Jenn comes for a visit

The past couple of weeks have been pretty quiet… again.  My foot is still giving me a lot of problems, so a lot of our days are just spent lounging at the pool and basking in the sun.

The rainy season is quickly approaching; so we’re trying to soak up as much sun as possible.  The locals that we’ve talked to, are expecting the rains to start any time now; hope that we get a few good thunder/lightning storms while were still here.

Last week our friend Jenn confirmed that she was coming to Costa Rica for a weeks visit.  We started to look for a way to get her from San Jose to Jaco. 

While in a shop looking for souvenirs, we got talking to one of the shop owners.  Joey has lived in Costa Rica for 22 years and is a wealth of information.  He offered to drive us to San Jose to pick up Jenn; and it was the cheapest and most direct offer that we had so far… so we accepted.

We got to the airport with plenty of time; picked up Jenn and started heading back to Jaco.  Along the way, Joey stopped at a bridge that is known for the crocodiles that hang around there.  We stopped and got a few pictures.  We then stopped at a local fishing village and took a look at a fish market. 

When we arrived back in Jaco, we were all pretty hungry, so off to Rustico’s we went.  We then headed over to Joey’s house; and we were all impressed with his little piece of heaven, right downtown Jaco.   While having dinner, we made plans to get together on the beach for a fire.  Joey and his wife Eida gathered a few friends and we had ourselves a nice beach party.

Sunday, was spent at the pool and a trip to the grocery store for supplies.  And yesterday, the 3 of us booked a Tranopy tour through Joey.  He’s just started doing tours again; and it turned out that we were his first tour customers.

Off we went, and the 3 of us, along with our guide Nathan, headed up through the rain forest.  Since we were the last group of the day, we were able to stop our cable car whenever we saw something of interest.  

We saw lots of interesting wildlife; including a kuwati (relative of the racoon); a turkey vulture; a iguana and a tucan.  You could hear the tucan better than you could see it.

Once off the tranopy, we were toured around the grounds and saw lots of beautiful plants and flowers.  Also stopped in to see some snakes.

The whole tour was about 2 hours, and we all enjoyed ourselves.

A few weeks ago, we discovered a new restaurant.  Papas & burgers and their sign said that they had the best burgers in Jaco.  So we gave them a try; and their food was great.  We’ve been back one other time since.  This is where we took Jenn for dinner after the tranopy.

Chris, the owner, was quite happy to see us again so soon; and once again, the food was great.

Not sure what were doing today; as the sky isn’t sure if it wants to rain or not.  

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A quiet couple of weeks and then a scare

It’s been a couple of pretty quiet weeks around here.

Some of you will remember that I hurt my foot a while back on the boat for Mike’s birthday.  Well 3 weeks later, and my foot is finally on the mend.

I somehow pulled a tendon (or something) in my right heel.  It was pretty sore; and I couldn’t put any pressure on my foot.  Walking was a real challenge.  You don’t realize how much you use your feet until one of them gets hurts.

Even going to the pool was a challenge.  We have 3 flights of stairs to go up just to get to the road.  The pool across the street has a steep ramp to go up to get to it; and the other pool is 65 steps down a switchback staircase.

I was able to develop a “walk” that managed to get me around a bit.  Turned my foot to the right; and took a step with the whole foot moving, instead of having to move it up and down.  Seemed to work; but it still made it interesting to get around.

Finally started to feel better and we headed down to the beach last Saturday.  Watched the sunset for a bit and then went for dinner.  Tried a new place this time.  We shared a pizza; and it was just okay.  We then headed to the grocery store and took a cab back.

My foot was a little sore the next day, but much better than I thought it would be.  And now that another week has passed, it’s that much better again.

Yesterday, I had quite the scare.  We decided to move the couch and sweep underneath it; and I must have pulled a muscle.  About an hour later, I was having pretty sharp pains in my chest and was having troubles getting a proper breath. 

I thought I was having a heart attack.  But thankfully I wasn’t.  I didn’t want to alarm Mike, but with each breath becoming harder to get; I knew I had to do something.  After looking on-line for some information about a heart attack, I knew it was time to call for help.  Because my family has a history of heart problems, I didn’t want to mess around.

Mike went up the road and found Michael, who called a cab… which was faster than an ambulance.  He also was able to tell the cab where we needed to go.

We arrived at the walk-in clinic.  I went directly in to the front desk.  There were 3 people behind, and I asked the first person if she spoke English.  A little was her response.  I then told her that I had been having severe chest pains and was having troubles breathing.

Before I knew it, the other 2 people (one the doctor and the other an orderly) from the desk were leading me down a hall.  Helped me onto a bed; and had an EKG hooked up to me before Mike had even finished paying the cab driver.

Thankfully, I wasn’t having a heart attack.  Turns out that I had a muscle spam in my left chest cavity.  Within a few minutes I had 2 shots in my hip, one to relax the muscles and the other to open my air waves.  I began to instantly feel better. 

The doctor kept me hooked up to the EKG for about an hour; and commented that she felt like she was looking at the heart of a 15 year old and that I had 99% oxygen replacement in my lungs.  Boy was that good news!


The doctor, Brenda, that took care of me did an excellent job.  The clinic was small but very clean and well organized.  Turns out that I was the only patient, and she gave me care above and beyond.  Once I was stabilized, she asked me my name and then asked where I was from.  When I responded that I was from Canada, a big smile came upon her face and I quote “I love Canadians, you guys are all so friendly and polite”.  Made me feel good to hear that. 

My blood pressure did drop a bit while there; but an IV solution soon changed it back to normal.  110 over 60.  The total bill was $250 US and after talking to the insurance people last night;  a full refund will be issued upon filling out the forms after we get home.

Needless to say, I was pretty scared and had lots of horrible thoughts going through my head.  But I am thankful that it wasn’t anything serious.

On another note of health, Mike’s aunt Marie is in the hospital right now and could sure use some prayers, good thoughts and good energy to be sent her way. 

And from the time we got home late yesterday afternoon until we went to bed, mother nature entertained us with an amazing lighting show.  We even went up to the road at one point to watch it.

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Sportfishing on the Pacific

Yesterday, we checked another item off of our “bucket list”.  We spent the day sport fishing out on the Pacific Ocean.

On Sunday, we had walked downtown, to see the sunset, have dinner and talk to our tour guide friend Herman.  We told him that Mike’s 60th birthday was coming up this Thursday, and wanted to know what kind of a deal he could give us.

We settled on a full day of fishing for a great price; and bright and early Monday morning, the van came and picked us up.

We were joining a couple of guys from the U.S, Chris from Minneapolis; and Mike from Chicago.  It seems like almost every guy that we’ve met is a Mike.  Makes it easy to remember names.

We arrived at the drop off point and were water taxied out to our boat.  We were heading for the open ocean by 7:30 am.

By 8:30, we were “fishing”.  Well the lines had been baited and put out.  It was probably the easiest fishing trip that I’ve ever been on.  Didn’t have to touch any of the bait, or bait the line; and we didn’t even get to touch a rod. 

