Last part of the trip series...Ottawa

At Parliament Hill

June's cake

At last, we were getting closer to home. Well, about another 4.5 hours closer that is! But what is a trip coming from the east with a visit to see June in Ottawa.

The time was about 7:15pm when we reached the 416 north to Ottawa. Another 30 minutes we will reach her place. When we got there, we called June and she got the parking pass for us to put on the dashboard. Visitor parking is $10 per day.

We bought dinner with us while June had silken chicken soup waiting. We ate and chatted and little did we know, June says that she hadn't eaten that much in a long time. Which was a relief for me that she was enjoying food and our company. I am glad she ate "more". She is way too thin -- although I think she is quite proud of that but if she is thin because of eating healthy and doing some exercise, then I am happy she the way she is. Anyways, time was getting late and we were already getting tired by 10pm. Lights out was just what we needed.

Aug 5, 2010

Next day, we stayed in during the morning and went out to check out the model homes at Monarch's Stonebridge site in Nepean. June bought a new townhouse and wanted us to see the model home of the plan she chose. It was quite nice actually, an end unit, and space was quite functional compared to the other end unit available.

After that, we drove over to the new T&T supermarket that opened less than a year ago. The layout was not exactly like the stores here -- smaller, perhaps. As we walked thru out the store, we gulped or dropped our jaws and some of the outrageous prices on the same grocery items in Toronto. We gave June advice....just stock up on groceries when you come home to visit. Chinese food is a luxury there. We ended up buying a BBQ duck for $10 and that was only half the duck.

After dinner, we walked over to the Rideau Mall and over to Parliament Hill. Lots of people were walking downtown and the patios were filled. It was getting close to 8:30, so we headed back towards the mall so that we could cut thru the mall to get to June's place for some dessert, cake!!

June finished one course in cake decorating and saved her masterpiece in freezer for our arrival. We even took the remainder of the cake home to share with every else. It was a beautiful cake. And tasty too. I had seconds because it was really good or maybe I had the craving. : )

Then it was time for bed because we were going home the next day. Thanks for letting us stay over June!

By 3 pm, it was home sweet home and the end to our vacation road trip for 2010.

More shopping..

Aug 4, 2010

Instead of staying at the Best Value Inn, we opted for something better...the Quality Inn. It was better.

Our plans for that day was to do some shopping at the Colonie Mall and the go up to Lake George and visit the Adirondacks Outlet Mall. I mean, we only managed to buy a couple pairs of jeans for the girls at Kittery...we still wanted to see if we can find other bargains at the other stores. And did we ever. The Macy's at the Colonie Mall had great stuff for under $10. And they were all named brands like Polo, CK and Puma.

Then it was off to Lake George for lunch. We drove north on I87 and it was about another 30 minutes away. The mall was located in the valley and surrounded by mountainous views. However, we did not spend too much time there because it was not a big mall. And we were ready to head home -- Canada, that is.

On the way home, we continued heading north on I87. If we crossed the border at the end of this highway, we would be on Montreal. But since we got lost driving there before, we took the last exit and drove west so, that we can enter Canada via Cornwall, ON instead.

It felt like it was taking forever to get to Cornwall. We passed a huge windmill farm, drove into mohawk territory before reaching the border. But once we crossed into Canada, we also encountered torrential downpour of rain. And we just entered the 401 at that time. Driving was so scary because you could not see far ahead. In this situation, we drove with our emergency light flashing. Lots of other cars did the same.

The rain passed and we were able to drive back at the highway speed to reach our next destination -- June's place in Ottawa. We arrived at June's at 7:30pm.

Last bits of our road trip...

Aug 3, 2010

Another day to wake up early and go. We stayed at the same place when we started our trip and thought that the Econolodge was quite clean for second stay. Good thing we grabbed another one of those Roomsaver coupon booklets, and made use of another coupon!

