January 31, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Cruise. Autumn. 2023.

This morning I accomplished a lot. I booked a cruise for the Fall of 2023. I had been thinking about options. And Wendy found a cruise from Halifax south along the coast, ending at Fort Lauderdale. This morning I spoke to the folks at Silverseas to fill in the details. The ship is small with 240 passengers. And it is an expedition/historical cruise so the ship will be carrying an historian and 2 naturalists. Before any excursions, the naturalist and historian will fill us in on the details of what we will be seeing. This certainly pleased me. And a naturalist is usually on the bow of the boat at any time, spotting for birds and sea life. Last summer, friend David had said that he would go on any trip with me, both to help me and to see new sights. So I took him at his word and I booked the trip for the Autumn of 2023. After I had paid the deposit and finalized the booking, I called him to let him know what I had done. Fortunately, he was thrilled. Right now he is excited about our cruise up the St. Lawrence River and the Great lakes which begins on May 14, 2022. In addition, I upgraded our room at the Hard Rock Resort and booked a Presidential Suits. Wendy and Ken will be in the Presidential Suite with me. Wendy is happier being in the same suite with me and the Presidential has a living room and dining room which will make it easier for Kenny and Anne to meet us before going to dinner. I made a mistake taking the cheaper option with 3 separate rooms. Now we have the Presidential Suite which will be much more comfortable. Ken would have never booked the cheaper option. Over night I decided I was being silly. Life is too short to pass a better option. Now I have only piece of the puzzle for the winter of 2023 which is February 11 at Playa. I will request the 4 weeks on Feb.11 and then see what happens. So far, the year 2023 has worked out well and I am pleased.

January 30, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Another Lovely Day.

My day began drinking coffee on the balcony with my family. The weather was perfect. Our favorite restaurant, La Isla, is just down the street, so we five walked down for an 11:00 brunch. Ken Bthen . walked quickly ahead of us in order to arrange for a table, which proved to be wise because by we arrived and were seated, the place was full. Our brunch was delicious and the breeze was cool so we enjoyed ourselves. And we walked home with no trouble, especially with Anne on one side of me and Wendy on the other. I can walk faster when holding on to two arms. Next Ken and Wendy went to the beach while Kenny went to work on their boat. Anne read on the balcony. I took a nap. Then I walked down to talk with my friend Rosa at the pool. I also chatted with my friends Kathy and Ted, who have been ill since their arrival. So I had a good visit. After drinking my orange drink on the balcony, I read my book. One by one we gathered and soon we reconveened on the balcony for sunset food and margaritas, the guacamole dip made by Anne. Dinner on the balcony was excellent: left over Risotto, made by Kenny yesterday, sauteed squash, salad and chicken grilled by Ken B. This evening our house is quiet, with everyone reading. By itself, no activity was dramatic but when put together as a whole day, it leads me to say that I had a lovely day. The whole was greater than each individual part. It was indeed a special day.

January 29, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. More Planning.

Other than organizing my winter in Mexico, I have no other plans for 2023. I plan as usual to spend the summer in Nova Scotia but other than Mexico and Nova Scotia, I had done nothing to organize other excursions. This Spring I will not spend time in Texas because I am taking the cruise of the St.Lawrence River and the great lakes, beginning May 14, so I would like to spend May and part of June in Texas with David and Suzanne at the lake. That leaves me with the autumn of 2023. This evening while sitting on the balcony eating sunset food, I posed my question to the rest of us. And we came up with some ideas. I have never travelled down the Atlantic by boat. Ken and I have driven along the coast but we have never seen the land from the sea, so I posed it to the group. Wendy immediately found a cruise that starts in Halifax and ends in Fort Lauderdale. I will check it out tomorrow. I also need to know where the ship will go next. The cruise is for 12 days. And she found another cruise beginning in Quebec City and ends in Peru. 40 nights and 41 days in a small ship sounds perfect but I do not wish to begin in Quebec City. The good part is that I will have options if I select a cruise in the Fall of 2023. First I must gather information. Then I will ask if friend David is interested in taking another cruise. He is accompanying me on the cruise in 2022. I think I can manage to take a cruise on my own but it will be easier for me with his company and his help. All five of us agreed that taking a cruise is the easiest way to take an excursion so I will explore my options for the Autumn of 2023. It is great fun trying to figure out opportunities for travel. Next I must make a plan.

January 28, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Planning.

