A quick trip to Porto

Shortly after returning from our cruise, LuLu and I made a quick trip to Porto, Portugal to see our friend that had surgery over the holidays. It was nice to spend some time with her and meet her doctor.  I really like my doctors but I'm here to tell you, they have nothing on Elaine's doctor!  First he scheduled her surgery for when he would be in Porto for the holidays visiting family (he's based in Lisbon) so he could check on her every day.  Throughout her five days in the hospital, he would come check on her every day and even posed for fun New Year's Even photos...hat and horn included!  He gave her his personal cell and they text each other.  We were so glad to meet him and thank him for taking such good care of her.  While I worked in the afternoon/evening, LuLu and Elaine did a little retail therapy and enjoyed some wine...Elaine said our visit was good for her soul (might have been the wine).

Hot Chocolate Portuguese Style

Our seven days went by so quickly but it was so good to see her with our own eyes and know she is on the mend.  Because she is a resident of Portugal and pays into the scheme, she is part of their healthcare system and like most expats and Portuguese, she also has private insurance (somewhere around $100 a month...I won't even say what I pay for less than stellar insurance in the US!).  She had her choice of public or private for the surgery and went with private only because it worked with her doctor's schedule.  The care she received in the hospital was top notch and when we went for her follow up visit, I could not believe we were in a hospital as it was so calm, quiet and smelled pleasant.  

We had time to enjoy one last cafe before boarding the plane to Paris to catch our flight to JFK where we'll spend the night before heading home.

LuLu spots the Eiffel Tower
as we approach Paris

Mezcal, Plants and a Day in LA

Our final two ports were in Mexico...first stop was Huatulco where we went to a local village to see how they weave rugs.  They not only weave the rugs but they make the dye from local plants and use moldy cactus to change the colors of the dye.

 

Our next stop of the day was at a medicinal botanical garden.  We started the tour with a cleansing and then wandered the path learning about all the healing properties in the plants.

 

 

 

 

 
The loofah sponge in it's natural habitat.  They grow on trees and if you peel back the skin you can use...no processing needed.

 

After the botanical garden, we stopped for light lunch of a tortillas filled with cactus.

Our final stop of the day was to see how tortillas are made and taste a little flavored Mezcal.  Once again, LuLu was a good sport and tried the Mezcal but not sure she enjoyed as much as Julie and me. 

 

 

 

Our last port was Puerto Vallarta where we did a little walking tour followed by more Mezcal...at least this time we learned about the process of how it is made and didn't just drink!

 

First time I've ever seen lights on an altar

 

After a couple days at sea, we arrived into the Port of Los Angeles.  Rather than trying to make a dash to the airport, we stayed in LA for the day.  LuLu does love her hot dogs so we stopped off at Pink's  before heading to the Griffith Park Observatory.

It was a windy day!

LuLu and Julie headed back home and I headed to Santa Barbara for a site visit of a hotel.  It was nice to celebrate the holidays at sea but I am looking forwarded to being home soon!