Part 2…Le Cafe at Lantana Galu Beach…Price shocker at end of post…

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The flowers that lined the walkway from the main building at Lantana Galu Beach to the outdoor path were absolutely breathtaking. What a perfect spot for a wedding!

The menu at Le Café at Lantana Galu Beach was a plethora of appetizers, meats, poultry, fish, shellfish, and side dishes suitable for the finicky of diners.

Vegetarian options were available as well as foods easily amenable to my low carb, gluten-free, starch-free, grain-free, sugar-free diet. There were more possible combinations than we’ve seen on any other menus thus far in Kenya. 

I never doubted for a moment that the chef would make an error in the preparation of my restricted meal.  The elegance and grace of the establishment bespoke a keen sensitivity to the needs of its customers.

The service, flawless. With neither of us starving, we didn’t partake in any appetizers or salad. Most certainly, next time we go to Le Café, we’ll surely experiment trying more dishes.

My dinner:  Seasoned Grilled Red Snapper with sautéed non-starchy vegetables

My plate, as shown above, was flavorful, albeit the lack of sauces and starchy side dishes. It may sound difficult, if not impossible, for a restricted diner such as myself to assess the quality of food without the usual sauces and side dishes.

In my perception, the true test of a great restaurant is in their ability to masterfully take the simplest of foods with the least amount of ingredients to ultimately turn out an epicurean delight. This was accomplished at Le Café with finesse. 

An otherwise bland snapper resulted in a flaky and flavorful entrée, enhanced with the subtle use of local spices, grilled at precisely the correct time and temperature, and presented with this perfect blend of al dente sautéed vegetables. 

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.

My only suggestion for my dinner was to have smaller carrot bites to avoid the necessity of cutting, as my knife couldn’t quite tackle the job. Secondly, the pea pods could have been strung more completely to avoid that awful green string, stuck in the back of one’s throat, and struggling to find a gracious manner of extracting it.

A simple tomato and cucumber garnish adds the finest little touch.  Tom gave me this also.  The only raw vegetables he’ll eat in carrots and celery.

For beverages, Tom had two local Tusker bottled beer approximately half-liter each (16.9 oz.) and I had my once a week treat of one Coke Light (sugar-free) with lots of ice and a straw, switching to water when done.  (The water at Le Café is purified as if often the case at the finer restaurants in Kenya. We suggest you ask, if unsure as to the purity of the water). 

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

HERE’S THE SHOCKER, FOLKS!!! Our entire dinner including beverages was Kenya Shillings $2500 which translates to US $28.61 (including tax and service fee!).  We added a tip for our server for Kenya Shillings $1000, US $11.44 for a grand total of Kenya Shillings $3500, US $40.06!

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

With our cab fare and tip for Kenya Shillings $1500, US $17.16, our entire total for the evening at an extraordinary resort, a memorable dining experience, and service beyond all reproach, was US $57.22! 

An exterior window of one of the units was adorned with more of these flowers.

So far, of our four Diani Beach restaurant experiences over the past four weeks, Le Café at Lantana Galu Beach is vying for first place with Sails Restaurant on our list for ambiance, service, food choices, food quality, and much to our surprise, in price. We’ll be back!

Wouldn’t this make a lovely bridal bouquet?
Just as we began to exit the main door, this red plant caught Tom’s eye.

Part 1…Internet solutions…Photos of our neighborhood…

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In

Here we are in Africa, hot and sweaty as we embark on our first walk outside the gated complex, onto the main road, definitely a daytime event only.

I know. We’re always discussing Internet issues.  For those of you with little interest in Internet issues, I apologize. We realize that many users pay little to no attention to the means by which they are connected. They send and read email, Facebook, a few blogs and occasionally search for information. This constitutes the “average” user.

The dirt road in our gated community.
As we began our walk within the gated complex, we saw and heard many local workers working on the house that had been destroyed by a fire in 2009. Hans told us that the insurance companies didn’t want to pay fair claims for the losses so many homeowners haverebuilt, piece by piece over this extended period.

Then, there are Internet devotees such as us, who use the Internet as their connection to the world, not only to family and friends, but for resources to enhance their everyday lives. In a typical day, when staying “home,” we may each easily spend five or six hours online, downloading, reading, watching shows, managing banking and financial, searching for our future travels.

This wall was on our right as we walked along the dirt road within the gated community.  Most houses were tucked away behind large stone walls making it difficult to see the homes in the neighborhood.

Suddenly, a few days ago we’re cut off at the knees by XCOM Global warning us that we’re using too much data based on regulations over which they have no control. With restricted data use, we were faced with a tough decision.

An entrance to a neighboring home.

Do we find a local provider? Nice idea. But there are no home wireless providers in Kenya.  ToDo we rent another MiFi for another $395 a month?  Too costly.Or, worst of all, do we change our habits? You may say, “Get a grip! Find something else to do!” 

This statue was in the entryway of the neighboring home.

Yes, we get that.  But consider this…we have no car, no stuff of our own other than our now meager amount of clothing and supplies. We have no house to fix or maintain, no trips to Home Depot, no health club and no family and friends to visit. We have no TV, no radio, no sports news, no recipe books to peruse for making dinner. With Hesborn’s daily help, the only housework we do is wash our dishes (Tom does this) after a meal and to pick up after ourselves.

This massive home was burned out, sold and yet to be repaired, now almost 4 years later.

Take all those aspects of daily life away for a moment, what would one do? We can’t go sightseeing everyday. We didn’t do that in our old lives. Do you sightsee every week? Hardly. If one has young children, they may embark on sightseeing type adventures each weekend. But, we don’t have young children. We don’t have a dog to take for a walk.

Another angle of the above burned out home, yet to be rebuilt. Eighteen homes were destroyed in the fire that swept through the community in minutes.  The thatched roof and high winds caused the almost instantaneous burn.

In Kenya, one doesn’t just walk on the streets, along the beach, to and from their favorite activities especially at night. There are safety concerns in the numbers. We’re not foolish.

The water tower belonging to the above  burned out private residence.

Thus, the Internet is not only our mode of entertainment but our source of information.  (Soon, we’ll get out to visit a local travel agency recommended by Hans with the hope of booking a safari since we can’t currently do it online with the limited use of the MiFi).

The dense thatched rooftops, typical in Africa, can easily be seen as a fire hazard.
These would never be allowed in the US or many other countries.

Soon, we’ll start dining out once or twice a week to the local restaurants, of which there are many for a short cab ride. Soon, we’ll visit a shopping mall to get the flavor of products sold in the area.

Yesterday, with Hans’ help we solved our Internet issues. He went to the Safaricom store in town and purchased an 8 gigabyte SIM card for us, loaning us his portable Hot Spot. It takes 1/2 of 1 gig to download an hour long TV show. We’ll be able to get approximately 16 shows on one SIM card at the cost of US $45 for the entire card. Each show we download and watch will cost us approximately US $2.81. 

Our two devices, a Hot Spot, loaned to us by Hans and our XCOM Global MiFi. Most likely we’ll be purchasing one of these Hot Spots (under $100) plus SIM cards while we’re in Africa, as an adjunct to our XCOM Global device.  Both of these provide us with  an ample  amount of data to be able to conduct our days and download shows for evening.

