I’m back! Have you missed me? My renewal for my WordPress account is coming up for renewal, so I best get my money’s worth and post some memories.
Off onto another recap of a past trip! This trip was Steve’s retirement present and I got to tag along! We were off to New Zealand for three weeks, and you get to come also. Lucky you! For those of you who know nothing about New Zealand, it is comprised of two islands. North and South. Those are easy names to remember, unlike many of the rivers that Steve will fish!
We will stay in Taupo on the North Island for one week and then rent a car on our travels on the South Island. We will stay at three fishing lodges, and one fancy schmancy place that I picked out. Steve will fish from the fancy schmancy place also. Actually it’s not fancy schmancy, just really nice, but how often do I get to write fancy schmancy? How often do you get to read those words? Likely never again, but one of my goals in this blog is to improve the vocabulary of my dear readers!
Dinner on the flight to Los Angeles from New York. This flight was on United Airlines.
Salad greens with butternut squash.
Short ribs.
Gelato with strawberry and chocolate sauce.
Then milk and warm cookies.
Lost Angeles is so pretty at night with all the cars lighting up the road. Side streets look blissfully empty.
This airport has the worst signage. We thought TBIT on the departure board meant To Be Something Something. Instead it meant Tom Bradley International Airport. It was a good thing we asked someone, otherwise we would have missed our plane, and this excellent adventure would never have happened!
Then we needed to find the shuttle, and then the departure area, there has to be a better way! But finally we found the correct terminal!
As we were flying business we got access to a fancy lounge.
Newspapers in so many languages!
The lounge has won awards for nicest airport. I can see why. These are the outdoor fire pits.
Of course I found the chocolate mousse and a decaf cappuccino!
Not looking forward to the 13 hour flight form Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand. Total time form NYC to Taupo, New Zealand our final airport is 26 hours! Ouch!
Here is Steve enjoying his little nook on the Air New Zealand plane.
I forgot to turn the flash back on, but the first course was a lovely tomato and mozzarella salad. The lighting on the plane was a calming purple hue. It was very restful.
I chose the parsnip and spinach soup for my entree. When I have a long plane flight I often just have the soup for my entree.
Can’t skip ice cream with fruit for dessert.
Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean at sunrise.
Breakfast was a fruit salad.
Croissant and toasted fruit bread with orange marmalade.
Then more carbs with the whole wheat waffle with dried fruit and cream anglaise. No pictures of Steve’s food as we were behind each other. I am sure Steve had the omelette!
Here is a map of our flight.
You can see a close up of the Pacific. This is where the tectonic plates are colliding and one is going under the other.
Steve will not be happy with these next two pictures but I don’t care. And since it is my blog, I get to post almost anything that I want. Steve does get to have the edit finger function and remove stuff that I might get in trouble with. Let’s see what happens here!
Anyway, there are certain haircuts on guys that I really like. This is one of them. Steve does not like to wear his hair this long and since it is his head, I let him wear it however he likes to wear it.
The guy changed his clothes before he landed. Perhaps he was meeting someone who liked his hair the way he wore it. Or perhaps his lover would rather he wear his hair shorter like Steve does!
One time a long time ago, I got my hair cut short and my ears pierced. Steve almost cried when he saw me. Now I try to let him know if I am going to do a drastic hair change!
It is strange getting used to the time. It is Monday morning around ten. Back home it is Sunday afternoon around four. We lost all of Sunday traveling but will get two Monday’s coming back!
That’s it for today, or tonight, or tomorrow in that case as we left on the 14th of November her and will arrive in New Zealand on the 16th!
Do you have a dream trip for when you retire?
Or are you already retired and you went on your dream trip already?
Do you wear your hair the way your significant other prefers, or do you say “To hell with you!”?
I was never so happy to leave any place that we stayed at . (At least that I can remember!)
Here is Steve letting us through the gate to leave.
And our van approaches the gate to leave!
Boom! One set of gates done. More to go!
Good bye Cow Creek! Not sorry to be gone!
Good bye burned out forest!
Onto the dirt road.
Then it was onto a stone road.
Some parts of the road were really bumpy.
Then we got to the narrow section with blind spots ahead.
Where a truck always seemed to be approaching, with poor visibility of the road ahead.
The road was so uneven.
With steep drops offs on one side.
And a truck barreling down the road to look for downed wood in the forest.
After an hour on the dirt/stone road we made it to pavement. Yay!
