My Fab Fifties Life - Laureen, Author at My Fab Fifties Life

Reading Wednesday

Book Review The Tao of Pooh by Ben Hoff

March 20, 2019

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Location: Reading Wednesday

Hoff is a follower of Taoism and in 1982 he wrote The Tao of Pooh as a way to introduce the Eastern belief system to the Western reader. Using the beloved A.A. Milne characters from the Winnie-the-Pooh series, Hoff tells the simple story of Tao.

I found this book in our room at the Yoga studio in El Salvador. I picked it up, and read it easily in a few hours. Even though the story was published more than 35 years ago, it actually is very timely by today’s standards. In our current state of egotistical leaders, selfish and fast-paced lives, and sometimes frightening world – looking at the Taoism beliefs through the simple mind of Pooh is brilliant.

“Hoff uses many of Milne’s characters to symbolize ideas that differ from or accentuate Taoist tenets. Winnie-the-Pooh himself, for example, personifies the principles of wei wu wei, the Taoist concept of “effortless doing,” and pu, the concept of being open to, but unburdened by, experience, and it is also a metaphor for natural human nature. In contrast, characters like Owl and Rabbit over-complicate problems, often over-thinking to the point of confusion, and Eeyore pessimistically complains and frets about existence, unable to just be. Hoff regards Pooh’s simpleminded nature, unsophisticated worldview and instinctive problem-solving methods as conveniently representative of the Taoist philosophical foundation. The book also incorporates translated excerpts from various prominent Taoist texts, from authors such as Laozi and Zhuangzi.” (taken from Wikipedia).

A simple and easy read for a lazy Sunday in the hammock.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Four Stars for the Tao of Pooh by Ben Hoff

Read last week’s review of The Dovekeepers: A Novel by Alice Hoffman

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Dental Tourism in Costa Rica

My Experience

March 18, 2019

Laureen

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Location: Costa Rica

I had heard a lot about Americans who travel to Costa Rica to have dental work done. I always thought of this as something “old” people did. LOL. Face the music – my time had come.

When my husband retired we were able to continue our medical insurance through his company but not dental. So for the past three years we have not had dental insurance. I continue to get my teeth cleaned every six months and just pay cash. No big deal.

The view at Meza Dental

But then a problem came along. I first noticed it when we were walking our first Camino a year and a half ago. I had the painful tooth looked at by a surprisingly wonderful dentist in Tunisia who diagnosed me with bone loss. She put me on an antibiotic and I was able to forget about the tooth until we returned to the USA last summer.

Back in the USA my local dentist confirmed the diagnosis and quoted me $7500 for an extraction and implant procedure.

Holy Molars! I can think of a whole lot of things I would rather do with $7500 than give it to my dentist (plane tickets, hotels, food…). I got a second opinion, about $1000 less. I decided to continue to live with it for a while, but the thought of dental tourism began to develop in my head.

I knew we were going to Costa Rica, one of the countries with the best reputation for dental tourism. About three months ago my tooth once

Surgery

again began to throb and give me pain and I was using Ibuprofen way too often. So I began some intensive research.

Through another blogger I found in one of my blogging groups I landed on Meza Dental in San Jose Costa Rica. I did a bunch of research about them, and in general about the safety of dental work in Costa Rica. I was impressed. I began an email conversation with Meza and they were incredibly helpful and patient with me and my million questions. I decided to do the extraction and implant and a bone graft while in Costa Rica. These three procedures, as well as an overall cleaning and two x-rays cost me $1700. A price tag that didn’t give me a toothache.

All smiles again.

It’s been a couple of weeks now and the stitches are nearly gone, and other than the fact I have a gaping hole in my mouth, I feel really great. I have now found a new dentist at home where I can finish the procedure after the required six months of healing. I will need an abutment and a crown affixed. This will cost me a little more than $1000.

I am super happy with the results of the work I had done, and the cost. I would definitely consider this again should future problems arise. During the two days I spent at Meza Dental clinic I met only Americans in the waiting room – several who were in Costa Rica for the second and third time having major reconstructive and even cosmetic dentistry work done.

So, if you have ever worried about having dental work done outside of the USA, smile, and check out Meza Dental in San Jose Costa Rica.

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Reading Wednesday

Book Review The Dovekeepers: A Novel by Alice Hoffman

Reading Wednesday

March 13, 2019

Laureen

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Location: Reading Wednesday

Powerful. This story is powerful. These women are powerful. The history is powerful. The Dovekeepers: A Novel by Alice Hoffman is one of the most powerful books I have read in a very long time.

I actually know very little about the history of Israel, Jerusalem and the legend of Masada – the last stronghold of the Jews during the Roman siege in 73 AD. After reading this novel however, I am so intrigued to learn more about the plight of these people – a struggle that has continued for thousands of years.

