May 2010 - Belgium, Germany and a hip resurfaced

 Much of the past year, I had my other hip slowly get worse.  So, I decided not to wait as long as I had before fixing the first one in 2006.  So in May, I flew to Brussels in Belgium and continued by bus down to Ghent, where the world's best hip resurfacing surgeon operated.  The plan was to have the surgery and do the 10 days of physical therapy and recovery, then have my brother Bill and his wife Joan drive up from their home in Idstein near Frankfurt in Germany.   Together we explored the old city of Ghent first and enjoyed seeing all of its interesting sites.  We also checked out a nice local restaurant or two the last couple days that I was still residing in the rehab center.

The Ghent Castle and a fellow hip patient with her husband

My fellow hip surgery friend as we explore central Ghent after surgery

The two of us enjoying Ghent and its European architecture

colorful Ghent canal and boat cruises

people enjoying sunny day and Ghent's interesting buildings

More of Ghent's building fronts on the canal

The massive old Ghent Castle

another view from canal side

looking along one of Ghent's main canals

Yours truly exiting the old Ghent Cathedral

another view from further distance

As in the Netherlands, bicycles are numerous in town

More interesting Ghent buildings and sidewalk cafes about to open on a city square

busy noon time scene there

the same area from a bridge over the canal

city scene on a lovely day

view down one of the city scenic canals

downtown construction near Cathedral

Rehab Center where I spent 10 days after hip surgery

Relaxing out on the surgery center 2nd floor deck

Then we spent a wonderful day together in nearby Brugge.  The ancient city was a delight to see.  We walked much of the city center and took a boat ride on one of the many canals that cross through the old city.  The buildings and cathedral were fun to view and we had a great lunch and fine Belgium beer in an outdoor cafe right on the main square.

Brugge busy Central Square

Looking along one of the main streets, as typical tourist crowds visit  old city

scene along one of the many canals

another view with popular tourist tour boats

another view in the central square

Lunch time with the many sidewalk cafes filling up

Joan and I at lunch time

another central square view with the wonderful buildings

the horse drawn carriages were popular also

Happy tourists and the most popular way to see Brugges

Tourists waiting for a canal tour boat

Joan walking toward the large central cathedral

Massive cathedral tower soaring skyward 

a view from within cathedral

Another view from within cathedral

a final typical busy sidewalk view in Brugge

Then it was finally time to drive back to Idstein and my brothers home.   We crossed into Germany and had a nice midday visit in the lovely German city of Aachen.  There we did some exploring of the city and its famous old cathedral before having another fine outdoor cafe lunch with some fine German beer this time.  I got along amazingly well on my two elbow crutches and all the walking only about 10 days after the hip surgery.  Then we drove south to Idstein, just north of Frankfurt where Bill and Joan had their condo.

visiting winery near Wiesbadan on a lovely day

a view from within winery

view in Idstein near Bill and Joins condo

some of the charming and unique architecture in Idstein

Joan near their condo in Idstein which they owned for many years

another delightful appearing building

more of Idstein

looking down mains street in Idstein

Bill and Joan near their condo

 We spent a couple days there, where my brother and wife showed me the charming and unique  architecture of Idstein.   We did go into Frankfurt to see the city center and attractive riverfront, as well as visit a German relative and his fiance'.  They were both recently graduated physicians and they invited us to their apartment in Frankfurt.  Finally, before my return,  we took one day and drove west to Wiesbaden and the Rhine river and visited a picturesque German winery.   Then, I boarded my flight in Frankfurt and started the long flight back to Alaska.

Feb/Mar 2016 - Riviera Maya/Cancun/Cozumel, another 10 days !

Having a week at the Riviera Mayan Resort to use or lose, I decided to enjoy a late winter break about March 1 and flew to Cancun.   I invited my Ukrainian travel friend who enjoys scuba diving and snorkeling to join me.   We enjoyed resting and enjoying the wonderful grounds and pools of the resort on the beach the first couple days of our 1st week at the Riviera Maya's Grand Mayan.  As a perk, I got tickets for the Cirque de Soleil.  The extravaganza show that  night was held right across the highway on the resort grounds in a stunning new hall, surrounded by truly beautiful grounds.  I wish my daughter, Anne, had been along to enjoy it with us.    It was an amazing show, as all their productions are around the world.  Another highlight during our 1st week was our taking a full day tour into the heart of the Yucatan peninsula.  There we visited Coba, the last of the 4 great, famous Mayan ruins and sites on the Yucatan that I had yet to visit.   Coba was really fun, and is a vast site that has only been partially excavated.   We rented bicycles to travel the huge trail network within the jungle site in order to see most of the ruins that have been unearthed so far.   The most impressive was the great pyramid in the heart of the ancient site.  One is still allowed still climb this stone relic, and so of course, my travel friend and I climbed to the top to enjoy the view far out over the Yucatan jungle.  It is a vast, completely flat area that one can see over for miles.  We then enjoyed a wonderful afternoon Mexican lunch on the 2nd floor of an  open air restaurant,  where we could look out over a lovely lake along side our restaurant.   Finally, we had a long bus ride back after a great full days outing and experience.

The main entry fountain at Grand Mayan resort

Flamingos and pool area on Grand Mayan grounds

An alligator in one of the Grand Mayan pools

A colorful Iguana on the grounds

A cold beer break on a visit to Playa del Carmen

Enjoying the main Grand Mayan pool

an Acouti from the adjacent jungle begging   :-)

The jungle scene adjacent to the Grand Mayan grounds

Apparently the iguanas also enjoy the Grand Mayan pool !!  :-)

Yours truly and "friend"

Lovely sunset over the Yucatan

I am carefully working my way down the great Coba Pyramid

Looking out over the vast, flat Yucatan from the top of Coba's great pyramid

Just starting down from the top of the Coba Pyramid

The Cirque du Soleil show poster

one of the many grand show scenes

another show scene

amazing, action filled  and colorful scene

Playa del Carmen was only minutes away, so we went into town several times to shop, enjoy the restaurants, and also to catch the ferry over for a full day on Cozumel.   We spent our day on Cozumel enjoying diving, snorkeling and a taking a great boat trip along the coast.

enjoying a Grande' margarita with a wonderful seafood dinner in Playa del Carmen

graceful sting ray seen while diving off Cozumel

curious fish in the shallow Cozumel waters

The main Playa del Carmen beach seen from the main pier & ferry terminal

Our Cozumel drink stop after our diving and boat trip day

After the week at the Riviera Mayan Resort, we moved into the heart of the hotel strip on Cancun and spent our last 3 nights at the Intercontinental El Presidente Hotel and resort right on the beautiful white sand beach of the center of Cancun's famous "Hotel Strip".    It was fun walking the area, sunning by the pools, enjoying the shopping , swimming in the warm ocean, and just relaxing before the long trip home.   No question, it was a great winter break.

My travel friend, Bogdan, about to take a wave rider out

Bogdan with a huge sea star

A big school of fish at mouth of underwater Cenote as seen when we snorkeled

Bogdan with a huge conch shell

getting ready for margaritas and dinner after another great day