The car was a real mess from the dust and dirt!
I found this place for breakfast on Yelp. Chocolate? Yes, please!
The bakery looked very promising.
We were told to sit anywhere, I plopped ourselves in front of the window so we could watch the bakers. “You looking at me?”
While we waited for our breakfast to be brought over, we enjoyed watching how some of the pastries were prepared.
Then it is placed on the slab, ready to be cut.
Here the baker is piping chocolate onto the dough.
On the right spinach croissants are being prepared.
Our breakfast were derived. I had the blue corn blueberry pancakes with piñon syrup. I probably should have had the strawberries and cream waffle. These were a bit dense and dry.
Steve had some kind of Mexican slop. If that isn’t a gloppy breakfast I don’t know what is!
We would be staying at The Inn of the Anasazi.
The hotel was right on the courthouse square. We went for a walk. Come along.
We checked out The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.
The church was started in 1869 and is designed in the Romanesque Revival style.
It was lovely inside.
Nearby was the famous Loretto Chapel.
Inside is the miraculous staircase.
There is no newel or center pole. The staircase was built without nails. It is held together by pegs and glue. That is why it was called the “Miraculous Staircase.”
The Gothic Revival altar is made of wood painted to look like marble.
Our room was very inviting.
This was the special amenity we were given by the hotel. A handful of potato chips, a handful of popcorn and some nuts. We shared.
I love cornbread, as does Steve.
One of us had a salad.
I am not quite sure what this entree was.
This was definitely salmon!
Dessert was flan, ice cream and chocolate. All three of my favorite food groups!
Before breakfast we tried to find the falls that Sioux Falls are named after. They are not what I expected at all. Back east waterfalls are big, these were just a cascading series of water. (This is not my picture, my picture would have been shaky, and uncentered! This picture is from the Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce.)
Then it was time for breakfast at The Original Pancake House. Whenever we are on a trip I us the Yelp App on my phone to look for good local restaurants. We have rarely made a bad choice this way.
I had the Dutch Apple Pancake. Does this not look mouth watering? This is very easy to make and since we ate there I have made it at home for myself several times. You sauté some apples in sugar and cinnamon in a cast iron pan. Then you prepare the batter which you pour on top of the apple mixture and pop it in the oven to bake. It is so delicious! Unfortunately I had to throw out my cast iron pan since Steve has a condition that causes him to store iron in his blood, So no iron pans for us!
Steve had the Irish Omelette which is corned beef hash and cheese in an omelette!
After breakfast we stopped in Mitchell to see the Corn Palace.
I had always wanted to stop here, so this was another check off my places to visit list.
The murals on the sides of the Corn Palace are changed every fall. 
Thirteen types of corn are used along with other grains.
This picture shows the plywood backing that the corn will be attached to.
This picture shows how the pattern is done. Instead of paint by numbers this mural is paint by ears of corn!
Badlands National Park for those who can’t read signs. But if you are reading this blog, you must be able to read!
Obligatory selfie by spouse with long arms who can’t see themselves in the view finder.
You don’t want to get lost here!
The progression of prairie becoming The Badlands. Eons ago silty deposits of a shallow sea were laid down. When the sea receded volcanic ash was deposited. After years of compaction a prairie was created. Then the land was eroded over time. The Badlands are losing one inch a year. There were comments at the visitor center about air pollution obscuring view. The only air pollution here was from forest fires far away.
We saw our first prairie dogs!
Sunflowers as far as you can see in appropriately named Scenic South Dakota!
There were many road signs for Wall Drug Store, so we had to make a detour.
It was a generic tourist trip, but at least I got my picture taken here!
If you can make any of this out, this is a red wine decanter.
It is 95 degrees outside the restaurant and I can’t stand all these pillows behind me.
What I am looking forward to is my Pineapple Upside Down Martini!
This couple at the table next to us was celebrating their 50th Anniversary! they ordered champagne which came in generic wine glasses. They were so sweet!
Happy 50th Anniversary to our new friends Fred and Libby from Someplace in California! Don’t they look like the happiest couple? I should have exchanged phone numbers, I am sure that they have great stories to tell!
No pictures of our dinner, but here is the delicious dessert. It was called Heaven on a Plate. It was! Ice cream layers, and candy bars covered with chocolate!
Dinner was at Vesper Sky Bar at the top floor at the Hotel Alex Johnson. We spent the night here. There were rumors that the hotel was haunted, but no ghosts visited us during the night!