As we left the motel, we headed I95 south towards New Hampshire but before we reached there, what's a trip without visiting an outlet mall? I read on the internet and various brochures that the Kittery Outlet Mall had lots of shops that would satisfy any shopaholic. We geared up the GPS and on our way. And when we got there...we were disappointed. Not because of the shops. But because it was so big, it was a mall that took up 3 blocks. Traffic lights too. You really had to drive around to each block and park. The mall was too big to walk. Plus the heat and the sun...we were not going to walk.

In the end, we did not buy much because we allowed ourselves 2 hours max to browse and we needed to reach Albany before dinner time.

Long way home...

Aug 2, 2010

Leaving PEI...we took a different route on the way to Bangor, ME. We did not cross the border via Woodstock but St Stephen. Which was the way we came into NB in 2005 for the ferry ride. The highway that led to the border had changed, we no longer needed to pass thru St. Stephen. I remembered the old border went into the town of Calais but this time, we were west of Calais. That said, our plans for lunch went wrong. There were no chain restaurants to eat. We asked the gas station for the closest McDs and they told us we had head back in the opposite direction to Calais to find it. Nothing was around to eat. So, we ended up buying some fast hand foods at the gas station. Luckily it had some stuff that we can satisfy our stomachs. There was even bananas there! I bought 4 torpedoes for us to eat. There were no more hot dogs in the warmer and we were in a hurry. I asked what was a torpedo and the store clerk told me it was like a deep fried chimichanga...great, what's a chimichanga? Oh well, it smelled good.

After the mini lunch, we used route 9 to head into Bangor.

Happy 10 months Aidan!

There must something in here for me...

I can't believe that the summer will be over and the girls will soon be back in school, which means Aidan is getting closer to turning a year old. But that's in a couple more months. Today, we celebrate you at 10 months. I still cannot believe that you can down three bowls of congee for dinner and one more bowl before bedtime! Either you are a hungry baby or mom is just a great cook. hehehe.. You have started to realize that the ladybug is no longer your favourite seat and putting you in there means you cannot crawl about. It's funny to watch you spread your legs out when we try to put you in there. And you don't like the high chair for the same reason.

Bathing has become a twosome now. I get my share of water when I put you in the sink. And you KNOW there is water in the sink after I finish washing your few strands of hair because you turn and keep reaching to splash with your hands. Now we have progressed to the big tub for some splashing. Which reminds me, I need to replace the plastic swan sticker that we use to make the tub less slippery. Aidan has been preoccupied in a loose piece of the sticker and has been trying to pull the swan off.

As for speech, Aidan still prefers to go "dadada" or "nai nai" for me. We will have to work on the vocab. But he shrieks for the opening song to "Arthur" and loves to sing and dance to it. He also knows who he is and "ga che" for his sisters. And he knows when I yell at the girls, he is there to yell with me.

And of course, lots of expressions -- he scrunches his nose, blow like a blowfish, shakes his head and goes na na for no no, and he always puts on a big and excited smile when daddy comes home from work. He knows he will get picked up. He has started to crawl to me and climb up my leg when he wants me to pick him up. Soon you be walking.

In addition to Aidan's 10 month, August has two special birthdays -- Sam (19th) and Joyce today. Wishing you both good health with lots of love from the family.

Teary good bye

The toll booth as we leave PEI...toll was $42.50.

Grampy, June and Nany holding Aidan

Jean and June

Aug 2, 2010

Our visit to PEI was coming to a close. It was hard to say good bye to friends and such a beautiful place. We hope to come back again because we still need to do the North Cape drive. But it was still hard to hold back the tears. I noticed June was also full of tears too. The time we spent here was short but the feelings felt like we have been here a long time. We were leaving family. And leaving is always hard. Don't worry, we will be back!

Thanks for a great time!

