Coralc

Wow! Thanks Jim. And that is a lot of boxes. Our move is looking that way. We can pack the boxes, but we can't load it all ourselves. I can't lift stuff anymore. This is entirely too much work, as it is. Since we only plan to live at the other house for two years. Some boxes may never even get unpacked. But I am absolutely amazed at how much stuff we have discarded, donated, or sold. And how much is still left to pack. There is something to be said for a minimalist lifestyle. Our neighbors were like that. I went over there and asked, where is your mail, and magazines and celery rubber bands, and paperwork and gadgets and other stuff? She just said they don't get keep any of that. Amazing. 🙄 I guess it is something to aspire to. 😊

I don't know. We are boxing everything up excluding furniture. U-Haul has TV and art boxes. We haven't priced it out yet. The move is only 2.5 hours away, but a lot of juggling balls in the air to figure out how all of this going to work. Termite treatment the end of the month. Termite construction begins May 13th and then exterior house painting and appliances. And then moving. And in the meantime, we have to get other things moved out of the other house and antiques into the garage, so we will have somewhere to put our multitude of boxes. Totally stressed.

SEE POST #30.

We were in Alaska, the single year that they decided to add the $100 p/p tourist tax. We just paid it. It was repealed the following year. It is not worth it to derail your plans.

We've had the foghorn on several cruises, including an overnight going up the Mississippi. That was a little....annoying. But understandable. When it finally stops, you just kind of go...aahhh. 😊

I think it was so funny. I think it was Antigua. And I couldn't find my Seapass card to get through the security shack to get back on the ship. The guard had me dump my whole purse out to find it, because clearly, she didn't want to have to call the ship. About that time one of the bartenders came through, and put his arm around my shoulders, and told her, "It's okay, we know her." 😀 As we were walking back to the ship, I found it in the pocket of my shorts.😊

Whichever anyone decides to do. These threads never change anyone's mind. 😀

We went to the wildlife park/zoo when we were there. Long bus ride, but it was awesome. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g1047016-d5893927-Reviews-Auto_Safari_Chapin-Escuintla_Escuintla_Department.html Ship excursion.

I have never seen an itinerary like that. I believe a foreign port is required even on a closed loop cruise.

You must have some foreign port. Those are all US possession ports. Where are you leaving from, or do you go to St. Martin, too? We just take our passport cards with us. They are inexpensive when you renew your passport, and fit nicely in a wallet. If for some unfathomable reason, we should miss the ship, the port agent should have our passports.

Support Your Local Sheriff with James Garner and It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World. 😊

I like local highway names! They're funny. "The Bathtub" and our own "Macarthur Maze" are very appropriate. ☺️

Great photos! Thanks so much for sharing them with us. ☺️

That's an absolutely horrible situation. We are thinking about you Dani, and all the people of Israel.

Laurie. I know you like fantasy series. I never read Nora Roberts before, because I thought they were all gushy romance novels. But she has two really good ones. "The Awakening " trilogy and also "The Rise of the Magicks", also a trilogy. I thought they were really good. The most recent fabulous fantasy/sci fi that I have read recently is "Here and Now and Then" by Mike Chen I always enjoy your live reports. And I am looking forward to following along on your adventure. ☺️ I was too slow. It wouldn't let me edit.

I read. On the pool deck, in the shade.

Good call. You do need a passport for open loop cruises. But they have passports, so I would argue strenuously. It is a cruise line recommendation not a federal rule. But you're right. I don't have any experience with passport timing. And in any case, you don't have time to get a new one now. I hope everything works out for you and your family. And since it let you check them in. I don't think it should be an issue. 😊

Don't worry about it. Bring their certified birth certificates as a backup. But it shouldn't be any sort of problem. The 6 month thing does not apply to any Caribbean islands.

Trust me @Teeara everyone will be up very early tomorrow. ☺️ Canal crossings are so exciting, and the ship is literally buzzing very early in the morning. The approach to the canal with all the anchored ships waiting for their time is very interesting, too. And sometimes there are crocs, on the banks during the approach. Bill went to Pacific HS. Which is now Marina Square. 😄

Re: shower doors. I think I would like frameless, but I don't really want clear shower doors in the guest bath. Sometimes there might be 2 people in there. I haven't been able to find frameless with partially obscured glass. That is probably why we are going semi-frameless. Re: electric vehicles. There are millions of them here. The Tesla factory is local. Just about every other car is a Tesla, EV or a hybrid. The people across the street have 2 Teslas. What I have noticed, is that most people that have them here also have solar, that they can use with their (in garage) charger and backup battery. No one seems to be too concerned about a fire risk. They mostly catch on fire after they have been in a crash. We are not particularly interested in them though. Charge/distance anxiety is a real thing. And I can fill my vehicle in 10 minutes at a gas pump. I have no interest in waiting around for a charge.

Good question! And just to make it more confusing, we are going with semi-frameless. Part of the termite work requires disassembling the guest bathroom and replacing the subfloor, so we are going to replace the tub/shower door. This might be a super long link: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Delta-Simplicity-60-in-x-58-1-8-in-Semi-Frameless-Traditional-Sliding-Bathtub-Door-in-White-and-Chrome-with-Transition-Glass-2435591/206288469

I wondered where you've been? ☺️ Switched cruise lines? There is no retreat concierge on Royal. 😛

How exciting! Have a wonderful cruise. Please share photos. Did you book the 2026 Ascent cruise? Fondest, ~Patti ☺️

Thank you, Pat. It has just been kind of a weird day. ☺️

"Is it easy cruising out of Galveston?" I don't think it is easy cruising out of Galveston, Port Canaveral or Civitavecchia. All 3 of them require to you make additional arrangements to get quite some distance from the airport to the cruise port or to a pre-cruise hotel.