I am back!
Buenos Aires was a mixed affair. I reminded myself why I tend to avoid cities, as at first it seemed the same as every other with its ornate plazas, long streets, busy traffic and hoards of people. The thing that distinguishes it from any other place I've visited in my life is the sheer volume of dog sh*t - I practically had to play hop scotch to avoid the brown stuff. Not pleasant! Further to that, our hostel was festered with a bunch of absolute wieners for the first day or so - no one was interested in chatting and just spent their time sitting and gawping at a television - I found it a claustrophobic environment and one that I wanted out of! The two stand-out characters who particularly induced my wrath were a couple of German girls travelling together who just sat and ate cereal all day and were as welcoming as a fart in a space suit (Connolly, 1993). When talking (painfully) to them over breakfast one morning they commented that they hadn't been out much in the evenings as "the places they had been to weren't safe for two European girls". Upon questioning them about which places they were referring to, they said, "Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia". So they weren't referring to individual cities or specific areas, oh no, they insinuated that entire countries were too dangerous for them! Their prejudices and inaccurate judgments irked me and from that point onwards, if I was in a room with them and their backs were turned, I would reel off a variety of rapid, silent and rude hand gestures, which, of course, is the adult thing to do. That taught them!
Now we're in Mendoza, which is a smaller and prettier city than BA in the mid/south of Argentina, famous for its fine red wine production and accompanying vineyards. Yesterday on Xmas eve Cressy and I did paragliding, which was excellent fun! We had to wait a few hours for the right conditions with wind etc ( I had a curry the night before) but once I got up there it was amazing fun!! With about 5 minutes to go during the flight, the pilot asked me if I was adventurous and would like to try some aerial acrobatics. My answer, of course, was, "no, because I am a wimp"! Eventually I relented and we did some steep turns on the way down which completely turned my stomach and made me feel rough, but it was a fantastic experience! However, the highlight of the trip was finding out that Alejandro's assistant, who helps him with preparing the parachute, was in fact a stripper and made more money in one weekend stripping than he does in one month with the paragliding! He also shaves his entire body, and even dropped his trousers to prove he shaves his legs. To be polite, I also dropped my trousers, to show what a proper set of hairy chicken legs should look like.
Now it's Christmas! It certainly does not feel like it as the weather is fantastic and I am in a hostel. I miss my family a lot, more than I thought Ｉ would actually, and am jealous of the fun and festivities they're having. Miss my friends too, all 757 of them!
Today will be a tranquil affair I believe but tomorrow we hit the vineyards and will rent bikes from a man called Hugo. Who wouldn't?
Friday, December 25, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Long-nosed racoons bite!
Let me explain the title. On my final morning at the rescue centre in Florianopolis, I helped with the feeding of the animals again. Despite their innocent appearance the Cuachis (things that look like a cross between a racoon and an anteater) are little b%stards!! I was placing food around their shelter for them to find & eat later, and then one of them jumped on my arms and scratched and gave me a little bite! Immediately I was thinking ´do I need to get a rabies jab?´ but all the staff at the centre reassured me all the animals are vaccinated every month and have no contact with any wild animals (apart from illicit jungle parties). So the only thing damaged was my pride! My relationship with the animals wasn´t the same following the incident and I wanted to bite them back. I decided against this in the end.
We´ve been at Iguazu falls for the last 2 days and it is definitely the most spectacular thing I´ve ever seen. The national park around it on the Argentinian side is fantastically arranged & maintained and you´re able to walk on eco-friendly bridges right up to the edge of the falls. In my opinion, it is much better than both Niagra & Angel Falls down to its size, beautiful setting and the ferocity of the water as it cascades. Fortunately, my camera battery died just as we got to the perfect place to capture all this imagery. There was a nice chap at the spot who takes pictures professionally so we gave him our business - less than 5 pounds for the pleasure!
Now we head to Buenos Aires on an 18 hour bus journey. This is no ordinary bus though, oh no! We have fully reclining leather seats, food served to us, drinks served (including wine and whisky), private toilet and movies all the way! All for just 40 quid. I would take that over the plane any day!
