Saving Money for the Journey

Last post, I wrote about my experience booking international flights. I mentioned that I originally felt that 2017 was the time for The Journey, a trip to the United Kingdom and Ireland, but I ended up planning a trip for fall of 2016. The one reason I wanted to wait was to save more money for the trip. So, how was I able to pay for the trip? The trip cost less than I thought, I found savings, and I dusted off the budget that put me through college!

The Journey cost less than anticipated:

First the cost of the Journey was less expensive than I originally thought. I know that going to Europe is expensive, but I sometimes think that milk is expensive. As in, I think it will be $4 or $5, but when I go to the store it is always around $2. Which, I think stems from a few times growing up, I would try to buy a candy or toy, and wouldn’t have enough money. Though, I don’t think anyone looked twice, it felt so mortifying, that I would rather have unrealistic ideas on the price of milk than to be out of money. So, when I thought about going to Europe I was of course thinking the price was two or three times the actual price! Since, the initial decision to plan the trip, I have worked and reworked a budget of expensive, I also add “crazy just-in case” scenarios into it. Guess what! It was at least half as much as I thought it would be.

Found ways to save:

Of course, the price is greatly affected by the time of year, room accommodations and meal plans. Which, I did my best to find deals. The main expense is the flights. If you take your time, however, you can find affordable flights. Sometimes the flights didn’t seem much more than flying to the East Coast. Keep in mind that booking international flights is done earlier than national flights. So that could account for the price comparison.

The second biggest expense could be the hotels, but we decided to look at alternatives like hostel international and airbnb. I originally planned the trip around hostels; mainly because hostel international has good tools and the hostels are centrally located. Also, European vacations often evoked the hostel image into the imagination. Overall the hostels probably were the most affordable, but we decided that an important part of the accommodations was the bathrooms. Since the airbnb rooms were still affordable and in our price range we determined to book rooms that way. In Cardiff, there weren’t very many airbnb rooms. So, we ended up finding a room at the Royal Hotel. I came across it when I was looking at for castles, and the hotel looks adorable. It was also in our price range. So that is the only place we are staying in a hotel.

The next biggest expense, will be food and alcohol. Although, the United Kingdom is no Italy or France when it comes to food, there are still many dishes that I would like to try. So, I don’t want to be too frugal when it comes to dining. However, there is still many ways to save on this expense too. First, some of our airbnb hosts provide breakfast, which if they do I will be eternally grateful for. Second, having a small lunch or snack will allow us to save on that meal. Now, for alcohol, I must admit I love beer. I hard alcohol and wine have a time and a place, but I like to drink beer as an experience in and of itself. I like both micro, and home brews and large brews as well. They each have their own feels and tastes. So I will be drinking on our trip, however, I have no plans to overindulge. I allocated a certain amount which I can spend every day and not spend more. The amount can be rolled into the next day however. I will see how this works. I have heard that in Europe beer is served warm, so perhaps I will save money because I wouldn't like it. I think I will be okay though. Having a beer served warm doesn’t sound as bad as having a beer go warm. I can't wait to find out!

We also have some tentative day trips, sights and tours that we planned. However, these aren’t nearly as expensive as I would have thought. Many of the museums are free to get into first of all. Many of the sights will have self guided tours, which can save some money. Like with food, I don't want to limit experiences because of money, so I have allocated a certain about for activities, but there wouldn't be any experiences that I will refuse because of money. Though if I am debating about whether to do something or not, then the cost might be the deciding factor.

Budgeting and saving for the Journey:

After realizing the true cost, and finding ways to save on the expenses, I had to set up a plan to save for the Journey. This wasn’t too difficult. It was only three years ago that I finished my bachelors. I was able to go to my first four years of school via my parents, however, I was woefully unprepared for college and after two years, I left it. I worked as a waitress for a while until a friend started going to school for an Associates in Paralegal Studies. I quickly followed, and that was the last of the four years.

Then, I started working and I went back to school for my bachelors. I had about $10,000 in savings at the time from a job I had in high school. So I used that to slowly work my way through school. I would pay for a semester and then try to replenish the savings during the semester and the summer. I did pretty well at this, but slowly it drained away and the last four semesters (I wasn’t going full time so I had many semesters) I would use a Visa card and pay that down as much as I could before the next payment. Perhaps, it would have saved me money if I got student loans, however, I didn’t know enough about student loans at the time so I didn’t feel comfortable with them. Also, having to pay 18% or more in interest is painful for me, so I knew that I would pay off my credit card as soon as possible. Anyway, the last payment of my last semester had me at $8,700 in debt which I paid off 13 months later. Because of this lifestyle of putting every extra dollar to pay for school I was able to reapply that to saving for my trip. Though perhaps, I am not as frugal as before.

The goal of saving for the Journey has made me tightened up some of the loose ends that I’ve developed. I use the 50/20/30 rule. That is 50% to needs, 20% to financial goals, and 30% for fun. Now that I am done paying for school my fun money has been used at coffee shops and shopping on Amazon. These are not bad things. However, I would much rather spend my money on experiences like trips or events than fancy coffees or graphic tees. So, cutting them out wasn’t too difficult. I use Mint.com to track spending and to remind me if I go off my budget, though I tend to use Excel to create the actual budget. I added the Journey in my goals last fall, and I love seeing the bar fill up. I really like the goals section of Mint. You can estimate trips this way. It will ask you how much for flights, hotels, cars, food and activities. When I paid for the flights I simply removed the flight from the estimate.

Even though I am saving money for the Journey, I am planning to use my credit cards to pay for the trip while I am there. This is mostly because of safety; I do not want to carry too much money in cash. I will pay off the balance after the trip. After paying for this trip, I have to start saving for a trip for fall of 2017. It will probably be about a week in Colorado. So I will probably continue to use these money habits for a while, though hopefully, I will not need to be as aggressive.

