Now that we are on the west coast, we get to spend a few days that don’t begin early and end after a 500 km (or more) road trip. We are staying with one of my cousins for a few days whose home is located in a beautifully quiet waterfront community in North Saaniich. We arrived Thursday afternoon but spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening catching up so this is the first opportunity to write some of my thoughts.
Continue Reading →Category: Kelowna
British Columbia Has Mountains
We are nearing the end of our westbound travels and the halfway point to the drive. Some how it seems longer than we remember it. Perhaps it is that we were younger when we last mode this trip, 14 years younger. We have been in Vancouver more recently but travelled by air. There is something special about road trips. We talk to almost everyone, some local and some travellers, like us. We met a man in the hotel elevator this morning whose job is to count mountain sheep. Yes that is a thing.
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Wrap-up entry
This wrap-up post is much later than I had planned it to be. During our trip north up the coast the application I use to minimize use of shipboard internet time became unusable for some reason and I simply postponed composing. Since returning I simply haven’t completed the task, but finally, here it is.
The trip back from San Francisco to Vancouver was two days of smooth sailing. We managed to dance our way back to the music of the Sun Shine Duo whom we got to know a little and learned they will be entertaining us again in December on our Christmas Hawaii cruise. We knew we were home as we passed under the Lions Gate bridge before dawn.
Our approach to finding a musical group on board is to determine which group plays music best for us to dance. The second criteria is the size and nature of the dance floor. A third criteria is how crowded the floor becomes.
On this ship there are four entertainment venues where dancing is possible. The Wheelhouse bar has a small floor typically with solo or duo entertainers. The Explorers lounge has a larger floor where they frequently locate a “party band” of four or five musicians. Club Fusion has the largest dance floor which is only rarely used for dancing, sometimes with a live band and occasionally with a DJ. These three venues have wood floors. More recently dancing has been encouraged in the ship’s Atrium often referred to as the Piazza which has a ceramic floor that is harder on the feet. On this cruise the Sun Shine Duo began performing in the Piazza and later in the Wheelhouse.
The party band and one duo played a variety of music but mostly rock and roll. We are versatile enough to dance to their music but the dance floors became overcrowded and while we enjoy dancing we do not enjoy overcrowded floors or being stepped on. The Sun Shine Duo played electronic violins, and when in the piazza tended to play more of a chamber music style. However, before dinner one evening, while entertaining in the piazza, they played a tango which Gail and I couldn’t resist. After talking with the ladies to thank them for the tango I told them that should they play “Lady in Red” we might be persuaded to dance a bolero. Later in the evening while we were listening to their music they did just that. From that time onward whenever they saw us in their audience they would play tangos or boleros for us. Fortunately for us we were almost the only couple who danced to their music whether in the Piazza or the Wheelhouse.
Toward the end of the cruise as we were sitting in the Wheelhouse enjoying the music and dancing with the Sun Shine Duo there was a gentleman with his four year old daughter. The little girl was literally fixated on the two violinists. Occasionally, she would attempt to get her father to take her onto the dance floor but her efforts ended mostly in excited bouncing around. She also found our dancing of interest and she approached us. When I asked her name she replied: “Charmaine, with a C,” and she formed a “C” with her fingers. I offered to hold her hands and let her dance but she refused until the next evening when she was able to get approval from her Mom, after that she was good to go and here is a video clip to prove it.
The return flight from Kelowna to Hamilton was relatively easy. I had my first flight on a Bombardier Q400. A smaller airplane than the 737 with two seats either side of the isle and I got to sit beside one of the turboprop engines hanging below the high wing. The Rockies were clearly visible and snow covered as we approached Calgary. As we began the second segment of the return there appeared to be a brown haze over the prairie. Otherwise, the flight was uneventful until we approached Hamilton airport and found it shrouded in fog. The pilot tried from the east and had to go around. The second try was from the west with the same result. We then took a leisurely circuit and made a third attempt, this time successful, from the west. Luggage was quickly off the plane but on the drive home I took a route to avoid most of the fog so arrival time at home was about 2 AM. Unfortunately, body was still on Pacific time. Next trip December.
Rockies West of Calgary 
Prairies East of Calgary
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Getting to the ship
Thanks to all who responded to my first post of this trip. A number of you replied to the email several others use the website to add to the post in the comments section. When you use the comments section of each post others who read from the website can also enjoy your comments.
Friday was a rainy day here in Kelowna but nothing like the unpleasant conditions in the Burlington area and most certainly not like the situation near Ottawa. Hopefully the community will work together to assist the tornado victims. It seems to me that the number of tornadoes in Canada is increasing. Climate change?
Saturday evening was lots of fun as daughter Tracy had organized a surprise 50th anniversary party for Jeff & Dave. It worked! They had no clue about what was to happen. They had a great evening with family and friends including video greetings from many who could not attend.
Sunday we drive to Vancouver and we are hoping to a good weather day. When living in Ontario as we don’t have to deal with weather variations resulting from altitude. Between Kelowna and Vancouver there are two mountain passes to be negotiated where snow is a distinct possibility at this time of year. Local rules demand the use of winter tires or the carrying of tire chains when traveling these mountain roads. Sunday’s forecast for the mountains seems favourable. We may, however, encounter some nasty stuff as we approach the coast.
The previous paragraph was speculative. We are now, as of 2:30 Sunday, at our Vancouver hotel. The drive on the eastern side of the mountains was nice and sunny but we found overcast and light rain as we descended the western slope. We arrived in Vancouver to a partially cloudy afternoon.
| Eastern Slope | Western Slope |
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Vancouver traffic was everything I expected it to be; insane. I wish I could claim it was better at home, but I can’t. At home, the highways overflow and fill up the city streets. In Vancouver there are no highways so everything is on the city streets. The results appear to be identical.
Sunday morning is cool but pleasant. No rain, so far. Our 10th floor hotel room has a marvellous view of a dozen or so other towers, There is a sliver of a gap through which some trees are visible in the distance. The view after we board the Emerald Princess should be far more interesting.
Today is our actual anniversary and we were married, 52 years ago, not that far from our hotel. We will continue celebrating both anniversaries as we cruise down the coast over the next 10 days. I will try to get photos of the harbour as we depart and post them in the next few days.
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