Company is here

Hi everyone

As you know from my last blog, André flew over to Switzerland to visit with our families and fetch his mom. Alice has arrived here with him 6 days ago and we have been having a blast ever since. Not that we don't have a great time without her here. As a matter of fact we are both loving retirement better and better by the day. Fact is, my mother in law is a real sweetheart. She loves traveling and does a lot of it by herself back in Europe. With her every day is an adventure whether we plan on doing something or just hanging around making it a "relaxation day". And we laugh a lot. You wouldn't believe the things she comes up with. Sometimes it's because her mother tongue is French and even after all those years in the German speaking part of Switzerland she still has her own way of expressing herself. Let's just say she thinks in French and speaks in Swiss-German - translation on the go by Alice. Sometimes it's just her quick wit that makes us laugh or leaves us speechless. Bottom line is, we are enjoying her company big time.

The whole thing of André flying over to get her was an adventure in itself. At least for him. First Hurricane Sandy caused New York to shut down so both his flights (Miami to N.Y. and N.Y. to Zurich) were cancelled. The earliest plane he could catch was 3 days later which shortened his stay in Switzerland considerably if one takes into account that he had originally planned to stay just 7 days. Then their flights back (Zurich to N.Y. and N.Y. to Miami) also got cancelled because another storm shut N.Y. down again. They found that out the morning they were supposed to leave. Luckily they got seats on a different carrier and arrived here from Zurich via London England and then directly to Miami. Let's hope that we won't have similar problems in December when Sue will bring Alice home and visits with our relatives over there. Delaying Sue's flight back could bring her into the per-Christmas travel mess.

Anyhow, since their arrival here we have visited a flamingo and wildlife park and a large shopping mall. This was kind of a day off to adjust to the climate and time difference. The next day we made a trip down to Key West and on the day after that we took Alice for an air-boat ride to see alligators. We didn't see alligators, at least not in the wild but the air boat ride itself was worth doing. Sunday we did nothing but relaxing and going to the pool and then, on Monday, Alice got her first taste of what it is like to pack up, pull our home on wheels to a new location and setting up again. This was yesterday. We also drove to the beach in Daytona, surely a must for a first-time US east coast traveler. Today the Kennedy Space Center was our destination and once again Alice was impressed with what she has seen. We have been here before but it's been a while and we, too were impressed.

Our travel plans for the next 3 weeks will bring us further north and west and include stops in Nashville, Lynchburg Tennessee, Avery Island Louisiana and of course New Orleans, among others. So please stay tuned, we would love to tell you about our travels with Alice.

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

Winter destination

Hi everyone

After having spent a good 2 weeks back in North Bay, we have taken to the road again. The destination: Florida where we will spend the winter. But first we had to make a stop at Sicard RVs where the maintenance department took care of some warranty work on our fifth wheel. They were absolutely great, taking us in the next day and getting things done in a very short time. We were able to cross the border the same afternoon and drove to a nice campground for the night.

The next day we started our trip south and arrived in south Georgia on October 21st. There we stayed at a Golf and Country Club and RV Resort. Sounds very expensive but was not. With our Passport America membership we paid less than $20 per night and that included free golfing. Now we had never golfed before but took the opportunity to try it out. Two of their members not only lent us some clubs but also gave us a one-on-one lesson so we would get off on the right foot. We had so much fun that we decided to give the sport a go and went to get our own clubs and stuff. We also added three more nights to the two we had originally booked and Sue picked up a new web site. She is now working on it and will have it finished as soon as she gets the information and pictures required. The site is for a BBQ competition Team and caterer. They have won first place in all categories in the past and are now preparing for the 2013 season.

Our next stop was in Crystal River at the exact campground where we will spend four months starting December 1st. They even put us on the exact site we will have. We stayed there for three nights and then continued to Fort Lauderdale where we will remain until November 12th. This will give André's mom a few days before we start traveling with her. She will arrive in Florida on the 7th and stay with us for four weeks. What route we will take with her we don't know exactly yet but we will be back in Crystal River for her last four nights.

So much for today. Take care

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

On our way back

Hi everyone

Yes, we are on our way back to Ontario and with that the first part of our trip is coming to an end. But that doesn't mean that we're done criss-crossing Canadian and US roads. It simply means that we will see our friends in Northern Ontario and take care of a few things before heading out again.

