Sealord, we are still booked on 1/6/21 Antarctica trip. Saw same info as you did and can't imagine we are going or that Ponant is still selling trips. You can't get into Argentina. I don't see that changing soon, plus there is a 14 day quarantine. Tauck says not to inundate them with calls so I haven't, but would like some finality to this trip plan.We have heard nothing from them yet.
Damos
9:55AM
Tauck says not to inundate them with calls so I haven't, but would like some finality to this trip plan.We have heard nothing from them yet.
It shouldn't be much longer, a few weeks at most, since Tauck just announced cancellations thru Dec 31.
Argentina is not known for transparency and predictable behavior. They could remain closed or they could open up unexpectedly. Ponant’s covid protocols are working on the ships that they have in operation.
Our Antarctica trip just canceled two days ago ... the Jan. 16, 2021 trip. Now booked for Jan. 19, 2022. Ponant still shows some Antarctica 2021 trips, but our Le Soleal trip is no longer listed as an option.
Kicking and screaming all the way. We go to Yosemite on Sunday for a short week. Social distancing yes ... but everything is open ... the pool. hot tub, tavern, S’moors, all recreational activities. We will not have a ‘dark winter’!
The current numbers are terrifying. At this point, I’m just hoping we can survive the winter.
I do an early morning walk almost every day. Sometimes when it is very cold or wet, I walk in the King of Prussia Mall very near our home. For those who do not know, it’s actually the biggest Mall in the country. So both yesterday and today I walked there. Most stores appear not to open until 11am now, so it’s like a ghost town and we felt safer in there than going food shopping. We have a tread mill but I much prefer real walking. So we are trying to continue being fit in the hope we can travel afar in the future.
Interestingly, many of our friends have traveled in the US this summer, even some who don’t usually go anywhere. Right now, we have friends on the way to Virginia and others to South Carolina. The furthest we have been is about twenty miles, we have not been anywhere overnight and have not eaten dinner out or even ordered take out or had curbside pick up. I have had a couple of lunches out. Apart from anything else, if I traveled, I’d be concerned about finding anywhere to eat.
NM is starting a 2 week shut down on Monday. The news showed a huge line outside one of our Sams Clubs last night. Glad I've gotten into the mode of stocking the pantry well. I don't have any burning need to go anywhere. On a more positive note I booked our air for trips next Sep and feeling more optimistic they'll happen.
When I lived in the Phila area, I would occasionally go to KofP Mall. I don't think I ever got there the same way twice. There's more road construction around that mall than there is at major airports.
BKMD, The Mall is the largest, the Mall of America includes some kind of entertainment fun fair, roller coasters or whatever. Without those, it’s smaller. The construction is over now, we had a holdup in the Spring because a peregrine falcon decided to nest under a bridge that was being widened..... it got settled when construction stopped during the start of Covid! Philly area traffic was heavy pre pandemic, now it’s a breeze. Whatever, it’s a great way to get lots of walking exercises more safely than my class at the gym that I can’t go to because no one wears a mask....I went back to see last week....and was the only one wearing a mask in a smallish room, despite the fact I was probably the youngest. One lady has MS, another can barely walk, but they don’t wear masks. If I would go to center city Philly to the same class, I would have to wear a mask. This is crazy.
Claudia, I think more states will be following you. I’d love to head to Ten thousand waves in New Mexico right now!
After our weeks of deck rebuilding we have our hot tub back so our own mini spa. A bit hazardous though as the railing system for the deck is on order and not likely to be installed til after Thanksgiving. Also got the satellite dish hooked back up (post election). So, food, booze, movies, hot tub. Ready to shelter in place.
British
BKMD, The Mall is the largest, the Mall of America includes some kind of entertainment fun fair, roller coasters or whatever. Without those, it’s smaller.
If you look at the Wikipedia page I referenced in my post above, you'll see MoA has 555 stores and KoP has 450 stores. So even if you remove roller coasters, bathrooms, food courts, etc., MoA is still larger.
The real question is what are they both going to do with all the empty space that Covid created?
For cathyandsteve et.al., the statistics are interesting. We have a million positive tests with a lot of testing and we have a lot of people and a high percentage of Latinos who for whatever reason contract the covid at dramatically higher numbers. In Marin county we have ten people in the hospital, Tuolomne County where we are going has nine. The number of deaths has steadily declined as the positive tests have increased. The positive test rate for Swedish/Irish Americans is about one percent. The overall positive test rate is around four percent. The good news ... rents in San Francisco are going down. Many people don’t want to live there anymore. Tents on the streets and squalor everywhere, ... and the bars are closed! Of course the city gives drugs and alcohol to the people in the tents.
