Just Another Day in Paradise

040418 St. Thomas

How has this slice of paradise escaped my radar for so long? This place is amazingly gorgeous. I know I keep saying this every day but I swear it’s true. The water, the mountains, the flowers—everything was just beautiful.

Sapphire Beach

Today we chose to sleep in a bit and then take a cab to Sapphire Beach. From what I’ve read, with 3 ships in port, Magen’s Bay would have been extremely crowded. The cab was $10 per person each way to Sapphire beach. It took about 25-30 minutes to get there and we drove up and down these crazy hills on the left side of the road.

Along the way we saw evidence that things are still not returned to their pre-hurricane state. Many houses sported blue tarps on the roof—still waiting to have the houses reroofed. There was also much debris along the sides of the road including things like cars, trailers and piles and piles of building debris.

Schools are open however they were closed for 2 months after the hurricanes came through. The children will get no days off to try and make up as many days as they can during the school year. Interesting side note here: All the kids on the island must wear uniforms – no matter which school they attend. They resembled a typical Catholic school uniform—only in shades of pink and crimson—boys and girls.

Despite being hit hard by the hurricane, this island seems to be faring much better than Puerto Rico with regard to repairs and the return of tourism. Sapphire Beach is operating, however, there was one large area that looked like some type of bar/restaurant that was being rebuilt. However, there is a bar that sells all the normal beachy drinks as well as some decent food. Internet was restored and credit cards were accepted.

There is also a dive shop that was doing a great business renting chairs, snorkels, rafts etc. Some of the condos around Sapphire appeared to be fully restored while other still look damaged. There was also a para-sailing outfit that looked steadily booked while we were there.

The Hat Man

The sandy beach was beautiful as was the water. Lots of fish and lots of visibility. People were snorkeling from the shore.

Sapphire Beach

As we did not arrive until close to lunch, all of the chairs they had were rented to the people on ship’s tours. We were able to rent an umbrella from the ‘dress lady’ for $10. So that was fine. We just laid out on our beach towels about 15 feet from the water.

The Dress Lady's boutique

I bought 2 strawberry pina coladas for $9 each + tip. They did not skimp on the booze and they were delicious.

Our little umbrella in paradise

We spent quite a bit of time in the water lazing around and then looking for shells or anything else of interest. We were quite lucky to find 2 nice pieces of sea glass and some tiny seashells. We did put those in the backpack and were able to take them right onto the ship—that we almost missed!

Yes, we did. We stopped at the various stores in the port area and I bought a pretty sea glass bracelet.

We knew all aboard was called so we were rushing to get back to the ship when I realized I had dropped my ship’s card someplace. EEEEEEEK! So I backtracked to try and find it. No luck. When we got to the first security checkpoint, I told the guy I lost my card and he said to go up to Gate 3 where you ship is, someone found it. We start the ¼ mile trek to Gate 3 and there is a ship’s person yelling at us to hurry. OMG

We missed the lemon water table and the cool towels to wipe your face—everything was packed up and there were 3 ship’s officers waiting there. I said to the man checking the cards that I had lost mine and he says—oh that woman over there has it. Sure enough, someone found it and turned it into the ship. Thank you, Jesus. I did have my passport so they could have validated who I was and be issued a new card… but headaches! So glad it all worked out.

We rushed aboard and before we were even out of the elevator, we heard the ship’s horn sound and we were moving away from the dock. We did sail early (about 4:50) but the three of us were the last people aboard.  Despite the mini-drama, still a great day so far!

Once onboard, we headed up to the Lido deck and I finally got a Dive In burger and fries. We hadn’t eaten all day and were very hungry. The burger and the fries were delicious. I recommend this place if you are on the ship!

Afterward, a nice tepid shower was in order as my back is a bit burned. And before I knew it, it was time to head to dinner at 8pm. I thought tonight’s dinner was the best I’ve had so far. I had a chilled melon soup, Caesar salad and the Shrimp and Cajun sausage with some excellent rice. Dessert was some sort of decadent chocolate goodness that just melted in your mouth.

My Dinner

Kolton's Pot Roast dinner

I decided to try and redeem myself at 3 card poker. $100 stake and the game was on! Lady Luck was with me tonight and I had a great streak – including a straight flush that paid very, very well. I cashed out for $500 after a couple of hours and quickly turned those black chips to cold, hard cash that will remain locked in the safe until the cruise is over!

The slots have also been very, very good to Kolton and Betzi—they’ve both hit some sizeable jackpots.

After a nightcap on the Lido deck, I’m in my cabin finishing this post. It’s about 12:30 here and tomorrow is a day at sea! We can sleep in.

Sweet dreams from this Lucky Lady!

San Juan is still not recovered.....

040318   SNUBA in San Juan

We didn’t arrive in port until 12:30 today so we had plenty of time to sleep, have breakfast and watch our arrival in port from the Lido Deck. We went ashore and walked about Old Town for about an hour and it was hot. While many of the shops and hotels in this part of town are open, there are still a good many still boarded up. It was very sad to see that.

Our SNUBA excursion was at 3:30 and it ended up being just the 3 of us. The reef around San Juan is pretty much destroyed so our SNUBA location was in a former marine park. Although we didn’t see any coral, we did see sea urchins and a couple of different kinds of tropical fish. They’ve also started several artificial reefs here and you can see the new growth beginning.

What was horrifying to us was the hotels and buildings—just a 10 minute ride from the port are still majorly damaged. None of the hotels on this long stretch of beach are open, the roads are in complete ruin and the smaller homes and buildings were nothing but rubble. It really looks like a bombed our war zone. I can’t even imagine how devastated, financially, the people are that made their livings here. The company we had our tour with said he and the dive master are the only two employees left at what was once a thriving business.

