Gorgeous flowers…Budgeting this way of life…Comfort food recipe for a low carb diet…

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Lipstick palm in the yard. The owners, Bev and Sam have these on the grounds of their fabulous home in Kauai Hawaii which formerly was a botanical garden.  This wonderful couple certainly understands how to create beauty and balance in home design and landscaping.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

This is the first blackbird we’ve seen in the tree nearest the veranda.

Based on our budgetary restrictions due to the recent payments on the Ponant Antarctica cruise with the final payment paid a few days ago, we’ve had to limit our spending over this past year as described in this post and others.

 We’d decided that our time in Costa Rica, Buenos Aires and upcoming in Africa would give us time to restock our coffers for future tours and spending.  Had we not booked the upcoming the back-to-back 30-night South American cruise at a cost of  US $8,388 (CRC 4,802,886) plus the Antarctica cruise at US $34,500 (CRC 19,804,208) totaling US $42,888 (CRC 24,557,245), we’d have been able to spend more on tours and rental cars.

 Also, we’re budgeting for spending in Africa for safaris and tours that inspired us to return for an extended visit.  We’d missed so much the first time when we became obsessed with staying in Marloth Park living among the animals. 

These Hydrangeas in the courtyard are exquisite.
As for the South American 30-night back-to-back sailing on November 23rd, US Thanksgiving Day we’re using this cruise as a means of transportation to get us to Buenos Aires and also to spend 30-days visiting more new (to us) ports of call and sailing through the Panama Canal for the second time.  How enjoyable this will be!

As a result of this budget-tightening, we’ve found other ways to embrace our time in lovely Costa Rica.  We’ve already done quite a bit of sightseeing as you’ve seen from our photos.  

But, we’ve also focused on making the very most of our time at this exquisite villa by bird watching.  It’s no exaggeration to say I’ve managed to do close to if not more than 10,000 steps a day on my FitBit by running from one edge of the property to another to get photos of the stunning birds that grace us with their daily visits.


Impatiens are commonly used in shady areas.
Regardless of what we’re doing, when we hear a new bird sound, we immediately dash from one area to another, hoping to be able to take a photo of the latest visitor. 

Many local residents have lived here for years with extraordinary experiences of seeing many more species than we have in our short time here in Atenas.  But, that doesn’t diminish the joy we’ve had in hearing and seeing what we have thus far.

As for the remainder of our time in Costa Rica, we revel in the tremendous enjoyment in planning, preparing and dining on special meals befitting our way of eating.  Many tourists without dietary restrictions are able to dine out frequently.  Based on my extensive list of restricted foods, dining out in the casual restaurants in Atenas has not been a good option.


Gorgeous purple hydrangeas growing in the center courtyard.


Instead, we focus on making meals which include variety and we never hesitate to try new recipes.  The Internet provides a wealth of low carb recipes befitting my way of eating, many of which we’ve modified to our tastes and my restrictions.

Yesterday, we made a recipe we particularly love that we found last year and made for the first time in Penguin Tasmania. While in Penguin we mentioned we were trying this recipe but failed to post it when we became sidetrack with the other wonders of Penguin.

After a few modifications and making this recipe with enough to last for three meals, last night our mouths were in “taste bud frenzy” over the deliciousness of this dish.  I’ll admit it does take to prepare this recipe, at least an hour for all the steps but a few steps can be eliminated as I’ve indicated below reducing the time by half.  Thirty minutes of prep time for three or four night’s dinner is ideal for us.  

Or, if one prefers, the meal can be divided into the eight servings by freezing additional portions for future meals.  This is great for busy working folks and most likely is the perfect “comfort food” cold winter options.  Since we never live in cold climates, we’re enjoying it in tropical climates!


Here’s the photo and recipe with easier options in parenthesis:

One of three pans of last night’s dinner of Low Carb Chicken Pot Pie.  Recipe follows.  (We couldn’t find the correct sized tin foil pans to use.  Instead, we used three baking pans.  But the recipe is better baked in individual serving pans since it tends to fall apart when scooping it out from larger pans).

Jess’s Low Carb, Gluten Free Chicken Pot Pies

0 ratinYield: 8 – 10 Pot Pies
Serving Size: 1 Pot Pie
For the pot pie filling
·         6 T. butter or organic coconut oil
·         1 cup onion, diced
·         1 cup celery, sliced
·         1 cup cooked carrots, diced (can use frozen)
·         1 cup cooked green beans, diced (can use frozen)
·         6 cloves garlic, minced (can use already minced)
·         salt and pepper, to taste
·      24 oz. cooked chicken, cubed small (can purchase already roasted or cubed cooked chicken)
·         1.5 cups full fat coconut milk, unsweetened
·         1 cup organic chicken stock
·         4 T. Dijon mustard
·         1.5 cups sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
·         1 cup frozen peas
For the dough
·         3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
·         6 T cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
·         1.5 cup almond flour
·         2 large eggs
·         2 tsp garlic powder
·         2 tsp onion powder
·         1 tsp Italian seasoning
·        2 tsp sea salt
·         1 tsp black pepper
Instructions
For the pot pie filling
1.   Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, add the onion, celery, carrots, garlic and a little salt and pepper to the pan. Sauté until the vegetables are soft.
2.   Add the chicken to the pan and sauté until it’s cooked through.
3.   Add the coconut cream, chicken stock, and Dijon mustard to the pan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 5-7 minutes.
4.   Mix in the cheese until melted.
5.   Stir in peas.
6.   Divide the mixture into 8 (or 10 depending on preferred portion size) separate tin foil bread or pie pans for individual servings.  These freeze well when wrapped in foil or plastic and can be defrosted overnight in the fridge and baked as described below for individual servings.
For the dough
7.   Preheat oven to 375°
8.   In a large mixing bowl, combine mozzarella cheese and cream cheese. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir to combine and microwave 1 additional minute.
9.   Mix in almond flour, egg, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, sea salt and black pepper. Mix until all ingredients are well combined. If it gets stringy or is not quite melted enough, put it back in for another 30 seconds.

