Nevada/Arizona - Day 5

Friday, 2/7/25

NHTT, blueberry pancakes, games in the garage (Ms Pac-Man, Galaga, billiards).Laundry, Landman, Uno on the fire table in the back yard.Walked the bridge district at night.
NHTT and a ring around the moon.  

Nevada/Arizona - Day 4

Thursday 2/6/25

Slept in, NHTT, Mike shared a seed/dirt revelation from the Andrew Womack book he’s reading. I made blueberry pancakes with brandy syrup. Sure signs we’re living in a desert: flat roofs, no gutters, no clouds, everything is brown except in the rich neighborhoods where they irrigate; no rivers, just “washes”; you don’t park in your garage because your whole yard is rocks so you just park anywhere on your yard. Going to Bill Williams Wildlife Preserve to search for life.

We found lots of animal bones.

Discovered the palo verde tree, which is all green, even the trunk and branches. We decided it’s God gift to a very brown environment.

Bill Williams Wildlife Preserve was wonderful! We loved it. Back home for Landman, leftover Mexican food, NHTT with brandy Alexanders and star gazing. 

Nevada/Arizona - Day 3

Wednesday 2/5/25

Early morning naked hot tub time (NHHT). So thankful for this relaxing trip. Just what I needed right when I needed it.  Quick breakfast at home and then off to the visitors’ center to get info about hiking. Watched an interesting video about London Bridge and got hiking maps from Astrid, the Russian employee. Walked around London Bridge area.

Every tree was sponsored by someone. Sometimes the trees were no longer there, so it looked like the plaque was honoring a stump.

Drove to Cattail State Park and hiked McKinney Trail.  Hot, dry, sunny, but pretty along the water.Beavertail cactusTrying to find a little shadeThe moon over the mountains Javelina Cantina for $1.99 tacos.  Then waffle cones, a walk around the neighborhood, and NHTT. Started watching “Landman”. 

Nevada/Arizona - Day 2

Tuesday 2/4/25 

Days Inn provided us with a comfortable bed, good shower, instant oatmeal and banana for breakfast.  Drove to UFC Performance Center on the way to Lake Havasu City.   

Drove through the desert listening to Fernando Ortega. During the 2 1/2 hour drive, we were in three states (Nevada, California, Arizona) and two time zones (Pacific and Mountain).  Arrived at our Air BnB house, just as the house cleaner was leaving. Called the owner and she let us check in early. 

Wonderful house with a hot tub and really cold pool in the back yard.  Drove a couple miles to cross London Bridge and eat at a Mexican place (Javelina Cantina). It was half price margarita day so Mike got a tie dye margarita.

Good food, nice view. Walked around and checked out the beach area. I was fascinated with the history of the London Bridge.

Sunset from our front yard 

We stopped for groceries at a Safeway and then played Ms Pac-Man and Galaga in the garage.  

Brandy Alexanders in the hot tub naked. Watched “The Resident” on Netflix.  

Nevada/Arizona - Day 1

Monday 2/3/25

Allegiant Flight 58 direct from Peoria to Las Vegas delayed by about 40 minutes left a little before 10 pm.  $65 flight got us there, and you get what you pay for. Uncomfortable narrow seats, no carryon bags (we carried everything we need for a week in a small backpack), no pretzels or even water. My assigned seat was between Mike and a stocky guy with broad shoulders. I was pinned and squished until we moved to an empty row behind us where I had a window and Mike had the aisle. Arrived at 11:30 pm local time (1:30 am Illinois time). Gambling machines even in the airport. You can gamble while you’re waiting for your luggage. Rented a lovely blue Dodge Charger and drove the strip. It surprised me.  I thought it would be glitzy and overstimulating but it was spectacular and even beautiful.  My favorite part was Sphere. I could watch the outside of it for hours, and we didn’t even go in! I expected to hate Vegas but I actually really liked it. I expected to feel a heavy demonic presence but actually felt God’s presence and love. Vegas is bigger and more mountainous than I thought it would be. I was picturing it all wrong in my imagination. Checked into a Days Inn by the airport around 1:30 am. (3:30 am IL time)

Greece - Day 15 (Mon. 9/10/24)

The alarm was set was for 6:00 a.m., but we were awake before it sounded. We packed and got down to breakfast at 6:15. Nikos had arranged for them to have the full breakfast buffet open for us at that hour so we could leave for the airport at 6:45. 