Makes total sense to me. (;-)
Cathy, I'm so sorry for what you're going through. I too am saddened by those turning this into a political instead of a public health issue. NM starts another 2 week shelter in place tomorrow. We had been doing fairly well but it's just exploding and our hospitals are full. Our medical professionals are so exhausted and frustrated.
I do think slowly some are realizing this is serious. We just had 2 positive cases at my church including one woman who had been a greeter at our onsite/indoor Sun service. I had a conversation last week with a conservative friend who said her family now knew friends and family members with covid and it was starting to sink in that this is real. Btw, her son is a contractor who has done a lot of work on our house in the past. I tried a couple of times this past spring/early summer to get him to rebuild our deck. Last attempt he was on his way to SD for the rally at Mt Rushmore and told me he didn't bother with masks. I went looking for and found another contractor.
We will get through this and I feel more optimistic with the vaccine progress, but sadly with too many unnecessary deaths. Stay safe.
What a wonderful piece of writing Cathy. We have been discussing this week that we only know of a few distant friends who had the virus early on. In fact, we have had more friends be diagnosed with cancer during this time.
We are still seeing people around without masks, even in places like Costco which have supposedly gotten much stricter. You should see how wide a birth Mr. B gives them. Perhaps the reason we know so few people who have had the virus just means that most people we know are taking this all seriously and wearing masks.
I am starting to feel more hope, but I’m terrified about how on earth the vaccine is going to be distributed and given to people. I’m thinking how long it takes to fill in paperwork and then wait for the pharmacist t to prepare our flu vaccines and give them to us each year. Even with millions of doses being made available, it’s going to take a long time for everyone to get the vaccine. I’d happily volunteer to give people vaccines, even those who say there is so little Covid in their community
And to think if this had happened years ago, I would have been one of those exhausted nurses treating all those dying Covid patients with a husband worried to death about me at home.
After the initial "privileged" classes (first responders, health care workers, etc.) get vaccinated, I wouldn't be surprised if they have drive-up vaccination centers, similar to what they are now doing for testing.
Yes, I realize that is what is likely, but it will still take a long time, still have to read the stuff about are you allergic to eggs, do you have a fever etc etc and sign a consent form. The batch number of the vaccine etc has to be recorded on your paperwork just like your flu shot, am I right! The vaccine is so temperature sensitive that I guess you cannot have them all lined up and ready to go either.
Not sure on that BKMD. Read a piece about a Univ of Miami study regarding males and finding the virus in their reproductive organs (trying to be delicate here). They don't know what the long term impact may be.
I think my commentary that you referred to had too many thoughts to allow me to know which part(s) you found ‘hopeless’. Our primary traveling buddies have a brother in law who has an entire family with covid. He (the brother in law) also loves gambling in Atlantic City. But, you can’t go to church. We are deep in the woods near Yosemite and come in contact here with far fewer people than at home ... both areas are nearly covid free zones. Everything is open but everyone wears masks and maintains social distancing. There are choices.
When you are offered the coronavirus vaccine, please take it. The more people who take the vaccine the better as we will eventually get herd immunity. I suspect that the vaccine will be available for seniors early next year and in the late spring for all. The news from Pfizer and Moderna is quite encouraging, hope that all the logistics are relatively straightforward and well coordinated.
The Moderna vaccine can be stored and transported at -20, a major benefit to the Pfizer one which needs to be kept real cold.
There is not time to be able to manufacturer the amount of vaccine required for everyone to be vaccinated so early in the year. We also need to remember that there will be no approved vaccine for children under 12.
Wouldn't that be something, to have a penguin jump into your boat. That is, as long as the killer whale didn't follow it in - that would be a whole different video.
Comments
Sealord, we are still booked on 1/6/21 Antarctica trip. Saw same info as you did and can't imagine we are going or that Ponant is still selling trips. You can't get into Argentina. I don't see that changing soon, plus there is a 14 day quarantine. Tauck says not to inundate them with calls so I haven't, but would like some finality to this trip plan.We have heard nothing from them yet.
It shouldn't be much longer, a few weeks at most, since Tauck just announced cancellations thru Dec 31.
