Parksville, BC, Canada ... aka ... 'home'

We arrived back in Canada on Sunday afternoon and Kyle and Hayley were at the airport with 'Tim Horton's' in hand to pick us up. It was fantastic to see them!


We then went by Mountain Equipment Co-op so that I could see if they would replace my bent walking stick (naturally, this meant that I had to carry it onto the planes and the ship as it no longer would slide together to fit compactly into our newly acquired totes. Martin really wasn't convinced that lugging this extra piece of equipment along was such a good idea as he was quite sure that I would not have success in getting it replaced at MEC. But, anyone who knows me (such as my kids) are not surprised at all that I did not throw it out! Of course it is necessary to see if a dollar (or $50.00!) can be spared. Wow, was I relieved (and a little smug, haha) when, within a matter of minutes, the clerk at MEC replaced the middle section and handed it back to me just as good as new! Following this we went to Anton's (our favourite pasta place) on Hastings (near Burnaby) for dinner.


Kyle and Hayley took us to the 10:30 a.m. ferry on Monday morning and we headed back to the island. It was wonderful to see the rest of the family ... Ray, Joel and Tobias met us at the ferry and then later on we saw Charis, Tianna and Jesse and Jonas before heading home to Parksville.


We had some work being done on the outside of the house when we were away; however, they are a bit behind schedule and so someone is, as I type, refinishing our deck; the roof was replaced while we were away and the back steps were replaced. Yesterday we had a bobcat in our back yard ripping out stumps and a sad 'lawn.' Hopefully by the end of the summer we will have some green grass that can now be reached by stairs that are no longer unsafe to tred upon.


This afternoon we will be pick up Joel and Tobias report cards from the school. They will be heading into grades 12 and 11 in the fall. During August they will be working in the Leader's in Training Program at Camp Sunrise; Joel working in the kitchen which he enjoys and Tobias in the counselling area and sports with the kids, which is his area of interest.


This Saturday we will have a family reunion picnic with our children and grandchildren. It was a great blessing to be in Europe and experience all that we did and now it is a blessing to return home to the joys which await us here. Our lives are overflowing and we remain incredibly grateful for the multitude of riches which are ours.


Happy Canada Day to one and all!


Carolyn and Martin

Almost Home!

We have finally come to the completion of our journey.We are sitting at the airport in Malaga, Spain waiting for our flight to Frankfurt, Germany this afternoon and then back to Vancouver tomorrow.



Since our last entry we have visted Cannes, Rome and Corsica. It has all been absolutely delightful and in many ways just as we have previously seen in photographs; however, as you can imagine the sounds, smells, weather, etc, brings everything truly to life! St. Peter's Basilica was absolutely amazing!!!




It is hard to believe that it is over. After almost 8 weeks away from home and family (and jobs) we are about to re-enter the real world. In many ways we are so looking forward to re-uniting with family and friends, but it will be tough to say goodbye to what we have experienced. We are definitely going to have withdrawal symptoms from cathedrals, ancient buildings, and foreign languages.


We plan to rise early in the morning tomorrow with the hope of seeing a bit of Frankfurt before heading home to Canada.


Much love, Carolyn and Martin.

Frankfurt countryside

Train Station in downtown Rome

Cannes!

Barcelona

Corsica

France

Mediterranean Cruise

Leaving Spain ... :(

Well, our time is drawing quickly to a close here in Spain and while we are excited for this last leg of our journey it is truly with a tinge of sadness that we depart this special part of the world.

After flying to Barcelona yesterday morning, we took the subway from the airport to downtown to the Holiday Inn Express where we stayed last night. Once we were checked in we inquired as to where it might be a good place to go and do a bit of exploring. We were directed to a spot only a block away. So we set off walking and discovered that there was a wonderful tree-lined prominade with outdoor cafes that went on for about a km or so. Half way through we stopped and had our lunch and then carried on to the Mediterranean Sea where we walked in the sand and the water. The waves were crashing on the rocks of the breakwater, and though it was windy it was warm and lovely. There were many people sunbathing, playing sports, flying kites, dining in outside cafes, windsailing, rollerblading, biking etc.

On our way back to the hotel we stopped at a lovely crepeteria and sampled the honey and nut crepe with a delicious vanilla-nut icecream and of course we each had a cafe con leche to top it all off. It was a nice little spot where we sat in an upstairs area and looked down to the strollers below.

When we returned to the hotel, we had a nap after such an exhausting day! haha. and then when had snacks for supper and came downstairs to write to our children and it was only then that we discovered that yesterday was Father's Day! Crazy, how things happen on a different level when you are immersed in a different culture. Anyway, we had a great Father's Day and I even suggested that we play cards last night and so we sat in the sitting area at the hotel and played several games of gin rummy. I actually let Martin win a couple games too! Pretty good of this almost non-card player!


This morning we had a lovely breakfast at the hotel which was complementary with our reservation. For my mom, I am going to add some of the lovely things that it included: all the coffee that a person would want and even included steaming hot cafe con leche, both pineapple and orange juices, toasts, croissants of various types and bread rolls of again many discriptions. Also, assorted jams, cream cheeses, white sliced cheese, sliced ham and salami. It was certainly larger than a continental breakfast!


After our breakfast and check out we had the hotel hold our luggage while we went to the store and picked up a few last minute things ... like a lovely pair of red shoes. ;) etc.


We are now ready to call the taxi and head to the cruise ship terminal. I don't know if we can write from the ship or not, but, will see.