Once we got back on the ship, we were on the Lido deck enjoying an adult beverage and what sat down near us? A table full of Fox News, Trump lovers that were spouting off about the people in Puerto Rico are lazy and just want hand-outs from the US, praising the man that is not my president and how he handled everything. It took everything I had not to turn around and tell them what I thought of them. But, instead I just moved to another table.

We are in port until 11pm tonight, however we don’t have dinner until 8pm so I am pretty sure we won’t be getting off the ship again. We were a bit disappointed as we were hoping to go to Watch & Co where we bought our cool jewelry last year but they closed at 6. Oh well, we will just have to come back!!!

Dinner was at 8pm tonight but we sort of spoiled ourselves at the buffet. I have to say the food at the buffet is excellent. So much variety and everything I’ve tasted was wonderful. Today I had a fruit and cheese plate and ceviche shrimp with Cilantro. The bread is out of this world—and a great variety every day.

In my opinion, the food in the dining room is “OK”. Nothing has wowed me yet, but I certainly didn’t starve and the service is impeccable. There is, thankfully, no singing and dancing waiters on the ship! If the menu doesn’t look good tomorrow night, I think we will just eat at the buffet. I do know, we plan on going to the Steak house one night if we can get in.

Tomorrow is St. Thomas and the only thing we have planned is going to a beach! We’ve just left port and spent the last few hours after dinner sitting outside on the Lido deck enjoying the perfect weather. It was one of those nights where the temperature was neither hot nor cold, perfect for enjoying a late night beverage and chatting. All in all another great day in paradise!

Turks and Caicos

040218  Turks and Caicos

We just sailed after having spent the day in paradise. Turks and Caicos will always be one of my favorite ports. Jerked Chicken from Jack’s Shack in Cockburn Town and that water. The blues remind me of Tahiti.

The  beach on the way to Jack's. Looks like a postcard, doesn't it?

 We chose a Snuba excursion on the far side of the island. When I say far side I mean it was about a mile from where the ship docked. Unfortunately, the water was very choppy and the current fairly strong on that side and it made for some challenging swimming to get to the reef. But when we finally got there, the view was amazing. I did not have an underwater camera this time, but we saw some fish and a huge barracuda! The coral shows some damage from the two hurricanes last year but much of it was in pretty good shape. There were gorgeous sea fans all over the place.

Back on shore, we found these gorgeous conch shells that had washed up. I was lucky to find one that was not very weathered. It was over a foot long and weighed about 5 pounds. I was SO EXCITED! That shell was going in the front flower bed at my place in Florida!

My companions and the many washed up conchs.

We were dropped back at the port and we walked all the way down the beach to Jack’s Shack. I had been looking forward to eating some chicken at this place since last year. It is the best chicken I’ve ever eaten. They cook it over an open fire in the big drum-like grills. The seasoning is amazing. I’m talking so good, you want to suck the bones when you are finished good!  And if you know me, you know about my issues with chicken so ‘bone sucking’ is way beyond my normal comfort level!

I made a rookie mistake getting back on the ship and I’m a bit sad. We should have wrapped that conch shell in our beach towel and put it in a backpack. When we got to security, they confiscated it. L I asked why and was told you are not allowed to remove shells from the island. What? The tour operator said I could take it because there was no live animal inside. The conch fisherman catch the conch, remove the meat and toss the shells back overboard where they eventually wash up on shore. UGH!

We boarded the ship about an hour and a half before ‘all aboard’ and headed to the Sea View pool. Lounge chairs were in abundance and the pool was ours! We were so hot that after we set our stuff down, we jumped right into that cold water. The pool itself is a decent size and is 7’ 2” deep with a water-filled walkway all around it.  There are also some nice benches built around that so you can sit with just your feet in the water. All in all, a very nice ship pool.

Yesterday, we discovered these chocolate mint buzz (not sure of the real name but it does have the word buzz in it) drinks on the menu. We are hooked. They are a chocolatey, minty, creamy slice of heaven in a glass. If you have 2, consider it a meal. They are very filling. Two days in a row, that was pretty much lunch.

I am back in the cabin now after cleaning up in a tepid shower as I am a bit burned despite applying and reapplying 50 SPF sunscreen. My face seem to be the most red despite that sunscreen and a hat. Hopefully, a bit of aloe with cool that off.

Right now, I’m thinking a nap sounds perfect! I’ll be back later to fill you in on the evening’s activities.

Sailing away from paradise.

I’m back and I think the sun, SNUBA and the ½ mile long walk to Jack’s and back did us all in. We ended up skipping dinner in the dining room, ordering room service and calling it a night. Some of us are not nearly as young in body as we are in mind. But, it was an excellent day and we are looking forward to sleeping in, late breakfast and our lunchtime arrival in Old San Juan! 

Greetings and Happy Easter from somewhere in the Caribbean!

Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam

Saturday---We arrived at the terminal at 1:00pm and were quickly through the lines and on the ship in less than 30 minutes. Very efficient check-in process. Our rooms were ready so we dropped off our carry-ons and went to see about lunch. The buffet was slightly chaotic but the lines moved well and I had Pad Thai with Coconut Curry Chicken. It was delicious. Betzi ordered a burger from Dive-In. It came with fries and was freshly made when she ordered it. She was given a beeper and about 15 minutes later, her food was ready. She said it was also delicious.

After lunch, our luggage had been delivered and we unpacked. We chose inside guarantee cabins and were assigned two on the 6^th floor—Upper Veranda deck (6), aft. Very convenient location to both the lido and the dining rooms. Passenger decks above and below. Not much traffic in the hallways and it’s very quiet. These cabins do not have a bathtub, only a shower and are very nicely appointed.