On our flight from Thessaloniki to Istanbul, Mike and I were with Grant, a young strapping guy from our tour, in an exit row that we didn't request. The flight attendant gave us a card to study, explained our responsibilities, and asked if we accepted them. Grant immediately said yes. Mike also seemed undaunted. Since I was between them, I figured I would have zero responsibility, but then when we landed and saw a plane on fire, I was wishing I had read that card more carefully.

It turned out to be just a training exercise.

On that flight, I watched this video called The Lonely Koala that had me weeping. Thank God she found a friend at the end and was no longer lonely. 

The Istanbul airport is gigantic and overstimulating, with long lines for the potable drinking water and not enough bathrooms. There was free Wi-Fi, but it required jumping through some hoops that were difficult for my tired brain. I had to find a kiosk, swipe my passport, print out a code, and type it into my phone for one hour of access. I wasted most of that hour walking to the gate and going through a crazy amount of security (including searching through every item in my bags, scanning me with a wand, and a full body pat-down), so I barely even used it. Mike didn't bother at all. When he found out he would have to scan his passport, he lost interest.

On the flight from Istanbul to Chicago, I was in the middle seat in the middle section of seats, boxed in between Mike and a man with the worst body odor I've ever smelled. It actually made my eyes water. He was normal-sized, which is important on a long flight where even normal-sized people will be bumping elbows the whole time. Thankfully he slept a lot, and as long as he was under a blanket, the smell didn't waft as much. He was struggling to cover himself, so I tucked him in, because that's what any decent seatmate would do. But once I realized it created an odor barrier, I retucked him good and tight every time he moved in his sleep. The screen on the seatback in front of me malfunctioned, so the only movie I could watch was Planet of the Apes with Arabic subtitles. It was a little slice of hell.

 

Flying over Greenland. Lots of snow and ice. Check out the shadows cast by those mountains!

We landed on time, went through customs easily enough, and got an Uber with Marc and Allison to her parents' house where they had left their car. They graciously gave us a ride home because we realized near the end of the trip that our flight from O'Hare to Peoria wasn't until the next day. We were exhausted, thankful to have the opportunity to go on this trip, and even more thankful to be home. Shadow and Shiloh had been well cared for by our wonderful neighbors. After being up for 30 hours and flying through 8 time zones, I tried to plug in a European outlet adapter in my bedroom so I could charge my phone. The next day was a blur of laundry (very thankful for a washer and dryer), petting cats, and going through two weeks of mail. Then my body refused to function anymore so I went to bed at 5:00 pm. I have a vague recollection of Mike saying something about going to Casey’s, and I was shocked that he found a Casey’s in Greece. I had no idea what day it was, or even if it was day or night. 4:00 a.m. felt like feeding time, so I ate cookies and pop tarts because I haven’t been to the grocery store yet. It took us three days to gather the energy to go to the Peoria airport to pick up the car we left there. 

Greece - Day 14 (Sun. 9/9/24)

This day began with some terror in the early morning hours. At 1:30 a.m. I got up to go to the bathroom.  Didn’t turn on any lights so I wouldn’t disturb Mike.  I was in there awhile. When I opened the door, there was Mike’s shadowy figure right in front of me.  I screamed and sprayed imaginary mace in his face.  A full volume horror movie scream in a big hotel at 1:30 in the morning.  We were both wide awake for a long time after that. Maybe some of our neighbors were too. We really didn't do a lot of sleeping on this whole trip. 

