Pirates and Promises

Serendipity! My knee surgery was originally scheduled for Nov 7, but because of an abscess tooth issue, it got rescheduled to Jan 23. We now have absolutely nothing scheduled for December. This would be a great time to get a week on board the Villa Vie Odyssey to 'try-before-you-buy.' And, guess what? The ship will be at the closest point to us during December. We made arrangements to get on board in Jamaica. One week on board takes us through the Panama Canal (again😮) and we can get off and fly home from Panama City. 

We booked our flight a couple days early so we could see a little of Port Royal before getting on the ship. The hotel was delightful - the Grand Hotel Excelsior. An outside bar right on the waterfront. We stayed there till our room was ready, then stayed there some more! Hey, we could barely move after the Capt Morgan's Rum Punch they served. Usually, Rum punches are mostly fruit juice and you can drink them like soda. Not this one. 

Breakfast was included, also with outdoor seating near the water. So beautiful

Not only was this, I'm sure, the best hotel in town - I think it's safe to say that it is the only hotel. The next day we decided to take a walk to the main town area of Port Royal and see the Fort Charles. Lots of history here, including the stories of the real Capt Jack Sparrow. His name was Calico Jack here. But he wasn't even the most famous pirate - that would be Capt Morgan:

The following morning, we watched as the Odyssey pulled in to port. It was a beautiful day with the sunshine making the ship sparkle. 

Oh boy! We can't wait to get on board. It's just a short walk from the hotel to the dock. We got on and found our room - 4036 - an Ocean View window, not a balcony. If you look at the photo above and see the row of square windows just below the solid blac line, our cabin is one of those just below the davits (I think.) The window gives us a very nice view.

Happily, I decided I could live with that view and not need a balcony! This means we could actually afford it (see end of previous post.)

After dropping off our carry-on bags, we wandered around the ship and shortly ran into Randy Casshingham, author of the ResidentialCruising.com website. One thing we were interested in was the ability to have an office on board. Randy has one he showed us but, unfortunately, he said all the office spaces were already taken. The shared workspace was very nice - that will have to do. Actually, we wanted the office space for our YouTube studio, but they were not sound proof. The walls had openings - some kind of ship regulations. So, you need to be quiet. That would not have worked for us anyway. 

We used the desk space in our room to deliver our Live-Stream YouTube show on Sunday Dec 15. The Starlink Internect connection worked perfectly (we know that won't always be the case) and the space was also sufficient. This could work! Here is the show:

We ate all our meals in the cafe with the buffet. I love eating from a buffet. I browse and get exactly what I want and exactly the quantity I want. The food was delicious. The, after breakfast, or sometimes before, I would go to the gym and take the stretch/exercise class. After lunch and dinner, Jim and I would walk a couple times around the deck. So much better than our typical day at home where we sit at our computers all day. If we choose to live on board I think it promises to be a healthy choice!

And, the people! So many fun and interesting people. The ship has a completely different vibe than normal cruise ships. These people are living here and they want to get to know you. I don't think we ate alone even once. 

By the end of our week on board, we wanted to stay. No more cooking, cleaning, driving, shopping. Lots of friendly people for our community. Lots of activities. And, oh yea, we'll be traveling around the world!! We could keep our business going and we'd actually be Geeks ON TOUR again!

So much to be Thankful For

 Today is Thanksgiving Day, 2024 and life is so good. 

Most importantly, 

I'm thankful to have Jim, and we both have our health. We've been together for 31 years now and, for all but the first few, we've worked together as well. That's a LOT of togetherness! Sure, every once in a while we get on each other's nerves, but it's surprisingly rare. He keeps me grounded, I keep him looking to the future. We laugh a lot and we both make each other's dreams come true. I couldn't do the RVing, diving, travel without him and he couldn't do our business without me.

Speaking of our Business

I am so thankful to have something I love to do that other people appreciate. Teaching and technology is my passion and there is no end to the learning/teaching that can be done. Using technology for producing videos and live streaming shows is Jim's passion. Truly a match made in heaven! To love what you do and feel that it matters how could anything be more fun?Our business, Geeks on Tour, is what keeps us on our toes. We're always thinking about what to teach, how to teach it, and how to reach those who could benefit from it. It exercises our creative juices, keeps our brains active, and makes us a little bit of money too. Our business is also a community. We've become friends with many of our Geeks on Tour members. Several of them joined us on our Hawaii cruise for Jim's 70th birthday in January, and we see many of them on group, and private, zoom calls often. 

