Day 79 - Rockford, Illinois

It is Friday, August l7th, and we finally made it home.  Last day of my Blog - I can't believe I did it all these days.  I'm not going to know what to do without sitting at the computer every night and writing to you.  I do hope that you enjoyed it and all of you had a wonderful journey of your own this summer and I look forward to hearing about it. 

Before we got home very late, we stopped in Chicago to see our families.  It was a long summer and we missed them all.

Funny story - notice the Silver Jeep in front of the yellow truck - that's Kevin, our nephew.  He was heading North in Michigan, while we were heading South to Chicago.  We were in contact for about 20 minutes until we actually saw each other in passing.  He actually waved out the sun roof, but I didn't have time to take a second picture.  Already we are seeing family - how cool!  Couple pictures of the city and Sear's Tower or Willis as it is known now.  Middle picture is of Bruce's parent's and  Kristin, our niece.  We were all able to go out to lunch together.   Kristin and Skyler (who was getting the Jeep) were also in our first blog.  After lunch, we met MaryAnn and Ron, my Sister and brother-in-law.  They are taking the cruise with us and going to our daughter's wedding in Greece - very special people.



Here we are downtown Chicago with Dawn, Michael and Sophia, the dog.  It was so much fun seeing them and talking about the plans for the wedding which is coming up very soon.  Bottom left is a picture of Soldier's Field and bottom right is of the Sear's Tower.  Hard to see at night but I love all the city lights.  We went out for dinner and hated to leave but we dropped off the RV in the suburbs so we had to hook it up again and get on home.  As it was, we didn't get home until 12:30 a.m. - a very long day.

I want to thank everyone that kept up with us via my blog.  It felt like you were all traveling with us.  We really appreciated it and should any of you do a blog of a trip, please let me know so I can keep up with you.  We had an awesome trip, met a lot of new friends and saw another part of our beautiful world. 

Take care, be safe, stay healthy and please keep in touch when you can.  God Bless!

Bye Bye!!



Day 78 - Decatur, Michigan U.S.A.

Good Bye Canada and Hello to the Good Ol' USA. 

It is Thursday, August l6th and it feels great to cross that border again - what we call home.  Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful time in the different Provinces of Canada.  The people were absolutely wonderful, helpful and caring.  We had such a great time thanks to all of them.  The countryside, coastal villages and the various bodies of water were absolutely spectacular.  We heard how awesome our trip was going to be and we were not dissappointed.  Next year, we will be crossing the border again (not to the Maritimes) getting together with friends.  No plans are being made yet - we still have our cruise and trip to Greece coming up next week and Mesa in the winter.  Heaven help me!!   We had no problems going through customs - thank goodness.

We were saddened to hear about the poor farmer's in the Mid-West dealing with the drought and our hearts go out to them.  When we saw the beautiful crops in Ontario and into Michigan, it was a great relief to know that not all Farmer's were in the same position.  Have never seen so many acres and acres of corn and other crops.

We weren't sure where we wanted to stop in Michigan so we chose Old Town in Lansing.  Unfortunately, it wasn't our best decision.  There wasn't a lot there, but we did stop in and had a drink in a Pub to celebrate Bruce's Birthday.  After walking around the couple streets that were there, we met Tom Brown by the river who was fishing.  He was a real character.  Told us the funniest story of when he moved to Michigan from Mississippi.  He woke up one morning to see everything white outside thinking it was cotton (not knowing it was snow).  He thought there was no way he could pick that much cotton.  He had us laughing with one story after another.  Bottom right:  Cute carton painted on a wall.

Picture of the Day!!

We didn't see nearly as many moose or whales in Canada as we thought we would have so when I saw this herd of Elk, I had to take it.  Sorry they were fenced in vs in the wilds. 

Yes it is Bruce's B'day today so he received plenty of phone calls from friends and family for which we thank you all.   For some reason, he has celebrated many birthdays while on vacation.  Lucky Guy!!  Happy Birthday also goes out to Keith, our Nephew.  Hope you had a great day Hon - he is my Packer Buddy!!

