Mar 16

2026 Port of Call Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Santa Cruz de Tenerife city panorama

Unfortunately TJ got full fledged sick with a head cold the night before we got to Tenerife and I got about half sick, which invited us to stay aboard rather than climbing hilly streets and get all clammy and sweaty in the midday sun. But our friends Darcy and Caralee were up for a trip ashore and went by themselves.

We had been to Santa Cruz in 2025 during our Transatlantic cruise so we didn’t want to stretch our uneasiness into a full cold. Here are some of the things you may want to consider doing when in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Our favorite is a visit to the Market of our Lady of Africa,  right in town.

If you want to see some more of the island there are cruise line organized tours that take you to THE BEST OF SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE

1. Las Canadas National Park

Declared a national park in 1954, Las Canadas is dominated by an enormous volcanic crater. Dormant since 1909, the crater is over 29 miles in circumference. Mt Teide, Spain’s highest mountain peak, rises some 12,300 feet from the crater floor. Stop at Humboldt’s Belvedere and take in sweeping views of the Orotava Valley, the garden of Tenerife. Over 200 years ago, the naturalist Humboldt described the view as the loveliest prospect in his travels.

2. Puerto de la Cruz

This seaside town has been Tenerife’s premier resort since the turn of the19th century. Visit the Orchid Garden, founded in 1774, and enjoy free time to browse the shops, relax in a café, or stroll the seaside promenade. Everything caters to tourism these days.

3. Taganana & Anaga Mountains and local Wine Tasting

This village in Tenerife’s interior is famed for its vineyards, its goat milk and its cheeses. During your visit, enjoy a wine and cheese tasting at some of the local restaurants.

4. Tour of La Laguna

The island’s old capital is a city of graceful colonial houses and convents dating from the 17th and 18th Centuries. La Laguna is the cultural and religious capital of Tenerife.

5. Pyramids of Guimar

Visit the step pyramids of the Guimar Valley and learn about the alignments during Summer solstice and the direction of the rising sun on the Winter solstice. Construction dates back to the early 19th century. Tour the site, visit the museum, and view an audio-visual presentation.

6. La Orotava

Visit La Orotava, a municipality located on the north coast of Tenerife.The streets of the old town are lined with Renaissance mansions and dotted with architectural treasures.

As permanent travelers we do recognize that islands like Tenerife offer some historic insight in the development of the former Spanish Empire, but these days the Canary Islands are exclusively appreciated as a place to vacation in the sun; suntan on the beaches during the day and enjoy dinner at night at one of the sidewalk terrace restaurants around town. Historic religious sites, if any, wine tastings and the enjoyment of local dishes are mostly created with tourism in mind.

We spent the day aboard the ship , doing not much at all. Recuperating for the next stop Cartagena. Our friends bought us some Aloe Vera presents produced exclusively on the island of Tenerife.

 

Mar 15

Our Third Transatlantic Princess Cruise

The Sun Princess in full Glory

We were very much looking forward to catching up with our Canadian friends Darcy and Caralee, whom we had befriended on our 2025 transatlantic Princess cruise to Southampton, England and who upon learning that we had booked this cruise, excitedly booked the same one with a 5 day after cruise extension in Spain’s resort town of Pineda de Mar, north of Barcelona. Our friends live near Vancouver, Canada, so we’re talking half way around the world travel. That is what we call friendship!

Our reasons for once again taking a transatlantic cruise came down to more luggage availability, less effect of jetlag, 14 days of luxury treatment and rest, and…the refund for the return part of the original airline tickets we had bought last April when we flew from Amsterdam to Nashville, pretty much paid for the cruise. With all the horror stories about air traffic control, TSA not being paid and more of the same, we decided a cruise would suit us better.

Our Canadian friends Darcy and Caralee

The Sun Princess

Following is our reasoning why in future. we prefer to book royal class ships like the Regal Princess over sphere class ships like the Sun Princess or the Sky Princess..

The Sun Princess (launched in 2024) is the lead ship of the new Sphere-class, representing the largest and first LNG-powered vessel in their fleet. It features a 21-deck design focusing on expansive views and modern, sustainable technology. It carries 177,882 Gross Tonnes over a length of 1,133 ft. and a capacity to accommodate 4,300 guests served by a crew of 1,600.