One of the pieces of art in my stateroom. I just love this!

The atrium is not large—only 3 floors I think but it is very impressive

We did some exploring and were very impressed with the various displays and the art all over the ship. Even the elevator doors are unique! The elevators themselves have mats on the floor showing the day of the week!
These are the doors on the Lido deck. The ones are our deck are different!


They have these gorgeous seats in the elevator lobby. I want a single one just like this for my bedroom!


The day of the week mats in the elevators!

We did go to the dining room for late dinner and we were not very hungry. I got a salad and French onion soup. I have to say the soup was awful - broth tasted like dishwater. I just ordered another side salad—which was excellent and called it a night.

We had an early night as we were all tired and I was asleep by 10pm.

Sunday---Easter morning arrived and it was gloriously sunny and warm. I headed up to the Lido deck for a quick breakfast about 9:30. I ordered 2 scrambled eggs and some turkey bacon—and the eggs were ‘real’ – not that liquid stuff I’ve had on other lines. Service was speedy and after two cups of coffee I was back to my cabin to change into my bathing suit.

They have 2 pools on this ship—the Lido pool and the Sea View pool. The latter is supposed to be adults only, however there were kids in it today as someone got sick in the Lido pool and it had to be drained and cleaned. Yuck. So, the area was not as tranquil as it should have been. But I managed to get a bit more sun than I expected, despite wearing 50 SPF.

I skipped lunch and opted for a couple of slushy drinks and went to High Tea at 3pm. It was held in the Steakhouse and it was so elegant. I was very impressed!

The casino called my name and I answered however, lady luck was not with me today. 3-Card poker is my game and it’s usually decent to me—not today though.

Spent some time writing the blog and before I knew it, it was time to get ready for the Formal Gala dinner. The food was delicious and presented beautifully.

I have to say this is the most gorgeous ship I’ve ever sailed on. Every place you look there is something beautiful to see. 

We have an early day tomorrow—Turks and Caicos, so I’ll end here. Life is very good and I am very grateful.

Mayor Bob Buckhorn: We, the people, are not amused

So, I've arrived in Florida. I'm just here for a very quick trip. I haven't been here since January and I wanted to check on things at my place and get out of that hell they call winter up north.

A quick trip from Hooterville to BWI and boom, two hours later I am in Tampa. I did check a bag but it's normally not a big deal for me at this airport because right outside the doors to baggage claim and across the walkway is a rental car facility.

So, picked up my bag and went outside (where it was a balmy 58 degrees) to the crosswalk and there is a sign there saying the car rental place has moved offsite. WHAT? Directions are sketchy so I ask an employee who volunteers to show me the way.

Hike all the way down to the end of the baggage claim terminal & take an elevator to the 4th floor. Walk some more, then queue to wait for a train to take you to the car rental place. WHAT FUN! After a few minutes wait, we all pile into the 'train' which is just another monorail type thing. Two stops later you arrive at the ginormous building housing all of the car rental places.

Schlepped across a huge open space (why so much wasted room?) to get to the Alamo car rental place. Of course, there is a huge line because 300 people just debarked from a train at once. JOY
The line is long and there are only 3 people working at the counter.****

(****Little sidebar here---in this age of computers, these car rental places HAVE to know approximately how many people are going to arrive at a given time based on the reservation information. I want to know WHY they never staff appropriately? A most inefficient practice and the customers are at their mercy because we need their cars. UGH)

While we are waiting in line, they have these self-service kiosks that have never worked for me before, but this one employee is manning the stations and his only job is to take people over, insert licenses and credit cards and continually repeat "NEVER EDIT and always hit DECLINE" (there are 6 or 8 kiosks but 2 are already out of service..lol). He asks if I have an out of state driver's license. Yes, I do. Follow me he says. Off I go to a kiosk. He inserts my driver's license into slot A and then my credit card into slot B. BAM there is my reservation. Then I go through (not exaggerating here) 12 screens saying Accept or Decline to all the possible little add-ons they want you to have. And every so often, they throw you a curve ball where you don't decline you have to hit a different button and if you mess up you get charged. I think they do that on purpose.  After all of this, it spits out a rental agreement.

THEN the exciting part: You get to walk to the right about 1/4 of a mile to a set of elevators or escalators and take one to the 1st floor where the cars are at. YES! Of course, the economy cars are never conveniently located near where you show your paperwork--but they do have 3 people standing around going Yeah, economy is way over there--see the sign? Sure. Off I go again trekking to no-mans land to get a car.

Almost done! Now you follow the exit signs around and around to a booth where you have to show the agreement, your license and credit card to the attendant before they lower the steel wall to allow you to leave. 

Finally, on my way--then a quick trip around the airport to the exit and I am on the road to St. Petersburg. It is now 10:15pm. I picked up my luggage at 8:50. I am not happy about this.

But, the major car rental places that were conveniently on-site are now housed in the same building as the budget places like Fox. Six't and others. Those little companies are rejoicing I'm sure because I know many people would stay with the 'majors' for the convenience of not having to take a shuttle off-site. HA  I know I will certainly be going for the cheapest rental company in the future.

I believe I can honestly say based on the comments and reactions of the people around me, this is NOT an improvement and no one was happy about it. No pictures to share of this little adventure as I was too irritated.

Mayor Bob Buckhorn, if you are reading this, we, the people, are not amused.
Gypsy Jilly

A Tale of "F"s

It's been quite awhile since I wrote a post and it's overdue. Where to start? A brief synopsis of the past couple of months:

Family: Everyone is well and the holidays were a bit different this year as I missed Christmas night at my parents' place because I was out of town.

Feenix: (In keeping with the F theme) I flew there for a very quick visit over Christmas. Friday to Monday night. 

