Am I Prepared? Uh, No!

There have been so many things to do while trying not to forget anything with lists upon lists, not only on the computer monitor, but on paper too. I love the Sticky Notes integrated in Window for things like this, but when I am not at the computer, good old paper and pencil are wonderful. Besides the regular “To Do” list, I needed to update our website, make certain all important e-mail addresses to be monitored were in Outlook on the laptop, update all programs on the laptop, have sufficient entertainment on an external drive in the event of poor WiFi, and check all tech supplies.

Then I realized that our BudaBaB Review blog needed updating, so I took on that project. I thought it would take a couple of hours, but after six hours of changing dates and trying to classify components in a logical manner, I threw in the towel before it was completed. To see what I did accomplish you can go here.

A brainstorm, which was not in the forecast, appeared out of nowhere. For some time now, we have had an Amazon Associates Bookstore on our BudaBaB website. Unfortunately, it has not done anywhere nearly as well as I had expected. To facilitate this, I took every item shown in the current store and placed them into the BudaBaB Review blog with a link back through the store. Anything anyone purchases through our store will profit us with a tiny commission. All prices are the same as if they went to Amazon.com on their own, so there is nothing to deter them other than remembering to do it. Support a newly retired person and buy through this store! Bookmark it now, before you forget.


Though I have not expressly mentioned it before, I created a couple of virtual stores. One is called BudgetNomad World Store and it is through Zazzle, a “print on demand” company. I upload my photos or designs that I have created and then use them to make any number of items for sale. Some designs are on men’s, women’s, or children’s clothes, as well as on mugs, phone covers, and the list is exhaustive. It doesn’t take long to create the item for sale, but marketing it is different. I post these on a separate blog created for this purpose. Have a look at it here. Then I post them on multiple accounts on Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, and others. This is where the time vacuum comes in. Each posting has a link back to the particular item. It is mindless tedious, energy draining work. It can take a full day just marketing two items.  

When something sells, I get a commission. It is not a great deal of money, but heck when you decide to retire, every little bit counts. I have sold greeting cards, mugs, and photos so far. This is a relatively new project. BudgetNomad World Store 

In my attempt to be efficient, I wrote our US accountant to inform him we would not be getting Ron’s tax information in early as I generally do. Ex-pats have a 3 month automatic extension, so I informed him we would send the forms as soon as we return. What I received in return, a week later was a distressing response stating he had cancer. It seems he had it for years, but had been in remission for the last three years. Now it has returned with a vengeance. He shared that he was in the hospital three times in 2014, each time for over 10 days. Due to his health, he was not going to be able to do anyone’s taxes for 2014. He had some projects left from 2013 and it would be all he could handle. I sent him our sincerest well wishes and understanding.

However, this meant that on the dawn of our leaving, a new accountant had to be found.  I wrote to the expat teacher who recommended me to begin with, but he was not aware of the situation. He did get what he called a cryptic note with an attachment, but never opened it thinking it may be a virus. I forwarded the letter I received to him. Then I started to wonder. The letter I received had major grammar and spelling errors, not typical of this man who had a doctorate in business. I wondered if his mail may have been hacked. There was no point in writing him to ask if his email had been hacked. I called his mobile, home, and office numbers. All three led to the same voice mailbox where the recording stated the capacity had been reached, so there was no room for an additional message. Then I sent a fax to his office apologizing for any disturbance, but wanting to verify someone is not ruining his business. I never heard back from any of these feelers.

I posted on Facebook, LinkedIn and asked other expat acquaintances if they had referrals, then sorted through them. Our former accountant stated he did not keep up with other expat accountants, but said we could try one who he knew of. I wrote him. I had given up on hearing back and contacted a number of others, but then he came through. We made a half dozen attempts to Skype, but our timing has not worked. He is in NYC. When we get to Ecuador, we will at least be in the same time zone. Keeping my fingers crossed this is the one!
 

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Pesky Mobile Service

 

I had asked at the Vodafone Customer Center about putting our service on a vacation package since we are contracted customers. They informed me this was possible, but I had to call it in, they were not equipped to do that service. I went home and called Vodafone, pressing all the correct numbers of the various menus for English and then the various services and needs. Of course, I received the recording that all operators were busy with other clients…blah, blah, blah.

