Mariposa , Parade, Bazaar, Pow Wow, Parade - Busy!!!

After a busy week that included a Pakistani inspired buffet at Fine Thymes Restaurant with Pam the beekeeper, two movies, "West is West" http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/west_is_west/ at the Norwood Theatre in Bracebridge and "Buck" http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/buck/ at the Gravenhurst Opera House. A talk to Probus http://www.gravenhurst-probus.ca/media/Probus_Newsletter-November_2011.pdf  Dianne Harrop for dinner. Dinner at Montana's followed by the Barrie Colts v the Sudbury Wolves

and a little bit of snow!

Another fabulous full weekend started on a somewhat sombre note with a trip to Orillia Hospital to visit our good friend John Christensen. John was admitted to hospital during the week and our Friday visit seemed to raise his spirits and we both left feeling happier from the entertaining visit. I couldn't help thinking Orillia Hospital and Bracebridge Hospital (where Julie went with her damaged wrist) may have easily been Moruya or Bega Hospitals - just another similarity...

Mariposa Folk Festival was going to be one of our summer destinations however Julie was unable to attend due to having to return home but once you are on an email list you keep getting updates. One of those updates was promoting an "Echoes of Mariposa" concert. Visiting John gave us the reason to be in Orillia so we bought tickets and also bought, at a "concert goers only" reduced price, dinner at the nearby Aladdin Indian Cuisine Banquet Hall http://www.aladdinbanquet.com/resturant/index.html Food was interesting, entertaining and very good.

Great concert in the next door Banquet Hall. Three performers, all good!!!!  If you have the opportunity to see Irish Mythen http://www.irishmythen.com/ , David Myles http://davidmyles.com/ and Kirsten Scholte http://kirstenscholtethefancys.weebly.com/ do it!     Aurily exhilerating night. 

A novelty on Saturday. We were busy!!!!

Stunning omelet for breakfast before walking to the Trinity Uniting Church for the Christmas Bake Sale. We had been warned to "get there early" as the good baking goes quickly and although we were not the first, we were able to buy quite a lot of really nice sweet and not so sweet delights, ready for Christmas, including perogies.

After we had bought a large shopping bag full of these delights we headed outside to watch the 58th Annual Gravenhurst Santa Clause Parade. Lots of floats, plenty of  music, lots of Julie's schoolkids, lots of lollies (i.e. sweets or candies for non Aussies), stacks of fun and they even got the Segwun out of the water.

And you thought it was bigger!!!!!!!! 

With the last floats passing we directed our attention back to the Trinity Uniting and to their Christmas Bake Sale luncheon. Nice food and it was interesting just how many people came up and spoke to both Julie and I. Gravenhurst has been a welcoming town!!!

As we left town we stopped at the TD Bank to ensure that we had enough fun tickets for the weekend and I couldn't help noticing just how important Gravenhurst is! 

The big bloke in the red suit comes here early!!!!!

Now into the CuRVy on with Mrs Garmin and down Yonge Street to Toronto and to the Canadian Aboriginal Festival at Exhibition Place. Mrs G (and Mrs F) have become very good at finding their way which has made travel a much less stressful endeavour for all the travellers in the CuRVy, notably the navigator.

Parking in a disabled space made it a little easier for us to get into the building and when we did the spectacle was as we had hoped http://www.canab.com/index.html . Considerable hunger was sated by the Moose Burger along with the Three Sisters soup. A very tasty alternative meal!

After a walk around the exhibits we found a seat just behind the drum of the Bear Claw clan. Being right in the middle of the spectacle gave us an amazing opportunity to appreciate some of the feeling that goes into an event like this.

After a couple of hours of enjoying the drumming, singing and dancing we decided to head to our home for the night. We'd enjoyed the hospitality and company of former exchange teacher Cheryl earlier the year and we were happy to settle down in her apartment on the interestingly named Avenue Road at around 10pm. Another long, varied and satisfying day!

