Babysitting in North Van

 The powers that be deemed it providential that we travel to British Columbia during the Family Day holiday in February, in order to get away from Stroud and help Nickie's daughter Sarah, during report card season.  Sarah is a teacher and requires about 40 hours of seclusion in order to complete the report cards.  The 2 grandchildren (okay, technically they should be described as Sarah's sons) require considerable interaction at the ages of 4 and 6.

Hiking in BC in 2023

I'm not going to belabour the point about issues arising when I travel, but since we booked rather last minute, we decided to use a low-cost airline for the return flight to Vancouver.  We chose Lynx!  Our outbound no-frills flight was uneventful and we remarked to each other that travelling cheap wasn't so bad.  The flight boasted free water, but no movies, meals or wine.  Our flight back was scheduled for Sunday February 25, 2024.  Guess what!  Lynx went bankrupt and their last day of business was February 26.  Our overnight flight would have landed in Toronto on February 26, so it was cancelled!

We scrambled for a few days to locate a replacement return flight.  Being an optimist, I fully expect to be reimbursed for our cancelled flight, at some point in 2026...

Vancouver is rather dreary in February, but we enjoyed several hikes in the area.  The beachfront just south of Stanley Park - I think it is called English Bay Beach, is a great spot to walk about and enjoy one of the cafes.  We did not hike any of the nearby mountains, as the trails are a bit treacherous in February, but visited some of the parks within the city.

Grouse Grind in 2023

If you glaze over the fact that we booked a trip on an airline that went bankrupt, a real concern is that the maple syrup season started early, while I was in BC.  I make maple syrup with a friend and due to the unseasonably mild weather, we (they) tapped early.  I asked the pilot to drop me near Badjeros, the closest community to the farm where we make maple syrup, but he could not find it on a map, so we continued on our way to Pearson Airport.  If you want a challenge, try to find Badjeros, Ontario!

After the maple syrup season ends, we will head to Scotland and hike the Great Glen Way, a 120 km trail from Fort Williams to Inverness.  I've hiked from Glasgow to Fort Williams (known as the West Highland Way) and we are looking forward to some incredible scenery and Scottish hospitality.

Take away:  Try not to book flights on airlines that go bankrupt.

Cheers!

How to Enjoy a State of Emergency

Nickie and I enjoy travelling and have explored quite a few spots over the last 2 years.  Before that, travel was primarily theoretical, through the lense of Covid 19.

Once in a while (okay, perhaps almost every trip) trouble comes looking for me.  And trust me, it is never my fault!  Just don't ask Nickie if my actions sometime contribute to the problem.  It's hazy, but I believe her recollection is skewed.

I'm hoping these are phone lines...

I have travelled to Ecuador before and was excited to share the experience with Nickie.  Ecuador is a mixture of old world (Spanish), rural charm and a more peaceful pace of life.  Except for the Ecuadorians drivers.  F1 drivers would be nervous venturing onto their big city streets.

To break the tension, I should mention that nothing terrible happened to us in Ecuador, on the first day.  We had barely landed in Guayaquil (pronounced similar to Guacamole) when Ecuador declared a state of emergency. I am 72% certain it was not related to our arrival.  The next paragraph will prove how safety conscious I truly am.

Part of our schedule was to spend a few days sightseeing in Guayaquil, just before flying back to Canada.  Since some of the trouble was in Guayaquil, we decided to stay there for only the night before our flight home.

Directly after landing in Guayaquil, we took a bus to Santa Elena, then a taxi to Salinas.  Public transportation in Ecuador is ridiculously cheap.  A three hour bus ride costs about $5 and cab fare ranges from $2 (short trip) to $6.  Salinas is a beach town with a plethora of restaurants and hotels.  The beaches are great and the Pacific ocean waves are manageable.  I'm not overly keen on beach towns.  I can endure up to 4 hours on a beach, but then I start to vibrate.  The humming annoys those nearby, so we usually have to move far far away.