After a 15-minute wait, it was my turn to be served. The woman addressed me in English, so I explained what I needed. She did not understand. I tried again using different vocabulary. She still did not understand, but said she would have someone with better English call me back within two hours.

Someone did call me back and he did understand my need. Then he asked for my personal code. After explaining that whatever the code was, it was created in 2001 and not having a need for it in years, I had no idea what it could be. He said it would be on my original contract. “Great,” I said, “the contract was created in 2001. Do you know where your paperwork is from 2001?” As I finished that speaking that thought, I realized in 2001, he was probably in 5th grade so his work is probably in his mother’s keepsake box, so sure he knows the whereabouts.

I asked for a clue. He offered that it could be four digits. After exhausting every combo of 4 digits I would likely use, he suggested that I return to the Vodafone Customer Center to either get the code or have it reset. He was not able to do it over the phone.

Ron and I headed down to the Vodafone Customer Center on Monday, my birthday. Whoopee! What a celebration. I explained to the young man what I needed. He started to look up the information using our mobile phone numbers. Once he found out phone numbers he realized that this was a business account that personal accounts. This seemed to change things, he asked for our business papers. Of course I didn’t think to bring our business papers so I didn’t have them on me. He told me he couldn’t do anything without proof that I was one of the owners. I asked why my name was not identified with the account so that I could just show personal proof of identity and be done with it. He said that back when this account was opened in 2001 associate names with business accounts; when they change the system they never updated that information. Trying to keep myself from causing this man out, I walked out.

I went home and decided that I needed to get this done immediately; there were too many things hanging over our heads before we left. I picked up all of our business papers which is a folder containing about 50 pages and then headed back to the Vodafone Customer Center. The young man from earlier was gone and replaced by a young woman. After repeating my need to reset my password, she asked my telephone number. As she was retrieving it, I told her this was a business account. Without any other questions she immediately showed me the code that I needed. It was not a four digit code, but a six digit code. Had the man on the phone told me it was six digits I could definitely have told them the code without any hesitation. I asked her if it was possible for me to put the funds on vacation service while I was there. She said as I had been told before they did not have the capability of doing that at the service centers; I would need to call Vodafone to have it arranged.

I returned home and without further ado I called Vodafone again. Once again after going through various menus and being on hold for an unruly amount of time, I was speaking to a woman who claimed her English was not good enough to understand what I needed. Again I received the offer for a call back. When the call came, it was a young man’s voice which sounded vaguely familiar. With great ease I gave him the six digit code as he request in order to access the account.

The problem however came when I asked to have the phones put on vacation service. He didn’t understand what I meant. I tried asking to have the phones suspended for a time. He did not understand. Then I said “I’m going out of the country for three months I don’t want to use my phone during the time I am gone; therefore, I do not want to have to pay the bill.” Still he did not understand. I tried one more time, but honestly I have no idea how I reconfigured my wording, but he finally grasped my meaning.

I made sure to say I do not want the service to be put on hold until January 12. After a few minutes, I heard him gasp, and then he shared that he accidentally ended our service for that day. He continued “I hope I can get it changed before it goes into effect.” I said “I hope you do, otherwise are going to be disconnected.” The service will be disconnected for six months, even though I only requested it for 90 days. Their system is incapable of putting in an end date, but their default is six months. I was informed that when I return, I will need to call them again to have the service reactivated. Of course we will have to call from a landline, since our mobiles will be turned off.

Just one of the aggravating things needing to be done before leaving on a long trip.

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Another Birthday Wish

Happy Birthday!

Yes, I know it is not today but tomorrow; however, I wanted to demonstrate that, unlike the throng of commenters who will wish you well on social media, I need no notification to remember. Knowing that this is the first time in years you spend your birthday home, I was going to suggest meeting up for a celebratory cup of hot beverage; alas, I have since been forced to retract the thought because my final exam is going to take place in 10 days, and there is still very much to learn. Anyway, happy birthday! I hope you get to spend it the way you want to.

Árpád

He must have known. There have been over 47 well wishers so far on Facebook and via e-mails. I am overwhelmed.

and then...

