See the world

Gondolas in Venice

  One of our biggest goals when we retired was to travel. We wanted to see the world, get some places off our bucket list. We love to travel, whether it is a local day trip or a magical cruise to exotic destinations. I think that once the  travel bug bites you, the infection lasts a lifetime. This is a good thing as far as we are concerned. In this blog entry we will talk about the planning process for our trip, in future editions we will discuss the different ports of call.

Library of Celsius,Ephesus, Turkey

  This fall we were lucky enough to be able to take a trip for our 30th anniversary. We had planned for a while and decided that a cruise to the Mediterranean was what we wanted to do for such a big milestone. This was going to be a bucket list trip for sure. We were going to see things that we had dreamed of for years. The planning phase of our trip lasted much longer than the trip itself, but it was the part that made the trip go so much smoother.

Dubrovnik, Croatia

 Our first place that we go to when planning a trip is VacationstoGo. This is a website that lists discounted cruises for all the major cruise lines. It is a great resource when searching for a date and price that you can live with.  Second stop was Matrix Airfare Search, which is a wonderful site that allows you to find a flight and compare prices between major carriers.  Neither of these sites allow you to book a flight or a cruise, they are for research purposes.  Once we have found the cruise and the flights that we want, it is time to head off to the travel agent. At this point, with the research done, you could book your own trip with the information that you have, but we still like the security of having another set of eyes look at our plans to see if we have made a mistake, plus most travel agencies will beat any price that you can find, so print out your prices to take along.
  Another great tool when planning your trip are the forums in the travel sites. You can find information specific to your trip and itinerary and yo can even make plans to meet up with people planning to do the same things as you. Some people have found that they were on the same flight and ended up sharing a cab to the pier to save some money. Others have found that they got information that they didn't know about. We discovered a great and inexpensive transfer option from the airport to the ship that saved us some time and money.
  When planning our trips we always look at the ship itinerary. We like to pick a ship of at least 4 stars and for us it is all about the destinations, so we look for a trip with as few sea days as possible. If your idea of a cruise is to relax by the pool, then your itinerary would have more sea days. We love to see different cities and that is one of the great things about a cruise. You unpack once and wake up in a different country every morning, a new vista greeting you from the window as you coast into port.
  Most major cities have their own websites to give tourists a good idea about the area. They will list things like the best attractions, transit or taxi links and often a list of restaurants and shops. Searching these sites will give you an idea of whether you want to see an area on your own or if you want to book an excursion through your cruise line. Seeing it on your own is cheaper, but booking through the cruise line will guarantee that you make it back to the ship if there is a problem. Our rule of thumb is, if it is close to the port and there are regular transfer options we will do the tours on our own. If the site that we want to visit is far away and there is only one option to get there and back, we will take an excursion supplied by the ship. We have found that most European cities have the port far away from the tourist areas, but most Caribbean ports are close to tourist destinations. It all depends on your own comfort level, which changes as you gain experience.
  We also like to view the reviews on Frommers, Tripadvisor and we like to look for the travel books by dk books. Many libraries carry these books, so go and grab a stack and do your research.  All the sites give different information, we like the review sites as you are getting the real life experiences of fellow travellers, not just the best case scenario given by a travel writer who got the best of service for a good review.
  Make sure to visit your doctor well in advance of any trip that you plan to cover any vaccinations that you may need. There are some good websites, Travel Health- Public health Agency of Canada or CDC- Travel Destinations which list what vaccinations a person should have in different areas. They also list different diseases and the best ways to avoid getting sick when in certain areas. There are also links to show which areas are experiencing civil unrest. Prevention is always better than needing a cure.
 A last thing that we need to talk about is travel insurance. There are 2 basic types of travel insurance, trip cancellation and  medical coverage. I personally would never travel without either type of coverage. Trip cancellation covers you for the travel portion of your trip and will either pay for a trip you couldn't take for some reason or will help you to make connections on another airline if your flight is cancelled. It is true that the airline will get you there if there is a storm cancellation, it just doesn't say when you will get there, it is better to have options. Trip medical insurance covers you if you get sick while on a trip. These illnesses could financially ruin you if you have a major medical incident while in a foreign country. This insurance will insure that you get medical care. One thing to make sure if is to check if you have any pre-existing conditions that might disqualify you from coverage.  Many major credit cards offer these insurances if you pay for the trip with that card, check before you pay to make sure you have that option. Most travel agencies, insurance companies and banks also offer these coverages, so shop around for the best coverage and price.
  Doing all of your homework ahead of your trip should make the trip much more enjoyable and safe. You will know what to expect when you get to your destination and if something does go wrong, you will have a better idea how to solve the problem. There is no worse way to spend your vacation than walking ashore and having no idea where to go from there. Plan your trip and you will be able to enjoy every minute of your once on a lifetime adventure, and if you really like it maybe it will be a twice in a lifetime trip, who knows maybe the travel bug will get you too.

