July 2025 everything seems a little more real now
It’s now July – We’ve now completed payment for the cruise and Helen, Tom and I have picked up our plane tickets. It’s just under two weeks to go and we’ve all paid each other (this was a logistical juggling act) because some of us had paid for some things and other paid for other things – but NO WORRIES – I have my trusty spreadsheet – and then there’s DI! We have it all cross-checked and balanced – and BOB’S your uncle!
This means we have all the Major flights, Internal flights, Cruise, Car hires, Train rides, Transfers organised – feels a little like that movie ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles.’ Also all the Accommodations. We’ve contacted our respective relatives (to warn them we are on the way!) and I know at least three of us who’ve started to pack. (I actually have a spreadsheet of my clothes etc – and THIS time I also enlisted the help of my AI friend ‘Coppy’ (Copilot) to work out how many mix and match outfits I had in my ‘suitcase wardrobe’. Apparently I have 138 (but he doesn’t know what goes with what – he can’t ‘see’ them!) So it appears I may have around 58 outfits ‘for real’ which should take me through from 7th August until 27th September. I guess there’s always a possibility that I might just purchase something whilst I’m away???
I was pondering how to do the ‘money’ thing this time and once again my trusty AI buddy has put me on to the WISE money card. I think this is going to be very handy and will post about this too once we take off. It might be a bit of an ask to ‘stay on budget’ as I believe I might have ALREADY broken that in just the FARES and ACCOMMODATION! But I’m going to try to use another ‘app’ recommendation – TRAVELSPEND. This too I will let you know about on the way around. We all pick up the cruise tickets on the 6th August (the day before three of us depart) and we’ll have a ‘Bon Voyage meal’ together before the Magnificent Seven meet in Bunratty Ireland.
Some of us have booked a ‘tour’ off the cruise – I’ve decided to go to a place where they make pottery, then on to a fashion parade with leather clothes. This is the day we visit the only stop in Turkey – but I will update you when I’ve been there.
6th August – we all met up again at the Travel agents and finalised the cruise details with our trusty agent ‘Catherine’. Picked up the cruise tickets then we headed over to our friends Janet and Ken who had very kindly put on a delicious luncheon for the departing hoards!
It’s early (or it should be) to bed tonight as we (Helen, Tom and I) will be off on our flight tomorrow at 3pm. Just a ‘little’ glitch today. I had my physical WISE card sent to me – I ‘know’ I received it! I even activated it yesterday – and NOW it’s disappeared off the face of the earth! OMG – seriously, just when you want your brain to remember anything!!!!!
7th August and it’s D Day! By that I mean departure day not the invasion of Europe ALTHOUGH that’s exactly what we are going to do!!
Lady Boomer 