Travel

Well. Bags outside the door by 7:30, breakfast at 6:30 (“…at the buffet-a…”), wheels up (well…van wheels up) at 8:00. Safari logistics have officially entered the chat. We left Pretoria this morning and began the drive north toward Entabeni, which Abe …

As I type this, I probably should actually be sleeping — but ~24 hours’ worth of travel can do that to a girl. (And probably the Illy coffee that smelled so good about two hours before landing…which was…duh…6 p.m. local time.) I’m going to skip “waxing …

Courtesy of ChatGPT, Images tab, and the prompt: “Create a caricature of me based on everything you know about me.” P.S.: I tried – I really, really tried – to get “BASSPORT” to be “PASSPORT” and the 2nd “Compliance” gremlin’s hat to read COMPliance no …

I’m about to leave for Africa, which means my life has entered its sacred pre-trip phase:lists, sub-lists, nested lists under other lists, and a level of logistical intensity that suggests I’m either going on safari with a weight limit . . . or launchi …

Back in the day—when my husband and I were traveling regularly, usually once a year to Austria to visit his parents (and later, just his dad), plus assorted shorter and longer jaunts—I had a system. Actually, correction: H had a system. I had . . . vib …

Coming up in February/March, I’m off with Overseas Adventure Travel again, this time to Africa. The overview is HERE, the day-to-day itinerary is HERE. I am doing the pre- and post-trips as well, then staying an extra couple of days in Namibia, at a Ch …

Last coffee on the balcony Very patient dog Cheers to H, Miami Amex lounge DELISH pomegranate chicken, salad, etc! (Amex lounge) And, of course, fresh crunchy chocolate chip cookies! Okay, these biscuits were delish (sort of coconut/cinnamon); however, …

When the Ocean Says “Not Today” As I type this, we’ve just received notification that our snorkeling tour has been canceled — again — due to high waves. We’ll get our money back (thank you, Get Your Guide, for at least being efficient about that), but …

Rain Decisions, Rum Barrels, and Strategic Napping Yesterday’s plan (manatees!) quietly surrendered to what turned into a serious, unapologetic loll. Sharon found us a place on the beach while I was putting the final touches on the blog; when I got dow …

Plans, Punctuality, and a Cancelled Snorkel Well… this one was a little sad. Due to the weather, our snorkeling trip was cancelled. Of course, being us, we were there a full hour early and didn’t think to check our phones until the “mandatory 10 minute …