We´ve been at Iguazu falls for the last 2 days and it is definitely the most spectacular thing I´ve ever seen. The national park around it on the Argentinian side is fantastically arranged & maintained and you´re able to walk on eco-friendly bridges right up to the edge of the falls. In my opinion, it is much better than both Niagra & Angel Falls down to its size, beautiful setting and the ferocity of the water as it cascades. Fortunately, my camera battery died just as we got to the perfect place to capture all this imagery. There was a nice chap at the spot who takes pictures professionally so we gave him our business - less than 5 pounds for the pleasure!
Now we head to Buenos Aires on an 18 hour bus journey. This is no ordinary bus though, oh no! We have fully reclining leather seats, food served to us, drinks served (including wine and whisky), private toilet and movies all the way! All for just 40 quid. I would take that over the plane any day!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Feeding Otters
Florianopolis has been a interesting affair! At first, though our surroundings are beautiful and the weather is great, Cressy and I almost felt like there wasn't a great deal to do and were a little restless. Au contraire Rodney!
Marcelo and Junior (the people who run the wildlife rescue centre) insisted we stayed for longer than 2 days, so we obliged and ended up being here for 5. Well, we didn't want to be rude!
Today is a perfect example of why we now think it is great here！I got up at about 7:45 a.m. to help Edu, a lovely guy who works here, prepare the food for the animals and then actually go into their enclosures and give it to them. This was interesting on two accounts - firstly, some of them are officially mental and secondly I don't actually know what type of animal they are! The ones we first visited seem to be a cross between a raccoon and an anteater, but either way, they were very grateful for the food and I was grateful to come away with my eyes in tact (but 3 limbs missing). In total, it took about 1 hour and a half to feed all the animals, including some otters, which, incidentally are hilarious! They huff like dogs and quarrel with each other, but most of all love eating fish.
Following this, the corned beef and I 'chilled out' on the beach (which is amazing and only 10 mins walk from here) for a couple of hours and then gorged ourselves at the vegetarian buffet restaurant which is next to the path that leads down to the beach. For a kilo of food I paid just over £3. I didn't have my own set of scales by the way, a common thing here is for a restaurant to advertise a price of food per 100g and then charge accordingly.
Later in the afternoon, Edu offered to take us on a 10k hike into the forest to a spot that had a gorgeous waterfall and a natural pool for us to swim in. So we did just that - we hiked into the forest and we swam in a secluded natural pool deep into the forest. I had to wrestle a few poisonous snakes and spiders but that's all in a day's work.
The word 'cerveja' ( Brazilian for beer) was used approximately 45,000 times on the walk back and we fully deserved the ice cold beauties that awaited us upon our return. Except for the joker 'only 1/3 full' can that managed to find its way into our 12 - the supermarket will be hearing from my lawyer.
So all in all it was a fantastic day - my favourite so far! But what was the best thing of all? Cressy actually wore a pair of shorts that showed more than her ankles!
Therefore, Florianopolis has been great for all of the reasons above. There are actually some poisonous snakes and spiders around the place, but as long as you make an effort to speak Portuguese they're usually quite friendly.
Tomorrow we head for Foz Iguassu (Iguassu Falls) by bus with slightly heavy hearts but looking forward to everything that awaits.
Marcelo and Junior (the people who run the wildlife rescue centre) insisted we stayed for longer than 2 days, so we obliged and ended up being here for 5. Well, we didn't want to be rude!
Today is a perfect example of why we now think it is great here！I got up at about 7:45 a.m. to help Edu, a lovely guy who works here, prepare the food for the animals and then actually go into their enclosures and give it to them. This was interesting on two accounts - firstly, some of them are officially mental and secondly I don't actually know what type of animal they are! The ones we first visited seem to be a cross between a raccoon and an anteater, but either way, they were very grateful for the food and I was grateful to come away with my eyes in tact (but 3 limbs missing). In total, it took about 1 hour and a half to feed all the animals, including some otters, which, incidentally are hilarious! They huff like dogs and quarrel with each other, but most of all love eating fish.
Following this, the corned beef and I 'chilled out' on the beach (which is amazing and only 10 mins walk from here) for a couple of hours and then gorged ourselves at the vegetarian buffet restaurant which is next to the path that leads down to the beach. For a kilo of food I paid just over £3. I didn't have my own set of scales by the way, a common thing here is for a restaurant to advertise a price of food per 100g and then charge accordingly.
