on a typewriter, an extra space after a sentence makes text easier to read. … Because we’ve all switched to modern fonts, adding two spaces after a period no longer enhances readability, typographers say. It diminishes it.”
Or,

“There was a time when every period, question mark, or exclamation point was followed by two spaces. These days, depending on what you’re reading, you can find either one or two spaces between the end of one sentence and the beginning of another.”

Look at these lush ferns, abundant in Kenya’s humid weather.

After reading further, I concluded that in today’s world, one space after a sentence should be one, not two. I’ve opted for one space, thus doubling its time to correct errors on each page. So, how does this impact my corrections on almost 3,000 posts in the future?

And, what types of other errors am I encountering?

  1. Spelling: (I am using Grammarly and Ginger for assistance)
  2. Font size: Which I’ve decided to leave as is since it takes so long to correct.
  3. Punctuation
  4. Grammar: Many comma placement errors and sentence structure (I am using Grammarly and Ginger, two apps, for assistance)
  5. Paragraph and line spacing
  6. Missing or inadequate links
  7. Verbiage errors, restructuring sentences, etc.
  8. Photo placement/positioning
  9. Caption errors on all of the above
  10. Issues with headings
  11. Repetitive words reduction
    The haze, a result of both humidity and fires burning, leaves an eerie view over the horizon.

Well, as you can see, making these corrections is a lot more complicated than one might expect. Why am I doing this when most of our readers don’t care one way or another? (Thanks for that!). Many of our posts were completed under time constraints or days when I wasn’t as attentive as I should have been. Many other posts were achieved when the WiFi signal was poor. Making corrections was nearly impossible, let alone typing the text.

From high up on the veranda, these coconuts caught my eye. They are everywhere!

Excuses aside. Human nature. We make errors, especially me when 365 days a year I write the equivalent of an essay from 700 to 1000 words, mostly with photos which is a breeding ground for human error.

Now, as I go back through each post, one by one, I am certainly missing some corrections or making new errors in the process. Also, I am making new errors in the new posts I am doing now. It’s not perfect, nor am I, nor is Tom’s daily proofreading. But, we continue to strive every day to get this message to our loyal readers/friends/family to let you know what we’re doing, feeling, and thinking.

Soon, the sun would set, and darkness would fall as the sounds of the nocturnal wildlife rang through the air throughout the night.

Hopefully, shortly, we’ll have more to discuss than mere “dots.”

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, September 16, 2019:

As we approached St, Michaels and All Angels, Church of England in Michaelstone, Cornwall, we were in awe of its beauty. For more photos, please click here.
Day #171 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Is a donut a fair trade-off?

Day #171 in lockdown in Mumbai, India hotel…Is a donut a fair trade-off?…

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

Note: I started out doing the edits, starting at the oldest of almost 3,000 at page #148, with 20 posts per page. I noticed a number of the posts had varying font sizes in the text. This resulted during the conversion from Blogger to WordPress as my operating platform. The extra time it would take for me to change the font to a universal size would be doubled.

This is a daunting task in itself, and I have no interest in doubling the time it takes to do the other necessary edits. As a result, I will be leaving them as they are. Sure, I’d like every one of the 3,000 posts to be perfect. But, for the sake of time spent, I decided I must leave it as is. Today, I am on page #131, completing one page each day, taking a bulk of my free time.

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

Today’s photos were from this date in 2015, when there was no post on this date in 2013. When we first landed in Fiji on the small island of Vanua Levu in the village of Savusavu. See the link here.

On to today…

As the proverbial optimist, I try to maintain a positive attitude throughout the day and spend little time thinking about our difficult situation. Yesterday was a hard day for Tom. I couldn’t avoid feeling frustrated when I saw and heard how frustrated he was. He’s tired of this. I am so busy with tasks, I think about it less.

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 $22, US $10.12;  two red bell peppers (also called capsicum here); six medium-sized aubergines (eggplant); three heads of cabbage; and eight large carrots.

For me, if we were living in a house overlooking the sea, right now, I’d be wrapped up in the necessary edits on the old posts that would take up most of my days and parts of my evenings. I might stop from time to time to savor our surroundings, take walks on the beach, do laundry, and prepare meals.

Every few days, we’d head out to the grocery shop and go sightseeing, taking endless photos along the way. As is the case when handling hundreds of photos, a tremendous amount of time is required to sort, edit, and manage the photos. In reality, I’m probably better off not taking new photos right now while I’m busy with the seemingly endless revisions.

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

As a result, this time in lockdown is not so bad for me. That’s not to say it isn’t boring. Especially the walks and the repetitive meals for Tom, who spends most of his day on his laptop researching ancestry, reading social media posts, and listening to podcasts. He’s bored.

He wants a doughnut. India is not known for its donuts. He’d tried a few Indian donuts before the lockdown, but after a few bites, he stopped eating them, preferring the taste of a good donut from SuperAmerica in the US (if they even exist these days). He’d liked the freshly baked donuts from the baked goods case or bakery in any supermarket on occasion in other countries. His donut days are non-existence, and he’s feeling frustrated. Oddly, he prefers plain donuts without frosting or filling.

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.

If I could eat a donut, it would be creamy, sticky, nutty, and oozing with something in the middle. I haven’t eaten a donut in over nine years. Right now, I’d be happy with a piece of meat with fat on it instead of a dry chicken breast which I never liked anyway, unless it was cooked on the grill with the skin and bone.

No, this isn’t easy. But, without a doubt, it’s easier for me than for Tom, and on a rare occasion, he expresses his frustration, and I listen with caring and compassion. Two weeks from today, we’ll have been in this hotel room for a full six months. I wonder how long we can last before we “give up” and return to the US until this COVID-19 disaster passes.

These are some types of sweet potatoes.

Our risk of infection is almost zero in this hotel. Returning to the US, flying on several flights through several airports, and finding a place to stay, live, and shop while we “wait it out” is risky, particularly for me. Would we end up sitting in a chair all day, occasionally walking and not being any better off than we are now? We’d have to be very careful and avoid being around others, not unlike what we’re doing now. Those are the questions we ask ourselves now.

We’d pay thousands of dollars more a month to live, to rent a car, to grocery shop, and our risks of COVID-19 would be exponentially higher. But, one reality remains. Tom could eat a donut.

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

Stay safe. Stay healthy.

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Photo from one year ago today, September 10, 2019:

The first animals we encountered in the paddock in Treddarup, Cornwall, England, were pigs. As our readers know, I love pigs. However, as cute as they are, they can’t match the appeal of a handsome warthog. For more photos, please click here.