SIM cards such as these, may be reloaded by purchasing a “scratch off” card for the desired amount with the PIN code beneath the scratch off. Loading it is a little tricky. Hans will help us the first time as he did yesterday. We’ll be fine from there. Another US $180 per month added to our already US $395 a month for XCOM Global for a grand total of US $575 a month. 

With spring yet to arrive, the flowers will only increase, especially with some much desired rains.  Based on reviewing online weather sites ,it appears the heat won’t increase each day as the spring season is upon us.  Today at a high of 84F, the humidity is high at 62%, creating a sweaty but not unbearable environment.

In our old lives we paid US $235 a month for all channel Hi Def cable TV and wireless Internet plus another US $200 a month for our two cell phones.  Now, with the US $575 we’ll be paying, it is necessary to adjust our budget accordingly, a task I’ll soon accomplish as we fine tune our usage over the next several days.

At first glance, this water tower appeared to be a lookout.

With the combined use of the Hot Spot and  the MiFi, we now have access to enough data to do almost as much aswe please online. With an app we downloaded on each of our laptops, for each of the devices, we can freely monitor our usage, checking frequently. First we’ll use the MiFi’s 150 megs, then we’ll roll over to the Hot Spot. It makes sense to us. If there are any other suggestions out there, please comment.

Oh, this looks refreshing.  We’ll have our own pool in the next house in South Africa, where we’ll be in 3 months.

Oh, we live and learn. Unexpected expenses, conditions and challenges. But so far, there nothing that we can’t handle. As long as we are healthy and safe and have Internet access, we’re content. In this case, we’re back to our smiley selves again after a 24 -hour period of wondering what to do to solve the issue.

A wall hanging in the shape of the continent of Africa.

This morning, I refilled our vitamin and pill cases (mostly used by us seniors), a time consuming task.But, once done, it need not be repeated until 2 more weeks. Previously, we had ample cases to fill to last us each a month but we tossed the extras when attempting to reduce our load.

Interesting views of the thatched rooftops of various homes in the area.
When we left Tuscany, I left my newer Easy Spirit workout shoes behind, hoping Lisa would find someone who wanted them if she didn’t. Now I have none. Even so, we ended up paying an extra Euros $1000, US $1350 (approx.) for our overweight bags. 
This is the security gate from the street side. Tomorrow, we’ll share photos of our walk along the road.
This hanging plants produces these long burgundy stringy things.  I’ll research these and other unusual plants while we’re here.
These plants flourish in the hot humid weather requiring little water.  Hans explained that some of the vegetation such as this have their own “bladders” in which to store water.

This morning as I gathered all the vitamin pill bottles and bags, I placed them in the duffle bag for use over the next three months, noticing the heaviness of the bag. We’ll be leaving them behind this time. We’re finally accepting the reality. 

Tomorrow, we’ll be back with Part 2 of our first outing onto the road beyond the gates where we found a wonderful surprise.

Today we met Nancy, one of the daytime support staff at our guarded gate.  She was so sweet, holding my hand the entire time we chatted with her.  She kindly took the photo of Tom and I.  We’re loving being able to talk to the locals.

Adaptation in Kenya…A required must…We’re learning…

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Partial view of the yard from the second level.
Different view of the veranda than yesterday’s posting.  With a huge room upstairs without frniture and no living room on the main floor, we’ll have no choice but to spend most of our idle time outside both day and evening.   Finally, it was appropriate for me to wear my Africa pants last night, just spraying my arms and feet.  Gee…those pants work well!  Wish I’d known about BugsAway clothing while living in Minnesota. The bugs are bad.

If we thought for a moment that life in Africa would be comparable to life in other countries we’ve visited since leaving the US last January, we’d have been fooling ourselves. As we’d mentioned in a past post, we came here with no delusions. We’re working hard to adapt.

The sink in the galley style kitchen.  I should move Tom’s bottle of Courvoisier out of the window so the monkeys don’t knock it over when he comes to visit.

Our house in the resort community of Diani Beach, although vastly more convenient and comfortable than many other areas of Kenya, has limitations and peculiarities for which we must adapt or we’ll be miserable.

This stove and refrigerator are much smaller than they appear in the photo.  Here, we’ll grocery shop once a week with the reasonable price of cab fare.

In itself, there nothing wrong with the house or the grounds, which are maintained constantly and thoughtfully by various staff members on the premises 24 hours a day, provided us with considerable peace of mind.

The master bedroom.  The mosquito netting is very secure around the beds leaving little opportunity for any flying insects. Bugs that walk may find their way to the bed from below. Let’s hope not!  The bed was comfortable and we slept well last night.
The guest bedroom with two beds and two separate mosquito nets.

The gate entrance to the small collection of homes is guarded both during the day and at night. Plus from dusk to dawn, we have a guard, Jeremiah, who canvasses the grounds between our house and the owner’s house next door. Last night, our first night of sleeping, we heard the comforting sounds of quiet conversation among the guards, lulling me back to sleep.

Partial view from the upper level veranda.

After Hans, the owner, warned us about possible scorpions in the house, which he sees from time to time and may be deadly, we’ve become careful of watching where we walk wearing shoes in the house except when in bed.

This spiral staircase to the second level is very steep with the steps far apart. There’s no reason to go upstairs when there’s no furniture except on a second veranda. 

There’s a red button above the bed that goes directly to a manned security company that we’ve been instructed to use in case of any emergency:  intruder, health, animals. With guards on the premises, they’d have called for backup had there been intruders. But we’d also push the button.

The vanity area of the single bathroom in the house.

The bugs: Surprisingly so far we’ve seen no flies or bees. Yeah to that! The mosquitoes are rampant day and night.  Strange crawling things are everywhere, mostly spiders (some dangerous), many lizards of varying sizes, numerous centipedes, some small, some huge. Most aren’t dangerous and don’t bite. Many are dangerous, so we’ve heard.

Yesterday, when visiting next door without my camera, my hand brushed a giant insect appearing to be a wide Praying Mantis. It didn’t move when I touched it. I didn’t scream.

The interior of the shower.  It works better than the shower in Tuscany which had poor water flow.  We flip a switch in the entryway for hot water.  Fifteen minutes later the water is hot.  We’ve were instructed to turn off the switch as soon as we’re done showering.

The monkeys: There’s a local baboon that hangs around this property that is known to get into the kitchen via an access through the thatched roof, making itself at home munching on non-perishable foods sitting out. Hesborn, our houseman, suggested we keep the kitchen door closed at all times, since that’s the first place he’ll go. He said to expect to see him inside at some point during our stay. OK.

The coconut trees: We’ve been instructed not to stand or sit in the lawn chairs directly below the coconut trees due to a high risks of being hit by a falling coconut. Makes sense to us. We’ll find other spots to lounge to recover our now lost tans. (The horrible amount of bees on the patio in Tuscany kept us away from lounging in the chairs after trying for the first few weeks). Hesborn  will crack open the coconuts using the machete upon our request. Natural coconut is allowed on my strict diet.

