No More Blog

I'm giving myself a break and giving up on blogging this trip. I don't have the luxury of spending my evenings comfortably recording the events of the day. We are having trouble keeping the electronics charged and then we often don't have wifi or cell coverage. My journal will be my only record this time.

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To Haida Gwaii

We go to sleep in the day light and wake up after dawn. It is reminiscent of our trip to the Yukon. Today we go to Haida Gwaii. We haven't been able to find a replacement coffee pot but a solution will be found sooner or later. The line up for the ferry is very different than the one in Port Hardy. These people are going to the "Islands", no Europeans on this sailing. They were all doing the circle route in rental vehicles. We had to drive on and then turn around on the ferry. When it became too full then vehicles had to back down the ramp.....trucks pulling boats and trailers...this ferry staff was doing everything to get as many people on as possible. An hour after our designated departure time we set sail with no one left on the dock.

We found some comfy seats and set up camp for the next 6/7 hours. When you know how long you are going to be on board you make your adjustments. As it turned out it was a sunny, calm crossing. I saw a woman nearby with some hand made fish. I was curious and asked her what she was making. She was born on Haida Gwaii but now lives in Terrace. Her and her daughter were going back to do a Celebration of Life for her parents who had lived on the islands. Her father had been a fisherman and she had made all these colorful fish to represent 'the catch of the day'. They were beautiful and I asked her if I could take a picture of them. She was thrilled that I appreciated her art. I will paint them and send her a copy by email.

My interpretation to come later.

We landed at Skidegate about 6:30 not knowing where we were going. Stopped at Queen Charlotte visitor information center. I bought the book "The Golden Spruce". And we headed to the Hayden Campground only to find it full. We ended up camped out front of the Village office....(aka City Hall) ....As we are awake early we figured we could be gone before Monday workers arrived. Nobody seemed to mind we were there and we had a good sleep.

Observations,

It takes me awhile to get my blogging mojo going. I find it difficult to make my thoughts and words come out in a fluent manner.

We have been on the road six days. A lot of travel, some stress, but today, our first full day on the islands I can feel the magic. We can feel the difference between the RV and the camper. It is more work for us but we will survive.

 

 

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Things go wrong on Saturday

After such a wonderful day yesterday today wasn't so good. This morning we discovered our fridge wasn't working properly and all our freezer stuff was thawing. We called the only number we could find for RV repairs. No answer on Saturday. A few minutes later a fellow called asking if we had called:) he said he would come down in 10 minutes. He did but he couldn't figure out what the problem was. He didn't charge us anything and referred us to Coastal Propane for dry ice and maybe some help. We went to Moby Dicks for breakfast and then to Coastal Propane. The fellow was a gas fitter but not licenced for RVs. He cleaned all the parts and figured we should be OK. Again no charge. A bad news issue with a good news solution. Our plan had originally been to go for a drive along the highway towards Terrace so we headed out that way. We went into Port Edward and walked the docks watching the fishermen organize and pack their nets.

Drove out to see the old cannery. They wanted $15 to walk through the buildings. We took a few pictures so I can paint the some of the buildings and headed back. The road was like moguls on the mountain. It was paved but in the fractured sunlight it was hard to see the dips that were really close together. We hit some with a surprise and shifted the camper to the point that the back tie downs popped off and we heard them dragging behind us. It was too hot to deal with along the road so we headed back to our Walmart camp licking our wounds. Only inside disaster was the breaking of our glass coffe pot.

Tomorrow is another day and hopefully our fridge will be working as we make our way across to Haida Gwaii.

 

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Grizzlies

After a short night we enjoyed our coffee and then headed into town to tourist info. While Bob was looking for information on Haida Gwaii I went into the Prince Rupert Adventure Tours in the Cow Bay area. I had listened to people on the ferry talking about doing the grizzly bear tour. There was one leaving in a couple of hours and it wasn't very full. Seven hours with lunch included for $240 a person. Pretty steep but we have decided that this is a bucket list trip and we need to do what ever we want.

