World Nomads stories & writers
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NETHERLANDS ANTILLES | Sun, 12 Sep 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [27]
MY FIRST CRUISE WAS TEN YEARS AGO—the Atlantic crossing that started these journals. I had no idea what to expect and Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas became the standard comparison for other cruise lines. This is the first time we ... Read more >
USA | Sat, 4 Sep 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [27]
WE WILL BE OUT OF TOUCH for the next week or so. We are taking a cruise to Aruba, Curacao and the Dominican Republic on the Carnival Horizon . One of the ways cruise lines remain profitable in spite of the low fares is the amount they charge for extras—... Read more >
MEXICO | Thu, 2 Sep 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [29]
I COULD TELL BY THE PARADIDDLE OF STAMPING feet that Connie was having her nose swabbed for the Covid test. The administrator admonished her for squinching up her face on the first try and it was only a tantrum-like stomping that got her through. Well, ... Read more >
MEXICO | Sun, 29 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [33]
WE MIGHT STILL BE IN MEXICO but we'e been plotting out the next couple of months. It wasn't easy but finally made some long-range reservations. We leave for Cancun on Tuesday after our Covid tests and fly to Miami on Wednesday. Assuming we test negative ... Read more >
MEXICO | Sat, 28 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [32]
WHEN KIPLING WROTE “ONLY MAD DOGS and Englishmen go out in the midday sun” he could have been referring to Puerto Morelos. With the heat and humidiy it’s uncomfortable even on the beach. They have been cleaning up after Señorita ... Read more >
NEW ZEALAND | Fri, 27 Aug 2021 | By nomad_kiwis | Views [39] | Comments [1]
We are in lockdown again... One person found with Covid19 and because of it's exponential behaviour Aotearoa went immediately into lockdown.
Now a lot of us find lockdown nice, yes nice. We are lucky enough to not have to go into it for ... Read more >
MEXICO | Tue, 24 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [47]
THE BIRDING TRIP IS OFFICIALLY OVER. It was a successful trip any way you slice it—5000 kilometers in six Mexican States, more than 400 bird species identified with 130 “Lifers” for Connie. At a rough estimate, I took 5000-something ... Read more >
MEXICO | Sun, 22 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [36]
OURS WAS THE FIRST CAR OFF THE Naviera Ferry to Cozumel last night—fitting since we arrived at the port 3½ hours before sailing. Our “business” on the mainland was finished and there was no 1:00PM sailing on Sunday, only the ... Read more >
MEXICO | Fri, 20 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [45]
THE NEARER WE—AND HURRICANE GRACE—got to Merida, the nastier the weather became. It was touch-and-go for a while with heavy rain and tree branches strewn across the road but they were waiting for us at Hotel Meson de Luna. The elevator was ... Read more >
MEXICO | Wed, 18 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [44]
WE HAVE PRETTY MUCH ABANDONED ERIC’S well-planned itinerary, partly due to a hurricane named Grace but mostly because we are ahead of schedule, bird-wise. After Eric’s audible yesterday we headed out towards Ixpujil in the Mexican state of ... Read more >
MEXICO | Tue, 17 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [29]
THIS MORNING CALLED FOR AN EARLY START birding in deciduous forests of Sumidero Canyon in the mountains above San Cristobal. Eric had earmarked the entire morning to finding our target birds—potentially some of the hardest sightings of the trip—... Read more >
MEXICO | Mon, 16 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [39]
THE ARCHEOLOGICAL SITE AT TENAM PUENTE is only twenty minutes from City Express Hotel and sunrise isn’t until 7:30 so we were able to sleep in and enjoy the included breakfast. Eric usually finds Slender Sheartail Hummingbirds and Belted Flycatchers ... Read more >
MEXICO | Sun, 15 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [27]
WE WORKED UP AN APPETITE SATURDAY with a successful morning of birding above Union Juarez that netted us Black-creasted Coquette, Blue-throated Motmot, Green-throated Mountain Gem, Grey-collared Becard, Mexican Yellow Grosbeak and White-winged Tanager.... Read more >
MEXICO | Fri, 13 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [39]
THE DAYS BEGIN TO RUN TOGETHER—a different hotel every night, up before dawn, load bags into the SUV, stop for coffee, head out for some morning birding and drive to the next destination. Sometimes we stop for more birding or maybe a quick lunch.... Read more >
MEXICO | Wed, 11 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [43]
CHICAGO MAY BE THE “WINDY CITY” but it can’t hold a candle to the Isthmus of Oaxaca and its hundreds—if not thousands—of wind-turbines furiously spinning among the thorn scrub. The wind didn’t seem to bother the birds, ... Read more >
MEXICO | Tue, 10 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [25]
WE HAD SOME “MOPPING UP” BIRDING-WISE to accomplish Monday morning before we had to get out of Dodge, aka Huatulco. It took a while due to my fogged up lens but we soon saw and photographed Doubleday’s Hummingbird and settled for the ... Read more >
MEXICO | Sun, 8 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [31]
SHADES OF OUR LAST DAYS IN NEW ZEALAND, Huatulco officials announced today that the beaches, restaurants and hotels would be forced to close on Monday due to Covid. Already Eric’s September group canceled and we can only hope that this trend doesn’... Read more >
MEXICO | Sat, 7 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [31]
IT WAS CHILLY FRIDAY MORNING as we birded around the grounds of Puesta del Sol but we managed good looks at Rivoli’s Hummingbird, a Brown-backed Solitaire and a Hooded Yellowthroat before saddling up and heading downhill towards the Pacific. ... Read more >
MEXICO | Thu, 5 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [32]
HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS OVERNIGHT TRANSITIONED to steady rain on Wednesday morning and we didn’t go out until 7:30. Two full hours and several stops towards the Continental Divide netted only an Emerald-chinned Hummingbird, Black-faced Grosbeak and ... Read more >
MEXICO | Tue, 3 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [47]
WE HAD THE LUXURY OF BREAKFAST at the hotel today—we’re staying local and it doesn’t get light until after seven. After heaping plates of mango, papaya, banana, cantaloupe and pineapple—more fruit than I usually eat in a week—... Read more >
MEXICO | Mon, 2 Aug 2021 | By graynomadsusa | Views [48]
ON SUNDAY WE MADE A FEW STOPS at “birdy-sounding” places on our way to Parque Ecotouristico La Cumbre Ixtepeji. Long pants and polar fleece were much appreciated today at 10,000 feet. The scenery was spectacular and the birding, though chilly, ... Read more >