First and foremost, the entire crew was marvelous. Superior to any other cruise we’ve done. Unfortunately the ship’s layout has a number of “design” shortcomings, many loyal passenger don’t particularly like. During the following we will touch upon them. 

It took us a couple of days to adjust to the ship’s entirely different floorpan. We were used to the familiar naming of Lido deck etc. instead of the boring numbering system all the way up to the 21st deck. Of course this could have something to do with the AI driven elevator system.

No more library, no Churchill, much smaller gym, now located midship, more attention to exterior spacing with sun decks and a long list of eateries. The Eatery on deck 9 is a confusing directional buffet where guests bumb into each other using both directions. Quite irritating. After a couple of time trying we decided to mostly dine in the Soleil Dining room or the Americana Diner which served excellent chef inspired dishes.

The elevators are now computerized with a form of artificial Intelligence, which means you press the floor you want to go to outside in the elevator hall and the screen will let you now which elevator will take you there. Strange in the beginning, but you quickly adjust and it eliminates standing on side of the hallway and having an elevator arrive on the opposite side, with you having to run to it to make it, yelling: “Please hold the door,” or people inside of the elevator yelling “Can someone push 10 for me.”

the Sphere rooms with extended balconies

Our stateroom was in the sphere on deck 10, just to the front of midship which means that we had a slightly expanded balcony with more seating space on the Starboardside, (not enough for a lounge chair however) with the sun coming in beautifully every day of our trip over. Note: if you like to get a suntan on your way over to Europe, you need a stateroom on the Starboardside, from the 10th floor up, with a balcony. Anywhere else you will mostly experience shadows.

It also means on deck 10, we have just a short distance to many of the eateries just one or two decks below us. 

The entire floorpan of the ship is totally different from previous Princess ships we sailed on. The feel is much smaller, kind of cut up, although the entire ship is one of the biggest on the 7 oceans. Time will tell what we like and won’t like, I guess. Right now it feels much more like a commercial enterprise than a welcoming resort on the ocean. Even the entertainment venues have severe limitations

The Dome on the Sun Princess

The only time we visited the famous “Dome”, promoted as the quiet, introspective place aboard the ship was during the Captain’s Welcome for Elite, Platinum and Sanctuary Guests. Ironically during this one glass presentation the Captain, a jolly, friendly Italian from Messina, Sicily with a 27 year work record for the company, showed an audio visual presentation of the growth of Princess Cruises since its founding in 1965. I couldn’t help but silently admire those first early years’ small ships where you knew most of your co-passengers and there was a certain grandeur implanted into the design.

Today’s ships seems to all suffer from a Disney Dream design abundance. Yes we had been upgraded to a Sphere Cabin, which still could not accommodate a lounge chair to enjoy the sun away from the overloaded pools. During In-port maintenance exercises most of the  hassle happened for starboard cabins and the smoking decks, as they are typically held on that side of the ship. On the positive: the check in and check out procedures on deck 6 are much more spacious and therefore much better streamlined than on other ships, which helps greatly disembarking and returning at Port of Calls.

The nicest thing about this crossing were the eight days on the Atlantic Ocean before we would hit Santa Cruz on the Canary Island of Tenerife for our first port of call. We were enjoying the Sea Days so much that this first Port of Call was totally neglected. But its significance was that we had finally exchanged the USA for a retirement of adventure travel and charity contributions across the pond.

Sunset developing
An angry Sunset on the Atlantic
Smart angles or Confusing architecture
Caralee&TJ on the smoking deck
Not his best picture, says Han
Delicious Dessert Options

Jan 22

Nashville offers more than just BBQ

In-N-Out Burger in Lebanon,TN

After completing our last season as managers at the Beaver Island Lodge, we were exactly back where we were 10 years ago when I wrote the story “Wide Open Spaces Ahead of Us”. Our first trip then was also to Nashville, where Han’s oldest friend in the US had moved to.  Sadly Ric passed away a couple of years ago, so now we visited Kay his widow in Brentwood TN, a suburb of Nashville, for almost a month in Dec/Jan of 2026. This is also our last trip south in our trusty Nissan Murano which we purchased exactly 10 years ago. And the end of this trip she goes to another dear friend, while we take a transatlantic cruise over to Europe for an extended stay. But first some travel impressions from this last north-south trip.