Traveling the way we did the last few months has been a learning experience. Not only with regards to history and geography but also as a new way of living. When we first moved to Canada we made a major change to our lifestyle and we just did that again. Not that we are sorry we did it. No way! We love it. But living in a fifth wheel full time, learning the ins and outs of camping (I guess we can't really claim to be roughing it), planing routes and other things can be challenging. One might think we now have all the time in the world which is true in a way. But we have come to understand that there is no such thing as too much time. There hardly is enough. We packed the most possible in every day until we reached an information overload a while back. So we had to cut back a little on what we wanted to do and see. Enthusiasm is great but we came to realize, that one has to take one's time, too or risk not seeing the forest for all the trees anymore. Good thing we have the opportunity to simply take it a bit slower as we don't really have any time restrictions. We are temporarily retired so to speak. Which brings me to another (kind of funny) realization: we are now the ones, one has to make an appointment with to meet. I used to joke about that after my dad retired and all of a sudden it wasn't so easy anymore to just meet with him for a beer. Oh no! If I wanted to do that, I better called ahead to make sure I would catch him. This seems to be a phenomena with retired people and now with us, too.

Anyhow, we did change our route and that took care of the "problem". Now we will spend a few days in our old stumping grounds and are really looking forward to seeing our friends. We will also have to take care of a few things and plan the next part of our trip before heading out again. This time the planing has another focus. We are more concerned with weather and temperatures as winter is just around the corner than with sightseeing destinations. Of course we want to spend the winter months in a nice location or nice locations. However, considerations for the climate will outweigh those for area attractions. There might not be many snow birds amongst you, our readers, who know what goes into the planning of the first winter on the road. But try to put yourselves in our shoes. How does one choose a campground or resort for a whole season? There are so many that comparing them seems impossible. Are we looking in the right places, on the right web sites? How do we narrow it down? What do we really have to have and what would be nice to have? What are we willing to "sacrifice" for a better price or what are our priorities anyway?

We've been looking at some web sites and to tell the truth, I was a bit overwhelmed with all the possibilities. Good thing that André keeps calm in such situations. I am so glad for that and confident, that we will pick a place we will be happy at. The decision has to be made shortly though as we don't have any idea or experience on how soon campgrounds in the south book up for the winter months. At the moment Florida looks very tempting. We will let you know in due time.

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

Stranded in Pennsylvania

Hi everyone

It's been a while since our last blog which came to you from New Brunswick, Canada. Since then we have crossed the border into the United States and spend a wonderful time with our friends in Massachusetts. We didn't do any sight seeing since we had been there several times before and just wanted to spend some time with them, catching up. It had been way too long since we've last seen each other. So we did greatly enjoy our time with them. But all good things must come to an end and so we finally drove on on our way to Michigan where we will see more friends.

After a very long drive (somehow we did underestimate the distance when looking at the map) we stopped at a very nice campground in Pennsylvania. While talking to our host we found out that an about 2 hours drive away, in Hershey (yep, where the famous Hershey Kisses come from) the "biggest RV show in America" was opening its doors the next day. So we added a night and took a day-trip down there. It was very impressive and we got some information regarding some parts for our fifth wheel we're still looking for as well as on long-term camping in the South. After all that's where we plan on spending the winter.

Then it was on to a new destination which unfortunately we never reached. Sue needed to use the facilities and so André stopped, let her out and then drove around the parking lot to turn the rig around. Where he had stopped, there now was a puddle on the ground and getting out to investigate he found the problem: our truck was leaking cooling-fluid like a sieve! Now, it's one thing to have roadside assistance tow the truck but we could not find anybody who could haul our fifth wheel away. And the flat bed was just long enough to load our truck.

So we are stranded on a truck stop in the middle of Pennsylvania. By now we found out that the garage needs to order a part which will arrive Monday earliest. The whole thing happened on Thursday. We also got the phone number of a customer of the gas station where we broke down who has a fifth wheel himself and who might be willing to tow us to a campground in Du Bois where the garage is, some 60 km from here. He is at work right now but we will find out if he can give us a tow later today. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

A thing or two about tides

Hi everyone

as you remember from our last post, we are on our way to Massachusetts to see friends before heading back to Ontario. Along the way we came through Truro, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and we couldn't resist to go see two really interesting sights with regards to tides: the tidal bore in Truro and the world's highest tides here in Hopewell Cape.

A tidal bore is a tidal phenomenon in which the leading edge of the incoming tide forms a wave (or waves) of water that travels up a river or narrow bay against the direction of the river or bay's current. It can be just a very small wave, no more than a few inches or a bigger one. The one in Truro is not huge but big enough to clearly see it coming and what's impressive, is the speed with which it moves and fills the riverbed. In order to give you an impression of what we've seen we have included two pictures which were taken only about 20 Minutes apart. In the second picture the water is actually a few feet deep.

Our next stop was in Hopewell Cape in New Brunswick where one can witness the world's highest tides. The difference between low and high can be as much as 14 meters (46b feet). On the evening of August 31 we were down there walking on the ocean floor and the next day around noon we returned to see the same rock formations at high tide. It wasn't the highest possible that day. According to a park ranger it reached "only" 13 meters (43 feet) and left a small gap in the arch between two rocks. This can hardly be seen on our pictures but nevertheless they give an idea of the change. We were awed by this display of nature and will not forget looking down to where the night before we were walking and now there was several meters of water.

