On to Victoria Falls

by | Jul 18, 2025 | Uncategorized

This happened so long ago (we were there on Friday—only a week ago, but it feels like at least three weeks), it almost seems like it was in another life. This particular day was (for us) the worst on this trip. It was the day we got sick. For some reason, I only get sick while we are traveling. Ask our friends and relatives who we travel with or visit. It’s as if I’m immune to colds and flu at home, but not on the road.

Kathleen had been coughing since she arrived in Cape Town, but she thought it was due to an allergy. When I caught it, we realized we both had it. And on top of having the cold, I made the mistake of not eating for the entire day and then just before bed, taking all my vitamins and regular prescriptions along with my malaria pill that we needed to take for this trip. The only problem was that we had been warned to “never take malaria medicine on an empty stomach.” And when I took it at 8:00 pm that night, I hadn’t eaten since 8:00 pm the night before. Needless to say, I got even sicker and this time it was my stomach.

We were staying at the colonial-style Victoria Falls Hotel, one of the oldest hotels in all of Africa. From their windows, you can see the falls…or at least the steam/spray from the falls. For some reason, this hotel bothered me greatly for several reasons. Maybe it was the whole colonial thing? Maybe it was the fact that it was IMPOSSIBLE to find our room without having someone take us there? Maybe it was because they had no map of the entire hotel (I asked and was told it was only on their website—if you go there, print out a copy in advance)? Perhaps it was because they had no indoor restaurants, so when we had breakfast outdoors on our two mornings there (at 6:30 with a temperature of around 45°F), the food was cold as soon as it hit your plate? Seriously, a beautiful hotel that costs a fortune to stay in, with a wonderful staff, and yet so many things bothered me. I suppose I really am a Victor (it’s a British thing).

Forget about us being sick. We did our best to do the evening activity after check-in. As soon as we had arrived and I had gotten our suitcases inside, I went to bed while Kathleen went off to meet some of the others for lunch. Then, around 5:30, we met Delia and the rest of the gang for a train trip that crossed a bridge that is over the Falls. We were to have appetizers and dinner on the train. We got on and they served drinks while it moved into position on the bridge. I should add that the bridge is so old that only one car or truck is allowed to cross it at a time. And the engine of the train could only back us onto the bridge. It could not go on the bridge itself. Made us feel really safe. We got on board and Kathleen got the traditional British colonial drink, the gin and tonic, while I was only up to Coca-Cola. Once we are out on the bridge and the engine is unhooked, you can get out to take photos (they are below) on the bridge. I took a few and then had to sit down on a bench on the bridge. Delia noticed and, being the angel she is, she asked if we would like her to get us a taxi back to the hotel. We happily said yes because by that time, I had chills (and not the kind with thrills) and a fever. We headed back almost immediately and were back at the hotel in no time. Of cours,e we got completely lost trying to find our room WITH NO MAP!

This is when I made the mistake of taking the malaria pill. BIG MISTAKE. Once I finally got to sleep, I slept for 12 straight hours (interrupted by coughing and blowing my nose). We both felt a little better the next day, but I still was not up for a big breakfast. Kathleen had slept less than I had, so she stayed in while I went to the coldest restaurant on earth (because it was outside in 45°F weather) for a cup of tea and a piece of toast. I really wanted to do the walk above the falls…which I was able to do, and we both felt better, but tired from that time on. Still have the cold, though, and we are sitting in the airport waiting to head home.

More about the next day in my next post. In the meantime, I took a few pictures that day. Here they are with captions. Don’t forget: if you click the first shot, you can scroll through it using your arrow keys or by swiping. And please, don’t view my photography on a phone. Please…

The post for the next day in Victoria Falls will be much more fun—I promise. Hopefully, I will have that up tomorrow. It’s the one that includes pics and video from our helicopter ride over the Falls. Yes, I went on a helicopter ride.

Long before the Scottish missionary and explorer Dr. David Livingstone ‘discovered’ the Falls in 1855, the local Batonga people had named them Mosi-oa-Tunya, ‘the smoke that thunders. — Anonymous AI on Google

 

 

 

Well it happened

by | Jun 3, 2024 | Food Experiences

I keep getting accused of being a constant complainer when I travel. My three British friends tell me I remind them of a character named Victor Meldrew. I think I mentioned him in Friday’s post. I try not to be like Victor. I really do. At home, I’m not that way. I am a happy-go-lucky guy who hardly ever complains about anything.

So, what am I complaining about today? Not the train ride we took yesterday. It was truly beautiful chugging through the British countryside, and the trains were on time. On the second half of our ride, we were on a high-speed train in the first-class coach, where two outstanding conductors helped me bring the luggage on board and then served us a delicious lunch. So, I have no complaints about the train.

Maybe the hotel we are staying in? It’s called Grasshoppers and even though there might be some tiny tiny stuff, it is basically a very nice place. And talk about convenience…it is situated on the sixth floor of the same building as the Glasgow Central Rail Station. So all we had to do was walk out the front door, make two quick turns and go back inside and up the elevator. We thought we would leave our bags and head off to look around downtown, but our room was ready. What a nice surprise. The people here are very nice. They have a room called the Sitting Room that I am sitting in now while Kathleen gets a little more shuteye.