Time for Tortillas

  After publishing the blog yesterday and having had a good meal of fish tacos, we realized that we were out of tortillas. We have enough of the taco mix left but nothing to put them in, so it is time to make some tortillas.
  Tortillas are a unleavened bread that are fried in a dry pan. If you make these inside, be prepared to open a few windows as the flour that you roll them out on tends to burn after a while. Our barbeque burner doesn't seem to go to a low enough heat to cook them with out burning, so putting up with the smoke is our only option at this point.

Cornmeal Tortillas

3/4 cup cornmeal

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp shortening or butter

1 cup boiling water

In a bowl, combine cornmeal, flour and salt. Mix together then add boiling water. Stir with a fork to mix well. Allow the mixture to cool, this allows the cornmeal to soften a bit.  

Divide the dough into about 10 pieces the size of a golf ball.  Roll each ball out thinly on a floured surface.

Your skillet should be preheated to a medium low temperature. You want the tortillas to cook and slightly brown without burning. 

Place the rolled dough in the hot skillet and leave flat until bubbles start to appear on the surface, turn the tortilla and cook the other side. The bubbles will be the only part to brown, once they have browned turn the tortilla, if they cook too long they will dry out and be tortilla chips.

Keep a damp cloth handy to cover the cooked tortillas, they seem to dry out very quickly. 

For us, this works best as a 2 person process. My wife makes the dough and rolls it out, and in typical guy fashion, I get to heat the things up and call it cooking.

We made these just before lunch and used the warm tortillas right out of the pan to make fish tacos with our leftovers from yesterday. The leftover tortillas freeze really well, so we made a double batch to be ready for next time. Learning to cook has been one of the fun benefits of being retired, it is great to have two people in the kitchen working together to create a fantastic lunch that we both can enjoy. Hope you enjoy these as well. 

Taco Tuesday

  Now that we are far enough into January that all of our New Years Resolutions have died a cruel and horrible death, it is time to talk about food.  Today we had one of our favorite meals, Fish Tacos with Mango Salsa and an order of Sweet Potato Fries on the side. This is one truly tasty meal that is not a huge time drain and won't bust the diet of any of you out there who still have some willpower left.
  It pays to start early to marinate the fish. We use haddock, but I see no reason why another white fish wouldn't work as well. Please let us know if you try any others how it turned out.

Fish Taco

Marinade

        4 TBSP olive oil

        4 TBSP fresh lime juice(2 limes)

        4 TBSP fresh orange juice(1 large orange)

        4 garlic cloves finely minced

        1 large onion finely sliced

        2 TSP oregano

1 lb haddock or other white fish.

2 TBSP canola oil

8 corn tortillas

1 cup shredded cheddar

Fresh salsa( recipe to follow)

  Chop onion and garlic and place in glass pan. Add other ingredients  and mix well. Add fish of choice, toss well to coat, cover pan and refrigerate.

  When ready to cook fish, heat your frying pan and oil then add just the fish to the pan and fry until cooked.  Remove the fish from the pan and add the ingredients remaining from the marinade and cook until the liquid is reduced and the onions are tender. Remove from the pan and put in a serving bowl.

  Heat your tortillas in the microwave or oven covered in a damp cloth to soften them. Keep them covered until use so they remain soft.

  Place some fish in the middle of a taco, then some of the cooked onions. Top with cheddar, sour cream and salsa. Roll the tortilla and eat.

  This recipe is easily doubled and the remainder will keep for a day or two in the fridge and reheats well for a no muss, no fuss lunch or supper.

Mango Salsa

1 ripe mango finely diced

1 ripe avocado finely diced

1 ripe tomato with seeds removed,  finely diced

2 jalapenos finely diced

1/2 green pepper finely diced

juice of 1/2 lime

pinch of salt

Combine all the ingredients in a glass bowl. This salsa will keep for a day in the fridge and is great on nachos if you have too much.