We had a really nice day out on the ocean.  Blue skies with just a bit of cloud.  And a really calm sea; which was a real treat.  And a couple of really nice guys to chat with.

The day couldn’t have been any better… except if we had actually caught something!  What a bummer… 8 hours spent trolling out on the sea… and nothing… not even a nibble.  There were roughly 30 boats out; and only 2 of them caught anything.  The day before, a 400 lb marlin had been caught. 

There were lots of fish jumping all around us; but none of them seemed to be hungry.  It was like they were teasing us.  A couple of times, we saw a school of sail fish.  4-6 of them in one spot.  Over we would go; and by the time we made it the area, they were gone.  A few minutes later, you would see them again in a new area, and if you looked real close… you could almost see them laughing at us.

We also had a school of dolphins swimming around us; and at one point, 3 of them swam under the boat at the same time.  It was pretty cool to see.  There were also countless turtles; floating out in the sea; one even had a freeloader… a bird was riding on it’s back.

We arrived back at the shore and were picked up by a van and driven back to Jaco.  The guys were all starving, so we headed to Rustico’s for dinner.  The food once again was great.  One of the workers has gotten to know us; and is always happy to see us; especially cause we keep on bringing new people with us.  Everyone that we’ve brought there so far also loves the food.

All in all it was a great early birthday present for Mike; and even though we were skunked, we still thoroughly enjoyed our day on the Pacific.

We were both thankful for the calm sea; as we were both “swaying” pretty good for most of last night.  Felt like the whole condo was riding the swells.  I also did something to my right heel; and since late yesterday afternoon; I’ve barely been able to walk.  Not sure what I did… but boy oh boy does it ever hurt.  It’s making it difficult to walk right now…cause I can’t put any pressure on the heel or walk on the ball of my foot… cause that makes it pull… what  dilemna.  Hope that this doesn’t last too long.

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Manuel Antonio Park

Mike, the owner of the condo that we’re renting, showed up on Tuesday.  We heard some noises coming from upstairs, and assumed it was him.  We went up sometime after dinner; and introduced ourselves.  Nice guy, and within a few minutes we hit it off.

He told us that some of his relatives were here from San Jose and that they were going to Manuel Antonio park on Friday; and asked if we wanted to come along for the day.

We packed a lunch; and headed out the door late morning; and arrived in Manuel Antonio about an hour later.  Nice drive along the way and Mike was able to give us some history about the area.

Within a few minutes of entering the park, we saw a 3 toed sloth.  He was pretty high up in the tree; and the only picture I got is a bit fuzzy, but it was still cool to see one.

We then continued along until we got to the beach.  We found a place to sit; had some lunch; and just enjoyed the beautiful beach.

After a while, Mike and I took a walk and came across some monkeys and raccoons.  There were half a dozen monkeys and just as many raccoons.  The monkeys were mostly up in the trees; and some had food that had been snatched from people.

We stood and watched their antics for a while; and then continued along our walk.  There were lots of young kids here; turns out that school children are on their summer break.  The weather is a lot nicer at this time of the year then in the summer months; so it makes sense that their school break is now; instead of during the rainy season.

I was surprised to see all the raccoons here.  They were very aggressive; and more than one tried to go after food brought by the people.  A few times, we watched as people tried, unsuccessfully, to shoo the coons away with a stick.  The coons here are also a lot skinnier here than at home. 

We left the park late afternoon; and went in search of a restaurant for dinner.  We finally found one that was right on the beach.  Kind of a strange place.  Figured it was the kind of place that the “Rubbles and Flintstones” would eat at.  The tables and chairs were all stone and very uncomfortable.  Guess its easier to take care of, being right on the beach.

The food was okay, and Mike’s cousin Joseph treated everybody, as well as us.  Very nice of him.  We left there, and headed to restaurant #2... Never before have I left one restaurant and gone directly to another.  Everybody ended up eating again… except for me and Mike. 

While the others were eating, Mike and I looked in some of the shops; and then headed across the street to watch the waves.  There were also a couple of bonfires going; and we stood for a minute to watch the fire.  Way to hot to stand close for too long; but it was nice to watch a fire.  One of the things we miss the most from home is our nightly campfires.

We arrived back in Jaco around 9pm and Mike took the first exit in to town.  Lots of people out and about.  Within a few minutes we started to see motor cycles.  There must have been a couple of hundred of them; some really nice looking. 

It was a little disconcerting to see the colours and names of “The Hells Angels” and “Bandidos”.  I’m sure that the hotels and restaurants downtown are thrilled though; as business would be hopping. 

Yesterday, Mike took us shopping to get a few things that we needed for the condo; we then picked up his 2 older cousins; and headed back downtown for dinner.  The whole main street of Jaco was alive with 1000’s of people.  We ended up finding a quiet little place and all chowed down on pizza.

Over all, it was a nice weekend; it was nice to finally meet Mike the owner; it was also really nice to finally get to Manuel Antonio park. 

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My Birthday in Los Suenos

On a cold winter night (-18c), in Fort William, Ontario, a beautiful baby girl was born on January 22.  And that's when I entered the world.  I weighed in at 8lb 5oz and was 24 inches long.  I was always grateful that I had long legs, never in my life have I had to have a pair of pants shortened.

For those of you who don’t know this, Fort William no longer exists.  It’s kind of cool to say that I was born in a place that is no longer.  On January 1, 1970, Fort William and Port Arthur, along with two townships, Neebing and McIntyre amalgamated and became known as Thunder Bay.

It’s hard to believe that 45 years have gone by.  And this birthday, was definitely the warmest I’ve had yet.  It was very overcast, but still 31 c.  A long way from those freezing cold ones up north.  Much prefer spending a winter birthday in shorts and t-shirts rather than parkas and long johns!

We had heard about this place called Los Suenos; a marina with boats to take out tourists.  We had looked on the map for it; and since it wasn’t listed, thought it was a small fishing village.

I couldn’t have been more wrong!  We called a cab and headed up the highway just a few minutes before we turned off heading towards the ocean.  A few minutes later, we turned into this absolutely beautiful resort.  Called Los Suenos.  And for the next few hours, we got a glimpse of how the wealthy live.

Along the way, there was one beautiful condo after the next; and according to our driver, the really “nice” houses were on a private road.  Apparently Michael Jordan has a place there; and prices were said to be in the millions.

We also passed the Marriot hotel complex, and were told that a night there is $500 plus.  We then drove to the dock; left our cab and started looking around.

There were lots of really really nice boats.  In fact there were 3 of them, that we figure we could afford about a half a tank worth of gas with our yearly income.  Oh to be that rich!

There was a Tiki Hut style restaurant that wasn’t open yet; but we poked our heads in to take a look.  The first entrée listed was filet mignon for $40.50 - Yikes!  Obviously we weren’t going to be eating here.

We headed out to the pier and found some rocks to sit on and just watch the comings of goings of a marina.  We even stopped at a fishing tour company and inquired about some prices.

