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It was a very pleasant drive from Cumberland, Ontario to Quebec City, Quebec.  Not much traffic, little rain and pastoral scenery. The RV Park where we are set up is very pleasant also. It is within the city limits of Quebec, and in fact is in a neighborhood.

It has a different feel to it than the park we were at in Cumberland, Ontario. It’s just as green, but seems friendlier. At the last park the office was seldom open so we never met the owners. The staff in the office here are helpful and patient with our lack of French language skills. There are more amenities. There is a lending library of books and video tapes.  WiFi service is much better also and there is a shuttle service to downtown. We are going to take it in the morning to take the on/off city tour.  It will most likely rain, but we have decided not to let the rain impede our desire to see the sights and get to know the city.

Now that we are in the province of Quebec, we hear less and less English and more French. I am learning a few basic words and expressions   so I can be polite and make a good impression as an American.

I know that we are going to enjoy our week in Quebec City. It dates back to 1608 and is one of North America’s oldest and most picturesque settlements. I don’t want to get ahead of myself but I am also looking forward to our next destination in St. Flavie. We are staying in “Camping Capitaine Homard.” Homard is French for lobster and there is a restaurant on the grounds.  Yum.  While we are in Quebec City I am also looking forward to having some Quebecois cuisine.

It is raining right now so I’m pretty sure it will continue until tomorrow.  In case you haven’t noticed, we have a more flexible attitude to the rain. Rain or shine, we are going to see one of the most beautiful cities in North America tomorrow.       JY

As she said the drive to Quebec City was nicer than some of the other drives we have made.  No rain, good roads and good gas station meaning easy to get in and out of with the trailer.  The first site they assigned us presented a real problem with backing in only to realize during the process that the utilities were on the wrong side.  We got a new site and things are much better.  PRC

Yesterday was a nostalgic day – I returned to Uplands Air Force base which is in the process of being decommissioned.  It is no longer an official military base but still has a large contingent of personnel living there in the PMQ’s (permanent married quarters).  I went to the elementary school where I attended school until I was 12 – Elizabeth Park School.  It is now a Catholic School and classes were in session and the vice principle asked if we could come back in a couple of hours and she would give us a tour.  We then drove to Brookfield High School where

I attended school before dropping out.  I spoke with the vice principle there and she gave us a tour of the school.  In the library I asked the librarian if they had a collection of all the school yearbooks – they did.  He showed me the archives and we found my picture in the 67-68 yearbook.  It was great to visit the auditorium where I attended so many pep rallies, student plays and talent shows.  Wow!

We drove around the base and into the parking lot of the hanger where worked in the weather office when I was stationed at Uplands.  I was in the Royal Canadian Air Force for 3 years as a meteorological observer.  As I mentioned earlier I lived in the barracks across a field from the row housing where I lived many years previous.  All the row houses (probably 12 of them with 6 units each) were all gone – they were torn down with trees and grass planted in their place.  The barracks across the field was also torn down.  Sad to see them gone.

As the time approached we went back to the elementary school and the vice-principle walked us through all the classrooms, teachers’ lounge and auditorium.  I visited some of the classrooms I sat in and reminisced about the classes I took.  The desks were so small, the classrooms were much smaller than I remembered – they still had chalk boards with real chalk.  The rooms all had smart board however but chalk boards on either side – how’s that for the old world vs new age technology.  Both of us were amazed at the size of the backpacks the little kids were carrying when they left school – when I was a kid I don’t think I owned that much stuff.  Our timing could not have been better – as we walked through the school you could see it was visibly in bad shape.  After June 30 the school was scheduled to be shut down and probably demolished so my visit was just in time.

 

There was a brand new school next to my old school and they have named it Elizabeth Park School.  And next to that there was the old protestant church that I attended every Sundays.  When I lived there was a Catholic Church right across the street but it was no longer there.  The church that is there is now a protestant chapel and a catholic church combined – what happened to the Catholic Church across the street?  The existing church was locked so I could not go in but I did get a good look at the interior through a window.