A beautifully written tale weaving fact and fiction together, Hoffman creates four remarkable women who lead the reader through this turbulent, magical, bloody, faithful and powerful period of history. Each of these powerful women bring a different strength, different background, different loss and different love to Masada. The author uses Biblical history and the historical chronicle by Flavius Josephus, a Jewish rebel leader captured by the Romans. Through her meticulous research she captures the magic of the era and creates these characters, developing the story through their lives, as they each find themselves in Masada by different paths. Each women carries with her secrets and strengths that come to play in the final days of the bloody siege that will ultimately take the lives of more than 1000 men, women and children, and change the course of history.

Who survives in this amazing fictional tale of a real-life event? You must read The Dovekeepers to find out. Read it today. A fascinating and powerful novel.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Five Stars for the The Dovekeepers: A Novel by Alice Hoffman

Read last week’s review of Twenty-Five Years in Provence

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Food & Drink

In the Garifuna Kitchen with Chef Gloria

Our Belize Adventure Cooking Local

March 8, 2019

Laureen

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Location: Hopkins Village, Belize

Faithful followers of this blog are familiar with my desire to explore and embrace local cultures in my travels. One of the absolute best ways to do that, is to spend time in the home of a local person learning how to cook the local cuisine. There is nothing better. Authentic, informative and delicious. So that is how we found ourselves in the Garifuna kitchen with Chef Gloria.

We found Chef Gloria (conveniently just down the street from where we are staying in Hopkins) through

Chef Gloria

Taste Belize, a website connecting visiting foodies with local food adventures. Taste Belize has several options, but the option to learn about the Garifuna culture and foods was the one for us.

Garifuna

If you are not familiar with the word Garifuna, here is a brief description from Wikipedia;

“The Garifuna (/ˌɡɑːriːˈfuːnə/ GAR-ee-FOO-nə;^[3]^[4] pl. Garinagu^[5] in Garifuna) are an indigenous people native to the island of St. Vincent who speak an eponymous Arawakan language.

While they are ancestrally and genealogically descended from groups that migrated from the Lesser Antilles, mainly Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, many Garifuna today are of mixed ancestry, primarily with West African, Central African, Island Carib, European, and Arawak admixture.

Cutting the plantains

Most Garifuna people live along the Caribbean coast of Honduras, with smaller populations in Belize, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. They arrived there after being exiled from the islands of the Lesser Antilles by British colonial administration as “Black Caribs” after a series of slave rebellions. Those Caribs deemed to have had less African admixture were not exiled and are still present in the Caribbean. There is now also a large number that have moved to the United States.”

Chef Gloria

Chef Gloria met us in her brightly colored yellow Garifuna dress (yellow, black and white the official Garifuna colors) with a big smile and generous welcome to her small outdoor cooking facility. She began our visit with a simple language lesson;

Good Morning – Buiti Binafin

Welcome – Buiti achüluruni

How Are You – Ida biña?

Thank you – Seremein

The Garifuna language is primarily based on the Arawak language of the indigenous people of Central America, but also incorporates elements of French, Spanish, English, Carib and West African languages.

The Garifuna cuisine, just like its language, is a colorful melding together from the history and environment

Husking the coconuts

of which the Garifuna people have emerged.

Fresh and Local

Our ingredients for the dish we were preparing on this day all came either from Gloria’s yard, or the sea in front of the kitchen. Making the favorite Garifuna dish of Hudut (mashed plantains) with Sere (coconut fish stew) we used fresh coconut, plantain, basil, oregano, habanero and red snapper all gathered just for our feast.

So we began our work in the Garifuna kitchen with Chef Gloria. The wood burning stove was hot when we arrived and we began by carefully using a very sharp knife to peel the plantains. If you have never peeled a plantain

Family Coconut Success

you might be surprised. The texture of both the skin and the fruit is firmer than a banana. We used about a dozen unripe plantains and about a half a dozen softer ripe ones. These boiled for 15 minutes (unripe) and we added the ripe at the end for five minutes.

While the plantains were over the fire we headed out to shuck the coconuts. Still in their green outer shells, Gloria helped us peel away the husk with the use of a wooden stake in the ground. I broke the stake when it was my turn (I don’t know my own strength), so we then went to the sharper metal stake not usually used by the amateurs. Once we each had a husked coconut, Gloria masterfully used a machete to open each and

The Mennonite Coconut Drill

we drank the delicious water inside.

Traditional and New

Next in the Garifuna kitchen with Chef Gloria we learned two different methods used for shredding the coconut;

The Mennonite method created by the local Mennonite population is now the preferred method, which is an ingenious “drill” that is simple, effective and quick (see photo).

