Summer 2025

 We again hopped in the car and drove from Ottawa to Regina this year. The family rented a kid's camp, so we joined them there for a few days. Here are some picutres.

From the car

Tim Horton's stop

Terry Fox memorial

Rainbow Falls provincial park off-leash area

Old Woman Bay (Lake Superior)

Let's explore!

Sudbury

A quiet evening at the camp

Summer by the numbers

• 8889.2 kms (road trips)

• 9328 kms (flying)

• 42 nights away from home

• 13 first cousins (everyone on moms side, 2 on dads side)

• 3 Great Lakes: Huron, Superior, Ontario

• 9 hotel rooms: (Oceanview Rocky harbour, Hotel North St Anthony, Oceanview Rocky harbour, Sinbad’s Hotel and Suites Gander, The Capital St. John’s, Super 8 North Bay, Super 8 Thunder Bay, Motel 6 Sault Ste Marie)

• 7 Provinces: Ontario, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba

• 10 nights in a sleeping bag

• 4 aunts and uncles

• 5 door knobs replaced

• 209,304,989 trees seen (estimate)

• 2 National parks (Gros Morne, Terra Nova)

• 3 Provincial parks (Buffalo Pound, Blue Lake, Sandbanks)

• 7 flights

• 2 compensation claims under the Canadian passenger bill of rights (+ 2 appeals, one successful, and one report to the Canadian Transport Authority)

Newfoundland

 In June, my Girl Guide travel group made it to Newfoundland! We'd been planning - and fundraising - for two years, and we were very excited to go!

We flew into Deer Lake, and visited Rocky Harbour (Gros Morne), St. Anthony, Gander, and St. John's.  

We went to L'Anse Aux Meadows, the Newfoundland Insectarium, and the Arches.

We saw Come From Away in Gander, toured a search and rescue facility, and went cod jigging. 

We met up with local Pathfinders, painted a picture of a puffin, and went to The Rooms.

It was a good trip.

The end of the Mazda 5

 Back in 2013, I bought a used Mazda 5. It was great. It had storage space or seating, and I took full advantage of both.

When my mom brought the 3 ten-to-twelve year olds to visit, it picked them up at the airport. 

When I started building furniture, I hauled 8-foot-long boards home in it. 

It was there through Halloween parties, road trips, injuries, renovations, storms, COVID, picking up the puppy, and everything else that has happened in the last 10 years.

It was hard to find a replacement! The Mazda 5 had a lot of storage, not to mention the flexibility of the 6 seats. But it was time, so on Friday I traded it in.

It was a good car.

Start Spreading The News

I spent the weekend in New York. Wanda and I left Friday morning. We drove down to Newark and parked at the airport, then took the train into the city.

For some reason, we decided to walk the 24 blocks from the train station to our hotel. It wasn't actually that far, but it was wall to wall people.By the time we got to our hotel, it was around 7. Since we left to come home on Sunday around 9, it was a quick trip


Here is a quick look at our trip by the numbers:

• Modes of transportation (car, train at airport, train into city, subway, shuttle to get back to the airport since there was an issue with the train, shuttle back to the car, Staten Island ferry) - 7
• Restaurants with free wifi - 2. Luckily, we had excellent internet access at the hotel.
• Subway trips (to the west village, to the World Trade Center, from Battery Park to the West Village, to Times Square, to the train station)- 5
• Number of times I filled my subway card - 3
• Broadway shows - 1 (Hedwig)
• Partially consumed bottles of Cherry Coke I brought home - 2 + 1 full one
• Ice cubes obtained from the (apparently broken) ice dispenser at the hotel - 0
• Pairs of shoes worn (by me) - 2
• Degrees difference between NYC and home on the day we returned - 18
• Number of states (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey) - 3
• Stops in each direction - 3
• Tanks of gas - 3
• Visits to the Sock Man - 2 (it wasn't open the first time)
• NYC maps obtained and left in the hotel room instead of being brought with us - 2
• Women in Times Square wearing only body paint - 2
• Questions asked by the customs officer on our way back into the country - 4 (where are you coming from, when did you leave Canada, did you buy anything, do you have any firearms)
• Number of tolls paid - 3 (two of them to get onto the island with the border crossing)

It was a good trip.

Getting things done

As much fun as the cruise was, there was one part I didn't enjoy.  The day after we were in Mexico, my sinuses went into overdrive.  The nasty side-effect was that I started coughing. It was a terrible-sounding cough - which is not fun when you're in public places.

Or any other time, really.

I got back and gave it a couple of weeks. It didn't improve.

I googled it, and found out that dairy can make it worse, so I cut out my morning yogurt. That was about 2.5 weeks ago.

Yesterday I started feeling better.  I can breathe normally, and I cough a lot less.

