River Cruisers: How Are Things Where YOU Are?

[Coral]

2 hours ago, dogs4fun said:

I initially thought that we would be able to travel in 2021. Yes, who knew? Makes me sad. I will be so happy when I am again able to hop on a plane & fly to Europe - after all, not getting any younger!

I hate taking vacation and not going anywhere.......

[Coral]

5 hours ago, Lois R said:

Hi Roz, I think about that all the time..........who knew?😲

I wonder when it is safe to plan again. Next fall? I have nothing planned.

[Lois R]

47 minutes ago, Coral said:

I wonder when it is safe to plan again. Next fall? I have nothing planned.

Next fall? I plan on cruising long before then (hopefully)....😃

[texasstar]

23 hours ago, jpalbny said:

I could make it work now...but only if Chris keeps working. That aspect of "my" early retirement plan is proving to be a tough sell! She's just as tired of the rat race as I am.

My husband, a family physician retired when he turned 65.  Now he volunteers once a month at the local free medical clinic.  He gets to work with great people, the patients are so grateful, and gets to practice medicine without the hassles.

[Host Jazzbeau]

3 hours ago, gnome12 said:

It isn't really big enough to share; that's why I picked it. Two servings - all for me.

 

Thanks for your good wishes. I intend to enjoy retirement.

Well, since we aren't getting any cruise reviews lately – how about a cake review?  Was it as good as it looks? 

[gnome12]

My first trip was supposed to be even before I retired; I was supposed to go to Kenya and Tanzania in February 2021. I have postponed that trip (actually, travelling with a different company in a longer trip) to July 2022. My first post-retirement trip is scheduled to be a bike and barge trip on the Moselle, followed by a week in France with my sister in September 2021. Even though we both have first shots, and she will have her second fairly soon - mine probably won't be until July - I'm really uncertain about whether that trip will happen. Most of the barges are out of the Netherlands, and we have heard almost nothing about 2021 trips. If not, I suppose that we could postpone the trip to 2022 (this was originally scheduled for May 2020) but I don't want to do it unless we have to, or unless it will be unpleasant to go.

 

Thanks everyone for your good wishes; I'll think of you when I start munching the cake. The Zoom party is scheduled for April 27th so I do have to buckle down and write up some remarks.

[gnome12]

37 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Well, since we aren't getting any cruise reviews lately – how about a cake review?  Was it as good as it looks? 

Not until April 27th.

[Roz]

@gnome12, love the cakelet.  Covid has really put a damper on things for the newly retired.  

[djh1959]

18 hours ago, Canal archive said:

Well it turns out that the U.K. has sent just a few thousand doses of U.K. made OxfordAstrazenica vaccine to Australia, make good use of it with our good wishes. CA

Yes we heard that the UK had sent us some as Europe totally let down their side of our contract, so thank you.

 

Trouble is that we have now announced that no-one under 50 should get AstraZenica and people are starting to panic, even older people are frightened to get it now (not me I might add).  I believe we have now ordered 20 million Pfizer doses, but they will not arrive until the last quarter of 2021.  

 

Australia will not be fully vaccinated until well into 2022 unfortunately.

[Canal archive]

It’s such a shame, below is the latest BBC report on the blood clots.
We had our second jabs yesterday where we had them are doing 600 per day. We were the last booked in for the particular practitioner that we saw. She said that although they had used their specific allocation there is always a few doses left and that coupled with the very few no shows meant they could contact people on their standby list to come in and get jabbed and as there seemed to be at least 6 stations working when we were there it meant quite a few on standby got their jab. We had the Pfizer vaccine so timing is key because of the storage requirements. They are starting to roll out Moderna, Wales this week I think England next. I think the U.K. is setting up a new manufacturing facility hopefully we can get more vaccine  out there. Keep the faith well get there. CA

 

Rare blood clots - what you need to know https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-56674796

[notamermaid]

@djh1959 

I hope the Australian media does not do this spinning of "the EU let us down" thing. When AstraZeneca finally sends us what is due in the EU, the company let the EU down, the EU distribution part to Australia will I am sure happen tout de suite. It is a painful subject...