Later in the afternoon, Edu offered to take us on a 10k hike into the forest to a spot that had a gorgeous waterfall and a natural pool for us to swim in. So we did just that - we hiked into the forest and we swam in a secluded natural pool deep into the forest. I had to wrestle a few poisonous snakes and spiders but that's all in a day's work.
The word 'cerveja' ( Brazilian for beer) was used approximately 45,000 times on the walk back and we fully deserved the ice cold beauties that awaited us upon our return. Except for the joker 'only 1/3 full' can that managed to find its way into our 12 - the supermarket will be hearing from my lawyer.
So all in all it was a fantastic day - my favourite so far! But what was the best thing of all? Cressy actually wore a pair of shorts that showed more than her ankles!
Therefore, Florianopolis has been great for all of the reasons above. There are actually some poisonous snakes and spiders around the place, but as long as you make an effort to speak Portuguese they're usually quite friendly.
Tomorrow we head for Foz Iguassu (Iguassu Falls) by bus with slightly heavy hearts but looking forward to everything that awaits.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Florianopolis
Here we go again.
I have some interesting items to discuss!
Firstly, the integrity of my blog. I am frank and honest with it, as it is a true reflection of what I am like and it acts as a diary for my thoughts. However, there may come a time when people who read my blog may be offended by some things I write. I did consider this and despite protestations from the missus, I wont (there are some characters missing from this keyboard like the apostrophe and question mark so just bear with the erroneous grammar please) be editing it to keep the peace. I never have done and never will! The situation arose because I found one person in our hostel in Salvador annoying, as explained in my previous post. Cressy pointed out that there is a good chance she will read it, and may be offended. Whilst I agree with this, I decided it wont change my tack. Im sticking with it! This is, after all, for the benefit of myself, loved ones and friends!
Secondly, I can~t remember. Oh yes, maybe I can! I watched the internet movie Zeitgeist last night, and, oh my god, found it incredibly scary. It completely confirmed what I have suspected all along! The world is run by a bunch of evil b*stards who keep rich people rich and poor people poor. There are some fascinating highlights like proof that Christianity is a hoax that has been copied from previous ancient religions and Pearl Harbour was completey anticipated, expected and that it was used as an excuse to enter the war, so that the US economy could boom from the production of arms. There is compelling evidence that September 11th(and the London bombings) were planned by the secret services to brainwash the public into supporting the 'war on terror'. Almost makes me think,'why do we bother', but then I think the world will become a better place when everybody just focuses on helping each other and forgets making rich people richer. Power to the people!
To head in a different direction altogether, what does 'urbane bons mots' mean..I will be researching that. I love learning new words.
Cressy and I are in Florianopolis now at a beautiful wildlife rescue centre. So far we have been very warmly welcomed by Marcelo (who looks a little bit like Frodo's father from Lord Of The Rings) and Junior (who looks like Billy Bob Thornton - no doubt). Very nice people who are very hospitable, warm, welcoming and humourous. The centre is fantastic too and I look forward to finding all the information about it. I find it inspiring to meet people who dedicate their lives to helping people or animals. That is the course for me!
Right..will attempt to upload some photos now. There's not many as Salvador was a bit too dodgy to flash the old camera.
Keep it real homies and stick it to the man!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Big breakfasts and beaches
The good news is me and the missus are friends!Ｉlike the fact we can be p*ssed off with each other for a couple of hours but then chat about it like adults. Of course I am always right though!
The breakfast at the hostel is amazing!! Warm bread rolls with cheese, cucumber and tomato is standard fare (a fried egg was a welcome surprise addition today), normally to be washed down with fresh mango juice. My tactic is to fill up on that, burn it off for a couple of hours, then do very little during the time of day that only mad dogs and Englishmen venture out in. Evenings are usually spent having a laugh at the hostel with the other travellers. Note, we are travellers, man.
Last night was good fun - we went out with a nice couple from the hostel from Australia to watch some samba parties. He's originally from Israel but has lived in USA, Oz and is moving to UK. Truth be told she seems a little bit mental and controlling, but nobody's perfect hey! Typical ex-school teachers!!
This arvo we're going to the beach and then this evening, who knows!