As a result, I got a lot done this weekend.  Nothing too exciting - cut a hole in a wall to get at the plumbing clean out (more on that later), put up some hooks that fell down in ... September, I think? Made buns. Flipped the mattress on my bed (and, coincidentally, found a sock in the pillow case I was taking off the bed and a dishcloth in the sheet I was putting on the bed).

Little things, mostly, that I haven't gotten around to doing in a while.

It was a good weekend.

So apparently there's this mouse....

Last week, I went on a Disney cruise.

My entire family went, actually. We all met in Toronto on Saturday and flew to Miami. We got in the night before the cruise, and spent the night at an airport hotel. Amazingly, we were across the street from the back of the airport, but I didn't hear any planes the entire time we were there.

On Sunday morning, we boarded the ship. We got on board around 12:30, and our rooms weren't ready until 1:30, so we went for lunch with all of our carry-on luggage. It was a relief when our rooms were ready.

There were seven of us between the two rooms, and luckily we had adjoining rooms, so we were able to visit freely.  There were a few differences from other ships I've been on.  First of all, there were two single beds (or one double bed) in each room. There was also a couch, which turned into a third bed, and a pull-down bunk for the fourth person in the room. A curtain divided the couch/upper bunk area from the other beds.  That meant the room was larger than some others I've been in.

The second difference was the bathroom. There were two in each room.  One had the toilet and a sink, and the second had a shower/bathtub and a sink. The other ships I've been in had one bathroom with a toilet, sink, and shower - no bathtub.

The third difference was the amount of storage in the room. There were lots of drawers and cupboards for clothes.

The rest of the ship had differences, too. there were four different kids clubs - 0-3, 3-11, 11-14, and 14-17, I think. That took up most of one deck. (My niece was in the 3-11 group - she went once, but didn't like it because there was no one her age.)

There were two theatres - one for live shows, and one for movies. (I saw Frozen and Saving Mr. Banks. Both were really well done.) There were three pools on deck 9 - a kids pool with waterslide, an adult-only pool, and a family pool (deeper than the kids pool) right beside the outdoor movie screen, which played older Disney movies. If they had designed the ship strictly to make my niece happy, they couldn't have done better than to create a place where she could watch movies and swim at the same time. (Sadly, Up was on at a time when I was unable to trick my niece into watching it.)

They also had a room specifically dedicated to board games, which allowed my niece to beat me at chess one morning.

And the final difference was that they had three sit-down restaurants, and we rotated between the three restaurants, keeping the same wait staff every night. 

We had the 8:15 dining time, which was late, but while other ships had the early dining watch the show while the late seating was eating, and then the late seating watch the show after that, Disney does the show for the late seating while the early seating is eating, and then reverses it later.

The other difference was, of course, the number of children on board. It definitely made for a different experience, and it was hard to find  place to sit quietly without going to an adult-only area.

I was surprised at how many activities started at 10 or 11 pm. I don't know how they were, because that is far too late for me. Even character appearances were happening after I was in bed.

(And on that note, the character appearances were a big part of the entertainment. Since I wasn't really interested in that, I missed the variety of activities found on other cruise lines.)

And back to the restaurant - the first night, I asked if there were peppers in the food I was ordering, and my waiter went into full allergy alert - which would be good if I were severely allergic, but trace amounts are fine, and it was a pain to have to pre-order my food for the next day every meal.

So anyway, we left Miami on Sunday. Monday was a day at sea, and Tuesday we went to Cozumel, Mexico.

Mayan Ruins, Cozumel

The thatched roof is to protect the ruins

We went to see some Mayan ruins.  They were interesting (as was our guide) but I wish I'd heard more stories about what the ruins might have been used for.  (He did share some, I just wanted more.)

  

After the ruins, we went to tequilla tasting, then the Discover Mexico Cultural Center. The tequilla tasting was interesting, but the cultural center was disappointing. I'm not sure whether it was that we passed through the building quickly en route to lunch, or whether there just wasn't much there.

They did do a demo of people swinging from ropes, but I don't know why they do that or what it is supposed to mean, unless it's a life insurance-selling scheme.

After our tour ended, we wandered through the shops of Cozumel. It's a bartering town, which I love, and I bought my niece a charm bracelet and a few other things.

 Wednesday we were at sea again, and Thursday we went to Disney's private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay.

Four of us decided to do a kayaking expedition, which was fun (although it's a hard position to sit in for an extended period of time).

While we kayaked, the other three went to the beach, and we joined them after our expedition.

I may have gotten a little sunburned. Specifically, where my shoulders meet my neck, and the inside of one entire arm.  I don't know how or why.

Friday was the end of our cruise, and we decided to do a hop-on, hop-off tour with the ship. The big advantage was that they would store our luggage for us, so we wouldn't have to drag it through the city.

We did the city tour, but unfortunately didn't have time to do the beach tour as well. We made our way to the airport and checked in, only to find our flight was delayed.