The weather: Right now, it’s spring here, close to the equator. Summer begins on December 21st when we’ll be in South Africa (we arrive on December 1st depending on our soon-to-be booked flight). Its warm, mostly in the 80’s but is seldom above 90 this time of year. Without air conditioning and an overhead fan in the bedroom, the bed covered in only a sheet, we’re fine both during the day and at night, so far but it will get hotter as each day passes..

The floors: All the floors in the house are stone, including the bathroom and kitchen. With the sand blowing from the ocean at about 300 feet away and the residue from various trees and plants, the bottoms of our feet were black last night. Before going to bed, we washed them once again then scooting our feet on a towel toward the bed.  This morning, I asked Hesborn to wash the stone every few days. Going forward, we’ll be wearing shoes until crawling into bed.

The Internet: Having asked Hans long before booking our stay in the house as to the WiFi situation, he assured me that he’d provide Internet access at no charge. Little did he know (and we have no animosity about this) how much usage we actually incur on a daily basis. 

Plus, the MiFi from XCOM Global hadn’t worked since we arrived in Boveglio, due the proximity of the mountains surrounding the house.  With the help of tech support via email, we never were able to connect in Italy even after we arrived in Venice on September 1st.

Partial view of the ceiling in the second story.

Last night, Hans informed us that he’ll provide us with a SIM card to use to “by the kilobyte.” With our usage, this would end up at twice the cost of the use of our MiFi at $395 a month, a figure we’d incorporated into our budget. 

Unfortunately, the use of XCOM Global‘s MiFi prevents us from downloading videos and perhaps, Tom ability to watch the NFL’s weekly videos of the Minnesota Vikings game for which he recently paid $167 for the season. 

Today, after utilizing downloaded software XCOM Global had sent us in June, miraculously, I got it going, much to our surprise. During the night last night, I found myself waking from time to time worrying about how we’d have Internet access.

Now, we wait to hear back from XCOM Global as to our ability to Skype with video, continue to download TV shows along with Tom’s ability to watch the Vikings. With literally no TV on the premises, we’re dependent upon watching downloaded shows on our computer in the evenings. 

If the event that XCOM Global‘s responses to our inquiries affects our ability to download TV shows and movies, (including Tom’s Vikings games), we’ll have no alternative but to use Internet SIM cards for those purposes only. No doubt doing so will quickly burn GBs requiring us to  pay accordingly. We do accept the possibility.

The upstairs veranda is much smaller than the main floor but a lovely breezy spot where we’ll very little time due to the steep spiral staircase.

The water: The water is not potable, although Hans explains that he drinks it. After living here 20 years, most likely he’s developed an immunity to the various parasites in the water. With no reverse osmosis or purification system in place, we’ll use bottled water including when brushing our teeth and for drinking. This morning we made coffee using the huge jugs of purified water we’d purchased yesterday at the grocery store.

The trip to the grocery store will be told in tomorrow’s post. The grocery stores are very different from the US and even Italy. To our delight, we did find a few ingredients we’d been searching for the past seven months. 

There’s much more to follow, many more stories to tell and photos to share. Soon, we’ll book our safari and look forward to sharing the experience and photos with you.

How are we doing with all of these adaptations required of us thus far? For Tom, who normally takes a little while to adapt, says “So far, so good.” 

Window in the second level.

For me, I’m fine, not worrying, especially now that we’ve safely arrived, that the MiFi is working, enabling us to reach family and friends and to write and post photos for our readers. (No video, though. Besides, I wasn’t good at making videos anyway. I won’t miss that). 

The bugs that don’t bite don’t concern me a bit.  Those, that do bite? Screaming may occur.  I’d better learn my bugs so I’ll know when to scream.  The monkey, we’ll keep you informed if it comes inside the house.

With these two beds on the second floor is the only furniture upstairs other than on the veranda. With this space, the house has room for a total of six guests with a possible two more sleeping on the sofas on the 2 verandas.  This is the railing at the top of the spiral staircase. 

Remember the movie, “Out of Africa” and the living conditions?  Its not unlike that living here, simple;  water we can’t drink, bugs everywhere, creatures around us, sounds new to our ears, limited hot water, dirt and dust everywhere and on and on. 

Partial view of the yard from another second story window.

In the near future, as we learn more, we’ll share the joys we’ll discover in Kenya which we anticipate without a doubt, will be many. Please stop back tomorrow for more house photos.

Getting our ducks in a row…

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Each day its cooler than the prior day.  More of these puffy clouds surrounded us yesterday morning. With the cool weather, we kept the windows closed all day.  The laundry on the drying rack required the entire day to dry.  It appears Tuscany’s days of hot weather are over.

The packing has begun. I’ve decided to use one of the unused guest rooms to lay out all of my clothing in neat piles, setting aside clothing for the one-day road trip to Venice and another set for the 17-hour flight.

Comfort is key in both cases including the half-day car ride to Venice. Dark clothing is vital for the many hours in the air and waiting in three airports in the event we spill something on ourselves. We’ll wear comfortable shoes and the compression socks intended for long flights and cramped spaces.

More low lying clouds with blue skies peeking through.

Ah, the preparations, so many. Attempting to communicate with a person at Turkish airlines who didn’t speak English on Skype was challenging to say the least. I believe we were able to arrange our seat assignments for the three flights in order to be able to sit together. I couldn’t understand the seat numbers and the aisle numbers. I don’t know any Turkish. We weren’t charged.

I had wanted to discuss my food restrictions with the airline for the meals that will be provided. If what they serve proves to be a problem we can eat at one of our two layovers. I plan to bring nuts just in case.

The thoughtful owner of the house in Kenya has arranged a driver to pick us up at the airport in a newer air-conditioned vehicle who’s already aware of our flight number and time of arrival. The driver will be carrying a sign with our name upon our arrival in the middle of the night. He’ll know where to take us.

The security guard at the house, Jeremia, has been instructed to let us in the gate and the house. The houseboy, Hesborn, is aware that he shouldn’t arrive at the house until after 12:00 pm the day we arrive. We’ll attempt to sleep for a few hours upon arrival. 

Upon awakening, we’ll need to arrange transportation to a grocery store, our first task in our new home. They’ll be no food awaiting us at the house, although the owner kindly offered to leave fruit and crackers, neither of which we can eat. I declined his considerate offer which he usually, provides for his guests, graciously explaining that I have a peculiar diet. 

This photo was taken from the veranda yesterday morning.  We spend most mornings on the veranda it was too damp and cool to venture outside. Today, its warmer and we’re sitting outside now as we write this.

We’ll be fine if we don’t eat until we return from the grocer loaded with a week’s supply.  The grocery stores appear to be larger than we are used to and seemingly well stocked from what we read online.  It will be fun to shop, especially the first time.

The packing? I should have most of mine in order and ready for the “suck bags” (as we call them) by Wednesday. This week, we’ll wash and wear the same tee shirts and shorts over and over to avoid disturbing the packed items. My 25-pound pile of shoes and clothing is ready to be donated. It’s hard to believe I can exist with so little clothing.  

View over the church.

