Scrambled Tofu (Better Than Scrambled Eggs?)

You say scrambled eggs, I say scrambled tofu! 

The resemblance is almost uncanny—both in taste and texture—making this plant-based version a satisfying swap for a classic breakfast favorite.

Norwegian Aqua Review: Spa, Food, Balcony Room

Norwegian Aqua Cruise Review: Spa Experience, Dining, and Balcony Stateroom

I’m back from a relaxing 5-day Bahamas cruise on the Norwegian Aqua—but honestly, we barely left the ship. This trip was all about unwinding in the spa. It was our first time sailing on the Norwegian Aqua, and I had promised I’d share a full review.

5 Day Spa Cruise

We’re heading off on a five-day spa cruise to the Bahamas—leaving Sunday and back by Thursday—and I'm excited.

Mega Ship

Vacation- Cozumel and Bahamas

We are taking a last minute 6 day cruise from Miami to Cozumel and Bahamas. We got a great last minute deal at a price we could not refuse and are going with some good friends who live in our condo complex. We are leaving one vacation(living on the beach in Miami area) to go on another vacation.

Why not? We are all retired, available, and willing. These are the advantages of living in Miami !! We can take advantage of these last minute cruise deals. We live about 40 minutes car ride to the port!

Vacation Continues: How I Stayed on Weight Watchers Plan During a 15 Day Cruise

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How I Stayed on My Weight Watchers Plan During a 15-Day Cruise plus 4 more weeks in Europe

When I told people I was going on a 41-day vacation—including a 15-day transatlantic cruise—they all smiled and said, “That sounds amazing!” And it was. But in the back of my mind, I was already calculating how I’d keep my eating on track while surrounded by endless buffets, restaurant meals, desserts, and drinks.

Find out how I managed two back to back cruises without weight gain.

Transatlantic Cruise and Wedding

I'm leaving Saturday May 3, 2025 for a 15 day transatlantic cruise on Virgin Cruise Lines . It leaves from Miami and ends in Barcelona. We will spend 8 consecutive days at sea and then we will stop at various ports including Casa Blanca, Morocco, 2 stops in the Canary Islands, 2 stops in Portugal, and end Barcelona. 

My nephew is getting married in Toledo, Spain the 3rd week in May. The transatlantic cruise was an add-on for us to get to Europe for the wedding. Believe it or not, it was about the same price as flying economy plus.

A Brief Vacation

I'll be taking a brief vacation from our vacation home in Miami.

We are joining friends for a week long cruise on the Celebrity Apex Cruise Ship. We are four couples all from the neighborhood back home in Pennsylvania originally. 

Home From Our Cruise and Extended Vacation in London and Paris-

I'm back!! And our adventurous three and half week vacation transatlantic cruise and time in London and Paris was wonderful!

Despite my concerns about spending 8 straight days at sea before making stops in Ireland, Portugal, and Belgium, the 14 day transatlantic cruise was fabulous and went by very quickly! Why? Read on

I'm leaving for my cruise to Europe in the morning. 

I'm all packed and ready to go. 

I have to admit that the packing was challenging in a carry-on suitcase and a carry on bag for this 4 week vacation. 

Planning A Vacation

Next week I'll be leaving to take a cruise to Europe. It is a transatlantic cruise which means we will be at sea for 7 days before we begin making stops in Ireland, Belgium, and UK. 

Definitely a long time to be at sea on a ship before we make stops!  

We are leaving from Miami 

It is my understanding that the staff keeps the passengers busy and entertained with speakers, exercise classes, and many programs for a variety of interests during the many sea days.  

 I'll be taking my iPad and I have downloaded about 5 books to read.

I'm starting with one of my favorite authors: Kristin Hannah. She writes mostly historical fiction. I downloaded The Four Winds. 

I just read her new book called The Women which was about women's roles in the Vietnam War. It was excellent. Her books usually focus on people and their experiences and feelings.  Back to the cruise. 

At the conclusion of the cruise, we are planning to travel to and spend 5 days exploring London and then 5 days in Paris with family. 

We will navigate to the take a train from the cruise port in Southhampton, UK to London, UK and then 5 days later, we will take the fast train from London to Paris before we fly back to Miami. All carrying our luggage.

The dilemma for me right now it how do I pack? My inclination is to pack as smart and light as possible because we will be carrying our luggage to and from the trains. Smart and light to me means color coordinating my clothing (mostly blacks, whites, and blues) so I can cross match outfits and wear them multiple times. 

Laundry? We will not have any on the 2 week cruise unless we decide to pay an outrageous fee ($14- for one pair of jeans) or $75 for a very small bag of our clothes to send to their cleaning service. 

