Day 5: St. John's Sightseeing

From Signal Hill. Cape Spear (North American's eastern most point) in the background.

At St. John's Harbour.

Painted Houses

Fort Amherst from the top of Signal Hill.

St. John's Basilica. 

Day 4: Wedding in Placentia!

We said good-bye to Wanda today. She runs the Oceanview in Placentia. If you want a relaxing, sea side, ocean view get away - go there. Sure, it's not the Hilton, but the manager is a friendly Newfie who is as sharp witted as she is hard to understand. If you don't want relaxing, serenity, go to Harold's! Apparently they stay up after weddings and party until the sun comes up! But, I guess that's what we're supposed to do after a great wedding! 

Julie and Joey are married and it was as great party. Julie is pretty special for agreeing of "her own free will" to join this crazy family. But she's great a fits right in. They are a great couple and I wish them all the best. The one thing that struck me about Julie right away is her passion for her job. She's a teacher and you can tell that she loves it.

Day 3 Jaime and I had a long breakfast at Belle's and wondered the length of Placentia about 3 or 4 times to get some fresh, sea air, and our heart rates up.  There is a lovely board walk along the water where I tried to snap a few pictures.

Day 4 was the wedding day. We lazed around, and got ready. The wedding wasn't until 4 so we ate a late breakfast and then made our way to the church. Of course, my camera died during the ceremony!

The couple was great and the company was fabulous!

The reception saw some typical "MacEachern Reunion" type shots and went until the wee hours of the morning.

Jaime and Aunty "M" bonding.

The outlaws doing a "Mary."

Brothers and sisters laughing together.

Cigars on the patio!

Singing "For the Love of a Girl" for the bride

Singing to either "Whispering Pines", "Out on the Mira" or "Farewell to Nova Scotia"

All and all, it was a great weekend!! I've realized, once again, how great my family is and how important they are to me. I'm so happy that I got to see them once more before I head to Africa. These are memories I will keep for a very, very long time. 

Day 3: Newfoundland

Today is Julie and Joey's wedding and I'm pretty sure the entire town is shutting down for the big event! My entire family is here now and so we've sort of taken over the town. WE didn't really do up last night (I avoided what's called Sour Newfie, which is half a shot of sour puss and half shot of Screech)...We're saving ourselves for tonight. Wanda, the woman who runs the Oceanview here is also at the wedding and she hasn't been able to party with us yet so she said she's saving herself for tonight too. Last night we were at Westside Charlie's. It's just "down the road" from here (as everything seems to be). Anyway, here is a picture of the happy couple:

And the aunts and uncles - Mary and DJs kids. We had t-shirts made for them two years ago at our family reunion in Cape Breton. It pictures the six of them in 1982 at the last reunion. There have been few times when they can all get together. Half of them live in Nova Scotia but the other half don't. 

Cousin Jaime and I giving ourselves a reminder of what we may need to get home after we have too much fun at the wedding - a wheel chair! We're hoping to be able to stand long enough to dance - maybe even try to remember the Highland Fling. So, as I look out to the sea, I'm signing off thankful for family and good times.

Day 2: Newfoundland

It is so serene and so peaceful here......(this is the view from my room)

It sort of feels like when I was in Iceland.... (this was the view from my house then)
And then I SET OFF THE SMOKE DETECTOR!!!!! I was only making toast....

No problem, I thought....if there is a fire, just turn on the tap and shoot water in the direction of the smoke. And then I had a shower. I think "water pressure" would be a gross exageration. There as a light sprinkle - sort of like a spring shower while the sun is still shining. Not quite enough to rinse all the conditioner out of my hair, let alone put out a fire. Oh well, it's still beautiful and relaxing in Placentia! It's in the southeast corner of Newfoundland. Just west of St. John's. You might be able to click on the image to enlarge it. 

St. John's was great. My room was upgraded because of a mix up (I think) and my parents arrived earlier to get me out of a dorm and into this comfy room. I think Cousin Jaime will join me next Sunday when I come back. We'll "do George Street" and recover in this little sanctuary with our bacon sandwiches....