The Journey (United Kingdom and Ireland): Flights

This post is a little different. I don't have any new trips to log, but I am planning a trip this fall. I am planning to go to the United Kingdom and Ireland. We are calling it The Journey. I just wanted to write a little post about that.

About nine months ago, I was with a friend and she asked if I wanted to go to Europe. Of course I did! I didn't take it that seriously when she said it, but I emailed her a bit later and she was serious. At the time, I was thinking perhaps we could go in two years, then I could take my time saving and mostly because planning a trip to Europe seemed daunting! However, after some discussion the idea was that we should go as soon as possible. At first we set our sites to spring of this year, but later we changed it to the fall. We didn't really want to go in the summer for several reasons: the weather, the crowds, and the costs. So we determined that spring or fall were the best times to go.

I am glad we changed our dates from the spring to the fall, mostly because by the time we were ready to buy tickets I realized we missed the best prices! I had been keeping an eye on the prices for a few months at that point, they held steady for the most part, but went down at the end of October, mostly because I think more airlines set their 2016 schedules which added more flights and more competition. I was mainly looking at Norwegian, as well as a few sites like Kayak for prices. Then, in early November the prizes jumped up. Not a significant amount, but after seeing how low the prizes could get, I was a little frustrated. Luckily, we did decide to go in the fall, which allowed me to revamp my strategy. In February, I started looking at flights for the fall, using different scenarios for dates and destinations in order to figure out which was the best. We didn't necessarily want the least expensive flight, especially if they were 36 hours, but we did want to find a good deal.

I found a lot of interesting things. First, most of the best deals are out of airports on the East coast. There are some good deals from California, but for there are more deals and often better deals from New York. Also, if you try to get a flight from the West coast to the East coast, then to Europe, it doesn't save you any money and sometimes it is more expensive than flying directly.

By the end of March and beginning of April we had our dates set, so I looked up flights on Kayak, Google and Norwegian every day for a few weeks. I started to see a pattern. When the flights went up on the weekends, and then dropped dramatically on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, I knew what my strategy would be. We were able to get good flights with one stop each way, one to Ireland and one out of London from United.

Anyway, I learned that it pays off to be vigilant, to have a plan, but also to be flexible, and don't wait too long to buy flights. Flights are still by far the most expensive part about The Journey, but they were much more affordable than I had thought, and well worth it.

Flagstaff and Beyond

Friday, May 13th, 2016 Phoenix to Flagstaff

Up in the morning bright and early because Jojo, my dog, put his face in my face and stared at me until I opened my eyes. He does that often. Got in some coffee, finished a puzzle and made some scrambled eggs with corn tortillas and salsa for breakfast. Yum! Dogs got some eggs in their bowls too, and I wonder why Jojo wakes me up.

Then, we headed out to Melissa and Bernie's (my parents) home. My grandma, Mary Lou, was scheduled to arrive at 11 from Tucson and we would all ride up to Flagstaff together. The occasion of the trip is that my sister, Caitlin, is graduating as a Doctor of Physical Therapy from NAU, after 3 long years of school and fellowships. So we have a celebratory dinner at 6 pm in the conference center of the Drury tonight. Tomorrow the Scotts: Jim, Karen, Carson, Megan, Bre and Paul (not a Scott by name), David Saegart, Mary Dillon and Tyler Emery will join us for the graduation and a celebratory family dinner in Flagstaff.

Grandma arrived a little after 11, but this was alright because the hotel, Twin Arrows Casino's check in is not until 4. Dad and I took my brother, Tyler's, car to his house  (my dad and brother had swapped cars and they needed to swap back, except that Tyler lost the keys to Dad's car. Therefore, dropping the car off and having Mom and Grandma pick us up was the plan). We arrived at the house about 10 minutes before Mom. So we started to walk back to the main road. I wanted the exercise, really I wanted to be doing something and not waiting. We didn't make it too far before we were picked up.

After the pick-up we stopped for coffee, Starbucks, and got onto the freeway to head to Flagstaff.

We have a tradition in our family, that when we go on a trip we sing this little jingle that goes: "Hey, hey we're on our way, we won't be back for many of day." So once we were on the 101 we sang this jingle. Grandma started adding lyrics to the song! Apparently, the song is an old song that Harry Bexaten sang called, Farewell Jamaica. My dad who had founded the tradition, may have forgotten this fact over the years. What a surprise!

I sent Caitlin and Dave, her boyfriend, a message when we reached the 303. They were about 30 to 45 minutes behind us, and they had traffic. Which we found as well in Camp Verde. There was construction on the bridge and it backed the traffic up for miles! One thing entertaining about the traffice was the onion truck in the lane next to ours. We judged all our progress on whether or not it was in front of us or behind us. When we got down to where the construction began we called Caitlin and they had passed the onion truck too. We told them that they should hop on and off the highway at Camp Verde to avoid that slowest part of the traffic.

After the construction we stopped off at the next exit to use the bathroom and to get a snack. We introduced G'Ma Mary Lou to Klondike Bars. She really liked them. So now I think I can bribe her to do things in order to get more Klondike Bars.

We made the rest of the trip without incident, but Twin Arrows Casino is about 20 minutes East of Flagstaff. The longest 20 minutes of the trip I think. Guess what Caitlin and Dave beat us to the hotel! They didn't get Klondike bars.

Because of the traffic, we only had about 45 minutes to get ready. So no naps! We got ready like Champs and all looked like we were put together nicely. So I don't think we embarrassed Caitlin too much. We arrived at the dinner on time, and were able to secure a table. Dinner was chicken Marsala with salad, desert and drinks. There were very interesting speeches, though some of the jokes were related to surpassing graduate school, and were probably better received by the graduates than by me. Guess what! They handed out certificates of completions and Caitlin's had someone else's name on it! They crossed it out and wrote hers in. She is expecting a corrected one at a later date.