One of Salinas' beaches

Near Salinas is a cool ocean phenomena known locally as Chocolatera.  This is where strong ocean currents smash against the shore, whipping the water into a chocolate froth.  Or so I've read.  We never did get to see Chocolatera, since you must cross a military base.  Recall that Ecuador was in a state of emergency.  Had we taken a taxi, all would have been well, as presumably, the driver would have told us the route to Chocolatera was closed.  But Nickie and I like to hike!  The normal route was closed, but I happened to find a way into the military base through a door in the back yard of a hospital.  Soon we were hiking along streets with many military buildings scattered about.  As we walked by a group of soldiers holding machine guns, one asked us what we were doing there.  My Spanish is not the greatest, even after a few years of Duolingo, so my question about how to get to Chocolatera might have been misunderstood.  We were promptly asked to leave.  There are a few situations where even I decide it is better to obey than to argue.  One is when talking to angry young soldiers toting machine guns.  I recommend you consider this a good rule to follow!

The next day we again tried to find our way to Chocolatera.  Since our efforts while walking appeared to be futile, we hopped into a taxi and when he was turned back at the gate, we began to realize that Chocolatera was barred due to the state of emergency.  If you are ever in Ecuador, I recommend seeing this wonderful site.  But not during a state of emergency...

2nd largest Nativity scene ever!

Most days we swam in the ocean and ate some wonderful seafood, but not at the same time.  Which gave me an idea!  We could try swimming around the military base.  Now there's a plan!  Unfortunately, Nickie talked me out of this idea, citing rough seas, sharks and snipers as potential deterrents.

After a week in Salinas, we took a bus to Cuenca.  To be exact, we took a taxi from Salinas to Santa Elenas, then a bus to Guayaquil, then a bus to Cuenca.  The bus to Guayaquil was boring, as the terrain is flat.  Not so with the bus from Guayaquil to Cuenca!  It passes through the Caja National park.  At one point, the road is at almost 4,000 meters above sea level.  Spectacular scenery and the bus driver was able to show off his F1 driving prowess.  There is no better feeling than drifting a coach bus around mountain hairpins!

Caja National Park
The highway is where the bus driver honed his F1 skills

I've been to Cuenca before and had forgotten how noisy, busy and smelly it is.  Cars, trucks and buses race around for most of the day and well into the evening.  Since there are only 400,000 people living in Cuenca, I think the same cars, trucks and buses most follow a route, over and over again.  If they were all simply going to their destination, there should be no traffic after 9 AM and only a little between 5 and 6 PM.  I'm not sure how they do it.

There was more police and army about, due to the state of emergency.  However only in the busier parts of town, such as the town square, known as El Parque Calderon.  It is an impressive display of old Spanish architecture and includes the obligatory huge churches.  It was quite busy and likely is so most of the time.  There was a traffic jam on the 4 roads surrounding the square.  I am 92.5% certain the traffic simply kept going around in circles.  Maybe the drivers are paid to make Cuenca look busy?

Nickie near our hotel in Cuenca

After a wonderful supper in the square, we walked back to our hotel, situated in the southwest section of town, near one of Cuenca's rivers.  Outside the hotel were 2 armed police officers, 2 more in the lobby and a couple standing outside one of the first floor rooms.  I was going to yell "You found the drug lord!", but decided they might not understand my sense of humour.  We went to our room on the second floor, not really knowing what was going on.  We made plans to roll off the bed, clutching the mattress, when they started firing their rifles.

The next morning, there were still 6 officers at the hotel, so we decided it was a great opportunity to get the hell out of Dodge (actually Cuenca) and hike in the Caja National park.  The hike was wonderful!  Well, as wonderful as hiking can be at 4,000 meters.  I saw a lot of stars that I am quite certain no one else could see.

Caja National Park at 4,000 meters

On our return, there were no longer any police surrounding the hotel.  So we asked the clerk what had happened.  He explained that the police were there to protect the President of Olympia.  I might have misunderstood the clerk, but the fellow being guarded was carrying a sceptre.  We felt a bit of relief, now that we weren't sharing a hotel with a prime target for any local drug lords.