Oh yeah - Zoom is also something I am SOO thankful for. We had been using Zoom meetings for Online Presenters Toastmasters meetings since about 2016. This meant that we were quite familiar with it by the time everyone needed it in 2020. When the pandemic shut down our Toastmasters meeting-place at Denny's, we told everyone to go home and get on their computers and we guided them thru using Zoom. It was so good that we have not gone back. Now our meetings have people from all over, not just those close enough to go to Denny's. 

Speaking of Toastmasters

Many people join Toastmasters to gain skills and advance in their careers. Jim and I just like to have an outlet to tell our stories, and we love hearing other people's stories. Our Earlybird Toastmasters club is our weekly connection to a diverse group of people who we get to know quite intimately through the medium of speaking and storytelling. I am very thankful to have this group in my life. It keeps me challenged with putting together speeches and delivering them.

Living in this house in S Florida

When the pandemic shut everything down, we were so lucky to have a wonderful house - THANKS MOM! - We stopped fulltime RVing in 2017 and made this house our home. It is a townhouse in a gated community so we can travel whenever we want, just lock the door and go. I have an office upstairs, Jim has an office (and YouTube studio) downstairs. We have large glass sliding doors from the living room to a small backyard with a hot tub. It is SO delightful. We love the weather. Yes, it can get hot, but air conditioning works well. Hurricanes have spared us for several years now. We are spoiled. 

Our backyard

I'm equally happy in my office in my other home

Financial Freedom

Both Jim and I have worked hard all our adult lives, but that's never made us much money. What we have made, we've invested well. Other than travel, we don't spend much. With the booming stock market, inheritances, this house, and now social security, we haven't had to worry about money for several years. The only fear I've ever experienced is the fear of not having any money. I am so thankful for having the freedom from that fear.

Sense of Adventure

When Jim and I first started dating, there were 3 things that got us together: 1-technology, 2-scuba diving and 3-travel. We both were passionate about all three ... and still are!! One of us suggested, in 2003, that we sell our house and live fulltime in an RV. The other said, Yes! Let's do that! And we did. When we settled down into this house and friends said, let's take a scuba diving trip to Indonesia and Bali, we said, "Let's go!" We've taken several such trips every year.

I am so glad for our sense of adventure, especially Jim's because he's the one that actually makes things happen. When I get cold feet, he forges ahead. (back to #1 thankful for Jim!) Although we actually enjoyed being home-bodies during the pandemic year of 2020, we had to have adventure in 2021. We packed the camper van and took off for nearly 3 months. 

When you're so comfortable at home there's a force field that keeps you there. It's hard to break out of the force field, but once I do it's a euphoric feeling. Freedom from daily responsibilities, excitement over what you'll see around the next bend, love for the people you meet up with along the way.  

Our Next Chapter: as we get older that force field keeping us home gets stronger, but our will to break free is also strong. We've traveled a lot these last few years, but it doesn't qualify as "The Next Chapter." I've been looking for the next chapter ever since we stopped fulltime RVing. Do you believe that life happens in 7-year segments? Well, it's been 7 years since we stopped fulltime RVing. Jim has been following Randy Cassingham's Residential Cruising blog and dreaming. He showed it to me and I immediately said, YES! that could be our next chapter. Living on a cruise ship and traveling the world! That's kind of like fulltime RVing except you don't have to drive. You also don't have to cook or clean! They have good Starlink Internet, so we could continue our work. In fact, we'd truly be Geeks on Tour again!  Here is a map of the 3 year itinerary:

BUT, it's expensive. Very expensive. We'd have to sell the house in order to buy the cruise ship cabin. Then it's still $8,000/month for all living expenses. When you consider that it covers travel - that's similar to our current living expenses. 

Do I have cold feet? Yes. See 'financial freedom!' But my sense of adventure is also strong and Jim's is stronger yet. As we get older, you gotta do things now! We have booked a one-week "try before you buy" cruise for next month. Stay tuned. Meanwhile, the thought of selling the house has us looking around and starting to get rid of clutter. That's a good thing!

