Category Archives: Locations

Places around the world

The Beauty of Savusavu

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Savusavu is a delightful place with grocery stores, fresh produce, bakeries, restaurants, chandleries, mechanics, and some tourism.  It’s small enough to be quaint and big enough to meet our needs after being off the grid for so long.

There are 4 marinas in Savusavu.  Two of the “marinas” are very small and only offer a few mooring balls:  Waitui Marina and Savusavu Marina.

Copra Shed Marina has moorings and a few slips at their dock.  They have 2 restaurants, a gift shop, chandlery, activity center, Fiji Airways office, and a Money exchange.

Nawi Marina is the new, big marina that is still in the process of expanding.  They have lots of marina slips and a haul out facility.  Soon, they will have mooring balls.  They have a beautiful pool, 2 restaurants, chandlery, small market, coffee shop, small beauty spa and more.

We stay on a Copra Shed mooring (see green arrow).  We have a nice breeze, very little traffic and a pretty view.

The marinas are all vastly different but there is something for everyone.

Nawi is still trying to figure things out.  They’ve unfortunately tripled their rates so it is not a place we stay.  But, we do love to visit and enjoy their pool, bar and restaurants.

There is a lovely produce market that is open daily.  You can find eggs, potatoes, onions, papayas, bananas, bell peppers hot peppers, cabbage, avocados, passion fruit and oh so much more!

A Month Long Stay

Normally, we would not have stayed for a month.  However, I had to fly back to the states to pick up our boat parts and Matt had to do the repairs.

At least we were “stuck” in a beautiful town with provisions, restaurants, and lots of other cruisers to hang out with!

We had lots of beautiful rainbows.

And more rainbows:

Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind actual live events.

We arrived Savusavu in early May and stayed for several weeks repairing the boat.  Be sure to check out our arrival to Savusavu here.

Descanso Gardens cherry blossom tree

The Sleeping Descanso Gardens

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I met my dearest friend Kathryn at Descanso Gardens in La Canada, California.  These botanical gardens are on 150-acres.  They feature a wide area, mostly forested, with artificial streams, ponds, lawns, and small sitting structures.

There were gravel, wood chip, and dirt paths twisting throughout the property.  Streams with small waterfalls, towering forest and blossoming floral gardens.

The colors were extremely vibrant and the smells are deliciously fragrant.

Poppies, daffodils, roses, stargazers, lilies and more.

There are lots of seating areas, bridges, and water features.  We came across a man wearing a captain’s hat and reading.

Daphne’s Wardrobe

The Descanso Gardens had a wonderful display called Daphne’s Wardrobe Metamorphosis into Nature.  It is beautiful combination of art and fashion. 

The displays consisted of clothing, sculptures, paintings, and photography.

Many beautiful sculptures and carvings were on display as well.

I really wanted to try this on!  Check out the pretty little shoes on display.

This was my favorite spot. 

The cherry blossom tree was in bloom and reflected beautifully in the water.

What a joy it was to spend some quality time with Kathryn! 

We really enjoyed the Descanso Gardens.  Although, I’d recommend going in the spring when the flowers are in full bloom.

Our blog posts run 6 weeks behind actual live events.  We were in Descano Gardens in early March 2025.

We had the best time as we danced through Disneyland, come play with us.

Dancing through Disney

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It’s a Disney Day!  I’m with my sister, Kimberly, her husband, Troy and my cousin Mark! 

Despite rain in the forecast, we arrive at 0900. The first thing we notice is the nearly empty parking lot.  This is a good sign of fewer people in the park.

We methodically planned out  the order of the rides.  We started with the most popular rides first.  Next we hit the rides with lines exposed to the rain. 

So we zig zagged across the park a lot. It is such a magical feeling to enter Disney!

Rise of the Resistance

The Rise of the Resistance ride is really new and often has over a 3 hour wait in line.  We came to the Star Wars Park to do this ride first.  We were super excited that there was only a 10 minute wait. 

