From Caledon to Huatulco

Caledon Butterflies in the Snow

On December 16th Bob and I fly to Huatulco in the state of Oaxaca where the foothills of the Sierra Madre del Sur Mountains meet the Pacific Ocean. Susan, Alan, Max and Kai arrive the next day and that is where we'll hang our Christmas stockings.

There are nine bays along the coast there each with their own ecosystem and interests. I’ll post photos every day or so and might include drawings this year too. For the first ten days we’re staying in the town of La Crucecita which sprang up as a tourist area after the 80s.

Huatulco had an early turbulent history. After the Spanish Conquest, it was a vantage point and distribution centre for Spanish galleons on the Pacific coast. Then in the last part of the 16th Century it was attacked by Francis Drake and Thomas Cavendish. 

Until resort development began in the 1980s, locals grew crops. There are still coffee plantations that we hope to visit. I'll send photos of the process. I visited a plantation in Honduras and the process is very labour intensive. Every time I sip a latte now I think of the pickers high up in buggy, humid mountains picking one bean at a time. Not for the faint of heart.

From Huatulco we travel by bus, a stupendous eight hours -- yikes -- to the city of Oaxaca for a week, then to Puebla and finally to Mexico City for the final few days of our Mexican month.

See you in Huatulco! 

PS  You can check out my most recent art work at  http://www.self-esteem-health.com/art-work.html

                        

                                            

Lost and Found in the Woods

The trails around the resort are beautiful, steep and poorly marked. Yesterday we got lost and then eventually found our way.

Carol and me.

Bob, Tony and Carol looking for the trail.

Halloween here in Quebec is like dropping into another world -- at least in St. Sauveur. The whole town dresses up. Kids flock to the city from the surrounding villages and go store to store instead of door to door at home before the 6:00 pm parade down main street. The costumes are creative and unusual. The mood is festive. 

Even dogs dress up.

Janik is the resort's Maitre D and what an interesting fellow he is and how he has built an incredible cellar with bottles from around the globe. The most expensive bottle is $2 500. We learned a lot from him.

Janik

We'll remember Lac Morency's friendly staff and nature's beauty.Our next jaunt is to Mexico in 6 weeks. See you there!

Auberge du Lac Morency

Auberge du Lac Morency

lodges tucked into the Laurntian Shield

from a rocky ridge

"Watch out!" Bob said. We were walking up a steep road high above the lake last Saturday evening. Other than a light off in the distance, the night was inky. I looked down into two spots of light at my feet, then a ringed tail. The raccoon sauntered off. 

This resort is a surprise. it began in the 40s as a ski area for Montrealers and is still rustic in many ways. But conveniences are here too. 

The resort has an impressive wine cellar, restaurant and spa. Service is professional and congenial. Most guests are Quebecois and friendly. I'm getting French and Spanish royally mixed up.

non motorized boats on the lake

small wine field

wine press

Grapes grow on every earthy slope and units have their own wine cooler.

St. Hippolyte at the lake's end.

Yesterday we hiked around the side of a slope of granite for a village view. 

Le P'tit Train Du Nord

We've always wanted to cycle this trail and set out this morning heading north from Ste. Adele bundled up in the 6 degree air.

Along La Riviere du Nord

La Riviere du Nord

Val David sculpture

I lived in Montreal as a kid and then you'd get along easily then with only English. But I'm surprised here at how many people now speak only French with some halting English. We stopped at the Bistro des Artistes in Val David, a quaint little town along the way.

Tapas in Val David

More photos soon. Be well.

From Whistler to Downtown Vancouver

From Whistler to Downtown Vancouver

View from Creekside suite

The last morning at Creekside I opened the drapes and where there had been only mist there was a mountain. What an amazing surprise. The week with Brian in Whistler was special because it was my first visit alone with him in nine years, since he and Regina married -- so lots of time to connect in a different way.

It happened that shortly after Brian arrived in Canada from Brazil he was invited to photograph the Dalai Lama's Vancouver October 21 - 23 event. He is awed and a little nervous about this amazing opportunity. I wish I could be a fly on the proverbial wall. Imagine being close to such an influential and compassionate person.

Because of his photography business, Brian travels with his desktop Apple computer, camera lights, camera, lenses and of course luggage. So the Dodge Dart rental was filled to the brim on our Sea to Sky drive south to Vancouver where we had a suite in a downtown hotel for Thanksgiving weekend. 

This was fantastic because Susan, Alan, Max and Kai were on the coast from Nelson visiting Alan's family. We all took the ferry to Granville Island on Thanksgiving Day and almost the first thing we spotted were The Guys -- the now famous silos.  

The giant fellows are six industrial concrete silos transformed into a mural by the Brazilian twins and street artists, Osgemeos. Their vibrancy and funkiness light up this particularly drab area of Granville Island.

Everything you need for dinner.

Get ready to cook!

Ginger

This Green Eggplant

Fiery Habanerous

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One of the most difficult aspects of life these days, for me at least, is being so far away from our family. We haven't been all together in one place since April 2009. Brian lives in Brazil, Mark in Collingwood -- but travels a lot and Susan lives in Nelson B.C. I've always envied families who get together for holidays. But I'm glad we have the means to meet at all.

Susan and Brian on Granville last Monday

Kai

Alan, Brian and Max

Raindrops falling 30 feet

While we were on Granville, Mark was in Venice.

More photos to come this upcoming weekend from Lac Morency in the Laurentides. See you there.

Here In Whistler

Hi Everyone from the Mountains of Whistler

The scene below is the view from our living room window and the air is thick with the scent of Douglas Fir trees. Brian moved to B.C. from Ontario in '87. Over the years he lived in Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler (although now here for a month from Sao Paulo, Brazil).  

Eye popping green

Bob and I have been coming here to ski and hike since way back when the Sea to Sky highway was two scary, curvy, hilly, lanes. It's still a bit scary especially at night but the 2012 Olympics spurred a great road rebuilding effort.

Stawmus Chief

The Stawamus Chief at Squamish is the second largest piece of granite in the world.

Brian and I are hiking up the Dave Murray trail here at Whistler Creekside and it's hard to imagine this place deep with snow. The top of Whistler Mountain is three chair lifts up from the one below.

Our resort is surrounded by multi million dollar homes. 

Where hardly anyone is at home it seems. At least I walked around after dark last night and most houses were dark. Might be different during ski season though. 

Graffiti on the trail side.

Every wall is fair game for an artist.

This place is definitely a playground for the rich. But the rich have to be looked after. So there are tons of kids and young adults working as cleaners, servers, receptionists, vendors and so forth. They leave their colourful mark as in the graffiti above. 

Around Whistler Village

Around Lost Lake

Fall Brilliance

Chao for now. More photos to come.