All Things EARTH... part 2

[laurspag]

First, those pods look pretty neat!  I took a flight during the night coming back from the Grand Canyon, but I didn't sleep at all.  I'm not sure if I would in the pod, but it looks favorable.  🙂  It seems like it is comfortable and private.

 

That dress - yes!!!  That is totally my kind of dress!  I need to look at further!  I'd book another cruise just to wear it!  It looks so flattering.

 

And Melody, truffle...that is a great brown.  It's funny how that is supposed to be the base color for us earth people, but it can be hard to find lately.  I really need those kind of basics.  Ginny, I'm going to check out those items.  That suit appears to come in some different colors, and that is the hardest thing for me to find.

 

Wow, traveling abroad seems complicated.  I recall I had an extra step to go through when I was leaving Puerto Rico.  Or was that going to Puerto Rico?  But nothing like what you had to do, Margaret. I know that if and when the time comes, I will be researching and planning and all that good stuff. 

[laurspag]

Summer plum...does that color of the Alex Evenings dress look earthy?  If not, I think it still feels warm enough for me.  I am very aware that I cannot always find the "perfect" colors, especially in formal wear.

 

On another note, I figured out what I wanted for a necklace for my dress for the wedding, and I had it made from a vendor on Etsy that I have admired for ages.  It was really hard for me to figure out how to wear a navy dress, and still see if it I could warm it up here and there.  I'll post a picture later, but it is a great combination of blues with champagne, more antique gold and other warmer neutrals.  I love it!

[laurspag]

Your accommodations look amazing, Margaret. For whatever reason, I never envisioned that you would be able to stay someplace to nice.  That is really, really beautiful.

[pacruise804]

The dresses are lovely, especially the purple.  I really like that truffle color too.

 

I'll try to figure out if I can post a picture of daughter's senior formal dress.  She got it at David's Bridal.

 

Margaret, your trip sounds amazing.  I hope the views from the plane helped to make up for the discomfort.  Sorry you had the long wait at the uncomfortable airport, but if you waited then maybe it would have taken longer?

[pacruise804]

Here is the link to the dress:

https://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_glitter-lace-dress-with-long-sleeves-757727d

 

There were others I liked better, but she tends to be drawn to more mature dresses.  She loves it though and is very comfortable in it.  We do need some minor alterations - she's short like me and the top of the shoulders needs pulled up a little. 

 

The dance is at the end of April.  I'm hoping we can maybe swap out the decoration at the waist for a nice flower or something else that has more of a spring feel to it.  

[Sailor_Sally]

Margaret , I love the travel blog . That lodge looks a lot like the bungalows we stayed in Bora Bora.

 

Ginny , Cute travel outfit

 

Pac cruise , Lovely dress for your daughter

 

I awoke this morning to a vase of pink roses and a lovely card . My SO thought today was Valentine day so we are celebrating anyway .

[pacruise804]

Aww - the roses sound sweet.    It's probably better to remember a day early than a day late 😉 

[laurspag]

Is your daughter's formal like a prom or ball?  The dress is beautiful.  I love the lace.  If you are crafty, Michaels may have the flower you are looking for.

 

My girls both had semi-formals each year of high school and the girls would all wear cocktail dresses, while the guys wore dress shirts, dress pants and ties.  The junior prom and senior ball were the long dresses.  It's funny how different things can be from area to area.  In in our area of New York, you can see some big differences between the school districts.

 

Since Valentine's Day is tomorrow, and I typically do my grocery shopping and the like, I told my husband that is exactly what we will do - grocery shop!  I am thinking that since Wegman's has great chocolate covered strawberries, we can pick up a few of those, and maybe stop at the store on the way home for a bottle of wine.  My husband has really been working a lot, and with the wedding and all, I figure we don't need to do anything special.  As I told him the other day, every day is Valentine's Day with him. 

 

All that being said, I loved the two cruises we went on during the week of Valentine's Day.  It was a fun way to celebrate.

 

Pink roses sound just beautiful.

 

And I keep thinking about that purple dress!  I even showed it to my husband.  He wants to know if I booked a cruise I didn't tell him about, lol.  (I already have dresses for the August cruise)

[MJC]

We're going out to dinner tomorrow night for Valentine's Day, to one of my favorite French bistros. We stopped getting each other presents years ago, but DH usually comes home with chocolates that we share. We have had horrible weather this week, so I hope it's nicer tomorrow. I still feel very anxious about walking in the snow and ice.