 

There was one last thing I wanted to do and that was visit the Civic Hospital where I was born.  Thanks to GPS we found it quickly, parked and walked in the main entrance.  I asked if they still had a maternity ward and the front desk said yes.  I told the lady I was born there 68 years ago and we gabbed a little bit and she asked me what room number I was looking for – I said I didn’t remember – she laughed and said which room and who are you here to visit.  I told her I was just strolling down memory lane.  We gabbed some more.  The maternity ward was now on the 4^th floor however it was on the 3^rd floor when I was born.  I did not go to either floor because there a slim to none chance that anyone would remember me.  We ate dinner in the hospital cafeteria which is still where it was then.

The drive home was horrible – the rain was the worst it has been since we arrived.  Amazingly the whole day while we were visiting my old places the sun was shining and the weather was beautiful.   PRC

Video from our Amphibious Tour on Sunday May 28, 2017

This was Peter’s day. As previously indicated we are in Cumberland, which is about 30 minutes from Ottawa where Peter was born. So, we found his grade school and high school.  The school administrators were very kind. The vice-principals in each school gave us tours. While Peter walked down memory lane I had the opportunity to talk to the school staff. I asked about the school’s relationship with juvenile probation.  Some schools do have Resource Officers (police), not so much for enforcement, but positive community relations. We also drove around the air force base where Peter and his dad were stationed. There was a Catholic Church and Protestant Chapel who share the same building. We were going to go in to light a candle but the doors were locked of course. To top off the day and come full circle, we went to the Civic Hospital where Peter was born.  It was an emotional, but satisfying day for Ottawa’s native son.

We are home and in for the night. This afternoon was warm and sunny, but when we headed “home” at 6 pm, it was pouring rain, in fact a deluge. Apparently it is rainier than usual for this time of year.

Tomorrow we will start packing up as we leave on Thursday for Quebec City.

I am pleased to be learning a few expressions and vocabulary in French. Nous sommes maintenant sur la route pendant  trois  semaines.  (With a little help from the translator app on my phone.) We have now been on the road for three weeks.

Bonne nuit.  Jusqu’a demaine.       JY

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 We are still in the same place although if the rain continues to beat down at it’s current rate we may be down stream a mile or two before the day is over.  There are little rivers of water running down each side of the roads in this RV park.  Of course we are on a bit of a hill so the water isn’t puddling to bad – however there could be a lake at the bottom of the hill.

We saw a saying today that said, “We did everything today and tomorrow we’ll do everything else.”

That was pretty much how the last two days went. We saw a lot of sights on the on/off bus tour yesterday including the Canadian History Museum. Today we saw more sights on the “Splash” tour and spent time on the Ottawa River. We drove into town early to wait in line for free tickets for a tour of the parliament buildings. It was interesting to compare the structure of the Canadian and American governments. Of course the main difference is that Canada is a “Constitutional Monarchy.”

While standing in line we met a young Polish couple that now live in Connecticut. The other person ahead of us was an attorney living in Syracuse. We arrived about 8:00 am to get tickets with an English speaking guide. We spent more time today walking in the city. We heard many languages, but the predominant one was French. I heard Spanish a few times. One family lived in Montreal but was originally from Argentina.

As Peter indicated, we were not able to include pics on our blog yesterday and today and we’re having more difficulties with WiFi. Hopefully we’ll have better luck at our site in Quebec City. We also have not watched TV or heard much radio. Consequently, we are out of touch with what is going on which is probably a good thing.
Thanks for all the suggestions for mosquito repellent. Some were pretty interesting. Rob, I wish we had some marigolds handy…

We will visit two more places in Quebec, then start our tour of the Maritime Provinces. We’ll start with New Brunswick, then Nova Scotia.

We were fortunate to have two marvelous days of sunshine. However tomorrow it’s supposed to rain a lot. We’ll be staying closer to home.
Bonne nuit. JY

We are currently experiencing some difficulties loading pictures into the blog and publishing our posts. I am trying to work through it but so far haven’t had too much luck. One night it works like a charm and the next night it’s a struggle from the moment you turn on the computer – of all the places we have been this has been the most frustrating. I’m blaming the mosquitoes.

The weather today was great – even a little hotter than yesterday but clouds were on the distant horizon preparing for tomorrows assault. There is heavy rain in the forecast for the next 3 to 4 days. Even with the rain we are going back into the city and look up some of my old haunts and neighborhoods – if they are still there.