At this point, I’ve let go of my desire to have a “mix and match” wardrobe with many outfits from which to choose. Those days are over. Although I’m keeping two pairs of high heels, each shoe is neatly stuffed with vitamin bottles.

As a matter of fact, our Africa boots are also stuffed with vitamin pills, all of which will be in checked baggage. We’d originally planned to wear the boots on the plane, but I can’t imagine wearing knee-high boots for almost 24 hours. 

I tried on two pairs of jeans in order to decide which would be more comfortable for the flight. It turned out that the lighter colored denim feels more pliable, although they aren’t “stretchy” at all. I wish I’d kept a few pairs of stretchy well-worn jeans. 

Last night’s meatball yet uncooked dinner, which was topped with homemade marinara sauce and locally made combination of finely grated cheeses. Before cooking, we also topped Santina’s tomatoes with the grated cheeses. The black spots are the peppers and herbs from the patio.

One more of the two missing prescription boxes arrived yesterday. Hopefully, the one remaining box will miraculously appear this week, but we’re not optimistic. Plan B will go into effect, have the missing box replaced at no charge (to which the online pharmacy agreed) to be shipped to our mailing service in Nevada. As mentioned in a past post, at some time in the future we’ll figure out a way to have it mailed to us.

Still, we have time to relax on the veranda again this morning. The weather is warmer than yesterday, although very cool. With socks on my feet, I’m comfortable, looking forward to another great day of getting whipped at Gin, watching the last third of the original Iron Man with Parts 2 and 3 already downloaded for our future viewing.

We’ll have another great dinner of leftovers, a fresh pan of the above photo. With no microwave, I always divide the meal in two, cooking one batch fresh each of two nights. This avoids using the oven to reheat already cooked food.

Life is good. Not a complaint in the world.  Looking forward to soon being settled into our new home. 

The local traveling Farmer’s Market…

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By the time I walked to the produce truck, it was surrounded by no less than 10 locals residents, anxious to buy their weekly supply of fruits and veggies.

Last Thursday, upon returning from Pescia with enough groceries to last two weeks, there was a produce truck parked across from the lot where we park the rental car.

Locals had gathered around, purchasing their fruits and vegetables. Having already purchased all the produce we needed at the time, it made no sense to make any additional purchases.

Without the use of chemicals on produce to enhance its preservation or ward off insects,, the vegetables we’re purchased seem to spoil quickly, except the cabbage and carrots we use almost daily for our coleslaw. Although we enjoy lettuce salads, we’ve found the lettuce spoils in a matter of a few days whereas the cabbage, if left uncut, may last until we shop again.

It felt awkward taking photos so I did so discretely.  Unquestionably, I was the only tourist in the bunch as I heard the locals chatting on endlessly in Italian.  I did my usual head nodding, hiding my camera under my shirt.

Having used all of the produce we bought last Thursday, we’re now down to only the cabbage, a few carrots, onions, and garlic.With our limited diet, a wide array of fresh vegetables certainly enhances our nutrient intakes but also the degree of enjoyment of our meals. 

Making chow mien a few nights ago, we used cooked cauliflower, cut into pea-size pieces as the base, as opposed to rice or chow mien noodles. It was delicious! Cauliflower can be used as a base instead of pasta, rice, beans, or grain for any meal. It takes on the flavor or the main dish without imposing any special flavor of its own.

Also, with a masher or food processor available, it can be mashed to appear and taste similar to mashed potatoes with the addition of butter, salt, and pepper. Once on the plate, one forgets it’s not potatoes and can enjoy it along with the other items in the meal. Unfortunately, an Irish potato loving guy, Tom’s not sold on this concept. I’ll give him credit for trying.

More fruit than vegetables, I was unable to replenish our supply of cauliflower.

In desperation, we do have a supply of canned green beans on hand. Certainly not a favorite but with no freezer space for frozen vegetables, we’ve had to adjust our objectives to accommodate our current needs. 

(Unsure of the exact arrival time of the produce truck, I kept checking outside to see if it had arrived. Last week, when we returned from shopping it was outside at about 3:30 pm.  Hopefully, the schedule is the same each week.  We shall find out soon enough).

In the US, most canned produce contains tons of highly processed salt. Not adverse to salt, we prefer to add our own Himalayan salt which is not chemically processed. Having used Himalayan salt for years so far it has traveled with us with our determined effort to avoid cooking with commercially processed salts.

In Italy, we’ve found most foods befitting our way of eating to be exactly as nature intended; plain. Of course, the markets are filled with the usual “junk processed foods” although considerably less than we’re used to seeing on the shelves in the US.

The baking section in the aisles is less than five feet wide as opposed to an entire aisle in the US.  If one is hoping to bake a boxed cake mix, there are few, if any options.  We were unable to find unsweetened baking chocolate, necessary to make our allowed “fudge” for an occasional treat. 

Plus, there is literally no coconut in the markets:  no raw coconut, no coconut flour, no coconut oil, further limiting some of our cooking and baking options.

Tonight for dinner; seasoned homemade chicken salad with onions, celery, hard-boiled free-range eggs, and of course, the finest pure mayonnaise we’ve found anywhere, made without chemicals; no HFCS, no sugars, no corn oil, no by-products.

Here’s what I purchased today for a grand total of Euro $4.09, US $5.33.  Prices were better at the grocery store but the freshness and convenience made it worth paying more.

This morning, for an additional entrée for tonight’s dinner, I cooked a pork loin roast, shredding and seasoning it with the fabulous Italian pasta sauce we found without sugar. This is a replacement for the usual sugary barbecue sauce. The end result: some mighty fine tasting “pulled pork,” minus the bun. 

Needing change, I handed the vendor a single bill for Euro $50, (US $65.10), concerned she’d refuse the larger bill.  No problem!  She had a fanny pack filled with money!

Throw our staple, coleslaw, into the mix, a big bowl of “fresh” steamed green beans for a hearty, healthy meal for tonight’s dinner with leftovers for tomorrow night. Yes, it might be an odd combination of items but who’s to say what we “should have” at any given meal? 

At 3:25 Tom saw the produce truck coming down the winding road heading toward our neighborhood. Grabbing my grocery bag, camera, and Euros, I headed outside to the vendor, thrilled I hadn’t missed its arrival. 

It was obvious that a stop to our tiny neighborhood might be toward the end of their route for the day with the resulting several empty bins. But, I was able to find carrots, green beans, and eggplant. This should be enough to last us with what we have on hand to get us through the next several days until we leave on our road trip next Tuesday to grocery shop again.

Going forward, we’ll purchase produce every other Thursday at the market in Pescia, enough to last a week, no longer dealing with spoilage, supplementing with what the produce truck has on hand on the alternating Thursday.  This is a perfect solution to our spoilage issues.

There’s nothing like food and love. In abundance, they fill the belly and the heart, both of which hunger for replenishment, while never losing interest in the in the prospect of the next opportunity to savor in their delights.

