Sunday 10th November 2019...a relaxing day!!

I was going through some old blog posts the other day

and came across these three photos.....

This is on my birthday six years ago and this is my great friend Robin..

, who now lives in Austin...I met Robin many years ago and she was the volunteer coordinator at CASA Hogar and was very instrumental in getting me matched up with Paola and Daniela.

The next one is taken in May 1970 when I had just arrived in Bermuda, we had to live in the Army barracks for the first six months and do general police duties, including washing and ironing my shirts!!

The last one was around 1974 you can see I no longer had to wear the uniform as I was working in plain clothes in Special Branch......check out the hair and the short shorts......of course the forehand winner is still with me!!!

So I have been keeping a little secret from you all, well maybe a big secret.....my next travel plans!!!

As you know I am in Mexico on a tourist visa and both myself and Little Bluey have to be out of the country be February 17th 2020......

So here are the plans......

My lovely friend June who I met in the cruise ship to New Zealand a few years ago is coming to SMA with he special friend, Vince arriving 8th February and they are going to house sit for me for a month....we will have two days together to catch up and introduce them to this amazing town.

I then drive through the mountains on a new route to reach the beach town where Gail and Larry always stay and I always visit with them for a few days before driving up the west coast and enter the USA in Nogales on 17th February .

Then I head to Tucson and visit with Linda for a few days before I head off to San Pedro, just south of Los Angeles, where I have a house sit arranged from 26th February till 4 th March...this will be good for me to relax see a new area head into LA for a visit and babysit two lovely Labrador dogs!!

Next on the agenda is to head to Palm Springs California where I have an Airbnb apartment booked for two weeks as I have been accepted to do volunteer work at the Indian Wells Tennis tournament..this is classified as the biggest tour out of the Grand Slams.....

I am working as an usher for the two weeks..I have to work 6 x 8 hour shifts showing the patrons to their seats and stopping them from entering during play.

They provide uniforms, free parking, twenty dollars a day food vouchers and when not working I can enter any court and watch any match......just down my alley don’t you think!!!

I have always wanted to do this and I believe it will be an amazing experience and also my lovely friend Stella and her daughter Caron are also volunteering so it will be great to hang out with them.

The next phase of the journey is to drive up to Vancouver Island although yet I have not prepared a route....

I shall stay with my second family Heather and Kirby and be there around the first week in April...whilst there apart from visiting and playing pickle ball I am going to say good bye to Little Bluey...

At this stage in my life with all the driving that I do I feel I deserve a new car..I have never had a new car and without sounding morbid this will be the last car I shall own......many of you know that I do not have a handy man or mechanical bone in my body so much research needs to be done but I do like this car!!

I fly out of Vancouver on 28th April for London and then take the train up to Hull to stay with my family for a couple of weeks and then and this part of the trip has not been planned, around 16 th May make my way to France and rent a car for a while and see some of the country which I only visited as a kid and then 26th May I have an Airbnb booked in Paris where I am staying till 3 rd June whilst I attend some games at the French Open....this is exciting as this will complete the grand slams of tennis....Melbourne, Wimbledon, New York and then Paris.

I fly out of Paris on 3 rd June to Halifax Nova Scotia where I stay for four days visiting my good buddies Paula and Jerry....whilst there I have been in touch with my ex room mate and friend from my Bermuda Police days, Alan, so we plan to meet for a great dinner party..

Then continue the flight back to Vancouver on the 6 th June....will stay a few days again at Heather and Kirby before beginning my drive back to San Miguel and again not sure which route I will take.

So a very exciting trip ahead of me..I will be sorry to miss my Students Graduation in April but intend to have a party with them before I leave in February!!

Yashi Kochi!!