l1nky

I started this entry on my last beautiful day in Southern California - sunshine, crowds and queues and more queues - the Disney Parks are heaving today and while most people are good natured about the waits and shut rides (even in amusement park paradise, the technology can have a hissy fit), I have twice been caught in couple spat zones - it's hard work looking disinterested when all sorts of shortcomings are detailed. Wow! He's not gonna bounce back from that assessment quickly! But now I am in the single rider queue in an effort to get in one more thrill before I head for home. I have a dark suspicion that all this adrenalin may not be good for me - but the mad professor laughter most certainly is good for me! Have ... read more

The US is everything you think it will be - huge, excessive, clever, brash, vulgar in parts, sublime in others, inventive, bewildering and for me, huge fun! Having lived here 20 years ago, I was surprised how country mouse I felt. But given the pervasive nature of American culture, you become accustomed to the flow of things relatively easily. I chose NYC because I wanted to experience the quintessential city. From the splendid musical MEMPHIS thru to the clean & handy subway thru to the Museum of Natural History and the omnipresent security checks, NYC is Unique. I was so pleased to share it with the wonderful Naomi, whose scheduling and organizing prowess are legendary - I still owe you a tip, Miss Concierge! Some things were confronting - mostly relating to heightened security - armed ... read more

Canada to me is best represented by this curiosity - 1 July is Canada Day. Born in 1867, Canada's now 10 provinces celebrate the birth of a largely peaceful and well functioning democracy. Quebec, which is part of Canada, celebrates its own day, St. Jean-Baptiste, a week earlier. No one in the rest of Canada appears put out by this - they cheerfully point out that for me, being in Quebec, I would be able to shop on the Monday public holiday. Interestingly, not on the actual day - being a Sunday & a public holiday was a double whammy for the cashed-up and planless - it had the shopaholics keening wistfully at the well-lit, but locked glass doors of the shiny stores all along St. Catherine in Montreal! I cruelly enjoyed watching them walk into ... read more

Peeps... bears are cool. They are intelligent, curious, powerful, smelly and unbelieveably cool. Black bears (ursus Americanus) and brown bears (ursus arctos) are impressive creatures - male grizzlies (as brown bears are known in some places) can grow up to 2m long and 1m to the shoulder, and weigh in at over 200kg, with females between 90 and 120 kg. Black bears are slightly smaller, at 135 kg and 60 kg respectively. Black bears can be red, blonde, grey, blue and white (just to be helpful) and grizzly bears (known for the grey on their fur tips as opposed to a grumpy disposition) can also be not grizzled. So even experts have a tricky time, and for the sake of science, other differences (or not): 1) Grizzlies have the classic teddy bear face with rounder ears ... read more

Starting each day around 0600, I joined the yoga group on deck for some gentle stretching & exercise to begin the day - as early mornings were often chilly (3-10C), I was a vision in my ensemble of long under wear, sports gear, beanie & several jackets to be progressively shed as the hour moved along. While not a practitioner on dry land, I came to enjoy the particular challenges of yoga on a moving platform, not the least being balancing in one foot arms above my head as the ship changed course! Shoulder stands and downward facing dogs, amusing for the unseemly angles presented to unwary passersby, became even more hilarious as the deck pitched and swayed!! On the last day in Dawes Glacier, we did fire breathing exercises amongst ice floes & seals - ... read more

Days begin very early in Alaska at this time of the year with the sun rising around 0330 and even tho the mornings are often a soft grey & the bed comfortable, your natural inclination is to look at the sky and the landscape and then to smile and wonder. South East Alaska is beautiful - vast and tall and wet. Most of my stay, there was a soft mist in the morning, which changed many times into rainfree days and sometimes, gorgeous blue skies - amazing since this area gets multiple feet of rain each year! Tongass, thru which we cruised, is the largest national park in the US, which is saying something for a land that is also home to Yosemite and Yellowstone - 17 million acres of temperate rain forests, on 22,000 islands ... read more

Well, peeps - after eleventy hundred hours of travel, I am writing to you from the lovely Inn at the Creek in Ketchikan (Ke-tchi-kan) Alaska - green and cool, the Inn is surrounded by snow topped mountains, which to this plains grrl seem very sharply faced and seemingly endless. The Inn sits on wooden pylons along the Creek and once hosted the Red Light District - filled with tourist spots, it focuses on rogering of another kind now. The trip was uneventful, and suprisingly pleasant (even the attempt a paleo meals was rather good - and hot and served sooner than others!) - thank you my 'sister' Lyndall for getting me aisle seats - much appreciated. So far, so good barring a couple of discombobulations, which I will share with you as a lesson on what ... read more

Good morning, peeps! If this missive has popped into your in-box, its because at some stage you & I have chatted about life and stuff, and now I have an address and can 'talk' at you .... at length. If you don't get this, I have set the bloody thing up incorrectly and will be talking to myself for 6 weeks (nothing new there :D) The trip starts in a week & a bit and will cover SE Alaska, Vancouver Island, Eastern Canada, NYC, Vegas and LA ... to those hapless bods I'm swooping in on or hanging out with, many, many thanks for your kindness .. I also apologise in advance for the international incidents ... what's a cavity search between friends, right? If you agreed to this and have changed your mind (or don't ... read more