 

 

[MJC]

Day Two - Arusha

My magic number for the first few days in Tanzania was four. I seemed to wake suddenly at 4am for no reason, and then I would doze until we rose at 6. We were both up and dressed and the first ones at breakfast at 6 a.m. It was an outdoor buffet with made-to-order omelettes, among other things, and good coffee. It was quite a spread, actually, with several stations offering an international selection of food. Afterwards Mark headed back to the room to finish getting ready and I took a walk to take some pictures. No other guests were up, so the only company I had were the black-faced vervet monkeys up in the trees. Some had babies clinging to their bellies, they were so tiny and cute. They were very quick and shy so it was hard to get a good picture. This one had stolen some sugar packets off the table:

 

 

There were some beautiful flowers and trees among the coffee plants.

 

 

This is the main lodge, with offices and check-in on the left, a bar and lounge on the right, and across the fountain pool is the dining room that had outside patio dining as well. The service was very attentive, but not too intrusive. Just perfect.

 

 

There was a small pool, but we were leaving soon and had no opportunity to swim, which was fine.

 

 

We were excited and a little anxious to meet our guide. We would be spending a lot of time together for the next two weeks and hoped to establish a relationship that we would all enjoy. So, I went back to the cottage to collect Mark and hit the road.

 

 

We met Amos and got settled in our vehicle for the 2-hour drive up to Tarangire National Park, which is most known for having lots of elephants. Our next lodge was outside the park boundary but within the connected conservation area.  Tarangire Treetops tented lodge predated the creation of the conservation area and was allowed to negotiate their ability to stay based on their original contract with the Maasai who live there. The lodge has a very light footprint and was designed so that they could remove it and there would be no trace on the land that it had been there.

 

Within conservation areas there is limited human habitation and development. The only people living there are the Maasai (who do not hunt game) with their herds.

[MJC]

Day Two continued - Tarangire Treetops Lodge

 

We hit it off with Amos right away and found him interesting to talk to for the entire trip. He also asked us a lot of questions and seemed like a genuinely curious person. There were several times that he and I sat with our guide books, poring over pictures and comparing notes on what we thought we had seen.

 

 We had a 2.5 hour drive and made one stop at touristy shop and tanzanite display for a potty break. The tanzanite display was actually kind of interesting, and we watched the stone cutters work for a while. It was good to stretch our legs. I bought a small pair of beaded earrings for myself and a tshirt for my nephew. I had brought one pair of earrings that I planned to wear for the entire trip, and of course I lost one on the first airplane.

 

Once we left the main road it was about an hour on some pretty bumpy roads to get to the lodge. At that point we were in the conservation area and soon had our first game spotting. You can see I'm very tired but totally wired at the same time!

 

 

 

I loved the impalas, so imposing and graceful.

 

 

The first of many dwarf mongoose we would see. Mongeese? Mongooses? They use the termite mounds as burrows.

 

 

Officially the cutest, sweetest animal of all. I wanted to take a dik dik home with me.

 

 

We arrived at TT in time for a late lunch. The manager gave us a brief orientation about the schedule and how things work, and introduced us to several of the people who would be taking care of us for the next few days, including the Maasai who escorted us after dark and John, a sort of private butler, who took care of checking us in, showed us to our tree house, served our meals, and took care of us in every way. Most importantly, he would answer our radio call from our tree house if we needed someone. We were just thrilled with the view and the entire atmosphere of the place.

 

https://www.elewanacollection.com/tarangire-treetops/photo-gallery

 

The main lodge was built around a baobab tree, which extended up through the roof:

 

 

Our tree house wrapped around a young tree. We climbed a spiral staircase and entered at one end, where there was a small sitting area. The bed was in the middle, and next was a small desk area and a shelf system for clothes and things. The bathroom was at the far end, separated by a tent wall. It was quite lovely, with a double shower and double sinks so we both could get ready at the same time in the mornings (with plenty of water pressure). They heated water for the camp once each day in the evening. We had plenty of bottled water in the room for brushing teeth and drinking, and there was a refilling station in the main lodge if we wanted more. We settled in and took a brief rest before an afternoon game drive at 4pm.

 

 

 

Edited February 14, 2019 by MJC

[MJC]

Day Two continued - Tarangire National Park

 

One thing I hadn't prepared for was that the drive from the TT to the park entrance was 40 minutes. However, we were driving through the conservation area so there was a lot to see along the way, including many, many different birds:

 

 

 

 

Once we entered the park, we had only about thirty minutes before it started to rain very hard. It was extremely difficult to see anything, and in fact aside from a few straggly looking giraffes and a herd of elephants far, far in the distance, it was quite disappointing. After driving another 20 minutes or so, we decided to abandon our afternoon game drive and head back to the lodge. We didn't see anyone else the whole time. There wasn't any game to see on the way back and the rain showed no signs of stopping. We were so tired after being on the move all day that it was nice to just have some time to relax and read in the tree house. My legs enjoyed the rest on the bed. I was still taking Advil and being careful not to bump into anything because I was just beginning to heal from my fall in December.