Breakfast, like all the other meals is served on the porch.
First order of business was ordering coffee. I needed some. I slept better than the night before, but I still woke up several times. Maybe tonight I will get over four hours sleep in a row. I feel like I was back in the days of breast feeding when I rarely had a good stretch of sleep. Did you know that a baby having a four hour stretch of sleep is considered sleeping through the night? Also, a four hour stretch of sleep is considered necessary for good health. I agree with that. In my younger days I used to be able to sleep for a good nine hours with out waking up. I can’t remember when that happened last!
For breakfast I ordered the French Toast with bacon on the side. For you bacon lovers, and who isn’t a bacon lover (excepting Miss Mary!) it was nice and crispy. Just the way I like it.
Here we have the upper bar, not many people hang out at this bar, but you could if you wanted too!
Here we have the upper Christmas tree, the porch where all meals are held is in the background.
Another view from the porch.
This is a picture of the gift shop. Last night Steve told me that he realized that he forgot to pack a cap. When he is fishing he needs a ball cap to keep the sun out of his eyes. Last year Steve forgot to pack a cap also. As Steve is very fastidious with his packing for trips I inquired if a ball cap was even on his list. Steve told me he thought not, which was a very good guess as no cap was packed. Anyway I suggested that he either go to the gift shop before it closed for the evening or have a staff member call Steve’s guide to bring an extra cap for Sunday’s fishing trip. Steve, the obedient husband that he is, went to the gift shop and bought a very fugly ball cap. Its saving grace is that it has a dark under brim, that should help keep the glare out of Steve’s eyes. As this week is promising to be cloudy, he might not even need the cap!
Here is the little ride to the Canopy Suites. Unfortunately there are only four and they were sold out when we booked our stay. We stayed there last year and they were really nice, but very warm as the air conditioning units were undersized for the rooms.
Down this way is our room. That’s enough of that for now, let’s go back to the main lodge before I show you the room.
There was a guest at the front desk inquiring about places to take a jog. I quickly went in another direction. Let’s not spoil a good vacation be being too active now shall we?
Here is another view of the main area. The Christmas decorations are still up. I think I will check out the chairs on the desk and put my feet up for an hour or so.
The pool area is pretty, but the water was too cold to swim in or to even dip my toes in. I am not sure if there is a hot tub, I will have to inquire.
After hanging out by the pool for a bit I retreated to the room. My phone battery needed recharging and that is difficult to do pool side. I must admit that it was difficult to hoist myself from the chaise lounges as they are so low to the ground.
The iced tea was nice and refreshing.
The burger was tasty, but I think I will choose something else tomorrow. Steve’s steak last night was a little bit too well done. Same problem with the cheese burger today. Also, they don’t have any french fries, just home fries so I guess I will have a salad Monday.
After Lunch I decided to work on my blog post on the veranda. There was a nice fan blowing air above me and lively music playing on the sound system. You can’t see it because of the haze but I think that is the ocean in the distance.
Unfortunately I didn’t see any hummingbirds sipping sugar water. Just some teensy flies. Ditch that, I just saw a hummingbird come by but I must have scared him!
I went back to the room and sat on the porch reading in the afternoon. First stop was this couch, but it was a bit lumpy.
So I migrated across the room. Much better!
We had new guests that were in the villa next to ours. I heard an “OMG, a spider!” I lifted my head up and inquired if I needed to freak out also. No need, the spider was in the jungle. Phew!
The amuse bouche was snook on a cracker with pickles on top. Steve liked it better than I did.
I ordered a watermelon smash. It was smashing! Ha Ha! Capalli rum, bourbon, Peychaud’s bitters, mint, lime and watermelon chunks. So refreshing!
Steve ordered the Farm Lamb Tostados for his first course. Shredded lamb, cabbage slaw, Queso fresco and Pico de Galle. He liked it.
My first course was the beet salad with fresh vegetables.
We both ordered the Pan Seared Caribbean Snapper with roasted carrots, sautéed curry cabbage, and lime butter cream sauce. It was yummy.
For dessert Steve had the chocolate cake.
I had the lime ginger curd.
Then it was back to the room where I struggled to open the door, until I realized that I was grasping the door number and not a door knob!
