May 11th 2011
A note to say my mother's health has improved enough for me to return as planned this coming Saturday 14th, so I will be back in the office as of Monday 16th. Please email me or leave me a message on my voicemail if you would like to make an appointment. A reminder that my office days are Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday morning.
I will catch up on the travel blog soon - still experiencing some posting problems!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
May 8th 2011
Hallo again – this time from England. Had problems with Blogspot right from the beginning, so now my most obliging web designer is posting for me. Thank you Robert!
The first thing I want to say is that I might be delayed another week before returning –my mother had what amounts to a mini-stroke behind her “good” eye, a few days before we arrived. She has lost much of her vision, so there are hospital and doctor’s appointments, treatment plans (if any are possible) to be followed up - and then there are decisions to be made around whether she can still manage to stay in her own home.
I will continue to update via this blog – and on my voicemail. At the moment, I am still scheduled to return on May 14th.
Well! The cruise was AMAZING – we loved every minute of it, especially the 7 days at sea to begin. It allowed us to rest, find our way around the ship (Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam, just voted the most beautiful ship in the world!) and to begin meeting fellow passengers. I can’t even talk about the food – EVERYONE knows about the food. (I did once text our children that their father had just eaten 4 dinners that night…)
Our first port of call was Funchal, Madeira – we had to be tendered in as there were already 2 other cruise ships in dock, so that was a novel (and easy) experience. The old town was quite lovely – full of tiny streets and interesting buildings. We visited the famous flower market – a delight for the eyes – took a cable car up to the top of the local “mountain” and watched people being transported back down in huge wicker baskets on skis – with 2 men standing on the back of the skis acting as brake men. Rumour had it, it was best to check the amount of rubber left on their shoes before taking a ride. We didn’t go…
Back in the old town again, we found a small restaurant with tables outside in a shady spot – and as Madeira belongs to Portugal, famous for sardines and port, we ordered grilled sardines - and a pint of beer!
More later.
Hallo again – this time from England. Had problems with Blogspot right from the beginning, so now my most obliging web designer is posting for me. Thank you Robert!
The first thing I want to say is that I might be delayed another week before returning –my mother had what amounts to a mini-stroke behind her “good” eye, a few days before we arrived. She has lost much of her vision, so there are hospital and doctor’s appointments, treatment plans (if any are possible) to be followed up - and then there are decisions to be made around whether she can still manage to stay in her own home.
I will continue to update via this blog – and on my voicemail. At the moment, I am still scheduled to return on May 14th.
Well! The cruise was AMAZING – we loved every minute of it, especially the 7 days at sea to begin. It allowed us to rest, find our way around the ship (Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam, just voted the most beautiful ship in the world!) and to begin meeting fellow passengers. I can’t even talk about the food – EVERYONE knows about the food. (I did once text our children that their father had just eaten 4 dinners that night…)
Our first port of call was Funchal, Madeira – we had to be tendered in as there were already 2 other cruise ships in dock, so that was a novel (and easy) experience. The old town was quite lovely – full of tiny streets and interesting buildings. We visited the famous flower market – a delight for the eyes – took a cable car up to the top of the local “mountain” and watched people being transported back down in huge wicker baskets on skis – with 2 men standing on the back of the skis acting as brake men. Rumour had it, it was best to check the amount of rubber left on their shoes before taking a ride. We didn’t go…
Back in the old town again, we found a small restaurant with tables outside in a shady spot – and as Madeira belongs to Portugal, famous for sardines and port, we ordered grilled sardines - and a pint of beer!
More later.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Friday, April 1, 2011
Almost away again!
Well, the suitcases are bulging and there are still 10 pairs of shoes to fit in! Something has to change! I've always labelled myself as the world's most terrible packer - perhaps I could change that to something more positive, something like the world's most prepared for anything packer?
Garry and I leave tomorrow and fly to Fort Lauderdale, ready to embark on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam on Sunday. There's the first glitch - I had planned to wear several layers of clothing between here and Ft Lauderdale, thus saving space in the suitcase - but I see it will be 30 degrees there when we arrive...
