J-Mans World

Recent Adventures (Scotland & Ireland)

2009-06-21T18:58:00.012+01:00

Its been a while again, so I figured I would capture this before memories of our trips started to overlap... feel free to skip ahead to the titled locations below if you would like to skip my personal update/rant.

As I mentioned on my previous post, my position at work has been made redundant thus ending my 8 year career at Agilent. In order to make the best use of my situation I have decided to take some time to myself and explore Edinburgh and small pockets of Europe with Evelyn.

Firstly I must note that I have been having a blast. I have discovered a passion for cooking, and a renewed pleasure in reading books.

Edinburgh:

I find that photos speak volumes over words (especially the ones I tend to use) so take a look through our collection. To summarize, Spring has passed and we are now in the midst of a lovely Scottish summer (no really), the number of international visitors in Edinburgh is increasing exponentially as we approach festival season... and we have already purchased our tickets for not only the Movie Festival but also for several shows in the Fringe festival (not cheap!)

Scotland:

Recently Evelyn's work contract ran out so we figured we would take some time to explore our new surroundings. The first was a 1,600Km road trip around Scotland.

The following is our top ten places or experiences from our journey

The friendly and very chatty Scots
Ancient ruins on the Isle of Lewis (Iron Age Broch, Callanish Stones)
A true appreciation of peat (not just as a source of fuel but an essential part of the flavour in some Whisks!)
The majesty of Glencoe
Unique and unexpected discoveries such as "the place where fairies live"
Great local food the further away you get, best of which featured lamb and pork on the Isle of Harris and Lewis respectably followed by wild Venison and Hare in Loch Ness.
Staying in a castle on the cheap!
The diverse character of the landscapes as you cross from very mountainous Scottish Highlands to the barren yet dramatic landscape of the Isle of Skye to the boulder ridden Isle of Harris (both Isles void of trees)
Countless ruins scattered throughout the country that resulted from a brutal history.
The endless selection of Ales (Froach being a clear stand out)

Ireland:
Before Ev returned to work we figured we would squeeze a week long road trip through Ireland...
I have also provided a top 10 list Ireland:

Drink shit loads of Guinness, it really does taste the best in Ireland
Dingle Peninsula... go there first and dedicate a couple of days!
Eat at Murphy's..
(Dublin) Visit the Chester Beatty Library, its amazing and free... DO NOT waste your time queuing to see the Book of Kells (its pricey, overcrowded and OVERRATED)
(Dublin) Peat Bog people at the National Museum
For the freshest local seafood eat at Jim Edwards in Kinsale (worth staying the night)
(Dublin) Guinness Brewery... its touristy (and can get busy) but worth a visit
Climb Croagh Patrick... because St Patty did!
(Dublin) for a great coffee and a quick bite got to Dunne and Crescenzi on Sth Frederick St south of the Trinity Collage

The eerie Portal Tomb, in The Burren (good luck finding it)
Driving the very narrow back roads in the Irish country side (Ev swears by it)

I didn't realize how long this post would take so I will blog our Polish wedding / Alps and English Lake District trips soon, I promise :)

Now that where settled in Edinburgh.

2009-03-09T10:56:00.009Z

I guess its no surprise that its been a while since the last blog... lol

Poland:
Picking up from the last entry, we did go to Poland and enjoyed it immensely. No one warned us on the amount of feasting on wonderful Polish food we had to endure, not that I'm complaining. For those that know me know that I love to eat, so having home grown Polish food (like mum used to make and better!) was quite a pleasure, not to mention the great beers and spirits on offer.

Beyond that I finally had the pleasure of meeting Evelyns extended family. This was a great experience as it not only allowed me the opportunity to travel to different parts of Poland but also meet some great people.

Evelyn also got to meet my side of the family, where we enjoyed Christmas and New Years celebrations my extended family and friends. We also had the opportunity to sneak away to Krakow for a couple of days to explore the "City of Kings"

Thank you all for your generous hospitality.

As always you can see the full story in pictures on flickr.

Back to Edinburgh:
Let me begin by giving you the juiciest news. Evelyn has finally landed a job, and I have finally been made redundant from mine (or as I have to teach myself to say, "I'm now currently between jobs"). Our immediate plans are to remain in Edinburgh to at least experience the festival season as we sure as hell didn't come here for the great winters. Personally I intend to take a short break before looking for further employment, which will allow me to explore some of Edinburgh (maybe even try a few new things like climbing and cooking)

Other then that Evelyn had found us a fantastic apartment for us to live in and in a great location (not only because there are 3 bars on our street alone).