Fago deChao: YUM But I don't think I would do it again. It's very expensive and I don't feel like I was able to consume $50+ dollars worth of food.

Flight: Summary of the experience in a few words: Don't fly out of Reagan Airport, Don't assume you will be able to sleep on a redeye despite being in business and partaking in several adult beverages. 

Fatigue: Extreme fatigue and when I arrived back in PA, I faceplanted onto the bed for a good 18 hours. 

Flu: Of course, I got the flu!. I was a mess. For 3 days, I did nothing but sleep and ache. It was probably a good 2 weeks before I felt 'recovered'.

Fate: In what I am choosing to believe is a sign from God or Fate or something, the Cruise Line CANCELLED my Australia cruise!  Just the sailing I was on--none before or after. So I did not rebook and will look at this area again in another year or two. 

Florida: I did manage to go to my place down there to have the popcorn ceilings removed. OMG what a mess that was. But it's finished now and just needs paint! 

Blah--unparalled ugliness-----------------Now gone 

Freezing: And just so you know, Florida was freezing cold! I know? At one point I was lamenting that I did not bring a heavy coat. 

Fast Forward: I made other vacation plans. Yes, I will be cruising the Eastern Caribbean the beginning of April.   happy happy joy joy

Football: I am NOT a sports lover, one bit but I have to say--Go Eagles!!! The dog masks won me over!

Farewell, until next time my Faithful Followers!

Time for a cool change.....

I'm in the process of baby steppin' my way closer to Florida! (I know, sometimes I can't believe it's actually starting to happen!)  I notified my landlord that I will be vacating the apartment at the end of this year.

So, once again, the packing begins! Although I do have way fewer possessions this time around, I do think another 'purge' is needed. My strategy this time around is to start packing boxes with the stuff I know I want, other things will go into a different set of boxes.

I'm thinking of doing this Tag Sale my brother told me about. Friends of his put prices on all the things they wanted to sell and on a specific date, opened their house for Cash and Carry sales. Although, if you know me, you also know I don't like people touching my stuff. LOL So, I'm sort of torn about what to do. If you can think of an alternative, post a comment!!

I just joined the Buy/Sell pages for the West Shore and I'm going to start by putting up photos of some stuff and see how that goes. I did not have the best luck when I tried to sell a bedroom suite on one of those pages--60 people posting that they want it and I said, first one to my home gets it. People were crazed and in the end, NO ONE bought it. I donated it to the ReStore. So we'll start baby steppin' into this resale thing.  I'll keep you posted.

Where am I going you may ask? Well, a few weeks ago I started asking around for a room to rent and a very surprising opportunity came up that I could not refuse! See this mind of mine kept going over and over expenses and quite honestly, maintaining 2 residences was seriously cramping my style--funds wise. I mean, I could afford both places, I just had to be on a strict budget. So that is why I started thinking about this renting a room thing---SAVINGS  and more disposable income--for what else? Travel, of course!!

And of course, this is the absolute perfect time to move---NOT. I am hoping the weather will cooperate because ladies and gentlemen, I am going to have a POD to load. I don't want to be hoicking my sofa outside during foul weather, nor do I want to have to shovel a path to load said sofa.

So what's the plan after that? Ummm... I really don't have one! I would love to keep my current job and just work 'remotely' but I feel pretty certain my current management would not allow that. But, I do know on the insurance side of the business, they do offer opportunities like that. So, I will be on the internal job boards looking for a job!

So another path, down another unknown road for this Gypsy. It doesn't seem like that long ago that I was posting about that last road I turned onto:   Turn the Page

That's all for now! Enjoy the link to the music video below!
Your baby steppin' Gyspy!

Credit for the Title of This Post: Little River Band
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bKwRW0l-Qk

Vanuatu - Stars and Stripes forever!

As 2017 winds down, discovery and planning begins for my 2018 adventure.  One country, with four different stops, on the itinerary is Vanuatu. It may sound familiar because a season of Survivor was filmed there many years ago!


For me, reading a bit of the history of the Islands made me even more curious and excited to visit. Although I will not visit the island of Tanna, I am most fascinated by the God some folks on the island worship. His name is John Frum and his home is the active volcano, Yasur. Today, John Frum is both a religion and a political party with a member in Parliment!! He is worshiped by what is called an "indigenous cargo cult".  (a movement attempting to obtain industrial goods through magic)   


Here is an excerpt from the article in Smithsonian magazine:
The island’s John Frum movement is a classic example of what anthropologists have called a “cargo cult”—many of which sprang up in villages in the South Pacific during World War II, when hundreds of thousands of American troops poured into the islands from the skies and seas. As anthropologist Kirk Huffman, who spent 17 years in Vanuatu, explains: “You get cargo cults when the outside world, with all its material wealth, suddenly descends on remote, indigenous tribes.” The locals don’t know where the foreigners’ endless supplies come from and so suspect they were summoned by magic, sent from the spirit world. To entice the Americans back after the war, islanders throughout the region constructed piers and carved airstrips from their fields. They prayed for ships and planes to once again come out of nowhere, bearing all kinds of treasures: jeeps and washing machines, radios and motorcycles, canned meat and candy!

But the venerated Americans never came back, except as a dribble of tourists and veterans eager to revisit the faraway islands where they went to war in their youth. And although almost all the cargo cults have disappeared over the decades, the John Frum movement has endured, based on the worship of an American god no sober man has ever seen.

A link to the full article is here and very much worth the time to read!

An excerpt from the article on CNN:

...who explained how the spirit first appeared on Tanna in the form of an American serviceman, who ordered the tribe to reject Christian missionaries and promised boatloads of American cargo in return.

Then came World War II and boatloads of American cargo.

