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Jo-Lynne SutherlandJo-Lynne Sutherland
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traveled in 8 countries Read more Toronto, Canada
  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 34

    Exploring About

    March 30, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Yesterday was again beautifully hot & sunny - 27C. Loved it. Great PB in the morning - got myself into a more advanced group and had to play up. Long rallies and good fun. 😀

    In the afternoon I headed off on my bike in search of some of my fav murals, especially those with words.

    Today was cool - 15 max - and super windy. Amazing how quickly the temperature changes here. The crazy PB ball with all its holes was sailing every which way. Certainly added to the challenge and the fun.

    What I like about players here, they never use the wind as an excuse for bad shots, and don’t complain about it. I lucked out and played with 2 young guys, 1st year university, and their Dad. The kids were great, the Dad not so, but it was good fun.

    In the afternoon I headed out on my bike again, this time in search of pics of Union Public where we saw Gigi & the Glow - I wanted to see the venue in daylight.

    As an aside, one of my PB buddies knows Gigi - and yes, the men were right, Gigi is not young - she’s 50+ and has had every possible enhancement necessary to look like a Barbie doll. Her pink stilettos and mini skirt add to the image, but Sue is convinced she spotted cellulite through her fish net stockings. . . 😉

    The only downside today is I stopped to watch girls beach volley at the Club and ran over a thorn. The tire instantly went totally flat. Have googled a nearby bike shop so will have to deal with that tomorrow.

    Unfortunately, we head home tomorrow - but only for 4 days then we're off to St Augustine Florida to visit Daina & family for a week. Lots of fun adventures ahead with Reeve 5 and Van almost 2. Can't wait. . . .    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 32

    Bike Riding Day

    March 28, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Such a great day today - 27C, clear blue sky and my SIM card was working well.

    We biked north to meet John & Sue at Monsoons Tap & Grill, mid point between Tucson & Oro Valley and about an hours ride on beautiful bike paths. Had a delish lunch - beer of course - and a good long chat.

    Heading back, we took the long route getting off at St Mary’s, going through the heart of the city, U of A campus, then heading home. I wanted to take more pics, so biked around the campus & nearby neighbourhoods, while Peter did his own thing.

    Coming home I got a bit lost, but thanks to my SIM card eventually made it back about 6:00pm - not along lovely bike paths, I must confess, but I did get to see new areas of the city. 🤪    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 31

    Sim Card Issues Resolved

    March 27, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    In the morning the Sim card still wouldn’t work. I shot off more emails to Sim Corner, then headed to the PB courts to relieve my stress. Felt good whacking that ball. 😅

    Upon my return, it still wouldn’t work - more emails, more resetting networks, more everything, and still it wouldn’t work. Finally, Sim Corner was able to reactivate my 1st card, and I was able to use a paper clip to pop open the case and put in card 1. SUCCESS. Happiness is 🤩. I was back in business. Curious to see if they decide to reimburse me for the faulty card 2.

    This took most of the day, so not too many pics were taken today. I did get in a short bike ride around the neighborhood though - always new things to discover.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 30

    Exploring Tucson & Sim card issues

    March 26, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Paul & Cathy left super early - before 7 and before we were up. We were hoping Gary & Anna would join us tomorrow, but unfortunately he had some health issues, so decided not to come.

    I quickly headed off to the PB courts and had some great games, plus lots of good chats with all my “new best friends.” Americans certainly are friendly - I avoid politics, though. . . .

    Today was the day my 1st SIM card expired, so I was supposed to just pop in my 2nd card. Easier said than done. As I’d forgotten the small pin needed to pop open the case, I hopped on my bike and headed to AT&T, which fortunately was nearby.

    A young guy quickly popped in the new card and I thought I was good to go. Totally wrong. This card would not work. Numerous emails later with Sim Corner, and trying everything they told me to do, it still would not work. As card 1 was still working, I went back to AT&T and had them pop my old card back in.

    I then went out to explore some of my fav sports. When I got home, I saw an email from Sim Corner saying card 2 was activated. I jumped back on my bike and headed back to AT&T. I got there just before they closed, and once again he popped in card 2 - but NO GO. At that point I decided to keep card 2 in and hope it might work the next day.

    Sooo frustrating. Now that I’ve discovered other SIM cards, I feel totally lost if I can’t access the internet.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 29

    Desert Museum & Gigi & the Glow

    March 25, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    As Paul & Cathy had a car & were up for an adventure, we headed off to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Well worth the visit. The highlight for me was meeting a docent who looked far too young to be retired, but was super knowledgeable about everything - desert cacti, birds, animals, whatever. Just wish my brain could have absorbed half of what he said.

    That night we met up with John & Sue at Union Public House within walking distance of our place. There are 3 restaurants there, and although they don’t
    take reservations, when we arrived the waiting list was super long. Fortunately, Cathy got us on a waiting list for Reforma, a Mexican Restaurant, and we got in 20 minutes later. It was such fun.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 27

    Paul & Cathy’s visit

    March 23, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Paul & Cathy came to join us March 23-26. What fun we had.