Dear Dr. James,

I would like to wish you, one of the most influential professors I know, a very Happy Birthday! 

I hope you are feeling well, and you are enjoying this special day.

All the best,

Virág

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A Birthday Gift

Dear Ryan,

First of all, let me wish you two things:
   

and  a very    ! 

I hope you're having an amazing day!

Second of all, on this precious day I would like to thank you again for all your support, not only with my thesis, but also for what you taught me about life with your advice and helpful guidelines concerning this thing called "Life". I can still clearly remember our conversation about two years ago in your ELTE office (ELTE...sounds nostalgic, doesn't it?) when you encouraged me not to be afraid of the big step of moving abroad for a while by listing me your top two favorite cities where you would definitely want to live, one being Munich. Well, let me just say, I did take your advice, so much so that in December me and my fiance celebrated our 10-month-anniversary of living in Munich! We moved here last March, and are planning to stay for at least 3 or 4 years, then we'll see. It was a decision made in 2014 that we certainly did not regret as we love the city, the sights, the nature around us and the "Bayern-lifestyle".
 

Thank you for being the wise and cool teacher you have always been, and I guess I'm not exaggerating, if I say, not just for me, but for oh so many of us!

Have a great time, may you be in the Eastern or the Western Hemisphere of the globe and enjoy your day!

Lots of love,
Livi M. (aka the "Megachurch-thesis author")   

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They Arrived

Okay, I have to admit this post is a long time coming. The jackets we ordered from Global Travel Clothing arrived a few weeks ago. Actually, they arrived when we were in Cyprus, but here is what happened.

I had them sent to my private student's store. He owns a health food store and is always getting packages from around the world without a problem. I used to have all of my packages sent to the university, but I cannot do that any longer. When the jackets arrived, he held off sending me an e-mail knowing we were out of the country. Then when we returned, he had to cancel the next lesson.

When I finally received them, it was the start of the nine days without gas: no hot water, no heat, and no stove. My mind was on other things, though the jackets would have been handy for warmth. 

The gas was finally turned back on by December 23rd, but when it went on, the furnace would not work. It took us two days to find a repairman to come out, but who then discovered there were some broken parts. By Christmas, we were all heated up again, but shortly thereafter, we had B and B guests. One thing after another, I had forgotten to get Ron to model the jacket for a photo. 

Finally, it happened. See above? 

The first thing I did was see if my Galaxy Tablet would fit in the inner pocket. It does. There are pockets within pockets. Excellent security. Unlike the other coats that I have read about, this one does not have dozens of pockets. However, the reviews of those jackets with too many pockets fault this as so many of them are so small, they are useless.

I love the material of the jackets with the added plus that they are machine washable. Though the black color will hide dirt, it is a bonus they will not require dry cleaning, yet that is a choice.

So far, we are as pleased as punch with these jackets even if we had not taken them for a test spin in a pickpocket infested city yet. 

Visit the site here.

For full disclosure if you go to the site, you can earn a $10 discount for answering a short questionnaire. However, Glenn Cope, the owner gave me $20 off each jacket in exchange for one blog post. There were no conditions set on what the post should include, but he was secure enough in his product to trust what I would write. As a thanks and to give readers the full story,  I offered 3 posts. This is number 2. The third one will be from Ecuador.

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No Boxes for Hungary

Someone corrected me stating Hungary does not celebrate Boxing Day, but rather it is called St. Stephen's Day.

Well not according to this website or this one either. Apparently, not everyone received the memo!

The point is, regardless of what it is officially named, the reality is it is a celebrated holiday.

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Frozen More Than a Movie

 

It had been a week to the day that we were without gas, but a semi-Christmas miracle happened. They installed the new meters in each apartment and turned the gas on. It was tough going getting the stove top to light again, but eventually it did. The hot water heater sprang to life once a torch provided the initial flame. Yet, the one piece of equipment we really need is the one holdout. Our thing for lack of a better word or is it a furnace, regardless, it is what heats the water for the radiators. There is still no life visible.

We called our friend Andrew who rents out apartments and has workers on call. He arrived last night to see if he could fix it himself, but when he couldn't he promised to return with a mechanic in the morning. That was today.  