To this day, the Stars and Stripes is a religious symbol for the people under the volcano and their children are shamans in training, learning to talk to the spirits in the trees and shoot birds from the sky.

Full article can be read here.

February 15th:
In the morning heat on a tropical island halfway across the world from the United States, several dark-skinned men—clad in what look to be U.S. Army uniforms—appear on a mound overlooking a bamboo-hut village. One reverently carries Old Glory, precisely folded to reveal only the stars. On the command of a bearded “drill sergeant,” the flag is raised on a pole hacked from a tall tree trunk. As the huge banner billows in the wind, hundreds of watching villagers clap and cheer.

Chief Isaac Wan, a slight, bearded man in a blue suit and ceremonial sash, leads the uniformed men down to open ground in the middle of the village. Some 40 barefoot “G.I.’s” suddenly emerge from behind the huts to more cheering, marching in perfect step and ranks of two past Chief Isaac. They tote bamboo “rifles” on their shoulders, the scarlet tips sharpened to represent bloody bayonets, and sport the letters “USA,” painted in red on their bare chests and backs.

John Frum Day, on the remote island of Tanna in the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. On this holiest of days, devotees have descended on the village of Lamakara from all over the island to honor a ghostly American messiah, John Frum. “John promised he’ll bring planeloads and shiploads of cargo to us from America if we pray to him,” a village elder tells me as he salutes the Stars and Stripes. “Radios, TVs, trucks, boats, watches, iceboxes, medicine, Coca-Cola and many other wonderful things.”


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Another fascinating thing about all the islands of Vanuatu is the consumption of Kava. I didn't really know much about it until I started researching the islands.Kava is a plant with calming properties.

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about it:
The roots of the plant are used to produce a drink with sedative, anesthetic, euphoriant, and entheogenic properties. Kava is consumed throughout the Pacific Ocean cultures of Polynesia, including Hawaii, Vanuatu, Melanesia and some parts of Micronesia for its sedating effects. Its active ingredients are called kavalactones. A Cochrane systematic review concluded it was likely to be more effective than placebo at treating short-term anxiety.

And from what I've read, you only want to consume drinks made with "noble" kava. Vanuatu's most popular noble strains are  "Boroguu" or "Boronggoru" from Pentecost Island, "Melomelo" from Aoba Island (called sese in north Pentecost Island), and "Palarasul" kava from Espiritu Santo.

Kava is prepared by either chewing, grinding or pounding the roots of the kava plant. Grinding is done by hand against a cone-shaped block of dead coral; the hand forms a mortar and the coral a pestle. The ground root/bark is combined with only a little water, as the fresh root releases moisture during grinding. Pounding is done in a large stone with a small log. The product is then added to cold water and consumed as quickly as possible.

Fijians commonly share a drink called grog made by pounding sun-dried kava root into a fine powder, straining and mixing it with cold water. Traditionally, grog is drunk from the shorn half-shell of a coconut, called a bilo. Grog is very popular in Fiji, especially among young men, and often brings people together for storytelling and socializing. Drinking grog for a few hours brings a numbing and relaxing effect to the drinker; grog also numbs the tongue and grog drinking typically is followed by a "chaser" or sweet or spicy snack to follow a bilo.

How does Kava make you feel:
When the mixture is not too strong, the subject attains a state of happy unconcern, well-being and contentment, free of physical or psychological excitement. At the beginning conversation comes in a gentle, easy flow and hearing and sight are honed, becoming able to perceive subtle shades of sound and vision. Kava soothes temperaments. The drinker never becomes angry, unpleasant, quarrelsome or noisy, as happens with alcohol. Both natives and whites consider kava as a means of easing moral discomfort. The drinker remains master of his conscience and reason.

I may have to report back on my personal experience with Kava!

But here is the most important reason I wanted to visit Vanuatu:

All is Well in my World

A good friend emailed me because she had not seen an update from me here regarding how I made out during the hurricane.  Shame on me!

I got so caught up in the trip back North, pouring over Hurricane articles etc, that I forgot to update my status. I arrived home on Saturday and pretty much face-planted into the bed after I unloaded the car.  Sunday was spent obsessively watching and reading about the Hurricane.

Monday morning I got the call I'd been waiting for. The president of the Condo board called me to let me know that he, personally, walked over to my place and all was well. Nothing broken, my little palm tree is still intact! I was so relieved I could have wept.

Of course, there was no power all week, but the last article I read on the County website said that power to the entire county was to be restored by midnight tomorrow.

Now that this is all behind me, I feel like I can share some experiences and observations I had on the long, long trip North.

The hotel I stayed at the night before I boarded the train was weird:

• There were sheer curtains on the window and the heavier black out curtains. However, the blackout curtains did not move--you couldn't close them. Thankfully, I was on the 4th floor but the room was so bright from exterior lighting, it was hard for me to sleep.

• There were strange goings-on in the parking lot of the hotel.:

At one point, I walked out to get the other bag from my car and saw 7 cars, all backed into parking spaces along the fence, all running, all with their high beams on. Just sitting there. As I walked back from my car, a car pulled up under the portico, a guy got out and started cleaning out bags and bottles from his car and putting them in the trash can--fine you say? I thought so too until he pulled not 1, but 2 small gas cans, reeking of gasoline, from his trunk and puts those in the trash can. (Which happened to be next to the smoking area, where 2 people were sitting and smoking) He gets into his car, revs the engine, does a u-turn and makes his way to the fence, backs in and becomes the 8th car sitting there, engine running and high beams on.   (no clue)

(I did tell the person at the desk about the gas cans and he sent someone out to get them)

Sleepy time!!!  I turn from the window and do my best to sleep. Not happening! Even my sleepy music is having no effect. Noises in the hall wake me at one point. Who is slamming the door to the stairs at 2am? Then I am awake for a long time,  finally falling asleep soundly about 5. 