New trip report! Steve and I are trying to continue his caught fish a month streak. We decided to try Copal Tree Lodge in Belize again. We had such a nice stay last year, and Steve was lucky enough to catch a permit so we were excited to try again. The streak might be broken as Permit are very difficult to catch. The weather is expected to not cooperate also, as we are not expecting to see much sun. If the streak is broken it will make our lives easier as we won’t be having to gallivant all over to keep the streak going!
This way!
Okay, now stop!
You are on your own now, buddy!
The Cheetos were so good I made him buy us another package of crunchy Cheetos to share!
Soon it was time for us to board our next flight. This is the plane we were going to Punta Gorda in.
This one is much better. But if I can’t make fun of Steve, than who can I make fun of?
We actually saw the second picture first. Coming from the lodge you would enter thorough the gate and then take off in one of the boats. But that is making a short story long and is neither here not there!
Upon arrival at Copal Tree Lodge we were given a glass of Ginger Infusion. It was refreshing but spicy. It was comprised of ginger lime and honey. Alcohol free. Drat! You can see that I am not getting manicures. I thought that would make my nails healthier. I am not sure if it is working!
As usual, Steve had a a glass of wine. I had the sparkling wine. It was not champagne as it was not from France.
The amuse bouche for the evening was devilled eggs. Did you know that I never had a devilled egg until I was in my 40’s?
I had the beet soup as my first course.
Steve elected to have a salad.
For dinner I had the pan fried Creole grouper with coconut cilantro rice, sautéed garden greens fried plantains. Next time I will say hold the plantains!
Steve had the steak, it was more medium than medium rare.
For dessert I had the Mayan Chocolate Budino. It was very sweet. Can you imagine, me saying something was very sweet! It tasted like a thick cold chocolate with caramel and bananas.
Steve played safe and had the chocolate ice cream with chocolate sauce.
Breakfast!
There are many beautiful parks in the Western United States. How many have you seen? I have been to all of the listed ones except for Grand Canyon.
The entrance to the park. Come along with me to see the park.
Map so you can see where I traveled.
You can see clearly here the levels of rock. Would you believe that 90 million years ago this area was covered by water? Now instead of a parking lot it is a lunch lot! Doesn’t that sound like a song?
Independence Monument and how it was made.
Yes, there were people climbing this today!
Not for me!
Some of the wildlife in the park.
Redlands Fault view.
Rockslide.
The view of the valley below.
It was cool to drive through a tunnel.
I was so excited to see a group of Bighorn Sheep!
Look at the guy on the rock wall in the second picture!
Another handsome guy!
Look at the wind erosion!
The views were amazing.
This area was shaped by earthquakes and erosion.
The summer wild flowers were in bloom.
You need to be tough to try to grow here.
The famous balanced rock.
I did another good deed today. These two tired hikers were walking along the road looking for a ride to the next parking area. They were hiking since 8 a.m. and it was 2 p.m. when I stopped to give them a ride. I am glad that they were not axe murderers. They were from Switzerland and were visiting our National Parks. I think I saved them another two hour hike. It was 82 degrees and very hot out!
On the way back I stopped at the Marijuana dispensary in De Beque to check it out. I didn’t buy anything, nor did I ask any questions. That’s for someone else to do!
Then it was back to High Lonsome to get ready for dinner.
These are all different fish too!
Another picture of my new male friends, just because!
We had assorted smoked meats as an hors d’oeuvres.
Fresh biscuits.
Salad.
Dinner was fried chicken.
With lots of golden mashed potatoes.
Big bowls of broccoli.
Dessert was chocolate lava cake that was not dry! I can’t stand it when the cake is over cooked and the inside is not oozing out like lava! Tomorrow is our next adventure. Grand Mesa and then a wedding in Beaver Creek.
After a fitful sleep at we woke up and went to breakfast. Unfortunately the room had no air conditioning and it was quite warm outside. We left the windows open so that we could have a breeze, but the gulls were always squawking! In addition, there was a park below with lots of people hanging out late into the night!
Here is another view of the hotel. Our room is on the third floor of the building on the upper left by the arched window.
This is a picture of the outside of the restaurant where we had dinner last night and breakfast this morning.
Off we went with JP, and Maxima our driver in our Peugeot van. Valparaíso is so colorful!
I am used to signs showing evacuation routes from super highways due to snow closures. This was the first time I saw a sign for a Tsunami escape route.
Houses were built anywhere there was a place to support a house. Even though Chile has lots of earthquakes, there are not many deaths, due to the strict construction guidelines.