Today we were in line at 8:00 am to get tickets for a tour of the parliament buildings. The doors for the tickets opened at 9:00 and we were second in line and scored free tickets for the first English tour of the morning. There were about 15 in our tour group and it was a pretty good mix of cultures and ethnicities – exactly what Canada is. We visited the House of Commons and the Senate – the history of the parliament buildings is fascinating – all but the library burned to the ground in 1916. There was a lot of wood used in the original construction so they decided to use sandstone when they rebuilt it.

We tried to go for coffee at the Chateau Laurier but the café was closed. So we went over to the ByWard Market for lunch. This was a big weekend for races and marathons. Saturday was the 2K, 5K, 10K and 20K runs and today was the full marathon (26 miles). There must have been at least 10,000 people running the race – as they went by us we saw at least 3 blind people with companions and/or guide dog. In places it was difficult to cross the road – it reminded me of a line of ants we saw in Central America.

PRC

P.S. This is the blog post from yesterday – tried to publish it last night but it failed to publish – got up this morning and “boom” everything is working fine – go figure.

It is still a torrential rainstorm outside – now we know what Noah felt like when he was in the ark – our RV is our ark

It was a most excellent day – fun, informative and interesting. And it was a nostalgic day for Peter as we were in the city in which he was born.  We left early this morning to drive into the city, find a parking space and locate our tour bus. (A double decker, hop on hop off.)  The tour guide was bilingual of course – English and French. I can pick up a few words that sound similar to Spanish. I’d like to learn French, lots of people speak it of course in eastern Canada. Apparently if you want a job in Ottawa, you better know how to speak French.

We started at the Parliament, House of Commons and Supreme Court. On the bus tour we crossed the Ottawa River into the province of Quebec. The city used to be called Hull, now it’s called Gatineau.

We passed by some tony neighborhoods in Ottawa and viewed several embassies. The most expensive to build was the U.S. one. The next most expensive was the Saudi Arabia Embassy. Then we went through another expensive neighborhood where the ambassadors and their families live. We heard the interesting story regarding the reason the Netherlands gifted thousands of tulips to Canada.  Ottawa just had their annual tulip festival last weekend. We passed through the By Ward Market which is lot like the Kensington Market in Toronto, but less crowded. All kinds of international products were sold there.

We ended up having lunch in the By Ward Market at an Irish pub. We could have eaten at a restaurant of just about any country. I had a smoked salmon sandwich and Peter had a bison burger.

We spent the afternoon at the Canadian Museum of History with a charming and informative tour guide whose family is from Cameroon. She is the second person we’ve met from Cameroon. We rented a room through AirBNB from Sidonie in Bilbao, Spain.

Two main themes in the museum were hockey and First Nation Peoples. We were more interested in the later. It was fascinating. I feel like I’ve learned so much more about Canadian and thus North American history.

So we are back “home” in our trailer and have new neighbors. The father is a farmer from Montreal. The family all speak French. The father, Allan (spoken with a French accent) speaks some English because he has been to University.  Allan was just here and gave us some maple syrup (Sirop d’erable Pur) manufactured on his farm.  He and his brothers own a large part of an island close to Montreal, Ille Perrot. We had a jar of jalapeno jelly which we gave him. We loved visiting with him but the mosquitoes were getting to us so we had to say goodnight (bonne nuit).

Canadians have been so friendly and generous.  Since I am married to a Canadian, I’m always trying to describe Canadian culture.  Friendly and generous are definitely words I would describe Canadians. I would also say tidy. Did you ever see the movie, “Canadian Bacon”? The US tries to start a war with Canada by rowing across Lake Ontario and dumping garage across the border.

Tomorrow we are driving back into Ottawa. This time we need to get up earlier to stand in line for (free) tickets for a tour of the Parliament. Then we are doing the Splash Amphibious bus tour.

The mosquitoes are driving us crazy. We’re going to bed now. Chow…  JY

Yesterday we booked a hop-on hop-off (hoho) tour of Ottawa.  This morning we arrived at the designated time and stayed on the bus for the first complete route to see where we wanted to get off and look around.  The tour was nostalgic for me as it drove by many of the places I frequented as a child.  I had a running dialogue with the tour guide as I knew a little more about the history of some of the places than he did.  In some of the places where we walked around I had to stop and absorb the nostalgia of the moment and the memories.