The boat was only half full to its capacity so we had lots of room to view from all the various decks. It is a family business. Dad, the captain and son Trent, first mate and provider of information as we traveled. Two young native women were the only other staff on board. We spent two hours traveling out from Prince Rupert up Chatham Sound until we turned into Khutzeymateen Inlet. We saw Grizzlies, a wolf, orcas, sea lions and just before getting back to PR the crew fed the eagles off Metlakatla village.

 

It was a fantastic trip with wonderful staff. We were offloaded about 7:00 and we headed back to our camp spot overlooking the harbour in the Walmart parking lot.

It wasn't a planned excursion but it was well worth the money:).....just doing a few things before we hit the 'Islands'.

 

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Sailing Day

We were awake at 3:00. Had our coffee and last minute organizing and then out to Bear Cove. We could see the lights of the ferry last night as it docked, waiting to leave again in the morning. There is all manner of vehicles from a 40' motor home, surfers, campers, kayakers and all the "rent a Wreck" vehicles. Most people seem to be doing the circle route back through Prince George or going on to Alaska. Haven't spoken to anyone yet that is going to Haida Gwaii.

The ship looks like an RV parking lot of rental vehicles.

 

Spent the first few hours having a buffet breakfast. Pretty basic fare for $20. But we are a captive audience. Not much to see as we cross Queen Charlotte Sound. Bob is having a nap and I sat and copied a painting on the wall. We are now coming to Calvert Island so the shore is closer. Still overcast but clouds are high enough to see land.

The miles pass as we slowly make our way north along familiar passages that we have traveled before, once on the Hawkeye and then on our cruise to Alaska. It's unfortunate in a way that the weather was not at its best but it is the west coast and the low clouds and mist are a part of the magic. The breaks in the clouds are that much more spectacular when they appear.

Buffet dinner was $28 and a pleasant surprise. Prime rib and Yorkshires, roast lamb, salmon and all the normal side dishes, salads and desserts. There are only so many times during the voyage that they unlock the doors to the car decks. At the 5:00 opening we went down and filled a flask with wine for after dinner. Back in our recliners in the Aurora lounge we relaxed knowing our arrival in Prince Rupert was getting closer.

At 11:30 it is still not quite dark. We are offloaded and set up in the Walmart Parking lot with about 1/2 dozen other RVs for what remains of the night. A very long 22 hour day.

 

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To Alder Bay

A beautiful sunny day to start our trip. We took our time packing the last few things and shutting down the house. We stopped in Campbell River for lunch ....Dicks fish and chips...they are the best. Filled up our water jugs at the mountain spring just before Roberts Lake.

We have decided to stay at Alder Bay for the night. It's been a few years since I have been up to this part of the island. Lots of memories from our boating, kayaking and camping trips of the last 20 years. We picked our spot, paid for it and then went to Telegraph Cove before dinner. I'm glad I have seen it when it was still a working community. It is so touristy now. A bit sad.

Back at camp we set up our chairs looking out across the water to Alert Bay. We thought we would try to stay up to see the sunset but the sun just never seemed to move down the sky quickly enough. I remember seeing the yellows and pinks through the window as my eyes slammed shut. I woke in the night to the sound of rain on the roof and and the waves lapping the shore. Very peaceful

Day two wasn't quite as enjoyable. Had our coffee and toast and headed for Port Hardy. Our plan was to have a look around and then go out to the ferry terminal and stay the night. We had been told we could do that. Wrong! You can stay but they charge you $22 ...they say it is to discourage people from camping overnight. If they don't want you to stay there just make the rule ...don't try to scam more money from people. Then she told us there was no power on board for us to plug into to keep our fridge running for the 17 hour trip. The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. Typical BC Ferry bureaucracy. So we are back in Port Hardy parked along the waterfront watching eagles, ravens and gulls fight over fish scraps put on the beach by locals.

The rain stopped and it is windy but warm. There are no signs saying "no overnight camping" so hopefully we will get a sleep without RCMP knocking at our door telling us we have to move on like the gypsy vagrants we are:)

Another local just brought a pail of fish carcasses and put them out right in front of us. Just waiting for the eagles to arrive. Heating up chili for dinner and then an early night. We have to be over at the ferry terminal by 5:30/6:00 tomorrow.