First price was for a boat, 3 bedrooms and holds 6 people.  Full day $3595.00 - YIKES!!! The cheapest boat available for a half day was $995.  You guessed it… we didn’t go out for a fishing tour!

Around 4:00, the boats started coming in.  They used the dock closest to where we were sitting; as a drop off point.  And not one of the boats had a successful catch.  A couple of them had “bites”.  Seems like a lot of money to spend to have a “bite”.  But to live and play in this area, you have to have a lot of money; and for some of these people, 4 grand is just a drop in the bucket.

We headed over to The Hook Up for dinner.  It had been recommended to us; and turned out to be a good choice.  Most of the people in here seemed to know each other.  Lots of the boat captains; and many of their passengers.  The place was really hopping.  The food was great; and it didn’t cost an arm and a leg to eat there.

All in all it was a great birthday.

There was also a special birthday in our family on Friday.  Mike’s baby brother turned 50!!!  Tomorrow, our niece Stephanie turns 24; and on the 27th  the latest addition to the family turns 1.  We wish all a very happy birthday and hope that everyone enjoys their day.

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A visit to Carara National Park

Yesterday was spent at Carara National Park.  We got up, packed a lunch; and headed out the door shortly after 11 am.

We walked down to the highway; and luckily for us; there was a bus just a few feet up.  There is some road construction going on; and the bus was in a stopped line.  Worked out perfectly.

We spent roughly 20 minutes on the bus; and got to see some new parts of Costa Rica.  We had one quick stop in a small town; and it gave us a chance to see how the locals live.

This is when you realize how good we have it at home.  Even some of the poorest homes in Canada or the States are in better shape than a lot of what we saw.  Will definitely have to go back; get off the bus; and wander for a few hours.

We arrived at Carara National Park just before noon; paid our admission, got our map; and away we went for our first Costa Rican rain forest hike.  We had heard about this place; and the draw of lots of monkeys, plus a roosting site for macaws was definitely the main reason for going.

It was a pretty humid day to begin with; and within minutes of walking on the trail; we were both soaked.  Good thing that I bought a new bandana to help stop the sweat from pouring into my eyes.

The foliage was beautiful; very lush and green.  Reminded me of being in the Avenue of the Giants in California; or of being in Cathedral Grove on Vancouver Island, BC; and of the Achafalyan Basin in Louisiana. 

The huges trees in this park weren’t giant redwoods or cedars, but cypress trees and cashew trees.  Some of the roots along the trails were really high.  And standing next to some of the trees, you looked and felt pretty small. 

There were also tons of leaf cutter ant colonies.  And watching these critters in action is something else.  Walking along the trail you would see the ants, carrying leaves heading in one direction.  Some of these would be up to 6 inches deep; and the width of the trail.  Some of their nests were right up to the trail; and others were quite a way into the bush.  We must have seen at least a couple of dozen colonies in action; and it was pretty cool to watch.

The reason for heading to the park was of course to see the monkeys and macaws; but the total for monkeys in the park was 0; the total for macaws in the park was 0; the total for macaws outside the park; while waiting for a bus to take us home was 3.

Other than the ants, we also saw a lizard basking in the sun.  We’ve seen more macaws from our balcony than we did there.  But the hike was still nice and we enjoyed it.

Hopefully there’s more wildlife at Manuel Antonio, which were hoping to see by the end of this week.

We were both pretty tuckered out when we got home; and really really sweaty!  So needless to say, after each having a nice long shower; it was a pretty quiet evening.  In fact, I was in bed by 9:30.  Guess the 4 km long hike through a really humid rain forest just knocked it out of me. 

And although it's a day early, Mike and I want to wish my Dad a very happy birthday for tomorrow!  Hope that he has many more; and enjoys his day in Florida - Love you Dad!

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New Years in Jaco

It’s hard to believe that the first week of 2011 is already done.  Where does the time go? 

During the week between Christmas and New Years, there were an awful lot of fireworks being shot off on a nightly basis.  We wondered a few times what New Years was going to be like. 

We ended up seeing one of the best and longest fireworks displays… ever!  Shortly after dark, which was about 6 pm the fireworks started.  We couldn’t see all of them, but you could certainly hear them. 

At 11 pm, we watched the ball being dropped from Times Square.  And about 11:50 we headed upstairs to watch the ever increasing booms in the night sky. 

Didn’t matter which direction you looked; there were fireworks being shot off.  And when midnight struck - holy moly!  Never saw or heard that many being shot off at once.  We had a really nice view of two displays that were going off at the same time; and both were non-stop for a good 45 minutes or more. 

We headed to bed shortly after 1 am and were jostled awake a few times with more going off; and the last time Mike heard one, his watch read 5:15 am.  Guess Tico’s really like their fireworks; and love having a reason to shoot them off.

Years ago, I had an opportunity to watch the Benson and Hedges Symphony of Fire on the Toronto lakefront.  Until this recent display, that was the best fireworks that I had seen; but New Years in Jaco, Costa Rica topped it by a long shot!  It wasn’t a fancy choreographed production; but the length and the amount were amazing.  At least 15 - 20 displays being shot off at the same time; and that was only the ones that we could see.  Both mountains surrounding us; were lit up from the far side.  It was an amazing sight to see.

This past week; has mostly been spent lazing around the pool.  Now that it’s empty again.  Three times during the holidays we headed over, to look down and see 15 or more people.  Much more enjoyable when it’s just us.

On Tuesday, we headed down to the beach; and watched another spectacular sunset.  Strolled along the beach and then to Lemon Zest for some crème boulee; but unfortunately they didn’t have any. 

We then caught a cab; and when stepping up and in, I experienced one of the worst Charlie horses that I’ve ever had!  I had this excruciating pain rip through my right calf; and within seconds, also in my left one!  Ouch!!!  It’s a good thing our cab driver understood enough English; cause it made me yell out in pain; and he might have thought I was crazy or something. 

As a result of this, it’s been a quiet past week.  Other than hanging at the pool and out on our balcony.  You never know what you’re going to see out there.  Along with a slew of beautiful birds, we’ve had a hand glider, a helicopter and recently, a colony of leaf cutter ants.  We been entertained for a few hours, watching these amazing little critters destroy a couple of big leaves in a mere few hours.  I’ve got some pretty good shots of this.

And this morning, I was woken by a torrential downpour.  You couldn’t see the mountains, or hear anything except for the rain.  And just when you think it’s raining harder then you’ve ever heard, it rained even harder.  Lasted for roughly 3 hours; but by the time we got up it was over. 

At this time, we want to wish all of our family and friends a great new year.  Happy New Years one and all!

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Christmas in Costa Rica

Our 15th Christmas together was certainly a great one!  We spent the morning and part of the afternoon talking to many of our family and friends via skype.  What a great way to talk to loved ones; and we were even able to see some of their presents!  Thanks Dave! 

Then, late in the afternoon, we walked down to the beach.  It was by far the busiest day on the beach so far.  Lots of families playing, swimming, surfing and just plain old having fun!