After the first tour on the bus we got off and went to the ByWard Market which is like a touristy farmers market.  We stopped and had lunch in the market on the second floor of an Irish Pub at an open air table overlooking the market.  We had a Corona and some nochos – after we had sandwiches we headed back to the hoho bus and decided to spend the afternoon at the Canadian Museum of History which is located across the Ottawa River in Quebec.  We hired a personal tour guide who showed us around the museum.  We were primarily interested in the history and culture of the First Nation people.  Our guide has worked at the museum for 18 years and really explained everything in great detail.

It was getting time to leave the museum as we had to catch the final hoho bus at 4:15.  We left the museum at 4:00 just in time to see the last bus drive off – I ran after it yelling and whistling to stop but away it went.  I called the tour office and told them the last bus left early and we were stranded.  They put me on hold for 2 minutes and then said they would send an empty double decker bus to pick us up – 15 minutes later it arrived.

Tomorrow we will return to Ottawa for a tour of the Parliament buildings first thing in the morning as that is when we are most likely to get an English speaking guide and then in the afternoon an amphibious tour of the Ottawa River – really like a Duck Tour.  We will also visit the Museum of Nature.  PRC

We are here during the rainy season and it is true to it’s word – it’s raining almost all the time.  We are going into Ottawa and the weather is suppose to be descent – we will see about that.  Everything is green and lush.  We are about a half a mile from the Ottawa River and it is a really big river.

Currently there is a squadron of mosquitoes in the trailer – they have broken formation and are buzzing all over the place – at times we are reduced to hand-to-hand combat.  We have resorted to chemical warfare – with bug spray and Noxzema.  I wish I had a picture of it – the woman who manages this RV park was driving around on a small John Deere tractor holding a can of bug spray in one hand and the steering wheel in the other.  PRC

We are in Cumberland which appears to be a suburb of Ottawa. We are about 30 minutes from Ottawa, the capital of Canada. It is also the city where Peter was born and raised until he was 12 years old.

The drive from our last RV Park in Flamboro Valley to Cumberland was longer than anticipated. We left at about 10 am to avoid the heavy traffic in Toronto.  Consequently we did not avoid rush hour in Ottawa. We came across construction, an accident and bumper to bumper traffic. What made it worse was the heavy rain.

I thought it would never stop raining. We unhooked our trailer in the rain and set it up in the rain. That wasn’t much fun.  Peter reminds me that it certainly won’t be the last time we’ll need to do this in the rain over the next four months.

I love the rain probably because it is such a novelty in Phoenix. I very reluctantly admit that yesterday I wished for about five minutes of Arizona weather. It finally stopped raining last night but started up again in the late morning. I understand this is rainy season in this part of Canada.  I love cold weather but maybe not constant rain. Certainly not driving in it and pulling a trailer.

Enough complaining. There is definitely a reward for all the rain as you can see from the panorama at the beginning of this post. This is the setting at our RV Park. It’s green, green, green. It’s beautiful but the gorgeous setting comes at a cost. The mosquitoes have arrived. A friend advised that using Noxzema makes a good mosquito repellent.  I’ll let you know how it works.

Tomorrow we are going on a city tour of Ottawa .  We’ll see the sights including  the Parliament buildings. Peter wants to see if he recognizes the house where he was raised and the school he attended. We will let you know how it goes.

We are on the 2nd leg of our journey.  There are 4 parts to this journey

1. Phoenix, Arizona to Toronto, Ontario
2. Toronto, Ontario to Sydney Nova Scotia
3. Newfoundland
4. Sydney, Nova Scotia to home

The following destinations will be included on this leg of our adventure: (We will be staying about a week at each spot.)

Quebec City, Quebec  –  St. Flavie, Quebec  –  Gaspe, Quebec  –  Dalhousie, New Brunswick  –  Hunter River, Prince Edward Island  –  St. Martin, New Brunswick  –  Glen Margaret, Nova Scotia  –  Yarmouth, Nova Scotia (3 days)  –  Little  Bras D’Or, Nova Scotia

We are back at HQ for a day of R&R.  June Yvonne was tired yesterday and went to bed early and did not get a chance to contribute to the blog.  Here is her contribution.  This is a video we took looking over the falls.  Impressive.

The word I would use to describe Niagara Falls is majestic. There are three different falls – Horseshoe Falls (Canadian Falls), American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. Obviously we viewed it all from the Canadian side.

