Day 553 - A Day In Royal History

Yup. I did it. I set the alarm & woke up to watch the wedding. Okay, so I set the alarm for 0930, but that's early for me these days! It was quite the spectacle, I must say! I think every woman on the planet who watched lived a fairytale fantasy she's secretly held inside her heart. Kate is absolutely stunning. She's graceful, real, authentic, poised, the list goes on. And Prince William! In that red uniform - what a handsome man. I am happy for them both. Say what you will, either for or against the Royals, but they are a couple in love & what's not to celebrate about that. And I think we can all agree that there are much worse ways a Government could waste taxpayers dollars! And besides, aren't the Duke & Duchess donating all of their money to charity anyways? 


And then there's the kiss. My heart sank after the first kiss. Thank goodness they snuck another one in to convince all of us die-hard romantics of their affection for each other! I'm sure if I had been in London I would have camped out over night to catch a glimpse of the couple. I would have trotted down the Royal Mile to try & get a photo of them - no matter how crummy that shot may have been!


I'll most probably buy the Royal Wedding soundtrack, along with Ellie Goulding, whom I understand is singing at the reception this evening. She's singing Elton John's 'Your Song' - one of my favourite's thanks to Moulin Rouge & Ewan McGregor. 'The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love & be loved in return.' Sigh. *Insert helpless romantic smile here.*







And that was pretty much the day! Jaco & I went downtown to do a little banking & I stopped in at a few shops to look around. I am freezing as of late, so I've been on the lookout for a great sweater. (Like I don't have enough at home! But they don't do me any good while I'm in Africa, now do they?) I found one, but it's acrylic & it comes out to about $100 after the exchange rate. Not cool! I could have a really sweet cashmere sweater for that price!


Our night was finished off with a Skype chat with Mom & a little late night Dog Whisperer. Life is good!


xxxxMaria

Day 534 - Lazy Day With Malva Pudding

After a late night skype with Sylvia, Drayton & baby Colton, and a late night chat with Jaco, it was nearing 0500 by the time I got to sleep. Needless to say this morning didn’t happen! It was 1330 by the time I woke up. Can you say jet lag?

It was super hot out today. I can’t believe how beautiful the weather is! I immediately felt guilty for sleeping so late when it’s this hot out! I made up for it by sweating in the sun while I read the latest issue of Cesar’s Way that Jaco picked up for me when we were in Barbados.

It was a good thing I read the magazine, as there were some helpful hints in it. Later that afternoon, the neighbor lady stopped by & had her dog with her. Sis went crazy. She had this wild look in her eye & would NOT stop barking. I did my best to ‘shhhht’ her up, but it didn’t last for long. It was interesting to note the behaviours of Petro, Jaco, & the neighbor towards Sis. Where do you draw the line on stopping the barking? You want the dog to let you know if someone is coming into the yard or if she hears a strange noise, but how do you get the dog to know the difference between company, strangers, noises, & just plain old barking? In any case, Sis settled down briefly & then we went outside.

Petro made a delicious supper for us. She is such a great cook. We had a delicious salad, roasted veggies, fresh chicken & my favourite – Malva Pudding! Wow. We bought some from the shop the other day & it doesn’t hold a candle to Petro’s! I think she could open a shop in Canada on that dish alone!!!

After dinner we went outside & I took some photos of the house. A car port has been added since I was last here & the granadilla plant has grown out of control! There are plenty of blossoms & grenadillas ripening as I type! Petro showed me how to assist Mother Nature & pollinate the flowers so that a grenadilla will develop. Very interesting! Not so interesting was the big hairy spider & her sac of baby spiders next to one of the flowers. Yuck.

I had a nice skype visit with Jenn in Texas & got to see Harrison & Heidi. They are growing so much! Harrison was laughing hysterically when I would catch the kisses that he blew my virtual way. It was fun! I’m so proud of Jenn & her continued weight loss. Her blog is My Romance

The rest of the night was frustratingly spent trying to upload photos onto the blog. It is NOT working & I keep getting one or two photos out of forty-five. Highly frustrating. I did, however, watch Charl Schwartzel win the 2011 Masters. He’s South African you know! Exciting times!