After a careful examination, the repairperson explained that a necessary part has been broken. He showed that it was obvious by the small pieces left behind. Attached to this inside part is a small red button on the outside that once protruded from the surface of the machine. After we had Budapest Repair out to service this heater a few months ago, the red button had been permanently shoved back with no wiggle room to be effective for any reason. We didn't know the function of this button, but we hadn’t even noticed until after they had left. Back then, we were grateful for heat. Little did we know the importance this was going to have in the future.

Today is December 23rd. Tomorrow most things will close for the holiday which extends through Friday as they celebrate Boxing Day here. Then we have the weekend extending the shutdown until normal activities resume on December 29th giving us a short window before our next go with a long holiday weekend. We have B and B guests coming on the 28th.

You know what happens to men’s genitals in the cold? Well, we may expect to see ours again by Ground Hog Day.

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Give Me Credit Even If I Have a Stupid Moment

I had one of those "I am overwhelmed" moments. I just received my new MasterCard to replace the one due to expire while we are still in Ecuador. It arrived via UPS.

I called to activate it as instructed. The credit card phone system robot asked me to enter the 16 digit account number twice before finally saying, "I am sorry. I cannot locate that account. I will transfer you to a representative." I really wanted the system to activate it so I could move on with other things.

The rep comes on the line and asks me my name and the account number. Now I am getting testy. I had to enter the 16 digit account number twice already, yet this representative is asking yet again for the number.

He too has a difficult time finding my account, which is causing me great distress and I am about to say something uncouth. He preempts me with a question. Are you sure you are calling about a Capitol One account?

Mercifully, this was not a video call. It was not my Capitol One MasterCard I was calling to activate; it was my Diners Club MasterCard. I fessed up to the mistake giving the representative a hearty laugh and a wish for a good evening.

And to think I have been taking vitamin D to help improve my memory, now I need something to improve my awareness. Anyone who calls this a senior moment is going on Santa's naughty list.

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No Gas Until Christmas

Last week we received a notice there was going to be a house meeting. We never attend knowing we will not understand, but our next door neighbor said we should. He explained based on the square meters of our apartment, we had great influence in the decision making. One agenda item was replacing gas pipes. It seems the BKV building across the street from us, the company responsible for all public transportation in the city, has discovered a gas leak in their basement. These pipes needed to be replaced. They continued under our building so all of us were affected.

What we did not realize was the timing or the impact. On Monday, Ron was up early to shower before his appointment with the anesthesiologist for his Tuesday surgery. When I went to shower, there was no hot water. I immediately blamed some downdraft blowing out the pilot light on the hot water heater, but then I noticed the light was blinking on the heater for the radiators. Bother were avoiding being relight.

No gas! Our neighbor came running over when he saw the whites of my eyes, chattering a mile a minute in Hungarian.  I must have looked like the proverbial deer in the headlights, but it did not stop him from continuing to ramble on. I started calling everyone I knew who could possibly translate. Of course, most people did not answer their phone, but thankfully, our friend András did.

What I learned was that the gas was being turned off that day, Monday. Men from the gas company would be coming to remove the gas meter. There will be no gas until December 23rd. This was not good news under any circumstances, but in December it does send a shiver down one’s spine.

As of Monday, we have no heat, no hot water for showering or washing clothes, and no stove for cooking. Due to my newly renewed culinary interests, we do have an electric crock pot. It will be a savior keeping us from having to eat out. Monday was our first night without heat; it was not too cold. We did fine.

Tuesday, we were up at 5:30am to get Ron to the hospital for his surgery. He was to be there by 7am the latest. Our kitchen sink has an electric water heater, so we were able to get hot water for his sponge bath. I could not go that route, so I took a freezing cold shower. Truly not an experience one wants to repeat.

Tuesday, we were up at 5:30am to get Ron to the hospital for his surgery. He was to be there by 7am the latest. Our kitchen sink has an electric water heater, so we were able to get hot water for his sponge bath. I could not go that route, so I took a freezing cold shower. Truly not an experience one wants to repeat.