Curry Dip

1/2 cup Miracle Whip

1/2 tsp or more of curry to taste

1 tsp sugar

lime zest grated

1/4 tsp ginger

For the Sweet Potato Fries, we slice our sweet potatoes and toss them in olive oil and rosemary and bake them in the oven on 425F for 20-25 minutes.  Add on a nice Curry Dip and you have a meal that can't be beat.

  This meal is great for a retired couple any day of the week but you may want to do this on a weekend to have the time to enjoy the cooking.  Enjoy!!

Strap on a Pair

  This morning after looking out the window, I decided it was high time to strap on a pair. A pair of snowshoes that is. We had a good amount of powdery snow and the lake was frozen in front of the cabin, so a trip around the lake was in order.
  One of the problems that I hear from people who retire is that they get bored. I am not sure how that works, I wonder how I ever had time to work. It is easy to stay occupied just by taking a nice walk, and a walk on snowshoes is a great way to get outside. The benefits of a snowshoe walk are many. You get some fresh air at a time of year when it is hard to get exercise, you see things from a radically different perspective and you learn a new skill, which helps to keep the brain young.
  If you remember trying to snowshoe when you were younger, I have to tell you that it is a completely different experience. Gone are the days of waddling through the snow to keep the snowshoes far enough apart, no more random snow angels made from stepping on the tail of the front shoe and going down in a heap. Modern snowshoes are relatively inexpensive, light and are much more ergonomically designed. The bindings are a cinch to fasten and they allow for a natural walking gait. At 20-25cm(8-10in) wide you don't have to walk like a penguin to keep them apart. Most sets now also come with poles that are similar to walking or ski poles, that allows for much better balance.

  As we hit the lake today there was a low fog hanging over the ice that left a dreamlike quality to the scenery and it was a completely silent day here in cottage country, not a soul in sight. My wife and I headed off on a tour around the shoreline, pausing to view natures sculptures in snow and ice and to look at the docks and gazebos just waiting for the warmer weather. This is one of the great things about retiring in cottage country, the peace and quiet and the change that each season brings.
  As we went further around the lake we saw a set of deer tracks leaving shore and heading to a small island. We notices that there were no tracks leaving the island, so we spent some time looking for the deer on the small island, but to no avail, it was either laying down and resting, or it blended too well as it watched us from shore.

  These are small joys, but they are joys that make it a real pleasure to head out on the lake and get some fresh air, because you never know what you will find when you leave the house.


So, if you are sitting in the house looking out the window and wishing that there was something you could do, just remember, strap on a pair and go for a walk.

Fresh Start

  Like a fresh snow, a new year is one that has no tracks made in it. We all have the chance to make the pattern we choose on a fresh canvas. 

  As a friend pointed out in an on-line discussion, every day starts the same way. This was a good piece of advice, as it means we don't have to wait for a new year to turn over to get our resolutions made. We can start each new day with a fresh plan and a fresh start. 

  This approach gives us 365 chances to start fresh and try to get back on track if we feel that we have failed in meeting our goals. We only really have failed in our goals is if we fail to try again, if we give up. If you vow to start again, to give it another try, you haven't failed, you have only had a setback or have found another way that didn't work.

  If you have made resolutions in the past and didn't make it out of January with them intact, don't give up hope, just decide to try again on a fresh day. Make a daily resolution, instead of an annual one. Try to set smaller goals, don't make a plan for a whole year, make a plan for a month of a week. This keeps the goals attainable and gives more chances to start over and get back on track.

Try to find a support group for your goals, a group of like minded people who will be there to support you when you are feeling like quitting something, as you will be there for them when they are down. No two people have the same motivation on the same days and it seems to average out that you can push each other through low points.

We all have things that we would like to change in our lives and we all need a plan to get to our goals. The only place you can get to without a map is lost. And life goals are the same, you need a map to get to your goals.

So, for all of you who are planning your goals for the new year, put on your mittens, dust off the skis, take the clothes off the exercise bench, plan a budget or sharpen the pencils for a new course to take. 

  This is the first day of the New Year as well as the rest of your life. Make the most of it and get out there and make the tracks in the blank canvas that is the rest of your life and may your design be an inspiration to you .

Happy New Year to all of our readers.