Category Archives: travels

Quick getaway – Western Caribbean cruise

21 Friday Nov 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, Finding Me, travels

≈ 21 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Michael and I decided on a last minute getaway. We did a Western Caribbean cruise.  We went from Port Canaveral, FL to Cozumel, then Costa Maya, and back to Port Canaveral.

We had a great time.  In Cozumel, Michael went to the Chichen Itza Ruins.  I skipped that, as I had been there before and didn’t want to face the long trip there.  So, I had a lazy, quiet day to myself.

In Costa Maya we both went to Chacchoben ruins, it was smaller and less impressive than Chichen Itza, but still very interesting.

This was a Royal Caribbean cruise, and it was the Explorer of the Seas ship, which is a 25 year old ship.  It showed its age, but that doesn’t really bother me.

One thing I was a bit disappointed was the quality of the food at the buffet.  Even though there was tons of different ones, I don’t think the quality came close to that of the MSC Meraviglia ship.  Specially when it came to desserts, something that I really look forward to.  Some of their desserts gave me an aftertaste, which means that it had too many preservatives and food extracts and coloring. Still, I confess I overate, as I have a tendency to want to try a bit of everything.

I went to the gym a couple of times, and was really impressed with the amount and quality of the equipment.

We also saw a few shows, such as the magic, the comic, and the ice-skating.  We went to bingo and to the casino. We also played ping-pong and arcade games. And we rested.

We can’t wait for the next one.  I really want to do longer ones, to Alaska and Europe.

Have a blessed weekend everyone!!

“Every person needs to take one day away.  A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future.  Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.  Each person deserves a day away in which no problems are confronted, no solutions searched for.  Each of us needs to withdraw from the cares which will not withdraw from us.” ― Maya Angelou

 

 

Beach walking and cleaning continues

20 Tuesday May 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 26 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Here are some of the findings from yesterday, Monday:

I also found some socks, t-shirts, a towel and a bunch of garbage. I actually washed the towels and t-shirts and will use them as cleaning rags around the house.

Today, I found nothing, just a couple of candy wrappers.  

The reason for that, is that today I walked to the right of my building which is more secluded, so there are much less people.

To the left of my building there some shops and bathrooms, so there are more people.

Also, it is expected that after the weekend there will be a lot more stuff to be found.

I have so much beach toys now.  I was able to give a few away.  It feels good to recycle and reuse.

 

 

 

 

BIRD WATCHING

09 Friday May 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

 

Mom is 90th!!

05 Monday May 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 40 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Hello from Brazil.  My mom turned 90 years old on May 1st.  Since the trip to the US has become too much for her, Michael and I traveled to Brazil to take her to Argentina for a few days.

In Brazil, casinos are illegal, and the closet casino is in Argentina, near Iguaçu Falls. She loves slot machines, so I chose a hotel that has a casino on the premises.

This was a very short trip, only 4 days, as I didn’t know if she would be okay.  Her problem is her back and hip.  She needs a hip replacement, but at 90 years old with a heart condition and other issues, it is not safe to operate.  At this point is all about pain management.

We drove 2 hours from our home in the suburbs of Sao Paulo to the airport.  Then it was just one hour and fifteen minutes plane ride.  We traveled to an airport in the Brazilian side of the border, and the hotel came to meet us there. We crossed the border by car.

We stayed at the Iguazu Grand Hotel in Misiones, Argentina. Everything about the hotel was great, specially all the staff. On mom’s they brought her a cake at breakfast and they all sang, along with the other guests.  She was over the moon.  The cake was delicious.

Since it was a short trip my mother decided to mostly stay at the hotel.  We just took a trip to the Triple Frontier – 3 borders comprising of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguai. There is a gorgeous view there and some little stores.

Michael went to see the Iguaçu Falls and he also went to the Bird Zoo.  Since arriving home, mom regrets not going to see the falls and the Zoo.  Next time…

Azul Airlines, very fast flight.