The breakfast at the hostel is amazing!! Warm bread rolls with cheese, cucumber and tomato is standard fare (a fried egg was a welcome surprise addition today), normally to be washed down with fresh mango juice. My tactic is to fill up on that, burn it off for a couple of hours, then do very little during the time of day that only mad dogs and Englishmen venture out in. Evenings are usually spent having a laugh at the hostel with the other travellers. Note, we are travellers, man.
Last night was good fun - we went out with a nice couple from the hostel from Australia to watch some samba parties. He's originally from Israel but has lived in USA, Oz and is moving to UK. Truth be told she seems a little bit mental and controlling, but nobody's perfect hey! Typical ex-school teachers!!
This arvo we're going to the beach and then this evening, who knows!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Angry blog!
There was a wicked street party we went to in Salvador today. The sun was blazing, the beer was flowing and the street food was excellent. Then some b*stard decided to stick his hand in my pocket to try to take my money - luckily I noticed him doing it immediately and pushed his hand away. At this point I felt like I wanted to knock the cheeky b*stards' teeth out, but that was never going to happen.
He hung around in the same area for a while and I was looking at him, probably transmitting the message that I would like to disembowel him (in a nice way). He then walked over and said something in an aggressive way, and I felt on edge from that point onwards. Fortunately he carried on walking, but the fun was over for me.
I considered telling the police to have him apprehended, but decided it was going to be more hassle than it was worth, as he was in a group of blokes who looked pretty shady.
At this point, as I was worked up and still on edge, a sympathetic and understanding ear is what was I wanted and it didn't feel like that's what Ｉwas getting. Essentially, it felt like the missus was saying, "the police wouldn't be interested as he didn't take anything" and just generally that they wouldn't be interested because they don't care about stuff like that. I tried to make the point that with the Olympic Games and World Cup coming the tourist police were on our side and very keen to stamp that stuff out. Felt like it fell on deaf ears! Like I mentioned, I just wanted a supportive and understanding presence and it did not feel like I was getting that! Therefore, argument number 2 ensued, and continues at this very moment.
On a more positive note, we booked our flight from Salvador to Florianopolis yesterday to visit the wildlife rescue centre (it would have been a 40 hour bus journey and my flat arse can't take that anymore) and also spent a few hours on a gorgeous beach about 40 mins from the centre. White sand, blue skies, warm weather and chilled beer for just over £1 a pop. The evening was spent drinking Caiparinhas (something worth noting - the predicted text offered the suggestion 'Cheesepairings' when I typed in the name of this drink) and having a laugh with some nice people from the hostel. Brazil is great but too expensive so we have decided to bail out a week early, to move on to Argentina.
Tonight there's a free party just around the corner with local bands playing, but I haven't decided if I feel like going yet.
Keep it real and keep your hands on your pockets!
He hung around in the same area for a while and I was looking at him, probably transmitting the message that I would like to disembowel him (in a nice way). He then walked over and said something in an aggressive way, and I felt on edge from that point onwards. Fortunately he carried on walking, but the fun was over for me.
I considered telling the police to have him apprehended, but decided it was going to be more hassle than it was worth, as he was in a group of blokes who looked pretty shady.
At this point, as I was worked up and still on edge, a sympathetic and understanding ear is what was I wanted and it didn't feel like that's what Ｉwas getting. Essentially, it felt like the missus was saying, "the police wouldn't be interested as he didn't take anything" and just generally that they wouldn't be interested because they don't care about stuff like that. I tried to make the point that with the Olympic Games and World Cup coming the tourist police were on our side and very keen to stamp that stuff out. Felt like it fell on deaf ears! Like I mentioned, I just wanted a supportive and understanding presence and it did not feel like I was getting that! Therefore, argument number 2 ensued, and continues at this very moment.
On a more positive note, we booked our flight from Salvador to Florianopolis yesterday to visit the wildlife rescue centre (it would have been a 40 hour bus journey and my flat arse can't take that anymore) and also spent a few hours on a gorgeous beach about 40 mins from the centre. White sand, blue skies, warm weather and chilled beer for just over £1 a pop. The evening was spent drinking Caiparinhas (something worth noting - the predicted text offered the suggestion 'Cheesepairings' when I typed in the name of this drink) and having a laugh with some nice people from the hostel. Brazil is great but too expensive so we have decided to bail out a week early, to move on to Argentina.
Tonight there's a free party just around the corner with local bands playing, but I haven't decided if I feel like going yet.
