Author: BOLT
BOLT = Black Old Lesbians Traveling
Our mission is to inspire fearless, serendipitous and penniless travel. We are Kathy and Marci Halili Akoma, two retired African-Americans. Join us as we share our travels with you. We hope to hear about yours.
Contact us at boltraveling@gmail.com. Like us on www.facebook.com/pages/bolt. Follow us @boltraveling
THE WORLD IS OURS...SEE YOU THERE!
Christmas in Merida
This is the second pandemic Christmas for our world. Merida, like most cities, has suffered a lot. I’m feeling a lot of hope and joy with the beautiful decorations and holiday spirit here.
Glorietas!
A glorieta is simply a roundabout. There are many of these in Merida. Some have statues or fountains. But during Christmas the glorietas are transformed into magical holiday delights. One of our great community members here, Monte, made a great video of the glorietas. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZrFmzVcXUY&feature=youtu.be
His YouTube channel is actual a wonderful font of information on life in Merida.
If you are in Merida here is a link to a map of many of the glorietas. If you are not here please enjoy and like Monte’s video.
http://www.explore.mx/rutas-de-las-glorietas-y-parques-de-merida-con-decoracion-navidena/
Las Caravanas de Navidenas!
Las Caravanas are especially wonderful tradition of the Merida holiday seasons. Floats, full of musicians, decorations, holiday characters and of course Santa, visit all the different neighborhoods.
We we so excited when they visited our neighborhood of Emiliano Zapata Oriente!
Of course, the season is not complete without at least on holiday party! We had a great time at the Peppermint Soiree.
Most importantly, Christmas is a season of giving! I’m so grateful to have participated Amurt-Amurtel and their wonderful Christmas party for the underserved communities of Merida. Thank you to everyone who helped me collect toys for the children there. It was truly the best part of the season.
Wishing everyone a Feliz Navidad!
Amurt-Amurtel
Amurt-Amurtel and Las Mamás de Amurt-Amurtel are a wonderful organization here in Merida. I have found so much joy and satisfaction working with them.
Each week they collect donated fruits and vegetables from the market vendors here in Merida. Then they cook delicious vegetarian meals and distribute them to the underserved communities of Merida.
Currently they are also collecting new and used toys clothes and blankets to enrich the holidays of these communities.
You can read more about this about their good works in their bulletin here: https://issuu.com/babanamkevalam/docs/bulletin_apr_jun_eng_2021
If you’d like to help please let me know.
Merida!
Merida is feeling more and more like a good home base. While Kathy and I want to continue to travel the world we need an affordable comfortable and safe place to rest and rejuvenate between travels. This lovely city in the Yucatan state of Mexico provides that and much more.
There is great community here, we’ve made a wonderful group of people and there are frequent meet ups, gatherings and events.
Merida is close to the beach. Chelem and Progreso are beach cities about 45 minutes away. Cancun and Playa Del Carmen are an enjoyable 4 hour ride away if you want a more resort experience.
There is an international airport here. This is very important to us as women who want to travel a lot.
Merida is close enough to the United States to allow for visiting to and from family and friends.
If you do visit there is lots to see and do. From the vibrant night life, art scene, historical wonders like Chichen Itza and the beautiful cenotes, Merida has more than enough to keep anyone happy and interested. Have questions about Merida? What to pay us a visit? Drop us a line at boltraveling@gmail.com.
I just love all the colors of the houses in my neighborhood (Emiliano Zapata Oriente, Merida, Mexico)
Mérida, in the top ten of the best cities in the world to travel in 2022 – The Yucatan Times
Celebrating Apple!
It’s been a year since we ushered Apple into the world (in Vietnam) and my first experience as a doula. Since then we moved to Mexico and I’ve commenced studying for doula certification. Meanwhile Apple and her mommy are thriving in Thailand. You can read about Mama Dani’s experiences as a new mom at https://medium.com/@danimonique ENJOY!
BOLT Reviews: Cancun JazzFest and Hard Rock Riviera Maya
If you are looking for a wonderful time, in a beautiful place, surrounded by positive people Music Getaways Cancun JazzFest is for you. We were gifted this experience and had an amazing time. There was a good lineup of acts with a variety of music styles. Truly something for everyone. Our favorite was the Isley Brothers but I have to say Jeffrey Osborne was wonderful too.
It was announced that next year’s festival will be at a different location but I trust it will be equally great. This is not an event for the budget conscious but we are so glad we went!
I did want to take a moment to share about the Hard Rock Riviera Maya. This was our first time at an all inclusive resort and I have to say our expectations were far exceeded! It’s kind of like a cruise on land and you know how much we love cruising.
The resort is located right on the beach and you can swim in the pristine ocean water or in one of the many pools.
There are lots of activities including water exercise, zip lining and scuba diving.
There are 12 dining options from full menu restaurants to snack and dessert bars. All drinks, including alcohol, are included too. Everything was delicious and fresh!
I enjoyed feeling like I was in a somewhat natural setting with lots of paths for walking. I even got to see my first coatis.
Kathy and I would definitely consider more all inclusive resort trips, especially music festivals. Please let us know at boltraveling@gmail.com if you know of any good ones coming up.
Mexico!
We will probably be in Mexico for a while. There are so many beautiful places to see and so many things to do here. Where have you been? Where do you suggest for BOLT? Please post your comments below.
BOLT Top 5: Reasons Why We Like Cruising
Cruising is very special for Kathy and I. We met on a cruise. When we were working cruising was a great way to vacation. We started our lives of retirement and travel with a 30 day cruise. We know that cruising is not for everyone. It’s not the best way to immerse yourself in a locale. You usually spend less than a day in port. It’s not the cheapest way to travel. But for us, it’s one of our favorite ways to go. Here’s our top 5 reasons why.
1. Ease of Travel
Rather then changing hotels several times,check in, check out, lug suitcases around, etc, when you cruise you check in once and are set for the length of the vacation. On our last cruise we visited 3 countries and a total of 9 ports. Cruising made that so much easier.
2. Meals
Cruise ships have amazing food! There is a huge variety of selections and dining options. Unless you choose to dine at the “specialty restaurants” all your meals are included in the price of the cruise.
3. The Ports
Cruising is a great way to see places you might not normally visit. You will visit many exotic places on most cruises. You can choose one of the many shore excursions offered by the cruise lines or just get off the ship and explore on your own.
4. Group Gatherings
Cruises are such an awesome way to get a group together. With a minimum of planning you can have a wonderful family vacation, class reunion or simply a gathering of friends.
5. Value
Cruising is not the least expensive way to travel but when you add up all of the above we think you get very good value for your travel dollar, especially if you put in some effort to research bargains.
How about you? We’d love to hear your thoughts on cruising. Contact us at boltraveling@gmail.com
BOLT: Black Old Lesbians Traveling 