Departure Day

Aloha Everyone,

Judy, one of my very good friends, expressed her concern when I told her that J.J. and I will be traveling with 2 suitcases and one backpack each. In Europe our primary mode of transportation is train. We have to be prepared to pull and carry our own luggage. 

Yes I was able to pack most of the items we need including stuffing my trusted down pillow and still remain under weight — less than 12 kilos for me and less than 15 kilos for J.J. International airlines are usually 20 kilos limit per bag.

Now at the One World lounge, we are enjoying light snack before boarding our Iberia Airline flight.

Aloha -- Cathi

Next Destination: The Iberian Peninsula

Aloha Everyone,

J.J. and I will be visiting Northern Spain and Portugal for the next two and half months. This is the longest overseas stay since the two of us retired.   

I have been spending at least 30 minutes a day practicing Spanish using Duolingo. I am hopeful that our conversation in Spain with the locals will go more smoothly this time.

For the last three days, J.J. and I stayed with my Mother. She has made a remarkable recovery and I enjoyed our daily conversations.

Since it would be difficult for us to promise how often I can call, I wrote 5 letters with drawings and asked our son to mail them to her at regular intervals.

I also made updated prints of our family which she prefers over email photos. I will have lots of stories to share with her upon our return.

Aloha -- Cathi

Visitation of Our Friend, Dolores

Aloha Everyone,

On her way to New York from Manila, our friend Dolores, stopped in LA to visit J.J. and me for 3 days. It was a whirlwind trip for her. The day of her arrival, we purchased take-out food, then went to our hotel to catch up with our lives. We talk with one another every few weeks,  but face-to-face conversation is far more interesting, open and relaxed.

Day 2, we drove using Honu to visit our daughter-in-law and granddaughter. J.J. drove a total of 5 hours. Over a wonderful lunch which our daughter-in-law had prepared for us, Dolores absolutely was enchanted and delighted getting to know our granddaughter. Dolores met her once when our granddaughter was a few months old. Photos and videos, she stated, do not show her personality and character :-). She told us that was the highlight of her 3 days visit.

On Day 3, J.J. arranged a gathering with his cousins. It is a small world as Dolores was a very good friend of their late older brother and his wife. Over Filipino food, our conversation was fun and lively.

It is always wonderful to see your friends.

Aloha -- Cathi

My Mother’s 98th Birthday

Aloha Everyone,

With love, joy and gratitude, the family celebrated our Mother’s 98th Birthday today.

Aloha -- Cathi

A Joyful Luncheon with Gail & Genevieve

Aloha Everyone,

J.J. and I enjoy going out to lunch with Gail, our friend and the energetic, conscientious owner of Red Ledge RV Park. Today we tried the Depot Grill in Cedar City. Their lunch hours are 11:00 am - 2:00 pm. Not being able to secure online reservations, we decided to beat the crowd and arrived at the restaurant promptly at 11:00 am.

I’ve written about this restaurant. With a great ambiance and good acoustic, it is an ideal place for a meeting. Today we were graced by the presence of Gail’s younger sister, Genevieve who is visiting Gail from Oregon.

Interestingly, the restaurant had no other guests. I wonder if today was an unusual exception or do they not have a steady clientele. Hopefully, today was anomaly and their business will pick up because the food is excellent.

The four of us enjoyed our lunch. The dishes were well presented and delicious.

Aloha -- Cathi