After dinner G'ma Mary Lou, Melissa, Bernie and I went back to the casino. It was about 11 so we went to G'ma Mary Lou's room for a nightcap and some chatting. Then we retired for the night. The beds are very comfortable and so is the room, but one of the shutters has a broken slat and it let in a bit of little. Ah, well.

Saturday, May 14, 2016 Flagstaff

The broken slat in the bedroom is just so that when the sun rose over the distant mountains it was a bright slightly orange color in my eye. Luckily for me, I was able to move over in the bed and get a few more hours of sleep. I typically wake up around seven, so it wasn't surprising that by half after I was finally up. I put some shoes on and went downstairs to get breakfast with Bernie. We picked up Grandma Mary Lou from her room. We had breakfast in the little cafe there called Four Elements. The coffee was good so I had a few cups of that. Mom joined us before we ordered our food. I also ate two poached eggs, two pancakes and two sausages and two strips of bacon. 

Typically, I make poached eggs in a funny way where I crack the egg into the skillet and wait until it gets all white on the yellow yoke. Then, I pour a bit of water on top and cover. So, I don't think I have ever eaten a poached egg that is made in the traditional way. I liked the egg, but I am a little confused because I'm not sure if the egg is supposed to be taken out of the bowl of water or if it's supposed to be eaten inside. I did the latter, but I think that was in correct. 

After breakfast Melissa, Bernie and I brought G'Ma Mary Lou to the Casino to watch my mom play blackjack. There was a five dollar table and Melissa was dealt some really great hands and ended up winning thirty five dollars, but let it be known that she was only betting five dollars each hand for the majority of the hands. She didn't start to up her game until she won time and a half from a blackjack. She used to only bet the minimum for a long time, but she has recently started to add a dollar (sometimes more) to her bet every hand she wins. This makes for higher wins, if she wins, though it can feel like more of a hit if she loses a hand. She also has this rule that if she loses three hands in a row that she will leave the table. I think perhaps this morning she played more like her old self because her mom was watching her! 

Once she lost three hands in a row we went back to our rooms to get ready for the graduation which was at 2 pm. We needed to leave in plenty of time to get into town, park, take the shuttle to the dome and find the seats and the rest of our family. My mom was in contact with everyone driving up to Flagstaff that day. Jim, Karen, Bre and Paul left early and they had found a route around the construction, it was forty minutes out of the way, but saved hours sitting in the traffic. Carson and Megan also were able to take this route. Melissa relayed the information to David and Mary; and Tyler, but by that time there was traffic before the detour, or perhaps they had already missed the detour. 

Caitlin, the graduate, needed to be at the dome at 1 PM, so she was already getting ready in her room. We stopped in to give her presents and cards from G'Ma and me. She was very grateful and surprised! Also, she gave us a fashion show of her dress. Then, she promptly kicked us out, but we understood because it was already very close to when she needed to leave. 

I had brought a blue shirt and jeans to wear to the graduation, but the weather was supposed to be in the 70s so I thought that perhaps that would be too warm and decided to wear a blue dress that Caitlin brought up and said I could wear. There was a debate about the length of the dress, so I caught Caitlin at the very last minute before she had to leave and she approved. And since she was the one graduating, I thought that was approval enough.

To be honest, however, after seeing how cute Melissa and G'ma Mary Lou were dressed I was grateful that I had the option to wear that dress. 

My dad determine after last night that it might be beneficial to get off the freeway an exit early, Butler, and take that to San Francisco parking garage, where the shuttle was going to pick us up and take us to the dome. The decision turned out to be a good idea because Caitlin called us while driving and said that they were stuck in traffic on the freeway after Butler. She and another graduating doctor, had to get out of the car and walk down the freeway and to the shuttles on the south side of the campus. Luckily, the driver was Dave who didn't actually need to be at the dome until 2 PM. 

The shuttle system turned out to be a very successful idea and we were able to get to the dome with no trouble. Even G'ma could do it! The dome was already packed by the time we got there, but Melissa chatted with the volunteers and they said that we could sit down on the floor of the stadium if we took the stairs or the elevator down. So once we had an idea of where the stairs were we started for them. On the way we ran in to Karen, Jim, Paul and Bre! What a surprise! So, we all went to our seats together. Karen said that she saw Caitlin on our way down the stairs as the students were waiting in the stands to walk out. I didn't see Caitlin while I was walking down, but I believe her anyway. Our seats were right behind the orchestra. Which means we had very good seats! We had to split up because there wasn't enough room in one row for everyone, so I went up with Carson, Megan and Bernie to make room. Tyler and his friend Tyler; Mary and David were able to fight the traffic and make it, but I it was a close call! 

Selfie at Graduation

The ceremony was pretty nice, though as you may know graduations are not the most exciting events, and also the dome makes all the speakers voices echo, but there were some good speeches. What is important is that the speeches were not very lengthy! And it wasn't long before the Doctors of Physical Therapy were being called on stage to be hooded. When Caitlin went up, I spent a while cheering, then I tried to watch her on the stage, but I probably should have watched her on the jumbotron! After them, the masters and undergraduates were also called up, but they were not hooded, so it went much faster. Though it still took some time as there were so many of them. 

Once everyone was done and the streamer cannons went off, we had to wait until all the graduates left before we could leave. Let me tell you that almost everyone watching did not do this, but G'Ma said that we needed to. I agree, though I did stretch my legs a bit. 

Then, we went out to the grass, to find Caitlin, get pictures, and coordinate our plans for dinner. After we went to the restaurant. It was called Oakmont Restaurant. We had been to the same location for Bre's graduation, however, the name and ownership had changed.