Stumbled out of bed around 7.30 the next morning. A sleep in!! Maybe something to do with the amount we're doing or was it the colour of the walls. Hmmmmm. Whatever the reason the extra sleep was good 

Destination for the day was the Toronto Santa Claus Parade http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto_Santa_Claus_Parade .  We had been warned to get into Toronto early and not to drive in and hope to park, so we took Cheryl's advice and caught a bus from just around the corner from her house. Unfortunately the bus didn't arrive on time but the extra 30 minutes we waited gave us the opportunity to talk with a friendly University of Toronto student who was on his way to badminton pactice. Conversation was a good way to make the time fly. And the leaf raker couldn't help noticing that they have leaves in the city tooo!!

TTC http://www3.ttc.ca/  dutifully deposited us about 50 metres from the Santa Clause Parade route and we set up our chairs next to the gutter (between a rubbish bin and a light post) on Bloor Street just down from the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) and over the road from the University of Toronto stadium. We were amongst the earliest to stake our claim and were lucky that McDonald's (who are a sponsor) were regularly bringing free coffee. Crowds built during the 2 hours we waited for the first of the real activity but for the most part the feeling was good.

Toronto's Parade  was very good but seemed to be somwhat overwhelmed by a theme of advertising movies that were being launched for Christmas. http://www.thesantaclausparade.ca/about_the_parade/story_of_the_parade/  However the people watching especially the kids and these Aussies enjoyed the entertainment, including those parts of the parade that didn't quite go to the script (see  photograph).

 

Cheryl's suggestion of taking the bus paid off when we were able to quickly get a bus following the end of the parade. The #5 took us back to the CuRVy and with Mrs G's assistance got us safely out of Toronto and back to Gravenhurst along Yonge St (highway 11).

Another memorable week came to a close. We're going to miss Canada!!!

Royal Agricultural Fair / Hockey Legends

Although Gravenhurst's only two hours from Toronto we've rarely been there in the ten months we've been in Canada. Not really sure why we haven't been to Ontario's Capital and canada's largest city. There are some reasons. The traffic and general congestion meant that I wasn't going to drive there while Julie was back in Australia and since her return we've been very busy seeing lots and lots of other places.

However a couple of months ago we saw the opportunity to get tickets to the Hockey Hall of Fame Legends Game at the Air Canada Centre. With affordable Maple Leaf tickets almost impossible to get this was an opportunity to see a good, fun game of hockey in a good arena. And besides, who would really want to see the Leafs play - LET'S GO OILERS, LETS GO!!!!!

Early start with a tasty (chef Julie) omelet for breakfast. Quickly finished packing. Into the CuRVy, a stop for McDonald's coffee and muffin to keep caffein levels at the optimum level and the hunger pangs away. Although we could use drive through we generally stop because it normally quicker and it's nicer to talk to a human than a box on a wall. I often wonder why people sit in their car in a long line up at Maccas or Timmy's but in the end it's their choice...... And people in Canada do love their coffee. I was interested in the cargo on the truck parked near us!! Not long until Santa comes - I better be good.

Enough of contemplation, get on with the story!!!!

First address into Mrs Garmin was 165 Wellington W, Barrie, ON L4N 1L7. Now who or what was at that address in Barrie you may ask? None other than my favourite clothing emporium.........Value Village!!! http://www.valuevillage.com/Shopping.aspx . I never cease to be amazed how easy and cheap it is for me to be reasonably well dressed. Although I must admit there are things that I find a little more important than clothes.


Attractive alternate apparel safely stowed, back into the CuRVy, update Mrs Garmin's address and off to 200 Princes' Boulevard Toronto. This is the home of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair http://royalfair.org/MediaTradeCompetitors . Similar in some ways to The Easter Show in Sydney, the Melbourne Spring Show or even the Eurobodalla Show except that it's all indoors. Looked at lots of lovely big cows and big pumpkins, some nice honey and bought some interesting smallgoods including kangaroo salami.

And... there was a bar where we could eat our bison burger and a roast buffalo roll! And to make better it was run by a friend's son. And Canadians do make great beer !!!!!!!!!!!  

