"I'm sitting here on the beach." - Neil Young
This will be the last transmission on this, Chris and Deb's 2007 Travelogue, and we will be deleting it very soon. For those of you who don't already know, we are back home in Calgary, in transit to Regina.
Our trip ended with a week in Lagos, Portugal, a small touristy town where most everyone spoke english. We spent the majority of our time lying on the beach, surrounded by towering grottos and caves, listening to music, reading, and doing the things that we like to do (not catching trains, or running across busy streets).
After our time in Lagos we had a marathon trip back to Calgary. We left from Lagos on a train early in the morning, which was to take us to Lisbon. When we got to Lisbon, took a bus to the airport. Waited there for three hours. Flew to London. Waited in London for 14 hours (overnight). Flew London to Calgary (elapsed time: 9.5 hours). Then, alas, after 36 hours of being homeless, we were in our Home and Native Land. So here we are, signals fading, losing transmission...
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Chapter 4 : England... (Pt. 1) : The First Few Days
(Lost) In London
Lost in London, in the rain
Don´t have any change to get on the train
Through Piccadilly to Regent´s Park
Down the rainy streets till the sky turned dark
Down the windy roads to Oxford St.
With sopping pants and shoes soaked to my feet
We weave in and out, around and about
And the rains keep falling from Heaven, like a shout
We cut through Hyde Park to save some time
But we are helpless to the darkness the way wind blows through chimes
Along Kensington High Street back by the shops
Until we finally came closer on the quiet city block
Along Kensington High Street back by the shops
Until we finally came closer on the quiet city block
When we first arrived in England we went to where EVERYBODY goes when they go to England. Yes, you guessed in swinging London. Upon arrival we were greeting by the welcoming arms of jet lag, and lay helpless in there for the next few days. We saw all the things that EVERYONE sees in London, i.e.. Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul´s Cathedral, etc... We noticed one thing in particular about London, and England as a whole, that is: they do everything small. The roads are small, the stores are small, the houses are small, everything seems smaller, everything except the exchange rate (which may or may not come into play later on in the story). After a few days in London we went to meet one of Debbie´s friends, one Katherine Wignall.
We took the train to Peterborough, where we were greeted at the train station by her and her parents. ¨Happy anniversary!¨ they exclaimed. We had forgotten our own first anniversary. So we were then whisked away to Katherine and Jody´s (Jody is Katherine´s new fiancee) home in Holbeach. Where we ´holed.´ Their genuine hospitality made us feel as though we were at home, so we had no problem resting. Thank you very much Katherine and Jody.
Highlights of England (off the top of our head):
- Jody saying that he speaks the ´Queen´s´ english, insinuating that our english is some adulterated version.
- ´The Fighting Cock´pub. Enjoying a great pint of beer with Katherine´s dad, Danny, and talking about Bob Dylan. As well, going to York.
- Deb really enjoyed seeing her friends that she met ages ago in Australia. David and Aaron, who came to see her and Katherine.
- An authentic English tea experience in Harrogate with Katherine´s extremely generous aunt and uncle, John and Cynthia. Now we have become addicted to scones.
- Going to the Peak District with David, his fiancee Angela, and their zany friend Gary. We really enjoyed this adventure.
¨Now, I sit here broken-hearted,
Paid a nickel* and only farted.
I think next time I´ll take a chance
Even if that means _____ing** my pants.¨
* roughly $0.50 CDN with exchange rate.
** substitute blank with whichever word you find the most humorous.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Chapter 3 : Amsterdam : ¨The Pangs Of Your Sadness Will Pass¨
¨We´ve got time to kill, what a thrill,
Come on give it a try.¨- R. Robertson
We spent the last few days in Amsterdam. People from Amsterdam say that God made the rest of the world, while they made Amsterdam. That seems to make sense in some way. A very humanistic city, the only thing they don´t tolerate is intolerance, which is a statement that speaks for itself. It is a very picturesque city. The sounds can be a soundtrack to some kind of movie, and everyone you see all around you are actors in the movie. Most are just playing the role they were given, not the one they would chose. Another interesting fact, is they purposely built a huge Church in the middle of the Red-Light District. You see, when the sailors came in (Amsterdam was a huge port city way back when) they had time and money to kill, so naturally the would want to spend their money on women and booze (I´m sure just squandering the rest), which can easily be arranged in the Red-Light District. Now, the Church was erected in this strategic spot so that when the sailors went back out to sea they could go and confess their sins to the priest, needless to say they would want God´s blessing while they were at sea. The priest would then tell them how much money he thought they had to pay to have their sins forgiven, this was called an indulgence tax. So basically that Church was a money grab, or a old time tourist trap.
We took a ride up some of the canals on a little boat. It was neat. There are 100km of canal waters within Amsterdam, as well as 1000 bridges.