The sun was blinding here. JP and Steve are shielding their eyes from the glare.
JP was into crazy poses. I’m not really into them, and don’t do crazy well, but I am a good sport. Here we are anyway at the famous floral clock doing a crazy pose.
We are now in Viña Del Mar, it is known for its beautiful gardens. It is within the Valparaíso region, and is Chile’s fourth largest city. The chef at the hotel last night called Valparaíso the San Francisco of the third world!
Here we are, on the Promenade. It is early, so not many people are out and about.
Here is JP pointing toward Valparaiso.
Here is the other direction, toward Con Con.
Here is the Casino, as I don’t gamble and it was early in the morning; we didn’t go inside. Plus the men in tuxedos, and the women in gowns and fine jewelry are probably still asleep, so there would be nothing to look at and report on!
We continue our stroll along the Promenade like the two love birds that we are. I smartly suggested we remove our dorky hats for the picture. See that white shirt I am wearing? Well, I will leave it in the hotel tomorrow by mistake and not ever see it again!
Ah, some energetic joggers. The rock in the background is called the “Michael Jackson” rock as it started out black. #imjustrepeatingthejoke
Above the u shaped rocks, there were seals playing. They were fun to watch jumping and diving into the water. That is Valparaíso in the background.
We depart the beach with JP and Steve looking for babes in bikinis.
Let’s go into the park Vina Del Mar which was named after Jose Francisco Delvarga.
This is an old house across the street from the park. This is what many of the houses looked like when the city was founded. Now it is mostly skyscrapers.
They host many concerts here. Preparations were underway for a concert in two weeks.
Inside the concert arena.
We could not understand this sculpture hanging down from the rooftop of the amphitheater.
We continued our walk in the park and examined many of the old specimen trees.
JP was very upset that so many of the tree limbs had to be cut down due to the rot that the old tree had.
This is a photo of the house where Senor Delvarga lived.
You can see damage from the earthquake that is being repaired.
We depart Vina Del Mar and all its flowers.
We go to the Mueso La Sebastiana next. 
Neruda’s home had charming views of Valparaíso. He loved to get together with friends, especially on New Year’s Eve when the bay lit up with fireworks. During the summer at our house in Lake George, I am always running up and down our deck looking at the fireworks over the lake. I am easily entertained.
The colorful house from below.
Here we are in a normal pose.
We left the museum as the crowds began to gather.
Mural of a young boy fishing.
The houses are all a mishmash of styles. JP told us that a number of the houses are built right on top of each other, so it can be difficult finding the right address!
Panoramic view of Valparaíso.
I spy something.
The murals have many different themes.
Many of the murals were commissioned by business people or the city.
I found this one creepy.
All through the neighborhoods were murals.
To get to our restaurant Maxima had to back the van up a narrow street. Well, it was that or back up after he dropped us off. I think he wanted to impress us. He did!
Lunch was at Maralegre, (
Steve and I were pretty hot and tired from all the walking around in the sun. It was nice to take some ibuprofen and not be on our feet. Steve has felt a sore throat for the past few days. I think it’s all the smog. We shall see when we get to Easter Island as there won’t be any smog there!
Here I am equally happy, this vacation has been so wonderful!
My view over Steve’s shoulder.
A closeup shows a house with earthquake damage, or ready for renovation or both!
We were offered tomato berry watermelon gazpacho to start. I drank Steve’s as he doesn’t care for tomato juice, or fruits. It really helped to cool me off.
Fresh rolls and butter, much better than stale rolls! As the lunch went on the butter melted completely in the hot sun.
Salad was greens with cheese, thinly sliced pear and quail eggs.
I ate half before the waiter brought out the dressing!
Steve had a Pisco Sour, I had an Aperol Spritz.
We were offered a palate cleanser of apple anise ice. It was quite refreshing.
Steve had the tagliatelle, sun dried tomatoes, sage and almonds.
I had the wagyu beef, shrimp angel hair pasta with truffle oil. No I did not finish!
Before dessert I had Steve and I change seats, just like at my fancy candle lit dinner parties!
My new view.
The dessert was called chocolate vanilla or vanilla chocolate in Spanish!
The waiter poured hot chocolate on the mousse so it melted like a reverse volcano. This might be my Vulcan Hudson afterall!
More graffiti.
