Italy, 2018 Most Awesome Trip Ever!

It's been so long, that I think I will just plunge in and start posting. If this works, it works. So much has happened in my life in the last 5 years, that there's no reasonable way to provide an "update and summary" other than to just start writing from now.

That said, I miss blogging and have time to do so, now that I've retired (2015) and recovered from my broken ankle (goodbye, 2016; you were a rotten year, all in all). And what better topic to start with than this most awesome ever trip: a Mother-Daughter trip with my favorite daughter, Dianna, and my soon-to-be daughter-in-law, Alicia.

Dianna and I went to Venice (Italy! did I mention Italy?) We spent the first 3 days in Venice, then 3 days in Florence, and a final 4 days in Rome. Alicia was only able to participate in the cicchetti (savory snacks or small side dishes, typically served in a bar or informal restaurant, primarily in Venice) and wine days of our trip.

Here are two preview pictures (and test of whether my posting will work) of our joyful time:

Disney Cruise: Day 2

The first full day of our cruise, we slept in late. A glorious, relaxing treat! We decided that unlike previous vacations, often accompanied by our commando vacationer children, we'd relax and zone out on our trip. That was our mission!

We slept in, and for lunch headed to Palo, the fancier Disney restaurant that requires a reservation and $20 per person. The server takes you on a tour of the food options: seafood, egg and pasta dishes, cheese tables, salads, fruits. . . .



. . . and desserts . . . it's eye-dazzling and overwhelming! And indulgent!



Next, when we could walk again with our increased weight and bulk and girth, without tipping over the ship, we wandered around, meandering to and fro, photographing Doug . . .




. . . . stuff  (Disney wouldn't like me calling their "art" "stuff", but there are now Disney Swat teams patrolling my blog :)  ). . . .




. . . . and me, reclining in the thoughtfully positioned portholes. . . .





But wait!  Doesn't all that meandering to and fro work up a thirst?  Why, it's time for the wine tasting!  Being saddened by pathetically small things, I was saddened that I didn't this time get a tiny little "wine-tasting" pin to attach to my lanyard.  What does one even do with a wine tasting pin, wear it proudly about Grand Forks?  I don't know; but I wanted one again. . . .




So, we seemed to be accomplishing our mission of zone out relaxing during the day at sea, but we weren't quite ready to crash on a deck chair just yet, so we decided to caffeinate ourselves before sitting with our book-laden Nooks by the Quite Cove pool. And right by the pool is this little Quiet Cove Cafe, where these cheerful servers recommended two fancy coffees with all manner of tasty liqueurs stirred into them.









So, some hours later, after reading and snoozing by the pool, we managed to have dinner at our 8:15 seating in Triton's, the dining room for the evening.  And further challenge to our bodies with the desserts of the night.





Unbelievably, we were still walking at the end of all this, and managed to find our way to Deck 4, where you can circle the ship a few times on their walking/jogging path. Definitely needed by this point!

Disney Magic Western Carribean Cruise: First of Five Nights

I love how relaxed and tranquil Doug looks now! I don't think you can actually relax on a vacation until you've got all the logistics of getting there finally accomplished, and this is The Moment: (Maybe. Maybe it's still "Fine! Take the picture already!" sigh)





See all that white stuff on Miami Beach? NOT snow!



The little pilot boat cracked me up! At first, I thought it was going to "sketch" Mickey Ears, but that would have probably been over-the-top! But I was impressed with the circle!



Only as we pulled away from Miami did it look cloudy. None of the coming days were cloudy--just beautiful, sunny, warm days! Perfect vacation weather! Apparently, our usual weather curse took a vacation this trip!







And at dinner: Yummmmmm! Dessert! We couldn't decide, so ordered the sampler of three desserts.



Our dinner the first night was at Parrot Cay.  Disney rotates you, with your same table-mates and servers, from dining room to dining room over the course of the cruise. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this cruise was the dinners, and not because of the food. The Disney Master Plan assigned three other couples as our table mates: one from New Jersey, one from Canada, and one from London. No children--which really does work better when you are not traveling with children, and all close in age. Good food, some wine, and great conversations! I loved the differing perspectives and life experiences! And hearing the London Sandra learn to imitate New Jersey's Lori and John's "you'll swim with da fishes!"

And then after dinner, we got to watch the movie "Lincoln" again. Even though we were exhausted, and I'd already seen it, it was absolutely riveting the second time through, after having read Doris Kearns Goodwin's "Team of Rivals."

And Now, We Interrupt this Winter Weather Snit for a Disney Cruise!

A month ago, we got back from one of the real treats of our life, getting to go on a Disney Cruise, in March! This anticipation of an escape from the winter doldrums keeps us going during the long November, December, January, February, March, April (and yes, often even May) months of winter.

It took me awhile to post photos, because the only souvenir that made it back with us was a nasty, lung-wretching cold that far surpassed any other cold of my adult life. And only now am I feeling energy to call upon my brain neurons to post. . .