Iguazu Grad Hotel

Iguazu Grad Hotel

Iguazu Grad Hotel

Iguazu Grad Hotel

There are slot machines in 3 currencies: Argentinian Peso, Brazilian Real and US Dollar.

There are slot machines in 3 currencies: Argentinian Peso, Brazilian Real and US Dollar.

Argentina is the best place to eat meat. Thie is chicken fried steak. It was to die for.

Argentina is the best place to eat meat. This is chicken fried steak. It was to die for. We had other beef dishes, but I didn’t remember to take pictures.

Best drink ever: Rum, passion-fruit, lime and mint.

Best drink ever: Rum, passion-fruit, lime and mint.

3 Frontiers: Argentina, Brazil and Paraguai

3 Frontiers: Argentina, Brazil and Paraguai

 

Progress: we finally have a couch

23 Wednesday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 18 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

Last weekend we went to a follow up with my dental surgeon.  According to him, all is going well.    I was hoping it would look and feel better, but I know not to have too many expectations when it comes to my teeth.

The surgeon is located a couple of hours away, and it is not too far from some casinos.  Since I like casinos, we always stop by one of them.

This time we went to the Hard Rock in Hollywood.  The guitar shaped building is so cool. We had a great meal at their restaurant.  I had a flat smashed burger with burger and caramelized onions.  It was delicious. Michael had the impossible burger, since he doesn’t eat meat.  He enjoyed his as well.

To drink I had a cosmopolitan.  I had to stop and congratulate the bartender.  It is the best one I have had since my nights in New York City. Michael had a Bahama Mama and it was equally delicious.

We are finally seeing a lot progress in our building renovation.  This renovation started in March last year.  We bought it in June, but didn’t move in until September.  We didn’t expect to last this long and cost this much.  The cost is still increasing as at every turn there is a new costly discovery, and more assessments.

We finally have a couch.  Since we moved in, Michael and I decided we wouldn’t really get any furniture or spend any money until the construction was finished.  But there were things we needed to do.  We got a cheap bedroom set, an Amazon one that we put it together ourselves, and a couple of TVs.

As you can see in the pictures, the TV is sitting on Tupperware. We are still debating if we are going to have it on the wall or on a rack. The rug is an extra one I had in NY.  This couch has made us so happy.  It signal to us that this project is almost done, if feels like a huge step forward.

We also had contractors to do part of the tiles to match the part that it was damaged with the construction.  To do the entire floor, it would be costly and too much disturbance.  We also had the walls and floors painted.  We just left the second bedroom out, it has a wall painted with flowers, so I will leave that as is for now.

Once the building is complete than we will work on decoration and the rest of furniture.  With that being said, we don’t want a lot, we want simple and minimal.  We want it to be practical and comfortable for us.

 

 

Snake and Birds

16 Wednesday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 27 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Today a saw a snake on the beach.

I am terrified of snakes, even if it is just a tad larger than a worm.  This finding makes me afraid of my morning walks and of going in the water.

I am not sure it had been in the dune vegetation and just wondered off too far, or perhaps a bird was carrying it and dropped it.

Since I heard the story of the hawk that dropped a snake on a woman and then both started attacking her, I am always aware of birds above me. 

“Even snakes are afraid of snakes.” — Steven Wright

After a few more minutes walking I encountered all these birds.  I am surprised they didn’t notice the snake.

 

Bike upgrade for Christmas

15 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 37 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Last Christmas Michael upgraded my Huffy bike from Walmart to a Specialized from the local bike shop.

He wanted a different color but the only one available was black, and he wanted to make sure I had it for Christmas.

I love it! Classic and understated 🙂

The difference is amazing, it rides so smooth.  I also love the accessories that Michael added: the mirror and the lights. And let’s not forget the bright yellow helmet!

I am a lucky girl!