Later, j

Forgive me family and friends, for it has been 8 months since my last blog entry.

2008-12-12T19:50:00.009Z

Firstly, for those of you who have been checking our blog for updates, I'm sorry it has taken us so long. We truly have been busy and frankly quite lazy when it comes to "using our words" but as usual our pictures were up on flickr promptly ;)

In a nutshell

Jarek's parents visited us in April and we took the Rocky Mountaineer to explore the Canadian Rockies for a week which was awesome. We got to celebrate our last "Celebration of Lights" with our dear friends and Jarek got terribly sun burnt at the Gay Pride Parade (he told me to add it was just the arms and face thank-you!!). Jarek had an amazing time climbing Mt. Alpha with his buddies Ed & Mike and we finally got to visit San Francisco.
After our great adventure there we set off to Nova Scotia to attend the wedding of our good mates Tom & Bronwen. The wedding took place in Bronwens home town by the sea, Margretsville where we finally got to sleep in our new tent. During the 10 days on the east coast we clocked 3,800km exploring beautiful Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec City and finally Montreal. One of the many highlights being The Cabot Trail, Canada's own Great Ocean Road complete with the odd Moose on the side of the road.
Upon our return, Jarek and I thought we hadn't seen enough of BC and took a lovely day hike at Joffre lakes north of Whistler. Just stunning!!!!

But before I go on...I have to add Jarek's little entry about the Mt Alpha hike which he enjoyed so much and I'm grateful he came back from alive....

Jareks 2 cents..

Firstly we have been keeping our flickr site largely up to date, and as the saying goes a picture can speak a thousand words... and you won't have to read my rambling.

In my last blog entry I went on about how hard the Mt Baker hike was and how it was the most difficult one I ever did.... well I've out done myself! Since then (as my final BC hike) I along with Ed and Mike climbed (mountaineering style) Mt Alpha in the Tantalus Range. Not counting the 5 hour climb to the base camp at Lake Lovely Water, the Mt Alpha accent and decent took 24 hours... and my heels were thoroughly blistered. I'm quite proud of myself as I achieved many firsts on the hike; first time to wear a climbing harness, first time to rope climb !ever! (rated 5-7 with a 2 pitch accent for those interested), first time to climb in the dark... and the first time to take a shit on the top of a mountain :D

Well that was nice Jarek!....taking a shit on the top of a mountain is definitely a commendable achievement!!

So back to us getting ready to move to ye olde Scotland (at this point I'd like to add the irony of us visiting Nova Scotia which in Polish translates to 'New Scotland' before our move to Scotland itself....believe me when I say we did not click on this fact for quite a while). Anyway, after our trip from the east coast I had a couple more weeks to get rid of all our shit and prepare for our trip to Mexico and our big move to Edinburgh. As usual Jarek kept working and the big move became my full time job.

Dot!, Dottola!, Dottie!, Dottski!, Little Bitch!

It's one thing to leave a country and say good-bye to friends, but another to leave behind a pet. As grateful as I am to the lovely family that adopted our cat Dot, I miss her terribly at times.
It truly isn't until you loose a pet that you notice what an impact they have on your life.

MEXICO!!

Don't get us started on Mexico.
WE FUCKIN LOVE MEXICO!!! We took almost 2000 pics over our 2 weeks there and narrowed it down to a brief 340 ( it was hard) I won't go into any detail here as I painstakingly labelled all the pics with the necessary info. We spent 15 days traveling from Mexico City to Playa del Carmen
Our Stops; Mexico City, Puebla, Oaxaca, San Cristóbal, climbing Mayan temples, Palenque, Mérida, Chichén Itzá, swimming in cenotes, Playa del Carmen.
We met some awesome people, had some fab mexican food and beer, swam in some of the bluest (and warmest) water we've ever seen and learned a lot about mexican history and culture. We recommend Mexico to everyone.

HAGGIS!!!