Amsterdam is a great place. It´s like Vancouver without the annoying hipsters. The people are cool, not because they are trying to be cool. They´re actually cool because they don´t care if they´re cool or not, which makes them cool. They all ride bikes, and talk in Dutch.
We lleft Amsterdam yesterday on a train. Long story short we are now in San Sabastien, Spain, and haven´t slept yet. We are probably just going to hang out here in Spain for awhile. Relax, soak up some sun, and get out of the hustle that we´ve felt for so long. So we´re off for now to enjoy a warm bed (hopefully). Audious.
Chris and Deb
PS. We are planning on writing about some of the other stuff we have done, but haven´t gotten around to it yet. But we´re okay, and will write more later.
PPS. Whenever life is lonely you can always go downtown.
Come on give it a try.¨- R. Robertson
We spent the last few days in Amsterdam. People from Amsterdam say that God made the rest of the world, while they made Amsterdam. That seems to make sense in some way. A very humanistic city, the only thing they don´t tolerate is intolerance, which is a statement that speaks for itself. It is a very picturesque city. The sounds can be a soundtrack to some kind of movie, and everyone you see all around you are actors in the movie. Most are just playing the role they were given, not the one they would chose. Another interesting fact, is they purposely built a huge Church in the middle of the Red-Light District. You see, when the sailors came in (Amsterdam was a huge port city way back when) they had time and money to kill, so naturally the would want to spend their money on women and booze (I´m sure just squandering the rest), which can easily be arranged in the Red-Light District. Now, the Church was erected in this strategic spot so that when the sailors went back out to sea they could go and confess their sins to the priest, needless to say they would want God´s blessing while they were at sea. The priest would then tell them how much money he thought they had to pay to have their sins forgiven, this was called an indulgence tax. So basically that Church was a money grab, or a old time tourist trap.
We took a ride up some of the canals on a little boat. It was neat. There are 100km of canal waters within Amsterdam, as well as 1000 bridges.
Amsterdam is a great place. It´s like Vancouver without the annoying hipsters. The people are cool, not because they are trying to be cool. They´re actually cool because they don´t care if they´re cool or not, which makes them cool. They all ride bikes, and talk in Dutch.
We lleft Amsterdam yesterday on a train. Long story short we are now in San Sabastien, Spain, and haven´t slept yet. We are probably just going to hang out here in Spain for awhile. Relax, soak up some sun, and get out of the hustle that we´ve felt for so long. So we´re off for now to enjoy a warm bed (hopefully). Audious.
Chris and Deb
PS. We are planning on writing about some of the other stuff we have done, but haven´t gotten around to it yet. But we´re okay, and will write more later.
PPS. Whenever life is lonely you can always go downtown.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Chapter 2 : (No Post)
"I am having the time of my life. " - Barry Zuckercorn
Hello everyone. Our travels have been moving us along quickly, so quickly that we have had no time to write anything about them. Needless to say we are having the time of our lives. We will not be writing anything new in this blog, but we just want to let you all know that we're okay. Feel free to email us, we love hearing from everyone. So for now, fare thee well.
Chris and Deb
PS. we are now in Scotland, and have been through England and Ireland, we are now off to somewhere in Mainland Europe.
Hello everyone. Our travels have been moving us along quickly, so quickly that we have had no time to write anything about them. Needless to say we are having the time of our lives. We will not be writing anything new in this blog, but we just want to let you all know that we're okay. Feel free to email us, we love hearing from everyone. So for now, fare thee well.
Chris and Deb
PS. we are now in Scotland, and have been through England and Ireland, we are now off to somewhere in Mainland Europe.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Chapter 1 : Vancouver, Etc. : Comes A Time When You're Drifting, Comes A Time When You Settle Down
"I'll ride on this wave till I crash on the shore." - D. Floyd
A voice came over the intercom on the plane and said, "If you're from the Vancouver area welcome home. If you're visiting enjoy your stay in the area, or wherever your final destination may be."
"Where is our final destination?" Chris asked Deb.
"I don't know." Deb replied. "I guess it's Regina." Regina, how glamorous. The plan is to see as much of Europe as possible, but they plan on ending it all in Regina.
To bring you up to date our main characters are husband and wife team, Chris (husband) and Debbie (wife). They have been living a very normal existence in Calgary, in the heart of the prairies, although any Albertan may tell you otherwise. For some reason most Albertans think that their prairie is somehow superior to that of say, Saskatchewan. (Possibly because they have so many mountains in their province (a small amount in the South West corner)). They also think that their prairie is less boring to look at, they say things like, "Oh I'd never drive across Saskatchewan, there's nothing to see." Or, "Why you moving to the prarie, it's so flat." But somehow the Alberta prairie is better, less flat, and less boring than the Saskatchewan prairie.