Happy Day to everyone!!

 

Day 77 - London, Ontario

It is Wednesday, August l5th, and we were on the road again.  We drove 467 miles to London, Ontario.  It was raining in Montreal; however, once we headed south, the sun came out.  The trip was uneventful until we arrived in Whitby, where we visited with some friends that we met on our Caravan trip to Alaska last year.  If we keep taking these trips, we’ll know someone in each of the Provinces and States – how fun!

Below left is the picture we took of Montreal as we left - not very encouraging, but we talked to friends later and the day turned out sunny as well.  We are now in Ontario - last of the Provinces on our Caravan trip. It was great seeing Mary and Chris again.  They have a lovely home in Whitby.

Their home is large and spacious.  I especially liked the sun room.  I can see myself sitting in there most of the day.  They said it is awesome when it snows as it is a heated room so they can enjoy it in the winter as well.  We had fun talking about the Olympics since they are originally from Ireland and England.  Like Chris said, he understood the significance of both the Opening and Closing's.  We didn't see that much of it but what we did see, we didn't understand.

We went out for dinner for which we thank them and talked about the people on our trip to Alaska.  They have seen some this past year as well as us.  Hopefully, in time, we will get to see more of them.  Again, thank you Mary and Chris for inviting us to your home, for dinner and tea afterwards.  Hopefully, we’ll get together again some day.  If you are ever in Illinois or Arizona, please call.

As we drove through Toronto I took some pictures of various buildings.  I don’t recall the city being so large.  Looks like they have a lot of condo or apartment buildings.  Would have loved to spend more time here, but time to head on home.

Chris made sure we didn’t leave their house until “rush hour” was mostly over, but we still hit a lot of traffic.  It kept moving so we did pretty good time wise.  At one point, I thought it would be better flying since we past the airport.  There was also another mode of transportation we could have considered – the horses.  I don’t think they liked the idea as they had their backs to me  Sorry about that!

The sunset was great and really lit up the sky.  The clouds kept changing colors.

Picture of the Day!!

No, this isn't a black & white picture but so cool!!
. 
I want to take this time to wish my Nephew, Steven, a Very Happy Birthday.  Hope you had a great day.  Hugs!!

Day 76 - Montreal, Quebec

We had a terrific day touring the city with Lise and Bernard this Tuesday, August l4th.  They were so kind to drive us around and give us the royal tour.  They are two people that really know their city.  No matter what we saw or what we asked, they knew the answer and trust me, we saw a lot.  With them speaking French, it really helped us as most people in the city do speak the language.  All signage is also in French and not always translated in English.  We had predictions of rain today but we really lucked out as it turned out being a beautiful day.  We left at 9 a.m. and didn't return until 9:30 p.m. and it was still nice out - no jackets or sweaters needed.

Montreal is really a huge city (l,620,693 population) with quite a few skyscrapers and sits along the St. Lawrence River.  The mountain in the middle of the island was called Mont Royal.  In Italian it became Monte Re'al or the origin of Montreal.  As in everyother city we've visited on our trip, there are tons of flowers.  We drove around and saw a lot of beautiful homes or mansions in some cases.  Couldn't believe how big they were.

We visited several churches, basilicas and/or cathedrals.  The first one being the chapel built by Brother Andre' who later lived on the second floor in very modest surroundings.  Everything is still the way he left it.  He prayed to Saint Joseph to help with poverty, exile and manual labor.  He became the center of attention because of the extraordinary cures attributed to him. There are canes hanging to signify they were no longer needed as well as plaques thanking him for the cure.  To thank St. Joseph he started building  a chapel in his honor; however, because of the large attendance it needed to be bigger.  Eventually becoming a Basilica.   Brother Andre' died in l937 at the age of 9l and was beatified by Pope Jean-Paul in l982.  In 2010, he was canonised by Pope Benedict XVI.