The traditional Garifuna way, is a grater method, using a board with small pebbles embedded in it. Effective but much more labor intensive (see photo).

The traditional Garifuna Coconut grater

We took all the grated coconut and hand squeezed all the milk out of it. We added some water to the coconut and squeezed it some more. Once the coconut was completely dry it no longer had the flavor we all know and love. So I learned in the Garifuna kitchen with Chef Gloria that it’s all about the milk when it comes to coconut flavor.

The milk became the base of the dish we were making and the coconut meat all went to the compost.

To the milk over the fire we added basil, oregano and three whole habaneros. Gloria assured me that as long as the habanero is whole, with no breaks or blemishes in the skin, it will give a wonderful flavor to the soup without adding any heat – something else I learned in the Garifuna

Squeezing the milk from the coconut

kitchen with Chef Gloria.

While the coconut milk simmered we began work on turning the plantains into Hudut. Using the mata and mata stick (a giant mortar and pestle) we smashed the plantains until they formed a ball firm like dough. This dish was very similar in texture and flavor to the Fu Fu we ate in Burkina Faso, made from Casava.

Casava also features prominently in Garifuna cuisine, particularly the flat Casava bread, a staple food of the Garifuna.

It took awhile to get the texture of the Hudut just right and during that time

Pounding the Hudut

we added the already seared whole red snapper and then the okra to the simmering coconut milk. And the tiny and rustic outdoor kitchen started to smell heavenly.

The Garifuna Feast

Gloria shooed us out of the kitchen and we sat down in the dining area and waited to enjoy the finished product. The Hudut arrived, still warm and firm enough to eat with your fingers, then the beautiful Sere soup served in a calabash bowl, the whole fish smothered in the coconut goodness lightly fragranced with basil and oregano. And as promised the habaneros added only flavor and no heat.

Before serving

Simple ingredients. Locally sourced. Lovingly prepared. Gratefully consumed. Our day in the Garifuna kitchen with Chef Gloria was memorable, educational and delicious. We will definitely make Sere and Hudut back

Our feast

home, and hopefully do it justice in honor of our new friend Gloria.

We thank you.

Seremein.

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Asia & Oceania Travel

Seven Boats, Three Days, One Rare Bangladesh

One for the record books – our visit to Bangladesh

February 4, 2019

Laureen

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Location: Bangladesh

Throw back Monday! Enjoy this one from a year ago once again. One of my favorite experiences.

We would not have normally come to Bangladesh, except the opportunity was here because our friend Natalie is a teacher in Dhaka. I preach frequently the need to visit less tourism developed places – and yet am guilty of wanting to see places like the Taj Mahal, the Great Wall of China, Table Mountain.

Beautiful Bangladeshi dancer

And so our decision to visit Bangladesh helped us make the leap to a place no one goes, except our friend Natalie.

We connected with Deshghuri Tours – one of a handful of tour companies catering to the few Westerners who come here, mostly Canadians, Germans and

Fort Lalbagh

Americans. Because our time was short we booked a three-day tour with Deshghuri. It’s difficult to see Bangladesh without a guide. The cities are crowded and Dhaka is plagued with air pollution. Driving here is, shall we say, daunting. So a tour is a must.

Our first day was to see the densely packed city of Dhaka – home to 20 million people. Bangladesh is the 8th most populous country in the world and

At the beautiful mosaic mosque

Dhaka has a density of 23,234 people per square kilometer within a total area of 300 square kilometers. We spent the day weaving in and out of traffic, but also enjoying getting in and out of the car to see some remarkable sites; mosques, temples, university, and the 600-year-old Lalbagh Fort that serves as a lovely oasis in the city. It was here we really began to feel how unusual it is to have a westerner walking around Dhaka. Bangladeshi

From on board the Rocket Steamer looking at the busy port

stopped and gaped at us, some asking for selfies, others discreetly taking our photo without asking. Very strange.

At the end of the day we arrived in Shadarghat, the steamer terminal and one of the busiest places in Dhaka (which is saying something). Here we

Rocket Steamer

boarded our first of seven boats: the 100-year-old “Rocket” paddle wheeler that plies the waters of the Buriganga River. These boats were, in their time, the fastest thing to ever hit these waters (thus the name), but today faster and more upgraded ferries provide service. The Rocket continues to work however, and tours often include a night aboard these vessels for the “experience”. It was definitely an experience as we were on one of the oldest and most worn down vessels.

On arrival in Barisal early the morning of day two of

Nine dome mosque

our tour we were met by our new guide Ontu. After breakfast we went by car three hours to Bagherhat, a UNESCO world heritage city and one of the most historic cities in Bangladesh. On the way to Bagherhat we rode a very small and crowded car ferry which is boat number two. On reaching Bagerhat we toured three remarkable mosques, built in the 15th century! All still in use today. Two of these mosques were a

80 dome mosque

remarkable architecture design of domes rather than minarets. The first was a nine dome and the second was an 80 dome mosque. Truly fascinating for the time period and in wonderful condition considering the climate and the years.