There are so many amazing restaurants near her home, that we did not have to venture far to experience something new and delicious.
These are just “a few of our favorite things”.

Continue reading

Jan 30

We Think We Have Time

  Thinking we have Time is possibly the biggest mistake we make in life. The decision to retire after 7 season was made and announced a year earlier, but with the reality of season 2025 at the Beaver Island Lodge coming to an end, the naked truth was also that we had to get rid once again of everything we had collected for and during our stay on Beaver Island, Michigan. Truth be told for us it was probably the third time in twenty years that we offloaded our entire households with the help of eBay, Garage sales, Facebook Marketplace and word of mouth. This time we had figured in what to leave with the kids as well. It’s kind of essential if the vagabond lifestyle of a global traveler is your choice. The feeling is equally bittersweet and liberating. And so is the fact that you’re leaving a place where you spend seven years of your life. The French poet Edmond Haraucourt left us with a beautiful expression for that emotion: “partir, c’est mourir un peu” – “leaving is a little bit dying”. It’s kind of how we feel, but seven years of “too cold for us” island life of Northern Lake Michigan wears on you even more so when you reach your senior years.

Our departure plans included celebrating Thanksgiving and Han’s birthday on the island at the Gregg Fellowship Center, which gave us a chance to say goodbye to a lot of islanders that we had come to know and appreciate over the years. And then the plan was to take the ferry over to the mainland the following Sunday, the last day of November. Well the snow, wind and freeze came early this winter season and on our departure day the blizzard from the north blew snow horizontally and the ferry was cancelled. The next day, Monday December 1st, we were on the ferry, but sadly none of our friends, employers or co-workers made it to the ferry dock to wave us off. Seven years of commitment becomes a relative emotion that way.

Beaver Island Ferry departing Charlevoix

Brian and Han playing favorite songs

Thinking back on the experiences of this nomadic couple, it’s not an uncommon behavior. Our Caribbean days were numbered in 2009 and when we left, we lost some friends whose friendship depended on close proximity rather than mutual appreciation. Leaving Amelia Island in 2016 created a similar situation and no doubt leaving Beaver Island will do this once again. Sad but true. It should not come as a surprise to either one of us, having left countries and cities of our youth and adolescence to find strangers on faraway shores who soon would turn into friends and sometimes even family.

Freedom is Fickle 

Freedom is often considered fickle because it is unstable, constantly shifting between being gained and lost through changing circumstances, choices, and external constraints. It is not a permanent state, but rather a, often, fleeting experience shaped by personal actions and environmental factors. Some people think that freedom can be found in having excess money, some people think that moving away from highly strained city life into an  unguarded wilderness is freedom. Some people think freedom is sailing the 7 oceans without a worry in the world. Living on the ocean gives you plenty to worry about. Living in Alaska or even Beaver Island trades freedom for nature’s random ire. Procrastination is an absolute No-No, that may cost you your life. Some people think that they can not live outside of the political freedom called democracy. In our travels we have learned that democracy would be great, if it could be achieved without destabilizing a country, society or civilization. It turns out that economic progress and a reasonable equality comes first. It also helps having a good amount of empathy for others when they need it.

 

After a week of winter pleasure with the kids and grandkids in Holland, Michigan, a blizzard once again threw us off one day and an exceptional 8 hour drive took us to Lexington, Kentucky, where we had rented a 2 bedroom AirBNB condo for two nights to spend with son Cody. From there the next stop was 5 nights on the Cumberland Plateau in Mississippi, where we left the best Airbnb cabin we ever stayed at, also a day late, again because of heavy snowfall. The last part of our 2025 travel was to see and stay for a while with longtime friend Kay in Brentwood, TN for the Christmas Holidays.

This year’s trip from the north to the south was different than in the previous years, because we had decided that we would move to Europe for at least a couple of years, as the lifestyle over there matched our energy and beliefs much better, than what is currently unfolding in the USA. As a result of this decision, our visits to friends and family were anchored in a form of goodbye, filled with melancholy and promises to return as times change.

A week back to the Cumberland Plateau and then it was time to point the car south via a couple of Georgia stops and a week stay with son Drew and his wife Jessica, in Savannah, Georgia. We had an absolute blast of a time.