And then we got on the plane, and listened as the pilot came on and explained that when the plane was refueled, they'd put the fuel in the wrong tanks, and the engine couldn't read the fuel level or use that fuel, so they had to transfer it. (Question: why would you put fuel tanks on a plane if the plane couldn't use any fuel in those tanks? Something isn't right there.)

We got into Toronto late.

In fact, we landed after our Ottawa flight took off, about 45 minutes before the Regina flight left. We made our way through customs and went to the Connections desk, only to find out that we'd all missed our flights.

The Regina group was given hotel rooms and replacement tickets for Sunday night (2 days later), and Wanda and I were given tickets for Saturday morning and told we could try to fly standby at 10 on Friday night if we wanted to.

My niece was devastated, and everyone started scrambling trying to make other arrangements..

Wanda and I went and got food with the vouchers we were given, and miraculously got seats on the Friday flight. We made it home around midnight - only about 17 hours after we got off the ship.

The Regina group got up Saturday morning to get back to the airport to try for standby flights. One of them made it only the first flight of the day, and the rest made it home late last night.

Christmas wrap up

I started my trip to Saskatchewan in a panic. I left Friday, December 20, which those of you in Ottawa might remember as the day of the snowstorm. Wanda called a couple of hours in advance to order a cab, but DJ's didn't start looking for an available driver until the cab was supposed to be here.

Since they weren't likely to get a cab here in time, we unexpectedly had to drive to the airport. We parked at the Park'n'Fly lot and made our flight without much time to spare.

***

I made a quilt for my sister for Christmas. I started it in July, and finished it in December.  Here it is:

***

The dog is still awesome, and I'm still her favourite auntie.

***

I got to see a lot of family on this trip, most of them multiple times. It was great to see everyone.

***

I went to three of my niece's ringette games. She got her first goal in one of the games, and her team won another one. I attributed it to her favourite auntie being at the game. (B: "Auntie Wanda?")

***

The trip back was in eventful, but man the 6:20 am flights kill me. The Park'n'Fly bus was just leaving the terminal when we got out of the airport, and he stopped to wait for us when he saw us coming. The car wasn't too bad, but there was a fair amount of snow behind it, so our driver came back to shovel out the back and, when we were stuck in the spot, another driver came over to help get us out. I highly recommend them.

***

First day of the year, and I figured out how to renew an ebook from the library. Yay for new things!

***

Yesterday, I went downstairs at mom's to find my cousin's three-year-old son zipped into the dog kennel. I asked if someone put him in there, and he answered (in the saddest voice you can imagine

), "no, it was me".

***

Airlines have a 50 pound limit for luggage, and I know if I can easily lift my suitcase, it's under 50 pounds, but the instructor at the gym has been working on an evil plan to make me stronger. My suitcase squeaked through at 49 pounds.

***

Some family friends moved into a senior's home from the house they lived in for almost sixty years. I helped them go through stuff for a couple of hours, and they gave me a few things, including some pans and an awesome pickle dish that survived the trip home.

***

Winnipeg airport has stores and restaurants in the secure area. This is new, and a big improvement from a few years ago, when the only store was closed and the water vending machines broken when I was there.

***

Before Christmas, I love having the tree and lights up, but as soon as I get home, they just look like work to me.

Not that I put them away today, but it won't be long.

***

And now I'm home, and I'm exhausted, and there is no food in the house, and I go back to work in the morning.

I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays.

I have the house to myself again!

At the end of June, my sister Camille came to visit.

She stayed for almost 2 weeks.

We had a good time - we went to Jersey Boys and Bluesfest, took day trips to Montreal and Carleton Place, went downtown for Canada Day, on walks around the neighbourhood, and drove out into the country to buy saskatoon berries.

She left last Monday.

On Tuesday, my mom and my niece came to visit.

Wednesday morning we got up bright and early to take the train to Toronto. (Via was having an awesome sale.) It took us 3.5 hours to get there.

We checked into the Fairmont. My niece was thrilled - apparently, Selena Gomez stayed there, although I have no idea how B knew that.

Once we dropped the bags in the room, we took the subway to Yorkdale Mall to go to the Rainforest Cafe. (Were Toronto subway cars always open so that you can walk the length of the train as it's moving, or is that new?)

We ate lunch, then went back downtown and walked around a little. We went to the CN Tower, and B and Wanda went to the top. (I was too cheap to go - it was something like $34.)

Then we met my cousin for supper, and B and I had the following conversation.

B: I want to go swimming at the hotel. Auntie Wanda can come with me.

Me: I don't think Wanda brought her bathing suit.

B: Then Grandma can come.

Me: I don't think Grandma wants to go swimming today.

B: Then I'm all out of options.

B and I left the others at the restaurant and went swimming.

The next morning, we all got up and took public transportation to the zoo. It took 2 subway lines and a bus and took a while, but it  was very straightforward.

We saw the pandas first - I'd heard stories of 2 hour lines - and didn't have to wait long at all.

B, Wanda, and the back of a panda

After the pandas, we saw the other animals in that area (including kangaroos and the komodo dragon), then went back to the main gate to catch the zoomobile.