We will be at sea for 6 days, and then arrive at Funchal (Madeira) for a day ashore. After that it will be varying amounts of time in Cadiz, Gibraltar, Cartagena, Valencia and then Barcelona, our destination.
After a few days travelling in Spain, we will head to England to stay with my mother (91 last birthday) - and of course, we will be watching The Royal Wedding on April 29th.
Not sure about wifi connections aboard, but will post when I can.
Almost away again!
Well, the suitcases are bulging and there are still 10 pairs of shoes to fit in! Something has to change! I've always labelled myself as the world's most terrible packer - perhaps I could change that to something more positive, something like the world's most prepared for anything packer?
Garry and I leave tomorrow and fly to Fort Lauderdale, ready to embark on Holland America's Nieuw Amsterdam on Sunday. There's the first glitch - I had planned to wear several layers of clothing between here and Ft Lauderdale, thus saving space in the suitcase - but I see it will be 30 degrees there when we arrive...
We will be at sea for 6 days, and then arrive at Funchal (Madeira) for a day ashore. After that it will be varying amounts of time in Cadiz, Gibraltar, Cartagena, Valencia and then Barcelona, our destination.
After a few days travelling in Spain, we will head to England to stay with my mother (91 last birthday) - and of course, we will be watching The Royal Wedding on April 29th.
Not sure about wifi connections aboard, but will post when I can.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
New travels
Hi - I've been absent for a really long time. Those of you following my blog back in early 2008 might remember I had a boating accident in the Cook Islands at the beginning of our family vacation. We (my husband, daughter and 2 grand-daughters) managed to carry on for the next 7 weeks, and overall had a wonderful time visiting family and friends in New Zealand and Australia.
After our return to Vancouver, I was in quite rough shape - I spent much of the following 18 months having several surgeries to mend the various bits and pieces - and the rehab continues even today. I really didn't feel much like writing for a long time.
However, by last Fall I was feeling a lot more mobile, so Garry and I decided to risk a trip - to Italy! Oh Italy! Armed with walking canes, a clever walking stick which converted to an instant seat, and a lot of painkillers and enthusiasm, we set off in mid-September - and had almost a whole glorious month touring Italy.
Starting in Tarquinia, a 12th century medieval hill town near the coast west of Rome, we wandered our way through Rome, Siena, Florence, Lucca and finally Venice. To say I fell in love with Venice would be an understatement. I LOVED Venice!
What miraculously happened along the way, partly due to the warmth and all that happiness, I was able to throw away my walking cane! Everything really worth seeing in Italy, or so it seemed, is either up the top of a very steep hill accessible only by foot - or at the top of 300 steep steps! Muscles strengthened again, and I felt a whole lot better.
We finished our trip with a quick visit to Paris, and then on to England to visit my mother - who turned 90 earlier in the year - returning to Vancouver feeling much refreshed.
More soon - we have another trip planned!
After our return to Vancouver, I was in quite rough shape - I spent much of the following 18 months having several surgeries to mend the various bits and pieces - and the rehab continues even today. I really didn't feel much like writing for a long time.
However, by last Fall I was feeling a lot more mobile, so Garry and I decided to risk a trip - to Italy! Oh Italy! Armed with walking canes, a clever walking stick which converted to an instant seat, and a lot of painkillers and enthusiasm, we set off in mid-September - and had almost a whole glorious month touring Italy.
Starting in Tarquinia, a 12th century medieval hill town near the coast west of Rome, we wandered our way through Rome, Siena, Florence, Lucca and finally Venice. To say I fell in love with Venice would be an understatement. I LOVED Venice!
What miraculously happened along the way, partly due to the warmth and all that happiness, I was able to throw away my walking cane! Everything really worth seeing in Italy, or so it seemed, is either up the top of a very steep hill accessible only by foot - or at the top of 300 steep steps! Muscles strengthened again, and I felt a whole lot better.
We finished our trip with a quick visit to Paris, and then on to England to visit my mother - who turned 90 earlier in the year - returning to Vancouver feeling much refreshed.
More soon - we have another trip planned!
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