Our ship awaits!

Everything continues to be wonderful and we are preparing our hearts and minds for this last stint and returning home to our loved ones. Trust all is well with everyone! Much love and all God's richest blessings.


Carolyn and Martin

Have been to Gibralter and Morocco and next it will be Barcelona; Cannes, Monte Carlo and Rome and Frankfurt and Vancouver, Canada .... ahhhh the life

MOROCCO

Ferry to Morocco



In Morocco! Wow!



Spices in the market place!

Cheese in the marketplace

Beautiful street sign

Most western part of Africa

Marketplace colours

Most northwestern part of Africa

Yup, that's me on a camel

GIBRALTER

Will add more as we are able! The trips to Gibraltar and Morocco were great and of course completed very quickly. Today we are off to do a bit of shopping prior to leaving Spain and have long-awaited massages booked for tomorrow. We have held off all week, but, it is now much anticipated and hopefully will be well worth it. I am also going to have a very much needed pedicure and will definitely require some opaque nailpolish for the black toenails!


The weather has been absolutely perfect and we have not a thing to complain about! Of course as our time winds down here we are thinking more and more of home and our loved ones and especially our children and grandchildren and missing them all the more!

Trust all is well with all! Many blessings!

Portugal, Spanish Riviera ... Gibralter ... Morocco

Our trip through Portual went well. We spent one night in Lisbon and went out to late night street festival, complete with parade. It was great! Then we went to our first mall in over a month, at about 11 pm in Lisbon. Really cool and yet kinda weird ... everything alive and vibrant at that time of night (including all stores in the mall and foodcourt). However, the next day being Sunday, everything would be closed.

OUR NICE - LIKE NEW RENTAL CAR!

A FABULOUS PARADE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT IN LISBON!

COUNTRYSIDE IN PORTUGAL

GIGANTIC STATUE IN FRONT OF OUR HOTEL

ENROUTE TO SPANISH RIVIERA, FROM LISBON PORTUGAL, WE DROVE THROUGH BEAUTIFUL DOWNTOWN SEVILLE, SPAIN

We arrived at the resort, on the Riviera on Sunday evening. It is lovely, albeit far too noisy for my liking right now. I guess I am needing some solitude as opposed to partying ... oh well ... certainly could be worse things to complain about!!!

OUR RESORT FOR A FEW DAYS OF RELAXATION!

We hope to find a street market before leaving this area and picking up a couple things from Spain before leaving for home. In a couple minutes we will drive to ´the rock of Gibralter´ and tomorrow, or possibly the day after we hope to go to Morocco. Can you believe it! Still hard to believe that we are in this part of the world!!!


The weather is perfect right now. A real treat! Hope all is well, will write more later on. Blessings!


Carolyn and Martin

800+ complete ... leaving for Malaga via Portugal on June 12th

Thanks so much for the notes of congrats! We certainly appreciate them.


Unfortunately, we have yet to make it to the Pilgrim´s Mass as this morning the bus driver forgot to let us off the bus! But, in the end, all turned out well as we saw much more of the city than we would have otherwise.


We are treating ourselves tonight and staying in a very nice small hotel that our friend JoAnne, back in Kamloops, informed us of and stayed here with her family when they also did the Camino last year. Unfortunately, the hotel had only one night´s accomodation for us and so tomorrow night will be much more pilgrim-like! Back to bunkbeds!

On Saturday morning we will head out to the airport by bus with backpacks on to pick up a rental car. It is our hope to drive through Portugal in two days to reach Malaga in southern Spain. Will let you know when we get there!


It has been raining almost non-stop since we arrived in Santiago. It does not make for great sight-seeing; however, our main desire was to have good weather for the Camino and this we certainly has (for the most part). Altogether, out of five weeks we likely had about four to five days of rain.


The feet (mine) and legs (Martin´s) are continuing to heal and so it is nice that we are able to give them a bit of respite now. Likely will take several days before things are back to norm in this regard.


All being well, tomorrow (11th) we will attend the Pilgrim Mass at noon and also hope to see St. James crypt and a few other significant sites before leaving Santiago the following morning.


Blessings to all, stay well!


Love,
Carolyn and Martin

PILGRIM MASS ... WE MADE IT! The swinging Botafumeiro dispensing clouds of incense

(1) The Botafumeiro is suspended from a pulley mechanism in the dome on the roof of the church . The current pulley mechanism was installed in 1604. The Santiago de Compostela Botafumeiro is one of the largest censers in the world, weighing 80 kg and measuring 1.60 m in height. (2) Shovels are used to fill the Botafumeiro, or the Alcachofa, with about 40 kg of charcoal and incense. The thurible is tied to the rope with elaborate knots. The censer is pushed initially to start its motion. Eight red-robed tiraboleiros pull the ropes, producing increasingly large oscillations of the censer. The turible's swings almost reach the ceiling of the transept. The incensory can reach speeds of 68 km/h as it dispenses thick clouds of incense. At the top of the swing, the Botafumeiro reaches heights of 21 meters. It swings in a 65 meter arc between the Azabachería and Praterias doorways at the ends of the transept. The maximum angle achieved is about 82°. The maximum can be reached after about 17 cycles, and requires about 80 seconds of swinging. It costs about 250€ for each thurible "performance" at the cathedral. Although this is expensive, the swinging of the thurible is very popular with pilgrims, tourists and visitors. The Botafumeiro produces large volumes of smoke. This is in accord with the well-known saying in religious circles, "More incense, less nonsense."

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