We took the zoomobile over to the Africa section and saw giraffes, a hippo, white lions, and ostriches. We stopped for lunch, then went back to the main gate again. We took the zoomobile through the whole zoo (note to moms - if your kid doesn't want to say "choo choo" every time the zoomobile starts moving, you don't have to do it yourself). The zoomobile actually goes through a few cages, which allowed us to see some animals we wouldn't have seen otherwise.

By that time, we were tired, so we made the trek back downtown, went for supper, and picked up our bags for the return trip.

Friday was a quiet day, since we were all tired, but we did do a few science experiments.

The vinegar and baking soda rocket

By Saturday, we were ready to leave the house again. We went to Despicable Me 2 (the first one was better, but it was still good) and even went for a walk in the woods which was the worst idea ever.

As you can see, my niece had a terrible time.

 

She had fun. And if she hadn't had to go to the bathroom, we would have stayed longer.

 Sunday, we went to Brittania beach. Again, I was the one who got to go swimming with her. We went out to the end of the swimming area, and I had the task of picking her up and throwing her in the water.

To be clear, she's almost as tall as I am - the top of her head is just under my nose - and solid. Which is why the following conversation happened:

B: Throw me farther!

Me: Um.

B: Weaking! Weakling! You're a weakling!

Me: You're not as small as you used to be.

B: Look at that guy! He knows how to throw.

Me: Um.

B: This is why you're not my favourite auntie.

And Monday, we went to Calypso. Yes, the day before the report of dozens of safety violations was released.

We actually went on very few slides - it was hot, and the water-to-standing-in-line ratio was low for the slides - but we went on the Jungle Run many times, and on the new Kongo Expedition a few times. (Lines were long for that one in the early afternoon, but it got better around 5.) On the Kongo Expedition, you lie in a tube and the river carries you past a bunch of things (elephants, buckets, etc.) that dump water on you. There's an indoor part in the dark, as well. Near the end, you go into a wave pool area which takes you past more opportunities to get wet. It's fun, and the only downside is the wave pool part - if you end up trapped behind a bunch of people hanging on to each other's tubes, you're going to get stuck.

And yes, we got a little sunburn.

Me: B, go to bed.
B:
Me: One.
B: You're scary.
Me: If you think I'm scary now, just wait until I get to three. Two.
B: If you don't want to get to three, just stop counting.

Yes, she's a bit of a smart alec.

All in all, it was a fun visit.

The Windy City

As I mentioned earlier, Wanda and I went to Chicago this weekend.  Neither of us had ever been there, and we both wanted to go.

Dinner, far too late on Thursday. You pick your protein, sauce, and pasta/rice, then fill a big bowl with vegetables. They cook it and bring it to you.

We didn't do much on Thursday night - just checked into the hotel and went for dinner. We stayed at the Drake Hotel. As I mentioned yesterday, we booked it as part of a package. I was quite excited about it, because years ago, I read a mystery novel. I have no idea what book it was, but at some point they found a bible from the Drake Hotel, which led them to Chicago. 

One of the elevators at the Drake, complete with couch

We took the subway from the airport to the hotel - there was a little bit of a walk from the subway station, but we found the hotel with no issues. 

Because it's an older hotel, the hallways are sometimes narrower than you'd find in a newer building.

And that firescape? Rickety metal on the outside of the building. Well, maybe not rickety, but definitely outside.

The room was nice, though, and I was very happy with the hotel. 

We'd bought the Go Chicago card, which was awesome. It gave us a tour of the city (one per day - we choose the hop-on, hop-off tour), and one water tour per day, as well as admission to a bunch of attractions.

On Friday morning, we got up and headed for the place where we could catch the tour. It was quite a walk, and we stopped for breakfast on the way.

Friday breakfast - excellent bagels & juice

We  got on the first tour of the day - which started at 10 - and stayed with the tour until Navy Pier. At Navy Pier, we got off and looked around. We bought a few souvenirs, then went on an Architectural River Tour. 

Navy Pier

There's an interesting phenomenon going on in Chicago - when you go into a tourist attraction (like the river cruise, or to the top of Sears/Willis tower, or whatever), they take your picture in hopes that you will buy it afterwards. It's kind of like being on a cruise ship all the time.

The tour was amazing, and we enjoyed hearing about the history of the city and the buildings. Highly recommended.

After the tour, we went for lunch at Navy Pier.

We tried places until we found one with reasonable wait times.  Food was decent, too. You order and pay and they bring the food to you as it is ready.

As part of our Go Chicago card, we each got a voucher for 5 ride tickets. We went on the Ferris wheel, which was fun unless I looked down. I'm not great with heights.

We weren't really interested in any of the other rides, so we got back on the bus and went to Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower). We went up to the observation deck (also included in the Go Chicago card) and Wanda went out on the glass-floored ledge while I remained on solid ground.