This ride had a blend of holograms, films, and live action characters. Technology is throughout this ride.  You start off in a room with a hologram explaining about the Resistance.  Then you are “captured” and shuttled through two rooms with soldiers (both live action and holograms).  Next you enter a small ship where you try to escape.

Outside the ride, Disney makes it a truly authentic steam punk style. 

Smugglers Run

Sticking to the space theme we hit Smugglers Run.  This had a very impressive entrance putting you in the setting of the ride before you enter.  They had “pet shops” with the strangest stuffed creatures and a robot roasting space pig.

Smugglers Run had a blend of holograms, film, and interactive spaceship.  They ushered us into our own “pod” where everyone is given a role: Pilot, Engineer, and Gunners.  Everyone is pushing buttons or pulling levers throughout the ride.

Pirates of the Caribbean

What kind of sailor would I be if I did not stop in to see my Californian pirate friends?  Disney made a few updates to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.  Always a fun and jovial ride.

Super bummed these photos came out blurry.  I was using my iPhone 13 Pro Max low light feature which works great.  However you are supposed to stay still which is hard to do on a moving ride!  The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean are both located at New Orleans Square.

The Haunted Mansion

Haunted Mansion is always a crowd pleaser.  It has great hologram effects and creepy ghosts that ride with you.  The haunting starts as you wait in line (which we did for 10 minutes). All along the perimeter are hysterical grave markers.

Big Thunder Mountain

One of my favorite rides is Big Thunder Mountain in Frontier Land!  This fantastic roller coaster is full of twists and turns and giant drops! 

My phone had to be stowed so I did not get many photos. 

We stopped in at the bakery and watched the bakers make bread bowls. 

I had fun with one of the bakers.  Pretending to eat her bread bowl through the glass.  Doing my best to make her smile. She later chased me down to hand me a Mickey Mouse bread!  

Space Mountain

Space Mountain in Tomorrow Land is another great ride.  This is fabulous roller coaster that gets your heart beating as you travel through space. 

They have a camera that captures you toward the end. We did not buy the photos at ($16-20/piece) but we took a photo of them. Troy is on the left front and Kimberly and I are in the back right making heart symbols.

The Matterhorn

The Matterhorn ride is 66 years old!  It is an iconic mountain situated at Disney.  You climb into newly renovated bobsleds as your zip around the rickety old roller coaster.  It is a true back adjustment ride, but one that you have to go on when you visit the park!  The Matterhorn is located in Fantasy Land.

As we were leaving Disney to head to California Adventure we stopped to watch the character parade. 

The parade had Micky and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, several princesses and so many more.

California Adventure Park

This park is located right next to Disneyland. 

You can visit both parks with the purchase of your Disney ticket.  

Cars

My sister’s favorite rides “It’s a Small World” and “Peter Pan” were closed. 

However, her 3rd favorite ride, Cars was open. This ride was complete inspired by the movie. Super silly but loads of fun – especially if you like the movie.

Soarin Over California

On Soarin California you climb into a chair that is raised really high. 

A giant screen which displays different parts of California.  This virtual ride moves you in concert with the film. 

The ride has interactive effects including wind that blows in your face and special smells.

Personally, I do not like virtual rides as they make me fuzzy headed and a wee bit sick.

IncrediCoaster

HOLY COW this ride was amazing, thrilling, frightening, exhilarating, and truly fantastic! 

Incredicoaster is my new favorite roller coaster!  This rollercoaster takes you in a complete circle, upside down.  YTou plummet down several steep drops and twist in so many directions that you can’t figure out which end is up!  Loved it!

How Much Does it Cost?

The average adult, non-California resident, ticket is $103-$206 per day!  If you live in California, the tickets start at $67/day, kids start at $50/day. Prices vary based on the number of days you want to visit. 

Parking is between $35-$55 per day.  Food and drinks are also very pricey!

This was best day I have ever had at Disney!  Why?  Because there were no lines and we walked on each ride.

Our blog posts run 6 weeks behind actual live events. 

We were at Disneyland in early March 2025. 

We walk you through a lot of boat projects we’ve been working on in our last blog post.