10. Make the dough into clumpy balls and top each of the eight pans with the clumpy balls, fairly close to one another.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Per serving – net Carbs – 11g
Have a safe and fulfilling day!
                            _____________________________________________________

Photo from one year ago today, October 15, 2016:

Tom and I dressed for a Hindu holiday in traditional Balinese attire.  For more photos please click here.

Forgetfulness and aging…A story from long ago changing our lives…

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Photo of the railroad guys at the train station.  Year unknown.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

This is a Clay Colored Robin, the national bird of Costa Rica.

Two weeks from today, we leave for Nicaragua for two nights, returning to the villa on the 30th.  The next day, October 31st is our five-year anniversary of traveling the world.

When we first began traveling in 2012, we hadn’t imagined we’d last five years.  At that time, we “qualified” our long-term plans by saying we’d find somewhere along the way where we’d eventually settle down or we’d return to live in the US, location to be determined.

Settling down at some point is no longer a topic of interest or discussion.  We’ve accepted the reality when health fails for either of us (which eventually will), we’ll have to make a decision.  Do we worry that such a sudden decision will overwhelm us especially under the duress of a medical problem? 

Locomotives, back in the day in Atenas.

Not really.  Why worry about a situation over which we have little control other than to take good care of our health and well-being each and every day?  When it happens, it happens.  We’ll figure it out from there.

An important aspect of managing such a situation is predicated on the ability of one of us to be able to make decisions in the event of a medical issue for the other.

In our old lives, at one point, I was concerned about developing memory loss issues as I’ve aged.  Dementia was a common condition on my mother’s side of the family. 

Horn off a locomotive.

Once I hit the age of 50, I found myself becoming forgetful…walking into a room and not remembering why, starting a project and getting sidetracked on another project, forgetting where I’d left off.  These were subtle changes I was embarrassed to mention,  not even to Tom.

In 2011, when I dramatically changed my way of eating from a ‘low fat, low protein, high carb, healthy whole grains” diet to a “high fat, moderate protein, very low carb diet,” not only was I pain-free three months later but over the next several years, my memory improved to an astounding rate, comparable to when I was in my early 20’s.

No longer did I find myself losing things, wondering where I’d left something, or forgetting what I’d done the prior evening.  Was it due to the diet as explained in Dr. David Perlmutter’s book “Grain Brain” or was it due to the fact that in early 2012 I began the 12-hour-a-day process of planning our world travels keeping my brain whirring in a plethora of new knowledge?

Model trains on a shelf.

Dr. Perlmutter included the story of my success with this way of eating on his website as shown in this link here.  We also shared the story in one of our previous posts as indicated here in this link. 

The smidgeon of notoriety I gleaned from this article only mattered to me in that it might inspire one more individual to embark on this way of eating to improve their health as well.  When readers wrote asking questions, it was so rewarding.

No, this way of eating doesn’t make me exempt from injuries (obviously) such as in Bali when I hurt my spine (fully recovered now) or in developing Helicobacter Pylori from tainted food in Fiji from which I’m still recovering. (It may take a few more months).

Toy truck and more trains on a shelf.

However, being pain-free and regaining my memory has truly been an awe-inspiring result which ultimately allowed us to travel the world and recall the most finite details of our lives of travel.

Plus, it’s allowed me to post our daily stories which require a tremendous amount of recall.  Tom, on the other hand, inherited great “memory genes” and does equally well.  Tom’s mother, at 98 years old could recall names, birthdates, and events of her huge family and her life over the prior 11 decades.  Tom’s eldest brother Jerome, at almost 89, has an equally finely tuned memory. 

Ironically, Tom with the greatest of ease, remembers dates of past and upcoming events, places we’ve visited and our numerous cruises while I recall names of places, people, expenses, and miscellaneous oddball items. 

Coin collection at the museum.

Long ago, when we began our travels, we each gravitated toward that which we’d prefer to recall most readily.  Thus, we can always depend on one another to fill in the blanks.  As we all can recall from our schooldays, we tend to recall topics of the most interest to us.

Each day as it comes and goes, with a bit of serendipity thrown in, we’re left with memories we’ll always cherish as part of this wondrous life we’re blessed to live.

May your day be filled with wondrous memories.

_________________________________________


Photo from one year ago today, October 13, 2016:

Workers in the rice fields in Bali.  For more photos, please click here.

Culture, fun facts, odd facts and superstitions in Costa Rica… on Friday, the 13th…More historical photos…

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In Costa Rica…could this be one of the first Foosball/football/soccer games?

 “Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

Another little bird was lost when hitting the glass wall on the veranda.  There are Audubon Society approved stickers on the glass but still, birds still fly into the glass, some of which recover and others which do not, such as this.  It’s always heartbreaking for us to see this happen.

Each country has its own superstitions along with those of various cultures and religious affiliations which ultimately influence the country as a whole.  Many include today’s date, Friday the 13th, as being a day of considerable risk and superstition. 

Machete.

Here’s an interesting article dated today from Live Science that delves into the when and how this superstition was created.  Please click here for the story from this popular publication.

Mortar and pestle.

As we spend our remaining 40 days in Central America, we embarked on research to discover traditions, peculiarities, customs, and superstitions typical for the “Ticos” (native people of Costa Rica) and stumbled across this excellent collection of items we’d like to share with you today.

Here they are, thanks to this site:

Fun, Goofy, & Weird Stuff about Costa Rica

In any website like this, there are bound to be a bunch of silly, maybe irrelevant, but often interesting tidbits that simply do not fit well under another location… so here are the Odds and Ends.  Little known, but true… and generally useless… facts about Costa Rica!  If you live here… you probably have your own!  Send them to me and I’ll add them.

In absolutely no particular order….

  1. In Costa Rica, it is not uncommon to give coffee to babies (in their bottle, with milk) and to young children.  I found this astonishing!  Having had the “pleasure” of a two-year-old a few times in my life, I simply could not imagine a two-year-old on espresso!
  2. MANY Costa Ricans use their credit cards for everything. What do I mean by everything? Well… a newspaper, a candy bar, a pack of gum, etc. I mean things as low as just pennies in cost! It is truly bizarre to be in line behind a Tico and watch him whip out his card to make an eighteen cent purchase.
     