The restaurant was nice, the menu was varied in the choices, and the food I had was good. I also was able to try some new beers while there. I really liked the Oak Creek's Amber Ale! I think some of the restaurants in Phoenix carry it, so hopefully I can have it again. 

Bernadette, Caitlin, Emy, Bre

When, we arrived at the restaurant Caitlin and Dave had already arrived and were waiting at the bar. I sat with them, and Emy, Caitlin's friend, joined us shortly after. Then, Bernie, Melissa and G'Ma Mary Lou arrived. Bernie and Mary Lou sat down next to a very nice man and G'Ma chatted him up! They talked about golf and politics! Bernie was also involved in these conversations; everyone needs a wingman. 

The bartender forgot that Emy and Melissa had ordered drinks, I guess he was distracted when he carded me! Also, since I ordered a drink for G'Ma while she was coming in, he didn't stop so that I could order my drink. That was alright because I reevaluated my drink and decided to get a beer. Yum! It  was still early enough for happy hour, and we were able to take advantage of that. Caitlin ordered nachos because they were also on the happy hour and we were all hungry. We had to move to our table before the nachos arrived, but they were still delicious. Our table was outside and there were very ominous clouds overhead, and it did get a bit misty for a few minutes out there, but by the time everyone arrived the rain had stopped and it was beautiful out. Though, I believe some people were a bit cold. 

While we were waiting for our food we noticed that on the golf course there were a bunch of groups taking pictures. The girls were wearing very formal dresses, and it took us a long time and a lot of debating to decide if these were for weddings or for a prom. We decided it must be for prom because they put masks on after a while. But the photos were very interesting, the photography even took a picture of them from below. Caitlin, Tyler, and Bre went down to the golf course to take some pictures as well, and scooped them out a bit more closely, so the prom was confirmed! 

Dr. Caitlin Emery, Tyler Emery

During dinner there were many conversations floating around the table. The table was very long and narrow so one end couldn't talk to the other, but that made the conversations flow even more. At one point, we made Caitlin take a shot of fireball, Emy had given it to her as a gift. Since we were chanting: Dr. Cait, Dr. Cait; drink, drink; and shot, shot. Caitlin had to take the shot, as the tables around us started to join in. She managed the shot in two swallows. Lot of cheers went out after that.

It was decided that the youths of the group which includes, Dave, Paul, Myself, Carson, Caitlin, Emy, Megan and Bre would go to downtown Flagstaff to celebrate Caitlin's graduation. The youths of Tyler and Tyler are currently too young to celebrate in this fashion. The mature adults meanwhile, went back to the hotel to have their own party, G'Ma made everyone drinks in her room, and they were up to no good!

The youths split up and were to meet at Emy's Hotel so that she could check in and also so she and Caitlin could change outfits. There was a big mix-up about where the hotel was located. Google Maps said it was on the Historic Route 66, but that is in correct it was on the other Route 66. Luckily, we were able to find it. Caitlin and Emy were ready quickly, though Caitlin had a bit of a time deciding on her shoes.

Then, we set up two Uber cars to pick us up. We went to Rendezvous which is in the Historic Hotel Monte Vista. This place was very cute, it served coffee and drinks, and there was a pool lounge and a cocktail lounge.

We sat on the couches for a while and had drinks and talked. I was able to see some photos of Bre and Paul's new house (possibly? not officially) and ask them about their move to Michigan coming up in June.

When Caitlin and Dave went to get another round of drinks, they did not come back, so we ended up going to hang out around the bar.

Carson, Megan and Megan's sister decided to go to the Lumberyard. Megan's mom was there and wanted to party! They were supposed to text us when they arrived at the Lumberyard because we heard there was a wait to get in. They never did text us, so I guess that means they were having too much fun and forgot!

The bar was very fun. Emy and I talked to Dave for a while. I learned that he really likes running! And it sounds like he is good at it. I also talked to some guy at the bar for a while because Emy said I should. I'm not sure which guy she meant. The guy I did talk to wasn't very good at talking, as in he wasn't asking any good questions, and I was leading most of the conversation. So, I think perhaps, I was talking to the wrong person! Ah well.

I did end up talking to this other kid a little while later. I think he was probably very young, as he acted a lot like my brother Tyler. He asked if I needed to see him later in case I wanted to smoke. I did not need to see him later, but I let him have my number anyway, because I didn't think that there was harm in it. Which, there wasn't of course!

After I returned from this very exciting conversation, we finished our drinks. Then, we walked down the streets towards Malloney's but there was a huge line, which we were not going to wait in. Then, there was a cover at the next place. We didn't really care about getting into a place with a ton of people, we just wanted to find a place with good music, where we could get a drink and keep talking. There was also a request for pizza of some kind. So we end up down the street McMillan Bar and Kitchen. It was really cool inside the seating and lighting was really nice. And the bar was working just fine, but there were a lot less people there than the other locations. We sat around a high top and chatted some more, but mostly about who is the bigger cuddler: Caitlin or Dave! The debate is still on going.

The pizza quest was on all of our minds by that point, but Caitlin cannot eat gluten, well she can, but she will be sick for several days afterwards. Dominoes has gluten free pizza which is known, and instead of looking for another place that may or may not be gluten free we decided to get pizza from there, take it back to Emy's hotel and eat it. There was a snag in the plan because the Dominoes wouldn't deliver to that side of town...so the plan was reworked. Caitlin, Dave and Paul would take their Uber to Dominoes and pick up the pizza and then meet us at the hotel. Meanwhile, Bre, Emy and I went back to the hotel straight away. While in the room we chatted some more, the topics were mostly silly by that point.

When the pizza arrived we all chowed down like we didn't eat dinner earlier in the night. There was little conversation though the pizza eating, and Emy set the television to Adventures in Babysitting, so that meant there was even less conversation.