It was a fun, informative and wet day. We lucked out as it was a sunny day and a little warm.  Consequently, getting soaked was refreshing.

I’m pleased to have visited one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. One of the others is in our home state – The Grand Canyon. Some day maybe we will make it to Victoria Falls. And I hope to see the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) one of these days.

We have become acquainted with the small town of Waterdown, Ontario. We’ve been to the laundromat, grocery store, post office , gas stations and Tim Horton’s which seems like it is on every corner in Canada. In Canada Tim Horton’s is like a Dunkin Donuts.  We also went to Canadian Tire which is kinda like a Home Depot and Auto Zone. We went there as one of the trailer tires (the spare) needed to be repaired.

We also found a jewelry store as my watch needed a new battery. While we were there we had our wedding rings cleaned. Roy, the jeweler, discovered that my ring needed repair as some of the prongs were loose and one had broken off.  He repaired and fixed the ring which involved driving into Toronto for platinum welding materials. He did a beautiful job. I don’t remember my ring ever looking so sparkly. The cost for repairing it was incredibly reasonable.  I would have hated losing the main diamond that was loose.

It just so happened that today was Roy’s anniversary. On the way to the jewelry store we stopped to get roses and a gift certificate to a local restaurant. He was very appreciative. We were very appreciative of the fine work he did.

Tomorrow we are off to an RV park close to Ottawa, Ontario. This is the city where Peter was born. More tomorrow. JY

P.S. It’s pouring rain right now in Flamboro Valley Camping RV and Retreat

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Today was a great day – we spent the day at Niagara Falls – it has been overcast and rainy the past couple of days but it was sunny and warm all day long.  It took a little over an our to get to the falls and our tour guide picked us up on time.  There were 6 people on the tour which was great.

 

Our tour included 3 attractions.  The Skylon Tower – behind the falls viewing and the Hornblower boat ride to the bottom of the falls (on the American side it is the Maid of the Mist)

The Skylon Tower is 775′ tall and overlooks the falls – the panorama above is from the observation deck at the top of the tower.  There are 12 souvenir shops on the ground floor and one at the top as well as two revolving restaurants.  The view was spectacular and as you can see it was a nice sunny day.  We could even see the skyline of Toronto on the other side of Lake Ontario.  Across the border on the American side are the American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls.

The behind the falls experience involved going down an elevator and entering a tunnel to an observation deck where your view was right next to the falls only at the bottom.  The park issues rain jackets (plastic bags with arm holes and hood) and if you didn’t wear one you would be soaked to the skin – the spray of water and mist is incredible.  Then you walk down another tunnel where two portals take you within 10′ of the water pouring over the falls.  The roar of the water was incredible.  One of the people on our tour said that is what a typhoon sounds like when he lived in the Philippines and the rain is almost as bad.

The last attraction on the tour was the boat ride to just below the falls.  The boat ahead of us was so close to the fall that from the dock where we

launched you could not see it as it was enveloped in mist.  We really did get close to the bottom of the falls and we got drenched as we were right at the front – where else.  The spray of water and mist along with the wind made it impossible to take pictures.  In addition you couldn’t see anything because the camera lens was covered in water.  Everyone trying to take pictures finally just stopped trying.  When the ride was over my socks were soaked and we all looked like drowned rats but it was great.  PRC

 

 

 

 

 

We are still at the same RV park just outside of Ottawa – the capital of Canada – so the map would be the same.  After two days of running around and multiple tour of Ottawa we decided to take rest day.  We slept in – when we awoke it was raining heavily and that continued for the whole day.

Our French-Canadian farmer friend next door with the three small children decided it was time to go home to Montreal.  The kids were couped up in their small trail and were bouncing off the walls.  Allen (pronounced Allon) broke camp in a driving rain, loaded the kids in the back seat of the truck and with a wave and an “au revoir” he headed north to  Montreal.

I fooled around with blog for a while and it was not cooperating so I shut the computer off and went to bed about 8:00pm.  We didn’t get out of our PJ’s, had a late breakfast then went to the movies in a town about 30 minutes away.