Argentina is not known for transparency and predictable behavior. They could remain closed or they could open up unexpectedly. Ponant’s covid protocols are working on the ships that they have in operation.
For those of you who can't wait any longer to cruise, then here is your opportunity.
https://foxnews.com/travel/cruise-lines-need-volunteer-guests-before-resume-sailing
Our Antarctica trip just canceled two days ago ... the Jan. 16, 2021 trip. Now booked for Jan. 19, 2022. Ponant still shows some Antarctica 2021 trips, but our Le Soleal trip is no longer listed as an option.
Kicking and screaming all the way. We go to Yosemite on Sunday for a short week. Social distancing yes ... but everything is open ... the pool. hot tub, tavern, S’moors, all recreational activities. We will not have a ‘dark winter’!
The current numbers are terrifying. At this point, I’m just hoping we can survive the winter.
I do an early morning walk almost every day. Sometimes when it is very cold or wet, I walk in the King of Prussia Mall very near our home. For those who do not know, it’s actually the biggest Mall in the country. So both yesterday and today I walked there. Most stores appear not to open until 11am now, so it’s like a ghost town and we felt safer in there than going food shopping. We have a tread mill but I much prefer real walking. So we are trying to continue being fit in the hope we can travel afar in the future.
Interestingly, many of our friends have traveled in the US this summer, even some who don’t usually go anywhere. Right now, we have friends on the way to Virginia and others to South Carolina. The furthest we have been is about twenty miles, we have not been anywhere overnight and have not eaten dinner out or even ordered take out or had curbside pick up. I have had a couple of lunches out. Apart from anything else, if I traveled, I’d be concerned about finding anywhere to eat.
NM is starting a 2 week shut down on Monday. The news showed a huge line outside one of our Sams Clubs last night. Glad I've gotten into the mode of stocking the pantry well. I don't have any burning need to go anywhere. On a more positive note I booked our air for trips next Sep and feeling more optimistic they'll happen.
That was true prior to 1992 when Mall of America opened.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_shopping_malls_in_the_United_States
When I lived in the Phila area, I would occasionally go to KofP Mall. I don't think I ever got there the same way twice. There's more road construction around that mall than there is at major airports.
BKMD, The Mall is the largest, the Mall of America includes some kind of entertainment fun fair, roller coasters or whatever. Without those, it’s smaller. The construction is over now, we had a holdup in the Spring because a peregrine falcon decided to nest under a bridge that was being widened..... it got settled when construction stopped during the start of Covid! Philly area traffic was heavy pre pandemic, now it’s a breeze. Whatever, it’s a great way to get lots of walking exercises more safely than my class at the gym that I can’t go to because no one wears a mask....I went back to see last week....and was the only one wearing a mask in a smallish room, despite the fact I was probably the youngest. One lady has MS, another can barely walk, but they don’t wear masks. If I would go to center city Philly to the same class, I would have to wear a mask. This is crazy.
Claudia, I think more states will be following you. I’d love to head to Ten thousand waves in New Mexico right now!
After our weeks of deck rebuilding we have our hot tub back so our own mini spa. A bit hazardous though as the railing system for the deck is on order and not likely to be installed til after Thanksgiving. Also got the satellite dish hooked back up (post election). So, food, booze, movies, hot tub. Ready to shelter in place.
If you look at the Wikipedia page I referenced in my post above, you'll see MoA has 555 stores and KoP has 450 stores. So even if you remove roller coasters, bathrooms, food courts, etc., MoA is still larger.
The real question is what are they both going to do with all the empty space that Covid created?
For cathyandsteve et.al., the statistics are interesting. We have a million positive tests with a lot of testing and we have a lot of people and a high percentage of Latinos who for whatever reason contract the covid at dramatically higher numbers. In Marin county we have ten people in the hospital, Tuolomne County where we are going has nine. The number of deaths has steadily declined as the positive tests have increased. The positive test rate for Swedish/Irish Americans is about one percent. The overall positive test rate is around four percent. The good news ... rents in San Francisco are going down. Many people don’t want to live there anymore. Tents on the streets and squalor everywhere, ... and the bars are closed! Of course the city gives drugs and alcohol to the people in the tents.