  3. MacDonald’s, Burger King and all the others have HOME DELIVERY in Costa Rica!  This is not a good thing if you are on a diet.
  4. Ticos are short-statured people in general. Therefore, chairs, couches etc are built about 6-8 inches (sometimes more) lower than furniture say from the USA. If you are tall, you will find that the act of just getting up is an effort. If you have a…ummm… a weight issue as does this writer, it is handy to have a helper nearby!
     
  5. Cigarettes are only about $1.65 per pack.  Another thing to place under the ‘not good’ category.
     
  6. Naming conventions are very different here.  Children take their father’s name but add their mother’s maiden name to their full name.  So when you see a name on a business card like Carlos Jose Gomez Guzman, this person name is Carlos Gomez and the Guzman is his mom’s maiden name.  Often this is abbreviated as an initial thus: Carlos Jose Gomez G. or even more commonly, Carlos Gomez G.

    Costa Rican women do not take their husband’s last name.  The woman uses her full maiden name for life.  No changing of national ID cards, drivers licenses, etc.  She also adds her mother’s maiden name.

    Rarely now, women WILL use the old Spanish naming convention and add a  “de ” and her husband’s name.  Thus, Maria Gomez when she marries Carlos de la Torre, will become  Maria Gomez de La Torre.

    This system does not work well with most North American names, especially ethnic names and would be as dumb as all that hyphenating malarkey in the USA. Imagine Doris Kaspinski de Czezniekevich?
     

  7. If you should die while here, you are buried here on the same day you die… no embalming… nada.  They just plant you!   Everyone looks to see your obituary on TV several times per day!  (This can occur easily if you buy the cheap cigarettes and have your Big Macs sent to the home!).  More info click here.
     
  8. There are few street signs in Costa Rica and even fewer addresses.  Read that as almost none.  Just about all addresses are in terms of a well-known building or landmark; often the local Catholic Church, cemetery, or another fixed location.  But just to keep things interesting, some addresses are phrased in terms of building that may have burned down 20 years ago!  Also, when you see an address that says 200M west of something, that normally means 2 blocks and NOT a true 200 meters. Now is a good time to read about driving in Costa Rica.
     
  9. Diet Pepsi here tastes better than Diet Coke.
     
  10. Instead of saying “my other half”,  Ticos often refer to their significant other as their “media naranja” or the other half of their orange.
     
  11. Many (honey) bees in Costa Rica are of the Africanized variety i.e. killer bees.   The older species were bred out years ago.
     
  12. Tangerines are called mandarins (mandarines) here. Limes are limónes.  And you can’t buy lemons here… or at least I have never seen them.  So, if you want a lime, ask for a limón (lee-moan).
     
  13. Candy and cookies manufactured here are to Tico tastes and have a LOT less sugar (and maybe fat) and thus a lot less flavor.  If you have a sweet tooth, it can still be satiated as nearly all the popular candy from the US (I am a Snickers freak), is available.  However, if you’re a cookie lover, your pretty well outta luck.  Not much available except Oreos and a handful of others.

    Also, non-sugary drink mixes like Crystal Light is not available, so if the Crystal Light folks read this, I would like Lemonade, Grapefruit, Orange, and Citrus Splash, please!
     

  14. Locks (houses, gates, etc.) in Costa Rica almost always work (turn) backward.
  15. We say in English “She had a baby” or “She gave birth”, but in Spanish, it’s, “Ella dio a luz” or translated, “She gave light.” Perhaps more accurately, “She gave light to her baby” indicating that she brought the baby from the darkness of the womb to the light of day.
  16. Want another one? Bienes raices is the word for Real Estate. Bienes means property or possessions and raices means roots. So there you have “property roots!”. Gives meaning to the expression “laying down roots”.
  17. Front doors of almost all commercial establishments almost always open INWARDS. This is against every fire code in the USA, but here, perhaps because they have never had a tragedy in which hundreds died because the door could not be opened outwards, there is no such code. As you have become “programmed” to Pull when entering and Push when leaving, plan to feel silly as you tug or push in the wrong direction.
     
  18. If you go to the immigration office for any reason or to the police station for fingerprinting (as part of your residency), do NOT wear shorts!  They will turn you away!  Shorts are considered disrespectful. Update 2009! Read This
     
  19. There are Bullfights in Costa Rica, but the bull is never hurt and often, the bull wins!  I love payback!  Read more here.
     
  20. Milk, eggs, and many other items that you have been trained all your life to refrigerate are available off the shelf (un-refrigerated) at almost every supermarket.  This, of course, flies in the face of everything you have learned about storing these products, but I have bought them every week for the past four years and I have never been sick, nor has anyone I have ever met. Go figure.
     
  21. The word for HOT, in Spanish, is caliente.  Caliente begins with a “C”.  Water faucets imported from the USA almost all have a “C” on them.  If your Hot Water never seems to get HOT in Costa Rica, try the handle with the  “C”.  Note, this may change from bathroom to bathroom within the same house!
     
  22. Ants are everywhere here, and they outnumber us about a zillion to one.  You will have two real choices as I see it!  Spend about all of your entire life trying to kill them all… or just realize they will be part of your diet while living here!  The tiny ones are flavorless, and probably add a tiny bit of protein to the diet!  The bigger one’s crunch.
     
  23. You will see a LOT of folks carrying machetes… those really long, sharp knives.  You see this especially in the country and areas away from San José.  The machete is the Costa Rican equivalent of Duct Tape.  It is used for everything, but almost never as a weapon… so relax!!
     
  24. Chinese food tastes funny in Costa Rica.  Not BAAAAD… just funny!  I am also not hungry an hour after I eat Chinese food here.
     
  25. Burger Kings here taste just like Burger Kings in the US.  MacDonald’s do not.  Colonel Sanders is better here. So is Diet Coke.
     