The next day we walked to the south side of Cuenca, which has 3,387,412 steps (I counted them) up the side of a hill.  Although the climb is onerous, there is a great view of Cuenca at the top.  Almost worth the cardiac arrest.

Cuenca!

We decided to take a trip to Ecuador's largest Inca ruins in Ingapirca.  I normally over-analyse prospective trips, but somehow failed to notice that the site is closed on Monday and Tuesday!  Fortunately, much of the site is visible from the road, so we saved the $1 entry fee!

Ingapirca

Finally it was time to head back to Ontario.  I enjoy travelling, but also look forward to getting home after some time abroad.  The trip from Cuenca to Guayaquil was a surprise, as the bus driver was quite competent, only squealing the tires on 4 or 5 occasions.  We had changed our accommodations in Guayaquil, due to the state of emergency and instead of staying in a rather nice hotel, we stayed in the Airport Hotel of Guayaquil.  It was cheap, in all senses of the word.  Our room was slightly smaller than a broom closet (the first time I was jealous of Harry Potters' bedroom) but compensated by having no windows.

The flight back was uneventful, just the way I like them.  It seemed a bit strange when we landed in Bogota and felt much safer!

To sum up, here are some tips on vacationing in a country that is under a state of emergency:

• Keep low at all times.
• Don't argue with soldiers holding automatic weapons.
• Obey the curfew.  In fact, enjoy the curfew, as it means even party towns are quiet after 11 PM.
• Avoid spending considerable time in towns where people are being shot.

There are also some benefits of vacationing in countries in a state of emergency:

• Unless there is gunfire, you should get a good night's sleep.
• Restaurants are not as busy
• Hotels should be a bit cheaper
• Airport lines are much reduced

In case you think that chaos follows me wherever I travel, don't go to Scotland in April.

Cheers!

I Keep Checking My Watch

Well, 2 years into the pandemic and we continue to endure restrictions.  Don't get me wrong - we need the restrictions to slow the transmission rate and avoid inundating our medical system.  However, the more Canadians that are vaccinated, the sooner the restrictions can be lifted.  And it doesn't bode well for the unvaccinated when restrictions are finally lifted.  Covid is very successful in infecting humans.  To the few people out there who are not virologists, this means that the unvaccinated will eventually contract Covid.  The current metrics indicate that this will take upwards of another 3 years.  The way I see it, get vaccinated or at least write your will.

Although this will sound like a repeat of last year's predictions, I'm guessing/hoping that the current surge could be the last with restrictions.  We will continue to encounter surges, but these should not have a great impact on the vaccinated, as we will only experience Flu-like symptoms.  Which brings me to the important part of this post...  Racing.

In 2021, I attended only one race, and it was virtual.  I ran 28K by myself, in order to complete The Limberlost Challenge.  There were considerably more hills than I remember, likely because instead of running the course, I ran up and down the Niagara Escarpment near my house.  Coincidentally, it took me quite a bit longer to complete, than in previous years.

For 2022, the OUTRace series has again been cancelled.  This is not yet official, so only tell your mother.  Oh yes, of course you can tell your husband - that goes without saying.  Absolutely not, brother-in-laws are right out.  I have signed up for Pick Your Poison, although that is a lie.  I am on the waiting list.  Of course I had inside information - specifically the race director informed us (the OUTRace executive) of the date when registration would open.  I signed on the next day and was the last name on the waiting list!  I'll go out on a limb and predict that many of the races will sell out in 2022, directly after I have signed up.  Please note the last part.

Hopefully most restrictions will be lifted by the summer and we can sign up for a race or three.  I have not yet sent a mass email to OUTRacers, but will wait until closer to the first race (Pick Your Poison).  The reasoning is that by mid-April, we will have a better idea of how the race season will transpire.

There is a new race in the series called Forest Lea, near Pembroke on August 6.  Information about the race is currently going up on the outrace.ca website - it should be there soon!  I hope to attend a few of the races in the series that I have not yet experienced.