12/7/24 Note: We booked a 1 week 'try-before-you-buy' cruise and we leave in 3 days. We'll pick up the ship in Jamaica, travel thru the Panama canal (again!) and leave in Panama city. Every day the pendulum swings as to whether we think buying a cabin on the Odyssey is a good idea or a bad idea. Every day Jim and I look at each other and give a 👍or a👎. It usually depends on how good we slept. 

• Slept good, feeling positive: yes, we want to travel the world and the cruise ship is by far the easiest way. $$ be damned, we can do anything as long as we're together. Our business will thrive when we are fulltime travelers again.
• Slept poorly, feeling negative: no, are we crazy? We have this beautiful home, free and clear. We can travel anywhere now, it just takes work to plan, book, and pack. What if we sell the house, move aboard, and the ship goes bankrupt and we lose everything? We'll regret it then! 

The only real problem is the money, it's clear that both Jim and I want to do it. I have said that I won't go on a cruise ship again unless I have a balcony. The balcony cabins are a LOT more expensive than the non-balcony cabins. BUT, it occurred to me (just yesterday) that if we want that lifestyle so bad, we could make do without a balcony if it meant being able to afford it. If all goes well, we could upgrade later. The screenshots below are from the Villa Vie website. The balcony cabin has a purchase price of $340K and a monthly expenses of $4k/month each. A smaller room, without a balcony, has purchase price of $169K and expenses of $2500 each. 

At $169K we could afford that without selling the house. We could have 2 homes for, say, 1 year while we learn for sure whether we like living on the Odyssey. And, a big cost factor is the monthly fee. I don't understand why, but the monthly fee for the Balcony room is a lot higher than non-balcony. $8,000/mo for the 2 of us instead of $5,000. At that rate, we could move tomorrow and sleep easy at night.

This has me excited all over again. To have this exciting new chapter AND still have financial security. YES! (I slept good last night.)

Our cabin for the 1 week is #4036, just like the "Outside Window" shown above. So, we'll be able to experience the smaller, non-balcony room and see if we can live in it. One more factor that I haven't mentioned - you can also rent an office space on deck 5. I think that costs $500/mo. How cool is that to have an office with a view on a cruise ship? 

Uber is magic

Almost as if it was a self driving car.  No words need be spoken - is a good thing cuzz driver does not speak English!

In Fort Lauderdale, Uber is prevalent. All we do is pull up the Uber app and tell it where we want to go. It knows where we are because the app is very good with GPS. We've learned to be completely ready when we tap the button to Choose our ride because they usually arrive within just a few minutes!

No money needs to pass hands - the App has our credit card info. The app tells us the amount we will be charged when we order the ride - no mysteries, no watching the meter run. The car knows where to go because we entered our destination in the App. 

We took uber to Miami Airport - so convenient and comfortable and reasonably priced. About $45. When we return, we tell the App we want to go home. Once again, no words need be spoken. The App knows where 'home' is and gives directions to the driver. Money is charged from our credit card when we reach our destination. 

I love Uber. We have also used it in many foreign countries where it is even more convenient because there - we don't speak the language AND we don't need to have any currency to pay. 

Sick and tired of being sick and tired

I was so happy to get through the first 10-12 days with no hint of sickness. Then I sensed a sore throat. I immediately took some emergenC and some zicam . It seemed to go away. So far so good. This was during 4 days at sea. Our stop at Cabo San Lucas was cancelled, so another day at sea and then I felt feverish, I sounded sick, I was wheezing. I decided to go to the medical center, they were closed. I went there when they opened on Friday morning. Very efficient. I don't have covid, I don't have pneumonia, I do have bronchitis. R doctor gave me a series of antibiotics, some cough syrup, expectorant and pain pills?

Going thru the Panama Canal

 The Viking Neptune is still a big ship to me! But, at 930 passenger capacity, it's nothing like the 3-5,000 passenger cruise ships that are popular these days. And, because of the hurricane issues, they only had 786 on board. Nothing was crowded! Service was johnny-on-the-spot. We wanted to be front and center on the observation deck for the passage thru the first set of locks, so we wandered up there about 7:30am and got the best spot in the house! So that's where we stayed for the passage thru the locks on the Atlantic side - the Gatun Locks. 