We continued by car to Mongla, where we boarded

Crossing the river

boat number three: a small wooden pirogue which we stood in to cross the very busy river. On the other side we boarded boat number four, known as a country boat. It was just the two of us with our guide and we sat back and enjoyed cruising the river on this small 20-foot boat. We enjoyed a

The country boat

traditional Bangla lunch onboard, then went ashore at the Sundarban’s breeding sanctuary where we saw deer and crocodiles and walked the mangrove forest.

Back on the boat and back to Mongla where we

On the river

met the car, returned to Barisal (including car ferry-boat number five) and to our hotel in Barisal. It had been a very amazing day.

Day three we were up early, and instead of car we were in a Tuk Tuk before the sun had risen, driving an hour from Barisal to the banks of the Shondha River. Here we would board boat number six, a long deep river dwelling vessel, for what would turn out to be my favorite part of our

Floating vegetable market

tour. Cruising through the backwater region of the Shondha we enjoyed the floating vegetable market as well as seeing the river people going about their daily life – scratching out an existence on and in

Meeting the friendly locals

the river. The river is both highway and washing machine, bathtub and food source. We got off the boat several times, including a visit to an ancient and scrabbled together Hindu village where the people were so kind and generous and interested in us. When we tell them we are from

Meeting the locals

the United States they say it is their honor to have us in their country. This is the Bangladeshi way – welcoming, kind and generous; even if they have nothing to give, they will offer you a cup of tea.

It was particularly interesting to me how astonished everyone – men, women and children – were with my white hair. They found it fascinating and we felt like celebrities. Very

Laundry

humbling experience.

We learned a lot about river life, about the kindness of strangers, about how important community is to this ancient way of life. We learned about religion (Islam is the largest religion of Bangladesh; Muslims constitute over 90% of the population, while Hindus constitute 8.5% and Buddhists 0.6% are the most significant minorities of the country. Christians, Sikhs, animists and atheists form 1%), we learned about food, we learned about education.

River life

But mostly we learned about how much we take for granted.

Saying farewell to our boat driver we were back in the Tuk Tuk for the hour ride back to Barisal where

Iron workers at the market. They asked us to stay for tea.

we had time to tour the market before our departure. The market was remarkable to me mostly because not a single tourist item was there. This was perhaps the most authentic market I have been to (except for Ethiopia and Burkina Faso). In fact I have not even been able to find a postcard in this country – a sign of how small the tourism

Beautiful Bangladesh

industry is here.

We said goodbye to our wonderful guide and boarded a river ferry, faster and more modern than the Rocket, for the overnight return to Dhaka. Boat number seven.

Seven boats, three days, one rare Bangladesh. I’ll not forget my time here. Unique, remarkable, rewarding and above all, humbling.

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Snorkeling Around the World

Memorable Moments of My Fab Fifties Life

February 1, 2019

Laureen

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Yesterday we spent the morning on a private snorkel tour from our beach here in Ocotal in Costa Rica. We had a very enjoyable time on what was a really good value tour ($65 per person), and even though we didn’t see a lot of sea life, we did see a variety. The water was bit murky but we saw a dozen or more varieties of fish, one eel, one sea snake, a puffer fish, starfish and lots of interesting sea anemones.

Galapagos

From the boat we also saw hundreds of “flying” devil rays, several dolphins and a turtle. It was a lot of fun.

It got me to thinking and comparing different snorkel tours we have taken over the years so I decided to share about some of our various snorkeling adventures. I’m not a diver but I really enjoy snorkeling and have enjoyed some

Costa Rica

wonderful opportunities in our travels.

Here is our list of Snorkeling Around the World – Memorable Moments;

Maldives

Sand Island Maldives – My favorite snorkeling day ever was our morning on the tiny (50×75 yards) sand island about an hour boat ride from the island of Huraa in the Maldives. Known for the spectacular crystal clear blue water, the Maldives are a divers paradise. Our snorkeling day rewarded us with a vast collection of sea life, but the more amazing part of this day was the stunningly beautiful coral reef. I’ve never witnessed anything like it before or since.

Australia with Wally

Great Barrier Reef Australia – Memorable, iconic and expensive, our day on the Great Barrier Reef out of Cairns was fun. An overcast day made for some murky water and rough seas but we enjoyed this once-in-a-lifetime experience with a nice selection of interesting coral and fish including the resident Maori Wrasse named Wally (see photo). Read more about it here.