Points East Coastal Drive

Aug 1, 2010

Carefully reviewing the PEI highway map I picked up at a local restaurant, I asked Dickens which drive he was up for -- the North Cape Coastal drive that is in the direction of Summerside and then up to North Cape or the Points East Coastal drive that went to East Point. I took out our tourbook and decided to read up on the points of interest and decided that the East drive was going to be fum for the kids. The area between Bothwell and Souris was known for its fine white sand beaches. And that was what I also wanted to experience...a taste of the caribbean in Canada! Also, there is the East Point lighthouse not far away from the beach.

When we got Red Point Provincial Park, there were quite a bit of people on the beach but it was not too crowded. There was also a campground next to the beach. We parked in the day parking area and had to walk down a long flight of stair down to get to the beach area...so, we did not bring the stroller. Once we got down, the girls took off there shoes and headed to the water to dip their sandy feet. Aidan also gave his little feet a nice dip too. He loved it so much that every time we took him out, he would turn his body and scream for more. He had so much fun...he wet his pants from all the splashing. And now, when I give him his bath at home, he recalls the splashing and keeps getting up on his feet and splashes in the tub. Of course, I have to hold him up while he stamps his feet.

As the winds were getting cooler, it was time to get to our next stop, the lighthouse. It was not far away from the beach, about 10 minute by car and we were at the most east tip of the island.

Time to slow doooown

Collecting their shells

July 29, 2010

Over the next few days, we rested a lot. It also helped that we did get rain the next day which also gave it better reason to stay home to catch up with our host and hostess. A friend of Jean and Dewey was also staying with them. Dickens also met June when he studied there. So, he was also happy to see her and get reacquainted again after all these years.

Days went by slow for the past 3 days compared to the previous days. But I was not complaining.

July 30, 2010

A nice day for sightseeing. The girls kept asking about going to the beach to collect seashells. So, Jean and Dewey took us to New London and New Glasgow as an outing -- and yes, we did visit a beach to relieve the girls craving. We also took a couple of pictures at the birthplace of Lucy Maud Montgomery -- the author of Anne of Green Gables. How can you not visit PEI without seeing that? Ok, very touristy but at least it was not the actual Green Gables house in Cavendish.

Cabot Trail - breathtaking...

After a really nice sleep at the Trailsman Motel, we woke up early (again) for breakfast so that we can get on the road to explore Cabot Trail. The dining hall at the motel was so different from the previous places we stayed. It was a real dining area with plenty of tables and chairs, plus it had table cloths! Fancy. We chose a corner table that had the view of the morning sun shining unto the lake front. Just an absolute superb way to start the day while enjoying breakfast. The menu was not too bad either -- toast, muffins, yogurt, fresh fruit, coffee and real orange juice. We were not in the mood for cereal that day.

One of the advantages of staying in this motel was that it was only 5 minutes away from the foot of the Cabot Trail route. But it was the valley part of the route, Margaree Valley...not much to see but trees and small rivers. After 45 minutes of valley scenery, we eventually started to enter the hill parts of the route. It would have been nice to zoom past all this to actually get to the provincial park where Cabot Trail is, but the one lane each way and a slow car in front, we knew it was going to be a while to get there. Did I mention we encountered those 10 minute stops for road work?

We finally made our way in and purchased our family pass to enter the provincial park. We stopped at rocky beaches, look out points, touched a whale tooth and gill, tried to catch a glimpse of a whale in the ocean and simply absorbed ourselves in the beautiful views from high above. Dickens recalled that the last time he drove around the area, there were no guardrails, it was pure cliff on the side of the road.

Poor Aidan, trying to catch his morning nap but only to be awaken by us for another family picture. But at least, he was always in good spirits and smiled for the camera each time.

As we left for PEI, we headed out the way we came in. And making a stop for a late lunch at a McDonald's in Antigonish. Why McDonald's? Well, on our way to Cabot Trail, we saw McDonald ads for the McLobster. It stuck in my mind that I had to try it on our way back. How can I leave the Maritimes without trying a seafood sandwich? And all I can say was that it was well worth the $6.19 I paid.