After Ron was taken off to surgery at 7:45, I went home again. Our neighbor showed up again chattering like a magpie. Again, I called András. People from the gas company were going to be in and out all day. First two men came to take pictures of our meter and then remove it. A bit later, another man came with a new gas meter that is now sitting on the floor. Because I wanted to be at the hospital when Ron’s surgery was over; I gave our neighbor keys.

Back at home I found that one of the gas pipes had been cut off. Thankfully, it was in a closet where the meter lives, so didn’t matter. A different worker made an appearance to perform the soldering task on a cuff put on the new pipe. He tried to explain it may damage the outer wall. What I thought this meant was that they would have to break through the cabinet. It seemed the original pipe was too close to the side wall. When I yet again returned home, it was apparent it just created small burn marks in the paint, but it is low enough that our shoe stand will cover it.

Ron is various stages of grogginess as I went back and forth to the hospital. His doctor looks like a teenager, but is from Chicago, so English is no problem. His surgery went well, but they were keeping him overnight.

Today, Wednesday he was able to return home leaving a warm hospital for a cold apartment. He is not allowed to shower until the stitches are removed on December 24th. Merry Christmas! In the meantime, he has to administer a shot in the arm each night.

Dinner is in the crock pot cooking. Last night I survived the cold with a couple of extra layers of clothes so it should not be too bad. A hot meal makes all the difference. A second blanket does wonders as well. Friends have offered a shower, so I will take them up on the offer.

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Quick Trip to Vienna

Our friend Margie from CA had arranged to take a river cruise ending in Vienna. She suggested we meet up if possible. Thinking that Margie was leaving on Monday morning, we made arrangements to train up to Vienna on Friday, the 12th and come home Saturday evening. Our other friend Kat, who is living in Budapest, had never been to Vienna so she came along. We booked the 7:10 am train going and the 7:48 pm train returning so as to maximize Kat’s time seeing the city.

It was more than fortunate that we had seat reservations. There were mobs of people standing in the aisles the entire trip. Strangely, the Railjet, a nicer train cost us about 2,600 Huf for the reservations for the 3 of us, but the lesser older train cost us over 4,500 Huf for our return journey.

Margie met us at the train station. We stopped at our hotel to leave our things, but at 10 am it was too early to check in. From there we toured around, visiting Christmas markets, a major disappointment still after all the years we have visited here. Hawking more junk than Christmas related products, it was a letdown yet again. Christmas related items for sale are so commonplace; there is no reason to pay these inflated prices. Those vendors who are really making a killing are at the food booths. Lines are ten deep to fill up on grease, sugar, and salt. Interestingly, I have eliminated all sugars and grains from my diet. Though I had some fears that the temptation would be too great, but as it turned out, watching grossly overweight people pigging out made it extremely bearable.

Ron tried to show everyone a good time and valiantly attempted to find the tram we remembered as circling the city. Either they discontinued this route, changed it for the season, or something was posted we could not read, but it never happened according to plan. Regardless, Kat and Margie did see parts of the city they would not normally get to view in such a short time.

As it turned out, Margie was leaving very early Saturday morning, so we basically had the entire day for the three of us. I like Vienna, but it leaves me cold. Others have said this as well. Perhaps it is the ultra-white buildings, but it was fine to go, but not a thrilling experience.

Joining Kat, we went to the Schönbrunn Palace where we did the Imperial Tour for €11.50 each. They would not discount me with the press card and there were no concessions for Ron. Ron received an audio guide that had to be replaced twice; it malfunctioned. Rococo to me is gaudy, not attractive, but of course this was the style of the time.

We managed to fill our day, but closer to the train time we were all running out of steam. We left our things at the hotel at 9:30 and did not return until an hour before the train. I was more than ready to return home.

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Opps! There Goes Our Window to the World

During our now regular Sunday dinners, after announcing this happened to be our 13th year anniversary in Budapest, we moved on to the topic of Internet connections. Sharing our experiences back in 2001, our friends were in awe over the advancements. We moved from a dial-up modem paying for every minute of telephone time except between 11pm and 7am to a full-fledged high speed cable connection.

It must have been a hex or a premonition. Monday morning our Internet connection stopped. I did all the things I normally know to do before calling the cable company, one of which is to wait an hour to see if any changes have taken plus. Then I powered everything off, rebooted the computer, and went through the checklist. No luck!