Planning for our arrival in Tuscany begins…Also, tomorrow’s a big day…

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Tomorrow, we’ll be gone the entire day visiting many exciting places of interest in Dubai. Of course, the cameras will be clicking, hopefully getting great shots of the sights this unique area has to offer. Please check back on Tuesday when we’ll post the story and photos of our private day trip with our cab driver Umer, as we travel in air-conditioned comfort in a newer SUV.

How far ahead we plan our means of transportation from ships and airports to vacation homes is determined by several factors; the availability of transportation to our final destination, the accessibility to the location, the likelihood of a string of cabs ready to transport passengers, the time of day of our arrival and, the urgency of our desire for peace of mind.

In our case, peace of mind is at the top of the list. Tom, worrier than he can be, finds comfort in planning well in advance with directions and a map in hand. I’m perfectly comfortable planning a few weeks in advance, rationalizing that “last-minute deals” might be the way to go. However, my ultimate goal is to keep Tom from worrying and get us to our location with the least stress. 

We plan to get to the airport in Dubai the following Monday for our flight to Barcelona, where we’ll stay for one night at the Hotel Grums again. The next day, we’ll grab a cab to take us to the port of Barcelona to board our eighth cruise since January 3, 2013, on a 12-day trip through the Mediterranean with almost daily stops in unique ports. (This will be our last cruise in 2013, with our next cruises scheduled in 2014 as we work our way to Hawaii to meet up with our kids for the holidays).

On June 16, we’ll disembark the Norwegian Spirit (I hope we like it!) in Venice, Italy, where we’ll have spent two days perusing this romantic city. 

The challenge: finding our way from Venice to our renovated 17th-century stone farmhouse in Tuscany, where we’ll spend the summer, a three-plus hour car ride. After the summer in Tuscany, we’ll fly to Mombasa, Kenya, a long flight away.

Over a year ago, when planning this leg of our journey, we accepted that a rental car for the entire two and a half months is vital, allowing us to take day excursions to other parts of Italy from this convenient location. 

With no nearby grocery stores and only a few restaurants, there is no way we are willing to feel trapped for the entire summer. The cost of renting a car, however small or economical, is outrageous. People have said, “Oh, I went to Italy and rented a car for $350 a week.” Well, let’s do the math. We’ll be there for ten weeks. We budgeted this expense, having checked on the pricing over a year ago.

Contemplating numerous options, we’ve come to the most stress-free solution to accomplish our goals: When our ship disembarks at the port in Venice, we’ll take a cab to Marco Polo Airport, a mere four miles, to pick up our awaiting rental car and drive ourselves to our awaiting property in Tuscany.

When we’re ready to fly to Kenya, we’ll drive the rental car back to Venice (it appears most flights to Mombasa depart later in the day), drop it off at the airport, and off we go to our awaiting flight.

We’d also considered; taking a train to Tuscany from Venice to rent a car in Florence, but then we’d have to get to a bigger airport to fly to Kenya. Returning to Venice is our most straightforward, least costly, stress-reducing option.

Today, we rented the car. We’ve heard horror stories about renting cars in Italy. Good grief. If you go online, you can find horrible stories about everything we’ve done so far. Refusing to spoil our experiences with needless speculation about “what ifs, would haves, and could haves” is pointless, sucking the life out of a potentially great opportunity.

As we know, things do go wrong. After all, I still have major sinus problems from that annoying ship-borne illness. After all, we’re practically trapped in our condo from construction at every turn, making walking outdoors nearly impossible. 

After all, is said and done, it’s all going to be OK as we continue to have the times of our lives, living on the roads, the seas, the skies, the mountains, the valleys, the canals, the deserts, and on and on.

Visa day tomorrow…on the Hokey Pokey Water Taxi…

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Contact Mr. Burgies and Get your ticket at the Placencia Terminal is locate at the water Taxi Gas Station

                                                 Hokey Pokey Captain (we think).

While still in Minnesota, we researched the possibility of getting our visas for Belize based on our extended stay of two and a half months. 

As indicated in the post regarding disembarking in Belize City on January 29, 2013, the immigration officer that boarded our ship would only provide us with a 30 day visa, ending on February 28, 2013. 

In Belize, it’s only possible to get one 30 day extension per personal visit to an immigration office, resulting in the necessity of our going twice to immigration, once good until March 30th and another good until April 9th, the date we depart on our upcoming cruise out of Belize City. 

From what we’ve heard from expats, they will not make an exception for the extra 10 days and give us a visa from February 28th to April 9th.  We understand the necessity of such rules applying to everyone and surely, we have no right to an exception.

Tomorrow morning at 9:30 am, our trusty cab driver, Estevan will arrive to take us the five mile drive to the village of Placencia to the pier to hop a ride at 10:00 am on the Hokey Pokey Water Taxi to take us the relatively short distance across the lagoon from Placencia to Mango Creek/Independence, located on the mainland.  The cost per person is US $3 per person each way.

Once we arrive in Mango Creek, it will be necessary to take another taxi for a ride to the immigration office at an unknown address which apparently is too far to walk.  Both Tom and I looked online for an hour for an address finally giving up looking.  From comments we’ve read online, most taxi drivers know where it is. 

In order to be granted a visa extension, a number of documents must accompany our passports.  Here’s the list copied directly from their form:

The application form  MUST  be FULLY completed, signed and dated, then submitted with the  following:  1. Your passport
2. One recent passport ­sized photograph
3. Proof of Travel Arrangements:  Copies of Tickets or a Confirmed Travel Itinerary
4. Proof of Accommodation: Copies of Confirmed Hotel Reservations or Full contact details of family/friends in Belize
5. Proof of Financial Means: Copies of most recent bank statement or Letter from Financial Officer (for Business travel  only)
6. Purpose for Trip: Educational – Letter of Introduction from University or Educational Institution Business – Letter of Introduction from Company or Organisation and supporting documents Tourism – see number 3 above.
7. Payment of Fees: Single Entry $50 per person, per extension

Our equally trusty Planon PrintStik, printed all of the above and we’re ready to go.  Providing a bank statement is a bit unnerving but, if asked (and we may not be) we’ll be prepared.  It would be a shame to go through this process and not have the necessary documents in one’s possession.

We could have applied to the immigration department in the UK.  However, we are unable to send or receive mail here in Placencia in a timely fashion to ensure we’d get our passports back in time for departure.  We have two US passports but, feared it would be returned long after we’ve left.

Another option was to rent a car and drive the two hour winding Hummingbird Highway to get to Belmopan, the capital city and apply in person.  This surely would be a full day’s outing. 

We opted for the trip to Mango Creek/Independence, hoping we can get done in time to return to Placencia Village on the 12:00 PM Hokey Pokey.  This would give us time to have lunch in Placencia at one of the highly recommended diners, grocery shop in the larger grocery store, the fresh fish market and the vegetable stands, having Estevan pick us up when we’re done around 2:30.

This choice gives us an opportunity for a fun outing as opposed to a long drive up and back.  It all made more sense to us.  If the time at the immigration moves quickly, all could go as planned.  We shall see how it goes, reporting back here tomorrow with photos and a rundown of our day.