Note that AstraZeneca is now on a good track to fulfilling the contract.

 

If it works I will post a photo of the lines of Germans queueing up in snow to get the AstraZeneca vaccine. Just in case it comes across as such: it is not true that you cannot get the AstraZeneca in Germany if you are under 60, it is just that it is not recommended and after being advised by your doctor you can get a jab. The risk for you as a 55 year old man is small, the risk as a 25 year old woman too high for comfort.

 

As one scientist suggested in an article: why not have different vaccine strengths for men and women? Men and women have differing immune systems, they are ill differently, so apply gender medicine to vaccines. To me, this makes perfect sense.

 

notamermaid

 

[Coral]

10 hours ago, Lois R said:

Next fall? I plan on cruising long before then (hopefully)....😃

No one thought this would last a year or longer.

 

After watching The Last Cruise - I think spring seems too early. I don't usually cruise in the summer. Not excited about a large cruise ship (after watching that documentary). River cruises seem safer. I don't like the concept of cruising in a bubble either.

 

I see myself traveling some but not cruising until after a year from now. The variants are starting to worry me after how things will be in the future.

 

 

[notamermaid]

@Coral the variants that are anticipated by scientists are a worry - I try to ignore that thought. The British variant is what is "breaking our necks" in Europe now, sweeping to the East of us. Now among others Turkey and the Ukraine have been declared high risk countries by the German authorities. No flights to Antalya and its beaches for a while...

 

But good news is a new record - 719,927 vaccinations in Germany yesterday. Now that reads more like the German efficiency we know 😉. It will not be this high over the weekend but we can continue where we left off on Monday.

 

I am constantly making plans to go somewhere, I just throw them out again and again. It is strangely less frustrating than making none.

 

Next step: trip to the Rhine with ferry crossing. Then: Cologne. Then: Würzburg. Then: Alsace.

 

Why not make plans to go somewhere near where you are and see it as a great experience. Did that on Monday - "wow, what a great view", "never been along this road before" Those were my thoughts and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip. ☺️ Doesn't always work but it helps my soul when it does.

 

notamermaid

 

 

Edited April 9, 2021 by notamermaid

[Coral]

49 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

@Coral

Why not make plans to go somewhere near where you are and see it as a great experience. Did that on Monday - "wow, what a great view", "never been along this road before" Those were my thoughts and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip. ☺️ Doesn't always work but it helps my soul when it does.

I actually live in the middle of no where. It take some 8-10 hours of driving to get somewhere interesting. And those places I have visited often. The best near location (8 hours) is where @dogs4fun lives and I have been in that area several times. 

 

There is literally nothing near me.

 

Beyond that - I am looking at a 2-3 day drive each way to get somewhere where I haven't been that is interesting or have been and can't wait to visit. I wish I lived on the East or West coast and could easily drive to cool US cities!

Edited April 9, 2021 by Coral

[notamermaid]

Here is a short video of people waiting in line for five hours partly in driving rain and snow to get an AstraZeneca vaccine in the Northeastern town of Wismar. It was first come first serve for over-60's. The reporter says that the centre was supposed to close at 6pm but they kept it open till 8pm to get everyone vaccinated. If you would like any comments of the people translating, just tell me: https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/mecklenburg-vorpommern/AstraZeneca-Andrang-beim-Impfen-ohne-Termin-in-Wismar,coronavirus4838.html

 

notamermaid

 

[Ritabob]

Happy to report Moderna jab#1 has taken place.  Yeah!   #2 scheduled for mid July.

So far, so good, no soreness,  but will take it easy and oder pick up for dinner. No need to exert myself, just in case.

RB 

[Canal archive]

2nd Phyzer yesterday at 5.15 just a slight feeling like a bruise nothing else. Our vaccination centre was our medical groups smaller building, they are doing about 600 per day any surplus vaccine - no shows and surplus vaccine - they have a list of standbys and these are phoned. Everyone during the day has an appointment so no hanging about outside in the cold and rain. Our vaccination rate will slow down soon for a time as the Indian imports won’t be coming through but by next Thursday we will have vaccinated 32 million people which was the aim. Approximately 98% of over 50s have been jabbed.

