Tobermory and Bruce Peninsula

Again this year, we went to the pretty little town at the end of the Bruce Peninsula. The weather certainly was  exceptional and the company of my brother Warren, his friend, MaryAnn and my partner, Joe was great.

We spent a few hours a Halfway Log Dump just after checking into our hotel room at Blue Bay Hotel. The 'dump' is just as it has looked since I started going up there in the early 80's. There are many more people than back then but the park is a national treasure. After a picnic lunch we walked down the trail to Georgian Bay. Warren and I both went into the water and put on our snorkels. The water was cool but refreshing.

Back at Tobermory we went to a very popular restaurant and motel (Grandview) for a meal. Warren and MaryAnn had the salmon and Joe had the whitefish, I settled for the pecan chicken breast. We had beer and good conversations.

The next day, Warren and MaryAnn took a ride on the Glass Bottom Boat for 2 hours while Joe and I went to Singing Sand Beach part of the Bruce Peninsula National Park. I haven't been to this park before but it is a long beach of sand and the water is very shallow. It is great for families with young children.

Even though this destination comes up every year, it is still a great place to visit.

More pictures of this excursion and others are on Picasa.

Our new kitties

We've adopted a couple of kittens from my brother and sister-in-law (Randy and Patty RBPaints). We named them TicTac and Toe.

Here is a picture of them.

More pictures here.

We've had them for over a week and they are growing very fast. I'm sure they're a couple of pounds heavier today than last week.

Don't be fooled that the black cat (Toe) is totally black. He has grey and brown streaks through his coat. Almost like black on black.

42nd Street

Last week we went to the Stratford Shakespearean Festival to see Cynthia Dale in 42nd Street. A very entertaining songs and dance play.

Niagara-on-the-lake

For the second year in a row, we went to Niagara-on-the-lake and enjoyed the town and the play. This year we saw the musical; 'Ragtime.' The story and music was exceptional. We stayed at a very cosy bed and breakfast about 4 blocks from the festival theatre. It was very charming the hosts were very accommodating.

As always, I have posted some pictures from the excursion on Picasa.

Port Colborne

Twice a year I spend time with my brothers. This spring we made a change and went to Port Colborne and rented a cottage/home on Lake Erie.

Pictures on Picasa.

Naples Botanical Gardens

We visited the botanical gardens in Naples and we were impressed. The flora of the area is very tropical or sub-tropical with themes of Brazil and the Caribbean.

Most of the photos shown in Picasa are by Joe and they are quite impressive.

Key West

We visited Key West for the second time in 32 years. The pictures are worth a thousand words.

The homes are very typical of a tropical paradise with many verandahs and screened porches.

We rented an electric car to see the city in style. Lots of people and vehicle traffic to keep your eyes moving.

The flora is very attractive with lots of blooms.

My pictures are on this site.

Trip to Florida

We started our journey on March 12 and made it down to Wytheville Virginia the first day. The next day we were in Myrtle Beach where we met up with my brother and sister-in-law. We spent several days in the sunshine and warmth of the beach and went to the gardens of Brookgreen.

Our next stop was Charleston S. C. and we took in the plantation of Boone Hall, the city of Charleston and a buggy ride through the old town.

We spent a night in Wildwood Florida before arriving at our destination of Naples.

I have uploaded some pictures of Myrtle Beach, Charleston and Naples on Picasa.

Toronto

We took a small mini holiday to Toronto on Monday this week. We stayed at one of the most luxurious hotels close to the lake shore. The Fairmont Royal York is a very beautiful hotel right downtown. The room was overlooking the train station and part of Lake Ontario was in view.

We were in Toronto for Winterlicious. The restaurant that we chose was the Beir Markt on the Esplanade. The meal was exceptional with a 3 course meal for $35.

We took in the Barrel Works just south of St Lawrence Market, which was interesting what can be done with a very old factory district.

We found that one night on the town was a nice break from the daily routine and would do it again.

More pictures on Picasa.

Punta Cana

We just returned from a very exciting, fun, leisurely, sun-filled trip to the Dominican Republic. Except for a 3 hour delay in getting on the plane due to mechanical problems, we were off to the beaches of Punta Cana.

The temperatures soared to around 28c each day but with the cool waters of the Caribbean Sea and the crystal clear waters of the pool, we survived the heat.

We took an ecological discovery of a park just outside our compound that featured beaches, parks, golf courses and a iguanas. This was all taken in while we rode on Segways.

It was the first time for all of us to travel to the tropics and it was truly beautiful. Lots of sand beaches and lush tropical forests.

It may very well be an annual pilgrimage.

More pictures of our excursion are on Pacasa.

First adventure of the year

Well, we're just about to leave. Our adventure south begins shortly.