When we finished there, we considered getting back on the bus, but the wait as long enough that we decided to walk.  By the time we got back to the hotel, I was pretty miserable. My feet had been bothering me all day, and the amount of walking we had done didn't make things better. We rested for a while, then walked over to Panera, as well as by Holy Name Cathedral, which is the setting for some other books I love. (Also, I just found out that the author died on May 29, and I'm wondering how I missed that earlier.)

Wanda's choice, a favourite from when she lived in Boston.

That was enough for one day. 

Saturday morning, we got going earlier. We took the subway to Shedd Aquarium, where we got to skip the line for ticket since, yes, admission was included with our Go Chicago card.

We wandered through the aquarium, and by the time we were done, the tour was running again, so we got back on the bus. We went back to Navy Pier.

I wanted to do a segway tour, but Wanda was afraid she'd get hurt, so we had a quick hotdog lunch and did a skyline tour on the lake.

When we were done, we took the bus back to the water tower (which was close to our hotel) and quickly looked inside the mall. We didn't stay long, and started walking toward our hotel. We passed John Hancock Center and decided to go up to that observatory as well (also included in our Go Chicago cards). Unlike Sears Tower, this observation deck went all the way around. We took some pictures and then finally went back to our hotel to rest.

Saturday night was the Darren Criss concert, which was the reason we picked this particular weekend to go to Chicago. Wanda was really excited about it, and I was hoping my feet didn't fall off, since it was standing-room only.

We ate at the Cheesecake Factory (which was a poor experience) on our way, then made our way to the concert. The concert started at 7:30, with the doors opening at 6:30. We got there at 5:50, and the line was already across the bridge - which was a block away from the venue.

It was a good concert - even though my feet were so sore I really didn't know if I'd make it back to the hotel - and Wanda really enjoyed it.

When we got back to the hotel, Wanda packed and I moaned about my feet. It* was a good ending to our trip, because Sunday morning we left for home..

* The concert, not the whining.

Fly Porter? Maybe not.

Wanda booked our flight to Chicago on Porter. I was standing behind her, and I verified everything before she submitted it.

When we got our confirmation, our hour-long layover in Toronto had turned into something like 4 hours, because we'd magically been moved to a different flight

She called the next day, and on the second call, they fixed it.

Our flight left around 10:30 am on Thursday, so I planned to leave for the airport around 8. At 7:45, I got an email that our flight had been cancelled. Instead of getting in to Chicago at 1:30, we'd get in after 7. Plus we got to spend 4+ hours in the Toronto City airport. (Porter flies to the downtown airport, not Pearson. Good if you have a meeting downtown, bad if you are connecting to another flight.) 

I called and got us rescheduled on an earlier flight, but Wanda wasn't home yet, she didn't have her cell phone, and, oh yeah, she hadn't finished packing. I called a second time and got us rescheduled again. We were back to getting in late, but we only had 2.5 hours in Toronto.

Our first flight left on time. Porter's seats are farther apart than other airlines, which is nice, and there are only four seats in a row, so everyone gets a window seat or an aisle seat - no one is stuck in the dreaded middle seat. They also allow one checked bag for free, which most airlines don't do on flights to the US.

They have small planes, so there's only one bathroom, which is at the front of the plane.  There are only 18 rows and the flights are short, so while it's not unreasonable to have only one bathroom, it's hard to use it if you're seated at the back of the plane, because they are serving refreshments for a big portion of the flight.

Once we were in the air, the flight attendants came around with snacks - cookies, salted almonds, and Terra chips, which are awesome, but which I am too cheap to buy often.

They ran out of chips in the row in front of me.

The drinks were served in real glasses - but I got a bottle of water, and wasn't offered a glass or ice. As best I can tell, ice is a special request on Porter - you only get some if you specifically ask for it.

The flight attendants have 2 carts, but for some reason they move down the plane with both carts pushed together.  And while other airlines come around with a garbage bag, they bring trays (probably because of the glass glasses), which means it takes several trips to pick up the trash from the whole plane, and you have to pay a lot of attention to avoid being stuck with stuff you want to get rid of.

Landing was rough, but we landed safely at the island airport.  We had to go through security again - it seems that that is how that airport is set up. (Remember that bottle of water? Sigh.)  We didn't go through customs, just security - even though we ended up leaving through the same gate we arrived at.

We got to the Porter lounge, where I was pleased to spy the first bathroom I'd seen at that airport, and found seats. Porter does supply non-alcoholic drinks, as well as the nuts and cookies they served on the plane.

No chips, by the way, although you could buy chips and pre--made salads and sandwiches if you wanted something more than almonds.

Oh, and there is free Internet - which was all that kept me from crying when our flight was delayed. 

There were no chips on the second flight at all, although they added a snack box, which apparently had a chicken wrap in it.  (I don't eat pre-packaged sandwiches unless absolutely necessary, because they often have stealth peppers in them.) Also, for some reason, there were no glass glasses on that flight - everybody got plastic.
 

