Hi everyone, I got back today from my two week holiday in Canada, following a flight that totalled 24 hours - including the timezone shift. And I've got to get up for school tomorrow. Ugh!
Anyway, you may be pleased to know that I had a great holiday, although this is some kind of freak winter in British Columbia and there is not as much snow on Whistler as we might have liked. Nonetheless I return to you without any broken bones, and as a qualified skiing instructor (level 1 out of 4) and a member of the Canadian Ski Instructors' Alliance. Cool, eh?
From my scanning of the forums it seems I also owe a belated welcome to a Mr Smith, and a welcome back to Rosalie, and congratulations to both on your recent appointments.
Duke Brunswick,
Excellent news of your safe return, and success on the slopes.
Regards,
HM Alexander
How much more fortunate, after hearing the words "24 hour flight", do I feel that for me a trip to Canada involves a ten minute drive to the Rainbow Bridge.
Thomas, my globe-trotting One:
You really ought to pop on over to Forum Varennes to discuss your trip. We have lots of Canadians (or as we call them, 'Champlainians') involved who'd love to hear about it.
Did you notice your (macronational) sovereign's new portraits on the currency? No tiara on the coins any longer. The traditionalists were all in a dither over it. She is depicted domestically rather than regally on the new 20 as well, but then that was the case wih the previous series.
Ciao for now.
Louis
King of Canada... I mean ...Varennes
Wow, sounds like you had a great trip. I'd love to see some pictures if you have any. Also, thanks for the welcome. I look forward to working with you.
Your Varennese Majesty, yes, I understand that you live very close to the Rainbow Bridge. I was in Niagara Falls, Ontario this past summer. It's a twelve hour straight drive from where I live in southern Maine, but we spent three nights in upstate New York and another on the way back. The Canadian side is beautiful. I really only drove through the New York side, but it looks, no offense intended, a little dumpy but rapidly improving.
Also, My Lord Duke Legate Cutterham, before I forget, Nathan Shepard, Natopian-Lavalonian, is traveling to Britain this summer and would like any advice you might have for him on where to visit, etc. His e-mail is spacedragon87
aol.com, and I think he'd really appreciate it if you got in touch with him.
Friends,
Toyko has a "Rainbow Bridge". We have no earthly idea how they make that claim except by the multi-colored lights on the bridge.
Otherwise it is unremarkable. They went so far as to tell Us that is was Tokyo's response to the Golden Gate bridge. We could hardly contain Our laughter at the thought.
http://tokyoyakei.cool.ne.jp/tokyo-rainbow.html
Oh, that statue which looks like the statue of liberty is the original scale model built and displayed in France along the river Seine in Paris. Which was moved for a while to display it in Tokyo and, We believe, has been returned to Paris. These photos make it look much larger than it is because the bridge is so far away in the photos.
In any evet, that popped into Our mind and caused this off-topic post.
Regards,
HM Alexander
Mr. Smith:
Well beyond being a "little dumpy", Niagara Falls, New York is--for the most part--an absolute disgrace and a symbol of the profound damage which can be done in urban areas when corrupt, balkanizing politicians are elected and re-elected by an electorate without any sense of it's own stupidity.
To the City's credit there are nice areas and lovely neighborhoods but as a tourist you'd never find them. But then, why would a tourist be interested in a handsome residential area, anyway? What's important is what's up-front, right by the Falls, themselves, downtown, in the spotlight. And all that's a mess.
Here we have one of the seven wonders of the natural world and we're incapable--utterly incapable--of capitalizing upon that. Can you even imagine? Now Niagara Falls Canada is thriving. As you look across the border you see a stunning skyine which, in a decade, will rival Toronto's. Niagara Falls USA can boast a few nice things which used-to-be, and now--at last--a casino, by the grace of the Seneca Nation. Behind the casino, a new hotel rises.
Niagara Falls City Hall is utterly devoid of leaders with vision. That's been true for at least half a century. Fortunately, the Indians are coming to the rescue. Hopefully their casinos will give us the success which--due to corruption and lack of vision--the thundering rapids of Niagara were never able to.
Your Majesty,
Sadly, I think this is true of most macronational cities nowadays. The major city I live near (Pgh) is so one-party state the other major marty isn't even planning on fielding a candidate.
-Rob
James, I suspect if you tried to drive to Vancouver you'd be pushing the time my own trip took. I've never actually been to the east of Canada - that's where all those frenchies are, isn't it? And the snow isn't as good there. The crap snow we had in Whistler, the locals were calling "Eastern snow". B.C. all the way!
But no, I didn't notice the money, really. We put almost everything on a card. While I was there, though, it was right in the middle of some big political scandal over Chretien spending public money on golf balls and national unity campaigns. Sounds reasonable to me, though - assimilate Quebec fully into the nation, and stamp out the French menace! And then of course there was a whole lot of grief over the NHL.
Carson, sorry, but I didn't take any photos. I took my camera, but he batteries were dead and I just never got around to sorting it out. In fact, my family as a whole took about three cameras, but I don't think anyone took a single picture. We're not a photo-album family, really. I'll e-mail Nathan if I can think of any advice for him, but to be honest I don't think he'd want to come to where I live, and I don't know London well enough to suggest anyting that's not already in tourists' guides.