Today I have organize for next winter in Nuevo Vallarta. Today was an extension of what I have already done. Months ago, I booked a Villa in Paradise Village. Several years ago, I booked a Villa and Wendy and Ken joined me along with Katey and Brock and Alana. The unit is big and beautiful and has it own small swimming pool. We enjoyed staying in the Villa so I have booked it again, this time from December 18 to the 30th. I am hoping that Wendy and Ken along with Katey and Brock and Alana and Nick will join me. Next I booked a two bedroom unit in Paradise Village, this ending on January 7, 2023. Wendy and Ken will stay with me. Early in January I was able to book my unit in Playa Royale, from Jan.7 to the 28th. And today I requested the space for February but someone got there first so I was not able to book my space. But next door is an all inclusive resort called the Hard Rock Resort. Ken and I have membership there and I knew I still owned free weeks so I contacted them. Ken and I have stayed there several times and once several years ago, Wendy and Ken stayed there with Ken and me. The service and the food is supurb. I booked three rooms for two weeks at the Hard Rock Resort, from Jan.28 to February 11, 2023. We could get no Presidential Suite but we will have three separate rooms, which includes all the food and beverages, along with the wonderful service. And I used my free weeks. Kenny and Anne will be sailing down the Mexican coast and will join us at Playa Royale on Jan.7 and move next door with us to the Hard Rock Resort. They will have a good rest before heading to the south seas. For me, on February 11, I will request the use of Playa Royale for the next 4 weeks. Bit by bit, my winter next yesr is shaping up. We are all pleased. But I have one more piece of the puzzle. I have faith.

January 27, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Porto Bello.

The Porto Ballo restaurant has always been our favorite. Ken and I have dined there many times, but usually for lunch. This evening we five happy souls had dinner at Porto Bello. It did not disappoint. To get there we took a taxi, all five of us in a big van. And we were seated right along the railing so we could see the iguanas in the trees on the opposite side of the canal. The evening was lovely so we were happy to be outdoors. One thing was different tonight. Normally the number of patrons were small but tonight the place was almost full when we arrived at 6:30. And by the time we left there were diners eating inside too. Tonight we were celebrating. Alana had been accepted to work on the ICU floor at her hospital. Yesterday she had an interview. Today she was offered a position, which she accepted. So we celebrated in her absence. Our food was delicious. We all ate a three course meal which included a dessert. I had ordered veal but when the food arrived it was a steak. I never order beef in Mexico but I decided to keep the steak which turned out to be tender and tasty. I brough half home with me. Next time I dine at Porto Bello I will order veal. But we all five enjoyed our dinner. And a quick van ride back brought us home. We will definately eat at the Porto Bello again before we leave at the end of February. It is a good restaurant.

January 26, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Balcony Birds.

Every morning we five eat breakfast on the balcony. Bit by bit, people drift away. Ken B. is the first to head away to their palapa. Next Kenny and Anne go to their boat, which leaves Wendy sitting with me while I finish my coffee. We watch the ocean and we talk quietly. And sometimes a bird will come to visit. The Great Kiskadee was the first to visit. He landed on the post in the corner, then hopped along the railing until he was right in front of us. We stayed very still. Finally he let out his high pitched song which made us jump. For such a beautiful bird his sound is ridiculous. Three times since I arrived he has come to visit which pleases us. He is a beautiful yellow breasted bird. This week, a mourning dove came to the corner post and stayed a long time, cooing the whole time. We eat on the balcony which means we drop crumbs so the birds are looking for breakfast. The dove never did jump down to the floor, perhaps Wendy and I were there. Grackles come frequently, trying to find our crumbs. Sometimes we will have several at the same time. We see a sparrow come regularly too. We think it is a lark sparrow. He always flies directly to the floor of the balcony all around the table, then flys off. Last week, an oriole landed on the railing. And he came along the rail until he was directly in front of me. He was bright orange but not much black so I knew what the bird was not, but we did not know his name. The bird jumped down to the floor. I quickly pushed a small piece of my toast with banana across the table. Much to my surprise, the bird jumped right on the table and proceeded to eat my breakfast. First he ate all the banana, then pecked away at the toast. After a few minutes, his mate joined him but would only stay on the railing. Soon their baby appeared on the lower rung of the railing. They put on a show for us. Wendy looked through the bird books and decided that our bird was a streak back oriole. Wendy had taken a picture so both Alice Anne and Jim confirmed the identification. Wendy and I have enjoyed our morning visits with the birds on the balcony which we think is unusual. We like their visits.

January 25, 2022. Playa Royale, Nuevo Vallarta. Our Routines.

Not only do we have routines, here at Playa Royale, we also have rules. Our systems work very well. When we fist arrived, Wendy and Ken would not allow me to buy groceries. Neither would they allow me to accompany them to the Mega grocery store. In the past, I would accompany them to the store and I would fill a cart. But this year, they told me that as I was providing the condo, they were going to buy the groceries. So they did and have continued to do so. In addition, Ken cooks dinner while Wendy prepares breakfast and lunch. Since Anne and Kenny have arrived, Anne helps with meals and groceries so everyone is happy. That routine did not set so well with me so I made the rule that we would eat out at lunch once a week and I would pay the bill. And I recommended that we would eat out once a week for dinner, something that Ken and I almost never did. We ate lunch at restaurants but never dinner. So on my dime, we go out once a week for both lunch and dinner. The cooks get a break and I feel better about my relatives buying all the groceries. Our system works very well. We all five enjoy the decision as to where we will dine out this week, and then selecting the days when we go out to dine. Many times we walk to the restaurants and they help me with walking. This Thursday we are going to Porto Bello, the Italian restaurant across the canal. On Monday, we ate lunch at the golf course, one of my favorite places for lunch. All I do is sign the bill after we dine. And everyone is happy. No fuss or muss. We all know our role. Our routine works well for everyone. Pretty good system I would say.