Lekker slaap,

xxxxMaria & Jaco

 Grenadilla blossom

 The fruit being vine ripened

 What a creation!

 The plant!

 The base

 New fruit forming

 Helping pollinate

 Done!

 Spider!

 Spider's nest. Yuck.

The vine growing like crazy!

Day 380 - Film Roll B & Cesar Millan

It's amazing what a bit more sleep can do for one's constitution! I felt so much better! Thank you! Today was our second marathon day of films, although we were leaving early to head home. To go to another show! Well, at least I was!

Our films started at 0900 again & we were in the big theatre. We headed out just past 0830 to make sure we got a good seat. Luckily we also got a good parking spot! Our film roll went as follows:
1. Rush Hour Dream - 5 minutes long. This was the first film made by the Latin American/German fellow. He is a businessman who falls asleep on the train to work & wakes up in a dream on top of a mountain with a paraglide getup inside his briefcase. So he paraglides down to work. Very cool!
2. Last Paradise - 37 minutes long. This was another of my favourites. Mr. Neeson was the film maker, from New Zealand, and his film told us about the birth of adventure sports in New Zealand. We traveled back in time to when these adventurers were much younger & how they came to be today. We saw AJ Hackett, the inventor of the bungee jump, and the footage of him illegally jumping off the Eiffel Tower (!). We saw kitesurfing, surfing with jet skis & jet boats... It was a fantastic film! We saw Mr. Neeson on the street later today & I wanted to compliment him on his wonderful film, but he seemed to be in a rush. Next time.
3. L'eau Qui Fait Tourner La Roue - 19 minutes long. This film showed us the story of an old man who runs a sawmill, as well as his electricity from the energy of the stream that runs through his farm. He had quite a sense of humour & although he moved a little slower in his old age, he still spent his days working in the sawmill. It was quite interesting to say the least.
4. Treasure of the Lisu - 30 minutes long. Taking place in rural China, we were told the story of a Grandfather who makes a traditional stringed instrument by hand. He wants to pass the tradition along to his children & grandchildren, but they have little interest in learning. It was a very educational film, but also quite sad, as I feel regret in not learning the crafts my Granny used to do - knit, crochet, baking 'her' dishes, sewing, canning... all those things Grannys do so well!
5. Living The Dream - 3 minutes long. A super short film about a die-hard rock climber. He lives very 'basic' & takes us on a journey of the moment he wakes up to the moment he climbs. This includes trying to start his old car, it failing, and then he skateboards with his dog to the climbing spot. Cute film.
6. A Cry From The Top Of The World - 46 minutes long. Certainly not a feel good flick. We were told the tragic story of the climbers who perished on K2 in 2008. The events that would turn into warning signs that were dismissed & the 11 people who lost their lives. Bone chilling & petrifying, this wasn't a favourite, but nonetheless, a story well worth telling. Still makes me shudder.

