Preparations and A Few Hiccups

December started off very well as far as preparations for our Viking World Voyage were concerned. Luggage Forward was scheduled to pick up our two large suitcases on December 3, and I was able to pack virtually all our clothes in these suitcases. For some unknown reason, I was not stressed out this time and even managed to finish packing with two days to spare.

Packed and Ready for Pickup by Luggage Forward

Tim and I prefer to tip our local tour guides in their own currency, if possible, although we will use U.S. currency. Tim developed a spreadsheet listing every country we will visit, each currency name, the U.S. dollar equivalent, and the total currency needed. Our bank was only able to obtain currencies for about half of the countries, but it’s a great start and will save us time when we arrive in each port.

An Array of Foreign Currency

Many countries do accept U.S. dollars, but the bills must be in pristine condition, with no tears, marks, or folds. A very helpful teller provided Tim with brand new one-and five-dollar bills and sorted through hundreds of twenties to find those in the best condition. She really went out of her way to help us.

Brand New Ones and Fives

Getting overrides for six months of prescriptions was a pain, but we were finally successful with that task. Tim and I saw our doctors, dentists, and optometrist and got additional vaccinations for Tdap and Hepatitis B. The Hepatitis B vaccine requires two doses, and, surprisingly, was not covered by insurance. Almost $150 for each dose for each of us was more painful than the shots!

Amid all this preparation, Tim and I realized that it was time to update our estate documents, and we just decided to retain a financial advisor last week. That consumed a lot of our time, but we felt both were necessary tasks.

As if I didn’t have enough on my plate, my computer died, and I could not get past the sign-in screen. Tim and I tried everything, but I finally dropped it off at Computer Doctors last Saturday and paid for expedited service. Yesterday, when I stopped by to check on the status, I learned that the hard drive was corrupted and that my files could not be transferred. Really??? You’ve got to be kidding!!!

I didn’t have time to shop for a computer, so I bought one that Computer Doctors had in stock. Brian was able to load Windows on it; however, since I had no passwords with me, that was about as far as he was able to get by the time I left the store. Thank goodness I had started using OneDrive as a backup this year, so I was able to retrieve most of my files, but it took a long time to set up a new computer. I’m typing on it now, and I’m optimistic that I have what I need.

My New Computer