Our countries sad news is that our Queens husband of 74 years has died aged 99. CA 

[Lois R]

1 hour ago, Ritabob said:

Happy to report Moderna jab#1 has taken place.  Yeah!   #2 scheduled for mid July.

So far, so good, no soreness,  but will take it easy and oder pick up for dinner. No need to exert myself, just in case.

RB 

Hi,  have a question if I may......if you just received your first shot, why is #2 not being done

until July? I had Moderna as well.......the 2nd shot was 28 days after the first.

 

Oh, congrats on that shot though😃

[Daisi]

@Lois R, Canada is trying to get as many 1st shots in the arm as possible, so are delaying the 2nd doses for 4 months.  There is talk that this may change as more get their 1st dose, but so far, we are still trying to get 1st shots in the arms.

 

[notamermaid]

13 minutes ago, Canal archive said:

Our countries sad news is that our Queens husband of 74 years has died aged 99.

They say that behind every successful man is a woman. He was the greatest man that ever walked two steps behind a woman and a great woman at that. My heartfelt condolences to the family and the nation.

 

notamermaid

 

[Lois R]

15 minutes ago, Daisi said:

@Lois R, Canada is trying to get as many 1st shots in the arm as possible, so are delaying the 2nd doses for 4 months.  There is talk that this may change as more get their 1st dose, but so far, we are still trying to get 1st shots in the arms.

 

Ahhh...ok, thanks for the explanation.

[Coral]

I don't fully understand our area but they seem to be switching to college students. Probably because they live in dorms. So they were doing those over 50 and now there is a huge push for college students. I know several in their 20's -40's that have not been done with our county. Though - anyone 16/18 (depending on vaccine) and older can do go through the Federal Pharmacy program which has different requirements (more lenient). It is difficult to get appointments at a pharmacy in the city but a 20 minute drive outside of the city to a rural area is easy enough.

Edited April 9, 2021 by Coral

[Canal archive]

We were told 10 to 12 weeks for the 2nd jab it was just under 10 weeks for us. CA

[notamermaid]

Our health institute has now recommended that the interval between the first and second dose of both mRNA vaccines be stretched.

 

Another serious side effect of the AstraZeneca vaccine is being investigated, something called capillary leak syndrome.

 

After reports of four cases (three in the US, one undisclosed location) of the "AstraZeneca blood clots issue" that have now been seen in administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the EMA is looking into those. We are due the first shipment next week or the week after.

 

The Paul-Ehrlich-Institute has published new suspected cases after AstraZeneca vaccination. The kind of sobering time delay we have seen from Britain's figures that dramatically jumped in a week and as we know, the recommendation, after an initially somewhat lukewarm response to Germany's findings and British scientists/media calling Germany overreacting, was changed.

 

@jpalbny The scientific article of the Greifswald professor has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Here is a newspaper article on that: https://www.forbes.com/sites/leahrosenbaum/2021/04/09/two-new-studies-show-link-between-astrazeneca-oxford-vaccine-and-rare-blood-clots/

 

Oh, and we will probably get a change to the federal infection protection law (my translation) so that Berlin gets more powers in this pandemic. We will know more next week.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[Coral]

3 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Our health institute has now recommended that the interval between the first and second dose of both mRNA vaccines be stretched.

 

Another serious side effect of the AstraZeneca vaccine is being investigated, something called capillary leak syndrome.

 

After reports of four cases (three in the US, one undisclosed location) of the "AstraZeneca blood clots issue" that have now been seen in administering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the EMA is looking into those. We are due the first shipment next week or the week after.

We have one case in Omaha with blood clots and Johnson and Johnson vaccine. They are investigating if there could be a link. We have a case in Lincoln this week where someone prominent in our city had a small stroke later in the day after getting the Pfizer vaccine. They are also investigating this.