After lunch, it was pretty much straight driving til we reached our destination -- the home of Jean and Dewis Rector and our final stop for the next few days.

Nova Scotia - a day in Fortress of Louisbourg

girls at the cannon

July 27, 2010

After a pleasant night at the Rainbow Motel, we woke up early for our next long road trip to the Cape Breton Islands. No breakfast was offered at this place so, we ate something quick from our own inventory then it was on the road again.

Along the way, we made some stops -- for breaks and for road construction. Funny how they like to make one direction of traffic come a full halt for almost 10 minutes while the other direction gets to cross. We would do like what the locals do, shut the engine off and wait patiently. The opposite traffic comes through and when it is our turn, everyone turns on the car again. I think we encountered more than 3 of these situations during our trip. And of course, all that waiting in a hot car is not always fun.

Driving all the way to Sydney and then to Fortress of Louisbourg, which is the educational part of the trip which the kids most enjoyed too. It was like stepping back in time with the people dressed in pioneer clothing and watching the firing of the cannon was quite a spectacle. Unfortunately, I missed all of it because I had to nurse a very irritable and cranky baby. But once he got his "snack", he was fine. We watched a marching band and visited the bakery area to buy a couple loaves of their stone baked bread. They baked it just like how they did in those pioneer days so the bread were like rocks. But still very yummy to snack on. Even Aidan enjoyed ripping his own pieces of bread to eat by himself.

As it was getting late, we needed to head out and check into our next place to stay. A nice cottage type motel that was situated right on the Bras D'Or lakes. The surroundings was so nice and tranquil. We even thought it would have been a nice place to stay for two nights. At $89 a night and gorgeous view. Well worth the price!

Tomorrow we explore the beauties of what Cape Breton is all about -- Cabot Trail.

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia

At a nice lookout point in Maine

The girls with 11 year old Scotchie

Another new route we decided to use to enter back into Canada. Our last visit, we used St.Stephen, NB or was that NS?? Anyways, we entered via St. Stephen because we went on the Ferry from Saint John to Digby, NS then. This time we will not be using the ferry and so, we entered NB using Woodstock which we will also drive by Fredericton and Moncton and if time allowed, we would visit the famous Magnetic Hill. But due to a "male" miscalculation of the travel time...Magnetic Hill did not happen. Instead, we made it to Truro, NS in under five hours from Bangor. The ride was the most boringest (I know that is not a word but the best word to describe it). Lots of long roads to nowhere because the roads were straight and at times, we have the hills and mountains but I think I already got bored of those scenes after numerous scenes in the couple of days. No more "wow" at that point. I was more like the kids...are we there yet? I just kept looking at the countdown on the GPS for the alloted time of arrival.

We finally reached Truro and visited a friend, the MacIssac's -- Eva, Sid, Abby and Becky -- she was not home. And the dogs, Ruffles and Scotchie. Eva prepared dinner for us and we were able to relax -- a bit. The dogs were overwhelmed with the girls following them with dog treats. or Amanda's squealing when Ruffles came by. Ruffles is the black dog that was growling with jealousy because the girls kept playing with Scotchie. The girls were "scared" of the black dog and that was why they did not want to play with her.

Thanks Eva and Sid for having us over!

From Albany to Maine

The next day, we woke up early so that we can start early on the road for our next destination -- Bangor, Maine.

There is also something about staying at a motel that offers free breakfast, you want beat the rest of the guests before the food runs out. Or better, before the seating runs out. What was on the continental breakfast menu??? Cheerios, english muffins, rye bread, bagels, cake donuts, coffee and Sunny Delight fake orange juice. Better than nothing. Cereal and bagel it was. The breakfast of champions.

We checked out and it was back on the road. Continuing east towards Boston. It would have been nice to visit the Cape Cod area but it was too south and not quite along the way. And funny that the entire drive thru the MA part of the interstate cost under $2.00 US compared to the over $12 we already forked for over for the NY portion of the toll. We even passed a signage for I84-- another highway we are familiar with when Sam and Steph lived in Fishkill, NY.