 

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Our Next Adventure

We have reservations on the Northern Expedition from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert on June 25, 2015. We will stay in Prince Rupert til the morning of the 28th when we then make the 7 1/2 hour crossing to Skidegate on Graham Island, Haida Gwaii.

The truck and camper are packed to the nines! We have less storage room than in the trailer but we are taking more stuff. We need clothing for rainy weather possibilities which we never had going south.....taking more food and supplies not knowing what availability and prices are like on HG. It's hard to believe that Bob can find places for so much stuff.... lawn chairs/tables, carpet, bug tent, solar panel, outdoor stove....all potential of tools that may be needed. Then there's the fishing gear and art supplies and of course the wine. Not having a return date set we have to be a bit prepared for the long haul.

The journal us ready and waiting.

Our home for the next while is also ready and waiting for tomorrow's departure.

 

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We Start For Home .....

We had a restless night, waking up every hour or two. Too many things on our minds tonight. It helped that we were organized so there wasn't much to do this morning. We had coffee and toast, did a last minute tidy up in the apartment and George was here at 6:00am for our ride to the airport. We have an hour and a half after going through security and we manage to rid ourselves of a few more euros:) in the duty free shops.

I have seen full planes but I thought for a few minutes it was going to be like the buses....with people standing on route. It is the craziness of all the carry on luggage. With airlines charging for checked baggage these days passengers are taking on more and more as carryon. We are 15 minutes late taking off because of flight assistants trying to find places in the overhead compartments for all the baggage. Almost some air rage happening....this is where our little under the seat carry-on bags come in handy.

10:00am Friday and we are in Rome:) love these short hops. Unfortunately it takes as much work to fly for an hour and a half as it does for ten hours. All big airports are hard work. You never know where you're going and the strange thing for us now is that Italians don't speak English nearly as much as the Maltese. It feels stranger here in Italy than it ever did in Malta. We tried to book our seats with Lufthansa, but to no avail. You just can't get passed the 24 hour rule. Next we looked for a shuttle bus to our hotel. By this time we have walked back and forth and up and down the Terminal 3 area a few times. We gave up and just took a taxi to our hotel.... €25.....no €1.5 buses here:)

Our hotel is a welcome and pleasant surprise. We have to make the transition from apartment living where we had our own supplies to hotel staying where we have nothing....we went out to find a local neighbourhood market where we bought wine and water and 'famous' Milano salami for an afternoon snack. It is time for a nap after our early start this morning.

Our taxi driver, with minimal English, mentioned that we were in Ostia. He said it was a 'good' place. I googled it when we were settled in our room and found it to be Ostia Antica....Roman ruins that rival Pompeii but with less tourist traffic. Rick Steeves categorizes it as 'one of Italy's best kept secrets' ....we are making plans to go there tomorrow. It is nearby and something we can fit into our one day. Neither of us wants to venture into the craziness of Rome with our tired bodies and minds.

 

Bob chose sleep over eating so I went down to the restaurant myself. I wanted an Italian pasta dinner before going home. The restaurant was lovely and my dinner was wonderful. A half bottle of Pino Grigio, prawn and mushroom pasta, so good that I would have liked to lick the bowl, tiramisu and a Limoncella for dessert. That was a "Happy Meal". I'm now OK to leave Italy again.

I had my journal with me but I did not feel like painting my food. I just wanted to sit quietly and savour it.

We were up at 2:30, in the taxi at 4:00 and there was already a lineup to check in at the Lufthansa counter that didn't open til 5:00am. The long slog home has started. Our flight to Frankfurt was only 2/3rds full so we had our row to ourselves. If this could have been the way we flew from Frankfurt to Vancouver I might even have enjoyed the trip. But the 10 hour transAtlantic flight was packed as usual. I am a sardine between Bob and another man. If we want to travel we have to accept that this is the way flying is these days. The saying " it's the journey, not the destination" definitely was not meant to include the flying part. Other than being crowded we had no complaints about Lufthansa. The food was good, with two meals, lots of snacks and free drinks.

Our move through security and customs went smoothly and quickly. The only snag came at security to get on our last flight to Comox. The CBS agent decided we couldn't take our souvenir, unopened bottle of Limoncella in our carry on where it has been the whole trip. I had to go back to the Central Mountain Air counter and check my carryon bag, then come through security again. An unfortunate bit of beaurcratic nonsense to end our journey. Fortunately we had lots of time to spare.