Keep it real and keep your hands on your pockets!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Salvador - Nous sommes arrivee
I officially have a flat arse now, as our bus journey from Rio to Salvador was 28 hours long. I must have woken up about 25 times and thought, 'are we there yet?'. Now we are!
The good news is I only ate beans and rice 3 times today. Shockingly, it cost me £3 for each dinner, as cooking facilities were at a minimum on the bus. To make up for it, the toilet smelt of p*ss, which was a nice and helped me doze off.
The films were pretty good - one was about Christopher Columbus and his conquering of the West Indies (as they are now). It enraged me slightly as it painted too innocent a picture of him - he was after all a savage who pillaged his way across a continent who greeted him with open arms!
One point I feel I neglected to pay sufficient attention to was how fun it was to hang around with Felipe, the guy who arranges the volunteer programs for Realgap in Rio. As always, it was great to meet with someone who was local to the area and can take us to places off the beaten track. For example, we visited a couple of social projects in the favelas and met some really nice people. It completely cemented my intention to run a charity full-time when I'm older (and richer).
I'd like to pay homage to Bill Bryson. I downloaded one of his books (I'm a Stranger Here Myself) just before we left, partly because I didn't recognise many of the other authors who were available to download to my book reader. And I think I am in literary love with him! He is so funny and sarcastic and entertaining - completely unexpected as I thought he was just a travel writer. I will definitely be buying more of his books and recommend him highly.
Tomorrow we aim to book our flights back to the south of Brazil (it's the same price as getting the bus, but much faster, bizarrely) and then sit on the beach. I don't like to rub it in, but it is over 30 degrees again.
Liverpool drew 0-0 with Blackburn I see. Can someone please inform me when the incompetent, whinging Spaniard gets sacked please? Tell him I threaten to phone Radio 5 again!
The good news is I only ate beans and rice 3 times today. Shockingly, it cost me £3 for each dinner, as cooking facilities were at a minimum on the bus. To make up for it, the toilet smelt of p*ss, which was a nice and helped me doze off.
The films were pretty good - one was about Christopher Columbus and his conquering of the West Indies (as they are now). It enraged me slightly as it painted too innocent a picture of him - he was after all a savage who pillaged his way across a continent who greeted him with open arms!
One point I feel I neglected to pay sufficient attention to was how fun it was to hang around with Felipe, the guy who arranges the volunteer programs for Realgap in Rio. As always, it was great to meet with someone who was local to the area and can take us to places off the beaten track. For example, we visited a couple of social projects in the favelas and met some really nice people. It completely cemented my intention to run a charity full-time when I'm older (and richer).
I'd like to pay homage to Bill Bryson. I downloaded one of his books (I'm a Stranger Here Myself) just before we left, partly because I didn't recognise many of the other authors who were available to download to my book reader. And I think I am in literary love with him! He is so funny and sarcastic and entertaining - completely unexpected as I thought he was just a travel writer. I will definitely be buying more of his books and recommend him highly.
Tomorrow we aim to book our flights back to the south of Brazil (it's the same price as getting the bus, but much faster, bizarrely) and then sit on the beach. I don't like to rub it in, but it is over 30 degrees again.
Liverpool drew 0-0 with Blackburn I see. Can someone please inform me when the incompetent, whinging Spaniard gets sacked please? Tell him I threaten to phone Radio 5 again!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Heeo Ja Janeiro
The reason for the title is that we are now in Rio (it is 35 degrees and sunny, not that I want to rub it in) and in Portuguese it seems you think of the most logical way to pronounce a word, then do the opposite, and he presto! You sound Brazilian!
This will be a quick one as internet is not reliabe and I am sweating my proverbials off.
Plane journey over sucked a*se - I think they picked me the worst seat on the plane due to jealousy over my good looks - it didn't recline so I was sat upright for 10 and a half hours! Was glad to get here in the end.
So, we're here in beautiful Rio. The weather, and people, are gorgeous. Sun, sand and cheap food. It's actually quite expensive here but Cressy and I have been good for a couple of nights now and cooked in the hostel. Tonight's dinner cost a whopping 30p! (Pasta with tomato sauce for anyone that is interested - "bags of flavour!")
We visited a lovely project in the favelas here today called Fight For Peace, with Felipe, the local partner here. He is a real character and great fun - and, he has a beard!!