Understand, there are 3 sets of locks: 1-Gatun Locks w/3 chambers at roughly 30 feet each  2-Pedro Miguel Lock w/1 chamber about 30 feet and 3- Miraflores locks w 2 chambers right before the Pacific

We had a good view of the Gatun Locks from our tour the day before

This is how it looked when we got closer. These are the Gatun Locks taking ships up about 90 feet from the level of the Atlantic/Caribbean Sea to the level of Gatun Lake. It takes 3 'chambers' to do it. The ship goes in to the first chamber and the gates close behind it. Then the water gushes in from below to even the water levels with the second chamber. The gates open to allow the ship to move forward and the the gates close behind. The process is repeated until the ship is at the level of Gatun Lake. and moves forward across the lake.

It was the peak event of the cruise and celebratory champagne was handed out when we were in the middle of the locks.

Here is a video where I combined some timelapse video with a few stills to show the whole passage.

But we're not done yet. That is just the first set of locks. Now the ship sails across Gatun Lake, down the Culebra Cut, and the Pedro Miguel locks (just 1 chamber going down) and the final locks - the Miraflores locks to the Pacific.

For the final locks and the passage to the Pacific, we joined our friends Alvin and Lisa in their special suite at the front of the ship. 

Panama City

What an experience. And we had chamber of commerce perfect weather for the whole day. We also had a lecturer offering commentary thru much of the day. We were so glad that we read the book "Path Between the Seas" before taking this trip. What a story! The french first started the process of a canal thru Panama in 1870. They went thru many trials and tribulations, not the least of which was hundreds of deaths by Malaria and Yellow Fever. The US took over in 1904 and completed the canal in 1914. 

Panama

 There was one day stop and tour on the east side of Panama before going thru the canal. We signed up for a tour that showed us the 'New' locks and then took us to where we kayaked in Gatun Lake.

A comfortable bus took us to the Agua Clara locks. This is part of the Panama Canal expansion that was completed in 2016. It's one more set of locks big enough to accomodate the mega-ships of today. Where the original locks are 110 feet wide, the new locks are 180. The old locks have 2 lanes so ships can pass going in different directions. The new locks are just one lane so, only one ship at a time can go thru. Scheduling of ships going thru the canals is quite a job! 

New Locks at Aqua Clara - one lane. This is looking toward the Atlantic.

We were there to see a mega ship going thru - The Mount Everest

Then, we got back in the bus and headed to Jungle Lake Lodge where we would kayak on Gatun Lake. But, the lodge itself was fascinating. Accomodations were made from shipping containers. Makes sense to me. Easily available. Add furniture and plumbing and you have a tiny house. Solar panels on the roof provide electricity for the Air Conditioning. 

I enjoyed speaking with Alwin, who owns the Jungle Lake Lodge. He is a Canadian and said it's very easy to own property in Panama. Panama is like a territory of the US in that they have an agreement that Panama will have no military because US promises to protect it. Anyway, Alwin is intent on saving the jungle by buying chunks of it and protecting it - eco tourism. Next he has his eyes on a piece of property in the Amazon. 

It was a little walk thru the jungle to get to the lakeshore and the kayaks. So fun. It felt great to get out on the water and get a little exercise. It sprinkled a bit, but not a soaking rain. 

We felt right at home on this kayak!

The jungle is so beautiful

We paddled for a couple hours, sometimes in the middle of the lake, sometimes at the edge. Hoping to see some of the wildlife in the jungle. There are monkeys, there are also Sloths - I really wanted to see a Sloth!! 

Someone said they saw a Sloth in one of these trees. Yeah, right!

At least the monkeys jump once in a while and you can then spot them because you see the movement. Sloths are too slow to spot.

This kayak trip actually qualifies as kayaking on the Panama Canal because Gatun Lake is part of the canal system. Of course, we were paddling in an area that the big ships don't go, but still ...

Then it was back in the bus, back to the ship and we were scheduled to cross thru the canal to the Pacific the following day.