“When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking.” ― Arthur Conan Doyle

New wheels

New wheels- classic black

 

My black and blue beauty

My  old beauty is for when my sister comes to town.

Sunset Bike Rides

14 Monday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Daily Message, travels

≈ 19 Comments

Tags

, , , , , ,

I am blessed to start my day with walks on the beach, and to end it with bike rides along the Indian River.

I love discovering new neighborhoods and seeing all the different styles of houses, there are old Florida styles alongside very modern new homes.

But the best part of my evening rides are the sunsets at the Melbourne Beach Pier on the Indian River.

It is just spectacular!!

Here are some pictures from the last couple of days.

One walk at a time

11 Friday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, travels

≈ 31 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

I have started taking daily walks before going to work.  It has become a good routine that has improved my day.  It makes me feel even more blessed to be able to have this contact with nature first thing in the morning.

On the first day I saw some garbage and other items left behind by the beach goers and decided to pick it up and throw in the trash bin.

In the following days I started taking a bag with me to help with the garbage collection. For the first few days I threw everything out. But the last couple of days I decided to keep some of the children’s toys.  See the 2 pictures below.

The items I find the most are:

  • Children’s plastic toys
  • Hair ties
  • Bottles, cans, bottle caps, plastic cups and straws
  • Suntan lotion bottles
  • Food and candy wrappers
  • Socks (I found 3 pairs in 2 days)

Today I decided to take 2 bags, one for real garbage and one for toys.  Guess what?

Nothing was found, except for a couple of bottle caps.  I am happy to see the beach clean. Today is Friday, I am guessing the beach is the worst after the weekend. I will report back after Monday’s walk.

Wishing everyone a blessed weekend! 

Birthday weekend – beach, massage, shopping, eating, gambling, and loads of fun

08 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by in Daily Life, Food, travels

≈ 39 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , ,

The weekend before last I turned 59. 59!!!! I can’t believe I am 59. I don’t feel 59. But then again, what is 59 supposed to feel like?

The scary part is that 60 is just around the corner… and I have so much to do. Will I have time to do it all?

But, getting back to last weekend, my identical sister flew from NY to Florida so we could spend our birthday together.

I was excited to see her and for her to see my new place.

She arrived on Thursday night. On Friday we walked on the beach, went for a quick bike ride, then I took her to see my new office. Then we went to get massages, but they only had space for only 1 person, so I let her have the massage while I waited.

After that we went to a pizza place for a quick bite.  Then we went to Ross stores I had never been there before because of my growing dislike of shopping.  I don’t like going, but once there it was enjoyable, and my sister bought a bunch of stuff.  It was very similar to Marshalls.

After Ross we were going to Bealls, but my sister had no more room in her carry on so we skipped it.  We went back home and rested for a little bit, before getting ready for dinner.

For dinner we went to Estampa Gaucha, a Brazilian steakhouse. The meats were divine, but the salad bar and the sides were just okay. We had the typical Brazilian drinks, caipirinhas, and they were good.

On the Saturday we decided to take a casino cruise, Victory Casino Cruise. I was curious about it and figure it could be fun, since my sister is a fan of slots machines as well.

It was better than I expected. I won, my sister lost, but we all had fun.  The waters were choppy, so was a bit shaky at times.  I saw a young not feeling well and gave him a Dramamine pill.  I saw him a couple of times after that and he was very grateful.

After arriving at the port, on the way home we stopped at a Mexican restaurant called Tiny Turtle. We enjoyed our meal, and then went to Fat Donkey next door for ice cream, which was delicious.

On Sunday, we spent the morning at the beach, then it was time to help her pack and drive her the one and half hours to Orlando Airport.

Her flight was really delayed, she didn’t get to NY until midnight. But she had a great weekend and was happy to have been here.

We enjoyed all the food and drinks so much that we didn’t remember to take pictures.  I guess that is a good thing.

This was a laid back 59, perhaps I should start planning the 60 now!!