I also had the chance to drive by the house that my grandparents first lived in when they were married. It apparently looks the same as it did then.

 I'm heading out today to do some touristy things with my cousin Jaime. Most of the family got in last night. We sat around the dining room of Harold Hotel drinking and laughing. Everyone else should be getting in tonight at somepoint. For now, though, I'll see if we can "do Placentia". Not sure what there is to do here. We'll find out soon!!!  In the mean time, I'll leave you with some pictures of beautiful St. John's, Newfounland.

Anna's Suitcase Sees the Atlantic

Truth be told, this isn't the first time my suitcase has seen the Atlantic. Actually, it's seen the Atlantic more than the Pacific, and I'm closer to the west. But this little suitcase has been to Nova Scotia a bazillion times, Ireland and Iceland.  (I wish I'd been to Iceland a bazillion times - it's amazing). My family comes from Newfoundland. My grandparents (DJ and Mary) lived in St. John’s before they moved to Cape Breton. But I’ve never been there. So, cousin Joey is getting married to Newfie Julie and while I debated even going to the wedding (how on earth would I find time to do what I needed to do if I’m in Placentia?), my mom said, quite rightly, that when it comes to family you’ll never regret doing something like this. And she’s right. So here I sit in the Toronto airport with some time to kill, I’m tired because I had to get up early and I stayed up late watching Departures (Scott and Justin are crrrraaazy….). My flight to St. John’s will board in an hour. I have absolutely nothing planned in Newfoundland, except for the wedding. We’ll see what happens. Cousin Jaime and I are planning a good long heart to heart in a canoe tied to the dock. We’ll put on life jackets, drink some beers and maybe she’ll play the mandolin. Maybe I’ll see a puffin. Maybe I’ll kiss the cod (oh God I hope not!) or maybe I’ll run into one of my students who is also in “The Rock”. (Do Newfoundlanders say “in the Rock” or “on the Rock” or “by the Rock” or “geez bye, gotta love the rock!” Either way….

Yesterday was my final foray into the Calgary Stampede. You know, as a kid, I really like the movie City Slickers. As an adult, I actually get to experience itfor 10 days EVERY JULY!!! (Note the sarcasm) I went with Ang down to the grounds where we met Aimey after her shift for some greasy, over priced food. As we walked near the Agriculture building (we couldn’t go in because of the smell) I realized that I’m more City than I am Slicker. Give me deep friend Oreos or a corndog any day over watching cows eat hay. It’s just not me. Ang and I went down to watch Serena Ryder who was playing at 3pm. Well, at 12:30 she phoned me (Ang, not Serena – although that would have been cool too) to tell me that there was a 100% chance of rain. 100% chance! That’s not chance, really, is it? It’s more of a certainty and if I was a weatherman I would avoid making grandiose claims of 100% chance - just incase. Plus, you never have to be certain of anything if you’re a weatherman. Stick to 90% chance. Even go as high as 98%. But one-hundred? Really, Mr. Weatherman, you have the only job in the world where you never have to be certain of anything or at least being uncertain will always work in your favour. You could say there is a 2% chance of a rain, and if it rains, you were right! “There is a slim chance that we will have a snow storm this Canada Day. That’s right, folks. There IS a slim chance.” Then, no snow! What is the response of said weatherman? “Thank goddness for the sun. We avoided that snowstorm yesterday. Now for today’s forecast…..there is a 5% chance that it will literally rain cats and dogs today. Ditch the umbrellas, just stay indoors and put out a dish of water. Just incase.” Why, if you could say things like that, would you ever say there was a 100% chance of anything?

 

But it did rain. And it rained. And it rained.

 

We grabbed corn dogs and ribbon fries and huddled under an awing until the rain lightened it. It didn’t lighten up. We were soaked. So, we huddled by a door to listen to Serena Ryder, got tired and went for deep friend Oreos. Yum!