Have an enjoyable evening watching the Academy Awards!  Much to our delight (mine more than Tom’s) we’ll be able to watch it in HD on the flat screen TV in our little villa.  Oh, we’re getting spoiled.  Expectations will be reduced considerably after we leave this fabulous spot! 

Party Time in Placencia, Belize…

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Gunter, the chef, baker and purveyor of fine foods at Mathieu’s deli.

Who knew that less than one week after moving into our ocean front villa at Laru Beya that we’d be going to a local party?  Yep, that’s us, social butterflies. 

An element of our ability to travel the world is wrapped up in our combined enjoyment of meeting new people, experiencing new cultures, ultimately making new friends.

After our first friends, Kari and Stu from Canada left Friday morning off to visit another island and then head home, we’d planned dinner Friday night with our favorite newlywed couple, Pam and Jerry, who’d invited us to join us.  

Last night was their last night in Placencia and they too were heading off to another resort in Belize for the remainder of their honeymoon.

The marina at Habanero’s/Mathieu’s.

Early in the afternoon Pam, a long time resident of Belize and a US citizen, came dashing over to our veranda as we lounged after a long walk on the beach.  Her enthusiasm along with the bounce in her step, led us to anticipate she had something exciting to tell us. 

“We’re invited to a party!”  she blurted. 

“We?”  I questioned hoping that the invitation did indeed include us.

“Yes,” she babbled, “all of us are invited to a wine and cheese party across the street at Mathieu, a quaint bakery attached to Habanero, our close and favorite Tuesday night Mexican buffet spot.

“Its at 4:00 pm. Would you like to go with us?”  she questioned with eyebrows raised.

More boats at the marina.

Tom and I looked at each other for a moment reverting to our “old selves” thinking of a reason “why not?”  But our “new selves” chimed in simultaneously,
“Yes, we’d love to!  We’ll look for you there at 4:00 pm sharp!”

Pam smiled wide.  We’re going to a party!

Planning to attend the party for a few hours returning to our respective villas to get ready for the evening and drive the five mile distance to De Tatch, a local eatery consisting of multiple little huts on the beach and one large thatch hut, known for its traditional Belizean food and juicy imported steaks (I prefer the local grass fed meat).

Arriving promptly at 3:55, we grabbed a rattan table for four with comfy padded chairs, seeing few people.  Tom and I looked at each other surely thinking the same thing, “Where are all the guests?  Not much of a party.”  No wine, no cheese was in sight.

Nice catamaran!

Within minutes, we found Pam and Jerry, happy to find us.  We all reveled in how thoughtful promptness is, as we gathered around the table, looking around the sparse area. 

In a flurry of activity, the Belizean way, the area filled with locals, expats, tourists and us, leaving us feeling excited and included in what proved to be a delightful experience as you can see from the attached photos.

Cheese being served at the party. Ian Anderson, the cheese maker, manufacturing cheese made in Belize, is the gentleman serving cheese. 

Frosty lasses of fresh squeezed pineapple juice was poured all around. (None for me.  No sugar here.  No problem.) The imported red and white wine flowed freely and the food…much more than cheese. 

Servers passed trays of appetizers including many locally grown fruit, hand carved imported deli meats, Bruschetta made with locally grown tomatoes piled atop breads made right there at the Matthieu Deli plus a wide array of the most amazing cheeses actually made right here in Belize at the resort, owned by Ian Anderson, featured in the photo above.

Breads served a appetizer table.  Drool worthy.

The cheese making factory is located in Ian’s resort, Caves Branch in Cayo District. Its by far the best cheese we’ve ever eaten.  The proceeds from the sales goes to an organization for the betterment of Belizean children.  What an amazing operation.

Tom tried a few small slices of the amazing breads, as he has from time to time when we’ve dined out recently with no adverse effects, when eaten in moderation. None for me.  

Our newlywed friends, Pam and Jerry, as the area fills with party-goers.

Gunter, the chef, baker and cheese purveyor, a charming salt and pepper haired man from Germany was busy making platter after platter of his delectable delights.  The servers were darting in and out of the congested gatherings of party goers with platters in hand, serving generous portions. 

The cheese was to die for.  Immediately after tasting four or five of the cheeses, I dashed off to the counter in the deli, credit card in hand hoping to purchase a few of our favorites. 

Tom calls me a “food voyeur.”  So true!

Alas, in the Belizean way, they didn’t have any to sell.  This truly was a party!  It wasn’t a promotion to sell cheese.  I drilled Gunther, “When can we come back and buy some of these cheese?” 

“Come back tomorrow,” he proudly stated, “It should be here tomorrow.”

This morning when the maid arrived to clean our villa, (love having a maid twice a week), Tom and I walked over to the deli, hoping to find the cheeses in stock. 

With limited options at the grocery store, it will be a treat to snack on a variety of cheeses as dessert which I learned to enjoy after dinner aboard the Celebrity Century cruise ship.

Tom, wrapped up in lively animated conversation!

Alas, most of the cheeses we loved were available and we happily spent US $72.00 for a variety.  The blue cheese hadn’t arrived yet giving us a good excuse to meander to the deli (a seven minute walk) again in the next few days. 

While there this morning, we chatted with Gunter and Ian, both of whom were more than willing to visit with us.  Ian invited us to his cheese factory in Cayo District, an hour and a half hour drive from here.  This definitely is an option for the near future when we’ll rent a vehicle for a few days.

After the party, we headed back to our villa, changed for the evening and met Pam and Jerry by the pool for a 10 minute drive to the village for dinner.  Already full from cheese, I couldn’t imagine having dinner until I saw grilled conch on the menu.  Since arriving in Belize I’d longed for conch but, each time it appeared on a menu it was batter fried, not for me.

Tom ordered the imported rib eye steak, seasoned well but, thin and tough.  My conch, chewy as anticipated, was delicious.  Seated in the large thatched hut with literally no breeze, the no-see-ums were feasting on us.  Shortly after eating our long overdue dinners and many rounds of interesting conversation, we headed back to LaruBeya.

Saying goodbye to Pam and Jerry, knowing we won’t see them again, left us a little sad.  All of our new friends were gone.  But, today is another day.  The pool will start calling us in a few hours for our hour of sun and fun.  Without a doubt, in the next few days we’ll make new friends and begin once again. 

This, my friends, is the intended nature of our new lives “wafting through our world wide travels with ease, joy and simplicity.”

Splurging on dining out this past week plus the cost of the cheese, put us over on our budget by $30.  Thus, we’ve decided to dine in tonight and tomorrow roasting the two free range organic chickens we’d purchased on Wednesday. 

Right now the two chickens are marinating in the refrigerator.  With a small piece of cabbage left along with our ample supply if huge whole organic carrots, I’ll make a batch of coleslaw (sugar free, of course),  roasted garlic and roasted carrots to accompany our diinner. 

Homemade food sounds especially good right now.  For dessert, we’ll enjoy a platter of the Belizean made cheeses.  Thanks Ian.  Thanks Gunter.  We’ll surely see you again!

Be warm.  Be well wherever you may be.

Happy Valentine’s Day…staying happy…staying fit…

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Valentine’s Day sunrise photo of the Caribbean Sea taken by Tom this morning while standing less than 10 feet from our veranda.