I had set an alarm for 10 but at 8:45 someone (the maid, I believe) is pounding on the door and asking in very broken English am I in the room. Now, if your house keys cannot open the door because of the night guard and there is a Do Not Disturb sign on the door, wouldn't you get the hint? UGH I yell back through the door, check out is at 11. I'll be out then.

Back to righteous sleep and YEP you guessed it, more banging on the door asking if I am in the room. So, I get up about 9:20 and jump into the shower. While showering, I hear her at the door AGAIN. OMG. I take my time getting ready to leave and I keep hearing all this banging around outside of my door. At 10:58, I open the door to my room and find myself just about surrounded by large cardboard boxes of some sort. My room is not only across from the stairs but next to a storage room of some kind.

I say nothing just continue to the elevator and out the front door. I head over to Perkins for a leisurely breakfast before heading to the train station. I LOVE eating breakfast out. Dippy eggs, toast, bacon...all is right with the world again!

The scene at the Train Station really made this situation more of a reality:

I enter the ginormous station to complete chaos. There are more people in wheelchairs than I've ever seen in one place, at one time. The place is very noisy and there are more people than seats. It's hard getting to the line at the counter. After saying "excuse me" at least 20 times, I am in line. This time the priority line is even more of a blessing.

I feel like I am in a bad movie where people have stormed an embassy trying to get out of some besieged country. It's that chaotic. I wish I had thought to take pictures. The only way to escape the masses was to return to the 100-degree heat outside, which I did. 

We boarded at 2:30pm and I watched the sea of humanity making its way up the narrow steps and past my seat. I must say, a crisis does not bring out the best in a lot of people. At one point, a woman about my age was berating her much older mother so much that my seatmate and I felt the need to consult the older woman about elder abuse. She said she was fine and that is just the kind of relationship she and her daughter have. 

There was another scene very late after lights out. Some azz was screaming at the porter for 'disrespecting him'. It was quite ugly.  Thankfully after that, it was quiet and uneventful.

I partook in the continental breakfast, which was very good. Coffee, juice, pastries, cereal, bananas, bagels... All served in the dining room. 

So there you have it folks, my long strange trip to Florida and back!

I'm planning to head back down in a couple of weeks--Flying both ways this time!  Hopefully, I will have nothing more to report than the condition of a few beaches I want to visit!

ttfn!

The New Reality Sinks In

I had another blog post prepared full of witty, sometimes snarky comments about the Auto Train trip North. But after reading the new storm track information, I'm feeling neither witty nor snarky. I'm actually feeling scared and worried.

Yes, I know it's only 'stuff' and I have insurance but it's the 1st time I've ever experienced this. I imagine in years to come I will consider myself experienced at this whole hurricane thing--but now, I'm a scared newbie 1000+ miles away from my new home.

I will know more Monday night or Tuesday and expect another trip to FL will happen not long after that. But until then, please pray for the safety of all in the path of this hurricane and for those living on the islands already impacted.

jilly

The Madness Has Begun

Well, let's catch up on my week so far. It's been an adventure to say the least. When I last left you, I was about to drive off from the Auto Train.

So, after a 2 1/2 hour drive, I arrived at my destination! It was super hot and humid, but I unloaded and unloaded and unloaded some more until everything but the Chaise was in the condo. I was drenched with sweat. After turning the air conditioning down to 72, I took a seat on the floor and waited until my hair stopped dripping and drank my last bottle of water.

Feeling somewhat recovered I drove to my local Publix and bought water and some food for the week. I did have the good sense to turn on the refrigerator when I got there, so by now it was nice and cold. I lugged all that stuff home and deposited a 10 pound bag of ice in the freezer. I then proceeded to fill a glass with ice and poured water over it. I drank 2 bottles immediately and for the rest of the day, I kept sipping.

At about 2:30 the mattress was delivered. At 3:00, I was taking a nap. enjoying the coolness. Ahhh.
I set an alarm for an hour later and finally dragged myself out of bed about an hour and a half later.
Huh, it seems a bit warmer in here than it was I check the thermostat, lower the temperature. NOTHING!    Great.

I then go and look for water shut-off to turn the water back on so I can take a shower. No idea where it is, I look inside and out. NOTHING!    Great

I start to sweat because now the termp inside is 82. I decide to look around for someone to ask.. a neighbor, anyone. I know the people on both sides of me are home so I knock repeatedly at each of their doors. No answer. So I hop in my car, and start driving slowly around the development looking for someone outside. The first person I encounter, is an older man, wearing nothing but a bathrobe, bare foot, drinking a glass of wine. I decide to pass on him and continue driving. After making a complete circuit of the neighborhood, bathrobe man is my only hope.

So, I put down the window and say, excuse me, do you live here? And he slurs that he does in fact live here in the 'cell block' behind him. Ooook. So I ask him if he knows where the shut off valve is for the water. He says, Oh I don't mess with anything like that. So I proceed to plead my case and also add in about the air conditioning--of lack thereof.  He says, well let me call Joe somebody. He is on the board. So I give him a business card with my number and pray he remembers until he gets back to his place .

I return home and wait. Sweating. About 20 minutes later, a knock on my door and it's Joe. A nice looking guy about my age. He says the shut offs are either inside or out. He looks in the closet of my sun room and says, definitely out. We go outside and he can't find it. Just as we are ready to go back in, he spots it. It's been painted the same color as the stucco and kinda blends in.