Galapagos

Galapagos Ecuador – Everything about the Galapagos Islands is unique and memorable – both on land and in the sea. One of our favorite trips of all time. The day we snorkled in the Galapagos was the only time I have ever swam with seals who danced a playful ballet around us as we swam. We also encountered baby seals, beautiful turtles and small sharks. Just one remarkable event in a very remarkable place.

Dhow in Zanzibar

Zanzibar – possibly my worst sunburn in my life occurred the day I snorkeled with my sister in Zanzibar. My sister’s first time snorkeling and in our excitement we both forgot to lube up. The waters off of Zanzibar are incredibly beautiful, but we actually didn’t see that many fish. As memorable as the sunburn was the rickety Dhow boat (traditional Zanzibar wooden fishing boat) that took us off the beach out to the snorkel area.

Galapagos

Hawaii – I’ve been to Hawaii so many times I’ve lost track and it’s here I’ve enjoyed some of the best snorkeling ever. We went to Hawaii a lot when our kids were small, and for family snorkeling Hawaii can’t be beat. Our favorites are;

Molokini (Maui) – our favorite island is Maui and when in Maui snorkeling at Molokini is a highlight. Depending on the time of day you go, it can be pretty crowded but you will see such a great variety of colorful tropical fish it’s worth it. And if you can, book a tour that also goes to Turtle Island so you can see these magnificent creatures.

Australia

Captain Cook (Big Island) – We have snorkeled in the Captain Cook bay on the Big Island twice. Once we came on a tour boat and once we did the steep hike down (and eventually back up) to the bay. The bay doesn’t have much coral but lots and lots of beautiful fish make the bay their home.

Hawaii

Kona Manta Ray Snorkeling (Big Island)– one of the funnest, most breathtaking and most amazing things I have ever done was the nighttime snorkel in Kona to swim with the amazing and giant (up to 20 feet wingspan) Manta Rays. These gentle giants are graceful and harmless and truly spectacular. Read more about it here.

Thailand

Black Rock (Maui) – my son Dane and I had a remarkable experience at Black Rock while snorkeling

just off the beach. We encountered a solo turtle which let us swim and follow him for more than half an hour. Just me, my son and this beautiful creature. I’ll never forget it.

Zanzibar

Koh Phi Phi Thailand – very crowded and somewhat overrated was our snorkel tour adventure to Koh Phi Phi in Thailand. Although the beautiful blue water is warm and fun to swim in, we didn’t see much of a variety of fish and there were so many tour boats there it was ridiculous. We did enjoy the water though and most of all having fun with our adult sons in the gorgeous tropical Thailand waters.

Maldives Sand Island

There you go, our list of of favorite snorkeling around the world sites. Some of our most memorable travel days have included snorkelin

I hope you too will have the chance to visit one or more of these beautiful and amazing snorkeling places. I have no doubt you will remember it forever.

Fabulous!

Manta Ray image from Pixabay

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Second Annual My Fab Fifties Life World Travel Awards

And the Winner is…

January 18, 2019

Laureen

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Location: Around the World

And the Winner Is…

If you’ve been following My Fab Fifties Life for awhile you will remember our 2017 World Travel Awards from last January. I definitely feel with all of our travels in 2018 (covering 57,000 miles and 26 countries) we are well positioned to bestow the World Travel Awards – our version of the Oscar or the Razzy – on many people, places and travel experiences that have touched us this past year. Just like the famous movie awards, we have seen a world of real life

Australia

drama, fantasy, comedy, mystery, nature and animation. Enough to last a lifetime.

Berlin Germany

This is a long blog. But I believe it offers some valuable travel insight to the world. I hope you will find it informative and entertaining. So in keeping with the time of year for awards, I give to you our picks for World Travel Awards, Best and Worst of 2018 – My Fab Fifties Life.

(For reference – our 2018 countries visited were; India, Bangladesh, Maldives, Singapore, Guam, Australia, Indonesia, Fiji, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, USA, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Romania, Greece, Egypt, Jordan, Portugal, Spain, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Chile, Brazil.

DESTINATIONS

26 Countries

Australia

Favorite Overall Country – Australia

Australia takes the top award this year edging out a few others (Greece, Poland) but we both agreed. Australia is the best. The only negative about Australia is it’s expensive. But we believe the beauty, culture, nature and environmental awareness helped us choose it as our favorite destination of 2018. We plan to return in 2019.

Favorite City – Sydney and Krakow

Well there it is again – Australia. Sydney Australia and Krakow Poland take our award this year for favorite city, and basically for the same reason. Both offer a variety of cultural, historic and scenic options for visitors. Sydney also has beaches while Krakow has great food.