You served our travels well Murano. Now do the same for our friends!

Our time in the US was getting short and our 3rd transatlantic cruise was only weeks away when we visited our dear friends Jack and Sharon on Amelia Island. They live in the same oceanfront neighborhood we used to live when we had our B&B. When one night in 2012 their house burnt down in a lightning storm, we offered them a room in our B&B. We became fast friends, now already 14 years later. With their house as our homebase, we met with numerous friends from our years on Amelia Island and sold our last possession, our Nissan Murano, to a great friend, who used to work for us. On March 4 we rented a truck one way to Fort Lauderdale, where we took a room in the cruise ship popular Roadway Inn and boarded the Sun Princess on March 5. The US was going to be on our back burner for at least as long as MAGA was an accepted elective point of view in the country. Off to the European Shores and Cities.

Apr 12

Early Spring in Holland

The only real Babi Pangang

Flying Ryan Air from Stansted, London to Eindhoven, Netherlands is a quick pleasure as long as you stick to their contracted requirements. Have your luggage in properly sized and weighted suitcases and you onboard backpacks according to your purchased plans and you’re fine. If not, you pay a good amount of extra money. We paid about $29 each for the one way trip.

Our travel plan was simple; land in Eindhoven, take the public bus to the train station and connect via Province of Limburg’s beautiful Roman capital city of Maastricht to the old medieval village of Valkenburg some 15 minutes away and check into the Dormio Wine Hotel directly across from the train station. It all worked out perfectly and we were having our favorite Dutch Indonesian dish of Babi Pangang at 7pm that night.

Valkenburg Train Station

Now Babi Pangang is a Chinese/Indonesian dish of roasted (Pangang) pork (Babi) with some goody Asian veggies thrown in for taste and frankly the only country that knows how to make it to perfection is the Netherlands.

The Dormio Hotel concept is a new one in Europe where private people can invest in a hotel acquisition company that buys condo projects throughout Europe. We were planning to stay a full week and they immediately upgraded us upon arrival to a larger and more luxuriously outfitted room. Very nice.

Valkenburg is a domestic tourism destination for the Netherlands, pretty much  in the same way as the Hamptons are for New York or Cornwall for London. The village is loaded with family hotels and restaurant and attractions such as castle ruins, sandstone caves, entertainment parks and much more. But for us it is also located right in the middle of family and friends. Medieval churches, Roman museums, tons of castles on rivers and lakes and the close by availability of the very reliable Dutch rail- and bus systems.

Valkenburg was the first European destination TJ ever stayed, as we did our first travel to Europe in 2016 and we choose Valkenburg for a week’s stay to fight the Jetlag before catching up with Han’s family. During the Christmas Season 2019, we once again visited Valkenburg as it features the magnificent Christmas Markets in the Caves.

Valkenburg aan de Geul
Valkenburg Walking path into town
Valkenburg stations street
Shopping Street Valkenburg
Valkenburg Restaurant Street
Valkenburg river decorations
Valkenburg hilltop castle ruins
Our friend in Jamaican t-shirt
Valkenburg busking musician
Valkenburg sidewalk cafés
Babi Pangang plate
Valkenburg schnitzel
Delicious bitterballen snack in Valkenburg
loempias Indonesian style
Baked loempia full with veggies
Limburgse vlaai delicacy dessert

Fifteen minutes by train west took us to the ancient Roman city of Maastricht, with its city walls, a couple  of thousand year old churches, tree shaded squares with bars and pubs, and cobblestoned medieval tiny roads opening up to majestic squares. It was one of Han’s major hangouts while growing up, playing in bands and going to school. It’s a lot like Amsterdam but on an even smaller scale. We walked the streets, shopped some souvenirs in fabulous stores and ate some scrumptious local delicacies on sidewalk cafés. Back on the train, we agreed that the Dormio hotel choice was perfect.

The next day we did the same but this time we took the train east to Heerlen, the former capital of the Dutch Coal mines, where Han was born. The city has modernized a lot since they closed the mines in 1968 says Han. Handsome shopping malls and modern airy stores stand next to old neighborhood bars and restaurants. The city originated as a Roman road intersection (Coriovallum) with resting place and saunas for the exhausted travelers. When accidentally discovering the exact spot of the roman thermal baths in the late 1960 during an excavation for a city flat development, the city stopped the development and built a museum over the thermal baths, which has now become a major attraction for the city.