This first shot is from a hotel window in Miami. We stayed at the Port of Miami Holiday Inn, just across the port. It's nothing fancy, just expensive, and very convenient to the port. We flew in a day early, because with a cruise in the winter, its a very good idea to allow a whole day for weather snafus. And with 12 hours of flights and airports, including one trek across an open field of snow to get from the parking lot to the airport entrance, a day of recovery time is a Very Good Idea.

And it gave me plenty of time to press my lens against the hotel window, using a slow shutter speed, to get light trails from the cars below:



Waiting in the Port of Miami just prior to embarkation is an exercise in containing excitement. You are so close, and have made it past so many of the Things That Can Go Wrong in travel!



Once you board, the first stop is the first buffet. This is your first chance to have Choice Overload of picking out all kinds of tasty things to sample. I've been trying to follow the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, and had decided that on this trip, I'd eat whatever I felt like, and assess its impact. I noticed that for the most part, I genuinely wanted the choices that were still within the Diet guidelines. There was enough that was not, however, and although I felt the impact, it was not disastrous. I was very aware, however, that the effect might be being masked by medication, but all went well.



After the buffet is when you drag your carry-on luggage to your cabin and are allowed to check into the room. I find that the only reason to really keep much luggage with us at that point is because I'm just not willing to let me photographic equipment stray to far from my hands and sight.





Not too long after unpacking in our cabin, it's time for the mandatory life boat drill. Strangely, we don't have to put the life jackets on, just watch how it's done, and even though I'm one of those people who pay attention to the safety stuff on airplanes (and read my vehicle owner's manual), I missed the life jacket demonstration! I must have just spaced it out, watching some little kids torture their parents with sibling rivalry. Ooops! After all the Carnival Cruise line trouble, and seeing Titanic, I really did want to pay attention!



Time to check out the pools and decks!





And to check out a tropical drink-of-the-day! I'd thought we'd order the drink-of-the-day each day, but there really are just too many choices!




And before long, the Embarkation Party! Here's something really important to note: No one is wearing parkas or gloves! Or racing AWAY from the outdoors! . . . . *sigh. . . . it's another world!

Husband Loses It over the Weather in North Dakota (understandably!)

"We're in the f*ing suckhole here!"  This is what my mild-mannered, sweet-natured  good-humored husband said today.  Because of our f*ing weather. I don't disagree with him in the slightest. Enough already!  30 degree weather, snow, and the ugliest, bleakest, greyest landscape you can imagine, while the rest of the state gets to have 50 degree weather.

And Montana gets to have mid-60s, double our weather!

So, imagine how I feel about the following photos, taken a whole month ago, NOT IN MY BACKYARD!

*sigh* And we had to come back. .

Left-Leaning Birds

Is there a rule, that these birds must face left, just before sunset? Or do they just lean left, politically?

And sunset in the Everglades. But returning to shore meant massive mosquitoes. Little, but abundant. . . . and biting! (And how did they manage to fill our car?. . . . but at least they were not the vultures Dianna read about. Vultures that would eat the rubber off our tires while we drifted along, lulled by the little birdies. . . . . )

First Ever! I am Special!

It's only fair play; if I'm going to post photos of my loved ones hither and yon, then sometimes I should let them take photos of me and post them too.

So here's some terrible shots of me in a swim suit!!!!! at Vero Beach, in the pool, taken by the lovely Dianna. It's not her fault, but note the incredibly wrinkly nose look of me and terrible hair. The crinkly nose laughter is because the water was freakin' cold and Dianna was the smart one who Would Not Get In!

And note the intense, almost neon, paleness of North Dakotans in the Florida sunshine. By the way, the water bubbles are ONLY DOUG'S EFFORTS TO MOVE HIS ARMS TO KEEP WARM! But then he did his wonderful husbandly duty of lending me some of his body heat. What a guy!

And this last shot is MY VERY FIRST EVER SENIOR DISCOUNT MOVIE TICKET! Now THAT makes me REALLY like Florida! They start movie discounts at 55 (a number long-gone for me). But I'll let you in on a little secret. In Grand Forks, regular movies in the evening are only $6.

This movie was excellent, by the way. Totally creepy, prepare for nightmares, but it's also extremely funny. Creepy and funny makes for a good recipe. As I mentioned before, all 3 of us had nightmares that night. One could not remember their nightmare; one dreamed about being eaten by vampires, and the other dreamed she/she was the perpetrator of murders, passed off as an art project. Names are not revealed to protect her/her reputation.

Birds, and Birds, and Some More Birds

My apologies to the real birders among you. This is like pearls before swine; I'm not sure what these birds are. Do you know?

Spoonbills and Sandpipers

Don't you sometimes feel that the little ones are just underfoot, when you are trying to get something done?

But we have it made, compared to these Spoonbills in the Florida Everglades!

Look at all these Sandpipers, crowding around!

I don't know how these Spoonbills keep from stepping on all the little Sandpipers.

They were noisy, too! And somehow, I imagine that none of these creatures have body space issues!

And they were surprisingly calm about our boat edging its way very close to them.