  26. Generally, meat is kinda crummy here.  Just not enough fat cows.  Thankfully, the Peruvians and the Brazilians have arrived to open restaurants where you can get a good piece of meat.
     
  27. Costa Rica is smart enough NOT to export all the good coffee!  This is meaningful if you have ever lived in Idaho and wanted a good baked potato.
     
  28. In many countries, pedestrians have rights.  Drivers must yield to them or suffer the consequences.  In Costa Rica, the Spanish word for a pedestrian is “Target”.  Be real careful when walking around… especially in San José and especially at street corners.
     
  29. At 7 AM every morning, most if not all Costa Rica radio stations broadcast the exact same program.  It begins with the Costa Rican National Anthem and provides the government and other authorized entities a way to send messages or information nationwide.
     
  30. The meter in a taxicab is known as the Maria… apparently a loose reference to the Virgin Mary and her presumed honesty.
     
  31. We call them Speed bumps!  To Costa Ricans, son muertos…  or in English… “(they are) dead persons”.
     
  32. I get asked a lot about all the street vendors who wait at the traffic lights to sell you stuff.  Everyone wants to know if this is a rip-off and if the food will kill you.  Well, I buy stuff from those folks all the time… mostly because these folks work their butts off trying to make a living.

    As for buying food, I know a lot of folks that do.   I do not.  Just not sure about the cleanliness of the kitchens used to prepare the stuff.
     

  33. Nearly all Catholic Churches in Costa Rica face to the WEST.  This is a handy thing to know as if you read #4 above, you know that knowing directions is critical and that many addresses in CR are based on distance and direction from those churches.
     
  34. Q. What about all those cute kids running around barefoot and begging especially in San José?

    A. Many of them (sadly) are put out on the streets to beg by their parents.  They are pros at giving you the sad eye thing.  Often their shoes are hidden in a nearby bush.  Now saying that some are really desperate.  How do you know?  You don’t.  And now you have a problem!

    My suggestion is to do nothing, but that is really hard for some folks, so if you just HAVE to do something, here is a suggestion to do ONLY if you are in a very public location with many people around. Offer to take them to get something to eat.  NEVER EVER do this when you are in your car or alone.  NEVER touch them in any way.  NEVER let them get into your car as Costa Ricans seem to think all North Americans are here for sex transactions with children, and it would be really easy to get into serious problems if a child gets into your car.

    However, if you are walking, and there is a nearby soda (small restaurant), you can ask if they are hungry, then walk with them to the soda.  The really hungry kids will want to eat.  The pros will not.  They want money. AGAIN! Do not touch them in any way.  Let them order, you pay, then you leave.  If they refuse, just walk away and offer nothing.

    I am SURE someone will disagree with me on this, and with some justification, but I have a tough time as many of them REALLY look like they could use a meal.  Just be real careful!  A LOT of them are drug users even at very tender ages.  The best and safest thing, sadly, is to do nothing.
     

  35. Q. I see painted designs on some highways and streets.  They look like a big gold or yellow heart with a crack in it.  Sometimes there are hearts with halos.  What are they?

    A. Broken hearts.  These are painted on the road where someone lost their life.  When you approach an intersection or a road that has a bunch of these painted, drive more cautiously.


As for today, our lovely cleaner Isabel is here spending no less than eight hours working both indoors and on the veranda.  Although we’re very tidy and clean up after ourselves, sweeping the floor, doing our own laundry and dishes and leaving no clutter behind, there’s lots of dust and insect residue typical for this part of the world.

Some type of washing machine?

When she enters the house each week we both jump up to hug her with a mix of English and Spanish gibberish we can all manage.  Her sweet smelling perfume permeates the air for hours after she’s left reminding us of her, along with the fine cleaning job she does in eight hours of backbreaking work.

Handmade masks for Halloween and other festivities.

We’re so grateful to have her services once each week which is included in our monthly rent, along with Ulysses’s meticulous lawn and grounds care and  Balfour, the delightful Tuesday pool guy who always smiles and warmly greets us.  None of these fine locals speak English but somehow we manage to communicate.

Could this have been a copy or printing machine?

These past two gloriously sunny days (it rains later in the afternoon) we spent hours in the pool and hope to so do again today.  It’s such a good time for both of us while we’ll chatter endlessly reliving stories of our lives before we knew one another after we met and over this past almost five years of world travel. 

More Costa Rica masks.

We’re also grateful and continue to be humbled by our lives together and the world around us, its cultures, it’s beliefs and even its superstitions.  Today, we expect another relatively uneventful day interspersed with bird sightings and gentle musings with our Spanish speaking helpers.

May your Friday the 13th be pleasant and relatively uneventful.

_________________________________________


Photo from one year ago today, October 13, 2016:

In Bali, from the veranda, a muddy white horse was getting a bath in the river.  For more photos, please click here.

Shopping done… Not always easy from afar… The big balance is now due for the Antarctica cruise…Ouch!

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*Please see our comments below as to these included photos.

Puente Ferrocarril Rio Grande Museum in Atenas.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

This pudgy blue and gray bird was the first sighting for us.  This may be a Blue-Gray Tanager. 

The online shopping hasn’t been easy.  Some items weren’t available in correct colors and sizes. Tom ordered an item and received an email stating it had been shipped and only moments later, received a second email stating it wasn’t available in his preferred color.  We contacted Amazon requesting further information.

I ordered a few items and received a message stating the package was lost in the mail and I had to reorder elsewhere. The multiple items don’t arrive in one package.  Often there are many packages arriving over a series of days.

Railway photos from decades past.

One has to be careful items aren’t shipped from China or other international locations which may take weeks, if not months, to arrive.  Shopping online requires checking and re-checking.  We’ve each ordered at least a dozen items.  It can be tricky.

We’re hoping everything will arrive before November 12th when we’ll have the package shipped to the hotel in Fort Lauderdale.  Timing is everything in this case. 

If any item is missing, we’d have to purchase it in Buenos Aires during our one month stay prior to the cruise.  We don’t want this hanging over our heads during a time we’ll prefer to be sightseeing and enjoy the sights, smells and sounds of this big city.