Heartfelt Valentine’s wishes for all of our family and friends.  This morning, Tom arose before sunrise waiting to take this extraordinary photo for me while I remained in restful slumber.  This is truly the best Valentine’s gift I’ve ever received.  Thanks, my love.

After a fun happy hour last night with our tourist neighbors from Canada, another couple we’ve befriended, we dined on our homemade pizza made using Polish not Italian sausage.  It wasn’t quite the same, missing the familiar spices in the sausage that make pizza so tasty.  Not having eaten all day, we devoured half of it leaving the remainder for tonight’s dinner. 

While grocery shopping a few days ago, I’d purchased a whole coconut, wondering how we’d open it. With my limited way of eating, I was craving something sweet.  The thought of eating fresh coconut got me salivating.

During last night’s happy hour festivities, we asked a resort employee if he could help us crack the coconut. He dashed off, moments later returning with a awe inspiring machete. 

Helpful employee at LaruBeya cracking open my coconut.

In a matter of seconds, he’d split the coconut.  Unfortunately, as an inexperienced coconut buyer, I had purchased one with a crack it in.  The employee explained that the meat would be dry and the milk unsafe to drink.  I had hoped to use it to make coconut flour pancakes. Live and learn.  We dumped the milk placing the two chunks in the fridge to deal with later.

As I peeked in the refrigerator this morning, seeing the leftovers wrapped in foil and the two chunks of coconut, impossible to remove from the shell after trying late last night, a sense of disappointment came over me, such sorry leftovers for Valentine’s dinner and no coconut meat.   Oh well, no big deal.  I tucked it away in my mind to “think about later.”  We had chicken and beef in the freezer and could easily make a new dinner.

After our usual morning coffee on the veranda, checking our email and Facebook, it was time to wander over to the resort next door, Roberts Grove, a five minute walk along the beach so I could work out once again. We darted in and out of palm trees on the scenic walk along the beach.  Me, in workout shoes and Tom, barefooted.  He never ventures outdoors without shoes.  It’s fun to see that he too, is falling into the Belizean way, barefoot and laid back.

Staying fit as we travel the world is important to me.  Its not about “burning calories” which I’ve never found to be effective.  Its about maintaining a level of fitness and well being to ensure my continuing good health, mobility, strength and endurance, many of which dwindle away as one approaches old age. 

Turning 65 years old in a mere six days, February  20th, is a huge motivator for me.  Since we left Minnesota on Halloween, I’ve only missed one week, that horrifying week without water in the little beach house.  Once we moved here to LaruBeya on February 5th, I signed up next door (no health club here) to use their health club at $39 a month, as mentioned in a prior post.

My workout consists of a program I adopted from the book, The Smarter Science of Slim by Jonathan Bailor which extols the virtues of 1000 scientific studies done by researchers at Harvard as to why we need to eat more and exercise less (and smarter) utilizing the concert of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). 

This concept along with the book Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis, not only changed my life, now free of pain except for the testy shoulder on occasion but helped Tom lose 45 pounds which he has maintained after two cruises and many nights of dining out.  I know I’ve mentioned these many times in the past but we would not have been able to travel the world prior to these startling life changes from eating this new way, now 18 months later.

Tom has never had interest in working out.  He’s lost all this weight from diet alone.  Now, living on the beach, its not hard to get in my preferred 10,000 steps of walking per day. I don’t nag or cajole Tom into doing more. Its entirely his decision, one I doubt he’ll choose to make. 

In any case, my workouts continue leaving me feeling refreshed, renewed and energized.  Although I only go to the gym twice a week for short periods, HIIT is an excruciated short period, as little as 10 minutes of torture.  Once done, I wait 3-4 days to do it again, ideal with our current lifestyle.

As discussed many times in this blog, our diets continue to be a source of careful planning and sometimes difficult choices.    Tom had planted himself in a comfy chair in the shade reading a book on his smart phone (we no longer have cell phone contract but use WiFi for data on our phones) while I’d work out.  While standing at the desk at Robert’s Grove to collect the key to the workout room, I noticed three fancy Valentine’s Day menus spread out on the counter.

Thinking about the leftover pizza and impossible to shell coconut in the fridge, I called Tom over to peruse the menus.  Pizza or filet mignon and lobster tail????
Filet and lobster won!!!  We made the reservation for 7 PM tonight, Valentine’s night.  All we do is show up at that desk at 6:45 tonight and the staff at Robert’s Grove will drive us the five miles to Maya Beach to their sister resort for dinner at the Singing Sands Resort and return us to our resort later in the evening.  

Tom washed a boulder and then used it to crack my coconut, making it possible to eat. It wasn’t dry at all.  Tonight’s dessert!

We moved!!! …Thank goodness!…In 5 days, we move to a condo on the beach!..Yeah!

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The view from our 5-day hotel room

We awoke yesterday morning to no working toilet even when adding water. No water came out of any faucet.  How would we shower? With bug spray all over me, I desperately needed a shower.

OK. We admit it. We aren’t as tough as we thought we were. After a futile effort of days of looking for a new place to live for the next 62 days, we considered taking a ship out of Belize to go anywhere.

With last minute cruise deals, we calculated the cost of cruising for the next two months.  It would have been about $10,000 for both of us, staying on the same ship to avoid moving and moving, actually less than we had expected. But, the prospect of putting out that amount of money made us both cringe. 

Yes, the $5000 monthly average for planning this cruise option was within our budget with all meals and “transportation” included but we’d have to pay for “extras” including beverages and Internet which, for that amount of time would easily total another $3000, making it out of the ballpark.

View of the resort restaurant from our 5-day hotel room

A few nights ago while sitting at our computers until after midnight, hot air swirling around the one-room little house from multiple fans, windows shut to keep out the bugs, we desperately tried to figure out an affordable solution.  Bug bitten, exhausted, feeling dirty with no hot water we started making no sense and finally went to bed.   

For the first time ever in our almost 22 year relationship, we were snappy at each other. I felt responsible since I’d booked this location. Had I known about the water situation, of course, I’d never have booked it. It wasn’t unreasonable for Tom to begin to question if this was going to be the quality of our lives over the next few years.

Anxiously, I reviewed all of our future properties we’ve rented, questioning if I was picky enough when booking them. They all seemed good. This was a fluke, not my fault. Of course, I wouldn’t book a house that was comparable to living in a tent with a bed.

After contacting literally every affordable property within 100 miles with no luck finally deciding against the cruise option, we had no choice but to drive around in the golf cart looking for “for rent” or “vacancy” signs. 

We’d put down a deposit of $100 on an adorable rustic resort in Placencia Village, Captain Jak’s but they didn’t have an opening until February 20, ironically the day of my 65th birthday.  Although not on the water, we’d have no ocean view and no AC.  The owners were wonderful, giving us a fair price and doing everything they could to accommodate us. 

The idea of leaving our former lives and loved ones behind was to be traveling with ease, not strife. We needed a hotel room if nothing else until the 20th but we didn’t want to move twice.  It was hard to think clearly in our circumstances.