Tomorrow we head to Salvador, which is the African capital of Brazil. It's where the slaves all landed on the continent and over 80% of the population is black. Loking forward to it!
Right, off for a late night shower and a shave.
Keep it real homies - Tudo Beleza!
This will be a quick one as internet is not reliabe and I am sweating my proverbials off.
Plane journey over sucked a*se - I think they picked me the worst seat on the plane due to jealousy over my good looks - it didn't recline so I was sat upright for 10 and a half hours! Was glad to get here in the end.
So, we're here in beautiful Rio. The weather, and people, are gorgeous. Sun, sand and cheap food. It's actually quite expensive here but Cressy and I have been good for a couple of nights now and cooked in the hostel. Tonight's dinner cost a whopping 30p! (Pasta with tomato sauce for anyone that is interested - "bags of flavour!")
We visited a lovely project in the favelas here today called Fight For Peace, with Felipe, the local partner here. He is a real character and great fun - and, he has a beard!!
Tomorrow we head to Salvador, which is the African capital of Brazil. It's where the slaves all landed on the continent and over 80% of the population is black. Loking forward to it!
Right, off for a late night shower and a shave.
Keep it real homies - Tudo Beleza!
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Leaving Vancouver
The days seem quite short here at the moment, as we get aboot (sic.) 5 hours of sunshine. For anyone reading this in the UK, you'll be pleased to know the weather SUCKS, so I am looking forward to some sun in Rio!
We met Brian for lunch today at one of the restaurants he works in and it was great. It has a spectacular view overlooking the city and is set in pretty surroundings. All his work colleagues were very friendly and funny to talk to and we had good times chatting over dinner, which, incidentally, was delicious! Nice bottle of Canadian Riesling to wash it down with too.
Cressy and I had our first journey on Canadian public transport to head back to the apartment, which was AMAZING. It was a metal tube-shaped object balanced upon wheels which travelled at close to the speed of sound UNDER THE GROUND. What next?
We had our first tiff over selecting a bottle of wine to give to Brian as a thankyou gift. I would have preferred to discuss which colour, what variety, why we're buying it, but it seemed the missus had already made her mind up, which led to a set-to! Going forward, conversation between the two warring factions has been limited but a UN peacekeeper is being flown in to resolve the dispute. Watch this space!
Rio here we come...
We met Brian for lunch today at one of the restaurants he works in and it was great. It has a spectacular view overlooking the city and is set in pretty surroundings. All his work colleagues were very friendly and funny to talk to and we had good times chatting over dinner, which, incidentally, was delicious! Nice bottle of Canadian Riesling to wash it down with too.
Cressy and I had our first journey on Canadian public transport to head back to the apartment, which was AMAZING. It was a metal tube-shaped object balanced upon wheels which travelled at close to the speed of sound UNDER THE GROUND. What next?
We had our first tiff over selecting a bottle of wine to give to Brian as a thankyou gift. I would have preferred to discuss which colour, what variety, why we're buying it, but it seemed the missus had already made her mind up, which led to a set-to! Going forward, conversation between the two warring factions has been limited but a UN peacekeeper is being flown in to resolve the dispute. Watch this space!
Rio here we come...
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Vancouver Day 2
Stanley Park inline skating yeah?! Nope. Autumnal weather put a stop to that.
Mole and I walked a good few miles again, crossing over into southern parts of Vancouver to get some camping gear and buy Brian a gift for being so hospitable. We decided on Howard Zinn's book called 'People's History of America - from 1492 to Present' as Brian and I had discussed it for a wee while and he seemed keen on it. I loved it and got the impression he shared my leftist 'let's stick it to the man' attitude so thought it would be ideal!
The weather absolutely sucked today, so we were just desperate to get in, get warm and have a cup of tea. Of course I am now sitting here typing in my boxers, as my jeans were soaked through and I haven't summoned the energy to put anything else on. Cressy is hardcore and has been asleep on the sofa for approx. 1 h 30 mins, and it's only just after 8 p.m.. I may be adventurous and walk around the corner later to buy some beer, but that is yet to be confirmed.
Tomorrow we're going to meet Brian for lunch at the Queen Elizabeth Park and then who knows what may happen. For a change, I may eat some pizza and drink some beer. Hard life!