With the pizza finished, it was time to start making plans to get back to the Twin Arrows. We were planning to taken an Uber, but because of the distance, and the late hour the fare would have been several hundred dollars. So we called Melissa to pick us up. Which she was willing to do, however after some debate we decided to see if a cab would take us there. They had flat rates and would take all five of us (Emy did not need a ride) back in one cab. So we told Melissa that she could go back to bed, which of course she did not do. Then, we waited for the cab, and waited and waited. Some of us ended up dozing, and some of us ended up sleeping, but the wait continued for over an hour. The cab did call at one point to say that they were coming, but after that there was no word from them for another 45 minutes. By that time, we determined that we could drive back ourselves.

So that's what we ended up doing, arriving at the wee hour of 4 AM. We were pretty beat at that point so the elevator ride to our rooms wasn't very eventful.

Sunday, May 15, 2016 Flagstaff to Phoenix

Despite the late night I woke up at about 7:30 AM. I attempted to go back to sleep, but could not. So I dressed and went downstairs to look for Bernie. I knew he had left earlier, and I thought I saw him put gym clothes on. I first checked in the Four Elements, but he was not there, so I went back to find the fitness center. While doing so I ran into David and Mary, and also Karen. They were coming down to breakfast, but they came with me to check in the fitness center for my Dad. He wasn't there! We decided that checking in the fitness center was as good as going to the fitness center for the day. Ha!

After that I decided to join them, and also Jim, Bre and Paul (who were on their way) for breakfast. I didn't bring down my purse, so I had to go back for that. I found Jim on my way back from that that task and we went down together. On my way down G'Ma called, I told her about breakfast and asked if she would want to join us. I also asked if she wanted me to pick her up, but she said she could find it. Which she did! But not before my Dad showed up. I guess he was watching someone in the casino playing blackjack in an unusual way like splitting 3s and etc. It sounded like the guy was very lucky despite his playing tactics.

The nine of us all ate breakfast. I had fruit and toast. The fruit was just as good as it looked on other people's plate the day before. The toast was just toast. The coffee was also refreshing. After breakfast Karen and Bre were leaving to get a rental car and drive to Durango, Colorado. While Jim and Paul were returning to Tucson.

I went back upstairs and tried to sleep a little more, but it wasn't working. So when my mom said that she wanted to eat, I went to sit with her. G'Ma, Mary and David joined us after a bit. Mary and David offered to drive G'Ma to Phoenix and then one of them would drive with her back to Tucson. So they stayed for just a bit longer before going. Melissa finished her breakfast, and then we, with Bernie, went back to the Casino. Bernie played a few hands, but lost three in a row almost immediately. He lost so quickly he made Melissa a little nervous. So she only bet five dollars every hand. Still she ended up winning again and she was up sixty-five dollars for the entire weekend.

After losing three hands in a row she cashed out, and then we went upstairs to get ready to check out. We stopped by Caitlin and Dave's room because Caitlin had two more cards to open and also to say goodbye to them. Then, we went to our room to pack up.

The trip down to Phoenix was much easier than the way up, though there was some traffic it didn't last too long. We also stopped at Melissa's favorite exit (Cottonwood/Camp Verde exit) and had mini Blizzards at Dairy Queen.

South American Tour: Panama Canal, Canal Zone to Buenaventura, Columbia to Long Beach

Wednesday, March 17, 1965 Enroute to Canal

St. Patrick's Day! The Nelsons, Bradfords and Dorothy Willison hosted a party in honor of the Finnertys and the other passengers. It was Planter's Punch and hors d'oeuvres for cocktail hour, red and white wine for dinner and cordial following games were played in the lounge. 

We had arrived in Limon Bay inside the brian water at 1 PM. There were a dozen other ships anchored nearby. We received the "news" shortly as an official boat came by and said we were scheduled for 8 PM tomorrow night, Thursday -- a 31 hour layover. Life hasn't changed a bit -- its still "mañana" -- Par for the course. The party helped to pass the time. Last year we went from the Pacific to the Atlantic. One can't say from west to east as the eastern end (Atlantic) is 27 miles west of the Pacific entrance.

 

Thursday, March 18, 1965 Panama Canal

This was the most uneventful day of the trip. We walked the decks and looked at the ships thru our glasses and tried to figure what was causing the delay. We didn't. Today there were 17 Northbound (Pacific to Atlantic) and 23 Southbound ships put thru the Canal, according to the official report. The Canal Pilot arrived by boat at exactly 8 PM. Our Captain came to lounge a few minutes later and said the passengers might use the flying bridge to observe progress thru the Canal. The anchor was hauled up and we were on our way. The moon was full as it had been on February 26, 1964, the last time we went thru. The ship traveled slowly. 

Gatun Locks

We are disappointed that we are going thru a second time at night. However, there is a possibility we may still see part during daylight. The Captain has been informed that the ship is to stop, anchor and wait for orders to proceed, as soon as we leave the Gatun Locks and enter Gatun Lake. If we stay there all night it will be a daylight trip for the rest of the way. It's midnight and all the passengers are going to bed. Starting of the Disel's will wake some and they will arouse the heavy sleepers. The ship has covered only 8 miles of the 50 to get to the Pacific. We decided to sleep thru the trip thru Gatun Lake and be called as it entered Gaillard Cut. It seems we only stop for two hours. That's the way the cards fell and we were on deck at 3 AM. It was slightly cool and very humid, with a full moon shining. The Canal is very narrow but well lighted all of the way. At the 40th mile we were into Pedro Miguel Locks and at 41 the two at Miraflores which lowered the ship back to sea level. Then we passed Balboa and saw the lights of Panama City and out into the Pacific where the ship headed south for our second stop at Buenaventura Columbia. We weren't impressed on our first visit January 4 and 5, 1965 so we will try to go over to Cali and then hope we can fly to Bogota the Capital.

