PART THREE: CALGARY AND KIM

We arrived in Calgary on Friday July 4th and were fortunate to be able to book into Mountain View Campground for four nights as accommodation was at a premium. This was quite a distance out of the city on the east side. Saturday we rode our bicycles into the city along the Trans Canada Highway which proved to be extremely hazardous.

Throughout the time of the Stampede there are lots of demonstrations and shows and the pictures above and below were of a show in Rope Square which is in the town centre. The indigenous people had quite a high profile during the Stampede.

Once in the city we discovered a number of bicycle trails so we were able to explore the city and river as well as ride through the pedestrian mall downtown. Also saw a show at Rope Square which was part of the Stampede celebrations.

We had a leisurely lunch in a pub and it turned out that Kim Scully and her friends Deanna and Charney had been having lunch next door. She saw us as we were leaving and we had a drink with them before parting company. We had a long ride home which was exhausting but good nonetheless. I guess all in all we would have ridden approximately 50km today.

PART TWO; MANITOBA AND SASHCHATEWAN

The photos above show one of our campsites where the mosquitoes were horrendous as well as our GPS showing how straight the road was. The last is of a canola crop on the prairies just after leaving Winnipeg.

Day four took us into Manitoba where we spent a couple of hours at Winnipeg. After leaving Winnipeg the prairies began with acres and acres of canola, wheat and lucerne crops. Almost every Canadian we spoke to said how boring the prairies were but we did not find this to be the case at all.



The photo above is of Wayne and I in front of the giant moose at the info centre at Moose Jaw.

We camped at Moosimin for the night which is just inside the Sashchatewan border. Day five was a huge day as we crossed Saschatewan driving though Regina, Swift Current and then into Alberta. We stopped on the other side of Medicine Hat at a small and very quiet campground just off the highway. Apart from storms that night the weather has been a mixture of clouds and sunshine with relatively cool nights.

PART ONE: LEAVING HOME

We left Woodstock at 10am Sunday June 29th to drive west. Our first day took us north through Orillia, North Bay to Sudbury. This could only be described as cottage country. An accident on the highway forced us to camp at a small campground near Nairn Roadhouse. Day two took us through Sault St Marie, Wawa and White River where we camped at White Lake. It was here that we had our first encounter with black flies and we were still itching over a week later.

Above is a photo of Wayne beside the welcome sign to Blind River, the first school that Ed Weiss taught at.



Day three was a beautiful drive around Lake Superior to Thunder Bay and beyond. It was a steep climb north of the lake and at times you could mistakenly believe you were actually driving along a coastal road. There were dozens and dozens of lakes along the way. For the third night in a row it rained and our tent stood up to it. It has turned out to be an excellent investment. Along the Trans Canada we noticed many motels and businesses had closed down, victims of changing culture where people are time poor but can afford to fly across the country – of course rising fuel prices must also be a factor.

NIAGARA EXCHANGE WEEKEND

The following entry is made by me,Wayne,so it may vary in style to how Chris writes. Has not she done a great job though? Early last year she virtually never touched a computer, now she is a BLOGMASTER!!!!!

Weather over here is lovely now, cool nights and warm days without getting hot. Has got close to 30C a couple of times and we've had the odd day of rain. The yards, parks and countryside look glorious. So many shades of green and peoples' lawns look luxurious. Farming is in full swing with most crops planted, those that aren't usually because rain has prevented tractors getting on the ground.

There may have been a long cold and snowy winter but it is easy to see now what a productive land this is. The soil is rich and fertile and plants seem to leap out of the ground with the Spring sun. Notice the vivid colours in some photos of the tulips, so bright and vivid they seem to be unnatural to our Australian eyes that are more used to muted colours in the countryside.

Our latest adventure was a return trip to Niagara Falls for a get together of some visiting Exchange teachers. There were about 20 of us from 3 Australian states, NZ and England. Cathy Main did a marvellous job of organizing 2 fabulous days for us. Chris and I were kindly billeted by Elaine and Rudy Reimer. They Exchanged to Brisbane in 1996 and maintain close links still with Australia, Exchange teachers here and invite other international travelers into their home as well. You'll notice a photo of them with Chris and I outside their home. Their generosity and "hands across the seas" is the type of graciousness that fosters friendships and global understanding.

