Sometimes I wake up and wonder where I am! It's been such a whirlwind since I left South Africa on March 1.
Leaving was hard, harder than it has ever been. It's not something I want to harp on, but we (meaning Biff, Zoze, Mick and me!) are all getting older. But I decided not to say "good bye," just "see you soon." And avoided any prolonged goodbyes.
Ajijic, Mexico
Now I am sitting on the veranda right near Ajijic in Mexico, soaking up the sun and enjoying the whole set up, relaxing after what seems like a marathon travel event that took me from Pietermaritzburg/Johannesburg/Heathrow/Los Angeles/San Diego/Tijuana/Guadalajara and finally, here.
But there were adventures in between! Like a London layover where I splurged and spent six expensive hours in the airline lounge. But worth every penny of peace and quiet, open bar and buffet, uncrowded rest rooms and comfy couches. It was sorely needed after a chock-full flight from Jo'burg that had far too many screaming babies and toddlers on it!
Regrouping in LA
Once in Los Angeles, I was able to regroup and repack, replacing stuff stored at Ryan's with other "important" stuff from South Africa. But I also discovered I had contracted African Tick Bite Fever after my trip to Weenen Game Reserve with Mick and Debbie the weekend before I left. So the next adventure was trying to find a doctor who would know what I had (I did!) and not want to prescribe hugely expensive blood tests to find out what to me was obvious.
I resorted to an app! Called Remedy, I was able to contact a doctor at Kaiser who agreed with me on the symptoms, asked for a picture of the actual bite site and prescribed the antibiotic required. All for $30 and $4 for the meds! Works for me!
Superbloom
Coordinating everything is always a challenge but Ryan and I took a day trip out to Anza Borrega Desert State Park to see the wildflower superbloom! It's a long ride out there, but even before we were close, the roadsides and hills were covered with brilliant orange and yellow California poppies. After all the recent rain, the hills are greener than I have ever seen them.
Out at the Park, we battled the crowds! The superbloom has received a lot of publicity and people who had no idea about what it's like, had shown up! The tiny little dot on the map was overrun with cars and tourists, but we managed to find some areas that weren't quite as dramatic but with fewer bodies and I really enjoyed not only spending time with Ryan, but checking out the flowers.
Ryan dropped me off in Dana Point with Betsy late in the evening and then the following day, it was head south to San Diego for a Celebration of Life for Bobby Grieser, and old friend and amazing photographer. With more than 300 people attending, we were privileged to go out on the classic schooner America for the scattering of the ashes. Of course, there was a wake after that so getting up the next morning at 5 am for my flight out of Tijuana was a mission!
I used the new CBX or Cross Border Xpress which makes it easy to walk from the US to Tijuana, Airport in Mexico as long as you have a boarding pass. I was loaded down, of course, with my big suitcase, my Kangen water machine, backpack etc so I was very glad it wasn't a long walk or wait for my flight.
Susan was a welcome sight at the Guadalajara airport! And she had brought someone with her to help her drive in the city as she wasn't feeling too confident about that! He was a great help with the luggage, too.
Now it's just a matter of getting settled and acclimated to living in Mexico.