Most Beautiful City – Singapore

Singapore

Everything you ever heard about Singapore is true – sparkling clean, stunningly beautiful (especially at night), easy to maneuver and very pedestrian friendly, Singapore was our favorite beautiful city of the year.

Cutest Town – Brugge

Brugge Belgium

Singapore might take the big city award but we are more small town folks, and Brugge was a perfect little package of history, beauty, beer, delicious food and very friendly people. We spent four days and could easily have stayed on even longer.

Most Expensive Country – Australia

Australia has so much to offer, but inexpensive it is not.

Least Expensive Country – Indonesia

Mount Batur Bali

With some of the nicest people and most beautiful scenery Indonesia is a bargain, and we loved our time there.

Most Disappointing City – Ubud (Bali Indonesia) Ubud is no longer the sweet little artists/yoga village we all imagine from Eat Pray Love. When I saw the American brand chain stores I was so disappointed (Ralph Lauren, Starbucks, Nike).

ACCOMMODATIONS

29 Airbnbs, 42 hotels, 5 boats

Airbnb Antiparos

Best Airbnb Overall – Antiparos, Greece. We loved our relaxing three weeks in this gorgeous, private, and big airbnb with a stunning view and wonderful host. I hope to return someday. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/20657689

Best Airbnb for Service – Rio de Janeiro. Our short visit to Rio (we really should have stayed longer) was extra special due to the hospitable and generous host at our sweet Airbnb. She was one of the most thoughtful hosts we have ever had. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1149627

Best Airbnb for Authenticity –Santorini

Santorini

Greece. Hands down the most expensive Airbnb we have ever stayed in, and yet it was also incredibly authentic Greek cliffside dwelling with a stunning crater view. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15926564

Most Expensive Airbnb – Santorini $220 a night (see above)

Maldives

Best Value Airbnb – Maldives our tiny room

in a tiny resort on the tiny island of Huraa was $90 a night but included three meals a day for both of us. We loved our relaxing three weeks here. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/4490934

Lombok

Most Rustic Airbnb – Lombok, Indonesia. spending a week in a traditional Javenese cottage far from civilization was a favorite experience. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15991971

Least Expensive Airbnb – Lombok at only $52 was a bargain and so relaxing (see above)

Most Unique Airbnb – Key West, USA I thought spending four days onboard a 30 foot sailboat would be fun. Not so much. It was definitely unique. And cute. But also uncomfortable.

Favorite Hotel – Puri Lumbung Cottage, Bali this beautiful hotel complex made out of

Puri Lumbung Cottage Bali

traditional rice barns was not only beautiful, but it offered so many activities as part of our package and an incredible view at a bargain price. We loved our time here with our friends John and Carol

Worst Hotel – Singapore. Because Singapore is so expensive we booked this inexpensive $117 hotel and our room was literally a closet in the attic with no windows. It felt like a jail cell.

Friendliest Airbnb Family – Exmouth, Western Australia. We spent ten days in the

Exmouth Australia

tiny Western Australia town of Exmouth and we loved our little Airbnb and the darling family that lived next door. We would love to go back. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/18258544

Worst Hotel Experience – Bucharest Romania. Arriving at our booked and paid-for hotel near the Bucharest Airport, we learned there was a “septic” problem. No room at the inn. Nearly five hours later we finally laid our heads on a FUTON, in a teeny apartment of some guy who wasn’t using it, well away from the airport but grateful to just go to sleep. We had a very early flight and it was not a great way to end our three weeks in Romania.

FOOD

Favorite Country Cuisine – Poland, rich and

Poland

hearty comfort foods make Poland our fav in 2018. But Greece comes in a close second.

Spanish Tapas

Best Meal – Tapas Tour in Sevilla Spain our self guided Tapas Tour in Sevilla’s Triana neighborhood was so delicious and fun. A perfect Spanish memory.

Best Cooking Class – Krakow Poland I really enjoyed learning to make handmade Pierogi in the tiny communist era apartment of our sweet cooking instructor.

Best Beer – Brugge runs away with this

Brugge beer

award, nowhere else even in the running. Brugge is a beer lovers town and we are beer lovers. Our visit to Brugge was memorable for many reasons including the wonderful selection of really outstanding beer.

Best Food Experience/Tour – Brugge wins this one too! We really enjoyed having dinner in the home of a lovely Brugge couple who through the website With Locals offered a home cooked Belgian meal in a typical Belgian home. What a lovely treat.

Port Wine

Best Drinks Tour – Port Tour Porto Portugal. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this tour but it ended up being so wonderful, educational, delicious and fun. I highly recommend this if you are in the beautiful Portuguese city of Porto.

CULTURAL AND NATURAL EXPERIENCES

Guam

Best Sunset – Guam. With Gin and Tonic in hand and enjoying some family time while visiting my niece Bekah and her husband Davy, we enjoyed our favorite sunset of the year on the little Dungcas beach in Guam.