I called the cable company. Press 7 for English, press 2 if you have Internet connection issues, then the message is “You may find what assistance you need on our website.” Duh!! If I could get the website, I would not need to call in the first place or at least not by pressing 7 and then 2. I waited in the cyber-line for my turn. When I spoke to a human and explained the problem, he had me do all sort of things, although I had explained I did them already. Then he reset the connection from the office.  It did not work. He said he had to transfer me to another level tech person who answered my call, but could not hear me. “If you don’t answer in 3 seconds, I am cutting this call” he announced. The line went dead.

Two more calls were unsuccessful, but four was the charmed number this time. Again, the tech ran me through the paces, but could not find any errors on their end. It is always the computer’s fault; never the responsibility of the cable company. After pushing for more service, he finally agreed to send out a technician to look at the wiring to see if that was the culprit. They were due today between 8am and noon.

If the meanwhile, I left the computer on all day long to see if anything would change. 
What we did all day without the Internet:
Head to the computer for researching some movie then realize it is not working.
Read books
Sit down to write e-mails and then remembering they cannot be sent yet.
Took naps
Flip on the tablet to read the news, but only finding “No Connection Found”
Went out on errands we would normally put off
It was a long day!!
By 10pm, the icon previously showing no Internet connection made the conversion to being connected to the wider world. Hooray, but do I cancel the technician coming? No, it could have been a fluke that it started working. Why risk losing a house call if it turned out to be needed.

As it turned out, it was necessary. There was no WiFi anywhere in the apartment. When the technician came of course his English was limited, but we managed. He saw the computer was now connected, but I told him there was no WiFi. He booted his netbook and showed me there was. I booted up my tablet to trump his bid and there was no connection. A smile came over his face. It turned out that when the office reset the connections from the office, they reset everything back to the default, which included our connection name and password. To be fair, the man told me it would revert to the default, but it did not occur to me what was included in this.

When I asked the technician in our living room to change our connection name back to BudaBaB with our original password, he agreed to do so. However, it turned out the cable box had other ideas. In the end, he had to replace the entire cable box. Job well done and problems solved!

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Yet Another Anniversary - 13 Years

Today marks yet another anniversary for us. This date is a ménage à trois celebration if one wants to be anthropomorphic with Budapest and consider this as celebratory. Some may call it a major triumph. 

September 11, 2001 we were in New Jersey at my father's. We had flown into LaGuardia airport the week before. I was on the phone ordering our Eurail passes when the Eurail operator told me of an incident he heard about on the radio sitting on his desk. I immediately went to turn on the news after finishing the call. Our scheduled flight from Newark airport to London on September 14, 2001 was delayed until the 24th.

On December 7, 2001 we arrived in Budapest and rented our first apartment with all good intentions to stay for 3 months before continuing a year of travel that started in July of that year. 

Our first apartment is not where we are currently living. We moved into this place on February 14, 2002.

Thirteen years living in Budapest!

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Some Things Are Too Good to Toss

Ron pulled out some Xmas things to spruce up the place since we will be here this year, much to my chagrin. This card was in one of the boxes. Some things are just too good to toss! If you remember Dick and Jane I hope your memories are as good as mine are. Sally and Spot helped millions of US American kids read. In storage in New Jersey, with thousands of other books, I have a copy of Dick and Jane Grew Up. 

What really is funny about this is the bottom picture. Quite coincidental!

 

 

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Did Szent Mikulás Visit You?

Did you polish your best boot(s) and put them on the windowsill or in front of the door to be filled by Szent Mikulás? If you did and you were good, you name will be recorded in his ledger. Szent Mikulás will fill your boots with presents from his great bag of presents and treats.

Unless you are wise enough to get extra-large boots for the occasion, there will not be much room for the candies, tangerines, oranges, walnuts, apples, and chocolate Mikulás figures that the saint leaves behind. There seems to be a bit of egocentric behavior going on with the chocolate selfies.