I have no away races planned, as travelling is still a questionable endeavor.  Just before the latest travel restrictions were issued, I booked a trip to a resort in Mexico.  I'm not a big fan of resorts and prefer travelling and hiking in more remote terrain, but the central concept was to vacation with two of my daughters, one son-in-law and 2 grandchildren.  It was fun, but travelling is not an enjoyable experience just now.  Flying is fine, but I dread spending time in airports.  It took about 14 hours from the time we left the resort until we got home.  The flight was 3 hours and a good chunk of the remaining 11 hours was spent in airports.

Stay safe and enjoy the snow!  If there is no snow where you are, please don't mention it to me :)

Cheers!

The Times They are a Changing

I have a soft spot in my heart for Bob Dylan.  I recall my brother purchasing his first 17 albums in the 1980's.  Bob spoke for a generation.  Definitely master class.

Well, Covid did not resolve itself in 8.23 months as I had fervently hoped.  It is taking longer, and I understand people are worried and frightened to commit to getting vaccinated, but come on people!  You are hampering my travel plans!  Please recall that the governments will not eliminate restrictions until fully 80% of Canadians are vaccinated.  Even if it takes 10 years!  The metrics involved in the seemingly arbitrary figure of 80% is rather fascinating.  There is a point at which the virus cannot continue to spread.  This involves removing 80% of the prospective pool from "readily available infection subjects".  Below 80% vaccination, people will continue to become infected and some will die.  Above 80%, there are not enough subjects for the virus to spread and it will die.  Period.  Enough on this.

In 18 days I will host Lee Anne Cohen's (my late wife) Celebration of Life.  I'm not looking forward to it.  I appreciate that it will provide some semblance of closure, but at this point, it feels a bit like overkill.  I will also host a Celebration of life Fun Run in 2022.  The delay in holding the fun run is due to the uncertainties that still prevail in hosting a large event and the timeline needed to bring it about.  Both events will be for "fully vaccinated" only.  I have no desire to endanger the lives of friends and family who are helping me to celebrate Lee Anne's life.

I have started dating.  This is not as easy as I recall it being the last time I dated, back in the late 90's...  It smacks of choreography and juggling.  I have little idea what I am doing (He's making it up as he goes along) and how to achieve an end result, which in itself is an unknown...  Oh to be 25 again!

Mind you, I have a near ideal life; no real financial worries, a supportive family and some fine wine.  The last is not as frivolous as one might expect!  But I would dearly love to share my life and travel with a companion.  I'm sure it will happen eventually, but I'm not happy with the timeline...

Running

You knew that eventually, I would get to it.  Since the virtual Limberlost Challenge, I have run a bit (20K - 50K per week), at times with some friends.  Strangely, since much of the restrictions were lifted in July, people have become busy, including me.  On Saturday (2021-09-04) I ran for 3 hours on the Bruce Trail with some dear friends.  It was epic!  I am toying with signing up for a short race (25K?) if I can find one that has not already sold out.  Aside from the above wish, I continue to get out for runs and the occasional bike ride.

Well, dinner is ready, so I will release this post into the ether.

Cheers!

Please Do Not Adjust Your Set

The title is likely not all that familiar to the younger generations.  Back in the sixties and a bit in the seventies, TV programs would occasionally crash.  Since reception was typically terrible (as the TV's themselves often had issues) the station was basically saying:  Hey!  The problem is on our side!  This was sometimes the result of someone at the station tripping over a wire that plugged into various machines needed to transmit the TV signal to the TV towers.  More often it was alien space ships landing on the transmission towers.  This happened with annoying regularity and although no one ever talked to the aliens. it was surmised that the TV towers somehow reminded the aliens of their landing stations back home.  Most TV stations had to resort to installing elaborate UFO blocking hardware, affectionately known as "UF Off" devices.

After experiencing such a messed up year as 2020, many of us are anxious to get back to normal, or near-new normal.  We are waiting for various entities (government, medical support, bars) to tell us that our TV sets should now be working properly.

I alluded to this challenge with respect to OUTRace, a series of ultra and trail races in Ontario.  These races are spread across the year, starting in April and finishing in November.  Timing of the lifting of pandemic restrictions will be pivotal in determining which races can proceed and which will once again be cancelled.  The race directors are struggling to answer questions such as "what is the latest date on which I can commit to holding my race?  When should I open registration?  Are my sponsors still in business?