 To avoid the rain we decided to choose a free event where we could sit. It happened only to be Super Dogs.  What could possibly be that super about dogs? As it turns out, not much. A guy in a white suit saying things like “Wow, Earmuffs, good job running through this tunnel!” Super.

We met Aimey and then made our way to the CBC booth to get some cool uber Canadian swag for me to take to Rwanda. An American may don a Maple Leaf abroad but I’d be hard press to say I’d ever met a Texan with the CBC logo on their bag and a t-shirt of Peter Mansbridge. I got a pin. Aimey took a chance at anchoring the news. Funnily enough, it was the weather report.

When I Was Younger

Another beautiful morning so I wish you all Mwaramutse (which means "good morning" in Kinyarwanda). I'm sitting with another cup of coffee and thinking about all the things I am going to miss while I'm away. Since school ended, I've had some time to think about who and what I'll miss. I do get a little teary eyed but all in all, have managed to hold it together. I think the best thing to do before moving across the world for AN ENTIRE YEAR!!! is to take a 5 week trip to Peru. People think I'm crazy but I think I would rather be hiking the Inca Trail than worrying about which pair of socks to pack. Anyway....there are some things I will miss. Drinking coffee in the sunshine on a comfy couch without fleas is one of them.

I will miss my family. There it is folks, I do have emotions and feelings. Unlike my dad and brother, I don't wear my heart on my sleeve. I tuck it away, hidden from most people. My family is great! And this doesn't just include my immediate family either. There are these great books in a series called "If" and are great for conversations. Aimey and I were reading them and one question was "If you could be born in to someone else's family, who's would it be?" I could honestly say, that I'm happy to be a MacEachern. Why? Jaime McVicar. That's why. My cousin, Joey, is getting married next week in Newfoundland (which is where my suitcase goes next) and Jaime stopped by for dinner and a night of playing the guitar with my brother, Pat. We sat around the table for hours and drank too much wine. Below are a few reasons, why I will miss my family.

When I Was Younger

Jaime and Pat Sing Again!

Hmmmm what else can I pack?

I haven't posted in a little while and since then I really feel like I have hit the ground running. Well, except for this exact moment. Right now I'm enjoying Canada Day with a cup of coffee and listening to Griffen House. So a quick Happy Canada to everyone out there! 

Last Saturday my parents came out to Airdrie for supper. Before they arrived I tried to do a practice pack. I have a luggage limit of 25kgs. FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR!!! But I managed to cram everything in......but barely! I've really been thinking about those "comfort" items I should bring to remind me of home. I have my computer with pictures, my IPod and a few comfy t-shirts but think I'll bring a coffee mug that I love and a show shoe sign. Really, I can't bring my piano (it's not the Chilkoot Trail, after all!) or my family or my friends and it doesn't make 

sense to bring my favourite Icelandic sweater so I'll have to get creative. I managed to be just under 50lbs and so I figure I can squeeze one more David Sedaris book or a box of Tin Roof Icecream....

While my parents were here I showed them my motorcycle helmet - which I think worries them to no end. I really need to stop joking about falling off and breaking my jaw. My mom tried on the helmet and I've told her that when they come to visit she can wear it, herself. We had a great dinner. I am trying to convince them to come for a visit and even got them the Lonely Planet East Africa to help them plan their trip. (There is a standing invitation to any of you out there to come for a visit!)

School ended yesterday and I said my good byes to colleagues that I won't see now for what seems like an eternity. It was sad and exciting all at the same time. Suzanne left a nice letter for me and that did the tear ducts working - although I managed to compose myself and no tears actually left my eyes! It was a beautiful day but I had things to do! Aimey and ran a few errands and then we got ready for a swim but I forgot my goggles and cap and so was limited to using a flutter board. It wasn't exactly what I had in mind. 

Now, I will focus my energies for the next 6 days on getting everything ready for Peru and try to get in some relaxation and a visit to the Stampede. Let's see how that works.