This is Saint Joseph's Oratory.  It is one of the most important sanctuary's in the world dedicated to Saint Joseph.  The Oratory has become a sacred place.  It is one of the world's largest basilicas and one of the city's most important religious shrines which was completed in l967.  The middle picture is the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament. Its monumental grille, green Vermont marble columns and hemicycle ceiling covered in gold leaf make it the most richly decorated part of the Basilica. Bottom right is the Grand Organ which is 60' high and 44' wide.  There are 58ll pipes.

You can see more canes hanging throughout the Basilica.  Bottom left is part of the Votive Chapel - 3500 vigil lights (10,000 lights in the chapel).  The statue above the lights is of Saint Joseph.  Bottom middle is the Crypt Church in the lower level of the Basilica.  The statue above is again of St. Joseph - 9 feet tall weighing 5000 lbs.  Bottom right is the heart of Brother Andre'.

Moving on to Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel and Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum.  Absolutely breathtaking.  The remains of Marguerite, founder of the first uncloistered congregation of women in the New World, are under the left side alter.  Middle right is one of many stained glass windows in the ceiling as well as around the walls.  Celine Dion was married in this Basilica in l994 and Pope John Paul celebrated a mass for the children in l984.

This is another chapel in the lower level for smaller events, such as weddings.  We had to just sit for a minute to take it all in.  The bronze piece behind the alter was shipped from England in 6 pieces.  If you would like to see better pictures, I suggest you look it up on the internet - simply unbelieveable.

While walking around the city, we saw the unique clock above, the statue of the three ladies (as if they were just sitting on the park bench chatting away), stained glass window in City Hall, the first Mayor's mansion as well as the restaurant that we later had dinner at.  I think we must have walked about 5 miles going up and down so many of the streets.  The day just kept getting better.

 



There were several docks along the river near the downtown area.  Closed off streets to cars so we could just walk right down the middle of the cobblestone streets.  A lot of restaurants and cafe's open to the street and plants and more plants.  Bottom right were plants in the courtyard of the inside wall of the restaurant we ate at.  We really hated to call it a night as it was so beautiful out, various musicians playing and the city lights were turning on but it was getting late and we have another long day to travel tomorrow.

Picture of the Day !!

City Hall lite up at night.

Again, we want to thank Lise and Bernard for the fantastic tour of their

beautiful city.  Very gracious of them to take a day off to

spend with us.

Day 75 - Montreal, Quebec

It is Monday, August l3th, and again we started the day off by saying "Good Bye" but this time to Patty and Rod.  We drove to Montreal and they headed to Maine for a couple days but they will return to Canada.  It was a travel day - parts of which we had already seen, especially along the Gulf of St. Lawrence.  I didn't see any whales - again!!

With driving, we sure noticed a lot of road construction everywhere in the Maritimes, but especially in Quebec.  They have tons of equipment as well as a lot of men employed - great for their economy.  This section of road went on for miles.



The scenery was still beautiful especially by the water as it was so clear and calm - note the reflection in the middle picture.  There seems to be a lot of manufacturing in this area.  We saw a plant that built pipes of all different shapes and sizes as well as buses - plus many others.  I think I was the most impressed with all the farming.  They won't have a shortage of corn this year as we saw acres and acres of beautiful looking crops.  There were fields of other crops as well but I couldn't tell what they were.

One of the reasons we came to Montreal was to see more friends of ours from Mesa, Lise and Bernard Lefebvre.  They were three sites from us in Mesa as well as on the tennis leaque.  In the summer they live in their very nice 5th Wheel in a beautiful campground.  They get to enjoy playing tennis in the summer as well but most importantly spend time with their family.  Lise fixed a very nice dinner for us and we ate outside in their screened in room.  They are going to give up a day to play tennis tomorrow to show us around Montreal, for which we really appreciate.   We had to call it a night as I had to catch up on my blog since I didn't have internet access the last couple days. 

Thanks again Lise and Bernard for the great dinner and drinks.  Hope everyone that reads this blog has a chance to enjoy time with their friends and family.  Good Night!!