Most Authentic Cultural Experience – Bangladesh Tour. Who goes to Bangladesh? Well just about no one, and it is exactly the

Bangladesh

reason we enjoyed our time there so very much. By far the most authentic and least touristy country we have been to in a long time. The people were so interested and amazed by us and they treated us like celebrities. We loved our time there.

Antiparos

Best Beach – It’s a tie! Antiparos, Greece and Ilha Grande, Brazil both deserve to be winners, even though they were quit different. Antiparos was amazing for the solitude, beauty and spectacular turquoise water. Ilha Grande had such warm water and the beaches were clean and beautiful despite being challenging to get to, we loved exploring the Ilha Grande beaches

Egypt

Best Tour – Memphis Tours Egypt was one of the best tour companies we have ever dealt with providing us incredible detail prior to arriving, and being present and on top of every detail throughout our ten-day visit to Egypt and Jordan. Our guides, drivers, accommodations and everything else were flawless.

Best Driver – Kadek in Bali. I found Kadek on Trip Advisor and he served as our driver for our entire three weeks on the island of Bali. He was a very good driver, spoke great English and in addition to picking us and dropping us at our destination he made sure we saw lots of interesting things along the way. I hope to meet Kadek again some day.

Berlin Germany

Best Free Walking Tour – Berlin Germany. We have done so many free walking tours over the past several years and only once did we NOT like our guide. But the young lady we had in Berlin was hands down one of the most charming, interesting, factual, fun and entertaining humans I have ever met. It made for a most memorable experience and a big tip for her.

Best Tour Guide – Cristian, Santiago Chile. Cristian was our guide on a bus tour we took the day we left our cruise ship and headed to Santiago for our flight. We spent the day touring the wine region of Chile as well as seeing a small authentic rodeo and dancing. Cristian was patient,

Hard to answer questions to a travel nomad

India

informative, interesting and entertaining.

Best Bucket List Historic Site – Winner Taj Mahal. Runner-ups The Great Pyramids and Petra. I cried the day I stood in front of the Taj Mahal. It was even more beautiful than I imagined. And lucky for us, we hit it on an unusually clear blue sunny day with hardly any people. Magnificent site to

Cairo

behold. Totally worth it. Of course the Pyramids and Petra are a close second. After seeing these sites your whole life in pictures, it’s surreal to finally see, touch and feel such awesome history and beauty first hand.

Best Snorkeling – Maldives. You might be surprised we aren’t giving this award to The Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Yes that was amazing. But our best one day snorkeling actually took place in the crystal clear

Maldives

blue waters of the Maldives, on a tiny sand island of only about 20 yards wide and 75 yards long. Here we witnessed the most beautiful coral reef I’ve ever seen, and the most amazing variety of fish and sealife.

Best Natural Site – Uluru Australia. It’s a trek to get to Uluru. And like everything in Australia it will be expensive.

Uluru

But standing next that incredible natural phenomenon will be something you will never forget.

Best Manmade Site – Panama Canal Panama. I had no idea how much I was going to enjoy our eleven hour crossing of the amazing Panama Canal. Truly a modern day wonder of the world.

Malaga Cathedral, Spain

Best Cathedral – Malaga Spain. We see a lot of cathedrals. Sometimes individual ones are difficult to remember. Malaga is not one of those. A distinctively beautiful design inside makes it my favorite and most memorable cathedral in 2018.

7 Ladders, Brasov Romania

Best Day Hike – We have a three way tie for this one with 1. Canyon of the Seven Ladders, Brasov Romania 2. Campuhan trail in the rice fields outside of Ubud, Bali. 3. Coogee to Bondi Beach ocean trail Australia. All providing us wonderful days outdoors in three very distinctively different natural settings.

Best Multi-Day Hike – Well, the Camino Portuguese of course!

Most Exhilarating Outdoor Experience – Morning swim Denmark. Even though it was August, jumping into the North Sea before breakfast was an eye-popping way to start your day – and a very Danish thing to do!

Australia

Expensive but Worth it – Climbing the Harbor Bridge Sydney Australia $467. I had to really convince Arne to do this because it was outrageously expensive. But in the end he agreed it was worth it. An impressively well done and safe operation with a spectacular view to boot.

Platypus Australia

Best Wildlife Experience 1. Platypus spotting Australia 2. Aligator Spotting Florida. We love it when we can see wildlife in its natural habitat, untouched by humans. Seeing a wild platypus in Australia was so incredible. I still can hardly believe our luck and timing to spot the elusive and shy creature. On the other hand, seeing literally dozens and dozens of alligators within just a few feet of us as we rode bikes on the Shark Valley trail in the Florida Everglades was one of the strangest experiences of my life.

