dennis s. hurddennis s. hurd

Thursday, March 28, 2024

What's the Difference Between Routines and a Rut?

We got back to one of our regular routines. Today, we drove to the Langley Farm Market for fruit and vegetables. We occasionally buy these items at supermarkets but for years we've filled the majority of our needs at Langley Farm Market on Canada Way.
  Fruit and Vegetable Market

This activity means we're back in summer mode. The whole idea of a routine is interesting. Many people stick to a routine most of the time. To me, that observation seems a little sad.  How do these folks differentiate the big block of time called life?  

Jay and I have now been retired for ten years! This situation has allowed us to live different lives during each of them. We have the common thread of our summer and four of five months of brand new exploration.  Our travels teach us new things about our destinations, the world, and ourselves.


Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Rerouting to Zanzibar

Jay and I keep adding pieces to next winter's travel plans. Today, we bought tickets for another flight. 

Our Cancelled CruiseSeveral sections of our winter were going to be on ocean cruises. However, NCL decided to cancel its initial sailing from Dubai. The image shows our intended way to get from Dubai to Mauritius. The original plans were cancelled because of the ongoing trouble in the Red Sea. The ship will take the long way around the tip of Africa and begin its season too late for our scheduled sailing. 

We have chosen to spend the two weeks, that were to be on the first ship, in a single location. Zanzibar is one of the ports we will miss. The Emirates tickets purchased today will get us there. (That does mean missing the Seychelles and other important ports, but we'll get to them some other year!)  Although we've read a lot about Zanzibar, we've never been there.

The Dubai portion of our winter plans from November 11th to 22nd will remain the same. We have hotel reservations and plans in that city again.   Additionally, we did not modify our Airbnb from December 8th to January 5th on the island of Mauritius.  So our Port Louis stay during Christmas and New Year remains unchanged.  

Following that, a bit into the new year, we'll get on our purchased cruise and sail to South Africa. That was always a planned itinerary and it's still a go.  And South Africa will be our final destination until spring.
  Kenya-0027 
The closest we've ever been to Zanzibar is shown in this photo taken exactly thirty years ago. We spent some school vacation time in Kenya. After Nairobi, we travelled on a safari and eventually took a train to Mombasa. This picture on the beach was taken in February 1994.  Zanzibar's islands are about 250 km to my back.


Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Busting Out All Over

Spring is trying its darndest. 

Growth 
I snapped these in front of the Royal City Centre Mall. I had a bit of extra time as Jay was getting his blood tests done at the lab. He finally got a new cardiologist. His old one moved his practice to another town and dropped patients without so much as a simple notification. Jay needs the results before next week's initial appointment. Luckily, just as our personal physician, the cardiologist has an office just across the road from us.


Monday, March 25, 2024

Seattle Blue Willow

I get great ideas. Unfortunately, I do not possess great art skills.

I appreciate how easy it is for me to create images that look like authentic photos with AI. To create this plate I simply typed, "The skyline of Seattle on a China plate with Blue Willow design elements."  In a few moments: VoilĂ !

The process does involve a little work.  I generally have to select the best from the options provided.  Then, I must decide if it requires modifications or alterations.  Every photo is improved by tweaking its saturation, colour, or contrast.
  Seattle Blue Willow 
I know about Blue Willow because one of my grandmothers used to collect it.  I made this special edition simply as an experiment.


Sunday, March 24, 2024

When is 10 Years Really Only 9.5?

It started off cloudy but later turned into a fantastically sunny day. 

In the morning, we went to the London Drugs uptown so Jay could have two passport photos taken. Jay got his present passport the month that we retired. That was October of 2014. 

He has to renew early because many countries require a six-month validity. We will fly to Berlin in May for less than a month but the rules require we renew before we leave. We have a tiny cruise coming up during the first five days of May and because it stops at a US port, he'll need a passport for that too. 

He decided it was best to get another one right away. We filled out the type-in PDF form on the computer today. He will bring the pictures and paperwork to drop off at a Canadian Passport Office in Surrey tomorrow.
  Uptown Mall 
While uptown, we stopped in the Royal City Mall too. What a nice day to do a few errands!


Saturday, March 23, 2024

The First Ever Movie Night

Some of the guys came over tonight. Tim will be going to Nepal for a month from next weekend, and we wanted to see the gang.
  Movie Night 
So, we had the first 'Movie Night' at our place this evening. I have quite a collection of films, some of which are Hollywood classics. I also have some personal favourites that more accurately fit the cult genre. 

I wanted Ed and Shinji to see Summer Lovers (1982) as they'll be taking a Mediterranean cruise later this spring. Tonight's movie takes place in the Greek Islands, primarily on Santorini and plays as a picture postcard from that era.  We used the evening as an excuse for Jay to make some dinner.

Many reviews pan the movie by director, Randal Kleiser and dismiss it as a low-budget exploitation flick. However, it's a film I've watched a number of times. I'd suggest it does an excellent job of encapsulating the ideals of gaining freedom and mature insight through travel. The soundtrack definitely helps with its nostalgic aspects. 

It is not a film for everybody, but who'd really want to watch a film like that?
  September 5 Tuesday (Santorini) Jay and I visited Oia in the fall of 2017 on a trip aboard the MS Westerdam.


Friday, March 22, 2024

Where's the Olive Oil?

Let me tell you the truth: I've never hated going grocery shopping. I enjoy walking through endless aisles with shelves of food and goods on display. I often wonder who buys all the stuff I see. I've also admitted that when we travel, I sometimes find foreign supermarkets just as interesting as tourist sites. One can tell a lot about a culture by how they organize a grocery store and by what and where the products are placed.
  'The Supermarket Layout Changed' 
We've been back in Canada since Monday and have picked up food from close vendors. Our big, weekly shopping trip is generally to a Canadian Superstore in Coquitlam. We often go on Saturdays, but we've invited a few friends to visit tomorrow. So, we took a shopping trip today. 

Oh my! The place was renovated when we were away and the aisles of food were reorganized. To be honest, it is probably more logically arranged now ... BUT WE DIDN'T KNOW WHERE ANYTHING WAS. We must have walked a few extra kilometers in today's initial scouting mission. It'll get easier, I'm sure. 

Another thing we noted today was how much more many food items cost! When prices go up week by week, it is less obvious than when one is away for more than four months.


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