On Our Way Home

Sunday, Sept. 30

We didn't sleep too well overnight.  I guess it was anticipation of getting up and going to the airport, and getting everything ready in time.  We sure didn't want to miss our plane.  As it was, everyone was up, and we were ready to go about 8:00, which was an hour earlier than I expected to get away.  We knew Shirley was going to church and wouldn't get herself ready until we left, so about 8:40, we packed the car and left, after our goodbyes.

The drive to London was uneventful.  It was an hour or so of straight, flat freeway.  Traffic didn't start getting heavy until just before London.  We were looking for the place we had eaten when we arrived, and found it.  Had a good breakfast, and then headed off toward the airport.  It's amazing how different things look in the daylight.  I had no idea we had gone some of the places we had when we flew in.  At least now, we could see them.

At the airport, we unloaded the car at the entrance, and I had to take it and park it in the rental area.  Then we had to officially return it, which was quite easy.  I hope there are no other charges that will show up, but I'm sure we will get billed for using the toll freeway, sometime in the near future.

Once we checked in, it was up to the departure area, through security, and then sit and wait for our plane.  After about 2 hours, our flight stopped in Winnipeg for about half an hour, and then we were off to Calgary for another 2 hour flight.  We discovered that we could watch TV and listen to what was going on, so spent much of our time watching football and golf.

In Calgary, we had a long wait.  It was supposed to be about 3 and a half hours, but something went wrong with their computers, and things got backed up a lot.  The terminal was very full, and getting a seat was a problem.  Of course with planes not being able to take off, it was quite a wait.  Finally, they were able to get things going, and we boarded our plane about an hour late.  I was texting Christie and Karen to keep them informed, and they were both at the airport in Kamloops to meet us.

Then it was a matter of collecting our bags, loading them in the cars, and heading home.  We were pretty tired, so it wasn't long before we were in bed.

Back to Chatham

Saturday Sept 29

Got up in the morning not feeling real well, but we were heading back to Chatham.  We didn't feel much like eating breakfast, so left as soon as we showered and packed our bags.  We were on the road by 9:00, and headed out to highway 401.  Old GPS Jill tried to take us to the toll highway (407) but we outsmarted her and stuck to our guns to get to 401.  Once on that highway, it was clear sailing to Chatham.

The road was fairly busy and I had to pay attention so I wouldn't get into the wrong lane and end up getting off the freeway.  Dawn did see a sign indicating a potter, so she asked if we could pull off and find it.  However, once off at the exit, it appeared that the potter was 27 Km off the highway, and we decided not to go.  So, we moved right back onto the freeway and kept going.  The next stop was for something to eat.  We pulled off at an OnRoute to get a couple sandwiches at Tim Horton's.


Then on to Chatham and Shirley's house.  We got there shortly after 12:00 and they were just eating.  We weren't hungry, so by the time we got in and our stuff into our room, they were done.  We visited a while, and then Dawn and I went downstairs.  I wasn't feeling too well, and fell asleep.  I guess Carol and Earl came over, and Dawn went upstairs, but I was not doing well and stayed downstairs.  Carol came down to say goodbye about 4:30, so I woke up and went to see them off.

Shirley took us out to dinner at a nice restaurant, and that was basically it for the evening.  When we got home, we went downstairs to catch the tail end of the Regina football game, but were too tired to stay up for the Lions game.  In retrospect, it was likely a good thing as they lost.  Shirley told us it was 17-1 at the end of the first half, but she went to sleep, too.

Toronto - Day 2

Friday, Sept 28

Got up this morning not feeling well at all.  My cough had grown to a full fledged cold, and I was stuffed up and congested.  After showering and eating breakfast, we went looking for a pharmacy so I could buy some cough syrup and other things to stop the coughing and phlegm.  My ribs hurt from coughing.

Hanging From CN Tower

Construction Crane

We stayed close to the hotel for much of the day, and then about 4:00, headed of for the ball field.  GPS Jill indicated it was about a half hour, and with the traffic, we were at our parking lot by 5:00.  Paid to get in, and then we sat in the car and watched the construction around us, and the folks who were getting off work.

At 5:30 we headed up to Rogers Place, and had to wait 5 minutes for the doors to open.  Our seats for this game were more expensive, but we were closer to home plate.  We could see the players well, and could hear some of the things they were saying to each other and the fans.  Got some photos of Jeeter, A-Rod, and others, as the Yankees were having batting practice again.

Derek Jeeter

Alex Rodriguez

Once the game started, it was clear that the Yankees were going to play better.  They were getting some hits, and scoring some runs.  The Blue Jays outhit them for much of the game, but didn't score too many runs.  In the end, New York basically hammered the Jays.