Various paper money over the years.

Yesterday, I made our doctor appointments for complete physical exams by November 2nd, a few days after we return from Nicaragua.  Ponant, the cruise line, requires several medical forms be completed and sent to them between 45 and 90 days prior to the cruise. 

This is to ensure passengers are in sufficiently good health to embark upon this expedition cruise.  There will be a doctor-on-board but based on the location, deep in Antarctica, emergency evacuation isn’t possible.  Of course, having such an exam is by no means a guaranty a passenger won’t have a medical emergency, as we so well know. 

Telegraph machine.

Apparently, the local doctor we chose speaks English so we’ll be readily able to explain what we need and provide a medical history as required with her signature.  Doctor Candy is highly regarded in Atenas and we anticipate this process will go smoothly.

Speaking of this cruise, the final payment is due on Monday, October 16th.  This morning I wrote to our rep at Vacations to Go as to which credit card to use for the balance of US $13,875 (CRC 7,964,736). 

We’re relieved we’d already paid US $20,625 (CRC 11839472) over this past year toward the grand total of US $34,500 (CRC 19,804,208) fare for the two of us.  We’ve never paid so much for any cruise or venue of any type.  This is a huge chunk out of our budget.

Old photos of the train station.

This was one of those items on our preferred locations list to visit as we travel the world.  This seemed to be one of those items one must accomplish “sooner, rather than later” when medical issues might prohibit such an expedition, especially in getting off the ship onto the Zodiak boats to spend two to three hours standing outdoors in the cold on an island or ice floe.  This may not be possible for the average 80-year-old.

One additional motivator (among many others) in deciding to return to Africa after this cruise is to “lick our wounds” to recover this huge expense when the cost of living is much less in Africa than in many other parts of the world.  Then again, there are those amazing animals, those amazing friends we left behind and an endless array of unique experiences awaiting us.

The train was a big point of interest for the community.

During our remaining time in Costa Rica, as we’ve done so far, is to maintain as tight a budget as possible.  No more rental cars, no more tours or outings requiring an outlay of cash. 

Its only with this careful planning and budgeting that we can and will continue on these adventures which ultimately require some sacrifices along the way.  It’s not as if we can stay “home” and save for a big trip.  We have to do it as we go wherever we may be at any given time. 

Going forward over these next 41 days, until we finally leave Costa Rica, our belts are tightened.  As a result, we won’t be getting out much over these next weeks, other than the round trip to Managua Nicaragua on October 28th staying for two nights.  Of course, we’ll continue to make weekly trips to Atenas for shopping and taking photos.

Juan Ramon was thrilled to show us old photos.

*Subsequently, over these next six weeks we’ll be posting photos we’ve already taken (no repeats, although they may be similar to photos we’d posted earlier) from our various sightseeing outings up to this point.  We apologize for this and hope you’ll continue on with us until once again we’re on our way to yet another cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Buenos Aires over 30-nights. 

We’ll be getting off the ship at every port and much to our delight going through the Panama Canal one more time.  Talk about new photos!  When the cruise ends in Buenos Aires we’ll be staying there for another 31-nights while awaiting the 16-night Antarctica cruise.  Surely, Buenos Aires will inspire many new photos of the fabulous city.

Please stay tuned.  There’s so much more on the horizon!  Happy day to all!

_________________________________________

Photo from one year ago today, October 12, 2016:

It was easy to spend lazy afternoons lounging on the cabana in Bali, one year ago.  For more photos, please click here.

Is Tom procrastinating?…Shopping, his nemesis…

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Pelican resting on a log on a pond at Zoo Ave, the bird sanctuary.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

It was pouring rain when I took this photo from the veranda.  These two little Tropical Kingbirds didn’t seem to mind the rain.

There’s never been a time where I’ve seen Tom enjoying shopping, not in a store, not grocery shopping, and certainly not shopping online for clothing.  In most cases, I’ve purchased everything for him such as was the case when we replaced our entire wardrobes while we were in Minnesota.

We’ve known this daunting task of deciding on clothing for Antarctica was facing us and we’ve both procrastinated for some time.  Now, we’re down to the wire.
Spending only one night in a Fort Lauderdale Florida hotel on November 22nd, (US Thanksgiving eve), and the necessity of having of having everything arrive in one box, we’re having everything sent to our mailing service.

A police building in a small town on the mountain road.

Once it all arrives, the mailing service will pack it into one large box and ship it to the hotel with a plan for it to arrive about a week before our arrival, in the event of any mailing delays.  We’ll purchase insurance for the package and send it USP for a fast arrival. 

If anything does go wrong, we’ll have time to reorder everything to have it shipped to Buenos Aires where we’ll be for one month prior to the Antarctica cruise…backup plan in place.  We always have to consider contingencies when we’ve experienced plenty of shipping issues throughout the world over these past five years. 

Even some of the newer homes don’t have clothes dryers and hang their laundry outdoors. 

We both committed to getting the shopping done this week allowing plenty of time to receive it all in time.  None of the items required shipping fees.  The only shipping fees we’ll have to pay is for sending the box from Las Vegas to Fort Lauderdale which will be a lot less than we’ve paid for international shipping.

Having added other supplies and products we’ll need for our year in Africa, this will be one large package of supplies.  We’re hoping to avoid having anything shipped to Africa if possible.  No matter how hard we’ve tried, it’s not possible for us to exist with products offered in many countries.

Many homes are small single story styles.


In Australia which is a shopping haven, we couldn’t find a replacement laptop for Tom suitable for his needs.  We ended up paying US $400 (CRC 229,814) for shipping fees for the laptop from the US to Australia.  

I’ve been using my laptop since January 2015.  It’s still working with only one issue with the touchscreen.  I can’t swipe from the right to the left to access the “networks” screen.  With an easy workaround, this hasn’t been a problem for me.

Gated villa in Roca Verde, our neighborhood.