48 hours after swimming in the Caribeann we found ourselves in Edinburgh, Scotland. We literally had only 6 hours in Vancouver when we arrived from Mexico to unpack and re-sort our worldly posessions before we headed off to our new home. It was a bit of a whirlwind experience but
it all turned out fine. We were worried we would tip the scales with our luggage but ended up just within the limit for weight and volume with British Airways. As you can see in the pics, Edinburgh is an old city. For Jarek and myself it is quite impressive to drink in a pub that is older than Australian Settlement (1788). We look forward to exploring this beautiful country (despite its grey weather) more in the new year. We have already rekindled our love for pies, something we got used to not having in Vancouver and Jarek is having a love affair with haggis (for those of you wondering...it tastes like black pudding) I don't eat it I just prepare it for him, its very high in iron.
I recently found us a place to rent in the new year so we look forward to moving into our own place in Jan but until then we leave on Sunday for a 3 week trip to the homeland.

POLAND (the Homeland)

Well, for me its been 13 years since my last visit and before then I was 3 years old when my folks immigrated to Australia so its going to be interesting to go back as an adult and see all of my extended family. Jarek was there just last year so its much fresher in his memory.
We leave on Sunday and won't be back till Jan 3rd so I will write when I get back ( I promise!!)

Until then, Jarek and I wish you all a happy and safe Christmas and New Year and as usual we'll have a wee drink ( or 2) for you all to mark the occasion!!!

Mt Baker Summit... the one that almost broke me

2008-04-18T06:57:00.002+01:00

The one that almost broke me... Ed and I set off at 8pm Tuesday night, we walked throughout the night in 1 foot deep power. By 9am the following morning (13 hours after starting) we called it quits and headed home.

This was the hardest and most dangerous trip I have EVER been on!(we had avalanche and glacial crevasses to contend with) It was an epic 16 hour return trip that literally fucked with my mind.

Mt Baker Summit - Widget powered by: EveryTrail

Some one up there likes me

2008-04-02T05:29:00.003+01:00

This is my best snow season.... EVER

In late February we took a ski trip to Kicking Hourse and then Revelstoke in the Canadian Rockies. I was blown away at the size of the mountains! especialy Kicking Hourse which I did prefer. In any case if you would like to see what we got up to just visit our flickr page or click on the images.

That being said, we returned to Vancouver to discover that Spring was in full bloom and the snow everywhere was starting to melt!! and I still had unused pre-purched ski passes left!!! Fortunately winter had a second wind... it came back and offered 3 more weeks of powder... now I have no passes left!

Looking forward, I have only one winter challenge left. Come Wednesday Ed and I will climb Mt Baker (over 2,200m elevation and 19Km return journey). This will be the most difficult and dangerous hike I have ever attempted. We plan to walk though the night as avalanches are less prevalent, after about 10 hours of going uphill we will strap in and ski/board down the entire length of Baker!!! it all has to be finished before noon as the higher temperatures increase the avalanche danger.

Whish me luck, I'll blog about it when I get back (with a shit load of photos)

J

The end of a long and doomed relationship….

2008-03-05T01:44:00.004Z

I know I’m in one of the world’s Mecca’s for snowboarding but f**** it. As of Saturday I have officially given up snowboarding!!! We have parted amicably, we tried…oh boy did we try to work together but would any of you encourage a relationship that makes me cry and sulk, causes physical pain and is always cold not to mention costly.

And like a fool I kept going back for more…well no more. Next!

Mind you I haven’t given up on the snow, I’m moving onto snowshoeing and possible X country skiing.

I write this after an early return from Golden B.C in the Canadian Rockies a hop skip and jump away from Banff. Jarek is still there having the time of his life snowboarding, talking about snowboarding or analyzing the snow/weather conditions…..none of which interest me in the least bit and frankly I am soooooo looking forward to Spring when I no longer have to hear it anymore. In case I haven’t mentioned this before, I call Vancouver winter's “the other woman” I have to share Jarek with a friggin season!!.

So prepare yourselves for some more bragging from Jarek when he returns. Mind you the Rockies are stunning and we only saw a bit of them and believe me when I say the photos don’t do them justice.

Still, I like going to the ski resorts because there are so many Aussies working there…as your getting on/off lifts, in the stores, making coffees or rentals, its awesome and always a good chance to chat about home. OK!! That’s enough about the snow.