Driving around in the golf cart along the highway, crazy traffic whizzing past us, we drove into a few resorts.  Entering into a resort on a long winding road with exquisite landscaping with flowering trees, walking paths, and even its own miniature golf course, we stumbled upon Laru Beya, a corporate-owned resort of villas, hotel rooms, restaurant, pool, and activities. This was going to be out of our league.

Had we planned a vacation in the past, this easily would have been ideal for us for a one or two weeks, hardly affordable for over two months.  Standing at the desk, we tentatively asked if they could accommodate us and if so, the cost. Again, we cringed deciding to see what they had available “for the fun of it,” we said.

By 3:00 PM yesterday we were lounging in these chaise lounges, relieved and happy.

A delightful hostess, Veranish (spelling?) showed us two identical villas, one the main floor, another on the third, both within 30 feet of the Caribbean Sea with enormous private furnished patios overlooking a sandy beach which was virtually a paradise.  We were smitten. 

Again tentatively, we ended up at the desk “trying to make a deal.” No dealing here. Take it or leave it. The main floor villa wouldn’t be available until February 10th. Could we take five more days without water? The rent per month would be $2500.  I’d negotiated them down from $5000 a month. They’d need the entire two months in advance to secure our possession from February 10th to April 9th. 

I wanted to commit, then and there as I scratched my dirty feeling legs. Tom wanted to discuss it overnight.  We left. The drive in the golf cart back to the little house was silent. Along the ride, Tom relented, with conditions:  no eating out, including Valentine’s Day, my upcoming 65th birthday, and on our anniversary, March 7th.

Not responding immediately, I began to weigh the pros and cons.  The grocery stores were sparse of protein sources, I desperately needed to eat. Unable to buy any raw vegetables, eat any salads, it’s difficult to cook anything except breakfast. 

Swatting the bugs, I reviewed our grocery expenditure since we’d arrived, a mere seven days ago. We’d already spent $325 US at the grocery store and eaten out once (we never made it to the Bistro) at Robert’s Grove for $87 for a total of $412, averaging at $58.86 per day for food.  Pointing this out to Tom, he didn’t budge on his conditions. “OK,” I said, “Let’s take the villa at Laru Beya for the 10th. Somehow we’d get through for six more nights.

Using Skype to make the toll free call to Tim, the manager at Laru Beya, we told him we’d take the villa on the 10th.  I offered to pay over the phone, but he insisted we could stop over in the morning to take care of business. We weren’t relaxed yet. What if someone booked it online overnight and it wasn’t available in the morning?

Tired and stressed we decided against the long ride to the Bistro for dinner, when now the prospect of spending another $80 for dinner felt especially uncomfortable. With another narrow package of the grass-fed ground steak in the tiny fridge, again, I made the bun-less sliders with bacon and cheese with a side of canned spinach and cooked carrots. Actually, it tasted pretty good.

Talking to each other again, we went to bed with a sense of uncertainty, both of us so much wanting this to work out. During the night, the owner’s dog started barking, unusual for this otherwise quiet dog. The owner’s outdoor lights suddenly flashed on as Tom bolted out of bed peeking out the windows. She had warned us about possible crime in the area during the night telling us to leave the outdoor lights on all night.

At night, we turned off the lights so we could open the windows before going to bed to get some relief from the heat. If the outdoor lights were on, we found, it attracted the bugs.  Oh, please.

Tom bolted out of bed another few times when the dog barked again. He left on the outdoor light. My heart racing expecting some terrifying event, I hid under the covers trying to keep the mosquitoes and no-see-ums from biting. 

If I’d been the crying type which I’m not, I could have cried then but, what was the point?  Men seem to feel helpless when women cry often acting unsympathetic and angry when they “can’t fix it.” I didn’t see any benefit to making my loving attentive husband feel any more frustrated than he already was.

Exhausted, we fell back to sleep.  At 9:00 am I awakened Tom, reminding him that Tim said he’d be in the office at 9:30. A short time later we were standing in the office of Laru Beya ready to pay our $5000 by credit card.  Handing Tim a card on which we had ample “room” we began to relax.

Oh, good grief!  Our credit card was declined!  How could that be?  I’d verified it, that very morning when Tom was sleeping.  I asked Tim to run it again for a smaller amount. He said “I did and it still wouldn’t go through.”

He handed me the phone. Making an expensive long-distance call on their phone, on hold for no less than five minutes, I finally got through to a rep who was apologizing profusely for “the inconvenience.”  They’d blocked the card when the $5000 charge came in the first time, assuming it was a stolen card. That explains why the smaller amount didn’t go through.

I explained, “I’d called all of our cards while in the US with the dates we’d be in various countries to avoid this exact scenario.”

Again she apologized, explaining that this large of a charge warranted a call from us for our protection. She approved the transaction and minutes later we signed the charge slip. I couldn’t do it fast enough. 

Tom asked Tim, “Do you have anywhere we could stay beginning today?”  I held my breath awaiting Tim’s answer. 

“Let me look,” he said. Minutes went by, again, my heart pounding as Tim investigated the options. “We have one room for $250 a night room we can give you for $182 a night with tax included.”  (He’d included the tax in the two month’s $5000).

“Yes!” we both said, “we’ll take it! Can someone come to help us get our stuff soon?” Tom asked since it all wouldn’t fit on the golf cart.

“Yes,”  Tim stated with certainty, “Of course, we’ll do that. We have a van. How’s 1:30?”

We hurriedly returned to the little house madly packing everything in sight. That early morning I had managed to eek out a load of laundry when water ran for a short period. It was still wet on the line. Hopefully, by 1:30 it would be dry. In a matter of an hour, we’d packed everything. When we moved in seven days ago, we had unpacked only enough clothes to get through a week, making the repacking easier.

Arriving back at Laru Beya by 2:00 pm anxious to unload our stuff, me in the van with Tim, Tom puttering behind in the golf cart (which we have to return by Friday), we realized that in our enthusiasm, we’d failed to ask what were we getting for the five nights?  As a beautiful resort, we mindlessly assumed it would be suitable. 

Maybe we didn’t ask on purpose, both knowing if they so much as gave us a closet it would be better than from whence we came. Alas, it was a nicely appointed, but, a small hotel room with a huge bath with running hot water, air conditioning, free Wifi, cable flat-screen TV, and no kitchen. The tiny fridge had no freezer to store the packages of sausage for the yet to be made pizza but instead a basic hotel room refrigerator. We’d make do. If the sausage spoils, it spoils. 

We loaded the remainder of our perishable items after two sturdy helpers (along with us) hauled all of our luggage up three flights of stairs to our new digs for the next five days when, on Sunday, the helper returns to move us to the first-floor villa.

Rather than count the days until Sunday, we decided to love every single moment in our hotel room.  Tom wimped out (his word, not mine) since now we have to eat out. No kitchen for five days.  We putted over to Robert Grove’s in the golf cart for another outdoor restaurant last night across the highway for their Tuesday night Mexican buffet. 

We couldn’t stop smiling, apologizing for our irritability these past few days.  Tom said, “If we had started out here at Laru Beya, we would have said Belize is pure Paradise.  We must come back here in the future!”