Agricultural fix sated it was back into the CuRVy and 33 Gerard St into Mrs Garmin and onto the evening's accommodation - the Delta Chelsea. Nice enough place but not quite what was promised on Hotels.com. Oh well as ever it's a learning experience. We did kick a goal with the Korean dinner just around the corner on Younge Street which was a super satisifying  way to finish another superb day.

Nightime noise made the night less than restful but after a night a 460 Sarah St anywhere would be noisy so perhaps my concerns were a little trivial. One thing that was excellent at the Delta Chelsea was the pool and gymnasium. Unfortunately the first few laps of the pool showed me that swimming needs to be back on the agenda when I return to Narooma and a 20 minute walk on the treadmill reminded me that I need to concentrate on my gait a little more. Oh well even Thorpey is struggling to get back into form.....

Breakfast wasn't included in the hotel deal but with the amount we'd cooked and eaten on the hibachi the previous evening we were unlikely to starve. A cup of coffee before we checked out and a short walk to a Udon Noodle restaurant for brunch before heading to the Air Canada Centre for the Hockey Hall of Fame Legends Game.

Now the game was hardly a serious affair with the Referee and Linesmen not only adjucating the game but doing the commentary. And if you are keen students of the game you may notice that there are a just a few too many people on the ice and some of them are quite small. Yes, a Tim Hortons Timbits team came onto the ice at one stage. Fun was the name of the game but was a chance to see some of the greatest players (male and female) of all time showing their amazing talents!  A game played in great spirits http://www.hhoflegendsclassic.com/

Home via Timmy's for soup and chili and a well deserved early night. Life is Good.

Snow for Gravenhurst in time for Rememberance Day.

A normal start to a Gravenhurst week with exercises at  the Gravenhurst Seniors Centre led by the ever happy Kirsten. This is a group that only has a few similarities to the group I train with in Narooma but those similarities are the most important ones. Both groups are really training/ exercising to have fun and both groups are full of really nice people. As for the instructors both Jaimey and Kirsten are blond, both are fit, both know and enjoy what they do, but Kirsten is much more pleasing to my eye. Never mind they're both helping me.

A phone call from Julie just after lunch confirmed her thought that she wasn't 100% and the CuRVy became a taxi to bring her home and I became nurse for a person with a migraine. Julie is very rarely unwell, although when she does get a rare migraine they are very debilitating. I have always been pretty lucky with health, except for having Multiple Sclerosis, and most of my ailments have been minor ones so I feel for her when she's unwell.

An enforced day away from the flurry of activity that sums up a Julie Frost classroom of 20 seven and eight year olds did give the opportunity for Julie to have a well earned rest. Although I'm sure that rest would have been appreciated much more if the migraine wasn't there. 

Tuesday saw me up to the Sander Motors to get our winter tyres fitted in preparation for the season that is knocking on our door. Unfortunately a nail in the sidewall of one of the winter tyres meant buying a replacement but as Gravenhurst is in an  area that can get a lot of snow. this meant an hour job took about three, oh well I'm not under any huge amount of stress midweek. Back home to the improving Julie who was now out of bed which was a bonus.

Much of my recent days have been spent preparing a speech I am due to give to Gravenhurst Probus next week. Although I have spoken to Probus Groups in Australia and I/we've spoken to Gravenhurst Rotary, Lions, the Muskoka and the Parry Sound Beekeepers and given a Gravenhurst Library Travelogue this talk was going to be both longer (45 minutes) and would have a larger audience than I've spoken to in Canada. Oh well I'm basically talking about myself at least I should know the subject. Today I had a meeting with their technical advisor who is helping me with the powerpoint that I'll use.

Snow on Thursday night justified our change of tyres and although it wasn't able to be  called a "dump" of snow or a blizzard it did make 460 Sarah Street look pretty and brought a new look to the Cadel of the Classroom. Maybe she needs snow tyres!!!!!  