Today we are going to drive into Ottawa and go to the air force base where I grew up as a child and then ironically severed in the military at the same base.  Interestingly enough the barracks I stayed in was right across a field from the row housing were I lived when I was a child.  I could look out the window and see the exact house where I lived. Hopefully I will be able to visit the elementary school and the high school I attended.  I will also swing by the Civic Hospital where I was born but I doubt anyone will remember me.   PRC

We were so fortunate to have two full days of marvelous weather to spend in Ottawa. It started pouring rain again last night. I love the coolness and all the shades of green.  Consequently I thought I’d like living in the Pacific Northwest or Canada… Not so sure now.  Of course it would be a lot different living in a house versus this travel trailer (It’s getting tinier.)

We are going to a movie later this afternoon as apparently movies don’t start until 4:10 pm. Thank goodness we have books and music to entertain us. I also can organize my recipes on the computer. We haven’t had the best of luck with WiFi. Peter bought a satellite dish in Phoenix which we found out doesn’t work in Canada as they have their own system up here and we would have to sign up for a two year contract.

It was suggested that this could be a Vision Quest. Actually there is some truth to that. We are hardly far from civilization but it is good not to be so connected. Admittedly I send a lot of text messages because I desire outside communication.  TV and radio are really not that big of a deal.  We were kinda addicted to Netflix anyway. I remember as a kid I gave up the radio for Lent for 40 days. There is definitely a lesson to be learned here.  Although, it would be nice to take a walk outside in this lovely setting, but this is not just a drizzle, it’s a downpour that doesn’t let up.  I know I sound like a wimp…

Our neighbor Allan and his family just left in the pouring rain. We said au revoir to them from the window of course… (Not going outside until necessary.)

Each site at a trailer park has a picnic table to enjoy meals outside. We haven’t been able to do that once because of the wind, heat (mostly in the US), cold, rain, or mosquitoes.

Au revoir from the Arizona wuss….       JY

Last Saturday we traveled in to Toronto to visit my friend Gabriel.  He is a 7 year old boy I met in Silverton, Colorado last year and for some unknown reasons we formed a strong bond in a very short period of time.  We have communicated by Skype, face time, letters and cards ever since.  We have exchanged gifts at Christmas and I send him books to read every other month or so.  We stayed at his house for 3 days and 2 nights and the two of us had a great time at the Aquarium-Canada in Toronto, building Legos and eating ice cream.

We also enjoyed visiting with his parents.  His father was not around much as he is a pediatric surgeon and was on call this last weekend however his mother (Beth) who is also a doctor was available all weekend – we now consider each other good friends.  Beth’s parents live in Albuquerque and they visit them frequently.   Next time they are visiting Beth is going to fly to Phoenix with Gabriel and Simone (the sister) and spend some time with us.

On Sunday we visited Aquarium-Canada and it was amazing – the variety, number and size of the fish was incredible – the only down side was that it was a rainy holiday weekend and everyone in Toronto was at the aquarium – the variety, number and size of the people was incredible – I think the number of people out numbered the fish.  We had fun in spite of the crowd.

We are now back at home in our RV.  Parting was sad but we promised to keep in touch by Skype and phone – his mother was a little sad to see us go also.  He wanted to come with us or wanted us to stay another day.

Tomorrow we are headed to Niagara Falls where we have a 5 hour tour booked – including the “Maid of the Mist”.   PRC

 

We just spent the BEST long weekend with Gabriel and his family in Toronto, Ontario. You may already know this story, if not Peter will tell you how they first met last summer on our road trip across the Southwest, USA.

Ever since we reached Canada, the   temperatures   have dropped.  All across the Midwest it was shorts weather. It’s sometimes cold now. (I love the cold weather.)  And it’s windy.

We arrived in Toronto Friday afternoon and were first greeted by Simone, Gabriel’s 9 year old sister. Gabriel and Peter have communicated regularly since last summer including by Skyping.  This is the first time we have met in person with Gabriel and his family since that fateful day last summer in Silverton, CO.

The family welcomed us with open arms mostly based on a relationship with a seven year old boy and a sixty-eight year old man. It’s one of those situations in which (if you believed in such things), you would think that the two new each other in a different life.  As Gabriel’s mom said, they are like two peas in a pod.  Seriously.  They were contented to play for hours together. Gabriel is no ordinary boy. He is special, not just because he is diagnosed with ADHD, but because he is all heart with all the challenges that go with having tons of energy that sometimes can barely be contained.