This becomes tricky for the runners who wish to partake in the races.  We need to register before scheduling other aspects of the race weekends.  If I decide to run Ottawa, I need to book a hotel.  Many need to give advance notice at work, that they would like the weekend off.  None of this can be done until race registration is open, and that depends on the current flavour of Covid restrictions 1 - 4 months ahead of race date.  Tricky...

However these problems pale in comparison to what we experienced in 2020.  The uncertainty in 2020 rivalled or surpassed any other year in memory, including Y2K (remember 1999?).  I worked in IT at Honda back then, so I knew there would not be any catastrophes.  However, I also knew there would be some problems, however minor, which could culminate into some serious inconveniences.  Fortunately the calendar switched over without noticeable hitches.  For those who enjoy reminiscing, here is a rough overview of what transpired at Honda in Alliston:

• 400+ computer systems, about half needed updates & verification they still worked
• 850 mainframe computer programs that needed updates
• 37 failures:  1 category B and 36 category C (Category A could impact or stop the assembly lines)

The above is from my very skewed memory, so please don't try to corroborate the numbers!

I doubt that everyone is looking forward to 2021...  I'm thinking some business owners and anyone who is not able to work due to restrictions.  This might be a very rough year for those stuck in an apartment during the winter.  I live out in the country, so isolation is not much different than any other winter.  However I am not visiting friends (Ontario is currently in lockdown for either 14 or 28 days), going out to eat and there is no plan to travel, as I normally do this time of year.

Aside from this, I am looking forward to 2021.  I think we will all savour the easing of restrictions and appreciate our "freedom" the more so, for having experienced the lockdowns.  It is now simply a matter of time before the vaccination is available to all Canadians.  Yes, it will be several months, but hopefully not years, as some other vaccinations have required.  I look forward to dropping into a store on a whim, as opposed to a rigidly mapped out operation, similar to mounting a coup.  Hmm...  Coup on a Whim.  Sounds like a boutique beer.

What will I do first?  Not sure, but I would love to overnight in a dwelling that is not my house!  Planning a trip would be great.  I am already arranging to travel to Scotland and hike with my sister, her husband and (if available) my daughter, but there is little point in planning anything at this point.

There were few good points resulting from the pandemic, but I should mention the benefit of shopping online.  I am not a natural born shopper.  I never enjoyed going into a store with the exception of Canadian Tire.  For me, shopping online is a quantum leap in preference over driving to an overcrowded parking lot and spending time in various line-ups.  And then there is wine online (www.wineonline.ca).  Insert a deep sigh of gratitude here.  I know this sounds like a promo, but imagine a store that not only delivers to your door, but also makes suggestions that appeal to you!  Okay, I doubt there are many people out there that enjoy wine as much as I do, but this beats a trip to Niagara-on-the-Lake hands down.  Yes, I enjoy running and biking in NOTL and there is wine tasting, but unfortunately, I like red wine.  Aside from Marynissin, most of the good red wines cost between $25 and $50 per bottle.  I am talking good wine, not great.  I have trouble spending $30 for a journeyman wine.  No problem spending as much for a truly great Australian Shiraz, or a Cabernet Sauvignon from California.

Well, take care out there.  Let's err on the side of caution until the vaccinations have been deployed.  Not much fun in overloading our medical facilities now.  We are all itching to get out there, but let's do so when it is safe for all.

Cheers!

May You Live in Interesting Times...

I fully intended to post to this blog on a more frequent basis this year, but a couple of factors have prevented me from doing so.  I am still at a loss as to what to write - as a warning, this post might become a bit morose.

The title is actually an ancient Chinese curse.  Interesting times include pandemics, after all.  Perhaps I am one of the lucky ones as Covid was a minor nuisance to me this year, compared to the loss of my wife Lee Anne Cohen, who succumbed to lung cancer in September.  As you can imagine, it will be a challenge to find humour in my current situation.

