Aqua, Average, Anne

I enjoyed every single day of my road trip thoroughly. I loved driving through all the different provinces and some states and seeing everything around me. I loved visiting friends and connecting with them. I loved seeing my friends' new children that I had not yet met.

My final day of visiting was one of my favorite though. I knew that saving Anne for last would be a great idea, because we always seem to have a great time.

It began with the simple desire to go for sushi. And for sushi we went. And we ate far too much. But it was delicious.

And then the day turned into a water tour. What's a water tour you might ask? Well, it's where you think of anything that has water, cram it all into one day and make a tour out of it. And thus the Aqua Tour of 2011 began at a sushi restaurant in Hamilton while drinking water.

The water tour involved waterfalls, rivers, lakes, pools, drinking water, drinking beverage that originally must have had some water used to make them, rain and umbrellas.

I laughed the entire day. I took in some of the beautiful places we went to visit. Do you ever have those days that reach the epic list in life as some of your favorite days? This would be one of them.

Good friends, good food, a lot of laughs. If time permitted, I would share more photos, but these will give you an idea of the fun that was had.

And the day even ended with a bee getting stuck in my bathing suit and stinging my bum three times. Lovely.

Epcot, Experts, Electrical

I wasn't planning on going to Florida this year. But when my brother texted me and invited me to join him and Colleen in Disneyworld for three days, I couldn't resist. I got good flight deals and figured it was a great opportunity for some good, quality time with family!


My first visit to Florida and I loved it! (and it is only a 3 hour flight from Montreal I might add...) It was nice and hot too. At first we were confused as to how the whole Disneyworld thing worked. Then we discovered that they have four separate parks to go to. Crazy. I like to think of it as a brilliant money making scheme, but perhaps it's also helpful in keeping hoardes of people apart from each other. Needless to say, Disneyworld is MASSIVE. It even has its own highway system.


The first day we got there, we went to Magic Kingdom, which traditionally is more like Disneyland in California. Similar rides with a few different ones. We stayed until closing and went on as many rides and to as many shows as possible!


The Disney castle in Disneyworld is way bigger than the one in Cali! But there weren't too many crowds and lineups were fantastically short. Either than or we're Disney experts.


It's a small world was wonderful as always. Some people hate the ride, but I enjoy all the different cultures and countries it passes through. And I try singing along every time which results in me having that not annoying at all song stuck in my head all day. Delightful. Of course, the entire ride, my brother was just trying to push our boat along faster so we could hit the boats in front of us.


And then there's the turkey legs. Sigh. I have always seen them while at Disneyland and they smell tasty, but look disgusting. And funny. When people are walking by chomping away at a huge chunk of meat. It looks slightly barbaric. But my brother and I figured it would be fun nonetheless. And it was.

And the parades! And the fireworks! And the light shows! All spectacular!

The next day we went to Animal Kingdom which is a mix between awesome rides and amazing decor and a zoo/reserve. They have a safari you can go on where you see real live elephants, rhinos, lions, monkeys, tigers and so forth. Crazy. And the rides are awesome. And when you're walking in the Asia or Africa sections, you feel like you're there in a way. And then you see screaming/crying children being wheeled by and you recall that you are in the happiest place on earth.


Mt. Everest was a pretty awesome rollercoaster. Especially since you didn't know what to expect. But when suddenly you are flying backwards, with no idea of where this ride is going, it is a bit scary. Well, for Colleen it was probably scary (judging by her screams) and I would just sit there giggling uncontrollably. When people scream, I laugh. We'll call it nervous laughter so I don't look like a bad person that laughs at people screaming.


Monkeys!! It was fun to wander around and just see different animals everywhere. Random. But cool. Totally different park than any I'd been to.




And I discovered why rhinos are almost extinct in Africa... it's because Disney took them all to be on their safari ride.


And then we found the Triceretops Ride which we thought was awesome. Lucas was reluctant to come, but we made it seem like so much fun that he ran through the exit gate at the last minute and hopped on the ride. I'm sure he was happy he jumped on (as you can tell by his super excited face in the picture).


That afternoon we went to Epcot, which is a cross between a future type place and international. Some really fun rides and really cool displays of around the world. I enjoyed seeing what the US perceives Canada to be like. And thankfully, they had a sign put up to warn people that I might be crossing the road. Thoughtful.


And of course, it is a must when in a Disney store (or any store with random hats for that matter), to take a photo of you wearing the hats. And thankfully I didn't buy mine because it seems too small for my head.


The Epcot ball, in which you go on this neat ride and see a bunch of stuff. Okay I just made that sound like the lamest ride ever, but it wasn't. It was cool. And then it "broke" down while we were on it and we were stuck in one spot for five minutes.


Oh the streets of Disney. Upon sight of them, my heart leaps for joy because of the childlike wonder and awe that shall accompany the day once that street is walked down. And that sentence didn't make sense. In short, Disneyworld makes me excited.


In an immensely long line for my favorite Toy Story ride, Lucas and Colleen decided to try out being monkeys.


We also decided to do push ups and tricep exercises on the bars while waiting in the line-up. We enjoyed maximizing the usage of our time in line. Just like the woman I saw breastfeeding her child in line while walking. I don't have a problem with breastfeeding in public, but when there is no cover and I can see the entire thing with your child shoved there while you walk through the line to get on a ride, it is a bit strange.


