Niagara to Meaford -Thurs 9th

After a nice inexpensive breakfast at the in-house Starbuck's outlet, (yeah, real food deserving to be called Breakie) we were heading North to Meaford.
We went via Guelph to call in and see Megan's mum (mom) who would be heading to Florida for a couple of weeks. (Widowed only a few weeks before.)
It was great to see her after 11 years. Megan had visited a number of times over the years. I'm also glad that I had been able to speak to her late husband Jim at Christmas. He sounded so cheerful although he knew his time was approaching quickly. He had been fighting pancreatic cancer for the past 3 years. Although I hadn't spent a great deal of time in his company, and not in the past 11 years, he'd left a lasting impression with me that I cherish.
Staying at the house was one Megan's sisters, Beth. It was a delight catching up with her, and also a couple of Megan's nephews that belong to her other sister Laurie. Both Andy and Mark were young 'squirts' when I saw them last! Not now. But isn't that the way the world is these days? Now kids usually dwarf their parents at a surprisingly early age.
The journey north took us past a kind of familiar sight. I'd never been near Shelburne before, but seeing the Wind Farms was familiar. Crookwell being the first place in Australia to have a wind farm; albeit only 8 of similar size to those in Shelburne. The ones here are on pretty level ground whereas those at Crookwell are on high ridges. I couldn't count how many there are in Shelburne but the new ones being to be built near Crookwell will be much, much larger (2-1/2 times) and more in number I should think. The first approval was for 58, and more projects in the pipeline.



More snow was evident in this region too. As we got closer to Meaford the snow covering was considerable. It was pretty! I really don't understand why Canadians wouldn't want it all year round. (Yeah right! As if..... )



We were heading down a long straight road which is called Grey Rd 7. (Which means Grey County road 7). Ahhhhh I knew where I was now. I was getting excited. I had seen a video of this same section of road in the same snowy conditions on Youtube! Over one crest and then to see another a few kilometers ahead. The blue water of Georgian Bay was becoming increasingly more prominent in the vista.



The first vehicle we came up behind was a Yellow School Bus. The sign on the back states clearly that you must not pass the bus when the lights are flashing. Unlike NSW where it is "40kph max when lights are flashing". I can think of a few Aussie drivers that would be spitting chips if they had to come to a dead stop each time the school bus stopped! Then again, they wouldn't like the 80kph on highways and only 100kph on proper Expressways.



Just a little observation about those speed limits. When I was last in Canada, the traffic observed the speed limits religiously. Megan commented that on a couple of subsequent visits she'd noticed the driving standard had deteriorated and speeding was common. So far I have observed that around the towns the 50 kph is observed pretty well but once you get onto a Hwy, you are being pushed along if you sit on 90 kph (10 over) as most traffic seems to move at around 95, between Owen Sound and Collingwood at least. (The only 60 km of hwy I've driven to date.)
Finally we turned onto Sykes St. (Hwy 26) and were nearing the town center. I'd longed for 8 months to see this vision in reality rather than by photos and maps. I wasn't disappointed. Megan was surprised I knew where some things were that she didn't. The power of the internet. And some people condemn it, eh?



We pulled into a Supermarket to get some groceries before going to the house. We were only there 30 seconds when Megan stopped with the shopping trolley to decide where she needed to go. I said to her, "I know that bloke over there." I can't remember her exact reply, but it was in disbelief that I could know anyone. I said to her, "Well I don't personally know him but I know his name is Chris Fell". "How could you know that?" she demanded to know. "He is the chief journalist for the Meaford Times!"
So here I was in the town that we hoped to settle in.



Next we were at the home where Megan is sharing with her landlady and now good friend, Marcie. Another exciting day.

White Oaks Resort

After our first night at Hamilton, we traveled back down south to Niagara-on-the-lake. A beautiful little town where the business district has been preserved in a heritage fashion and a lot of the houses have followed suite.