We were in line for customs in Chicago at 7:40, and got to our hotel at 9, 6 hours later than planned.

We'd booked a package that included a hotel, and the last straw would have been a snafu with the hotel, but luckily, that was problem-free.

This morning, I was half-expecting another delay or cancellation, but that didn't happen.  There doesn't seem to be a Porter lounge at Chicago Midway Airport, but we did get to go through the priority screening line. That was a plus.

Our flight left Chicago on time. We had a much smoother landing in Toronto than on Thursday, and went through Customs and back through security to a different waiting lounge.

Again, one bathroom, a kitchen area with snacks, and a tiny area where you could buy actual food.

Ten minutes before we were supposed to board, I decided to go to the bathroom.  When I got there, the women's bathroom was closed for cleaning.

I stood there for 10 minutes as the crowd got bigger and bigger. Finally, they reopened it. (There didn't seem to be a good reason why it was closed - maybe that's standard practice, even though it's the only bathroom available?)

When I got back to my seat, I packed up my stuff, and then I heard someone say "Ottawa flight". I looked up, and it was someone from Porter directing a woman to a line. I checked the display, and our flight was boarding! 

We did make the flight, but if we'd been paying just a little less attention, we wouldn't have, since they didn't actually make an annoucement.

All in all, I won't go out of my way to fly Porter again. Glass glasses, more legroom, and a free checked bag are nice, but when I'm flying, my priority is to get from point A to point B as quickly, safely, and easily as possible, and on that, Porter dropped the ball - not once, but multiple times.

I need a nap

I got up crazy early on Monday. (3:45, to be specific). I didn't have a choice - I had a flight at 6:30.

You know what's not a good idea? Flying to the US early in the morning the Monday of the week after New Year's. There were crazy lines of people going everywhere - but mostly, I suspect, somewhere warm.

I made it through the lines, though, and after breakfast in Dulles, landed in San Francisco around noon.

(Of course, noon in San Francisco is 3 here, so it had already been a long day.)

I took a car to San Jose, checked into the hotel, and went in to the office.

I was there for 3 hours, and by the time I left, I was starving.  My colleagues and I went and got dinner, and then I went back to the hotel and collapsed.

(After checking Twitter and Facebook, of course. I wasn't living in the dark ages.)

At 4 a.m., I woke up. I really would have liked to have slept more, but my brain decided to do it's overactive puppy imitation. (You know what we should do? We should get up! It's morning, you know! Let's get up and see if the internet is still there! Let's get up!)

I got up.

I'd ordered room service (which was insanely expensive, but work was paying for it), and it showed up promptly at 6:30. I have to say, my bagel and cream cheese was extremely well presented - the bagel was wrapped in a napkin, the cream cheese was on the plate, there was butter and jam, and the glass of orange juice was sitting in a container of ice - but it wasn't worth the $20+ it cost. Except that it was, because I needed breakfast.

Look, it's sunlight

We went in to work at 7:30, and left again at 7:30.  It looked beautiful out, but all-day meetings don't leave much time for enjoying the weather.

When we finally got back to the hotel, one of my colleagues and I went for a walk. We explored the area around the hotel, and eventually ended up walking by the outdoor skating rink beside the hotel. The ice was ... not good, but there were tons of people for a Tuesday night, and they all seemed to be having fun.

The skating rink

 Wednesday was a little shorter - the meeting started at 9:15 and ended not long after 4, so my colleague and I were able to walk around a little in daylight. We made it to the university (where we'd been the night before) and then stumbled across city hall.

A bunch of us then went out for dinner, then it was time to go back to my room to pack.

Thursday morning, I left for the airport at 3:30. After an extremely disorganized check-in process (which wasn't helped by it being not long after 4), I took my 5.5 hour long flight to Philadelphia, then a shorter 1.5 hour long flight to Ottawa. When we started descending, I looked out the window and thought "Hmm, wonder what river that is".  Then I turned my head to the left and noticed it ended in a giant lake, and thus had to be the St. Lawrence.

After another long day (on which I saw the sun both rise and set from a plane), I made it home by a little after 6.

Remind me not to do that again for a while.

Redirected

I flew from Ottawa to Regina on Wednesday.

It was supposed to be a quick trip - get on the plane at 5, transfer in Toronto, arrive in Regina at 9:30.

That's not how it worked out.

Our first flight was delayed, which cut our 75 minute break in Toronto down to 15 minutes. We rushed to our second flight and made it just as the doors closed.

As we reached the Ontario border, the pilot made an announcement - there was fog in Regina, and we had to make an unscheduled landing in Winnipeg to get more fuel.

I was a little concerned that I'd end up in Calgary for the night, but there was nothing I could do about it.

We refueled - which took about half an hour - and then started to go again.

Almost immediately, we stopped again. There was a mechanical issue, and they had to call maintenance.

That took another hour or so.