Steve with improper arm placement for my picture taking. I could however, ask him to move his arm at any time and he would do so. I just like to make fun of him!
This is called the English section. When the English immigrants came to Valparaíso they married the Spanish aristocracy and stayed in this area. They were considered of higher status because they were English. The Germans moved to the Lake District. These homes were painted pastels: blues, purples, whites and greens.
A panoramic view of the port.
We could see four cranes constantly moving containers.
Here I made JP and Steve do a crazy pose.
This house was in very bad shape, but it had an amazing view.
Graffiti and laundry hung out upstairs to dry.
The main square. There was an artisan market under the canopies.
Because the city is a UNESCO site the original outsides of buildings are protected. You must keep the outer facade protected, but can erect a modern building inside! The result is bizarre.
A tomb in honor of the naval war heroes that died in a battle in 1879 against Peru. It is continually protected by a sailor, who you can see on the left of the statute wearing dark pants and a white shirt.
#thisiswhyitakethepictures
Have you ever ridden on a funicular in Valparaíso? Come along.
Our car enters the station.
Enter brunette bombshell. Steve keeps his eyes properly elevated. When he is married to a bombshell like me, what more does he need?
We are off! Higher we shall go.
Still higher.
After our ascent in the funicular, we walked to our hotel. 
We wanted to soak in the wood fired hot tub, but the fire was out and the water was cold.
We went back to the room and while we were changing we heard sirens going off. We weren’t sure if it was pre warning for an earthquake or a fire in the hotel. We were in hysterics trying to decide if it was better to run out of the room naked, or to put your clothes on first. By the time we put our clothes on the second set of sirens was over. Phew!
We went to dinner at the little restaurant across the park from our hotel. The place where the all night revelers held court!
Steve was his usually happy self at dinner. He only gets grumpy in the morning after he has had a bad night’s sleep. Then, once he gets his coffee he is good to go. I must admit that whenever I say or do something I shouldn’t,he gets disappointed in me. Of course, that rarely happens. Ha Ha! Well, maybe once a month. Would you believe week? Okay, maybe I misbehave once a day, but then it is an accident!
Here is our waitress telling JP, “No, that is not available.” We could only choose from a third of the menu!
I ordered a blueberry Pisco sour. They also offered ginger, mint, or regular.
We had the salmon with potatoes and it looked disgusting. It was delicious. You might call it salmon with glop sauce!
Here is a view out my window in the restaurant.
Close up we can see that these people had a dinner party going on. How lovely!
For dessert I had the strawberry mousse. Of course I finished the whole thing! Unfortunately there was no chocolate anything or ice cream on the menu for Steve.
JP had apple pie for dessert. We had a nice discussion about politics and taxes. The previous mayor of Valparaiso was accused of corruption and the new mayor is only 31! He was elected because everyone thought he was too young to be corrupt!
Sunday morning and we have a surprise picture from Steve of the fruit bowl untouched by everyone else. Steve is up early to go fishing and took this picture for the blog. He is such a good husband to me!
This cinnamon danish was supposed to be in a circle, but it went on strike on the way to the oven. It was still tasty! Steve gets up early to be sure he gets one!
I was able to go to lunch. Here is Mahi Mahi one a bed of greens and fresh vegetables.
First canapé was shrimp popcorn with red pepper dip.
Next up was smoked mackerel mayonnaise.
Our starter was stone crab claws. Usually they have a horseradish dressing. As Steve and I both dislike horseradish, we had ours plain. G picked his clean! Um um um.
Steve and I each had the Mahi Mahi on herbed quinoa.
G was sitting next to me. He had the Osso Bucco. I really like Osso Bucco, but have yet to have it in a restaurant cooked as well as I do it at home. So it was fish for me. The other night we had dinner with friends. One of the guests loves duck, and prepares a phenomenal duck himself. He ordered it and was disappointed that it was not as tasty as his version. So I went to school on that lesson, and had the fish instead!
For dessert we had banana beignets. A very sweet dessert.
Good morning from Houston! Last night when I looked out the window, I thought that was a another hotel. Ha Ha Turns out it was a parking garage!
Look at all the different hallways on our floor. The suggestion of using colored lights was a smart one. Makes it much easier to know what direction you need to go to find your room. I don’t know how many times I have screwed up going in the wrong way after getting off an elevator because the signage was poor. Silver lettering on a grey background and a small font! This is much better, “Go down the yellow hallway!”