T'was the day before

We spent the last two days hanging out at home and then took a little drive to Dryden Tract near Ayr.

Both days were beautiful with just a dusting of snow and the park was well protected from the winds. Warren and Joe both joined me.

A couple of pictures have been posted on Picasa.

Georgian Bay Adventure

We took a 5 day holiday around Georgian Bay this past week. The adventure included Parry Sound, the 30,000 island cruise, Sault Ste. Marie, the Agawa Canyon, Chi-chee-maun, and Halfway Log Dump on the Bruce Peninsula.

We stayed a day at Parry Sound and enjoyed the colours of autumn on the cruise ship, Island Queen. Spectacular views of some of the islands around Parry Island. Pictures here.

We then drove to Sault Ste, Marie where we took in the city and it's beautiful docks and board walks. Then the following day we took in the Agawa Canyon by train. Pictures here. And here.

We stayed a second night at the Delta Hotel and then drove to South Baymouth where we took the Chi-chee-maun to Tobermory. After staying a night at the Princess Hotel we walked along the Georgian Bay shoreline at Halfway Log Dump. Pictures here.

Pictures from this excursion are available on Picasa.

Montreal September 2011

This year, for the first time, we decided to fly from Breslau to Montreal. Instead of an eight hour train ride it only took 1 1/2 hours. We are spending 4 full days instead of 3 1/2.
So far, we have taken in Mile End and spent many hours on St. Denis attending an outdoor venue called OUMF.
As usual, I have posted more pictures to Picasa.

The Mighty Niagara

Joe and I went for a mini-vacation to the Niagara Peninsula taking in both Niagara Falls and Niagara-on-the-Lake. We took in a play at the Shaw Festival on Thursday and then went onto Niagara Falls on Friday where I took many pictures and a video.

The movie was taken on the Maid of the Mist. Very exciting. Since I first saw the falls, I wanted to see it from the boat. I remember as a kid looking over the cliff and seeing these boats but didn't get on until just this year. Fifty-seven years later.

Montreal 2

We ate at a restaurant in the Duluth neighbourhood of Montreal.

Our guests from Hungary enjoyed their stay in Montreal and in Canada over the last 4 weeks.

Montreal

We just spent the last 4 days in the beautiful city of Montreal. Montreal never fails to impress me. There is always something happening and lots to see and do. This trip was no exception. We arrived on Thursday and after booking into our rooms, we are off to see the city.

This time in addition to Joe, Warren and friends from Budapest were along on this trip. It was the first time that Zoli and Zsuzsa were in Montreal.

Our hotel on this trip was a new one to us. It was the Paris du Montreal located very close to our other hotels on Sherbrooke Street. This time our luck was not with us. The hotel, being an old mansion was one of the reasons for its choice but turned out to be a disadvantage. I was at the top of a long line of stairs that were not even and not the same height. The room was small and the air conditioning not adequate. On Friday while I was in the shower, room cleaner came in while I was taking a shower and never came back to clean the room.

This time around we took in the night life in the village as well as the fire works display from La Ronde. We watched from one of the nearby bridges, which was very impressive. We found a new restaurant and brew pub on St. Denis called 3 Brewers.

The weekend turned out to be very warm and a bit uncomfortable. But what make it worse, was the air conditioning in our room didn't work very well.

With all of the drawbacks, it still is a great place to visit.

I will post pictures as soon as get home. I forgot my patch cord.

Pictures are available on Picasa: https://picasaweb.google.com/wybell/Montreal2011

Halfway Log Dump, Tobermory and Bayfield

We took our Hungarian friends on a 2 day excursion to Georgian Bay and Lake Huron. We stayed at a lovely hotel at Tobermory called Princess Hotel. Then went to our favourite spot on Georgian Bay called Halfway Log Dump. In the 20's this is where the cut logs were dumped into Georgian Bay to be moved to Wiarton for finishing. You can imagine that this spot likely hasn't changed much in 1 million years. In fact, I heard that some of the scenes from Quest for Fire were filmed here.

I think that pictures make up for a lot words, so here is a few pictures of the area.

The last photo is of the boat tour around the islands and Fathom Five Provincial Park.

Zoli and Zsuzsa visit

We look forward to our Hungarian friends to visit this summer. They are expected at the end of June and will stay a month.

Prague II

Just a couple words about Prague. We spent three days discovering Prague for the second time, this time with Warren. The city never fails to impress me. We were lucky this time because Easter was later than usual. The streets of Prague are full of vendors displaying their wares. Lots to see and eat.

We stayed at a reasonable hotel just outside of Wenceslas Square. The hotel was clean and comfortable but one of the staff members was a bit rude.

If architecture is your thing, this is the city to visit.