 

Rememberance Day in Canada is acknowledged with as much reverence as ANZAC day is in Australia. Muskoka-Beechgrove School's moving service was run by the year Seven and Eight students. Hank and Barb Smith took me to the very well attended service at the Canadian Legion.

Home and a bit of warmth were accepted with some happiness. From now on I must remember winter boots and toque (beanie) if I'm going to be outside for any length of time. 460 Sarah's central heating was certainly put to use on my return. Julie arrived at around 4pm and we took advantage of a 2 for 1 offer at the Blue Willow Cafe down at the wharf where we enjoyed nice coffee and blueberry pie. 

Julie dropped me at home while she went shopping for some new winter clothes. Although my dress sense is legendary it was probably the better option besides it gave me time to get some food into the Crock Pot for it's final simmering phase. This simmering continued while we entertained Leslie and Peter who called in for a quiet little drink and an entertaining chat. 

After dinner we packed for a trip to Toronto for the Winter Fair and the Hockey Hall of Fame legends game. Life is busy!!!!

Julie on the Bruce. Louise Mumme in town

Again a full weekend as were the 2 subsequent ones and if your mathematics and memory are good you will have deduced that I am a bit behind with the Blog. Oh well as Frank Davey would say we're all getting the same pay...


Julie had been told about an annual walk along the very attractively named Bruce Trail.  She'd been told that as the accommodation was full for the weekend she was not going to be able to attend.


Never mind I'd been in contact with Louise Mumme for some time and had received an email from her saying that she'd love to come up to Gravenhurst and stay with us and bring her boyfriend Matt for a few nights. Louise is the daughter of Narooma friends Stretch and ROK (Neil and Rhonda). We knew she was living in Toronto and we were looking forward to showing her around our area.


All was going well with our planning for the event until Julie got a phone call to say that some people had withdrawn from the Bruce (what a great name) Trail walk and there was room for her if she thought she'd be fit and ready. Fit and ready are words that fit easily into the Julie Frost vocabulary so it was pack, prepare and pffffffffffffffffft.... she was out the door and up the track.


As I wasn't on the trail I'll leave it to Julie to tell the story.

Diane and Elaine arrived at 5.10pm and we were soon away through drizzling rain until Thornbury. Had a Mr Sub http://www.mrsub.ca/default.asp?contentID=3 and arrived at the cabin (which was actually a luxury house) at 9pm. Met Barb, Nancy and Lee and we looked at their photos of previous Spring and Fall hikes - fairly hard core weather and terrain so I hope my clothing can stand up to it. Bed at 11.30pm downstairs on a soft lounge near the gas fireplace.

Saturday 22/10/11 - the Bruce Trail http://brucetrail.org/ 22km.

Woke at 6.30am overcast but dry. Breakfast and dress (appropriately with advice) and left when the extra 3 girls arrived. So now we have Elaine, Barb, Dianne, Nancy, Paula, Lee then Eve, Lisa and Shelley. Diane chose not to walk as she was not feeling well (recovering from flu symptoms all week).

We left at 8.15am after a group shot at the cottage. Cars were parked at the end and at the half way point (in case) and we were underway. It was a great trail, the escarpement was pretty amazing (and high) and we walked across its top. Another highlight were the crevasses created by the moss covered rock, some deep enough to be higher than us. We also crossed over two lovely cascading streams. The weather had remained dry and increasingly bright and sunny throughout the day.

Next was a pretty boggy section and towards the end, at around 4.30pm, we came across a water covered road which was a challenge - so my runners were now muddy AND wet! 


Back to the cars by 5.15pm, a photo and back to the cabin/ luxurious home at 6.30pm.

A well earned shower and into some great nibblies, then soup, then chili and salad, then Mississippi Mud Cake, mmmm..........all good. So were the conversations!Sounds like Inglis Falls, Jones Falls, Indian Falls are all worthy to see, we'll see... Bed by 10.30pm. A great day!

Woke to a clear , cloudless sky after a hot, stuffy night so I was keen to get fresh air. I walked down to the dock and along the shoreline over river stones, past each house, dock, bbq's, muskoka chairs, water toys etc.. Water was glassy and cold!!! Breakfast with the girls then everyone cleaned up and said their goodbyes.