We found a nice place to sit and watch the activities going on around us.  Lots of dogs playing in the waves too.  Many of them chasing… coconuts!  That’s right coconuts.  At home, people throw balls or Frisbees, but here, there’s so many coconuts on the beach, that that’s what people throw. 

There were also lots of people surfing; as the waves were plentiful; and I’m sure that one or more of those boards were Christmas presents. 

We sat and watched an incredible sunset; and then strolled up the beach and then along main street.  I was surprised at how many shops were open.  Our friend Herman was out selling tours, and wished us both a Feliz Navidad.

We continued on up main street until we arrived at Lemon Zest.  We met Nellie Lemon, the owner of this restaurant at the bank a few days earlier.  She is from Florida and was able to ask a few questions on our behalf.  She also told us that she and her husband ran this restaurant.  We had seen it advertised; and that’s where we chose to have our Christmas dinner.

And boy, was it ever good!  Mike had a yellow fin tuna steak; and I had filet mignon.  Both accompanied by a fruit smoothie.  And Mike had his all time favorite desert… crème broulee.  Although it wasn’t a traditional turkey feast with all the trimmings; this certainly was a yummy second choice.

A few friends have asked if we miss having a white Christmas.  And the answer to that is an emphatic NO!  I was born and raised in Northern Ontario; and have had my fair share of white Christmases.  In fact, the past 2 have also been white; and I much prefer being in the tropics.  This is in fact our first tropical Christmas (you can’t really count Florida as tropical, can you?)  And it was very different. 

Not many decorations up; and so many of the shops being open; it seemed like just another day.

Mike and I haven’t exchanged presents for a few years now; and enjoy the stress free Christmas that we have carved out for ourselves.  It works well for us; and don’t miss any of the pressures for a perfect Christmas.

Then on boxing day, sitting out on the balcony, I spotted a couple of scarlett macaws flying around in the trees just up the road from us.  Grabbed the camera, and off we went. 

There were two of them in this tree; and we had a pretty good vantage point; as we were above them.  Ended up watching them for about an hour.   The last shot that I took, the macaw moved as I was snapping.  So it’s not the greatest picture.  Just then, my camera lens closed; and the “change batteries” icon was displayed.

And at the exact moment when I was changing the batteries, that’s when the macaws decided to fly off!!!  The timing couldn’t have been any worse!  We had a beautiful vantage point; and they were spread out from tip to tail in absolute beautiful colours!  Hopefully, I get another chance to take a full shot of them.

And mother nature gave us another absolutely beautiful sunset last night.  We made it up to the road just in time to take a few shots of it.

All in all, Christmas in Costa Rica, was just absolutely perfect!  Hope that all of you had just as perfect a day.

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First Pacific Sunset

Not sure what has happened to this past week; but poof, just like that it’s gone.

Last Thursday, or maybe it was Friday; we decided to make an effort to watch our first sunset on the beach.  We headed downtown later in the afternoon; and ended up having dinner at… you guessed it… Rustico’s.  The food is so good there; and after looking at a few menu’s along the way; Rustico’s it was.

We then headed to the beach to watch the sunset.  Lots of people walking along; and some people up from us were having a bonfire on the beach.  There’s lots of burnable wood that’s on the beach; and it’s a good way to clean things up a bit.  The clouds helped add to the colours; and it was a nice way to spend another day in paradise.

Saturday and Sunday were pretty overcast, rainy days.  But on the brighter side of things, we talked to my family via skype on Saturday.  They were all together at my folks to celebrate Christmas.  Then it was another skype call to Mike’s family on Sunday.

We got up in the early hours on Monday to watch the lunar eclipse.  The “best” time to watch according to NBC was about 2:40 est.  We got upstairs to the road at about 2:30 and just the very bottom of the moon was still visible.  Most of the moon was red; and we watched for roughly half an hour; before the neck muscles started to hurt.  Did get to watch the whole thing on the news the next night; and it was pretty neat to see.

We were planning on heading to Manuel Antonio (big National Park) on Tuesday; but we were pretty tired from the night before.  We also needed to pay our rent; and that pretty much took care of Tuesday and Wednesday.  Long story, but we keep on being told that things happen differently in the tropics.  And I’m starting to believe it.  After 4 days of trying; we were successful by Wednesday afternoon. 

We also had 2 walks back and forth to downtown; and it was really hot here on both days.  By the time we got back yesterday; I was pooped and the idea of heading to the park today; was totally out of the question.  We’ll try again next week.

When we arrived home from the sunset on the beach; we had taken a cab; with lots of bags of groceries. Turns out that we had a “freeloader” sitting on the sill of our door.  Mike had put down his bags to unlock the door and reached in to flick on the lights.  I was right behind him; when I heard him say “Oh, wow, look at this”.  My first thought was that we had been robbed.  But nope, it was just a 3 inch scorpion.  Yep, you read that right… he came in with us.  And was heading into the apartment.

We put a pot lid on top of him; and took care of the groceries.  A few minutes later, Mike tried to get him into a plastic container; but no go.  He started to get away; on with the lid again.  Now what?  That’s when I suggested the tongs.  Mike got him in a tight hold; and as I was getting the patio door open; the little bugger got free; and was gone just like that!

Not sure where he went; and needless to say; for the next few days; we walked around inside with our heads down. 

We have seen lots of critters around here.  We have a couple of resident lizards inside our condo.  A couple of tree frogs that like to hang out on our balconies overhang at night.  Lots of birds that fly by; including a couple of macaws.  Almost every night at the same time; you can hear them coming.  They always fly in pairs; and are really noisy as they fly.  A pair of them flew by the other night; fairly close; and then turned and flew past a second time.  Up to this point; we thought that they were only red.  But on the second time by; we saw not only the red; but blue and fuscia yellow and green.  Pretty cool.  Hope to be able to get a shot of them real soon.  Haven’t seen the Tucan’s lately; but with spending the day at Manuel Antonio (real soon); we should be able to get some good pictures.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our family and friends a very Merry Christmas.  Feliz Navidad everybody!

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Beautiful Sunsets and Sunrises

Last Friday was the first day that we had our toes in the Pacific.  And much to our surprise, it was a lot warmer than either of us thought it would be.

We headed down to the beach in the afternoon; and found a nice little quiet spot; and sat on a log and watched the waves.  There was a man up the beach from us a bit; and he had 3 dogs with him.  The 2 bigger ones had no problems going into the ocean; but the little one wanted nothing to do with the water.  It was fun watching the antics. 

There doesn’t seem to be any dog laws in Jaco.  We have seen countless dogs walking around the streets.  Some with collars, but a lot without.  We haven’t had any problems with any of them being aggressive.  And it was nice to see the dogs on the beach.  At home, there’s a lot of places that you can’t bring your animals.

We continued strolling up the beach; and then headed for our favourite smoothie place.  We had also been told about a grocery store downtown.  Much bigger selection and the prices were comparable to the other place.  This time, no overcharges, and the cab ride was $5.00. 