It is exciting to travel to different places but it is always good to come home. We have wonderful friends and family that we miss when we are away. When you have been away in a strange country the best thing to see when you land at home are the faces of friends. Thank you Warren and Judy for making both our coming and going special times with homemade Chili, jam and birthday flowers.

This is the first time in many years that we don't have an RV to unpack and clean after a winter away. A few suitcases emptied and we are sitting comfortably at home getting over our jet lag.

The last few years have provided me with many wonderful experiences and memories of places I've never been before......the Yukon, the Canadian Prairies, the Mississippi, Italy and now Malta. Bob has been the tour guide revisiting places to which e has both lived and travelled. Thanks to my "WagonMaster" for another safe and successful adventure, with hopes for many more to come. Maybe with a camper to continue with our travels on this continent?

March 13 2013 ...Friday the 13th and Jasmyne's 13th birthday.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Favourite Places Revisited

The morning looked promising.

So we decided to just get on a bus and go in any random direction. It was a good-bye journey, bussing through many of the memorable places we have been, some more than a few times. We went north through Mosta, Saw Mdina up on the hill, out to the coast and Mgarr where we had had a couple of good lunches. Then on to Golden Bay. It was beginning to get windy and we could see the white caps out on the sea. It was easier to stay on our bus and make the turn around trip. Mellieha still shone white in the sunshine.

We passed so many places that we had walked or waited for a bus. It really does amaze me how much of this island we have seen. Not the tourist places but all the communities and the many village streets. People and even bus drivers are starting to look familiar. I sit quietly watching the people coming and going on the bus as much as the scenery that passes......an ever changing microcosm of Maltese culture travelling from stop to stop....shopping bags, back packs, strollers and wheel chairs, the young and the old, all have their place on the King Longs.

It was another good decision on our part coming back when we did. We stopped in the harbour, bought a few vegetables and then stopped, possibly, for our last cappuccino and apple cake at Ximo's.

As we walked up the hill the black clouds rolled in. Not more that two minutes after we were home the rains came:).

Observations from our almost last day.....

I'm running out of daily blog material.

Malta is ancient, modern, idyllic, urban, loud, peaceful, sunny, warm, cold, windy, stormy...more thunder and lightning than I think I've seen in my whole life...it is golden, ochre, green, incredible blues....limestone, rock.... Arabic, British, Italian, ciao, ciao....but above all with all the civilizations that have had input into this culture over thousands of years....it is purely Maltese... the country and its people have been absolutely breathtaking and wonderful.

We haven't eaten out a lot. But we have shopped all across the island....butter is imported from Ireland, a lot of meat is from Poland, even potatoes are often from Spain. We shopped at an Italian market in Mosta. I had the best bottled pesto... that I used for weeks on my chicken breasts. And the bread!!!.... It is the best and is always available everywhere, every corner and fresh daily. The produce trucks that park on every street making shopping easy for locals on the block.

Propane trucks calling their arrival....the Bigilla Friska ( fresh bean dish) van announcing itself.

The ever present drilling, hammering of concrete blocks, as old apartments are demolished and new ones are created. We have watched them in St Paul's Bay and we have watched this one right outside our patio here in Marsascala. So different from home. They don't use much scaffolding because they just move up one floor at a time. Today I watched the 'journeyman' that laid the blocks, levelled them, and added the grout/concrete while his apprentice lifted each block, passing it up from his shoulder.

I can hear the sound of the buses travelling through the narrow village streets below us.

There was another funeral today at the Parish Church. We have become accustomed to the ritual of the hourly tolling of the bells so when the solemn sounds began before 2:30 this afternoon it caught my attention. I looked outside and there was a big gathering of people all in black.

Bus Stops.......they tell you so much information.......You Are Here....Qieghed Hawn.... street name first and then the Konsill Locali (similar to our municipality:) the bus numbers that pass by this stop and where each one goes to (Timur) and the expected time to reach the end of the line.