Krampus (Krampusz) is the ugly devil who accompanies saintly goodie man. He is supposed to be a frightening figure with horns and chains, dressed in fur. That is old school. After the series of horror films like Silent Night, Deadly Night, it is challenging for any devil to outdo scariness. For those of us who prefer naughty things in life that bring some unadulterated pleasure all year round, we subjected or treated to, depending on your point of view, to receiving a golden wad of sticks or a wooden spoon. For the bawdy among us, this could be much better than an orange!

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Larnaca > Limassol > Paphos

Breakfast at the San Remo was a little surreal. Some of the guests looked like escapees from various reality TV shows, while others could have been cast members from previous seasons of American Horror Show. Add in the fact that the lobby and breakfast room are the only places where the Wi-Fi works and the coffee is instant only, it is true, 'you get what you pay for'.

We needed to get to the bus station by 10am for our first leg of our journey. The clerk said it was a 20 minute walk without suitcases. Okay, taxi please! Six euros later, having traveled through a maze of streets, we were beyond thrilled we didn’t play pauper and try to this by walking. We would still be hunting for the spot.

Buses here are huge, modern, and confortable. Our one hour 45 minute ride cost us 4 Euros each. Our stop was Limassol. We needed to wait here for an hour to change buses; the next leg would take us to Paphos. After walking about 3 blocks, we found the correct stop to catch the next bus and across the street was a cute café where we could hang out until the golden hour.

I am pretty certain I have failed to mention that we are a threesome. Our friend Kat, who did the Cadiz, Spain journey with us, decided we are festive travel mates, so has joined us for this one too. Our finally journey took us to the heart of Paphos, not near our hotel. Another taxi ride costing us 8 Euros brought us to the Daphne Apartment Hotel. Having been the one to make the hotel reservations this trip, I was thrilled to see that I will not be victimized for my hotel selections. There was a moment after the San Remo, where things were rather bleak.

The Daphne Apartment Hotel is all that I have read about it. It sits a block from the sea. Our apartment has 2 bedrooms, kitchen, and a humungous dining room/living room combination. There is a balcony off of the dining area that overlooks the pool and each bedroom has its own balcony as well. The kitchen is fully equipped with a double hot plate on top of a large toaster oven, a hot pot for coffee and a microwave. There are plenty of dishes, cups, glasses, etc. to live here comfortably. There is a supermarket right around the corner.

Ironically, when we went for a walk along the shore line, we were starving. One restaurant that caught our attention was the Captain’s Way with their 11.95Euro three course meals. There were plenty of choices for each course, so we decided to gamble. Good choices were made by all. We were stuffed.

Continuing down the shore, we went to the Nea Pafos, a fort built during the Frankish occupation in the 13th century in order to replace the Byzantine castle of 'Saranta Kolones. Views from the entry made it look like an admission charge of 2.50 Euro was extravagant; climbing the stairs to the top level offered exceptional views. By this time, it was getting cold or closer to frigid, but we hoofed it along the walking trail along the water for another ½ mile, before turning back.

We walked back to the hotel finding the supermarket around the corner. Supplied with tea, peanuts and some cheeses, we were ready to welcome the evening. That lasted for about 2 hours, when we decided we needed another walk before bed. One would think that this being a Mediterranean country, it would be warmer than it is. All three of us wish we had brought heavier coats, but still we are grateful we are not walking around in the shorts and short sleeved shirts that others are. They look like one giant goose bump.

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Hello Greek Cyprus!

We landed here at 8:45pm their time, an hour later than Budapest. The airport is wonderfully modern, yet being we came in on WizzAir, we had to walk from the plane to the airport and climb a flight of stairs before Passport Control. This was a surprising simple process at both ends, Budapest and Larnaca. No one asked us why we entered the EU in April and stayed beyond our 90 days.

From the airport, there are two choices of transport ~ airport express which runs about $9 per person or a taxi, which was $15 total. When the driver asked if we were spending our entire stay at the Cactus Hotel, our destination, I became a little concerned. Banking on the fact we were only there for one night, it seemed we would be able to cope with whatever arose.

Blindly, I booked the room through Alpharooms.com, requesting one single and one double room. With the vouchers in hand showing the rooms were paid in full, we attempted checking in. Apparently, the Cactus Hotel had some prickly issues with the reservation, so there were not two rooms at the inn. Politely, the desk clerk asked that we follow her as she marched us across the street to the San Remo Hotel.