Anyway, Deb and Chris did the best they could in Calgary, and tried to thank God everyday for blessing them. But there comes a time, when one knows it's time to 'move on,' or more simply 'move,' not necessarily 'on.' Deb and Chris knew that it was time to 'move.' Though they knew what they wanted to do, it was still hard to do it. It was hard to say goodbye to the family the had become close to. It was also very hard to leave their little home they worked so hard to get and keep.
A voice came over the intercom on the plane and said, "If you're from the Vancouver area welcome home. If you're visiting enjoy your stay in the area, or wherever your final destination may be."
"Where is our final destination?" Chris asked Deb.
"I don't know." Deb replied. "I guess it's Regina." Regina, how glamorous. The plan is to see as much of Europe as possible, but they plan on ending it all in Regina.
To bring you up to date our main characters are husband and wife team, Chris (husband) and Debbie (wife). They have been living a very normal existence in Calgary, in the heart of the prairies, although any Albertan may tell you otherwise. For some reason most Albertans think that their prairie is somehow superior to that of say, Saskatchewan. (Possibly because they have so many mountains in their province (a small amount in the South West corner)). They also think that their prairie is less boring to look at, they say things like, "Oh I'd never drive across Saskatchewan, there's nothing to see." Or, "Why you moving to the prarie, it's so flat." But somehow the Alberta prairie is better, less flat, and less boring than the Saskatchewan prairie.
Anyway, Deb and Chris did the best they could in Calgary, and tried to thank God everyday for blessing them. But there comes a time, when one knows it's time to 'move on,' or more simply 'move,' not necessarily 'on.' Deb and Chris knew that it was time to 'move.' Though they knew what they wanted to do, it was still hard to do it. It was hard to say goodbye to the family the had become close to. It was also very hard to leave their little home they worked so hard to get and keep.
Suddenly it became time to embark on their trip, and when it was, they weren't quite ready. It seems that a lot of times in life things never seem quite real. You can wait a long time for something to happen and often when it does happen, you miss out on it because you weren't ready for it. It was like this for Chris and Deb, only it was completely different.
* * *
"It feels good to be in Vancouver," Deb proclaimed. "The smells take me back."
"The smells are disgusting," Chris replied almost in disgust.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right."They came to Vancouver for Chris's dad's (Jeff (fiancé Janice)) wedding, and to visit some family and friends. It is almost like a second home (or third or fourth or whatever) so it made sense to stop in on their way out. The wedding was up through the windy, hilly, bumpy roads. Past 70 Mile House, 90 Mile House, 91 2/3 Mile House was Sheridan Lake, aka The Wedding Place. Someone at the wedding mentioned something to Chris about it probably being weird to witness your parent(s) being married, and that not very many people can say that they have witnessed it. Now, it's true that not many people do see it, but it's not true that it would be weird. All Chris could think was how perfect of a fit his dad and Janice were for one another. It's like they were always waiting for each other. Deb thought the same.
After the wedding they went back to Vancouver.
* * *
"It feels good to be in Vancouver," Deb proclaimed. "The smells take me back."
"The smells are disgusting," Chris replied almost in disgust.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right."They came to Vancouver for Chris's dad's (Jeff (fiancé Janice)) wedding, and to visit some family and friends. It is almost like a second home (or third or fourth or whatever) so it made sense to stop in on their way out. The wedding was up through the windy, hilly, bumpy roads. Past 70 Mile House, 90 Mile House, 91 2/3 Mile House was Sheridan Lake, aka The Wedding Place. Someone at the wedding mentioned something to Chris about it probably being weird to witness your parent(s) being married, and that not very many people can say that they have witnessed it. Now, it's true that not many people do see it, but it's not true that it would be weird. All Chris could think was how perfect of a fit his dad and Janice were for one another. It's like they were always waiting for each other. Deb thought the same.
After the wedding they went back to Vancouver.
Vancouver seems to be a city that tells a story, but you never what the story is about, or if you're a character in the story or not. But somehow Vancouver always makes you feel like the main character in the story, even though you're probably not. Anyway Deb and Chris, spent their time doing things that people normally do in 'Van.'After spending a little over a week it was time to go, time to fly away.
On August 13, they flew away, and on August 14, they arrived at London Gatwick. Chris thought about how anti-climatic everything seemed leading up to their arrival. Deb thought about how tired she was. The weather was exactly what you imagine London weather to be, dreary and rainy.
"Doesn't this feel freeing?" Debbie asked Chris.
"Yeah. Our biggest worry now is what were doing tomorrow." Then Debbie nearly had a heart attack as a National Train roared by at approx. 100 km/h showing it's sheer speed. "Yes dear, we are going to have a good time." And they hopped on their train towards Earl's Court London.
"Doesn't this feel freeing?" Debbie asked Chris.
"Yeah. Our biggest worry now is what were doing tomorrow." Then Debbie nearly had a heart attack as a National Train roared by at approx. 100 km/h showing it's sheer speed. "Yes dear, we are going to have a good time." And they hopped on their train towards Earl's Court London.
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