A few weeks before arriving in Costa Rica; there was a big storm that went through.  Tore up parts of the highway; and did lots of damage.  Glad that we weren’t here for that.  The road leading up into our complex was in pretty rough shape.  Big gouges in the road; and the drive up with a cab was usually pretty interesting.  The other day we walked down; and it had been graded.  What a big difference, not only for walking on it; but the last cab ride home was way less bumpy than usual.

We also found a new way to walk to the grocery store.  We don’t have to walk on the highway anymore.  But we do have to walk up the hill to our place.  Thankfully, the road levels out just as your legs are at the screaming point.  Then as you’re getting closer to the condo, one more hill to go down, then straight up to our place.  Like I’ve said before… no need for a gym membership here.

Last night, we were entertained by a beautiful sunset.  The sun lit up the clouds over the mountains; and it made for a nice photo op for a while.

Then early this morning - 4:15 am to be exact, we got up to watch the meteor shower.  We had a nice patch of open sky above us; and after watching from the balcony for a few minutes; we headed up to the road.  Ended up seeing about 25 in total. 

We also noticed for the first time since being here; the big dipper.  Mike had thought that we wouldn’t see it because of being so far south.  But turns out, we just weren’t up late or early enough.

Mike went back to bed shortly after 5 and I sat on the balcony; listening to nature and the waves hitting the shore.  And just as the colourful sunrise started; I woke Mike up; and the two of us were once again entertained by mother nature’s magical beauty.

Some of you know that I wear a red-tinted sun glass; and boy does it ever add beautiful colours.  I’ve shared that with a few of you over the years.  Well with my glasses, the sunrise looked like hot lava.  What a great way to start the day.  Of course, I went back to bed and got up at a more reasonable hour… well for me anyway.

We were back at the pool for a few hours today.  The rain seems to have come to a stop; and the past few days have found us at the pool.  It’s a great way to cool off.

Click here to take a look at our pictures.

Escaped Just in Time

From the looks of things at home; we got out of there just in time!  It’s been snowing in London, Ontario since Sunday; and as you can see in some of the pictures being sent to us; they’ve got waist high snow; and it’s not over yet.

It sounds like the city has been almost shut down.  I’ve been seeing the “cheers” about no school or work for many on Face Book.  With this much snow, it certainly does help one get into the upcoming Christmas spirit.  So look on the bright side of things… an extra short work/school week; more time to bake all those Christmas treats and decorate the inside for the holidays. 

Saturday night, we watched quite the fire works display off our balcony.  We finally went up to the road, just in time for the finale.  Huge bursts of red, white and green fireworks for at least 10 minutes.  Then about 10 minutes later, it started up again.  Not sure what the celebration was, but it was nice to watch.

We were back at the grocery store on Sunday to return our blender.  And apparently the “Taurus” brand that we bought, turned out not to be such a good product.  Another lady was standing in line to return a Taurus coffee pot. 

We also found out that the cashier overcharged us for our bottled water.  We buy 2 cases of 6 bottles at a time.  Instead of charging us for 12 bottles, she charged us for 24.  Hope that was the only time.

The only reason I noticed this is because we needed to return the blender; and the water was on the same bill.  I got looking at it; and realized the overcharge. 

When we arrived at the customer service desk; a man came over and started speaking Spanish to us.  I told him, that I only speak English.  He said no problem; then turned back and asked if we were Americans, I said no, Canadians.  He then smiled; and said he’d be right back.

He sent Ricardo over to us; and thankfully his English was way better than my Spanish.  I explained that the blender started to leak within a few seconds of use; and then a piece went flying off.  No problem he said, we could get another of the same or upgrade to a better one.  I also then explained about the water overcharge.  Without hesitation, he also refunded the overcharge on the water. 

We upgraded to a much better blender, bought a loaf of bread, a container of milk; and the difference was about $2.20.  We’ve made fruit smoothies every day since; and the new blender works like a charm.

Sunday, there were Mayoral elections being held.  And for most of the day; people were driving around, honking their horns, waving their flags, playing music; and just plain old celebrating. 

A couple of times there were parades of cars going up and down the boulevard in front of us; and also along the highway.  Lots of happy cheers.

And today; as London was being dumped on; we took a walk around our complex again; and took some pictures of some of the beautiful foliage around here. 

Hopefully, it’ll help with some of our family and friends.  They can dream about the tropics; and hopefully warm up a little.

To warm up, take a look at our pictures

Still Raining

Another week flew by in Costa Rica.  I would recommend to anybody who wants to vacation here, to wait until after the rainy season is done.  We have had rain everyday since arriving on the coast.  So far we’ve only been caught in it once. 

It’s usually sometime in the afternoon; and it’s very refreshing to have the humidity let up while it’s raining.  We aren’t complaining though… cause it’s way better than snow.  Looks like we escaped just at the right time.

We have our own washer/dryer in our condo; and it was an added extra bonus.  I've been using a laundry mat for 4 ½ years; and it’s wonderful to have on-site facilities.  So that’s what we did on Tuesday, some laundry and some cleaning.  And a relaxing day for the rest.

A few weeks back we needed to get some money out; and it was our first introduction to the banking system here.  Very small bank; with an armed guard, who opened the door for us.  He then asked us to remove our hats.  There was only one teller; and he was behind bullet proof glass.  We were the only ones in there.  Only problem was, they wouldn’t let us take money out of our account, only off the credit card.  And they didn’t have a bank machine.

On Wednesday, we needed to get some more cash out; and stopped at the first bank that we came across.  This time there was a bank machine; but you can only get US funds or colones.  You get more colones for a USD than a Canadian dollar.

So into the bank we went.  This time, as the 2 armed guards were pointing at our hats, we were one step ahead, and the hats were already in the process of being removed.  Guess a hat obscures your face too much; if you were ever stupid enough to try to rob a bank here!

This time we were also wanded down and I was asked to open my bag.  There were lots of people in the bank, but the air conditioning felt sooo good after a long walk; that we decided to wait.  The guard directed us to a machine; where we got our number.  Then he pointed to chairs; and indicated that we sit.  Kind of reminded me of waiting at the passport office, or to renew your drivers license.

It’s a good thing that there were chairs and that it was cool in there, cause it took us 45 minutes to change some US funds to colones.  Also, nobody stands in the bank, except if your already at the teller.  Like I said, you’d have to be a “few bricks short of a load” to try and rob a bank here.

Mind you, you also have to be very patient.  The tellers and slow and even our simple transaction took the better part of 5 minutes.

We then continued on to walk the rest of main street.  We were hoping to stop and get a fruit smoothie, but they were closed.  So onto the post office we continued… which was a the opposite end of town.  Off the main street, in a dilapidated old building.  Costs more for 8 stamps then it did for 2 smoothies.  Then off to Rustico's for another delicious dinner.  $8.00 for both, and that includes a huge plate and a drink! 