We took a break for lunch at this point. I'm glad, as that last film was pretty crazy. I used to want to climb Everest one day. But after that, I'm over it. I'll respect the mountain from base camp. Thanks. We met Karen & her friends, Carmen & Wayne, & had lunch at Magpie & Stump. We had just ate there two days ago, but Karen had her heart set on Mexican cuisine. Fine by me, I enjoy it! Jaco doesn't eat lunch, so he was even easier to please! We talked about our favourite films & why or why not, along with a wide variety of other topics. Such as - grocery shopping & the attitudes of shoppers, cat skiing safety & safety inductions, cruise ships, snowboarding, old cars... It was a great way to spend lunch! We nearly missed our afternoon films from all the talking! We raced back to the theatre & managed to catch the films just in time. Here's what we watched:
7. Salt - 28 minutes long. No, it's not about Angelina Jolie. It's about a photographer who ventures to Lake Eyre in Australia. He spends several months camping on this lake. The imagery is fabulous. Beautiful skies - both day & night, humour & plenty of solitude, this was another favourite. The simplicity & the beauty of pretty much nothing - I was happy to have experienced Salt.
8. Daredevils: The Human Bird - 48 minutes long. This was the last film we watched before leaving Banff. We missed 3 films. This film is one of 4 in a series on humans who do crazy things. You can google or YouTube for The Human Spider, The Ice Man & Skywalker. The Human Bird was about a young 30-something fellow who does Proximity Wingsuit Flying. What's that? Think of a flying squirrel or a basejumper. Either one is pretty crazy! This guy jumps out of a helicopter & 'flys' down the side of the Matterhorn. Yeah, the one in Switzerland. He flies within 5 feet of the surface of the mountain. It's crazy & not for the faint of heart. Yeesh.

On that adrenaline rush of a note, we left for home. I had a ticket to Cesar Millan tonight. Jaco wanted to accompany me, but the tickets were double the price & he didn't want to pay that much. I had an early-bird discount. (The only time I'm early - when I can get a good deal!) I also thought he was flying home today, so I would have taken him to the airport & then left for the show. But now he's staying longer! (YAY!) So, off I went to the city.

I didn't sit where my ticket stated, as I was late (!) & the show had just started. I managed to sit in a better seat, with the row all to myself. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time! Cesar was hilarious! I had n idea he was so funny! I was in stitches for the better part of the night! He did a great job imitating dogs, puppies & their crazy owners. Of course, I learned a fair bit too, so that was great! I've got a long ways to go to get my girls in order! Oh well. One day at a time!

He had several local people bring their dogs on stage & explain what the issue was. In a matter of mere minutes, he had a dog that was obsessed with food lie down next to 3 plates with steak, chicken & salmon & IGNORE the plates! He also had a dog obsessed with dog toys (balls) (Hello Valentina!) & in a few more mere minutes he was able to put the ball between the dogs legs & lay a 'chuckit' across the dogs legs. The dog just looked around & could have cared less! Amazing!!!

I was pretty pooped by the time I got home, what a weekend! Here's to a good night's rest & a relaxing day tomorrow! Sleep well!

xxxxMJV&O

 Explaining how to get your puppy started on the right paw!

Food obsession 

 Ignoring temptations!

Getting over the toy obsession

Day 177 - Barbados & My Baby!

In April of 2003 I took a red eye flight from LA to Atlanta to Grand Cayman. I remember now why I waited 7 years before I flew it again. There is nothing less satisfying than trying to sleep sitting up, then having to wake up in the wee hours of the morning, wander around aimlessly & then board another plane. I will say, however, that I thoroughly enjoyed the row of three empty seats all to myself! I slept the entire way to Barbados! There was a lady traveling alone across the aisle from me. She kept looking at me wistfully, as though she wanted to cuddle up beside me in my row of freedom. No chance Sista! I was down for the count!

As I waited for the next flight, I picked up a Mango Tango juice by Odwalla. They have become a staple in my diet. I love to have some juice in the a.m. & I enjoy the mango juice! I also bought a fruit salad to try & flush out the McD’s from the night before. Ugh. Next door to the juice shop was a bookstore. I found a very interesting book called, ‘The End of Overeating’. The author was a former head hauncho of the FDA. I’m not too heavy into it just yet, as I’m reading Be The Pack Leader by Cesar Millan (another great read!).


I sat at the gate waiting patiently for the plane to be ready. Thankfully there were some extra blankets on the desk & no one was there to ask, so I helped myself. Curled up with my book, juice, fruit cup & wi-fi connection, I passed the time quite smoothly.


To my sanity, the attendant brought me a little tag telling me that Valentina was safely onboard the plane. He didn’t comment on her status – hot, cold, terrified, content… I guess I would find out in a few short hours!