Tom is worried, we’ll be in South Africa and my computer will crash and I’ll experience the same frustrating situation as when I dropped it and broke the screen in in January 2014.

 Okee Dokee and I drove the long distance to Nelspruit to purchase another laptop.  It was a disaster when my only option was an inferior HP which proved to be a dud. 

Here’s the post from the date I dropped it and here’s the post from the date Okee Dokee and I drove to Nelspruit to find another.

Many homes located outside of the planned communities aren’t gated.

I certainly don’t want to go through that again. But, I hesitate to replace this laptop that is working so well for me at this point.  It’s a decision I’ll have to make within a week or two prior to the shipment being sent to Fort Lauderdale. 

At the moment, Tom is finishing his order on Amazon spending a little less than I did.  By the end of today, he too will have it completed and we can put one more task behind us.

Corn growing along the road.

With the sun shining this morning, we’re hoping to spend time by the pool.  Yesterday was sunny and warm during which we stayed in the pool until our fingers were wrinkled. 

As always we swam, we laughed, we talked, and we shared stories of our lives long before we knew one another. We’re so grateful for this unusual life we live and the ways in which we spend it together.  Life is good.

May your live be good as well.

_________________________________________

Photo from one year ago today, October 11, 2016:

In Bali, these smaller buffaloes than the scarier big males, present a huge task for these young boys as they walk them to the river and back.  For more photos, please click here.

Shopping online for Antarctica…Quite a challenge…

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Ulysses dropped off these tangerines. Tom will eat them when they ripen.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

Tom took this beautiful photo in the early morning as the moon was setting. Nice job!

It’s been nagging at us to get to work to purchase the clothing we’ll need for the upcoming Antarctica cruise.  These days, neither of us cares to shop especially considering we’re stuck with whatever we buy. Returning items that don’t fit isn’t an option due to our lifestyle.

On Friday, we talked on Skype to a lovely couple Tom had communicated with on CruiseCritic who’d already done a similar cruise. Al and his wife Donna gave us a list of everything we’d need for the many hours we’ll spend outdoors on the Zodiak boats and standing on ice floes and ice-covered islands.

A quiet side street in the center of town in Atenas.

They suggested the following items:

1.  Waterproof pants
2.  Waterproof gloves with liners
3.  Warm hat
4.  Gator (neck wrap)
5.  Warm socks
6.  Ski goggles
7.  Sweatshirts
8.  Sweaters
9.  Trekking poles 
10. Waterproof backpack
11. Long underwear

There are numerous one-way streets in town.

The cruise line provides a waterproof parka for all guests and boots sized upon boarding the ship. We can keep the parkas but return the boots at the end of the cruise.

We’ve decided to ship all the cold weather clothing back to our mailing service while we’re in Buenos Aires.  They’ll hold these items in our large box until we embark upon some adventures to the Arctic or other cold climates in years to come.

Kids are playing at the central park.

We were grateful for Al and Donna’s suggestions. They also mentioned long underwear, but instead, I’m purchasing a tall-sized pair of yoga pants to wear under the waterproof pants. This will keep me warm and be less bulky than wearing jeans underneath the pants. 

Tom never wore long underwear when working outdoors on the railroad for over 42 years, even when temperatures were as low as forty degrees below zero. Instead, he stayed comfortable with jeans on the bottom and sweatshirts and a jacket on the top. After all, we’re from Minnesota and know how to dress appropriately for cold weather.
As we walked through the park on a cloudy day.

The coldest periods in Antarctica will be the Zodiac boat rides out to the islands and ice floes due to the added wind chill factor from the fast-moving boats. However, once we’re situated, we should be comfortable when the temperature is typically in the “freezing” range, but not much less, based on the islands we’ll be visiting. (We’ve looked up each stop along to way to confirm this fact).

Over the past few days, I finally got to work making my purchases. Unfortunately, the only pair of women’s tall waterproof pants in my size (considering the bulk of the yoga pants underneath) was at Eddie Bauer at the cost of US $179 (CRC 102,853), much more than I wanted to spend. 

Grafitti on a wall on the way to town.

For the remainder of my items, I made most of my purchases at Amazon (here on our site at this link) with a few brand-new labeled items on eBay. So, besides the cost of the pants, I spent an additional US $250 (CRC 143,650) for a total of US $429 (CRC 246,504). 

Had I made the purchases through Ponant’s online shop, I’d easily have spent over US $1,200 (CRC 689,520).  The prices for the remaining items include all of the above-listed items except the poles and backpack (Tom is buying the backpack since we only need one) and the long underwear, which I replaced with yoga pants I’ll keep on hand and wear in the future.

More graffiti on the wall.

Today, as I write this, Tom clicks away on his computer and just purchased two much-needed dress shirts for the upcoming cruises. Once I’m done here, I’ll get to work with him to help him find his remaining items.

Hopefully, by the end of today, this task will be completed.  Once we receive the package with our clothing in Miami on November 22nd, we’ll take a photo of everything and post it here.

May your day be filled with accomplishments providing you with peace of mind. That’s what we’re striving for!

 Photo from one year ago today, October 10, 2016:

In Bali, while on a walk, we encountered this cow. She said, “What are you looking at?” “Your beauty and charm,” we replied. She smiled, and we continued on our way. For more photos, please click here.

Costa Rica’s devastation from tropical cyclone Nate with photos….

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Although a few trees were lost on the grounds of the villa after Hurricane Nate, the many beautiful plants such as this Bromeliad and other flowers have survived, flourishing in the sun that’s finally appeared for a few hours each morning.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

A heartbreaking 11 souls perished in Costa Rica during Tropical Cyclone Nate over this past week.  Also, on October 6, the hurricane caused at least 38 deaths: 16 in Nicaragua, 7 in Panama, 3 in Honduras, and 1 in El Salvador.

From this site:
“Hurricane Nate was a tropical cyclone that impacted the Gulf Coast of the United States in October 2017. The fourteenth named storm and the ninth hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season, Nate, originated from a broad area of low pressure over the southwestern Caribbean on October 3rd.