And today we headed back to the grocery store for a few more things.  We decided to buy a blender to make our own smoothies; and don’t you know, the thing broke within the first few minutes.  Guess we’ll be back there tomorrow to get another one.  We did manage to puree the fruit enough, but something else was missing; and it wasn’t near as good as the place downtown.  But we’ve got 5 more months to master making a smoothie.  Any suggestions out there in blog land for a fruit smoothie?

Take a look at our pictures.

Living in Paradise

Well, we’ve been on our own for an entire week.  And so far, so good.

We ventured into town last Monday, and took in the sights and sounds of downtown Jaco.  Very reminiscent of most beach communities.  Lots of shops selling their wares on both sides of the street.

From our condo to the edge of town is roughly a half an hour walk.  Once on the main street, we slow down and just stroll taking in as much as possible. 

That first afternoon, a man was selling adventure tours.  We said no thanks; and continued on walking.  He then asked if we were from Canada.  Which we responded yes to.  He had noticed the Canadian flag pin on Mike’s Tilley hat.  Turns out he lived in Vancouver, BC for a few years.  Herman already asked for the pin; which we will give him, but not until we leave here. 

I do get a kick when people ask where were from and we respond Canada.  They then ask where in Canada; and we say London, Ontario.  Which, usually brings on a response of “London, England, I thought you said you lived in Canada?”  Much easier just to say we live in Toronto.  Everybody knows about Toronto.  And this isn’t just people here… many Americans have asked the same thing.

On Tuesday, we walked around our complex just checking things out.  We live up a hill; and there’s a few more complexes, plus a couple of fancy hotels all in the same area.  By the time we got back to our place, we were in desperate need of a shower.  Everything seems uphill around here; plus throw in high humidity; and boy oh boy the sweat just pours off of us!

Wednesday, we hiked to the grocery store.  It’s only about a 20 minute walk from here.  Found a nice short cut, down the stairs for our pool; down a short hill and then it’s only another 700 metres up the road. 

Thursday, we spent some time lounging at the pool.  It’s three condos over from us; but 65 stairs down a switch back concrete staircase.  Can’t see a need to have a gym membership here; you get quite the work out just opening the front door.  It’s 3 levels up to the road.

Friday, we discovered an unsecured internet connection at the complex across from us.  Posted the blog; and then made some Skype phone calls.  It was wonderful to talk to so many of our family and friends. 

While on the phone to Dave, Mike’s youngest brother, a Tucan flew right past us and landed in a tree.  But unfortunately the camera was at home.  It’s the second time we’ve seen Tucan’s over at that pool complex, and I’m sure we’ll get a shot sooner or later.

Saturday, we walked back downtown.  We stopped and talked to Herman again, and asked him where the locals ate.  He told us about a place called Rustico. 

We continued on down the main street; stopping again for a fresh fruit smoothie.  This time pineapple, banana and strawberry… boy what a refreshing drink after a long, hot walk.

We then continued on til the end of the main street and headed towards the ocean.  Watched a few surfers and families playing on the beach; and then found our way to Rustico.  Discovered very quickly why the locals ate there.  The food was amazing!!!  It was about 4:00 in the afternoon, there wasn’t a seat to be found; and a line-up out the door.

Mike had a bowl of seafood soup that was enough to feed a small family; plus he helped me eat most of my dinner.  Rice, beans, beef, fried plantains and salad.  The portions here are huge; and so far we haven’t spent more than $10 on a meal and that includes your drink!

Sunday, we did a whole bunch of nothing.  In fact I didn’t even get out of my p.j.’s yesterday.  We had been on the “go” since before leaving home; and a day of doing nothing was much needed. 

There was some kind of street party going on downtown.  We could hear music and drums from our balcony.  But the day was very overcast and had been raining on and off since getting up.

Last night we had our clearest night so far.  And there are some beautiful constellations in the sky.  Don’t know what any of them our.  Guess we’ll have to get out a star chart so that we know what were looking at.

And today, we were up and out the door shortly before 10; heading to the grocery store for a few things.  We had worn our bathing suits under our clothes; and stopped at our pool on our way back.  Again we were soaked from the sweat; and the cool pool felt wonderful!

We have turned into morning people since being here.  Mike and I have always been night owls; and we find by 10 pm, we can hardly keep our eyes open.  Most mornings, were up and ready to face the day by 7 am.

And today, we got our cable and internet.  Most of the stations are in Spanish, but there’s a few in English. 

Oh, yeah, and for a cab ride home from either downtown or the grocery store, is $3.00.  Don’t think you can even open a cab door at home for less than $5.00.  And it’s well worth the price, for the cab to take us and our groceries up the long hill from the road!

Take a look at our pictures

First Week in Costa Rica

It’s hard to believe that we’ve been in Costa Rica for over a week already.  It still feels like we’re dreaming.

Mike’s brother Ken drove us to Toronto on November 15th to begin our Costa Rican adventure.  It seemed fitting, as we drove Ken and Calen to the Toronto airport to begin their adventure summer of 09.  We were up bright and early and headed to the airport shortly after 4:00 am.

We sailed through customs and security and then flew out at 6:30 am.  I had never flown over Toronto with the city lit up; and it was quite pretty to see.  Within a few minutes we were over Lake Ontario; and then a short 2 and a half hours later in Atlanta, Georgia. 

We barely had enough time to get to our connecting flight.  In fact, they had already called the final call by the time we got there.

The flight went well; and we were greeted to a warm, sunny afternoon upon arriving in Costa Rica.  Mike’s luggage got lost somewhere along the way; but it was delivered to our hotel the next afternoon.

We stayed at the Best Western Irazu and it turned out to be a good choice.  On the first afternoon, we started walking around; and found a small mall beside our hotel.  In the mall was a realty office; we were looking at some of their properties, when Tom from Georgia came out to say hello.  We told him that we were looking for a short term (3-6 months) condo rental. 

He had a couple for us to see.  And one of his agents, Merari, was asked to show them to us.  This young lady, turned out to be more help then we could have possibly hoped for.  Her English was very good; and she was quite eager to help.  She had a couple of places in mind; and was confident that we would take one of them.  Having found a agent to help us so quickly; freed up the rest of our time in San Jose.

Wednesday, we took a cab to Sabana Park; and enjoyed strolling around for the afternoon.  We stopped to watch some locals playing soccer.  We then had a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice from a vendor.  And we just took in the sites and sounds of San Jose. 

After walking back to our hotel; we had an hour or so before happy hour started in the bar.  That’s where me met Jeff and Cathy from Port Elgin, Ontario.  We shared all kinds of stories and ended up joining them for dinner.

After dinner, we headed down to the hot tub; and soaked away the days walk.  Also met Canadian Gilles, who turns out to be renting not far from us.

Then early Thursday morning; Merari, our agent picked us up; and off to the coast we went.

The drive was very beautiful through the country side of Costa Rica.  And I was glad to be a passenger and take in the scenery. 

The first rental that she showed us turned out to be the one that we took.  It’s in a little beach community of Jaco (hawk-o).  Our condo is owned by a Canadian named Mike - how ironic is that?!? 