It’s been a while since my last blog dump because I’ve been a busy student. I completed a one month intensive (the type that almost kills you) course to become an ESL Teacher. I finished it and managed to retain some of my sanity despite the fact that for 4 straight weeks I did nothing but eat, drink, sleep and shit grammar!!! We’re talking Groundhog Day for 30 days (I can’t stand that movie by the way)….but I survived and have already started substitute teaching.

Let me tell you something about teaching English....

As a native speaker you can tell a student if something is right or wrong, but it’s bloody hard to explain why, that is because the English language has so many facets, rules and exceptions grrrrrrrrr that I find myself having to learn the grammar rules first before I teach them to students. The key is to know enough to be able to answer you student’s questions…..my goal is too not look like a dumb ass in front of the class.

You see back in Oz, we were’nt taught grammar the same way ESL students are taught. They know more about the rules than we do.

Speaking of grammar rules, it’s back to the books for me. I gotta do some serious reading before tomorrow to avoid the sensation of throwing up from nerves in front of a class.

Be Good

Miss Hodowany

The Best way to view Photos online...

2008-02-25T22:08:00.002Z

Possibly the best tool for viewing photos on the internet!!! although it works on iExplorer, you should of course use Firefox (shame on you if you don't, there are NO excuses not to!)
Install PicLens as a Firefox add-on and your set! (provided you took time to see the 2 minute tutorial on their site)

Go download now!

How the hell are ya?

2008-02-22T03:50:00.002Z

Hi there,

Well I'm not to sure how to write this without sounding like I'm bragging...so here goes....

This is my third snow season here in BC and I have to say its the best one yet! there is a SHIT LOAD of snow, and more falling almost everyday :D

I have uploaded several photos from a recent weekend Whistler/Blackcomb day trip, it was unreal! The snow was so nice and deep that it has opened up new parts of the mountain to me that I never even imagined snowboarding.

In case your wondering why I'm wearing a helmet (and its not because I'm turning Canadian), I figure I should limit loosing brain cells to boozing and partying when ever possible ;) And Evelyn thought I was being responsible....lol

Apart from that we also recently did some snow shoeing on Cypress Mountain (20 min form our home), this was a first time Evelyn had snow shoed and she loved it, just look at the photos and you'll see why!

Cheers,
j

It’s only me!

2007-12-04T11:21:00.000Z

It’s been a while I know…..but since my last rant we’ve been to New York then back to Boston, then back to Vancouver and now I write to you with a nice cold beer in my hand all the way in WA (Western Australia) I tell you…. being a jet setting international glamour puss is becoming quite an effortless occupation ;)

New York in a Nutshell!

-SHITLOAD OF TOURISTS
-BIG and Dirty in most places
-BUSY IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT
-TOURIST BITS which understandably need to be seen are not the best things about NY
-SUBWAY is quite safe and convenient to use.
-Did I mention BUSY!
-LOVED Chinatown, Little Italy, Greenwich Village and SOHO…just have a wander!
-Expect little sleep, sore feet and to look up a lot!!
-Those who love it will come back; those that hate it will never forget it.
That’s about all I’ve got to say about that, check it out for yourselves…we might join ya!

So long Boston…..

Dear Boston
If I’ve ever had a love hate relationship!!!…..
I tried to live in your city
The weekends were my only escape….only to have to return to you again.
Thank-you for your beautiful buildings…..there I said it.
Cheer up!!! Calm Down!!! Slow Down!!! and Shut Up!!!

“Now I know why they call it Labour!”

My Sister’s words after almost 17 hours of labour…LOL
Betty is a real trooper and only demanded an epidural after 7.5 hours of some pretty convincing pain. Mind you she became almost inseparable from the nitrous oxide (laughing gas) quite quickly.

I was fortunate enough to have been invited by her and her hubbie to be a support person during the labour so I got to be there the whole time which was great, there was a television in the room, warm blankets, chocolates and I wasn’t the one delivering a child….. I managed to squeeze in a nap or two also….and at the end of it all I received a beautiful Niece…Amelie.
Oh and of course I lent my support with a few “Your doing GREAT Betty!” applauds….it wasn’t all just relaxation for me you know ;)

My Mum fears the whole experience has put me off having kids of my own…LOL.
“I don’t know Mum…. they look like a lot of work!”

The Female Parenting Unit…..

It’s all about the baby now…..”Poop…Change…Feed…Burp.” Repeat.