A red alert was issued in neighboring Costa Rica for the Central Valley, Pacific coast, and Huetar Norte Region, while the Caribbean coast was under yellow warning. In the canton of Oreamuno, Cartago Province, a bridge and part of a riverside house succumbed to the forces of a swollen river. Flooding throughout the country has been described as the worst in recent years and led to at least 11 deaths, with two people missing. Approximately 11,300 residents were being housed in shelters. President Luis Guillermo Solís declared a national day of mourning on October 6th.”

We are located in the Central Valley, as mentioned above.  We spent days hunkered down, indoors and safe high on a hill from the ravages of the storm. So many of our friends/readers and family members contacted us to ensure we were safe, which we were. 

Other than the inconvenience of a few power outages, we stayed safely indoors, frequently peering out the glass walls of this house as the storm moved through over several days. Our only concern for our safety during the storm was the possibility of landslides throughout the valley.  Fortunately, our immediate location was spared.  Never in our travels have we experienced such non-stop heavy rains with howling winds. 

With the utmost of respect and condolences for the people of Costa Rica today, we share the photos from the CR Post, dated October 5, 2017. We pray for those who lost their lives and their families and for those who were injured and lost their homes.

With the rainy season continuing, we must admit we do miss entire days of sunshine. But, rather than focus on bad weather, we’ve become passionate about bird watching, more than anywhere in our past travels. There were too many photos from the CR Post to publish today, but we’ve included as many as possible.  (Wi-Fi limitations affect how many photos we can post).

Many times each day, we’re dashing from one spot on the veranda to another as we are beckoned by the call of a bird we may not have heard in past days.  We’ve found we have an automatic alarm clock, a yellow-breasted Social Flycatcher who descends on the veranda railing outside our bedroom door and makes so much noise we’re awakened every morning around 5:15. 

Of course, now we’re obsessed with spotting another Toucan when the owners of this property, Bev and Sam, and our neighbor Charlie both have stated they’ve yet to see one in the yard. Humm…safari luck. More of that yet to come!

May you have a safe day!

Photo from one year ago today, October 9, 2016:

A fisherman on the beach in Bali after pulling in his nets, most likely filled with squid.  For more photos, please click here.

Tom’s haircut in Costa Rica…

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Tom before his haircut on Friday.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

Yesterday, this pair of Inca Doves landed on the veranda railing and posed for our liking. These pretty birds mate for life and spending considerable time preening one another’s gorgeous feathers that appear to be small scales.

Tom often calculates when he’ll need his next haircut based on the date of the following cruise rather than the length of his hair. It makes me laugh. Of course, he prefers to look “tidy” when we are around other people. In the same way, I always do my nails and pedicure before cruising.

He was seated in a chair moments after we arrived.

In this particular case, with slightly over six weeks until we board the ship, his timing may have been off slightly.  He won’t need another haircut for another three months. His haircut in Costa Rica was a paltry US $6.97 (CRC 4000), including a 25% tip.

In Spanish, we explained what number adapter to use on the electric clippers.

As we’ve traveled the world over this past five years (anniversary upcoming on October 31st), we’ve found his haircut appointment to be a thing of great amusement for us anyway. From his first haircut in Placencia Belize in early 2013, where he sat under a tree, as shown in the photo below:

In  Placencia Belize, the barbershop was outdoors when Tom had his first haircut outside the US in 2013. The cost of this haircut was US $12.50 (CRC 7172). See the full story here.

Another haircut we easily recall was in November 2015 in Savusavu, Fiji, as shown in this photo below, including the cost:

In Savusavu Fiji, Tom explained his haircut preference to Kumar, who listened intently to ensure he got it right. The cost of this haircut excluding the tip was US $1.85 (CRC 1061.41), but Tom added an almost 50% tip at US $.93 (CRC 533.59) for a total of US $2.78 (CRC 1505). Tipping is not expected or required in Fiji, but Kumar was thrilled over the tiny tip. Click here for this post.

From time to time, I look down at my toes and long for a professional pedicure. However, I’ve found bending and stretching to do my own is not only cost-effective but also good for one’s flexibility.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to continue to do my own pedicures for a very long time.

The stylist used scissors to fine-tune the cut.

While in Kauai, Hawaii, in 2015, I tried cutting Tom’s hair with the electric trimmer, but he wasn’t thrilled with the result. We laughed through the entire process, which undoubtedly contributed to my not-so-steady hand. I’m good at cutting my own hair but not so much for him. Based on the low cost in most countries, it makes no sense for him to have a botched job like my feeble attempt.

In no time at all, he was done, happy with the result.  She used a #6 adapter.

Yesterday, for the first time in many days, we could get some sun and tentatively use the pool.  When there’s a power outage, the timer for the pool shuts off and comes back on when the power is restored. In this case, it was off for ten hours resulting in the most ice-cold pool we’ve ever used. 

There was a steady stream of customers while we were there.

Tom dove into the pool while I walked in. The ice-cold water was too much for him, and he got out immediately. I walked in staying for only five minutes when a cloud cover made me shiver all the more. A short time later, Marian showed up with the maintenance guy, Julio, who reset the pool’s heating system so it would run during the day.

The salon is Aberto Pase Adelante, located next door to the Macrobiotica (health food) store. It’s owned by a Columbian family, many of whom work on-site.

Marian was here to go over some maintenance with Julio and to inspect the tree trimming process.  It’s always amazing to us to the high-level maintenance for this lovely property to keep it in pristine condition. We don’t have a complaint in the world.

We hope you have a complaint-free day!


Photo from one year ago today, October 8, 2016:

While in Sumbersari Bali, one year ago, at that point, we hadn’t seen such flooding since we lived in Minnesota many moons ago. We took this shot from the front of the villa. For more photos, please click here.

Rushing to get to the market today with a short lull in the tropical depression…

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Terraced farming in Costa Rica creates a lovely scene.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

View from the veranda during the tropical depression.  The clouds were so slow they were ground level in the valley.