Friday March 19, 1965 Enroute to Buenaventura

 Today's cool and humid we are 7°-8° North of the equator. The passengers spent all or part of the day catching up on lost sleep. I went to bed at 5:15 AM while Millie and Bea made toast and tea in the kitchen. Tomorrow, Buenaventura. There is a Question of whether we will be able to dock or must anchor and wait.

Saturday, March 20, 1965 Buenaventura, Columbia

The ship anchored a short distance from shore at 6 AM. At 7:30 AM it moved into dock. We were told then that we would sail out Sunday Night. This short stay eliminated the train trip to Cali and then a flight to Bogatá. Millie was sick during the night and was not interested in going anywhere. The Finnertys and Nelsons hired a taxi to go to Cali, about a four hour drive, stay all night and to return tomorrow. In mid-morning Millie and I took a walk around the town. We liked it better than when we were here in January. It was quiet and humid in the sun. Millie went to bed in PM and I walked over to town to get a haircut. The barber spoke no English and understood less. It was the cheapest I’ve ever had. Next one will be in the States. That last one cost me 4 pesos, about $.28 U.S. and that’s what it was worth.

Sunday, March 21, 1965 Buenaventura, Columbia

Victor Bradford has arranged for a small motor boat for the morning. Six went along. The little boat had a capacity of 12 and was powered by a new Johnson Twin outboard motor. It was an unusual trip. We went far into the jungle, the Rio Agua Clara rapidly narrows and we went in until there was scarcely any room to turn around.

Monday, March 22, 1965 Buenaventura Columbia

Buenaventura Columbia

Sailing time has been changed several times. This morning it is set at 4 PM depending on coffee. We are to take on 5000 in 4 pound bags. In the AM we visited the Grase Line ship Santa Mercedes. It carries 120 passengers and cargo. This Afternoon some of the passengers visited us. Word came at 3:30 PM that sailing would be at 4 PM and so it was. 

It was alos raining very hard at that time, the first time on the trip that the ship has traveled in the rain. Next stop Los Angeles, understand English is largerly spoken there!

Tuesday, March 23, 1965 – Wednesday, March 30, 1965 Enroute to Long Beach

This will be the longest non-stop run for the ship. It is 3046 nautical miles to Long Beach from Buenaventura. We move from 7°26’ to 36°25’ N. Latitude and from 79°00’ to 122°03’ N Longitude. The first three days the sea was quite rough and then it became delightfully smooth.

It was not quite a non-stop run. On Monday, March 29^th, the motors stopped while we were eating dinner a few minutes later the Captain was called from the table. He came back later and said that one of the pistons had gone bad and there would be a 4 to 5 hour repair of it. The crippled diesel was staled and the ship was moved about five miles out of the ship lanes and then stopped for the overhaul. It was too deep to drop anchor so we just floated around. The air temperature stayed around 86° to 81°  the first 4 days, dropped to 77° the fifth day, to 63°  the next- the day we had motor trouble. As we neared Long Beach the air temperature dropped to 62° with wind and rain and then to 54° at San Francisco.

The ship was supposed to dock at Pier 41 in San Francisco which is adjacent to Fisherman’s Wharf. This would have been most convenient for us as our motel was only ten minutes away. We had also made reservations for the Bradfords who had joined the ship in Buena Aires.

However, there were so many bags of coffee in the hold that had to be unloaded before getting to the other cargo, it was necessary to dock at the Alameda Encinal Terminal across the Bay. The U.S. Custom Officers permitted us and the other passengers to leave the ship that night with overnight bags and leave the rest of our accessories (32 bags and boxes) on board until Monday when the ship would be at Pier 41. We were fortunate in having a ship supplier salesmen who came aboard offer to take the four of us over the Bay Bridge to San Francisco as he lived in the neighborhood, he dropped us at the Alpha Motor Inn. It was just midnight and our South American Tour was over.

Note from B-Dog: This is the end of the South American Tour by Ernest and Millie Saegart. I found the journals very interest especially as a time stamp from two people living in Southwest United States in 1960's. Just a note on Ernest. He was born in Connecticut in April 28, 1898 to Arthur Saegart and Cora (Sackett) Saegart and Died December 9, 1966 so about a two years after this trip was taken. 

A note about Mildred "Millie" (Elwell) Saegart she was born June 17, 1905 in New York to Raymond S. Elwell and Grace (Hutchinson) Elwell. She lived until February 24, 1994. Which means I have vague memories of her, which mostly involve dressing up her dogs in doll clothes, and trying to avoid getting lipstick on my teeth. 

South American Tour: Barranquilla and Cartegena Columbia

Saturday, March 13, 1965 Enroute to Barranquilla

The ship left Port of Spain, Trinidad last night at 9 PM. and headed west and slightly north too far off the coast of Venezuela to see land. Our destination in Barranquilla, Columbia. This is the only South American country that fronts both on the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. We were on the Pacific side at Buenaventura on Jan 3, 4 &5 and our schedule calls for return. Barranquilla is a modern city of half a million seven miles up the Magdalena River, one of the great waterways of the Western hemisphere. It is the largest port and also the newest by about 200 years.

Sunday, March 14, 1965 Enroute to Barranquilla

This was the day of the flying fish. There was a bright sun and the sea was relatively smooth. As the ship plowed thru the sea and threw out it's wake, it apparently frightened the flying fish which were near the surface and hundreds of them in scholls of 100 or more and also singles appeared. Tom Finnerty won the daily pool on the number of miles the ship covered in the last 24 hours, so he put on a cocktail party at 5 PM.