It’s quite odd how everyone handles babies like glass when they have to make it out of the womb and out between the pelvis with their head still on.

I can see now how much hard work babies are…a 24 hour job and then some!!… And gosh… the best thing is babies demand a lot and only know how to voice it through crying.

I have a question …Why can’t it be the opposite and take 17 hours to make the baby (ok…maybe not 17 ) and then 15 minutes…(MAX!! lol) to deliver it?....ha?...Mother Nature …..what have you got to say for yourself?

My theory as to why PUB’s and Bars are so successful.

I have worked it out from observing Betty and my Niece and I believe it all stems from when we were being breast fed...God it certainly explains Me!!!

Betty has become a 24 hour baby bar with 1 beverage on both taps….milk and milk…and there is one patron that has days when she drinks the bar dry and days where she wants to take it a little easy.

At times the patron falls asleep at the bar but is woken up and encouraged to drink more because it is good for her.

When she’s had enough she gets put to bed and wakes up needing to take a huge dump (aka AGB = After Grog Bog....well maybe that does not apply to everyone…but you know what I mean)…which makes her feel better and before you know it she’s at the bar again for happy hour.

There is nothing Freudian about it….just different bar and different beverage and maybe that pesky little hangover factor…other than that nothing much has really changed…has it?

Well, I’m done for now……I wish you all in advance a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I’ll have a drink for you all on both occasions…just for the warming/medicinal factor of course since I will be back in balls cold Vancouver…..hey you gotta do whatcha gotta do to keep warm…..especially since the other way also makes babies!!!!

Stay warm wherever you are!
xoxo
Auntie Ev

My trip tp Poland

2007-10-04T03:53:00.000+01:00

Recently I visited my Family in Poland, this was quite significant since It's been 16 years since my last visit ( I was only 12 years old back then). In short Poland has changed greatly since then, it has joined the EU and things really seem to to improving. The road infrastructure is being developed, there seems to be fresh investment into the Polish economy and corruption is being dealt with top down. The job situation also looks positive, although the pay is still quite low most people have the option of going overseas to find work with significantly better pay (the bad side of the story is that this disperses families).

My Family:

The best part of my trip was getting reacquainted with family, it was amazing how easy it was to get along with everyone. Being around family made me feel comfortable taking candid photos which I felt captured their character better and cemented them in my mind.

The booze:

I can't believe I didn't hurl once during the trip! I consumed copious amounts of booze, be it drinking from 2 litre jugs of beer (no steins required), my Uncle Marek's "Bimber" (moonshine), or the abundant and cheap vodka and other vodka related products.

Religion:

Radio Maria is a religious radio station (and a TV channel) with quite a large following and significant influence. As a foreigner it seemed to be very similar to the religious cult TV shows you see in the US, the elderly seem to make up the majority of the audience which then ripples down to the rest of the family.

Food:

Going to Poland I knew I was in for a treat with the food alone. I was not disappointed in the least, I managed to arrive just as the hazelnuts and walnuts came into season... wow! I had no idea that fresh ones taste so good and that I could just pick them from the tree! I don't think I have to mention that Polish cooking is the best in the world!! especially home cooking.

Experiences:

Be it collecting potatoes from the field, collecting nuts or mushroom picking. I made sure I got my hands dirty at every opportunity, not only did it give me a new appreciation for what we have but also the opportunity to bond with those around me.

I cannot wait to return. After coming back from Poland I now feel that I have seen enough of North America... it all seems the same here. So the plan going forward is to spend one more summer in Vancouver and then relocate to Europe (whereever we find work) for several years.

Cheers,
Jarek

Could this be the new angle on Fundraising?

2007-10-04T03:21:00.000+01:00

Australia take note, below is the most cutting edge American fund raising technique I have experienced to date. Forget your windscreen washers and weekend intersection coin collectors…..get yourselves one of these and sit back and watch the bucks come in…..

This morning while I was waiting for the little green man to indicate I could cross the road (very unusual for Bostonians!) I was spotted by an African American male dressed quite shabbily gesturing if we could speak for a moment. Before I knew it he was shoving a laminated id in my face and asking if I could donate a quarter towards a food bank for black children. This was all a blur to me as I was still surprised by his first question which was “Are you afraid of black people?” and after answering no all I could do was try and isolate what alcohol I could smell on his breath.