We entered the elevator and pushed S for shuttle. That was easy!
This is where Linda screwed up. The tram went in a big circle, and Steve wanted to go right. I insisted on going left. Going right meant you went directly to the D/E terminals. Going left meant you take the scenic route. Which we did. We went by the B and A terminals, then the Marriott stop, then the C terminal and then finally the D/E terminals 
However taking the scenic route meant we were on an empty tram. No one in this direction. 
No one in this direction also. Which means, you know what happens next don’t you? 
Yes, Linda tries for an eyes open wide smooch on her husband. 
I think the plain old selfie was a better picture. 
We finally found our terminal and it was time to look for breakfast. Steve saw the sign for Ruby’s and thought it would make a good choice. The Siracha Bloody Mary scared me away. Remember, I don’t like spicy stuff. We were going to try Starbucks, but they didn’t have the egg sandwiches that Steve likes. 
Instead we went Gavi. They had the ordering system on iPad’s which I always find difficult. The waitress had to come over to help us. 
Steve had and omelette with home fries. The home fries had been prepared yesterday, so they were a bit cold. The ketchup was great with the homesfries though.
I had the lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberries. Well actually five blueberries and some compote. I ate one pancake. It tasted like a cross between a pancake and lemon loaf. Not sure what I had expected. 
I thought about watching Bohemian Rhapsodey, but the screen was pretty tiny and it started with some notes on paper that I couldn’t read, so I decided I would watch it at home from a library DVD. 
There were five planes ahead of us. 
We were off! Good bye Houston!
Lots of white fluffy clouds. Houston looks like it is around a lot of water. I was trying to figure out if I could tell where there was flood damage. I don’t know what the area looked like before so….who knows? 
I will tell you we were heading south from Houston. 
I was exited about watching “Hoarders” on the plane. One of my guilty pleasures is watching that and “My 600 Pound Life”. It always makes me feel good about myself, my life is nowhere that much out of control. Although if you did see my paper book romance collection and my 23,000 photos in my iCloud you would roll your eyes at me!
We got our warm nuts and my ice water. 
Lunch was pretty yucky. A mushroom ravioli with more fennel on the salad. 
Dessert was a warm apple something. Not quite a cookie, nor a pie. Although it wasn’t very good I ate it. I am addicted to sugar, let’s just put it out there. 
We passed over a beautiful beach 
We are heading south over Mexico. That was Merida.
We passed over some phosphate mines and then landed in Belize City. We ended up landing before the movie was over so I guess I will have to borrow it from the library after all! 
Here is Sydney. We arranged to have her meet us past customs and help us get our plane tickets. It was a small airport, and we probably didn’t need her assistance, but as the hotel booked our next set of flights I wanted to make sure someone else was in charge of making sure we were going to get to where we needed to go. 
There were many shops at the airport. This may count as my grocery store as I don’t think that I will be wandering around town by myself.
We waited about two hours for our next flight. I would read a chapter in my paperback, then read one on my kindle app and then walk to stretch my legs. Every once in awhile we would notice someone remarkable. There seemed to be a lot of beer drinking in the airport. Steve remarked that is what most people do on beach vacation. Drink, sun and then drink some more. I sit in the shade, sober and blog. It is possible that if I drunkblogged, my blog might be more interesting. However as Steve edits the blog, it is highly likely that my drunk blog posts would not survive.
I did notice at the airport that many of the stores sold hot sauce and booze. 
Soon it was time to get on our flight. We weren’t sure how it would work, we lined up at one point thinking it was time, and then we were told to sit down. Then our names were called and they told us to follow the rest of the people onto a plane.
It is a small plane!
It was very small. As was that baby. 
To get in the plane you went through this opening behind Steve. 
They snapped one part of the door up. 
Then they brought the rest down. 
This lady was constantly on her phone going through her pictures.
We saw a number of tree plantations with some fires that looked like they were well controlled. 
First stop was Dangrio. A few people got off. 
Selfie lady was doing a good job tweeking her pictures. 
There appeared to be many big ass homes here. These homes were on the way to Placencia.
Our second stop. About six people got off here, and one guy got on with a bouquet of flowers.
A lot of stuff was loaded onto the plane.
These roses were placed behind me on the plane. They must have cost a fortune! 
The plane was pretty empty by now. They didn’t ask us to move our seats. I was wondering about that. Sometimes on the smaller planes they need to balance the load. 