Let's start with a recap of all that has transpired since we returned from Portugal in February:  Nothing much at all, thank you very much.  As with most everyone, Covid drastically changed our lives and even Lee Anne's death.  Surprisingly, there was virtually no change in making maple syrup.  Most days I travelled to the sugar shack, started the evaporator and boiled down until it was time to go home.  In retrospect, I have been isolating every March and April for the last 15 years!

On the OUTRace front (Ontario Ultra and Trail Race series), it was a very interesting time, as races were cancelled and the race directors struggled to figure out what to do.  Seaton Soaker held a virtual race, as most of its registration fees had already been spent on race gear and expenses before Covid restrictions came into effect.  I was very glad not to be a race director in 2020!  Run Off the Grid was the only race physically staged this year.  It is north of Algonquin Park and all race distances were capped at 50.  The OUTRace series awards were cancelled and prizes were distributed to only one race.

In the fall of 2019, Lee Anne started complaining that she was having trouble breathing, while running up 4 kilometer hills...  We figured that this was normal, as she had dropped her running from 150K per week, to "only" 80K per week, due to a knee injury.  This, coupled with turning 66, explained (we thought) the difficulty in breathing.  However during our vacation in Portugal in January and February 2020, it became apparent that there might be a different reason for her difficulties.  Then Covid happened by...

Perhaps not a perfect storm, but after returning to Canada, it became difficult to see our doctor.  Lee Anne finally held a phone appointment with our doctor, who thought her condition might be asthma.  However puffers had little effect and in June, Lee Anne was finally able to get a lung x-ray.  The prognosis was not good.  She then underwent several tests and a lung biopsy before lung cancer was confirmed in August.  The Oncologist estimated that Lee Anne had between 6 months and 5 years to live.

We put the 93 acre property were I make maple syrup up for sale, in the hopes that we could travel more frequently after Covid was over.  Lee Anne underwent her first session of chemotherapy in September, but unfortunately, passed away 1 week later.

It is interesting that someone as fit as Lee Anne (she broke the Canadian 100 mile record for her age category in 2015), who doesn't smoke and eats much better than I (she was a vegetarian) would contract lung cancer.  But as one of her Oncologists stated, cancer is not overly discriminating.

So, as with most people in Ontario, I am in lockdown.  I am running a lot and chopping wood.  My daughter Celeste is currently living with me and will be renting her house in Wasaga Beach for the winter.  One interesting aspect of the pandemic is that there are almost no places for rent in the Collingwood / Wasaga Beach area.  People are staying in the area, rather than travelling to Florida or elsewhere for the winter.

After Lee Anne passed away, I had thoughts of taking the maple bush off the market, but decided to leave it on the market, as making maple syrup requires about 1,000 hours of effort and I am not getting any younger.  The 93 acres sold recently and the new owners are keen to continue with the maple syrup operation, which is great.  I hope to help a friend make syrup in 2021, Covid willing.  Otherwise I will have little to do this Spring, assuming that travel will not be possible or advisable until the vaccination is available worldwide.

Wishing everyone a happy and SAFE holiday season and new year.

Cheers!

Flight from Portugal Home: Not Much Fun!

Hey!  Rather than adding pictures to the 2 previous Portugal posts, I'll simply add them to this post.  That way, no one has to re-read a post.

Recap:  We flew from Toronto to Lisbon, then to Funchal, the main city in Madeira.  Purpose:  Hike and run a half marathon.

Hiking along a "Lavada" - an irrigation channel built in the 1840's to transport water to drier spots of the island.  In places they would tunnel through the mountain, rather than build the channel on the side of a cliff.  Headlamps came in handy!

Very strange!  Between 2 tunnels was this waterfall.  The strange thing was that the irrigation channel bypassed the water from the fall (?).  Perhaps this stream dried up?

As stated before, Madeira is a young island (about 5,000,000 years old) so the mountains are incredibly steep.  This picture does not show the steel stairs/ladders in the steeper parts.  I was too chicken to take photos while trying to avoid plunging to my death...

Just outside our hotel in Tavira (in the Algarves) was the "Roman Bridge".  I figure it was built before the 1950's...