Did I mention that they give you free breakfast if you book directly with the hotel? Or that they have cakes (choice of four) available 24/7, along with some delicious ice cream. How can you have a better hotel than that? Well, maybe better beds, but that has to do with my big complaint. Keep reading.

Am I complaining about the weather? Not me. If anything, it was too good. Bright sunlight and warmth with hardly a cloud in the sky. I took some photos, but the light was harsh. I much prefer that early morning sunrise light. Here are the pics I took so you can see what I mean. Don’t forget; if you click the first shot, you can then scroll through with your arrow keys or by swiping…and PLEASE…don’t look at my photography on a phone. Please…

Maybe it was the place we went for dinner last night? Not that, either. We had reservations at Banco di Roma, a lovely Italian restaurant about three blocks from the hotel. We figured by the time we were on the fifth day of our trip, we would want something a little different, and this place was just right. The food was superb (see the photos), and the ambiance (it is located in an old bank building that has been lovingly converted into a restaurant) was really cool. We even had two tables of people right in front of us for people-watching. You know the situation, family drama, where you make up stories about everyone, trying to figure out where they are from and who is related to whom. We do that all the time, but it has been a while since we had this many great people to figure it out.

So if it was the hotel, the food, the train or the weather, what am I complaining about—it’s the fact that once again on a trip—I am sick. I have come down with a horrible cold/flu. I don’t think it’s COVID (I have had every shot known to man), but it’s an ugly cold with a cough (that keeps Kathleen up all night), a very sore throat and a stuffed-up nose. I HATE BEING SICK WHEN I TRAVEL! It’s the worst. I am in a tiny hotel room with no place to go so Kathleen can sleep, and I can be comfortable. It just sucks. Hopefully, this doesn’t last long. We are going to go do the HoHo bus today so maybe that will make me feel better. Off to breakfast. I hope you have a great day.

Never complain and never explain.  —Benjamin Disraeli

I need to RANT!

by | Sep 7, 2022 | Uncategorized

I am going to go off on a RANT right now and come back with some happier thoughts about Kotor, Montenegro later. But here goes.

Right now, I am LIVID at Viking. LIVID! PISSED! TICKED! MAD AS HELL! 

As you know from yesterday’s post, my wife had food poisoning. We knew it was food poisoning because no one else in our party of six was sick. No one else on the ship is sick. Four of us have been traveling together for almost two weeks, I have been at her side for almost 25 years, and not one of us is sick. It is NOT a virus. She was feeling great this morning. We went to Mamsen’s for breakfast and had one of their wonderful waffles. Then we went back to our stateroom to get ready to go into Dubrovnik. My bride decided that she would go down to medical to see if they had any Imodium. She didn’t feel she needed it but thought since we would be in town, it would be a good preventative. So off she went while I got ready for the rest of our day.

Half an hour later, she came back from the medical office, where she told me that as soon as she asked for the Imodium, a nurse started asking her questions but would not listen to her answers. The nurse barely spoke English that my wife could understand, but she did not want to hear a thing when my wife tried to blame her illness on swordfish served in Manfreddis. Instead, she sent her back to our stateroom with two things—2 Immodium tablets and a quarantine notice to stay in our stateroom for at least 24 hours after her last symptoms. Not for COVID but just for gastrointestinal problems. As I said, she felt great. She only wanted the Imodium as insurance. They would NOT LISTEN TO HER because (I assume) she was blaming it on the ship’s food.

When she told me this, I have to say that I BLEW UP! I went to guest relations and talked to a woman whose badge said she was the head of Customer Relations. She took down everything I said. I asked her why a nurse could make this kind of diagnosis without listening to my wife, without hearing that she and I have eaten just about everything exactly the same except the swordfish. As I mentioned, if this were a virus, the rest of our party and I would surely have contracted it by now. My wife has had food poisoning before, and it is very different from the flu or norovirus. This was POOR medical care. Why is it that medical personnel will not listen before they make this kind of decision? Is it because they heard about food poisoning and that we would blame them and want compensation? We don’t and we didn’t. So instead, they ban someone to their stateroom and make them miss a port or two. Sadly, during this entire 21-day cruise, the only places we had never been before were these three ports, and we were really looking forward to seeing them.

And not only did they make her suffer this indignity, but the nurse gave her a major lecture that if she broke quarantine and stepped outside our room, we would both be thrown off the ship. Then she got a nasty form letter with the same admonition. The letter also stated that if she did as she was told and didn’t make any other trouble, we would not be charged for the medical office visit, but if she stepped out of line, we would be charged for everything they did for her.

Since then, I have been out and about on the ship (I was NOT quarantined—it shows how stupid this policy is) and have heard of at least three other people who ate the swordfish and got sick. When I asked if they went to the medical office, they said, “No! We don’t want to get quarantined.” Well, my advice from this day forward is this: If you get sick and you aren’t dying, stay away from the medical office. They will punish you—for poisoning you.

OK, my rant is over. I am back to working on the marvelous day I had in Kotor and in Dubrovnik. I should be able to get you those tomorrow.

You can’t fix stupid.  —Ron White