Our mysterious #124 bus that would have saved us the steep walk up our hill if we could ever have found out how it got uphill. We did catch it on the downhill run when we wanted to go to the Three Cities of Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua...(Isla) .....but I will leave Malta not knowing how it got uphill and or where it came from. I asked bus drivers a few times but they never seemed to understand my question. I guess if we could have been able to ride it up we would have missed a months exercise climbing to Triq Il Quccata.

The extensive bus system, that is in the process of changing to yet new owners, has provided us with the opportunity to visit every small village on both Malta and Gozo that we have wanted to see.

Today has been a few lasts...the last 8:00am and noon bells....a last walk down the hill to town after the rain took a break. We needed a 'bit' more wine and a pizza to be delivered for our 'last supper'.

Like almost every day we have been here, when there is rain it is always followed by sunshine and oftentimes a rainbow. Today was dark, grey and rainy but it cleared and the sun came out long enough to provide us with our 'last' beautiful view of Marsascala Harbour and possibly our last view of Malta.

 

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The Last Trip to Valletta

What kind of day will we have with a sunrise like this? It could go either way. As we are opportunists, we get ready and head out by 9:00am. It is mild and not raining. I am on my final mission for souvenirs of Malta. Living in Marsascala provides no opportunity for tourist shopping. I know all 'my girls' like jewelry so Valletta here we come. From previous walks down Triq Republik, the main pedestrian street in Valletta, I know that there are many jewelry stores. I was unaware as to just how many until I went looking today. I was flitting from store to store and Bob was taking pictures.

Here are a few of his photo observations from today. Men gather and talk....women do not stay still. They are always on the move. They may stop momentarily to hug and have a short visit....then it is ciao, ciao and off.

This is the quintessential Maltese woman of a 'certain age'.....zip up tights, high boots, dyed red hair, a cigarette and a cell phone, while waiting in line at the ATM machine.

Lynn sent us a picture of the daffodils blooming on Piers Island. We found these examples for sale along the side street markets. Only plastic so far. No signs of real ones here yet....I wonder why? It is much warmer here than at home. Maybe people don't plant bulbs like we do......

I'm shopping. I know what I'm looking for but I have to find the places that aren't selling only 18 carat gold and silver. It takes a bit of looking but I find my purchases and Bob records the transactions. The salesman was very accommodating but he had a nervous habit that made me almost laugh. He kept wringing his hands just like an old fashioned villain, bwahaha .....and I only spent €21.... Not a big ticket item for Vallettas Main Street shops.

Carnival is over as far as we know, but some shops are still selling masks. I know we missed a colourful event but we were just too far away to participate from Marsascala.

We come home with some chocolates, 'real' Lancashire Eccles cakes....or rabbit hutches as we used to call them as kids and a loaf of fresh bread. Our timing for leaving is good as the #91 just pulled into the terminal.

Travelling by bus is a constant source of social interaction. Today we have African conversations behind us, Catholic Nuns in front of us, every age group from the very old to school kids and now everyday I see people I have seen before.

Our timing is good as we make it up the hill and home in time to see the sky darken and the rain start. By evening it is blowing again. Three days left...but who's counting.

 

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Winding Down

Today we started the 'getting ready to go home' routine. We brought out our suitcases and set them up to see how much room we have, or in my case, don't have. Bob has graciously offered to pack my bulky hand made Maltese sweater. I only have a new woolen poncho, six or eight scarves and a few knicky knacks. I didn't even buy much In the way of art supplies. Well, maybe a few pens, but they don't take up a lot of room.

I did a last load of laundry, taking advantage of the wind and intermittent sunshine for drying. It is a back and forth game of clothes pegging and picking items up off the patio, until we finally brought the rack inside to finish drying.

I wanted to make a thank you card for our landlord George. He has been so accommodating and a genuinely sweet person. He wanted to take us to his country property out on the cliffs near Dingli for a BBQ with his family but the weather and his days off just didn't cooperate. We have spent many late afternoons on the patio enjoying a glass of wine and the view. This is a card sketch of a picture I took on one of those days.

We toast our stay at Ta Kurun in Marsascala.

It doesn't really matter what the weather brings it always leaves a beautiful sky along the way. This view and the sounds from below will be imprinted on my mind forever.

 

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