After telling him I had no money since I was out jogging, he had already detected an accent and asked where I was from. I answered Australia and got this as a response.

“You know there are 2 things a black man loves……
Fried Chicken and Australian Women!”

CLASSIC…..WHO DO I WRITE OUT THE CHEQUE TOO?
And if that wasn’t enough as I finally got to cross the road he belted out….

“WHOOOOOOO…. HOO….BABY…..I GOT THAT BACK……….UM HA!!!! “

Does Scarcasim count as a Second Language?

2007-09-23T01:46:00.000+01:00

MY 2 CENTS

The other day I was in my local drug store and I spotted on the back of a man’s T-shirt two words that sum up the American attitude perfectly…..’UP YOURS’

Need I say more?

WHY?

- Why do Americans in LA dump their rubbish comprising of …yes…. even ….tv's and computers into storm water drains together with a shit load of polystyrene from their fat ass fast food meals just so it can gently flow untreated into the bay?……

- Why do the drivers in Boston drive through pedestrian crossings on a red light and pedestrians cross while drivers have a green?

- Why is the war in Iraq the only International news here?

- Why do American reporters report on the absurdity of their reporting OJ Simpson’s recent robbery attempt?

-Why are the people who work at Starbucks so happy?

-Why do we have to see and smell the steam out of the sewers in the streets?

-Why do companies bother phoning me with pre- recorded telemarketing messages?

These are just a number of daily “WHY’S” that run through my head as I find myself being increasingly aggressive in my criticism towards this country because its so dam vocal in pronouncing itself as superior .Where I come from we don’t and hopefully won’t have these why’s with the exception of the happy Starbucks staff…it must be something in the coffee!

Sorry Friends, but as long as I’m in the US of A consider this rant ongoing.

ANYWAY……

In other news, Jarek is returning to me tomorrow after visiting his family in Poland for 2 weeks, he’s been having a great time (can’t say the same for his liver) but frankly I’m kind of going a little crazy by now… I’m tired of my own company and Dot only pretends to listen to me.

But during these 2 weeks, I did take my little 3 day solitary (surprise…surprise!) trip and moved into another apartment. Yep…..the idiot downstairs won and I finally cracked it and moved out. Our new place is a 7 min walk away from our old one and believe me before I left I jumped and stomped on that floor like a herd of elephants (that’s no reflection whatsoever on my weight!!!)…it felt very rebellious and extremely satisfying…..I last heard that the owner and her husband are moving back in (even the agent had enough) and will most likely get a restraining order on him if he continues his menacing ways. So far I love our new place and there are no crazy neighbors (I checked!)

Martha’s Vineyard, Cape Cod, Provincetown and Plymouth

I left on Wednesday with my bike, backpack, car and a GPS (the best thing since sliced bread!!) my first stop was Martha’s Vineyard (nothing to do with my “alleged” obsession with Martha Stewart…Betty!!) Martha’s Vineyard is a lovely island off the coast of Cape Cod that’s 45 min by ferry. Its well knows for its lovely beaches, pricey holiday homes for the rich and famous and where they filmed the Jaws movies. I stayed in a great hostel (the only one) for $30 and I completely underestimated the size of the place when it came to cycling, but this place is a resort and it is in America so there were frequent buses.

After spending 1 ½ days there I then returned to the mainland and drove 2 hours up to the tip of Cape Cod to a beautiful town called Provincetown which is well known for its large Gay and Lesbian population. After exploring its beautiful beaches and fashionable Bradford and Commercial Streets I drove back towards Boston and stopped over in Plymouth which was on the way and of some interest because ; “Plymouth is best known for being the landing site of the Mayflower and the Pilgrims. Founded in 1620, Plymouth is the oldest municipality in New England and one of the oldest in the United States. It also is the second permanent English settlement in the modern United States, preceded by Jamestown. The town has served as the location of several prominent events, the most notable being the First Thanksgiving feast. (thank you Wikipedia)

I won’t go into any more detail here, the photos speak for themselves and the annotations below them go into more detail so check them out also. But before I go my friends I will answer one question you may have…….No there are no vineyards on the island.

That’s all from me for now.

As always Freedom Hugs to you all my Friends & Family from the best dog gone… rooting tooting…. nation on the ‘their’ planet…where…gee….wizz…all the swellest and chipper folk you could ever meet live.......