We have the lower unit; of this 2 story chalet.  We’re on the side of a hill; with a private balcony looking directly into beautiful, lush green foliage and a mountain.  Pretty nice! 

The town of Jaco itself is about an hour walk from here; but it’s nice to be away from the noise. 

Merari ended up staying for the weekend; in the unit upstairs.  On Friday we took care of the rent details; and she helped get the cable/internet ordered for us.  It was supposed to be here by today; but looks like that’s not going to happen.  Another neighbour in the complex is also waiting for his; and said a week here isn’t like a week back home.

Merari also took us to the grocery store and made us dinner on our first night here.  She made us a local delicacy, ceviche.  Which is fished “cooked” in lemon juice with spices and vegetables.  The fish is only cooked by the acid of the lemon.  A little different for my taste buds.  She also went shopping for us; and got us a TV, a slow cooker (to cook beans in, which she also showed us how to do); and a patio table for our balcony.  Of course, this was all on Mike’s (owner) nickel.

So far, the hottest part of the day is first thing in the morning.  Our balcony is facing East and we get the early sun.  And boy, oh boy, is it ever hot!  Seems though, that that is the hottest part of the day so far.  By mid to late afternoon, the skies open up and the rains come.  Since being in the condo, it has rained at some point everyday. 

We’ve also had ourselves a few really nice lightning shows.  Our balcony is perfect for storm watching; and we’re nicely protected from the rain.

On Monday, we walked into town; and spent the afternoon looking in shops.  We also stopped and had ourselves a fruit smoothie; and watched all sorts of people on the street.  And so far, we’ve been able to get along with just English.  A lot of people that we’ve had to communicate with, have some degree of English.  Hopefully, we’ll start to understand some Spanish as the time goes on.

Please take a look at our pictures

Decisions... Decisions

By now we should have already been long gone.  We were supposed to have left Ontario back on October 31st.  Destination was supposed to be Oklahoma City first; to meet some new friends of ours; and then we were supposed to head to Texas.  This is the second time that we've planned a winter in Texas.  And this is the second time that that isn't going to happen.

We've been having some problems with our truck; and decided to have it looked at one more time before heading out.  Boy, was that a good decision.  It turns out that we need a new engine!  But that's not all.  We apparently have a blockage of some sort in the coolant system.  Because of this, we had too much pressure, which in turn messed up our torque converter; which in turn messed up the crankshaft; which in turn messed up the engine.  Kind of reminds me of  "the ankle is connected to the shin bone, the shin bone is connected to the..." well most of you would remember that.  I have learned more about diesel trucks and engines than I ever cared to in this past while; and know that any way we choose to go equals expensive!

If we choose to only put a re-built engine in, then we're back to square one.  So that means fixing everything; and the cost of this is astronomical.  We've been quoted up to $12,000 to do this - yikes!  Our other options are to  trade our truck in and hope that the next one is okay; or to buy brand spanking new. What to do, what to do.

So... after much consideration, we've decided to go and bury our heads in the sand for the next six months.  Literally.  We're heading to Costa Rica this Tuesday morning; and we'll figure out what to do with this truck in the spring. 

As I write this blog, the rig has been winterized; the truck has been parked; and our bags are packed.  We are house sitting in London for the weekend; and will leave on Monday night to head to Toronto.  We fly out bright and early on Tuesday morning; and will arrive in Costa Rica by early afternoon.

We can hardly wait!  We even stopped at Chapters today and bought ourselves an English to Spanish dictionary.  Might come in handy, as neither of us speaks any Spanish.  But the name of our blog is Adventures with MnM and we are about to go on one heck of an adventure!  This feels like Molly's last gift to us; the freedom to go and adventure abroad.  Wish us luck.

Thank You

Mike and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to all our family, friends and strangers that have sent heartfelt messages to us about Molly.  It has touched our hearts to know that she touched so many.  I was in tears by the time I finished reading each message; but it's all part of the healing process, and it's helped greatly.

We would also like to thank the staff at Abbeydale Animal Clinic in St. Thomas.  Molly's very first visit was there; and although the staff has changed over the years; the care that we have received over the years was great.  A special thanks to Dr. Yvonne Ennis for helping Molly (and us) make the transition to dog heaven a little easier. 

Even today when we went in to settle the bill and get her clay paw print, they showed nothing but care and concern.  I would recommend this clinic to anybody.

Now for a few more "fun" facts about Molly.

When she was a year old, we found out that Molly was the most popular name for female dogs in 1999.  We met at least a dozen Molly's over the years.

She was small but mighty when she first came to us.  And Mike loved to do his magic tricks on her and tease her.  She loved to tease him right back but when she had enough she had no problem letting Mike know.  Whoever said that dogs can't talk never owned a dog.

A few of you asked about Molly's nicknames.  Mollygirl, cause that's what she was... our Mollygirl.  The Mollster, cause that suited her.  Pita stood for Pain in the ass, which on many occasions she was.  Houdini because she was great at disappearing into the night.  Snorty Snorterson was because she would snort if she didn't like something.  And Mutt... well she was a cup of lab, a tablespoon of shepherd, a dash of collie and a pinch of husky... add it all up and she's 100% mutt.  You should have seen some of the looks people gave me when I called her that.  But she was our mutt and we loved her.

Molly was a very kind, submissive dog; and we're proud to say that in her lifetime she never once snarled, bared teeth, nipped or bit a human or another animal.  She was just a happy well tempered dog.

Over the years, people would cross the street or a park to come and comment on her.  And although people seemed to line up to pat her, unless you had food, she wasn't much interested.  If you did have treats or food, then you had a friend for life.

Her favorite time of the year was the fall and winter.  She would walk off trail through piles of leaves and romp in the snow til she looked like a snowman. 

She brought a lot of pleasure into our lives.  And she will be greatly missed by both of us.  It's already way to quiet around here. 

Again, thank you to all for your comments,

Love and hugs, MnM

A Tribute to our Molly

I would like to take this opportunity to tell you about the life of our wonderful dog Molly.

The week before Christmas of 1999; we had the chance to rescue a puppy from a not very good situation. After some discussion; a little brown bundle of energy came into our lives. She wasn't quite 6 weeks old and weighed about 5 and a half pounds. Barely old enough to be weaned. Molly was the first name that came to mind; and after an hour or so of tossing around names, she became our Molly.

She answered to many names over the years; Molly girl, the Mollster, Mutt, Pita, Houdini and Snorty Snorterson; just to name a few.

The first few weeks with a new puppy was a lot of fun. She was the runt of her litter; and was used to being pushed aside at feeding time. That wasn't the case at her new home; and it was quite comical watching her eat. She was so little that she would end up standing in her bowl to get to the pieces that she had pushed with her nose. Little sips of water in between. She was so dainty. Of course, that changed over time; and she would gulp her food down pretty quick. She always came over to both of us afterwards to thank us.