During the two days we went up the Skylon tower, saw the Falls unfrozen, and watched a spectacular Imax film. After lunch we had a VERY wet trip on "Maid Of The Mist" to below the Falls. Notice the photo of the blue raincoated passengers pelted with spray and rain. Off then to an instructive wine tasting at Niagara On The Lakes Pelliteri vineyard.

We had dinner together that night and Rudy and Elaine surprised us with something special. We went back to the Falls to see them under lights BUT we actually changed the lights!!!!!!!! Almost a unique experience, we lit up the falls! Check out the photos where Chris worked the light panel, changed the beams and the one of Chris, I, Rudy and Hank in the Floodlight Control Room. It was one of the nicest things anyone has done for us.

Sunday we met again at a lovely park on the escarpment just up from the Falls and had a huge breakfast together. Chris and I then crossed the gorge in a cable car (check the photos) over huge rapids being run by a jet boat. We then walked the Botanic Gardens, followed by an instructive lecture by Kim and a tour of his totem pole park.See some of his work in the photos.

All up for Friday night, Saturday and Sunday we were fed, entertained, adventured, walked, amazed and thrilled for over 25 hours!!!! The Canadians - Cathy, Elaine, Rudy, helpers, hosts - made it a really special time.We and the other Exchange teachers thank them for a great weekend. Niagara Falls is the Number One tourist destination in the world, come and see, you'll agree!!!!!!!

ST MARY'S HIGH SCHOOL

Below is a picture of Theresa, our head Custodian, and Shirley Wilcox, whose two children I teach. Immediately above is Lorraine Thomson, who teaches Religion and shares my workroom. At the top of the page is Katie Edwards, who teaches French and sits next to me.

THE END IS NEAR

Even though there are still 7 weeks to go until we finish, all the signs point to an end to the year. Field trips must finish by the end of the first week in June and preparations are being made for the Final or Culminating projects. These projects are mandatory and are worth 10% in most subjects although in 2 of my subjects, grade 9 Drama and Grade 12 Writer's Craft they are worth 20%. They have to be completed before exams begin.

We have a week of exams and the timeline is pretty tight. My last exam is on a Tuesday and my marking and reports must be done before the Thursday which is actually our last day of school. We also have a Graduation Mass, not too sure of the details yet, and a special Graduation ceremony at night where awards, scholarships and certificates are presented. This is where the parents attend and the staff must be dressed in Academic gowns like the graduates. Their Prom is held 2 weeks earlier and is for students, no parents. I was a bit surprised to discover that there are not enough tickets for every graduate. I thought this was rather sad.

Last night we had tapas for Mike and Laurie Rishworth, Ed Weiss and Rob Henry. We have quite a busy social life as we also went up to Shannon Cox's place at Kitchener to have dinner on Friday night. Everyone at St Mike's are so supportive and friendly. Today is Mother's day, we both slept in and rode down town and took some photographs of the beautiful old buildings of Woodstock. We finished off by having a buffet meal at The Charles Dickens. The weather has turned very bleak and at the moment it is trying hard to rain. Will try to put some photos on before I finish.

GETTING ON WITH LIFE

The last couple of weeks beginning 14-4-08 have been pretty uneventful. The weather has been beautiful, 18c. We have been taking every opportunity to get out and exercise. We have been walking with Mike and Laurie in a conservation area along the Thames River. We hoped to see some deer which frequent the woods, however, we have been unlucky in that respect. We have also ridden the bicycles on the cycleway along the river as well.

We had a PD day on 18-4-08 and Wayne and I were excused. We spent some time on the phone to social services and then drove to London where we were issued an Ontario Health Card. I'm not sure how useful it will be as so many people lament the sorry state of the Health system. It was a very hot day, 25c which has been the hottest to date.

Wayne has also spent some time tidying the deck, mending the pool gate and draining the snowmelt from the pool cover. I swept up the leaves and cleaned the bbq in preparation for the days ahead when we can use it more often.The weather has continued to be kind to us, 18c up to 22c again during the week.


On 24-4-08 I had parent /teacher interviews and spoke to about 20 sets of parents. There were no issues at all, in fact many had come to just say hello and ask how we were enjoying our stay. They were very welcoming and extremely curious and it took a while to actually get around to speaking about their children.

This last week, beginning 29-4-08 the weather has changed again and the temperature has been much cooler. I came down with the flu; headaches, temperatures and aches and pains and spent 3 days in bed. I can't remember the last time I was actually so ill with the flu. As I write this though I am feeling so much better.