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

Nova Scotia

Hi everyone

Our stay on "the rock" came to an end after 3 more nights near Port-aux-Basques. We had to wait for our ride on the ferry and enjoyed the hospitality of Newfoundland at a beautiful campground about 40 minutes from the ferry terminal. Some sight seeing brought us to a fishing harbour where we, once again, got ourselves fresh cod. Then it was time to say goodbye to this wonderful province and set sail for Nova Scotia. The trip took only 5 hours since we had calm seas. It started kind of early though. We had a reservation for the 11:30 a.m. departure but received an e-mail telling us that we had been moved up to an earlier crossing which left Port-aux-Basques at 6:45 a.m. Since we had to be at the ship 2 hours prior to departure, that meant getting up at 3 a.m.

Once in Nova Scotia we drove up to Cheticamp where we visited friends and spent two nights. Originally we had planed a 3-night stay but the campground was booked up for the weekend. So we made the best of the time we had. Besides seeing our friends a day-trip along parts of the world famous Cabot Trail and tasting the Arcadian food were the other two highlights of our short stay. We then continued to Louisbourg

where we visited the fortress and lighthouse as well as the Miners Museum and Marconi in Glace Bay. All these visits once again offered us a tremendous amount of information on the history of this fabulous country. We were very impressed especially with the Fortress of Louisbourg and the Miners Museum with a underground tour guided by Sheldon who has himself been a coal miner for 32 years. Like so many times before we learned things we had had no idea about and which are so much part of Canada and Canadians.

After our return to the fifth wheel after seeing the Miners Museum and the Marconi we both came to admit that we have reached the point of information / history overload. We decided to change our travel plans a bit to "take a break" from seeing more historic sites and let sink in what we've seen and learned so far. It would be a shame to just rush through the exhibits which have been built with so much care and thought. Instead of just going "trough the motions" and not absorbing all the information, we will travel down to the US for some time before heading back to North Bay in October. We have friends in Merimac, Massachusetts whom we haven't seen in years and we are looking forward to spending a few days with them. We will take our time driving there and after a rainy day on the road, our first stop along the way is near Truro, Nova Scotia. Here we will stay for 3 nights and do some (last) sightseeing for the time being. This will include a trip to Halifax. After that we will add Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island to our Bucket List.

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.

Corner Brooks

Hi everyone

After leaving beautiful St. John's we drove to Botwood where we found the nicest campground so far. Nice, big sites with trees offering shade and privacy from the sites left and right. A creek is running the property and we were told that, when the water level is right, one can find and catch salmon right there. The owners are very nice and they told us that they bought the place 5 years ago when it was somewhat run down and have been working on upgrading it every summer since. And they do a great job. We can only recommend Shanawdithit Campground and RV Park.
Anyways, the campground wasn't the reason for our stop in Botwood. We came here to see if our friends were back from P.E.I. On the way to St. John's we had called them because we wanted to go say hi to them. They have moved to Newfoundland after they retired and bought a nice house 44 km north of Botwood. But they were just leaving for a vacation themselves and so we hoped to catch them on the way back towards Port-aux-Basques. So we called them an got the answering machine. André left a message mentioning that we were in Botwood and wouldn't you know it, the next morning the owner of the campground came by our fifth wheel with a message from them. They had figured out what campground we must be at and called there. So we actually got a chance to go see them and spend the afternoon at their place. We had only planned to go for a short visit but ended up being invited for BBQ in the evening. We had a really nice time with them and the next morning they came by our fifth wheel on the way to do their shopping in Gander. Thanks so much, guys, it was great seeing you!
We then drove on to Corner Brook. Our plan was, to make reservations for the ferry to Nova Scotia probably for Monday or Tuesday but we found out that the ferry is not running for a few days due to technical problems. So we have to wait for a ride until next Thursday. This really is no problem. We don't have a schedule and will enjoy our stay here: 3 nights in Corner Brook then 3 more close to Port-aux-Basques. Meantime we have a chance to do some housekeeping (laundry, cleaning, writing blogs etc.) and just relax.
When we arrived in Corner Brook it was pouring and by the time we had set up we were both drenched and wet to the bone. So the laundry and some shopping actually got done the same day. There was no sense in keeping our wet clothes around and one thing got crossed off the list right away. There simply are no bad days. If one looks for the positive in any situation, one will find it!

André and Sue

Somewhere on the road in Canada

PS: Don't forget to read our other blogs (listed on the side) and to follow us on facebook and our Google Map. You can also check our web site for new pictures.