Stuff you wanted to do when you retired----

[Bayarea4]

Originally Posted by MadManofBethesda

With all due respect, it sounds like your husband is just looking for excuses for not traveling. I've had medical issues too to such an extent that it was imperative that I always had to know where the closest bathroom was. I am also 6'4" (and 250) so I can relate to the issues with airline travel. Still, I've managed to take 20-hour flights in coach from NY to Hong Kong and Thailand and survived to tell about it. But if your husband doesn't want to fly or risk having to find a bathroom, you have other choices since you live on the coast. For example, you can take a cruise to Hawaii or all the way to Tahiti, Australia and NZ among other places. His "hotel room" and bathroom travel with him and he never has to get on a plane (assuming you can get him to drive to LA or SD). There are even round-trip cruises to Hawaii and other places out of SF itself.

MadMan, you hit the nail on the head. My husband is an anxious type. Changes to his routine stress him out. That is why he uses his height, weight and health problems as an excuse. I have suggested cruises, but he doesn't even want to do that. All those cruise horror stories on the news didn't help the cause, either.

I do appreciate Janeace and silibran's suggestions of Elderhostel or a women's travel group. I live where the Fromm Institute and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute classes are available. These are designed for older adults and are taught by university faculty members and retired experts in their fields. A friend of mine who is a Fromm member recently went with a group on an overseas trip organized and led by one of the instructors.

[sweetana3]

Don't ever be afraid of going out and doing it by yourself, at least to get to the group meeting location. I have an 81 year old mother in law and she is going on a month long trip to see her brother by herself. We have carefully explained that if you have a cell phone and a credit card, all will be well.

We made sure that a wheelchair is waiting for her at the one transfer location just in case the plane is late and she cannot walk the distance to the next plane. She is so excited.

I also wanted to chime in that Road Scholar programs are lovely. I think we have been on 5 and you would not feel alone if you were a single woman. We all enjoyed mixing up the seating at meals and meeting everyone. There is something for everyone in the design of all their trips. Try one close to your home to check them out.

[Bayarea4]

Thanks for the encouragement, sweetana3! I will definitely check out Road Scholar.

[LauraC]

I'm thinking you will find single retirees with no children didn't have to wait until they retired to do something big they wanted to do their whole life because there are no work schedules to coordinate, there is no one with whom they have to compromise or accommodate, no one to tell them "no" and there are less competing things that cost a lot of money (like paying for something for adult children or even grandchildren or something the spouse wants or needs). Single people with no children decide their own priorities...even though later they may say, "What the heck was I thinking?"

There is no fear factor either since we've been doing for ourselves for awhile.

The stuff I wanted to do when I retired was just more of something I did before, nothing big I wouldn't have done before I retired. You know, just looked forward to not squeezing things into weekends and evenings. Took vacations when I wanted to, for how long I wanted to, did whatever I wanted to do and had total control of where my money was spent.

It also helped a lot that I was boring and had no desire to fly around/cruise around to see the world, never wanted the next big thing and lacked expensive taste when I was working and now when I'm retired.

[Ameriscot]

We travelled before retirement but do it a lot more now and the trips are for a longer time.

I'm doing pretty much everything I planned on doing. Photography, try to learn French, more reading, lots of exercising, etc.

[travric]

Just a comment on med issues and travel..As w get oklder it sure does crop up. Here's something which changed my attitudes..

In late spring we went to Canada and at the hotel we were staying we met a couple who were I believe about 15+ years older than us. While chatting we discussed travel and from the looks of it they were all over the world. We envied them and said we'd like to follow their footsteps. Now the kicker came when offhandedly the word 'dialysis' came up. Well you know what that's about. But for them it was no 'problem' during travel. They just dealt with it. Required making advanced plans that's all. The doctor suggested pills but they'd have nothing to do with it. They just packed their bags and went! We'll be talking with them again shortly and I know disease will not be a subject!!!