We were booked into the White Oaks Resort which isn't located near the township at all but near the turnoff from the QEW freeway. It's a Five Diamond rated facility in normal times but once we parked our car in the front it fell to a 1 star facility LOL.
Megan booked it through her work at Cranberry Resort in Collingwood as the organisations have reciprocal staff discount agreements. We paid considerably less than the $349/night room but I'd better not publicly spruik about 'our' rate. We were extremely pleased with the room, the facilities, the food and the friendly service shown by all the staff.
Instead of visiting the dining room for dinner, we chose to dine at the adjacent bar and grill where we were able to watch people playing tennis on the courts below through an expansive glass window/wall. Compared with Australia the price of the fare on the menu was cheap.
We were kind of blown away with the appointments in the suite. It was very spacious as was the super king size bed. The mini bar was "choca" but we can do without it thank you very much. Beneath it, is a Safe for the guest's valuables etc.
The Cafe' bar in the room although elaborate, only contained enough coffee/milk/sugar for two individual cups. Most of my friends and relatives would know that is way below my expectation.
The Bathroom was rather special. It gave me ideas for our next house! Strategically placed, low on the wall next to the toilet, is a telephone that you can contact room service, other rooms or stay in touch with any part of the world. It could be annoying if the phone rang at an inopportune time though, because you might be in the middle of watching a crucial part of a movie or sports match on the LCD TV mounted on a swivel wall bracket adjacent to the vanity.

See the reflection of phone in the mirror!

Upon checkout, I was relieved that the car was still there. It hadn't been stolen or towed away by the Resort's management. ;)
So we were back onto the highway and heading North toward Meaford via Guelph. ....... next.

East to West

The trip began on 5th April when I traveled the 250 km to my brother's place in Sydney to stay overnight. We took my Station Wagon to the airport departures and he then took it back to his place.
The 3 hours I had before my flight went by a lot quicker than expected. Once you go through customs and immigration, there is seemingly an endless amount of duty free shopping available. Buy or not, it is an experience to behold to realise how much Tax and Excise we must be paying day to day!
My first segment took me to San Francisco; a 13 hr flight. Flying toward the east means you fly against time (with the rotation of the earth) and therefore when leaving in the afternoon, it doesn't take long before you are into the dark of night. Once upon a time, they used to advise you to set your watch to the local time of your next destination. They didn't do that, but I had decided to leave it at Sydney time anyway. At 3am Sydney time (and my body clock) it was daylight again. At around 4am we were landing in San Francisco. Now I decided to change my watch to local time which was 11 am Monday. Wait a minute! My god, I only arrived at Sydney airport at 11 am Monday and now it's just ticked over 11 am again! I know, I know. As much as one can understand why it is so, it is different to feel it with the body and the mind.
I managed a whole hour of sleep on that leg but got to see 4 recently released movies and 3 x 30 min episodes of TV shows.
You know you must be getting old when you can think back to your first inter-city or International flight and remember that ALL males had to wear a coat and tie!!! Mmmm. That's the truth. I flew from Sydney to Auckland in 1961 with my father and it was a condition of travel. That was when Turbo-Prop Lockheed Electra aircraft were used for those 4 hr flights. In 1976 I flew to Christchurch NZ in a 747 and the dress code was relaxed. Then in 1997 I remember flying across the pacific to Canada via USA and there were males on the plane wearing board shorts, singlets and bare feet! (Not to mention the B.O. wafting from their armpits!)
Getting back to this trip, I had two segments left. 5 -1/4 hrs to Washington DC and after another 2 hr changeover, onward to Buffalo NY in a much smaller jet taking an hour. I only took this route because it saved me more than $1300 for a normal direct route all the way to Toronto. More than 50% cheaper!
There was a downside; arriving in Buffalo airport at 11 pm. I would need to be at the Bus Terminal in downtown Buffalo at around 6:15 am. It was much safer and warmer to wait at the Airport and get a cab at 6am. It was too uncomfortable to sleep on the type of seating they have there. I met a young lady at around 2 am and we chatted all through the night and had breakfast together and so that passed the time quite pleasantly. There were (almost out of season) snow storms in the Great Lakes area. Many flights had been canceled from different airports. She had to wait until 11 am for her flight. I've since learned that Meaford recorded the largest snowfall in all of Canada that day.
I caught a Greyhound Bus to Burlington in Ontario (2 hrs incl Border inspection) where I was met by my sister-in-law. There was a hitch with the bus schedule as it was different to what was issued on the Internet. The driver was very co-operative and made two out-of-the-way stops for me. One to get a different ticket and another to divert from the freeway into Burlington City Transit Center where I'd be picked up. I had emailed a "copy" of the bus schedule directly from the internet to my sis-in-law a couple of weeks before.