On our last day, we went to Hollywood Studios. Our day was planned out immaculately so that we could see everything. Loved the Beauty and the Beast musical! So well done.




And the Muppets fountain was pretty awesome too. They make me laugh. :)


After a very full day, we went to this Old Town Fair which was quite eventful and interesting. I opted out of the go-karts because it was an uphill climb with a huge sharp drop at the bottom and I knew I would probably feel like I was going to die if I drove alongside my brother.


Downtown Disney was pretty amazing too! It's like an entire town! We went to Disney's Cirque de Soleil, 'La Nooba' and it was awesome! One of the best I've seen for sure.

All in all, a fantastic time in Disneyworld. To conclude though, Disneyland is still my fave. It was great to visit the world... but I like that Disneyland and California Adventure Land are right across from each other and they have everything right there, all walking distance. Although, I wouldn't be opposed to going again of course. ;)

Thankfully jetlag from Florida had put me on a new schedule of going to bed at 10 and waking up at 6. I quite like it. And after three days at home, I headed off to Cali with some friends to go to Disneyland (just to compare). More pics and stories from that to come!

Banff, Birthdays, Being

Birthdays are grand. Some people dread them and wish they would not come as a reminder of one's age. Yet, I think there's something incredibly wonderful about them. A celebration of LIFE. A celebration of YOU. The blessing you are the others, the blessings in one's life, and just the fact that you are alive. So I like birthdays and I like to wish people a happy birthday and to enjoy their birthdays with them.


So, when Jenn told me she was planning a party for her birthday, I was excited, because I had that weekend free to come to Calgary and celebrate as grand as we could and to fill our time with adventure and spontaneity and fun.


To dance, laugh, chat, drive, enjoy beautiful views, eat good food, freeze to death, talk until the wee hours of the morning and so on. Life is beautiful and wonderful and it is delightful to celebrate it with those you love.


I arrived Friday night and after a lot of talking, we finally drifted off to sleep. Then after wishing Jenn a happy birthday 10 million times, we went out for Dim Sum with some friends of hers and with her parents. So tasty! And fun to meet new people as well!


And I decided I need to find a dim sum place I like back home. Because it's tasty and super fun and you can try random and new things. Like when I was walking out, I noticed chicken legs and feet. Maybe next time...


After brunch, we headed to Banff with lindie. I love jokes that keep going, make themselves into new forms and then you find signs about them. A few years ago, Lindie met a guy from bible school when we were in the states. And somehow in the course of the conversation, she told him "your state is kind of dumpy." Anyway.. we have not stopped bugging her since and when we saw this sign, we thought it was absolutely perfect.


Cedric also had fun walking around Banf, but he met some menacing characters...




This toque was exceptionally warm and perhaps would have kept me far warmer than I was. Wearing really thin sweatshirts in very cold weather = dumb idea.


Lindie was so excited to go to the candy store, until she found out she couldn't buy any pez.



Banff was chilly, but stunning at every turn and fun to walk around and explore and see waterfalls. I love the excitement of being with friends on an adventure and how the possibilities of what you can do open up and every single thing that is mentioned sounds great and after a while, every sentence is started with, "Next time, let's..." I love the prospect of next time and the wonderful fun things we shall continue to do and to simply enjoy the moment and the randomness of it all.








We were turning a corner, and suddenly a whole row of elk came out of the woods! How delightful and well-timed!




And since Jenn and I have a tradition of seeing nice country churches when we're together, we decided to stop at this historic spot for a couple photos!

And of course, one must always try on animal toques and take photos when they are around.

And funny glasses would be included in that category as well.

Then after getting good and cold (which only took 5 seconds, but why not let it really sink in over a few hours?), we went to Banff Hot Springs.


It was wonderfully warm and comfortable with a nice view of trees, mountains and dusk all around.


The best part? Cedric (the gnome) joined us in the pools and helped us meet some people. Started some good conversations and they even wanted to take a picture with Cedric as well. He's a pretty popular guy.


And then we drove to Calgary into very snowy random drifts and windyness. A part of the trans-canada was even closed because it was so nasty. Then Aussie Rules, a dueling piano bar in the evening, where we met up with a bunch of Jenn's friends. I got to chat with her friend who had been to New Zealand for a few months and loved it, so it was super fun to share stories and our joint love of such a beautiful place. Made me want to go back. asap.

Sunday was a relaxing day and then we went to my friend Jacquelyn's for tea in the afternoon and then for dinner to one of my most favourite restaurants (glad I have fave restaurants in Calgary) with my cousin and her boyfriend.

Then I headed to the airport where flight delays made me happy for once in my life because I got to see my dear friend Anne who was passing through the airport on her way back to Edmonton. And after saying goodbye to her and boarding my flight, I got to see her an hour later, when I had to get off my broken plane and wait to board a different one.



All in all a delightful time in Alberta. I arrived in Saskatchewan at 2:00am in the wee hours of monday morning. -16 temperatures and snowyness welcomed me and I embraced them! And spending 3 full days with an old roommate whom I love dearly sounds delightful! I think we shall perhaps even go visit a giant moose soon!! Yippee! :)

Hope you are all enjoying your week!