This was a a cruise ship island. There was a big swimming pool, lots of beaches and chairs. 
Most of the land we flew over had lots of green, and these interesting rivers. 
We were finally near our destination. Punta Gorda. We are going to be staying in the rain forest, near the coast. Steve will be fishing, while I will stay sober and blog. I am not sure if I will go to the beach at all. 
It was another small airport.
Good bye plane! I hope someone meets us here to take us to the resort! 
We waited outside with our luggage and selfie girl with boyfriend. 
We met the driver from Copal Tree lodge, and our four bags got loaded into the Jeep.
This is the center of town where the market is held. 
If I went to a grocery store I would ask to go to Tim’s. It looks like the biggest in town.
Here is sugar cane. When they are ready do harvest, it is cut down to the ground. Then the soil is tilled and new sugar cane roots are planted. 
Follow the signs to Copal Tree Lodge. This is where we will be staying.
Yay! We have entered the grounds. 
This is a picture of a permit. Steve hopes to catch one of these. They are very hard to catch. We have our fingers crossed.
We were given a refreshing glass of ginger tea. It was refreshing but spicy!
Our room is just across the patio the left most door.
There was a small covered seating area outside the canopy suites. I am praying that we don’t have neighbors that like to party like crazy, because that seriously looks like a nice place to hang out! 
Looking in the other direction is the pool with an invisible edge. I had always wanted a pool in our back yard in Poughkeepsie. Steve tolerated my thoughts and said “Go ahead, and get an estimate!”. Well my estimate for my dream pool was over $200,000! Thankfully I came to my senses and declined the generous estimate that the pool salesman offered us. The pool would have been quite special, with an invisible edge, retractable cover, beach style entry, and waterfall. Of course, I would hardly use it at all as I am not crazy about being outside in weather that is either too hot or too cold, or too humid. I like the air around me moving just a tad and a constant 72 unless I am sleeping.
We are in room 15. Get ready. 
Walking in I wanted to cry. It was so large.
There was a closet to the right, with a safe.
To the left was the bathroom.
What is that outside on the deck facing the jungle?
Why it’s a soaking tub! Of course, doesn’t everyone need to bathe with a view? There was also a large shower and a toilet, but unless it is a $10,000 Japanese toilet with fans, cleansing wands and heated seats, I will rarely take their picture!
Let’s explore the room a little more. Big bed with fake mosquito netting for a romantic mood.
Large sofa that could possible used to take a nap.
Another view of the bed.
There was a desk to throw stuff on.
Through the doors we go. 
Another sofa to hangout on to my left. 
To the right was a hammock and more chairs to lounge on. This is my kind of place! Steve tried out the hammock but said it was a little bit too small for his frame. I won’t try it unless he is around as I am likely to get trapped in it. 
‘This is a view from the outside looking in.
Here is a closeup of the beautiful birds of paradise flowers in our room. We unpacked and then it was time for dinner.
There were more beautiful flowers in the dining room.
This is where I chose to sit. All the tables were outside on the veranda.
It started to get dark pretty quick, once the sun began to set.
The amuse bouche was bread and butter. ????? I think bread and butter should always be served, but I will follow the chef’s lead on this one, amuse bouche it is.
I had the conch and corn chowder soup to start.
Steve had the chicken wings, which were really messy to eat.
Steve’s entree was lamb.
I had the lobster special. Today was the last day that lobster could be legally caught in Belize. They are off limits so they can spawn.
Steve had the vanilla spice cake.
I had the chocolate tart.
Another day and more eggs. Let’s see if the fruit is different today. 
Yes! Today we have added a new fruit. Dragon fruit! 
This is what they look like before they are cut up. It tastes very similar to a melon.
Today we had four new guests arriving so we had a bigger crowd for lunch. The breeze had settled down so we were eating on the back veranda again. You can tell that I claimed a seat with a view right away. There are my reading glasses designating my chair claim! 
I decided to try the beef burger with sweet potato fries. They also offer a pork burger. I have not tried that.
Our first canapé of the evening was conch fritters with a dipping sauce. 
Next up was hummus on baked pitettes. Pitettes is just a fancy name for a cracker. These guys had olives on them. I passed as I don’t like olives. 
Our starter was crab and pumpkin bisque. 
Steve and I had the chicken and mushroom pie. It was yummy. An alternative was fish pie.
Dessert was Delphi Tiamisu.