Gabriel’s sister is quite precocious, a very talented 9 year old. She plays the piano,the harmonica, sings and paints. (I am sure she has many other talents in addition to this.)  And she is quite beautiful.  Then of course there is the usual sibling rivalry, but with a different twist because they are both so unique.

Their parents are very special themselves. Both are extremely intelligent – Beth is a psychologist and George is a pediatric surgeon.  George is very dedicated to his young patients so we didn’t have a chance to visit much with him as he was on call this weekend. . Beth was more available and I feel that we started a long lasting friendship. We could have talked for hours.

In addition to the special dynamics of the weekend, we managed to do some activities. Saturday we spent time walking in Kensington Market which reminds me of Pikes Market in Seattle and First Friday in Phoenix. It was replete with unique shops, eateries, art galleries and street entertainment.

This was a holiday weekend for Canada – Victoria Day. Consequently it was crowded, everywhere. We went to the Aquarium on Sunday and ran into the same crowds.  Gabriel spent most of the time seeing the exhibits perched on Peter’s shoulders.

Needless to say, the weekend spent with this family was remarkable indeed.

We are back at HQ in the “Buen Camino”, our travel trailer, parked in Flamboro RV Park.

Tomorrow will be a busy and fun day. We are going to Niagara Falls. We will tell you all about it in the next post.

FYI: WiFi has been unpredictable since we crossed the border, even with the “Hot Spot” we purchased in Phoenix. Many of our e-mails and text messages have “failed to send.” Who knows how many don’t make it to us. I understand that some folks are having problems accessing the blog and/or making comments.  Let me know if you are having issues with this.  JY

 

 

 

 

We slept in a little this morning but were on our way in no time.  Today we crossed the boarder into Canada with little or no wait at the border which was a surprise.  Right off the bat you realize gas is more expensive here – about $4.28 per gallon but with the currency exchange rate it’s about $3.00.

The trip through the Detroit area was crowded and you could tell the city still lives under a black cloud – you could feel the depression.  The roads were terrible and everything looked dirty – doesn’t mean that there aren’t some parts of Detroit that are beautiful but this is what I say.

Canada is different – the roads are smooth – traffic was light – rest areas are beautiful.  The first rest area we came to we stopped for gas and to use the restroom.  Inside there was a KFC, Tim Horton’s and an A&W along with a convenience store.  We passed several of these on our way to Hamilton.

Our site at the RV Park was not very level so we had to really work at getting things leveled up side to side and front to back.   While we were in town there was a rainstorm and you can see it in the distance in the panorama above.  PRC

Before crossing  the border  we  managed  to pick up some Bettermade Potato Chips for Steve S. If we somehow run out (?) we can always pick some more up on our way back.

Shortly after getting on the highway to our RV park in Ontario, we made a routine stop for gas. The gas station had a market and a couple  of fast food places attached.  So  I had my first order of “poutine” in French Canada. This is a popular dish in Canada especially  in this part of the country. It usually consists of French fries, cheese curds and gravy. I’m probably done with that for now, unless it’s made with lobster. Besides it’s cholesterol city.

Once we drove into Canada, it was still 150 miles to our RV Park.  Flamboro Valley Campground is  a family oriented RV  park. In fact I can see one of the playgrounds from the dining  room window as I type the blog.

Pros and Cons

As you know we only spent one night at each destination as we  drove across country. There was no way to get to know the location or relax as we needed to get up the next morning and take off again. As we didn’t unhook from  the trailer,we were  literally tied to the trailer with little  freedom to get to know the locale.  After the first night boondocking in  the casino parking outside of Flagstaff, we did hook up for water, electricity and sewer which didn’t take long.

So now that we are in Canada we are staying at this location a week.  Settling in took longer  since we had to level the trailer and unhook the truck. It took longer than before but we were able to explore the nearby small towns. Tomorrow morning we will go into Waterdown and do some laundry.  Peter will get a haircut.

Flamboro will our HQ for two main diversions. 1) We will go visit Peter’s friend we met last summer on our  Southwest RV trip. Gabriel is 7 years old and lives with his family in Toronto.  Peter will tell you this sweet story.  2) We’ll go to Niagra Falls.  I bet lots of you have been there. Who has been there?  It’s the first for me as Peter has seen it several times.  JY