The breakfast buffet was pretty amazing. Here's just one section of it:

We took an hour-long ride on the bus to go to Halkidiki Beach. Our guide explained that this peninsula has three distinct fingers. The first one (where we went) is where single people go because it has bars and restaurants and more of a party scene. The second one is where married people go, because it's quieter. The third one is owned by the church and populated exclusively by monks. No women allowed, and even male guests are required to present a written invitation. I spent a lot of time wondering about that third finger. What are the monks doing over there? What are they wearing on the beach? Have any of them ever smuggled in a woman? Has a woman ever dressed up like a man (Yentl-style) and snuck in? Anyway, this beach was better than Laganas, but still American beaches are way better. This was a crowded, narrow strip of sand, but we did find a chair/umbrella where we could sit for free as long as we ordered a drink, so Mike ordered a rum and Coke. The water was the perfect temperature, cool and refreshing, but not shockingly cold, and it was that beautiful clear turquoise. I stuffed my phone case under my swimsuit so it wouldn't drift away while I was gazing at the sky, enjoying a relaxing float in the salty waves. 

The gorgeous Aegean Sea

Mike always knew where we were, where we were going, where the bus was parked, and what time we had to be there. Lots of people got lost and ended up being late, but we never did because I just followed him. Sometimes he even discovered shortcuts. 

Our next stop was a little town called Afytos for lunch and shopping. We didn't eat and only bought a Tshirt for Noah at one of these little shops:

It was a hot day with lots of walking, and I was wearing inappropriate footwear once again. We hiked up this hill to the most beautiful view I've ever seen, but my feet were so tired and sore that I had to sit in the dirt. I found this little sweater that some toddler had left behind, so I used it to protect my feet and legs from the ants that were crawling around. 

Mike took this picture and said it was "classic Janel".  I'm hot, sweaty, dirty, tired, sore, and bruised, and I've stuffed my blistered feet into the sleeves of  a toddler sweater to use as socks. Trying to enjoy the beauty behind me. We saw three different weddings going on at this spot. 

After we got back to the hotel, we packed for our early morning tomorrow. Mike wisely went to bed, but I couldn't fight the urge to go out exploring a little on our last night. I loved this boardwalk so much! It was wide and well lit and well traveled. There was a lane in the middle for scooters, bikes, etc. The sea was on one side, and on the other were parks, playgrounds, restaurants, fountains, etc. There were lots of people of all ages, but it didn't feel crowded. There were old men fishing in the sea, young lovers having deep conversations on benches, athletes jogging, families pushing strollers, teenagers zipping by on electric scooters, street musicians (my favorite!) with empty guitar cases in front of them for donations. Just a wonderful relaxed, safe atmosphere. I decided I was going to walk all the way to the end of it. How far could it possibly be?

It turns out it was 5K, which was too much for my already-sore feet, even though I was wearing perfect footwear. I discovered that the boardwalk ends at the Concert Hall, where Swan Lake was being performed when I arrived. 

My goal was figure out how to rent one of those electric scooters I saw everywhere and ride it back to the hotel, because my feet said, "No more walking. We refuse to haul you around anymore. You've demanded way too much from us today. And not just today, but the last two weeks! You're on your own now. We quit." It's hard to learn a new thing in a foreign country late at night when you haven't slept much for two weeks and don't have an international data plan on your phone.

After studying the scooters, I determined that I had to scan a QR code on the scooter to download an app. That required me to get the scooter to the Concert Hall so I could use their free Wi-Fi. I half-dragged half-carried the thing, because the wheels lock up if you don't pay for it within a couple feet. I scanned the code, downloaded the app, connected my credit card to the payment system, and then realized I couldn't rent the thing without entering a local driver's license. All this activity with slow brain and even slower Wi-Fi took about an hour. Then I had to drag/carry the scooter back and start the long walk to the hotel. I took frequent breaks to sit and listen to street musicians and watch kids playing at the park, even though it was almost midnight.