Mole and I walked a good few miles again, crossing over into southern parts of Vancouver to get some camping gear and buy Brian a gift for being so hospitable. We decided on Howard Zinn's book called 'People's History of America - from 1492 to Present' as Brian and I had discussed it for a wee while and he seemed keen on it. I loved it and got the impression he shared my leftist 'let's stick it to the man' attitude so thought it would be ideal!
The weather absolutely sucked today, so we were just desperate to get in, get warm and have a cup of tea. Of course I am now sitting here typing in my boxers, as my jeans were soaked through and I haven't summoned the energy to put anything else on. Cressy is hardcore and has been asleep on the sofa for approx. 1 h 30 mins, and it's only just after 8 p.m.. I may be adventurous and walk around the corner later to buy some beer, but that is yet to be confirmed.
Tomorrow we're going to meet Brian for lunch at the Queen Elizabeth Park and then who knows what may happen. For a change, I may eat some pizza and drink some beer. Hard life!
Friday, November 27, 2009
Vancouver
So, not sure how to start this. As it's my blog, do I say hello? Well, anyway, this will suffice.
Me & the missus are in Vancouver! Flight was nice and easy and flew by (excuse the pun). Cressy's friend Brian picked us up from the airport and is putting us up in his flat. What a legend! Really nice guy, funny, friendly and very hospitable. His place is slap bang in the city centre and is really nice. A wicked batchelor pad, complete with frosted screen on the outside wall of the shower, which means we're all getting to know each others' silhouettes!!
First night we were jet(s)lagged so just went for a few beers (14) then went to bed at about 8 p.m. . Brian came in from work at 2 a.m. ish so we stayed up talking and putting the world right for a couple of hours. I think Obama will be on the phone any day now.
Today, on our second day the corned beef (Cressy) and I had our orientation meeting in the city and then followed it with loads of walking, puncuated by regular stops for pizza, falafel, hash browns, tea and coffee. So we're sticking to the 'healthy eating' target religiously so far. We took a trip up the skytower and I coped magnificently with both the glass fronted lift and at the top of it. I even struck up the courage to walk towards the windows and look out.
Vancouver feels like a sober version of California to me - people are down to earth, friendly, have funny accents, say 'aboot' and the men generally have goatee beards, which is of course a sign that they shouldn't be trusted. There are lots of trendy small dogs with jackets on, generally accompanied by owners who also have jackets, incidentally.
Tonight we intend to walk into the city, have a few bevvies and go up the skytower to see the night lights.
Day count: 2.
Argument count: 0
Me being right count: 475,000
Me being excellent with directions: as above.
Tomorrow we plan to hire roller blades, explore Stanley Park and visit the aquarium.
More to follow.
Me & the missus are in Vancouver! Flight was nice and easy and flew by (excuse the pun). Cressy's friend Brian picked us up from the airport and is putting us up in his flat. What a legend! Really nice guy, funny, friendly and very hospitable. His place is slap bang in the city centre and is really nice. A wicked batchelor pad, complete with frosted screen on the outside wall of the shower, which means we're all getting to know each others' silhouettes!!
First night we were jet(s)lagged so just went for a few beers (14) then went to bed at about 8 p.m. . Brian came in from work at 2 a.m. ish so we stayed up talking and putting the world right for a couple of hours. I think Obama will be on the phone any day now.
Today, on our second day the corned beef (Cressy) and I had our orientation meeting in the city and then followed it with loads of walking, puncuated by regular stops for pizza, falafel, hash browns, tea and coffee. So we're sticking to the 'healthy eating' target religiously so far. We took a trip up the skytower and I coped magnificently with both the glass fronted lift and at the top of it. I even struck up the courage to walk towards the windows and look out.
Vancouver feels like a sober version of California to me - people are down to earth, friendly, have funny accents, say 'aboot' and the men generally have goatee beards, which is of course a sign that they shouldn't be trusted. There are lots of trendy small dogs with jackets on, generally accompanied by owners who also have jackets, incidentally.
Tonight we intend to walk into the city, have a few bevvies and go up the skytower to see the night lights.
Day count: 2.
Argument count: 0
Me being right count: 475,000
Me being excellent with directions: as above.
Tomorrow we plan to hire roller blades, explore Stanley Park and visit the aquarium.
More to follow.
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