Auschwitz

Most Moving Experience – Auschwitz, Poland Hands down – seeing and learning about the extermination of Jews in Auschwitz and in Krakow was the most astonishing and moving experience in all of our travels. I tried to put it into perspective in a blog. It was difficult. Some people choose not to visit. For us it was the reason for going to Poland and I believe EVERYONE should go.

Performance, Ubud Bali

Best Performance 1. Bali 2. Sydney 3. Krakow It’s one of our favorite things to do when traveling, attending a local performance. And this past year we saw several remarkable shows including two fascinating and authentic indigenous dance shows in Ubud Bali, a circus/dance show at the Sydney Opera House as well as an outdoor spectacle of La Boheme on Sydney Harbor. In Krakow we enjoyed a piano solo performance of Krakow’s favorite son Chopin and LOVED a string quartet concert inside the tiniest historic chapel.

Best Museum Skagen Denmark A surprising find in this tiny historic seaside town in Northern Denmark, Skagens Museum featured the remarkable art of the amazing talents of the area’s 1800’s artist colony.

Ecuador

Best Cultural Art Experience Ecuador Panama Hat Making in the tiny mountain town of Monticristi a tradition endures where skilled artists produce these works of beauty known as Panama Hats.

Berlin Wall

Best Historical Art Experience Berlin Wall The reason we came to Berlin was to see the iconic wall, which did not disappoint, and the rest of this amazing city made it one of our favorite stops on European adventure.

Count Dracula Romania

Kitsch Award – we make an effort to avoid tourist kitsch, but sometimes we fall for it, as we did in Sighisoara Romania. Touted as the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler (Count Dracula), we paid a couple of dollars to walk into a dark and spooky room where an open coffin waited with the Count himself asleep. Well until he jumped up and scared me to death. LOL.

Least English Spoken – Brazil. Portuguese is the official language of Brazil and we found through out the country even in high tourist areas English is rare. Much like in Portugal and in Spain, there are few fluent English speakers. Even in the airport and on the flights English is unusual.

WEATHER

Hottest Day: Ilha Grande Brazil 95 degrees F and 76 degree dew point. We swooned.

Muxia Spain

Coldest Day: Pontevedra Spain 39 degrees F on our Camino de Santiago we froze and this was the start of my chest cold that lasted 8 weeks.

Wettest Day: Muxia Spain a four day monsoon kept us indoors, stuffing paper towels into the frames of the windows to keep the water from pouring in.

Windiest Day: Antiparos Greece – a rare October cyclone closed down shops, the ferry, and toppled trees.

TRAVEL

30 flights, 8 train rides, lots of small boat rides, one river cruise, two ocean cruises

Smallest Airport – Paros Greece

Worst Flight Experience – Iceland Air lost luggage. It took three days before we saw our luggage again.

Worst Airline – Scoot. Worst flight I can remember in a while from Singapore to Perth. Everything cost extra including baggage, drinks, food and even a blanket.

Train Travel

Best Travel Experience – Europe Train Travel. We had a wonderful experience using the trains from Belgium to Germany to Poland and throughout Andalucia and I would do that again in a minute.

Worst Airport – Manila We had a long layover here and there was nowhere to sit. There was no ATM to get local currency and none of the concessionaires took credit cards. The part of the airport we saw was old and dirty.

Camino de Santiago Portugal

Best Airport – In contrast and like everything else in Singapore, the airport is new, shiny, efficient and beautiful.

Dead Sea Jordan

Worst Security Line – Seattle WA USA. Way to go USA. My flight from Seattle to Nashville was a near disaster when I arrived more than two hours ahead of schedule to find a more than two-hour security line. Seattle’s inability to separate out domestic and international travelers and offer expanded security lanes has made it one of my least favorite airports in the entire world.

Worst Travel Experience – missing our flight in Perth. Expedia took the blame and even gave us a $200 credit for this flight debacle, but it didn’t help our situation as we had to stay an additional day in Perth and did not get to see the town of Alice Springs before heading on to visit Uluru. Hope to see you again someday Alice Springs.

So there you have it. The winner of the Fab Fifties version of the Oscars for 2018. But you do know, the real winner is me. Me and my husband. The luckiest people on the planet. Who needs a little gold statue when you have a Fab Fifties Life?

What a fabulous life it is.

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Follow us as we inspire you to live your best life now. We find inspiration in our Retired Midlife through travel and learning new cultures, writing and reading! What inspires you? I am a retired Grey Goddess on the Go, here to empower and inspire you through your Fabulous middle years! We write regular travel posts and book reviews and have been sharing this blog for 12 years!! Join our club and be fabulous too! You can find us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Threads. My Fab Fifties Life!