Hopefully when I get to Paris, we will be able to do wash at our cousin's house. In London, perhaps we will find a laundry facility. 

I am planning to wear gym clothes during the day on the cruise. The weather should be moderate with temps in the high 60's. 

In the evening for dinner, I will need to dress- but not dress up.  I plan to bring white pants, black pants, 2 dresses, 8 tops, and nice jeans. I'll repeat and mix and match. 

It will be challenging but I can't carry too much when we are navigating to and from the trains- it will be too heavy and bulky for me. 

In my next post I should be able to share how I packed. 

If anyone has any suggestions - I am open.  I would like to pack more things!!!!

I can't end without sharing a recipe . It is one of my favorites. I make it in the Instant Pot but it can be made on the stove top. 

Yellow Split Pea and Spinach Soup 

Cruising In The Caribbean

We just returned from our cruise in the Caribbean to Belize, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Key West. The weather was warm and lovely except in Belize. It was raining and windy in Belize and since we had not planned any excursions in advance, we did not get off the ship. It was sunny and beautiful in all of the other stops. 

Back From Vacation

I'm back from our 5 week vacation:  

We spent two weeks on a Mediterranean Cruise which had daily stops in ports in France, Italy and Spain, then we spent 3 days in Rome, and then flew to Israel for 2 weeks to visit family. 

It was a 13 hour flight from Tel Aviv to Miami so I'm totally jet-lagged and my post shows it. The photos do not match the story.

I promise to organize my photos for the next post!! 

We sailed on Celebrity Reflection cruise ship for a Meditteranean cruise  and was very pleased with the ship, the food, and the entertainment. 

Food in Israel - hummus with salsa and grilled eggplant ( Recipe to follow)

The cruise accommodated my special eating needs which included a strictly gluten-free diet along with my vegan diet (skip if you are not into what I was able to eat gluten-free and vegan)

What did I eat? 

Breakfast: 

I chose to go to the breakfast buffet most mornings where there was a gluten free section with bread, rolls, and muffins. I usually took the bread, got some sliced tomatoes and cucumbers and capers. I asked for guacamole to spread on my bread and enjoyed the meal with a cup of dcaf cappuccino made with almond milk. 

Picnic in Israel on the way to Sefat an ancient town in Israel. My cousin packed the meal.

Lunch: 

Most of the time, we were out touring during lunch time and usually skipped lunch. 

However, when we would return to the ship around 4:00, there was always salad available and gluten-free pizza, GF bread, fruit, hummus, etc. 

Vegan stuffed peppers-  ( easy recipe to follow) from my sister in law

Dinner: 

We always ate in the dining room and I pre-ordered my meal the evening before. We requested anytime dining and  the computer always had my order. 

On the streets of Jerusalem in the old city. A peddler selling bread! Not gluten free!

Indian recipes, Italian recipes, and my favorite dinner was dish of tofu, rice, and vegetables all tossed together. It was so good, I ordered it multiple times. There was also gluten free bread at each meal as well as wine and gluten free dessert.

My cousin in Israel made these delicious vegan stuffed grape leaves

This is how it worked for dinner. The night before, I filled out a menu of what I wanted for the next evening from a list of choices. The Italian spaghetti dinners were just ok because I did care for the sauce- it reminded me of Campbell's soup. 

 More pastries on the streets of Jerusalem - not gluten free- The best place for gluten free was in Italy .

Israel: 

In Israel, we mostly ate in the house of relatives. My husband has 50 (maybe more) first cousins in Israel as well as 3 aunts. We stayed with relatives in Tel Aviv / Bat Yam area,  Jerusalem, Rishon and visited relatives in Sefat and Haifa. We stayed in a hotel in Tiberias with my husband's sister and her married children and grandchildren. 

I  was not "gluten-ized" until I ate in a restaurant in Israel. We were on the beach in Bat Yam (near Tel Aviv) and decided to eat in a very charming beach front restaurant. 

I asked the waiter if anything was gluten -free. 

He went into the kitchen and returned saying that the kitchen said adamantly not to eat anything on the menu because of cross contamination. 

But I thought. What could be in a plain salad? 

So I ate a salad and the was the first time in all of the travels that I had severe stomach pains and "Shil-Shul" (Hebrew for diarrhea) for about 2 hours- not fun!!! I should have listened!! Europe and Israel take gluten-free very seriously. 

Pack in a Carry On For a 5 Week vacation

How Do I pack in a carry on for a 5 week vacation? 

Very carefully and minimally. Less is better! I am only using one carry on and a personal bag! 

My friend Noreen is a world traveler and very experienced packer. She has been coaching me about which essentials to take and how to pack most effectively, efficiently, and all in one carry on and personal bag. At first I thought it couldn't be done, but I'm now convinced not only that it can be done- I'm doing it! 