Makes total sense to me. (;-)
Cathy, I'm so sorry for what you're going through. I too am saddened by those turning this into a political instead of a public health issue. NM starts another 2 week shelter in place tomorrow. We had been doing fairly well but it's just exploding and our hospitals are full. Our medical professionals are so exhausted and frustrated.
I do think slowly some are realizing this is serious. We just had 2 positive cases at my church including one woman who had been a greeter at our onsite/indoor Sun service. I had a conversation last week with a conservative friend who said her family now knew friends and family members with covid and it was starting to sink in that this is real. Btw, her son is a contractor who has done a lot of work on our house in the past. I tried a couple of times this past spring/early summer to get him to rebuild our deck. Last attempt he was on his way to SD for the rally at Mt Rushmore and told me he didn't bother with masks. I went looking for and found another contractor.
We will get through this and I feel more optimistic with the vaccine progress, but sadly with too many unnecessary deaths. Stay safe.
What a wonderful piece of writing Cathy. We have been discussing this week that we only know of a few distant friends who had the virus early on. In fact, we have had more friends be diagnosed with cancer during this time.
We are still seeing people around without masks, even in places like Costco which have supposedly gotten much stricter. You should see how wide a birth Mr. B gives them. Perhaps the reason we know so few people who have had the virus just means that most people we know are taking this all seriously and wearing masks.
I am starting to feel more hope, but I’m terrified about how on earth the vaccine is going to be distributed and given to people. I’m thinking how long it takes to fill in paperwork and then wait for the pharmacist t to prepare our flu vaccines and give them to us each year. Even with millions of doses being made available, it’s going to take a long time for everyone to get the vaccine. I’d happily volunteer to give people vaccines, even those who say there is so little Covid in their community
And to think if this had happened years ago, I would have been one of those exhausted nurses treating all those dying Covid patients with a husband worried to death about me at home.
After the initial "privileged" classes (first responders, health care workers, etc.) get vaccinated, I wouldn't be surprised if they have drive-up vaccination centers, similar to what they are now doing for testing.
Yes, I realize that is what is likely, but it will still take a long time, still have to read the stuff about are you allergic to eggs, do you have a fever etc etc and sign a consent form. The batch number of the vaccine etc has to be recorded on your paperwork just like your flu shot, am I right! The vaccine is so temperature sensitive that I guess you cannot have them all lined up and ready to go either.
And will anti-vaxers experience Darwinism first hand?
The mortality rate is too low during the child bearing years to have any significant effect on reducing the stupid gene from humanity.
Not sure on that BKMD. Read a piece about a Univ of Miami study regarding males and finding the virus in their reproductive organs (trying to be delicate here). They don't know what the long term impact may be.
I think my commentary that you referred to had too many thoughts to allow me to know which part(s) you found ‘hopeless’. Our primary traveling buddies have a brother in law who has an entire family with covid. He (the brother in law) also loves gambling in Atlantic City. But, you can’t go to church. We are deep in the woods near Yosemite and come in contact here with far fewer people than at home ... both areas are nearly covid free zones. Everything is open but everyone wears masks and maintains social distancing. There are choices.
When you are offered the coronavirus vaccine, please take it. The more people who take the vaccine the better as we will eventually get herd immunity. I suspect that the vaccine will be available for seniors early next year and in the late spring for all. The news from Pfizer and Moderna is quite encouraging, hope that all the logistics are relatively straightforward and well coordinated.
The Moderna vaccine can be stored and transported at -20, a major benefit to the Pfizer one which needs to be kept real cold.
There is not time to be able to manufacturer the amount of vaccine required for everyone to be vaccinated so early in the year. We also need to remember that there will be no approved vaccine for children under 12.
Cathy I thought you might appreciate this
#survival
https://wdsu.com/article/video-penguin-escapes-killer-whale-by-jumping-onto-tour-boat/35801406video
Wouldn't that be something, to have a penguin jump into your boat. That is, as long as the killer whale didn't follow it in - that would be a whole different video.
Ok guys. Guess where we were when these two delightful animals came onto our boat!
Monterrey, CA?
No Alan, but let’s keep guessing, we haven’t had a photo competition since you successful one at the beginnings of Covid
Well, it aint anywhere warm like Peru or the Galapagos or cold like Antarctica. How about BC or Alaska?
Nowhere tropical. Too many layers of clothes. Not the UK, because I don't see any rain. Maybe somewhere in Chesapeake Bay.
Oh and not in the Galapagos because there you swim with the pelicans they don't jump in your boat.