Monday, March 15, Barranquilla

The ship docked at 9 AM. We arose early and packed a suitcase and hired a taxi to tour the city and then take us to Cartagena, the next stop for our ship, 85 miles southwest by road. It wasn't quite that simple! The driver, he spoke English mas o menos (more or less) agreed to give us the tour and then turn us over to his brother who had a better car, for the trip to Cartegena. The deal had several loose ends, but it was the best we could negotiate. The Finnertys were on this one, too.

We had a very delightful morning with a little shopping thrown in. We were able to buy some black market money at $13.70 pesos to the dollar, $9.99 to $1.00 is the official rate. We had lunch at the Country Club thru the courtesy of our ship's agent. During the morning we drove thru the market place which is most picturesque, with every thing from fruit to flamingos awaiting. Fish is halled direct from dugout canoe to customers on canal side of market. At four we drove to Del Prado Hotel to exchange cars and drivers. After a short delay both appeared. Our new drive also could speak some English. He had played ball with the Miami Hurricanes a few years back. At 4:30 PM we left for Cartegena over the Pam Am Highway. It was narrow, but paved except for about two miles on entering the city. The driver had to clear our trip with the local police before leaving town.

There were a number of check hales but that is par for the course. They are not repaired until Traffic is stopped. We arrived about 7:30 PM. We had intended to go to the Bahia Hotel but the drive stopped in front of a very new and good looking hotel. He went in to check on price and came back with a card -140 pesos with 30% discount about $7.00 for double. It was the Hotel Americano and had been opened only 3 months - of the 10 floors only half were completed. It has the only government licensed gambling Casino in town, but we couldn't go in because Tom and I didn't bring coats with us. We had a wonderful lobster dinner for less than $200 a piece and a view of the Caribbean, the beach and the canal. The Hotel was to secure a Taxi with English speaking driver for tomorrow.

Tuesday, March 16, 1965 Cartegena, Columbia

Cartegena lies on a sandspit of the warm shimmering Atlantic seacoast, the Spanish Main of history. It has a population of 100,000 good beaches and an excellent climate. Sir Frances Drake succesfully sacked the city about 1550. Then 70 million was spent on fortification and outer and inner walls surrounded the city and forts at advantageous points. Parts of the walls are still standing and in good condition. They are 40 feet high and 50 to 75 feet wide. We drove along the top of it. We visited San Felipe fort which was outside the walls and across a lagoon. It has an escape tunnel which descends by ramp about 300 feet, passes under the lagoon and exists in the inner wall into the city: it was never necessary to use the tunnels as an emergency. In 1741 Admiral Vernon led a British fllet of 190 ships and 27,000 men against the city. He was defeated.

Breakfast was finished at 7 AM and we found our driver waiting in the lobby. We toured the residential area where we saw some of the finest homes in SA, then we drove to the ship to check on departure time and to leave the suitcases. Sailing was set for two and we were to be back at one. Then we started out again.

We drove to the top of La Popa, highest observation point for many miles. From here we can see that the largest entrance to Cartegena is deceptive. This Boca Grande allows water to flow, but ships cannot pass as an artificial reef blocks the mile wide channel. The Spaniards, in 1741, installed a masonry wall across the entrance, a magnificent engineering feat! Boca Chica six miles south and behind Tierra Bomba Island is the only entrance for ships.

We then drove over to the Fort of San Felipe. The church and monastery of St. Peter Claver was visited. He was a Jesuit who dedicated his life to helping slaves. he baptized more than 300,000.

When we went out for dinner last night we left the glass door to the canal ajar and the lights on. This morning Millie was covered with insect bites. Some of which raised some big welts. There are no window or door screens in SA. The ship sailed at five o'clock for the Panama Canal. We hope we can go thru in the daytime last year it was at night.

South American Tour at Sea, Bridgetown, Barbados, Port of Spain, Trinidad

Friday, March 5th 1965 to Wednesday, March 10th 1965 at Sea

We will have six full days at sea to rest, relax, eat, sleep and to catch up with our correspondence. The weather is marvelous with a bright sun and a cool breeze. Today the air temperature is 84° and the sea 82°. At noon, the ship is 9°46' south of the equator - slightly less than 600 nautical miles. A nautical mile is one and one-seventh land miles. It is also equivalent to one minute of latitude. 

Saturday night, the Captain entertained first with cocktails. The Steward came in to the lounge and told the passengers that they would be a slight delay on the dinner hour as the cook was drunk. We were all astonished as he was such a nice person, the cook that is. We were called at 6:30 instead of 6:00 and all the passengers paraded to the dining room and found it bare. The dinner was served on the after deck complete with red and white wines and beer and liqueurs for after dinner drunks. It was a most delightful evening. The cook was sober!

On Sunday, March 7 the ship recrossed the equator with out incident or ceremony at 12:25 pm there was a nice breeze so it wasn't even hot. At noon the air temperature was 82°. In the afternoon, Millie and I; and some of the other passengers, took a swim in the ship's pool. It was the third day in a row that we went in the pool, something I haven't done that often since I was a kid.

Monday and Tuesday it was quite rough. At 10 PM Wednesday we came into Bridgetown, capital of Barbados Island. As we approached the dock we knew we were out of South America. The workspace was large, the storage sheds attractive and everything was neat, clean and tidy. Bea Finnerty, Millie and I went to town in agent's car. Not a thing was open so he brought us back.

Thursday, March 11 1965 Bridgetown, Barbados

There wasn't cargo to be handled here so we were told the ship might sail at six. With the Finnertys we hired a taxi for the day for $20 US and toured the island population 114,000. I don't believe there is 500 whites on the island. It is 21 miles long and 14 miles across a it's widest point. It would be a member of the Federation of West Indies but they can't decide who gets the Capital, so a deep freeze is on. We drove around the island of Barbados. It is very charming. Their main crop is sugar cane. The ship left at 6 PM and headed for Port of Spain on the island of Trinidad.