Heerlen kerkplein
Heerlen Café Brakke
A Selections of Macarons
Maastricht Macarons: a delight
Maastricht and the Maas river
Maastricht old city hall
A protected pedestrian walkway
At the first sign of a sunny day
Onze Lieve Vrouwen Church and the Vrijthof Square
Like old times and friends; a great lunch
Directions to Veuve Clicquot

Yet another day later we took the train east to go and see brother and sister-in-law Jos and Ria, where we stayed a week during our 2019/20 visit. They had sold their Carré Farm – Exhibition several years before and moved back to the small city where she was from and he studied. This time we could only go for an afternoon of catching up and dinner because they were going on vacation to Cyprus that week and we were flying back to the States later that week. Yet we had another great afternoon followed by an exquisite dinner of salmon and white asparagus and left in pure delight in the early evening. Kudos to chef Jos.

Brothers

A Sad Goodbye – Han’s older brother Eef had been severely ill for years, mostly home bound with very limited mobility and chance of improvement. A week before our arrival he had been moved to the general hospital in Heerlen and medical predictions were not good. With family we had agreed to visit him on Sunday afternoon and in line with the Limburg burgundic mentality a small party was organized. He enjoyed it and TJ gave him a little bunny as companion. A couple of days later, he crossed the rainbow in direct view of the Maternity Home (de Vroedvrouwen School) he was born in almost 77 years ago. RIP Eef, yours was a good life.

A Couple of days later we took the train to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and stayed at NH Hotel until our plane would depart for a return to the States.  This particular choice was made based on the transportation service that NH Hotels offered and a special rate they offered.. They had a 30 minute bus service from hotel to airport from where we took the train to Amsterdam Central Station, from where it is just a short walk to almost all attractions, museums and markets. In 2016 we ate Poffertjes at the flower market and TJ wanted to get them again if they were still open. They were and we enjoyed them again. A stroll up and down de Kalverstraat, where TJ fell in love with the exclusive Adidas store and added necessities to her favorite clothing collection. Across the Damrak, a short walk led us over the Walletjes and the Canals and our passion for Amsterdam’s particular sense of absolute freedom (XXX) was renewed. 

What's there not to love?
Central Station Amsterdam
Amsterdam Canals and Living on the water
Damrak and Vredes Paleis
Amsterdam's Claim to Fame
Damrak, a famous meeting monument during the 60s
Fields of FLowers on the Canals
The Flower Market
Surprise Attack on the Poffertjes
Staring down Kalverstraat
Public Pissoir
Cash and Window Shopping
Amsterdam Brown Café
Make it fit!
Small Spaces, Small Cars
Bicycle Decorations
Ludiek Amsterdam
Forgotten Glories at the Westertoren
Shortcut to another city part
Amsterdam's famous Logo

The next day, our last day in Europe on this trip was a planned visit to the Keukenhof; the Dutch National Flower Park. We had tried visiting 9 years earlier, but the season had already passed then. This time we came in earlier, together with a couple of hundred thousand other visitors. But the park in full bloom is truly amazing. Decades ago it a well designed garden with ponds, canals and a couple of windmills and park section with different types of tulips. Today it’s a full fledged display of several dozens of flower merchants from throughout the region displaying the scientific manifestations of what is possible these days in the creation of colors, shapes and sizes. Now there are many ways to visit, but the easy way is a bus that leaves from Schiphol Airport (Departure passage 233) near the airport entrance. The cost for bus and park entry is Eur 32 p/person and the trip takes about 30 minutes each way. Well worth a visit.

Keukenhof Main Entrance
Fields of Flowers
Inside the Park
Experimenting with colors
Experimenting with designs
Different experimentations
Design experimentations
Late blooming tulips
Park features
Bridges over Ponds
Subtle statues in the grass
Nostalgic Street Organ Music
A working windmill keeps the flowers watered

The next day we had a noon flight back with Delta to Nashville Tennessee, where we picked up our car and began yet another return trip to Beaver Island after a short visit with the kids and grandkids in Holland, Michigan.

We had contracted for one more Summer Season on Beaver Island, Michigan

Load more