The queue for immigration was insane. I think there were about 15-20 zig-zag lines to weave through. The heat & humidity were intense. I people watched for the lack of anything else to do. There was a lovely couple behind me, they were going on their first cruise together. The couple in front of me were just bizarre. I think they were very wealthy & money hadn’t bought them great parenting skills. The twin boys were in a big stroller with bottles. I swear the kids were at least 3, if not 4 years old. Dad had slightly ‘feminine’ tendencies & Mom had a bit of a ‘vacant’ look to her. Admittedly, they may have just come off of a red eye flight as well, but even still, it was pretty interesting to people watch their antics!


I was finally allowed into the country of Barbados! Now, where was Jaco? He had told me he would meet me between 2 & 3. I thought, ‘What?! Three? Why would he make me wait an hour?’ After waiting in line for immigration, I clearly understood why.


I collected my luggage & was about to leave the terminal when I realized, ‘Wait! Where’s the cardboard box with all my prescriptions in it?!’ I couldn’t see it anywhere! Oh no! Panic! I stood in line to file a report, nervous & getting anxious about not having my supplements for 3 weeks! That was a lot of money & a lot of health in that box!! Finally it was my turn. As she was searching my flight details, I thought I would wander over & take one more look. And there it was. Wedged between 2 big suitcases. No wonder I had missed it so many times! Oh thank goodness! I was so happy to see that cardboard box!


It was then that I realized something was wet on my suitcase. Oh no. Yup. Both cases. 3 bottles of DMSO had leaked ALL over my clothes, papers & well, everything was soaked! If you remember, DMSO is the stuff that smells like all sorts of foul things! I prayed it would wash off & not stain or stink!


I passed through customs inspection (with flying colours!), although they were a little suspicious about my 15 lb box of pills! They thought I was a Doctor! :o)


I walked out into Barbados & there he was! My Man, Jaco! Oh it was so great to see him! I have missed him so much! Hugs & kisses & squeezes, we found our cab driver & made our way to the ship. We’d only been in the car 5 minutes & had our first tiff, but thankfully it didn’t last long! :o)


We waited on the pier for Valentina to arrive. She was pretty happy to see us! She still wasn’t allowed out of her carrier until we were on the ship. We stopped for a quick Em-BARK-ation photo - :o) - & then found our way to the cabin. She was pretty happy to get out of that carrier. She didn’t seem to affected by it, although she was very happy to see her Papa & her Mama! I think Mama was happiest of all!


Jaco had clinic shortly thereafter, so I took the chance to unpack & settle in. As usual I like to tidy & rearrange, much to Jaco’s dismay. Thankfully this cabin has plenty of drawers & cupboards, so there is NO excuse to have it unkempt, right Babe? :o)


As cabins go, it’s pretty posh. There is a narrow corridor, turning right leads you into the sitting area. There is a wrap around couch with a hide-a-bed, chairs, desk, china cabinet, fridge, TV, etc, etc. Turning again takes you into a hallway with 2 closets, a mirror, 4 drawers & then the bathroom. It has a tub, yes, a tub. Believe it or not, tubs are rare on ships. The medicine cabinet is HUGE. I have never seen such a big cabinet! Lastly is the bedroom. A nice queen size bed, TV, phone, desk, drawers, nightstands & great lighting for hair & make up. :o) I’m not grumbling at all! It’s plenty bigger than any room I’ve had back home or on ships!


Anyhow, I’m wiped & headed for the shower… It’s been a long day(s)… Here’s to a fun day in St. Lucia tomorrow!
xxxxx
Maria, Jaco & Valentina

This escalator reminded me of the ones in the St. Petersburg Subway - long & steep - but Russia's were much faster. I had recurring dreams about the escalators in St. Petersburg since I was a young girl. Very random.

 

Waiting for the plane to be ready & keeping warm!

 

On a wing & a prayer that Tweet Pea is okay!

 

About to safely land

 

Welcome to Barbados!