I know I always bring more than I really need yet I tend to gravitate to my favorite outfits multiple times and come home with pants I never wore but still carried for the entire trip. We will do laundry and make it work.

Neither my husband or I are in any condition to carry heavy suitcases or large suitcases, so we have to make this work.

Guell Park- Gaudi 

Our first stop will be Barcelona (we have been there before). I am spending an overnight in Barcelona and then boarding a Celebrity cruise ship for a 16 day cruise in France, Italy, and Spain. 

The cruise will end and deliver us to Rome where we will spend 3 days exploring the beautiful famous city. 

Vatican City at night

 From Rome we are flying to Israel for 2 weeks. 

 Total Trip : 5 weeks

• Underwear: Wash it every night. 
• Noreen suggests 3 pairs of underpants (2 white, 1 black) and two bras (white and black). If I wash it in the sink every night, it's plenty!

• Pants: 
• 1 white , 1 black, 1 jeans (which you wear on the plane and don't pack)
• 
  
• Dresses: 
• Only light simple material -I packed 3 which is too many I'm sure (according to Noreen) 

• 2 black and one white

 Skorts: 

• 1 black, 1 white, 2 multicolored design

       Tops: 

•  4 dressy tops for the pants for dinners 
•  5 t- shirt types for skorts for day activities

Shoes: 

• Wear my walking sneakers
•  Pair of low heals, pair of sandals, pair of water shoes

Hair Blower: 

• This is a splurge- I have a hair blower with a brush attached to it that is an absolute for me- no questions asked. I is a game changer for my hair.

Makeup: 

• blush, moisturizer with tint, mascara 

Vitamins: 

• vegan multi vitamin
• Zicam (a zinc and vitamin C supplement) that works for me at the start of a cold. Love it!!I take it before boarding a plane, cruise, or 1st sign of a sore throat or sniffle. 

Alcohol wipes, purse size hand sanitizer, Advil, thermometer, 4 laundry pods, a travel size container of liquid laundry detergent for underwear washing. 

What's your view? 

How do you pack ? Do you pack light or do you like to bring lots of stuff? 

Tips for light packing: 

Packing in a carry-on is not only convenient, but it can also save you money on checked baggage fees and prevent lost luggage.

1. Check the cruise line's dress code: Check the dress code for the cruise line you will be sailing with. This will give you an idea of what to pack and what to leave behind. Most cruise lines have formal and semi-formal nights, so be sure to pack a dressy outfit or two.However, I am finding that dress up nights also have more casual options. My husband in not bringing a sports jacket- just too bulky.

   
   

2. Stick to a color scheme: To make it easier to mix and match your outfits, stick to a color scheme. For example, you could pack mostly neutral colors like black, white, and beige, and add in some pops of color with accessories like scarves or jewelry. I'm doing black and white color scheme. 

   
   

   Jewelry: I never bring expensive jewelry. I buy a wedding band in TJ Max that I won't care if I loose and a cubic zirconia necklace for nightwear. 

3. Pack versatile clothing: To save space in your carry-on, pack clothing that can be worn in multiple ways.

   
   

4. Bring comfortable walking shoes: You'll likely be doing a lot of walking during your trip, so it's important to bring comfortable shoes. Sneakers or comfortable walking sandals are a good choice. Wear the sneakers on the plane since they are the heaviest shoes.

   
   

5. Pack travel-sized toiletries: To save space in your carry-on, pack travel-sized toiletries like shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. You can also purchase these items when you arrive at your destination.

   
   

6. Use packing cubes: Packing cubes can help you organize your clothing and maximize space in your carry-on. Roll your clothing tightly and place them in the cubes, then stack the cubes in your bag. Rolling really creates more space!

   
   

7. Laundry: If you're going to be on a 2-week cruise, you may have access to laundry facilities. If not, you could consider packing a small amount of laundry detergent and washing your clothes in your hotel sink.

   
   

8. Pack a collapsible tote bag: A collapsible tote bag can be a lifesaver for carrying items on excursions or carrying souvenirs back to your cabin. When not in use, it can be folded up and stored in your carry-on.

   
   

9. Travel documents: Make sure you have all the necessary travel documents, such as your passport, visas, and cruise itinerary

   
   

   
   

   If needed, the cruise ship and all of the ports sell clothing. My husband likes to buy a hat or t-shirt as a souvenir from the trip- so we do not pack any.

On Vacation

Taking a week off  for a cruise in the Caribbean ! 

See you soon with lots of food ideas!

Follow me on Instagram where I'lll be posting photos all week