 

They set dinner up outdoors around a fire pit, the tables lit by candles. There were only two other couples at the camp. The food was absolutely delicious, and after the wine and the full bellies we were happy to go to bed early. Our Maasai host (who was at least 7 feet tall, no lie) escorted us to our tent, they closed the hatch on our spiral stairs, and we fell asleep to animal sounds and bugs hitting the screens.

[pacruise804]

Laurie - the formal would equate to prom, but dress varies from cocktail dress to full length.  K wore cocktail dresses the previous years (I loved that she was able to wear my Great Grandmother's 50th anniversary dress one year), but wanted full length for senior year.  It is being held at a barn that has been repurposed for weddings and other events.  Thank you for the Michael's suggestion.  Wegman's is the "fancy" grocery store around here (although others are starting to catch up), so it sounds like a very nice date night 🙂 I appreciated their children's place when mine were younger so I could shop without "help" and their subs were always great.

 

Margaret - your pictures are amazing ❤️ Your descriptions make me want to book a trip in the future - now to convince hubby 😉 Did you have many issues with mosquitoes or other bugs?  Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[Anita Latte]

This is a fabulous read Margaret!! I'm enjoying it so much. Thank you again for all the effort and time to share with us. What fun to be in a tree house. I would imagine that if the structure felt sturdy that you would feel very secure above the ground...and you must have had a great view up there too!

 

Mixed blessing on the rain...in one sense, the disappointment, but in another sense...it imposed a sort of time out...a no guilt that you aren't out there seeing what there is to see but instead are relaxing and soaking up the atmosphere of an extremely unique abode and everything that you can see from there. And rest. 

 

Africa has always been on our bucket list. We've been thinking that with DS already in London...we should plan it for sometime over the next 4 years. So timely to have you share now...

 

In other news...did I already share about my Nite Hood? It's a knit sleeping cap with an extra long "brim" that you pull down over your eyes. The function is that of a sleeping mask...but because it pulls down, it can also help keep noise canceling ear buds in place (for travel purposes). I've had mine for several weeks now and I absolutely LOVE it. I first tried sleeping in a mask that DH was given in Business Class on one of his prior trips to UK or Germany...it was in a kit that each seat has. I knew from using the mask that it was helpful to have a mask, but didn't love that one much. In searching for a better mask, I can across the Nite Hood...which seemed way more comfortable to me, and so I went for it. I wanted to share because I like it so much.

 

I've been using it nightly. My bedroom's outer walls are mostly windows...factory windows wall to wall. No exterior wall to speak of, so it doesn't get so dark at night. I wanted to get in the habit of using a mask in the hopes that it will be a sort of signal for sleep when we take the overnight flight to London next month.

 

https://www.nitehood.com

 

If you search around, you can find a promo code for 15% off. Shipping did take a while as it comes from Canada.

 

Now I'm debating a breathing mask...been reading about the benefits not only for illness but also for hydration, which I find interesting. We have such a short visit planned...we really need to hit the ground running...so I'm researching to see what all will actually help with that.

[pacruise804]

The hood looks interesting.  For the mask, is that a CPAP or something different?

[Sailor_Sally]

I am loving following your adventures Margaret .

 

I recently purchased this dress fro JJill in truffle

 

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/flounced-hem-knit-dress?color=AMK

Edited February 14, 2019 by Sailor_Sally

[Anita Latte]

Sally...that's an easy dress. I like those if they are long enough. My knit ones tend to shrink...but I love them. So easy to wear and so comfortable.

 

pa...IDK what CPAP is. I'm referring to a filtered mask. Kind of like a surgical mask but not disposable. One in specific that I was looking at had claims regarding trapping the moisture from your breath so that you weren't breathing in such dry air. The claims were regarding dehydration being a major cause for jet lag and the manufacturer was claiming that the mask could help with that by helping to reduce dehydration during travel when you use the mask. 

[pacruise804]

I'm not sure what it stands for, but when I searched sleeping masks it was bringing up masks for a a CPAP machine.  They are used for people with sleep apnea (my Dad uses one) and often has distilled water with it.  Your comment about dehydration made me think about it.

 

Whey I was running in cold weather (have gotten out of the practice 😞) I would have issues with dryness, but wearing a balaclava or even just pulling up a scarf would help trap moisture (which would then fog up my glasses 😂), so the mask makes sense.

