Rained for most of the day - thank you remnants of Hurricane Harvey - just been dreary.
Over the weekend Rosie had ordered, via Amazon, a small portable hair dryer and 2 multi-country power converters and they were supposed to be delivered yesterday, Tuesday. No show. Added just another modicum of anxiety to an already anxiety filled last few days. Fortunately, the package arrived this afternoon and another item off of our 'to do' list.
Oh, not to mention, Rosie had a very stressful day at the hospital too (it's not all about moi!) She got home right at 16:30 pretty wired as I was. So, decided to do something our travel buddies, Russell and Trish, introduced us to years ago whenever we'd go on holiday together: Mani/Pedi's! Jumped into the SUV and headed down to our preferred proprietor in Mansfield. I'm actually surprised that I enjoy doing this. Starts with a pedicure... just that really helps to strip away a whole bunch of stress; the hot water, foot and lower leg massage, all while having your back massaged auto massaged/kneaded in the chairs you're reclining in. Rosie passed on the manicure - she'd done her own nails the night before. I chose to let the lady restore my hands/fingers to a more metro look and less farmer. After a pleasant 45min, we headed back up to the mountain and our remaining pre-travel task lists.
Dinner on this evening, leftovers. We ended up tossing a bunch of food and liquids that wouldn't survive well over the coming 2 weeks. Didn't want to leave a full waste bin for two weeks so, jumped into our 'beater' (Mazda3) and drove the 3miles to the in-laws house and deposited the garbage into their waste bin. We got their permission to do so before I did it. Thanks Kev and Colleen! Got back home and spent the rest of our abbreviated evening going over our checklists and finished packing.
I've very pleased that both of us have packed so sparingly and yet feel quite comfortable with our wardrobe for the trip. If we need something we neglected to pack, we'll buy it in Australia. We're only taking our mid-size 4-wheel roller suitcases. We independently packed, spread out any gifts we're taking along between us and, coincidentally, both suitcases weighed 35#. Far below any airline limit for this type trip. Rosie feels we may have taken too much - particularly if we end up acquiring a lot of souvenirs/momentos. We will be making room as the days go by, shedding 'derwear and socks after use instead of accumulating a bunch of laundry to do. If we still end up with more than we can pack, we'll just buy a suitcase and check that. We each rate 2 checked bags a piece. Additionally, I'll be bringing along a backpack filled with my electronics and a camera bag. Rosie's additions include a very pretty Vera Bradley roller bag, specifically designed to pass the Airlines' carry-on baggage size limits and, a small leather purse. We both also chose to bring along 'fanny' packs to use while we're in country.
Side note: I'm also bringing along 'Freckles,' a Ty beanie baby that was my companion back in 2010 when I traveled to APJ on Dell business. He's been to China, Japan, Australia, Malaysia and Singapore with me. He's a bit worn now but still looks pretty good. :-) He's in line to board our flight from EWR to SFO.
We set our alarm clocks for 0300 and Rosie retired first about 9ish. We plan on being out the door and on the road to Chez Nile by 0400. Will be taking the Mazda3, parking it at Russell and Trish's until we return. Russell has offered to be our Uber driver in the morning - very much appreciated! I stayed up until 2230 and then hit the rack for some shuteye.
More in a few hours.
Two typos in the second to last paragraph. Starting word should be "I'm... very pleased" and then looks like an autocorrect error for "underwear". Just don't want these little things to make it in your book!
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