They got the mechanical issue fixed, and we eventually continued on our way. We got into Regina after midnight.

More Random Thoughts

Remember how I resolved to do some exercises every day in August? And then I went to Europe?

I didn't make it through the month.  Once I got on the ship, I kept forgetting, and eventually I just gave up.

* * * 

A conversation with my niece:
B: I want to take tae kwon do.
Me: That sounds like fun.
B: Yeah. Then I can hit and kick, and you can just hit.

* * * 

I usually go to the gym at lunch, but I didn't go today because they were giving away free frozen yogurt there was an employee meeting.

When my instructor asked yesterday whether I'd be there today, I said, "I don't know, there's a rumour we're getting ice cream tomorrow."

She said, "I'm competing with ice cream?"

Yes. And losing.

* * * 
Wanda often buys the Glee soundtracks, and we keep them in the car. Right now, we're listening to Glee #9583023, which contains the most randomly-shoehorned song in the show's history, "Last Friday Night".

I'm not sure whether there's a doll on the BBQ, an Australian BBQ on the BBQ, or whether they killed someone named Barbie.

Any way you look at it, it's weird.

But catchy.

Random Thoughts

I believe I forgot to mention in my last post how ... historic Europe is. Our tour guides in Denmark and Norway both mentioned how Denmark lost Norway because they sided with Napolean. That was 200 years ago. In North America, we barely remember World War II (which, BTW, we also heard about in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway).

* * * 
I wasn't feeling well yesterday - not totally sick, but not totally well, either. I didn't go to the gym at lunch (we had a wellness fair, so my class was cancelled), and I debated whether I should go to boxing.  (I'm lucky we had the wellness fair, because they were giving away water bottles and I had forgotten mine.)

I went to boxing, albeit with the thought that I might leave early.  

It wasn't bad - until I hit myself in the face with the skipping rope. (I'm such a graceful skipper.) I almost cried.

(I didn't. There's no crying in boxing.)

After the class, I felt better, and today I'm fine.

* * * 

My garden is producing tomatoes, and yesterday I got 3 containers of tomatoes in my CSA box. Good thing I like tomatoes.

* * * 

Blogger is doing this thing where it turns on bolding when I hit enter. It's very annoying.


* * * 

My neighbour works at the same place as me. She worked from home today, and e-mailed me at lunch to ask me to pick up a parcel someone had sent to her.

It was a beautiful basket of flowers. All afternoon people were stopping by and asking what the occasion was. I, of course, did not know.

I managed to resist the temptation to read the card. (When I dropped off the flowers, her daughter read the card, so I know who they're from now. As always, the reality was less interesting than the speculation.)

* * * 
    
I need to buy a new suitcase. Mine got munched on the way back from Europe. It was pretty old, and I was pretty tired, so I didn't report it.

But I need a new one, because I might be traveling again soon.  I want one of those fancy ones that has four wheels and can be moved without tilting it, but I think I'm too cheap to pay for one.

* * * 

I bought Season 1 of Downton Abbey back in January. I've watched one episode, and the summer is over. I may need to get a cold and spend a weekend watching TV.  


* * * 

My dishwasher is broken.

Well, actually, the dishwasher itself is fine, it's just no longer screwed into the cabinet - which effectively means it can't be used. I need to figure out how to get the screws back in through the tiny slot above the dishwasher. 

Europe Wrap Up

Friday was a day at sea, and Saturday we made the trek back home.

Final thoughts:

• Britain has sorted out automatic toilets. The toilets at Heathrow & in Hyde Park have a motion sensor - simply wave your hand over it to flush. Yes, I took a picture.

•   This trip was to five countries, with 5 different currencies. I hadn't realized that there were that many countries in Europe that hadn't adopted the Euro. (Belgium was the only one where the Euro was the official currency.)
• My manager suggested we bring rain ponchos. That was, without a doubt, the best thing we brought with us.
• I read a lot more books than I usually do on vacation - I think because I had them on the Kobo and thus I didn't have to limit myself.
•  I did a much better job than usual at limiting the amount of stuff I brought with me. I did not have to buy anything I forgot.
• Favourite stop: Bruges, Belgium, followed by Copenhagen. I would have preferred to do the cruise in the opposite order so that we ended in Bruges.

Thoughts on the boat:
This is the third cruise I've done. The first one was with Costa, the second was Royal Caribbean, and this one was Princess. They all have pros and cons. These comments are specific to three ships - the Costa Magica, the Legend of the Seas, and the Grand Princess. 