[Sailor_Sally]

8 hours ago, Anita Latte said:

Sally...that's an easy dress. I like those if they are long enough. My knit ones tend to shrink...but I love them. So easy to wear and so comfortable.

 

 

It arrived and is slightly longer than I like but I figured one wash and it would be perfect . I also bought the necklace . I think I will get a lot of use out of this dress .

[Anita Latte]

6 hours ago, pacruise804 said:

Whey I was running in cold weather (have gotten out of the practice 😞) I would have issues with dryness, but wearing a balaclava or even just pulling up a scarf would help trap moisture (which would then fog up my glasses 😂), so the mask makes sense.

 

Combating this idea is another concept brought up in the face mask that I was looking at. This idea of wearing it in cold weather to combat the coldness of the air that you breathe to make doing sport in the cold easier to do. I'm still not sure if I'm sold on the idea or not. While I am attracted to the new and avant guard, I'm not always the innovator that tests it out. I tend to look for those reviews. I'm still on the fence for the air mask. 

 

btw...I've been looking repeatedly at your daughter's prom dress. Very modest styling. It's simple with some bling. That piece at the waist is very important for the overall look. A bit of a cinch at the waist as well as being asymmetric in where it brings that wide sash to a narrower focus. I understand the desire to bring it into spring more with changing out the pin/brooch to something more seasonal for the idea of prom. Michaels is a good suggestion but I would also suggest looking at Etsy for an alternative brooch. I did a quick search there and there were over 250 pages of pins/broochs to look at. I would suggest that you know what jewelry she will wear as that will make all the difference in the world for coordinating with a different pin/brooch.

[pacruise804]

Thanks for the brooch idea.  I think we still have several of my Great Grandmother's, so there might be a good one in there.  Etsy is a good thought, but I like to be able to see the item in person - sometimes it is hard for me to judge the size from a picture.  We have a lot of antique stores near us too that might be a good place to check.

 

The rouching (sp?) at the waist really helps the dress be flattering.  It's funny, I realized my senior prom dress was actually somewhat similar in being lacy with the asymmetric cinching of the waist.  Color, length, and shoulder were all very different, but mine also had a brooch at the waist that I didn't care for 😂 

[pacruise804]

Our personal trainer who also specializes in sports medicine recommends covering your mouth when doing things outside in the cold - even if it is just a bandanna.

[Sailor_Sally]

I hate jet lag but what helped me was melatonin .I was able to sleep and function somewhat that first day .

[awhfy]

Living here at elevation (6900 feet) where it can get bitter cold & be 60 in the same day I understand the importance of breathing warmed air. Les is a distance runner. He always has a balaclava hood that he wears around his neck when he runs in the winter. If it gets cold on his run, or he feels chilled, he pulls it up over his mouth & nose & is able to continue his run. I unfortunately cannot fun any longer with this blasted foot. I loved running in the snow 😢 Melody

[MJC]

Sally, I'm with you on the melatonin. It is the best way for me to adjust to a new time zone. I don't find it helpful as a general sleep aid at home, though.

 

Anita, the tree house felt very sturdy even though the floor would creak when we walked in it. The view from our balcony was across part of the park to Tarangire Hill. It was really beautiful. One of the side effects of wanting to be on game drives all the time was that we didn't have a lot of down time in the lodges, which were beautiful. At TT we saw water bucks every morning either at the water hole by the pool or in the woods below our balcony. There was a pair of dik diks in the woods near our treehouse every evening that we said goodnight to. The bird song was incredible in the mornings. The pool attracted a never-ending parade of different birds.

 

One of the budget ways to travel in Tanzania is to do a camping safari. Some of the national parks have campsites that can be reserved, or you can travel with a camping group. We saw several vehicles like ours that were towing a small trailer full of camping gear. Since you are more outdoorsy than we are, you might look into that option.

 

We did not see many mosquitos at all. In the evening we would use an OFF wipe on our ankles and that's about it. We did see tse tse flies, however. They were a common nuisance at the altitude where there are acacia trees. We did our best to roll up the windows in those areas, but when we were taking photos they would get in the vehicle and be a nuisance. They were especially bad near the floor, which had a dark carpet, and they would bite our shins and ankles, so we took to putting our feet up on the seats during those times and that seemed to help a lot. The bites itched a lot and we both still have marks on our skin from the worst bites. One other thing that helped was wearing a long sleeve shirt over our tshirts. They didn't bite through the thicker layers of fabric. Wearing light colored clothing made it easy to spot them and brush them off. We did not have trouble when the vehicle was moving and there was a breeze.