We left in the 9th inning, as Toronto was coming up to bat.  It was far easier walking to our car tonight, than it was last night when the Jays won.  I guess lots of people had left already.  We didn't have to wait to get out of the parking lot, or into the correct lane for the turn I had to make on Spadina Ave.  The drive to Brampton was again, less than half an hour, so things weren't too bad.

We hadn't eaten dinner, so we found a McDonalds and had a bite to eat.  Then back to the hotel.  I started the computer and got the Blazers game on the radio.  There were only a few minutes left in the third period, and the score was tied 3 - 3.  Well, they played through overtime, and in the shootout, Victoria scored more times than the Blazers did, so we didn't win that game either.  Hopefully we will be home in time to hear how they do on Sunday's game in Victoria.

First Day in Toronto

Thursday, Sept. 27

We got up relatively early (7:30), and after getting ready, went to the lounge for breakfast.  Not bad - I made waffles for both of us, and they were pretty good.

Gas Station

By 10:30, we were ready to head into Toronto for the day.  We set GPS Jill for Rogers Centre so we could see where we needed to go.  She took us there, but there were a number of things on the way.  First, our gas gauge indicated that we needed to fill up - very soon - so we found a place to pull off for gas.  Punching in gas stations, we found we were only a short distance from a station, so we headed there and filled up.

Then, back onto the freeway, to continue the drive into TO.  It is only about a half hour drive from where we are staying in Brampton and that seemed about right.  We got onto Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) which took us along the shores of Lake Ontario.  Very pretty to look at, and we stopped at a park that ran along the highway and the Lake.

Lake Ontario

Congestion Near Rogers Centre

Park on the Lake

After a short walk and some photos, we were back in the car to continue to Rogers Centre.  Well, it got very busy and congested, with lots of twists and turns, and very aggressive drivers.  Once we say where we had to go, we decided to get out of the busy area, and drove along the shore, to the east.  After going through and industrial area, we got off the highway and ended up in Cabbagetown (at least this is what we were told by a shop owner we spoke to later on).  It was old, the houses very close together, and the trolley buses on rails ran down the streets.  We drove for a while, and then decided to turn around and go back downtown and park, so we could walk around.

Cabbagetown

 

Back downtown, and we had to find a parking spot.  The first public parking I pulled into said it would cost me $50 to park for the rest of the day and for the ball game.  We drove back out and looked for another.  The next place was $30 dollars - $12 until 6:00, and $18 for the game after 6:00.  We went in and were directed to a spot where a construction worker was just vacating.

We got out and began to walk around.  First up the block and to Rogers Centre so we would know where we were.  Then, back out onto the main road for a walk along the road.  Lots of construction going on, so the street was very busy and noisy.  We kept heading east, looking for a market we had seen when we were driving.  Finally got to it, a few long blocks farther than we had thought.  We went in and found it to be similar to Granville Island, with lots of little shops of various ethnicities.  Dawn found a place with souvenirs, and purchased something, but we found this too congested for us, and left shortly afterward.

Lunch at the Pub

Pub Interior

We were getting hungry by this time, so started looking for a restaurant.  There were lots of them around, but most looked quite expensive.  Finally, we agreed on a little pub, so went in.  It was small, and basically empty at that time of the day.  It reminded me a lot of the Cheers bar.  The owner came over and took our order, and then came back to sit with us to talk about sports and the various teams.  It turned out that he has a relative who lives in Langley, so he knows a bit about BC.  Our lunch was great, and we thoroughly enjoyed our sandwiches.

Hall of Fame Entrance

Walkway to Hall of Fame

Then we left, and headed to the Hockey Hall of Fame, which was only a few blocks west.  It wasn't too bad to get in, and we spent at least a couple hours inside looking at all the exhibits.  There certainly were a lot of things to look at, including a Kamloops Blazers jersey donated by Shane Doan.  We were getting very tired, and when we finally heard the sounds of a movie, we found it and went in to watch the end of it.  It was about the 1972 Canada-Russia hockey series.  It was very interesting (the part that was left when we arrived), and we quite enjoyed it.  Then, there were a few more things for us to see, and we decided to head back to the car to rest our feet before going to the game (this was about 4:30).

Score Clock

Turning in the Lineups

We sat in the car until 5:30, and then walked over to the stadium (only a couple blocks).  We had to walk down the ramp to the first level, and then we could see the field.  The Yankees were having batting practice when we got in, and Ichiro was right in front of us, warming up.  We found our seats which were in row 20, about equal to first base.  The only problems were that they were seats 1 and 2, and we ended up standing up a lot to let people in and out, and the people walking up and down the steps, along with the vendors, really got in our way.  However, the Blue Jays had a great game, winning 6-0.  Brett Lawrie hit a home run to drive in the first 2 runs, and they went on from there.