The first lake that Molly swam in was Lake Erie. That would be the first of many swims. She is the only dog I know that has been in 3 of the Great Lakes - Erie, Huron and Superior. She has swam in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Gulf of Mexico. Also along the way, she swam in the Bay of Fundy and the Colorado River. And she has had her paws in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Plus many lakes, rivers and streams in between.

Mike and I were avid campers; and the first time we took Molly camping, we weren't sure how it would go. We headed up to McGregor Point on the long weekend that first May; and she took to camping like a duck to water. This is where she received Houdini as one of her nicknames. The first night; we had just gotten all tucked in and turned off the lights. Within a few seconds it sounded like a huge animal or person was walking close to our tent. Got up, turned on the lights, and Molly wasn't in the tent?!? Unbeknownst to us, she had put a hole in the side of the tent; and had gone back outside. Because of her dark fur, she also blended into the night and many times sitting around a campfire, we had to really look to see her.

In all the years that we interior camped with our canoe; she only ever tipped us once. Mike had gotten out to look for a well camoflaged portage and Molly jumped out to follow. Over the canoe went, with all of our stuff and me! But thankfully we were on a small lake, at the shoreline.

The first time in the canoe, she was snoring along with her chin resting on the gunnels, when all of a sudden, she spotted a couple of deer on the shore. She never did bark at them, but did a low, gutteral growl instead. It was pretty funny, she was a tenth of the size of the deer.

I can't begin to add up the kilometres that Molly has put on over the years. Whether it was from all the drives for the many camping trips, plus the last 4 years of full time rving; or from all the hikes that she went on. For the first 7 years of her life; most weekends we took her to a conservation area. The walk took us about an hour; and she did it 10 times to our once. From the start of the walk, she was either running full tilt after her frisbee, which she loved; or chasing squirrels or rabbits. She was great at catching the frisbee, but never did catch a squirrel. But I gotta give her an A+ for trying.

Molly came nose to nose with a Massassauga Rattler and a tarantula, but luckily nothing bad happened. And in all the years that we had her, she never got sprayed by a skunk. Came real close to that happening this past spring, but lucky for us, the skunk went a different way.

The first time that we had Molly in the desert, we hadn't gotten more than a few feet away from the truck, when she came back with half a dozen cactus "bulbs" stuck in her fur. I had holes in my fingers for weeks after I pulled them out of her.

Molly was always an avid traveler, and as long as we were there, she didn't care where we were. Over the years, Molly has been in 8 Provinces and 29 States. When we first started this lifestyle; she would get really anxious when it was time to leave. But once she was in the truck; she was a happy girl. She knew that she was coming with us; and wouldn't be forgotten.

A few years ago, Molly had a bad injury to her back legs, and that seemed to be the beginning of the end. The past year or so has been hard on her; and despite giving her shark cartiledge and glucosamine, old age and arthritis caught up. She was having a lot of problems with walking and negotiating the stairs into our place had become a challenge.

On October 25th, Mike and I were both with her when she passed on to dog heaven. She will always have a special place in our hearts and we will both miss her greatly.

Please take a look at some of our favourite pictures of her

Summer of 2010

It just seemed liked yesterday when we arrived home from Florida. And here it is middle of October, and we leave in less than 2 weeks. Where did the time go?

The summer of 2010 just flew by for us. We have lots of family and friends in this area; and it seemed to be non stop visiting, parties, dinners... etc...etc.

We had Rob and Emalynn join us from BC for a few weeks; then a couple of our nieces spent a week with us. Lots of days at the beach during that time.

My long time friend Claudia and her kids came for a overnighter. And the list just keeps on going.

Don't forget the poker tournaments that we held at our park; plus lots of cards nights with Ken/Rosie and Tina/Randy.

Then just a few nights ago; I threw a early 60th surprise birthday party for Mike. He actually doesn't turn 60 until February, but by then we'll be deep in the heart of Texas.

To get Mike out of the house for a few hours, me and Mike's sister and sisters-in-law sent Mike and his brothers Ken and Dave out for a horse back ride. They spent an hour out at the Horseshoe J Dude Ranch in Iona Station.

Mike frequented the ranch for many years, and he figured that its been close to 40 years since the first time he went there. Like I said at the beginning of this post... where does the time go?

When the boys returned to the park; there were close to 20 family and friends waiting at the rec hall to help Mike celebrate. He was very surprised. It's always great when a surprise party is just that... a surprise. But then again, his birthdays not til February.

A great time was had by all. And mother nature made for a beautiful fall night to sit with good friends around a campfire.

Take a look at our pictures taken during this time

June til... Now

I know that's it's been forever since I wrote a blog; so I'll give you a quick recap of what we we're doing from the summer til now.

We set up home for the summer out at Trout Haven Park in Strathroy. It's a great park; and conveniently located to a lot of our family and friends.

We have a lot of family/friends in this area; and most of the summer was spent visiting and playing cards. Fortunately for us; lots of our family and friends are card players, and both of us got our fill. We spent a lot of nights at either Ken/Rosie's for pepper; or Tina/Randy for Blak-bone. Lots of fun.

We had a couple of nieces spend a few nights with us in July and both Megan and Jamana had a lot of fun. Mike's brother Ken and his son Calen, headed off on an adventure of a lifetime; and spent 5 weeks driving from London England to Ulaan Bataar Mongolia as part of the Mongol Rally. We had the pleasure of driving the first leg of the rally, by taking them to Pearson International in Toronto; and 5 weeks later, drove the last leg, by picking them up.

We also had a lot of visitors out to the park; and we managed to burn roughly 4 truck loads of wood. All in all, it was a great summer that went by way too fast!

At the end of October, we winterized our rig and moved into my folks apartment, downtown London. We really wanted to be in Canada to watch the upcoming Olympics, and their apartment is empty in the winter. I also had a girls weekend with some old friends from highschool. Reconnected with these girls through Face Book; and it was nice catching up.

December 5th, we got a phone call early in the morning; and our winter plans we're about to quickly change. My Dad was having some health issues; and ended up being medi-vacked home. He's doing great; but his insurance won't let him go back to Florida for the rest of the year. So... that's where this blog is being updated from.

Fortunately for us, we just "happened to be free" and we're more than happy to house sit for them in Florida. We arrived late morning on Sunday (Jan. 24th) to a balmy 78 degrees; and will be here until the end of April. Luckily we'll still be able to watch the olympics.

On December 22nd, my friend Jenn and I took part in the Community Olympic event in St. Thomas. There were 1000's of people who came out to take part in the flame relay. Then a few days later, on December 24th, Mike and I watched the flame come up Wellington Road in London, being carried by... Santa Claus! There was a pass off right in front of us; and it was pretty cool to take place in Olympic history. Can't wait for the Olympics to begin.

And yesterday, our niece Natalie, gave birth to a 7lb 10oz baby boy! Way to go Natalie! Can't wait to see the pictures. According to grandma; mom and baby are both well; and she should be home tonight.

Molly is still with us and doing great. Still a little slow; and completely deaf now; but she's still motoring along and doing just fine.

Well that pretty much catches up the past few months. Will try to do a blog more often.

Take a look at our pictures