Diane was feeling better so Barb said she'd show us Inglis falls which were amazing, plenty of water after a week of rain!!! We drove to Indian Falls, a salmon ladder where we sadly saw 3 dead salmon, then Jones Falls. All were beautiful with features of twisted tree roots and leafy trails ( most of them link up to the Bruce Trail which I'm still finding very confusing)!

We ate a shared lunch of our left over appetisers at the back of the car in the car park at Indian Falls.We were on our way back home at 2pm, with a brief stop at Tim Horton's on Highway 26  where I bought a Boston Cream (on Diane's recommendation) - a choc iced donut filled with custard. That got me home to Bruce at 5.15pm.

For those stop at homes (me), Matt and Louise arrived with samples from Matt's parent's restaurant. http://churrascovilla.com/ There was enough food for 10, but was the food any good? Good wasn't the word to describe it - it was stunning, scrumptious and superb. Their Piri Piri sauce had an amazing flavour, and we were only eating the mild.

The Restaurant's name Churrasco Villa, 254 Eglinton Ave Toronto. We'll be back!!!! Watched the CFL on TSN and learned a bit more about what Louise is doing in T/O and what Matt does for a job ( a producer of Television Sport).

Next morning was a latish one for Matt & Louise and after a leisurely start we headed to Grace & Speed and then around the loop through Bala where we stopped at Johnston's Cranberry Marsh where Louise tried and bought Cranberry Wine. The weather would have been best described as  inclement with cold & showers that made looking at the cranberry harvesting difficult for some and impossible for me.

Port Carling was the next stop for a late lunch. Unlike the recent times when I had been through Port Carling the winter had taken its toll with many of the shops closed. Had a nice lunch at a Crepery (I think that's what it was called). Next stop was Bracebridge where I enjoyed a nice cup of coffee while Matt and Louise wandered along the shops on Manitoba Street.

Home by 6pm and then to Boston Pizza for a night of Hockey a few beers and some good food. A full day finished at home watching "our Edmonton Oilers" in action....

Another slowish start with a bit more of a look around Gravenhurst A walk to the lookout over Gravenhurst Bay gave them the opportunity for a look at some of the last of the coloured trees. Autumn in Muskoka gave more colour than an Australian could imagine.




After a cup of coffee and some Gravenhurst Bakery Chelsea Bun Matt and Louise left for the trip back to Toronto. It was nice meeting Matt for the first time and seeing Louise again.

Julie arrived home in time for a relaxed coffee with stories of hiking, mud, creeks, crevasses and bear scarred trees (see above) and due to Matt's generosity Ribs and Chicken with Piri Piri Sauce. A fitting finale for another fabulous weekend. 

Dinner, Peterborough, Drive, Concert, Walk

Another weekend has come to an end and we still only seem to be scratching the surface. Many are aware that Canada is a big country but maybe they aren't aware just how huge it is. Even our Province of Ontario is huge!

Size: Ontario is Canada's second largest province, covering more than one million square kilometres (415,000 square miles) - an area larger than France and Spain combined. Our Australian state, New South Wales is 800,642 square kilometres.

Land: 894,639 sq. km (344,092 sq. mi.)

Water: 177,398 sq. km (68,490 sq. mi.), which is home to 250,000 lakes, which make up about one-third of the world's fresh water.

North/South Distance: 1,730 kilometres (1,075 mi.)

East/West Distance: 1,680 km (1,050 mi.) 

And Ontario isn't even the largest Province in Canada!!! We have been doing the same as we did in 2007 and highlighting our journeys on the CAA (Canadian Automobile Association) maps and after travelling on most of the available weekends we still seemed to have covered very little of the Province. Time to take action, the clock is ticking!!!! 

Thursday night we had an entertaining early start to the weekend when my exercise instructor Kirsten & and her husband Per came for dinner. To say that Kirsten (a blond Dane) is different from my instructor at Narooma is a monumental understatement but they are both fun and both help keep me moving. The night was as much fun as the Monday and Thursday morning classes are.