All day, I had been coughing lightly, and began to feel a bit of a sore throat coming on.  By the time we got back to our hotel in Brampton, I was coughing lots, my throat hurt a lot, and my nose was stuffed up.  I could only think about flying home on Sunday, in that plane with all the others, passing on my germs.  I took a couple ibuprophen before crawling into bed, and must have slept fairly well, although it felt like I was up coughing, a number of times.  This morning, it was definitely a cold, and we had to get some cough syrup and other cold remedies.

Off To Niagara Falls

Wednesday, Sept. 26


We got up at 7:00 in the morning and quickly showered, because we were heading off to Niagara Falls and toward Toronto.  We were in the car and on our way at about 8:15, heading up the 401 to near Talbotville, where we followed highway 3 for most of the rest of the day (at least until we got to Fort Erie.  There we went right down to the Niagara River, and followed the road along the river until we reached the falls.  There were some pretty large, expensive homes along the river, and we figured the people living there were part of the very rich in Canada.

They were pretty spectacular, but it was also very expensive to park along the river, so we went into the town of Niagara Falls.  Well, we were not impressed.  It felt very much like a carnival town, where they seemed to have lots of things to scam the tourists.  We stopped for lunch at a restaurant, and the waiter seemed to be too busy to give us much attention.  After waiting a long time for it to come, and then for him to re-fill our drinks, and then bring our bill, we grew tired of waiting for him to come to our table so we could pay and leave.  I'm afraid I was not overly polite when I finally was able to pay.

We didn't feel like staying there, so took off, and decided we would stop near Hamilton.  Well, we got there quite quickly, and decided to carry on.  I had investigated a Best Western in Brampton before we left, so we decided to go to Brampton.  We checked in for at least one night, but we may decide to stay here both Thursday and Friday nights.

Another Day to Snoop Around

Tuesday, Sept. 25

We were determined to get something done today, so once we got up and showered, we were soon ready to leave.  Mom and dad had to eat breakfast, so that took time, and we were ready to leave about 11:00.

First we drove around some of the places where dad's family had lived while he was growing up.  He showed us one of his school buildings, which was now a hall.  It was a great looking old building, with a steeple, and doors on opposite sides of the building.  Dad said that the boys went in on the right side, and the girls on the left side.

Then we drove around some more, looking at places where different members of the family were born.  We ended up going to a campground on Lake Erie where Carol and Earl used to go.  It was quite windy, but a nice place to be.  The waves were crashing in pretty hard.  There was a single car parked at the picnic parking lot, and we noticed that it was from Washington State, so spoke with the 2 women who were driving it.  We told them we were from BC, and we had quite a laugh that all of us were so far from home, and met up with someone from much closer.

Then we headed off again.  We got back into Ridgetown, and stopped at the Tim Horton's for a bite to eat (coffee and doughnut).  Then off again, looking at more places.  Dad took us all over, and I was able to recognize some of the places as we had been there in the previous days.  It would take some time, and I still can't figure out which direction is north.

Shirley was at home, cooking a roast chicken, so we headed off and were home about 3:00.  She phoned Julie Ann to let her know we were back, and Julie came over for a visit.  She visited with us for a few hours, and shortly before supper was ready, she went home.

The chicken was excellent - mashed potatoes, cauliflower, stuffing, chicken and gravy, and a special salad.  MMMM-MMMMM GOOD.  Very full when done, and Dawn and I did the dishes.

Later we tuned in the Kamloops news on Shirley's satellite.  It was 8:00 in Chatham, but only 5:00 in Kamloops.  We were quite interested in the press conference that had taken place that day, in British Columbia.  It was nice to hear that they thought they knew who had been killing some of the women over the past 40 years, and had confirmed that this guy had been the killer of 1 of the 18 cases.  He is also suspect in 2 of the deaths from the Kamloops area.  We then watched the news on Global BC, so we could get more of the same story.

After that, we went downstairs and watched some sports on the TV down there.  As it got closer to 11:00, we decided we were tired and headed off to bed.

A Lazy Day

Monday, Sept. 24
We didn't do much today.  We had planned on going for a drive to see some more of the places dad wanted to show us, but we were somewhat tired from our big trip yesterday, so we ended up staying home.  Dawn cooked a lasagna supper, and we ate, really big.

In the evening, we watched Monday Night Football, and when Seattle didn't score with 2 minutes remaining, Dawn and I went to bed.  It was 11:40 by this time, so we were again tired.  Shortly after we turned out the lights, Shirley was outside our door, calling Dawn to come and watch the last play.

It all boiled down to Seattle getting credit for a 4th down touchdown, that looked like it was an interception by Green Bay.  However, once the play was okayed, Seattle did win.  This has certainly created lots of controversy, and may be the final impetus to get the NFL referees back to work.