Driving like a madman (aka local)

2007-09-02T23:06:00.000+01:00

We've been in Boston for over a month and a half now and as a consequence to the fantastic location we live in (yeah I can brag because it true) I spend about 45 - 60 minutes driving to and from work everyday (up to 10 hours a week). What makes the drive more interesting is that have I resort to speeding like every other driver which leads to the following observation about MA drivers. The majority of them SUCK, maybe more than the ones in Vancouver except there's a lot more anger and rage present here.

Besides the fact that Bostonian's drive like selfish dickheads (when in doubt or confused they just press the horn), they also like to ignore traffic signs, so traffic on the highways tend to move about 15 miles (~25Km) over the limit, this fluctuates as high as 25 miles (~40Km) in the fast lane. As you can imagine coming from Australia I was a little cautious to embrace these speeds but your only other choice is to become a traffic bottle neck resulting in angry drives around you (more horns!!!)

This leads me to a very amusing incident I witnessed driving to work the other day. The traffic was moving ~15 miles over the posted limit (45) when I suddenly realized a cop car in my rear view mirror... I changed lanes but didn't slow down as everyone was on par speed wise. To my surprise the cop proceeded to pass me so I decided to pull in behind him and observe everyones reaction to his presence. It was amazing, it was like he wasn't even there!. Looking ahead I could see cars pulling away since they were OBVIOUSLY traveling even faster than I was but the cop didn't seem to mind.

I was blown away by the fact that the traffic was so undeterred by the cops presence. Eventually we came to a stop at a set of traffic lights (I was still behind the cop car) when suddenly I saw his lights turn on... so I started to scan the horizon to see who did what in order to get his attention. I couldn't see the problem at first until I realized that of all things he was pulling over a J walker! lol.

In case your wondering, automated speed cameras impede on the US and Canadian constitution so they are illegal in North America and you actually have to be busted by a cop in order to get a ticket for speeding.

I hope everyone is well.

It's hard to find a good coffee here but beer, wine, spirits etc are irresistibly cheap and taste GREAT, cheers,
j

Hi All from Ev,

An update from me my friends, after a few more bangs and notes from psycho downstairs, we and even the real estate agent had threatened the owner of the apartment to no longer have anything to do with this place.....so for now...we think some action has been made by the building management towards Hannibal Lecter downstairs... he either got the hint or got hungry and ate himself....let's hope...we have peace for now. Otherwise I would like to point out that however critical my last post was I am not a pessimist. I enjoy living in such a historical part of this country, its architecture and its quirks however annoying and nonsensical they may be at times enrich the experience, on the whole I wake up with a smile......however......until I think of how much of an ordeal it is to have a descent cup of coffee here. But before I go into this further a little bit of history.

Jarek's and my relationship is almost 11 years old and so too is our almost daily tradition of a cappuccino and a chat. It took years to find the perfect and reliable coffee joints in Melbourne, same goes for Vancouver. But nothing has challenged our coffee relationship dynamic more than Boston. First and foremost Starbucks is out of the question.....so ........where do I start...the concept of receiving what you really want is such a task here...it often becomes the first obstical of the day...before we have to take out a map!! We have tried...believe me...we have given many a place a chance and been dismally disappointed but none more so than one Saturday in Beacon Hill. This was a cafe that was recommended by the best of Boston Review and with a glimer of hope we entered the old italian cafe and ordered a cappucinno. We ordered a cappuciono, we received a bowl sized mug of luke warm watered down expresso (if you can call it that!!!) on a saucer with a ....... TABLESPOON.......My only thought was of a Mr Cappucciono somewhwere in Italy turning in his grave....but there is some relief..almost every morning before work Jarek and I drive to Cambrdige where a cofee house called 1369 have heard Jarek's plight and make a "european style" cappuccino for us. Its great coffee and worth my walking back home for 30 min afterwards while Jarek drives to work.

In the next week or two our friends Chis and Bec are flying in from the UK for a visit and Jarek is flying out to Poland for 2 weeks. It has been 16 years since he last visited his family there and all I can say is I feel sorry for his liver!!!! :) Meanwhile while he is gone I am looking forward to a little solitary trip of my own exploring Rhode Island, Nantucket, Cape Code and Martha's Vinyard (where they filmed Jaws)

Hugs to you all from far away.
E

Its been a long time coming..........