After a few more tolls -- $2.00 here and there, some road construction with lane reductions, we passed thru MA and NH and we made it to Bangor in Maine. We took a nice scenic route that was along the coast in some parts of Maine. We saw some nice harbours along the highway.

We checked in at the Econolodge that claims to have been awarded some gold award for service and amenities. And it did earn it's gold for cleanliness. And it was a good thing we got one of those Roomsaver books and we used the coupon for a cheaper rate. YES!

Because we arrived after 6 pm, the malls were closed so, we asked for any other places to visit and the lady at the front desk gave us a sheet of shopping malls, restaurants and places of interests to explore. Being the time it was, it was inevitable that we explored the dinner choices. We found the place they recommended for seafood. And yes, being in Maine where lobsters are famous, we had to dine for some seafood. Captain Nicks was the place to be. Dickens and I shared the Twin Lobster dinner for $20 and the girls shared the generous Fish n Chips platter. The bill in the end was USD 30 -- no tax. Wow!! We can never get a seafood dinner in Canada at that price. Beat that!

With our tummies happy, we went to find the Target closeby since we knew that it was still open til 9. And then it was back for a good night's sleep.

Tomorrow, we head back to Canada -- New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Vacation 2010

Due to some technical difficulties, I was not able to enter any blog updates. Our contract with the ISP expired while we were on vacation and we had to go with a new one. But the new ISP needed 5 business days to get it up and running. Sad to say that the last five days were almost unbearable without Facebooking or blogging. I already had no internet while on vacation, and itching to write about the places we have been and coming back to a blank screen and a red light on the modem indicating no internet connection was one "f" word.....frustrating.

Alas, now, I have the task to rewind my memory to 3 weeks back and share our journey to the Maritimes for our 2010 vacation. What I can say is that the trip was very tiring.

We packed on Friday night, and after filling three suitcases, three boxes, stroller, baby carrier,cooler and a sports bag of gifts and food, it was after midnight. I could even say that even that after the lights went out, I was still thinking over and over what I may have forgotten to pack.

The next day, we woke up at 7 am as planned to pack the cooler with some cold drink and some food from the fridge. Then it was time to load the remaining items into the car. And at 9 am, we finally was able to start our trip. First stop, Rochester, NY.

We decided to use Buffalo as our entry point to the US and then head east. The last time we went to Nova Scotia (back in 2005), we entered via Brockville. But we had to navigate thru some small communities in the upper part of NY. It was not bad but the speed was tremendously reduced in those communities so we wasted a bit of time in our travel. This time, using Buffalo, we were mostly on the main interstate (I90) to reach our various stops. We chose to stop in Rochester for our first stop for rest and lunch. There is a huge mall at the exit which made the pit stop very convenient. I made most of our stops based on Walmart Supercentre locations. It not only has the bathrooms but also a place to pick up some items if we needed to.

After that stop, it was back onto I90 and the next stop Albany to stay overnight. And also another big Walmart in the area. And this Walmart is currently the biggest in the US at over 260,000 sq ft of shopping space. The drive to Albany was smooth with some minor construction along the way. We found our motel and settled in a bit before embarking for that large Walmart. It was also located conveniently next to the Crossgates Mall but we did not go there -- we circled their parking lot looking for Walmart. The GPS took us in circles because it kept telling us to "follow the highlighted route" and it did not show the street names so, driving in the parking lot with the GPS was so confusing.

We eventually found the Walmart and bought our dinner and it was time to go back to the motel. But how?? We were so confused with the GPS instructions, I lost my sense of direction and did not know how to find our way back. So, I typed the motel address and we used the GPS to get back. It took us thru the local streets to get back to our motel. Ok, the GPS was useful that time. It has regained my faith a little.

Finally got back to the America Best Value Inn for some RnR.