Water problem solved! He then proceeds to look at the thermostat and breaker. No idea. He suggests I go and buy a fan.       GREAT  It's now 84 degrees inside.  After he leaves, I call the Home Warranty company to place a claim. Turns out that no air conditioning, in Florida, in the summer does not qualify as an emergency. And it will take a minimum of 48 hours for someone to get back to me
I go and buy a fan.

I make it through Saturday and Sunday sleeping with the fan pointed directly at me and through the day, I move it around to wherever I'm at. UGH. By Monday, I am online filling out a request for bids on Thumbtack. I get a response within 1/2 hour. A minute later the phone rings. It's a Contractor !!!
I tell the woman my story and she says, oh well, we can have a Tech out there today. Today? As in Labor Day? Yes!!!!!!!!

So around 6:30 a truck pulls up a guy gets out, looks briefly at the thermostat and exchange and then sets up his ladder and is on my roof checking things out. I hear his drill a few times and then he comes down with the verdict. Ideally, I need a new central air system. In Florida, most units last about 10 years on average. My unit is from 1999. Now, I knew the unit was old but was hoping it would last another year or two. But that wasn't meant to be.

He says it probably has a slow coolant leak and that if he puts coolant in the unit, it will work again, but he can't say for how long. He said it could last 2 hours, 2 months or 2 years. I tell him to add the coolant. I will be happy if I can have one decent night of sleep at this point. Immediately after he does that, the unit turns on and I see the temperature inside drop from 84 to 83....I could have wept.

We talk about the cost of a new unit and he checks and says they could install this Thursday. Hmmm.
The issue is, with me not being here all the time, if the AC does go out the humidity will cause all sorts of nasty mold to grow very quickly. So, I decide to bite the bullet and have a new unit put in.
             Great

Now we are current and I can say the AC is still working and I slept like the dead last night. Then my friend calls me and asks me if I have been watching the news. Oh God now what? Are we at war? What?  Ummmmm........ just a Category 5 hurricane headed towards you.                    Great
So after I run my errands, I do what any sane person in the path of a hurricane would do............I head for the pool to catch some rays.

After listening to some of these men that were sitting in the shade of the clubhouse talk, I wanted to slit my wrists. Bathrobe man was there--clothed this time but with his wine. He was talking about when to evacuate and telling everyone that if it hits the near us this whole area will be flattened with winds that high. A kind of a know-it-all type naysayer that has experienced everything you have and done it better or had it worse. UGH.

And, you will never guess who I ran into while I was at the pool:  Remember Tan Mom... or it could  be Magda from Something about Mary!!

After all that pleasant talk, I came back to my place and changed into dry clothes and decided to go and get gas.

This was interesting...................The Madness has truly begun. In line to get gas at Wawa.

I've been thinking of driving up closer to Sanford because of rush hour traffic etc.. well now it will be evacuation traffic if the hurricane comes our way. So I have a hotel room for Thursday night about 20 minutes from the train station and will leave Friday afternoon on the train............Could really be a crazy train if we are being followed by the hurricane.                     Great

So, tomorrow I have a new piece of furniture coming. I think I am going to think a good thought and have it delivered. As for getting the AC put in......I may postpone that until I can get back down here.

So that's all for now Folks. Just another crazy week in my life. Prayers, positive thoughts etc would be greatly appreciated by Florida!

TTFN

All aboard........Nope it's not the Crazy Train

So, it's the night before a new adventure begins and I am sleepless, of course. Thankfully, I do not have to be up at zero dark thirty in the morning. I am planning on adding the last few items to the car, having a leisurely breakfast and then starting my trek south!

Oh the best laid plans.....Fast forward to the next morning:

I wake up......stretch, look around the room, lean over and check the time. ACK it's 11am and I have to be at the train station in Virginia by 2:30 -- PM  -- today!!!!! Leap out of bed, jump in the shower and get ready in record time. Thankfully, just about everything was packed and ready to go last night. I fly out the door with the remaining bags by 11:20 and make a quick stop at the Smoothie Cafe for a late breakfast.

If you haven't tried the Smoothie Cafe, you have no idea what you are missing. I finally had to buy my own smoothie maker because I was spending so much money at this place!  They have a new seasonal flavor that's green apple and peanut butter and that is what I got this morning. Such yumminess should be illegal!  But I digress........

I hop on 11/15 towards Maryland. Then hit 270 to Washington. I made really good time until this point...then the DC area traffic hit. I haven't been down this way in years and my how it's changed. I noticed they have express lanes completed where I'm guessing you pay for the privilege to drive on them using your EZ pass--no cash accepted. I opted not to use this method as I wasn't sure where they joined the rest of the peons in the non-paying lanes.

I eventually picked up 95 and from there Lorton was just a short way. Whew! I pulled up to the gate at 1:50. I'm not sure if I mentioned this, but I paid extra for 2 things----business class seat and priority offloading. Trust me on this when I tell you that it is worth every penny. I was told to pull my car
forward in the 'priority lane'. You are asked to leave the driver's side window down and the keys in the car. After you collect your personal belongings   (they do have free luggage carts for your use, if needed), they use a hand held camera and video the exterior of your car. I'm sure over the years people have tried to accuse them of causing damage to their vehicle and I totally understand.


Area to pull your car up

Videoing your car:

You then make your way a short distance to the terminal. There are 2 lines. One for Coach class passengers and another for Sleeper Car and Business passengers. Because I arrived at the tail end of check-in time, the lines were non-existent for both classes. However, looking around the cavernous space, I saw hundreds of people already checked in and waiting to board the train. This time of year there are not a lot of passengers riding the train, but during snow-bird season, the train is packed and the prices reflect that.

Car Carriers:

This was confirmed when I checked in and asked for a seat in a row by myself, if possible. The woman said, Honey there are only 9 people in business class today, you are all going to have your own row! Great news!! As I waited for boarding to start, looking around the room, I saw tons of kids, tiny babies and just generally most seemed to families en route to Disney.