    We ate dinner at our place on the 23, then headed off the next morning to explore. PB friends had told me about 2 events going on that day - Fourth Ave Street Fair and Linda Mc Carthy’s photography exhibit at the University.

    The street fair was huge - blocks & blocks of tents & vendors, but not as much music as I’d hoped for. We stopped for drinks at the Frog & Firkin, a hangout for the university crowd, and tried to fit in 😉, then headed to the photography exhibit. It was far more interesting than I’d expected. Seems Linda McCarthy had a real career of her own.

    That evening we went to Phil & Missy Smith’s lovely home in Oro Valley for drinks, then to Vivace restaurant. The place was packed & noisy - obviously super popular, but not great for those with hearing aids like Paul.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 25

    Back to our Routine of PB & Biking

    March 21, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    It was great to get back to our old routine here. Mornings I headed off to PB from 8:30 - 11:00am where my friends from previous years were still there and welcomed me warmly.

    Peter did his computer “work” in the mornings, then headed out for a good long bike ride. In the afternoons we biked around town, especially along The Loup, 65 miles of beautifully maintained bike paths around Tucson and out to places like Oro Valley. At dusk, I loved to wander over to the club and watch the sunset there.

    We ate all our meals at home, and thoroughly enjoyed the peace & quiet.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 24

    Back in Tucson

    March 20, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Our first stop today was the Tucson Racquet Club across the street from our place. Can’t believe it was only $70 for 2 for 2 weeks That includes everything - pool, classes, PB, tennis, whatever.

    As we had no food in our place and were starving, we had a lovely breakfast there, then headed to Safeway. $ 200+ later we were well stocked and fortunately had a car to load it all into. From now on it will be bikes & backpacks.

    Love how Safeway gives discounts for members. All you have to do is put in a phone number and buy their member specials. We saved $34 that day, including all the wine & beer. We’re now totally good to go.

    After Peter dropped off the car, it was great to get on Rene’s bike and tour around. It was all so familiar. Loved that they’ve added more murals to the bike paths - got carried away taking pics.

    It’s cooler here than usual, but don’t mind at all - great for biking & PB.

    It was Daina’s birthday today, so we had a nice long FaceTime with her. Delighted to know the whole family has settled in well and is loving Florida. Anxious to see them all April 5-12.

    As I’ve taken so many pics of this place in the past, I may not be posting as often as in SMA - that was totally new & fascinating for me.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 23

    Arriving in Tucson

    March 19, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Peter headed up to the fitness room early morning for his workout and returned with a black eye. Seems he didn’t see a bar and crashed head on into it. It literally knocked him off his feet. He had a cut above his eye, but it was the area under the eye that was more worrisome - swelling and turning purple. Fortunately he said he felt OK.

    Checking in at the airport, he had a fun banter with an AA attendant who had a huge bruise on his cheek, both saying “ l’m fine but you should see the other guy!”

    Although we’d booked our seats in advance and paid for them, we found out we were in Zone 9 - the last to board. For the first time ever, we decided to take advantage of our age and Peter’s black eye. He asked if we could board early and Voila! we marched in along with the wheel chairs. Loved it 😍

    Our flight was an hour late taking off, saying the plane was over weight, and because of the high altitude in Mexico City they needed people to volunteer to get off. Not sure if anyone got off, but eventually we took off.

    Going through customs in Phoenix was a breeze. There was a Nexus line with no one in it - we were coming from Mexico. We stepped in front of a machine, had a pic taken and walked right though. It took all of 3 minutes. Happiness is. 🤩

    We’d booked a car through Enterprise, and were amazed because we got an ultra modern Ford complete with GPS - the works. It was so high tech we didn’t know how to get it started. An attendant gave us a quick lesson and we were off.

    The roads were calm and in excellent condition. 2 hours later we arrived at our second home - having been here 4 times before, it really felt like home.

    As it was about midnight now, we hit the sac. Will buy food tomorrow and take the car back after that.    Read more

  • TravelerMexico & Arizona 2023
    Day 22

    Back to Mexico City

    March 18, 2023 in Mexico ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    Today was a travel day. We’d figured out a much cheaper way to get to Mexico City and wanted to try it out. Peter booked seats on ETN bus leaving at 10:40 am.

    As I’d had a negative experience with Uber - never showed up - I tried to call a taxi, but the number didn’t work. We then ventured out hoping a taxi might pass by. Needless to say, it didn’t, so we walked to the closest hotel - Casa de Sierra Navada where I’d seen that wonderful collection of mojigangas. The concierge there called a taxi and we got to the bus depot in good time.

    Must say, I was really impressed - the bus was modern, super clean, with large seats you could recline in. Soooo comfortable. It was $100 for the 2 of us - half the price Bajiogoshuttle. Will definitely use them again. The only problem is they only have 1 trip at day - 5:20 pm going to San Miguel, and 10:40am coming back to Mexico City.

    We were dropped off right in front of our hotel - Camino Real Aeropuerto. It was huge, again with rooms surrounding a lovely courtyard, an exterior elevator, and spa & fitness room on the top floor. We had dinner in the aesthetic lounge.

    Tomorrow we head to Tucson for part 2 of our adventure.    Read more

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