Running my own Airbnb for just over eight years post-retirement has been a dream come true!
However, there have been some scary times.
Our unstable and corrupt government has failed to maintain basic infrastructure.
Add to the equation freak storms, and you have a recipe for disaster.
e-Coli was found in the seawater at Durban's main beaches, naturally affecting the health of bathers who ignored warnings.
Tourism was hit the hardest.
The year-end holidays is the busiest period for tourism, but we had some cancellations. Fortunately, last-minute bookings filled my calendar, but there were uneasy moments and no one to share my concerns with.
We had our Elections on Wednesday, and the ruling party lost a 30-year parliamentary majority.
What the future holds on the political front, still is uncertain.
The process of winding up hubby's estate and the exorbitant costs associated with that still is cause for concern, so I have to be careful.
Bookings were slow when 2024 kicked off, but we still ended with just over 70% average occupancy rate for the first five months. May's occupancy shot up to 85%, and June already looks promising with long-term business guests extending their stay till 30 June.
We only have two units, so do not have huge overheads like many other establishments, some who had to close their doors; COVID started the rot!
Powering up
I have managed to power up every month except 1 May, as some Estate costs were looming, and I needed backup.
Today, I'm happy to say I was able to do a nice power-up. Ended up doing two - first a round figure of 500 HP, but I decided to power up a further 57 HP, so I'm now HODL'ing 17,802 HP.
I should be able to hit my target of 18,000 HP on 1 July!
Why do we power up
@hivebuzz explains Why we participate in the Hive PUD:
The first reason is to have fun and get a Power Up badge!
Strengthen your influence on the blockchain with stronger votes on content, proposals and witnesses.
Earn more curation rewards. The more Hive Power you have, the more you can potentially earn back
Earn "interest" by holding Hive Power. You will also earn HIVE passively at about 3% per year of what you currently have powered up so the more HIVE you have, the more you can earn from just holding!
Finally, several amazing members are offering prizes that include delegations, Hive giveaways, and other cool stuff to the Hive PUD participants.
One of these initiatives is The Fab Four - something @fionasfavourites did on her own for a long while, but now has grown to four of us.
Fiona tirelessly does this every month despite her big loss, exactly a year ago.
(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ Thank you to everyone who supports me here on Hive, and a big hug to all my special Hive friends for the encouragement during the most awful period of my life. ♥
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