The bike routes went beside salt flats.  Tavira has hundreds of lagoons that are flooded from the Atlantic ocean and then dry up, leaving a salt residue that is harvested and sold.  You might be able to pick out the salt pile in front of some 5 story buildings...

After Tavira we stayed in Cascais, about 40 minutes west of Lisbon.  We decided not to run the Cascais half marathon as we only had 3 days and wanted to hike instead of rest, run a race, then recover.  We hiked in Sintra, just north of Cascais, which has more forts, castles and palaces than in all of Canada (okay, not so hard to do).

Below is a Moorish fort, which in circa 1200 the Moores lost to the European knights in a poker game.  Note that I am taking the picture inside the fort.  It is big!

This is just somebody's home.  Not really a palace by Sintra standards.  Sintra was where the Portuguese royal family stayed, so this was likely some hanger-on's house...

The king had 2 palaces in Sintra.  This was the summer palace.  The picture was taken from the Moorish fort, so they are quite close together.  It was painted red on the north side and yellow on the south side so that people would be able to orient themselves by the palace.  One part (not sure which) is much older than the other.  The new part was built in the 1600's.  There are many similarities between the summer palace and my house in Creemore!

Okay, 2 more pictures, then I'll describe the exciting flight home...  Lisbon has so many incredible buildings, it is difficult to pick just 2 for this post.  Below is the "square" where mariners would return from exotic parts of the world and sell their wares.  The vast square is surrounded on 3 sides by the yellow building.

Another building that we visited was ridiculously huge, which this "little" church tacked on one end.  I took another picture near the end of the building, but from there it is difficult to make out the church!

Homeward Bound!

If you are enjoying a meal, you might want to read this later...

Flying these days is a tenuous adventure, what with the pandemic making us question the prudence of rubbing elbows with people from all over the world.  Imagine my dismay when 3 days before we were to fly home, I came down with a cold.  With travel restrictions changing day-to-day, I wondered if I could travel without many noticing my sickness.

Wait!  Let's make this even more exciting!  Thursday night (our flight departed at noon Friday) my nose started to bleed.  This is actually a common occurrence when I catch a cold.  The problem was, I could not get my nose to stop bleeding.  And when I say bleeding, I'm not fooling around.  If I pinched my nose (what I usually do), my mouth would fill up with blood within 5 seconds.  Not a viable situation when you can't breath through your nose!  I would rush to the nearest sink and spit out the blood, release the hold on my nose and with a dry part of the towel, reapply pressure.

After 5 long minutes of this, I asked Lee Anne to call an ambulance.  I had lost about half a litre of blood so far and my concern was that I could lose consciousness.  I wanted to walk down 3 flights of stairs to the street before feeling any weaker.  Lee Anne phoned the hotel owner, who in turn phoned the ambulance.  While sitting in a chair on the sidewalk, waiting for an ambulance, my nose finally stopped bleeding.  The ambulance drove us to a hospital that, at 10:00 PM, had a nose doctor onsite.

After a 2 hour wait, I was seen by the doctor.  He realized I had burst a blood vessel and cauterized my nose.  It is interesting to see smoke coming out of your nostril.  His English was quite good and he explained that if I was a local, he would have sent me home.  However, having learned that I planned to fly in 12 hours, he then shoved a tampon (his word) up my nose.  It didn't hurt much, but wow, was it uncomfortable.  My left eye started tearing from the pressure.  We took a taxi back to the hotel, where the owners had already cleaned our room and the kitchen sink!

After very little sleep, we thanked the hotel owners profusely for their help, then headed to the airport.  How is flying after minor surgery with a tampon shoved up your nose?  I no longer enjoy flying.  Most people can do without the airport hassle, but try breathing through your mouth for an 8 hour flight, with a terrific sinus headache.  All flights out of Lisbon on Friday morning were delayed, due to fog, so we spent close to 10 hours on the plane.  We got up on Friday at 7:00 AM (2:00 AM Toronto time) and landed in Toronto at 6:00 PM.  The headache lasted until Monday.

I was late posting all this because I have started prepping maple syrup lines.  That's my excuse!