Megan arrived at their place at midday. She'd been delayed because a snow drift had piled up against her front door, and she had to dig the car out. Generally the driving was pretty slow for what is normally about the same trip as Crookwell to Sydney.The snow storm that delayed Megan meeting me.

An afternoon nap was in order as it was now virtually 47 hours since I'd slept. After dinner it was to be an early night for bed................

It was exciting to be together again after nearly eight months apart. It was also exciting to be back here and meeting up with all of Megan's large clan that I haven't seen for 11 years.

Accepting the Good with the Sad

click to enlarge

The hardest part about moving to Canada was to determine the future of our close companions, Nova and Max. Megan wanted them to come to Canada with us. So that was the plan for quite a while. They both had "shots" for Rabies etc. Max desexed and Microchipped. They would both have needed re vaccinating in August '09. Transporting to Canada was as expensive as for my own travel. A pretty expensive exercise but cost was never a real barrier. It wasn't until I sat down and worked out the logistics involved that I realised it just wouldn't be practical or fair to Nova.

Since Megan moved, the financial crisis hit the world and that has until now at least, put a "stopper" on Farm Sales. So my stay in Australia has been extended. Megan was anxious for me to come and visit, and now here I am. BUT the price of that was not the airfare, but sacrificing the remainder of Nova's life. It was both my opinion and that of the experts that Nova would not be able to adjust to life without me and would fret herself to death. On Friday 3rd April, I took her to the Vet in Crookwell, and it was so quick and peaceful that she was gone before I could even say good-bye. She was such a perceptive and intelligent dog that I had to maintain a 'normal' routine and attitude so that she wouldn't suspect what was happening. She "trusted" me right until the very last moment, and that makes me both sad and relieved.

Meanwhile, Max is temporarily at John Davies Motors Mon-Fri and John takes him home and to his farm for the weekend. Trevor Keyser will be permanently back at his farm at Lost River a couple of weeks after my return. His farm backs onto the back-side of our farm. He will be Max's new master. It will be interesting to see how it will work out with him being so close by his 'old' home. i.e. will he be constantly trying to come back. I "stirred" Megan by saying to her that I'd just beat the crap out of him a few times until he doesn't want to come back.

Sometimes you just have to do what you have to do and it ain't always easy or pleasant.

http://www.anelvisfan2001.com/OldShep.mp3

Max (9 yr Brown Kelpie) Nova (11 yr White & Black Cattle X kelpie??)

Introduction

The purpose of this Blog is keep our friends and relatives informed as to the progress and transition on moving from Crookwell to Canada. I say Canada so it is generally easier for the Aussie readers initially and we haven't decided exactly where we will settle yet. All I can say is that we are intending to settle somewhere along the southern shore of Georgian Bay in Ontario. Narrowing that down to somewhere between Meaford and Wasaga Beach.
Megan is currently living in Meaford but working in Collingwood, some 30 km away. Megan feels there are more opportunities for us closer to Collingwood. (She isn't keen on Wasaga Beach because of the Bikini girls in summer! - Spoil Sport she is)

So why are we moving to Canada? All I need to say is that it is a Maternal thingy. All you females will understand. Especially if you have kids, be they adult or not, and grandkids. The way airfares have increased since we've been married, it was becoming less affordable to visit them. Even so, they grow up and change way too quickly for mere visits.

Megan is an Aussie citizen and very proud of it and will be until the day she dies. Of course I'll become a Canuck when the time comes (if they'll accept me!)

To be together is the most important thing for both of us, but to have kids and grandkids in Canada is so overpowering. I'm looking forward to this exciting adventure and chapter in my life.