This is my first post in Canada. I haven't had wireless access until now, about a week after I wrote this. There's so much more to say but I'll leave it at this for now:
Sometimes life is so surreal. Like right now. Here I am sitting on a BC Ferry, right next to the window, with a blue sky, white puffy clouds and mountains wherever I look. Just like in my dreams. Mountains. I’ve blogged before about mountains and I haven’t changed my opinion. They’re still life-giving, whether you are on one or looking at them from the ocean.
I’ve been in Canada almost 2 days. Tris and Sunny picked me up at YVR June 1st at 7 pm, and I’ve stayed at their house until this morning, June 3rd. It’s been a great visit and we’ve been able to get a lot done. Yesterday we spent time with Tris’ sister’s family, including my 3 nieces and 1 nephew. It’s amazing how kids change in two years!! Now I’m heading to the island and I can hardly wait. However, I’ve waited this long and I guess I’ll just have to wait 2 more hours. My baby brother and his family are meeting me on the other side (we arranged this before Mom knew I was coming, so she and Dad are waiting in Campbell River for me).
It’s been a wonderful experience so far, despite the October temperatures (16 degrees? Hello! It’s JUNE) and rain. I’ve already done a lot of what I needed to do and it feels so good to have Canadian I.D. again. I now have a Canadian drivers license again, and my big ol’ van is insured. As much as I love my little Indo suv, there’s something special about that 4-door, 6-cd, 8 passenger, automatic sliding passenger door Chevy venture. What a beast it is; I’m really looking forward to spending our summer in it.
A few observations that I’ve made about Canada so far are:
*Canadians are quite big and hairy. Seriously.
*Canadians are good at making eye contact and smiling. Quite friendly, really.
*Value Village is still a great way to buy clothes. I shopped yesterday and felt like I was in an Indo outlet store. Same kind of prices, and a lot of what I bought was almost new.
*Seagulls are quite striking looking birds
*People here love gumboots and gortex.
*English is a truly beautiful language.
*Workers here wear boots, hats, and if near the water, life jackets. That’s a little different from the ones we see in Indo, wearing flip-flops or bare feet, climbing 3-storey bamboo scaffolding.
Those are just a few things I’ve noticed for now. At this point I’m just going to sit here and enjoy the announcements being made by the ferry staff. Usually they are just irritating and I ignore them, but there’s something wonderful about listening to English. Things have definitely changed though. Right now a safety announcement is being made, and a demo, just like on a plane, is being shown on a tv in the sitting area I’m in.
I’m almost home.
Thanks for reading.
