12/25/2014--Getting Ready to Go

In August we had a scare when Jim became ill in Rome and needed emergency surgery in Rome for a strangulated hernia. If we had decided to fly home, he would not have made the trip alive. We did not know this until we got home and consulted with the doctors here in the states. We are the caregivers for Jim’s brother and try to take a vacation from our caregiving duties once a year. Well, our Roman escapade and Mediterranean cruise is not what you would really call a vacation since we had to cancel our cruise and return home early. So it has now been a good 18 months since we have had a break from these duties and in my opinion, long overdue. On Friday, December 19 the doorbell rang and the UPS man was there to pick up our two heaviest pieces of luggage. We were happy to see them go. We spent many hours trying to decide what would go ahead of us and now pray that we will see them again on the Prinsendam on January 3.

They have been tracked and we now know that they are in the Luggage Forward facility in Dania Beach Florida waiting to be loading onto the Prinsendam on January 3. We only hope and pray we see them again. On January 1 Jim and I will drive to Fort Lauderdale and stay at the Fairfield Inn. We will spend January 2 resting and making sure we have everything we need for this long voyage. We will make sure we have enough wine and any and all sundries we need for this trip. We hope to keep you updated along the way with our adventures.