An early arrival from school by Julie saw us on our way to Peterborough by 4pm. Peterborough was another place we'd been going to see for many months.... As we had a spare day on Saturday we headed off on a beautiful cloudless evening.

We arrived after a brief stop to purchase some health elixirs from the LCBO - Liquor Control Board of Ontario - http://www.lcbo.com/main/en.shtml?promo=09 we arrived at the Peterborough Inn and Suites http://www.peterboroughinn.com/ . To say this was a comfortable and suitable place is an understatement, walking distance from a great selection of really interesting restuarants and this hotel had the type of comfort that suits this discerning traveller.................

The trip had left us tired (evidence above!!!), thirsty and hungry. The comment of "suck it up princess solved the first problem, a quiet little drink the second and a visit to Hot Bell Mama's http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g155008-d785455-Reviews-Hot_Belly_Mama_s-Peterborough_Ontario.html the third and final problem. Great atmosphere and food. Good night was had by all!!!!!

After a relaxed start we made our way to breakfast and realised whatt someof the noise was last night. Peterborough is the home of Trent University asnd there was a Rugby competirion over the weekend. Good to hear that rugger buggers in Canada seem to know how to play the all important after match game!

 A generous breakfast dispensed with, it was off for a quick look at another delightful Canadian town. Peterborough is on the Otonabee River and in addition to the river the Trent Canal passes through the town. Again wherever we seem to be in Ontario we seem to be surrounded by water. This is something we'll certainly miss in Australia.

All that water meant that the First Nations people and the early explorers were able to travel vast distances by utilising one of Canada's greatest inventions. The Canoe!! 

So with that in mind we headed to the Canadian Canoe Museum. http://www.canoemuseum.ca/ 

So what did we see there -

Canoes!!!!!!!!

It's amazing how much of Canada's and indeed North America's history is based around the canoe and the voyages of the intrepid explorers, the voyageurs and most importantly the original inhabitants.

Canoes have been used by people of all types and one of the most fascinating exhibitions to me was the one detailing the love of the canoe by former Canadian Prime Minister Joseph Phileppe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau. This may have led to the quote "What sets a canoeing expedition apart is that it purifies you more rapidly and inescapably than any other. Travel a thousand miles by train and you are a brute; pedal five hundred on a bicycle and you remain basically a bourgeois; paddle a hundred in a canoe and you're already a child of nature." 

Another famous structure in Peterborough is the Peterborough Lift Lock which is on the Trent Severn Waterway http://www.trentsevern.com/newsite/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=160&Itemid=156 
This canal and lake system was originally used as a commercial transport link connecting Lake Ontario with Georgian Bay on Lake Huron. The Lift Lock is an amazing engineering feat in itself. These days the canal is very much for summertime boating of all descriptions.

After our all too brief stay we left Peterborough and headed north into the Kawartha's and toward home on a pretty drive via Buckhorn, Burleigh and fenelon Falls, Bobcaygeon and Minden. Our time at home was also a blink as we ate had a drink and headed to Grace and Speed (the museum) for a concert of pleasant music by Rick and Judy and their son Jonathon http://www.relativeharmony.com/bios.htm 

Sunday morning saw the Pavlova Production team go into action to prepare a desert to take as a contribution for dinner we were attending after "Julie's Hike for Help". 
http://www.gravenhurstchamber.com/events-calendar/index.php?display=event&id=690&date=2011-Nov-06&returnto=month  

"Julies Hike' was a lovely walk around Hardy Lake. Well it was around for Julie and to for Bruce" but our thoughts were with those who have had to deal with the difficulty of mental illness.

Dinner was at Peter &  Shelley Yungblut's who took part in the well attended walk. Both Peter and Shelley are teachers with Peter being Julie's School Sponsor at Muskoka Beechgrove School. Interesting conversation and a fairly early night which was needed as it was back to Reports after we returned home.