Costa:

• This was the most "foreign" cruise line - prices were in Euros, and every announcement was in 4 or 5 languages. (Also - topless sunbathing, which didn't really happen on the other two ships.)
• The food was excellent (and Italian-style - a pasta course instead of a salad course, for example). 
• The organization (especially with respect to embarking and disembarking) was lacking.
• Using the Euro as the currency on board made it more expensive that the others to buy a drink, etc.
• Swimming pools were opened limited hours, and I think there were only a couple of them.
• If you wanted ice cream, you had a couple of hours in the afternoon when you could get ice cream, otherwise you were out of luck.  
• The ship was quite nice, and public areas were clustered around the center of the ship.
• Lots of lounges.
• More smoking on board than other cruise lines.
• People joined the cruise at almost every port, so it wasn't the same kind of everyone gets on at once / everyone gets off at once atmosphere. 
• There was a specific English-speaking ambassador who was there to answer questions from the Canadian/America/British passengers.
• Frequent "shows" or special events in the dining room.
• Frequent, hard to get out of picture taking.

Royal Caribbean:

• Prices were in US Dollars. Far more American-feeling.
• The ship was quite nice, and public areas were clustered around the center of the ship.
• There was a rock-climbing wall, ping pong and min-golf.
• Embarking and disembarking was well-organized.
• The food in the dining room was good, and the lunch buffet was quite good. There was also an area where you could get pizza late at night.
• Trivia happened daily, with prizes like highlighters and other Royal Caribbean-branded stuff.

 Princess:

•  Prices were in US Dollars. Far more American-feeling.
• The ship was not even close to my favourite. Some areas (like the excursions desk) were hidden away down back hallways, and the main area of the ship was only 2 floors high. The promenade deck - where you could walk around the ship - had areas that required you to walk up and down steps. Also, there were no stairs in the middle of the ship. Of course, there were emergency stairs, but we were on the 12th deck, and many of the food options were on 14. Our options were to either walk down to the end of the ship or wait for the very, very slow elevators.
• Embarking and disembarking was well-organized.
• I didn't enjoy the lunch buffet - not enough salad bar options (I can make a salad with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber at home), and the dining room food was my least favourite. Some days were quite good, but there were also days where I couldn't really see anything I wanted to order. 
• There were multiple food options on board - the International Cafe (paninis, salads, desserts), a couple of pizza places, a grill for hamburgers/hot dogs/sausages.
• Also, the ice cream bar had popcorn at night.
• Lots of pools - I think there were far more than the other ships.
• "Movies under the stars" - a giant movie screen on deck 14, where they played recent movies, sporting events, etc. We didn't go - it was too cold, and there was nothing we wanted to see badly enough - but it was a nice idea. 
• Far and away the best shows in the evenings. 
• Trivia happened multiple times a day, and the prize was a bottle of champagne.

Days 7 & 8 - Helsingborg and Oslo

Helsingborg, Sweden – August 29, 2012

We left Copenhagen at 4 AM for a quick trip across the straight to Helsingborg, Sweden. Helsingborg is very close to Denmark, and ferries run between the two countries every 20 minutes. Among other things, Helsingborg is the home of IKEA headquarters (which are not, for the record, blue and yellow).

Fishing village, Sweden

We weren't able to dock, so we had to tender ashore. We'd chosen a tour again, so we got on the coach and started out on our journey. Our guide told us about the town as we made our way to our first stop, the fishing village of Raa. After about 20 minutes there, we boarded the bus again and went to Sofiero Castle, the summer residence of the late Swedish King Gustav. For the first time this trip, it was a beautiful, sunny day, and we spent an hour there, admiring the gardens and the castle. From one point in the grounds, you can clearly see Denmark, including the castle that Shakespeare used as his setting for Hamlet.

Sofiero castle

Gardens at Sofiero Castle

Gardens at Sofiero Castle

Gardens at Sofiero Castle

After the castle, we went to the keep, the only remaining portion of Helsingborg Castle, which was built in the 1300s. We took some pictures and then went back to the dock – but instead of immediately getting a tender, we walked down the pier and through some pedestrian shopping areas before traveling back to the ship.

The Keep

We were back on board by 1, and spent a relaxing afternoon on board.

Oslo, Norway – August 30, 2012

Our day started with a city tour of Oslo. We went by the opera house (which was designed to look like a glacier), the old fortress, the palace, and city hall. Our guide told us the history of the places we were seeing. Interestingly, when we were in Denmark, our guide told us they used to own Norway. In Norway, our guide said they used to be partners with Denmark.

After that, we stopped at Vigeland Sculpture Garden. This garden is the work of one man, who designed dozens of sculptures. We walked through the garden – as it rained on and off – and admired his work. After that, it was off to the ski jump that overlooks the town. The ski jump was impressive, but I was hoping to have a view of the city from there, and that wasn't possible.

Our next stop was the open air museum. This museum contains old buildings from around Norway – including an old stave church and houses with sod roofs. Apparently, to create a sod roof, you put down a layer of birch bark, then a layer of sod (grass side down), then another layer of sod (grass side up).

We were only there for an hour, but I could have easily stayed longer.

Stave church

Sod roofs

 We came back to the ship and had lunch, then spent some time in the conservatory (which I just discovered today). When it was time for the ship to leave, we went up on deck to watch as we sailed through Oslofjord.