Friday, March 12 1965 Port of Spain, Trinidad

The ship arrived in the Gulf of Paria at 6 am and docked at the Capital city at 7 am. The island is about 50 miles long and 30 miles wide and has a population of 850,000 of which 47% are Africans, 36% East Indian, 3% Europeans 2% Chinese and the rest mixed. More than 200,000 tourists visit the island from December to April of each year. There are Muslim Mosques, Hindu Temples and bazaars. There are wonderful roads, beautiful scenery and fine bathing beaches. The climate is a splendid and the nights are cool. The island altho in the West Indies is only seven miles from Venezuela.

English efficiency exists everywhere. The town and the island are neat and clean. It is stil a British territory and is combined with Tobago an island 18 miles to the north for administrative purposes. Port of Spain has a population of 95,000. We took a tour of the town and then the island. Our driver was a Hindu who spoke excellent English as do most of the inhabitants - with a British accent. We returned at 5 pm noting a 9 pm departure. We could have gone to a local nite club they put on early shows for departing tourists but we were too exhausted to be seeking culture.

Trinidad Dollar

South American Tour: Salvador, Brazil

Sunday, February 28, 1965 Enroute to Salavador, Brazil

Millie was sick with upset stomach during night and stayed in bed until dinnertime. Though quite warm, the wind blew at gale proportions and made the deck uncomfortable and the sea very rough.

Monday, March 1, 1965 Salavador, Brazil

Sea much more calm. The temperature of the sea at noon was 88° and of the air 84°. At that time we were exactly 15° south of the equator -- 900 miles. Actually the ship will travel quite a bit farther to reach the equator as it will go in a northwesterly direction as soon as it passes the bulge on Brazil's eastern shore line.

The ship approached Salavado about 8 PM. From the ship, the extensive lighting seemed to indicate quite a city. At 9 PM the anchor was dropped a mile of shore and the passengers knew that was it for the day.

Sao Salavador da Bahia de Todos os Santos to give the town its full name is the capital of Bahia state and fourth largest city in Brazil. The population is about 700,000. The city is divided into two sections with the Baica or lower part and the alta or higher part on a small plateau some 200 feet above. The lower city has the commercial quarter and the picturesque market with its negro vendors. The government building, shopping district, hotels and restaurants area are in the upper city reached by motor roads and four elevators and two cable car systems.

Tuesday, March 2, 1965 Salavador, Brazil

One note very few people with white skin here. It is claimed Brazil is the best or worse integrated country in the world and here is the best or worse city. The South American handbook (1965) states that in all of Brazil 61% are white and multiracial about 21% and 15% black.

It's the last day of the "Carnival" and our ship is still anchored out in the bay. Nine of us boarded a water taxi for shore, took an elevator to upper level area and walked over to the central square. There was a temporary reviewing stand with a large platform for the entertainers. It was 10 AM and there was only impromptu dancing going on and only a few in the stand. We asked the soldiers on duty if we could rest in the stand and take pictures. The Vector Bradford our new passengers handled the language barrier easily. They have lived in Argentina for years. They were told to go to their headquarters - about 200 feet away - and get a pass. Imagine our surprise when we learned the passes were good until midnight.

We entered the stand at 11 am and picked seats shaded by large trees. Still only a few people in stand. Millie and I staged until 7 PM. Most of our group remained until 11 PM. It was one continuous round of rhythm dancing by one group followed by another each allowed about 10 minutes. The populace were certainly on their best behavior which was unusual for a carnival. However we learned that the sale of liquor is forbidden during carnival time, which helps a lot. Also, there were many police stationed around. It was apparent that they were well trained from the way of handling the crowds and the individuals. I have never seen so many people packed so tightly in such small places. I took lots of movies.

Wednesday March 3 1965 Salvador, Brazil

"Ash Wednesday" Lent has started and the S.A. Carnivals are over until next year. Our ship came into dock in early morning and we are spared the trouble of securing a water taxi. The Fennertys, Millie and I took a taxi tour of the town and we were highly impressed by the beautiful homes and excellent landscaping.

Our ship is to take on a load - 700 tons of castor oil at the port, but no one seems to know where the oil is and the local agent can't be located.  The oil showed up late in the afternoon in a lighter being towed across the bay with a most decrepit tug. It took an hour and a half to get the large load in place and anchored, the steam line for pressure was broken and had to be extensively unpaired and other details. Then the crew wanted to attach the steam line to our ship's system. Our vessel is a motor ship (diesel) and not a steam ship. The only steam we have is a small boiler for hot water and not big enough to operate the steam pump on the lighter to raise the oil in the ten inches over the side of the ship.

In South America that's par for the course and now transfer of castor oil is really manana of all. so the little tug left with the large lighter full of castor oil and we stay right at the dock for at least another day.

Thursday March 4 1965 Salvador, Brazil

About 9 AM the lighter returns with the aid of same decrepit tug, but a heaither looking tug also shows up and ties on other side of lighter. Step by step, all of the preliminarals were reenacted.

10:30 AM transfer was started with the healthy tug furnishing the steam. I neglected to mention the number of experts needed for the operation C.O. Our ship had 3 officers, and 8 crewmen, the sick tug had crew of five who participated half heatedly, the big tug a crew of 8 who worked at the source with the four on the lighter. On the deck there were 6 stewardors and 6 more in the hold. Then there were standed supervisors, agents and assistants for the ship, ditto for shipper, the customs pepole and the checkers. There were probably more but I went to town. Now you know why a shot of castor oil is so expensive and this is only one little day in its life. Anyway the load of C.O. is for the air france and they are going to give it to their planes.

The C.O. was loaded by two and the ship sailed by 3 PM. I was worn out so I took a nap.

Our next stop is Bridgetown in the British West Indies on the Island of Barbados, 2471 miles away. It will be our longest water span so far.