Day 74 - Oromocto, New Brunswick

Another gloomy, misty day but we get to share it with Dear Friends,  so all is well on this Sunday, August 12th.   They met us at a local restaurant for breakfast, for which we thank you.  They then drove us around the area showing us the sites.

We drove around Gagetown, The Canadian Forces Base.  Even on Sunday, the troops were busy.  There are 4,000 troups that are stationed here.  There were a lot of old vehicles and machinery situated around the base.  The equipment in the top right is used as a bridge.

We took a tour of the first two floors of the Lt. Governor’s House in Fredericton.  He and his wife live on the 3rd or top floor.  He has a 5 year term at his appointed position.  The house gets used a lot so we could see wear and tear on the furniture.

More pictures of the house.  The desk isn't one that he officially uses - his is behind closed doors.  The dining room table is one of the most expensive pieces in the house.  A lot of the furniture is made out of mahogony.  I could get use to getting comfortable in the house.  We were able to sit on most pieces of furniture, which is most unusal.  Bottom right is the music room.

Christ Church Cathedral also in Fredericton.  It stands as a living memorial to the first Bishop of Fredericton, the Most Rev'd John Medley, who was appointed in l845 to the newly established diocese.  The church was completed in l853.  Christ Church has the distinction of being the only Cathedral in Canada which is only a Cathedral - not a parish.

Top left picture shows a wall above the alter that was painted by hand.  The beautifully carved head of Christ, the only surviving part of a stone statue brought from England by the Bishop.  The rest was badly damaged in transit.  Middle picture is of the cenotaph of the Bishop, a figure in full episcopal robes, lying upon a large marble surface.  Bottom right is the massive stone pulpit but it is only used for special events.  The yellow flower was along the walkway to the church.

Picture of the Day!!

Nothing like good friends spending time together.

Thank You Cliff & Audry for taking time out to spend with us, showing us around

and the delicious dinner.  Look forward to seeing you in Mesa.

Day 73 - Oromocto, New Brunswick

Oh my goodness, it is the day, Saturday, August llth,  we are all dreading – saying “Good Bye” to all the people we became so close to these past two months.  Even the clouds are crying tears of rain.  The Staff served a continental breakfast, so we could share a couple more minutes together.  Some people started leaving as early as 7 a.m.  The last ones to leave were the Staff. I think they needed a couple minutes to relax once we all left.  Everyone was pretty much heading in different directions, except for Rod, Patty, Bruce and I, as we are stopping to spend a couple nights with friends in Oromocto.  They are Dear Friends that we know from Mesa.  Several people drove back to the same campground in Maine where we started our trip before they head home.   We all promised to keep in touch, so hopefully we will and if we pass through their part of the country, we would stop for a visit.  It was drizzling out so I didn’t bring out the camera.  We had happier faces last night vs this morning.

Our drive was a short one – about 75 miles – so we got setup and got a few things done in the RV, such as laundry, cleaning and a couple phone calls before we headed to see Cliff and Audry White.  They have a lovely home and it was so exciting to see them after 5 months.  With them living in New Brunswick, we were able to share our trip with them and they knew what and where we were talking about.  Cliff did keep up with us on my blog.  Cliff goes golfing almost every day but still keeps up a beautiful yard.  

Audry outdid herself with a terrific meal.  I even ate Escargot sautéed in butter and garlic.  Audry got me to try a tiny piece then I had a complete serving.  I hate to admit it, but it was very good.  Cliff grilled Barbecued Ribs and the meat fell off the bone – yummy!!!  Needless to say, we talked and talked some more over drinks and coffee.  We finally had to call it a night as it was getting late and we are going to meet them in the morning for breakfast.

So it was an emotional day filled with sadness and then laughter. We will cherish all the great memories.  For all our new friends reading this blog we want to thank you again for the great time that we shared together and hope you all get home safely.  Don’t forget and keep in touch.  I will, once we return from Greece.      Hugs and God Bless!