Business class also boards first with the Sleeper Car passagers.--nice! You enter on the lower level of the car and climb a very narrow set of twisting stairs to the second floor. I was given the option of having a seat in business on the first floor--and I would have been the only passenger in the car. I thought about it but then decided that it would be too creepy at night trying to sleep. So, I am in seat 49, window, and the aisle seat has my stuff!  The seat has a great recline and another piece can be raised--kind of like a recliner chair.

We had a porter come through, put our train tickets up above the seats and told us everyone that paid for business will have a ticket and if we see anyone in our car without one, to let him know. He told us where everything was located, where our dinner would be served--again we dine with Sleeper Car
passengers. Dining was at either 5 or 7. There is also a private lounge car as well as a beverage station serving coffee and hot chocolate all night. Also, an ice machine as well as snacks and booze for sale.

A little while later he came by again, this time with 2 bottles of water for each person. The third visit he dropped off a nice little blanket kit in a drawstring bag. (Just like the ones you used to be able to buy on US Air) The bag contained a blanket, ear plugs, a blow up neck pillow and an eye mask!

Each row of 2 seats has 2 outlets for charging your various devices--and it's a real outlet, not a USB port. The train also has free wifi. Now, it's not reliable in certain areas of the country, but it's free! Amtrak provides a home page of sorts that shows a map of where you are, news, the dinner menu


There are 4 entree choices. Formally dressed waitstaff escorted you to a linen covered table where a tossed salad and dinner roll awaited. There was also ice water and iced tea on the table.

The Dining Car:

Tonight there was: Beef Tenderloin with Baked Potato and vegetables, Salmon and Risotto, a chicken dish and a vegetarian lasagna. In addition, there was a chef's sepecial which was a pork chop. For children under 12, chicken nuggets.

The dessert menu had your choice of tiramisu, cheesecake, sugar free jello and ice cream with your choice of topping.

Bar service was available as well.

I was seated with an older couple and a young man. We had some very pleasant conversation during dinner. It's so funny, this couple looked like a typical retired snow bird pair. It turns out the woman designs websites for a living. They are computer experts and they hold seminars on internet security. HA  Very interesting to talk to. We found common ground talking about travel and passed the time very pleasantly!

It is now 6:28pm and I am finished with dinner. What to do? I have an e-book to finish. Perhaps that will be next. I'll check in later or maybe not until tomorrow. Who knows?

We are somewhere near North Carolina I think. The Amtrak web is not working at the moment. It's rainy outside. We are moving at a decent speed right now. There were several starts and stops so far. Not at stations but maybe for another train to pass. Our only scheduled stop around midnight will be in South Carolina where they will change crews.

You do make other stops along the way. Seems the passenger trains do not have as much importance as the cargo trains. Twice that I know of, we stopped on the tracks to allow other trains to pass. I guess trains have certain areas where the tracks cross?

AT any rate, after dinner I read the rest of a book and at 9pm they turned out the lights in the cabins. Much like an airplane, there is safety lighting and a light above your seat. I read some more and then tried to get comfy and sleep. Yeah, not so much. I did sleep for about 3 hours and then off and on
until they made an announcement over the PA that a continental breakfast was being served in the dining room. Then the lights came back on.

It's now about 7:40 and they tell us we will be in early. We shall see!

PS: We did arrive early however, they had to uncouple the cars and get the car carriers in place then we had to be towed to the terminal area. We got off the train about 8:30.

Here again is where your extra money spent is really going to pay for itself. I paid $50 each way to have my car one of the 1st 30 cars to come off the train. Considering the train was considered lightly occupied, there were 190 cars and 398 passengers on board. My car was number 26. They drive it over to a small parking area, you load your stuff you brought on the train and off you go!

Interesting experience--I would do it again if I had a lot of stuff to bring down to FL.

So, it's been a while....

It's been months since I blogged so I wanted to fill you in on what's been going on in my life!

Since the cruise I took in April, I've been staying very busy. A lot of long weekends were spent jetting back and forth to Florida in pursuit of the perfect condo. After looking at what seemed like a hundred places, I finally found the perfect place!!!

It's two bedrooms, a cute Florida room and of course, living, dining room, kitchen & bath. It's on a quiet street and has a gorgeous pool. But the best part.................it's only 10 minutes from the beach!

Thankfully, I was able to look past the clutter that was in the place and see it the way I would decorate it. I can tell you, the woman that owned it was a semi-hoarder with a love of teapots, plants and bird houses.

However, I've redecorated it in my mind several times. And it does have a lot of nice features: the wood floors are gorgeous, each bedroom has a walk in closet, there's a pantry and the Florida room has a huge closet with room for a washer/dryer! There are many other things to love about it as well, but I won't bore you with more details!

I will be sure to take before and after photos. The kitchen is updated but it is so not my taste. That will be the first project. It involves paint and a back splash!

For now, this place is just a vacation home......but some day........my full time home!

When I flew down for settlement, I filled two large suitcases full of things to help make the place habitable. It's amazing what you can fit into suitcases when you use those space bags!

Next, I'm planning on taking the Auto Train down in September. That way I can jam my car full of items to begin furnishing the place. A bed will be delivered when I get there. And, of course, I plan to do a little shopping while I am there.

My goal is to be able to be fairly comfortable when I visit and I will add things as time and money allow.

I am hoping to be able to fly down regularly during the winter months. I found an airport very close to home that flies Fridays and Mondays to an airport quite close to my place. The plan is to have quite a few long weekends this winter!

So, that's all the news for now!
Your Domestic Flying Gypsy,
Jilly