We were given our keys for two rooms and told where and when breakfast would be in the morning. The room was objectively clean, yet upon closer inspection, there were dirty corners in various places that were decades overdue for meeting with a good scrub brush. Strangely, the toilet was blue until a few flushings turned it to its normal white color. The downside of this was that the tank never stopped running, causing a bit of plumbing surgery to be done by our own Schmitz the plumber’s assistant.

We did find a delightful restaurant not far from the hotel on the waterside. We were the only patrons, but honestly, none of the surrounding establishments had any guests either. It was cold and blustery out. The walk back was quite chilly.

All night long, there was a boom-boom-boom sound that was mechanical, not musically instigated. Hence, the clock mocked me at 2am and teased that I would never get to sleep. We knew we were taking the 10am bus to Limassol and then to Paphos. Not even my Tylenol PM is cutting it tonight.

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One Turkey's Life Has Been Saved

What is wrong with this picture? It is close to 10am, our flight for Cyprus is today, but I have yet to get into the shower. Finally, after years of travel, we have a flight that does not leave at some ungodly hour. Past trips have departed as early as 5:30am, which basically doesn’t even qualify as a night’s sleep the day before. We need to be at the airport by 4am the earliest.

It is with great gratitude this flight doesn’t leave until 5:30pm. The taxi is arranged for a 3pm pick-up, getting us to the airport an unusual 2 hours early. For the first time in years, we are initially flying outside the Schengen Zone, so there will be Passport Control to navigate and adding to our airport time.

Starting with Thanksgiving 2002, we have celebrated the holiday with 6-8 others here in our home. We scrambled around to find a whole turkey; they are as rare as fur on a chicken. For a few years, we had an in with a US Embassy employee who would take pity on us and get one at their commissary. When they were transferred, we were relegated to rolling the dice and wishing for good fortune. It worked, but the effort was similar to an extreme sports competition.

Next was finding cranberries, since ready-made sauce was totally out of the question. When we first discovered them in 2005 at the great market, they were averaging $6 for a half pound. Gritting our teeth, we paid the price. It was similar to getting a bandage ripped off.

Never to be seen was pumpkin, at least the kind we find in cans in the US. Then again, it was not until 2010 that real pumpkins started sparsely appearing in large produce markets, but were even more readily available at florist shops, where they were sold as decoration. There are specialty grocery stores where you have to barter your kidney for a can of pumpkin or any other ingredient to make the holiday dinner seem most traditional. However, often we were fortunate with B and B guests who would generously be our mule for pumpkin, cranberries, or whatever other element was needed.

It is always at this time of year that we remember to give thanks for American ways which are infiltrating this part of Europe at last. Being an expat is wonderful most of the time, but it seems that changes in weather spark that autumn nostalgic feeling for the back home festive décor and traditions.

When we lived in the US, we hosted Thanksgiving dinner for all of our friends who did not have families close by to celebrate the holiday. Seven years of Thanksgiving feasts were spread over our dining room table in California. In 2001, we had already left the US, so we celebrated Thanksgiving at the Hard Rock Restaurant in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Nevertheless, from 2002 through 2013, we were the focal point for other Americans and some Hungarians who wished to share our tradition.

Ron suggested we bypass the holiday hunter/gather stress this year and vacation away. Cyprus is on our list of the 10 smallest countries in Europe, which we are checking off. The airfare was cheap enough, less than $130 each. Off we go…until Saturday.

This is an oldie, but goodie for Thanksgiving smiles. Click on the turkey or here. Wishing everyone who celebrates it, Happy Thanksgiving. I will be writing from Cyprus as I am able.

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Taking a Moment to Brag

A couple of days ago I checked the statistics of this blog. There are many times when I am pleasantly surprised by what I see, but this has totally blown me away.

The pageviews for last month were 10,057. The most I have reached prior to this was a little over 4,000. My own pageviews are not recorded, so I have not been able to plump up the numbers in any way, but never could I have done it to such an extreme.

The other impressive number is the all time history at 502,996. For a hobbyist blogger who is not entirely focused on a target audience, this is thrills me.

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Ecuador Plans

A PDF copy can be downloaded here for better reading and study.

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