These past days have been stormier than we’ve seen anywhere in the world during this past almost five years of world travel. Rain, wind, and constant humidity surround us as we’ve been safely situated midway up a mountain.

Terraced farming on a steep hill.

Over the past days, several stories of loss of life in Costa Rica have swirled around the news.  When house cleaner Isabel arrived a few minutes ago, she explained in Spanish that a 19-year-old young man, a close family friend, had been killed in a landslide a short distance from here. Heartbreaking.  She showed me his photo on her phone.

It’s easy for us to sit back and feel safe in this higher elevation, but even so, there’s a certain risk of more landslides for hilly properties. So this morning, it appeared we’d have a reprieve when the sun came out, and we ran around opening the many sliding glass doors.

After weeks of rain and clouds, a blue sky is a welcomed sight.

Over the past few days, we’ve been able to smell mildew and note dampness on everything we touch. For example, when we had to print a document on the in-house printer, the few sheets of paper in the printer were literally damp. Luckily, we’d recently purchased a block of paper, tucking it away in a desk drawer.  We’ve never experienced such constant humidity.


Luckily, the temperature is cool enough to avoid being miserable without air conditioning. One of the many overhead fans provides us with all the cooling we need. 

Lush greenery is found everywhere in Costa Rica.

Tom continues to “exercise the zippers” on our luggage that have metal zippers. The few new pieces we purchased in the US have plastic zippers, which greatly benefit us when we often live in humid conditions.

We’re grateful there’s a lull in the storm so we can get out soon to grocery shop. We haven’t shopped for food in two weeks, and we’re down to the “bottom of the barrel.” We’re out of vegetables and many staples. 

Pretty blankets for sale along the road.

When we shopped at PriceSmart two weeks ago today, we’d purchased enough meat and chicken to last for a month. But, with only 47 days remaining until we fly to Florida for the cruise, it makes no sense to purchase large sizes of anything.

We haven’t purchased any fish here. With an increased risk of eating farmed or shore-caught fish, my current gastrointestinal condition prevents me from any enthusiasm for overeating fish or seafood of any type. Unfortunately, this may not change when we are on the 30-night cruise.

Views from a recent road trip.

As I continue to prepare this post, the sun is gone, dark and ominous clouds rolling in. We’d better hightail out of here to get to the market for food, or we’ll be eating only meat and cheese for dinner.

Julio and the workers are here clearing the big tree that came down yesterday due to the storm.  Photos will follow tomorrow. 

Have a safe day!

Photo from one year ago today, October 6, 2016:

Notice the buffalo in the rear of this photo when we cautiously wandered down the road where Tom had his buffalo experience. For more details, please click here.

Late post today due to power outage during Costa Rica “red alert” tropical depression…Tropical storm Nate hits Costa Rica…

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Although this area on the veranda where we sit most days has a roof over it, the cushions on the furniture are soaked after blowing around in the high winds.

“Sightings from the Veranda in Costa Rica”

Generally, pools have a system in place to avoid overflow due to heavy rains, which appears to be the case of the pool in the villa. But, unfortunately, it’s been raining non-stop for days!

At 12:30 am the power went out as Tropical Storm Nate made itself known to Costa Rica. It had been escalating over several days with heavy rains that prevented us from going out to shop.

We’d hoped to head out today, but it wasn’t possible with most stores closed due to power outages, mudslides, heavy rain, and relentless winds. As Tropical Storm Nate (soon to be Hurricane Nate) wreaks havoc in the Caribbean, Costa Rica quickly falls into the path of this storm.

This separate plunge pool becomes one with the main pool as the water level rose due to the pouring rain.

After the power went out, I awoke, aware the ceiling fan had stopped working and barely returned to sleep. Tom was the same, tossing and turning all night, often getting out of bed to check to make sure nothing was leaking into the house.

With this property newly remodeled in the past few years, everything seemed to be in order other than water leaking into the laundry room from an impossible-to-reach high window.

Fallen tree in the yard as a result of the storm.  We went outside with a golf umbrella to get this photo.

This morning Marian (property manager) called on my phone (loaded with a local SIM card) to see how we’re doing. After she and her husband AaD have lived here for 10 years, she explained they’d never seen a storm like this. They lived across the valley and had been without power since 9:30 last night. So at least our power outage hadn’t occurred until after we’d both gone to bed last night.

As always, during power outages, our biggest concern is the safety of our food in the refrigerator and freezer. But, lately, Tom had been storing extra ice in a large plastic bag at the bottom of the freezer. So, this morning, we loaded the large cooler with ice and the items in the fridge of the most concern. But, unfortunately, everything in the freezer was still frozen solid.

The tree behind this smaller tree toppled during the continuing tropical depression. We heard it fall earlier today.

Of course, our second most significant concern is being unable to post here. Luckily, I still had 60% of my phone’s battery left and would have been able to post a short blurb explaining the power outage and our inability to post.

As Tom and I sat in the living room chatting over recent worldwide events (a common source of conversation between us), the power came back on. Quickly we got to work taking care of the food, the wet pool towels we’d brought in from the veranda, the towels we’d used to mop up the floor in the laundry room, and our bath towels.

This photo can’t possibly illustrate how fast the rainwater is running down the slope of the driveway.

Generally, to save on wear and tear and costs for the owner, we use bath towels three times, leaving them to hang in the bathroom to dry for the next day’s use. However, recently, with the humidity at 90 to 100%, they wouldn’t dry. So, as a result, we’ve been washing them every day over these past few days.

The storm is expected to continue over the weekend. With shops closed, roads closed, and many mudslides, we’ll have to make do with the food we have on hand until it settles down enough for the shops to re-open.

A fallen banana tree also as a result of the storm.

For now, we’re hunkered down, safe indoors, and grateful we have power for the moment. However, it won’t surprise us if we have another outage over these next several days. So, if you don’t see us here at our usual time, please know we are thinking of you and be back online as soon as possible.

Have a dry, safe day filled with sunshine!


Photo from one year ago today, October 4, 2016:

A pig, pink and dirty, we encountered on a walk in Sumbersari, Bali. For more photos, please click here.