Blackduck59

Outstanding. My lovely wife is having a milestone birthday on Monday, unfortunately they wouldn't give her the day off so the options are limited. There will be a nice dinner though probably at the same restaurant we celebrated our 20th anniversary last year. I'm glad you had a good day. Cheers, Lyle

I have no idea how I missed this. I hope you made up for the 34 years she has endured with you by indulging her whims, springing for a spa day and taking her for a wonderful dinner paired with a marvelous wine. A belated Happy Anniversary to you both. Cheers, Lyle & Lynn

Enjoy sail away Clay, the Lions Gate is a lovely bridge to transit under. As you leave Canada Place and move farther out into Burrard inlet, Stanley Park will be on the Port side. You may be able to see a ship under construction on the Starboard side, that will be one of the new fleet support ships for the RCN. Are you in Victoria at any point in this adventure?

No worries, it's there if you want to use it. The fish & chip shop is at 738 Goldstream Avenue, Langford BC. If you get that close you better let me know 😁

That looks typical for Vancouver Clay. It is a big bottle neck at border control. How many ships were boarding today? We had 5 when we did our cruise. It should be all good once you get past that line. I'm sure there will be some suitable libation available once you are on board to help you recover from the trauma 😉

The batter is excellent crisp and thin. Saltys is a chain of franchise stores but this particular one is different. The address is lyledotduck at shawdotca. A few others have it as well

I assure you I did eat it 😁

Check out HAL Zaandam cruise that sails 23 Aug 2023, see you there 😉

The bonus is the cruise starts on my 64th birthday.

Yes I think we will Fly in to Boston at least 2 days before the cruise. There is much to see, I want to go to the JFK Library. His funeral is one of my earliest childhood memories. We will stay a couple nights in Montreal before we take the train to Ottawa for a couple nights before we fly home.

Thank you, that sounds very interesting. We are booked for a Boston to Montreal on Zaandam in August next year. The ports are Boston, Portland Maine, St John New Brunswick, Halifax Nova Scotia, Cornerbrook Newfoundland, Charlottetown PEI, Saguenay Quebec, Quebec City and Montreal.

The Maritime provinces were hit by "post tropical storm" Fiona abut 4 days ago. Louisburg is on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. Sydney Nova Scotia is on Cape Breton Island. There were cruise ships in the area when the storm hit, Zaandam put in to Halifax the next day but of course the port was closed to visitors. Much of the itinerary was changed because of the storm.

That is a lot like the B52 at spitfire as you know Les. No beans on a B52 but there is streaky bacon and ham as well as 2 really good snags. I think it is still under $20.00, I'll probably find out tomorrow.

It doesn't get nearly as cold here on Vancouver island and we will definitely have rain. We can have wind and rain storms as well, but nothing like what just went through the Maritimes. Lynn's brother lives in Louisburg and his house received a fair bit of damage.

Yes coleslaw is pretty much the standard side with fish and chips here. Both our "go to" places have good slaw.

There is a rather stubborn fire on the north end of the island, very steep terrain and hard to fight. It is making smoke that is also seen and smelled here on the south island. I'm sure the rain is coming it's just taking it's time. We get yellow leaves but not the vibrant reds and oranges the the east is famous for. Our maple trees are a different species.

Mushy peas really aren't a thing here Uncle Les, even if I did want them. If I had opened up the shot more you would see the white and malt vinegar, the salt (and pepper) Ketchup and tartar sauce. All available as you like.

I'm sorry to hear you are getting soaked Les, we wouldn't mind a little rain, there has been less than 5mm in the last 60 days.

So it was halibut and chips tonight. We dined in, it's so much better than take away.

Welcome to the wet coast Clay. Bright sunshine today. I hope the weather continues for you.

Yes an expense, I think mine was about that price in Canadian dollars. I rarely use it. You could take the opportunity to buy one of the world famous Cowichan sweaters while you are in the area. They aren't cheap but are very warm even when wet. Enjoy your trip.

I was just looking at your packing list and a Marino wool base layer would be a good addition...I know too late now.

Cheers Clay. I'm looking forward to hearing about your HAL cruise. Safe travels to the wet coast (that being said it hasn't been very wet here for months).

You are paying how much for a cruise? And you're worried about a jug of water that costs less than 5 bucks? Just saying.

Thanks for the update Lyndon, I know the pain of dropping stuff on hard surfaces. For me it was my camera on the concrete floor of what's known as the McCrae bunker, a small aid station in Flanders near where McCrae wrote "In Flanders Fields". The camera never worked properly again. 😟 I hope you are healing well from your bicycle mishap. Take care and be safe while you continue to enjoy your adventure. Cheers, Lyle