2007-08-14T02:10:00.000+01:00

As you all know Jarek and I are visual people both subscribing to the same attitude ‘why write about it when you can photograph it!’……but lately my dear friends I’ve felt the stomach churning, mouth watering sensation that I needed a good old fashioned bout of explosive verbal diarrhea to cleanse my mind. (just to re-iterate I wrote ‘verbal’……)

Its healthy for me since I am presently on my lonesome for most of the time and friends, just because I am so far away…don’t think you are spared…but of course you can choose to stop reading now and do something more productive…if not prepare yourself for a rare and lengthy rant about how fucked up America can be……as viewed by me.

For those of you unaware, Jarek was sent to Boston for 3 months for work and because I can’t live without him I followed. I can’t work while I’m here…..I know!! Don’t hate me. We also brought our Kitty Kat “Dot” with us.

OUR CAT DOT!!!!

What with all the “T” word hype associated with this country and security being such an issue, I was told by my Vet that I needed a health certificate signed by him certifying my cat is healthy and not infested with rabies otherwise the U.S of A would not let her in the country. So like a good kitty mama I did so and dished out $35 for the examination and a further $12 for a kitty sedative so Dottie actually sees the rainbow she’s flying through!!!! (lucky kitty !!!!)

Well, to my surprise, if I hadn’t mentioned that I had a cat in a bag flying with me in the cabin no one in customs would have known. Not once did I have to show the certificate and not a single question was asked about her! And yet I was asked by the same customs on my last trip home to OZ what my intentions were for a jar of Cranberry sauce that I had in my luggage…..

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR?

I arrived in Boston 2 weeks after Jarek. He had just found us a beautiful studio apartment for the 3 months in Back Bay which is a very swanky part of town. The apartment is in a lovely old building on quite a loud and busy street, for you Melbournians its like Chapel Street & for you Canadians its like Robson St.

I was very impressed…….UNTIL…………

Not even a week had passed until we received a rather irate note from the neighbor downstairs. We had just assumed that he was nailing several pictures to his wall at 11:30 pm the previous night …..as you do…..but we were very wrong. Those were violent knocks at us for…get this….moving a chair slightly…or making a sound …….or even Dot jumping down from the window sill. The note angrily refers to the return of a “cycle of noise abuse” and the threat of police involvement if we kept making such a ‘racket’.

The next morning I knocked on the neighbor’s door. My first impressions were that somewhere in that smoke infested pack rat hole of his was a lamp made of human skin. I knew he was missing a few screws in the brain department by the nonsense coming out of his mouth. To my surprise I had begun telling him off….but then quickly made sure that while being stern I was not so stern as to be asking to have my rump added to his décor.

Apart from the obvious problem of low personal hygiene which can be treated with solutions such as “water” or “deodorant” I looked it up and I reckon this guy has Hyperacusis

A person with hyperacusis has difficulty tolerating everyday sounds, some of which may seem unpleasantly loud to that person but not to others.

Not being one to make fun of mental illness, as much as I wanted to tell him to start taking his med’s again or just move to the country this guy did freak me out, but it turns out I’m not the only one. I’m just glad I don’t own the place!!!!

RED LIGHT MEANS “STOP” GREEN LIGHT MEANS “GO”

The contrast between being a pedestrian in Vancouver and Boston is amazing. Both absolutely fascinate me. I’ll start with Vancouver, which I have always declared is the best city to live in if you are blind because you can just step out anywhere onto the street and the car will stop….more often than not…even when they have right of way. As a pedestrian I have no problem following the herd because its very convenient and to confess, I get a cheap thrill knowing that there is one irate driver waiting for me to pass un-hastened. However, as a driver…may God have mercy on my soul….everyone of those pedestrians looks like a cow that is begging to become a burger!!!!

Boston on the other hand has a very dangerous pedestrian set-up…its like someone hasn’t calibrated the pedestrian lights to the traffic lights which results in people taking crazy chances crossing busy roads . I have crossed more red lights here than I have green and had to sprint across a few for dear life. I don’t blame the pedestrians…as I too get frustrated when the little green man steps out and never comes back.

"A library is a hospital for the mind."

Now I’ve seen SICKO so I know how fucked up the health care is here, but if the above quote is true the same applies to the library system. Since I learned that I live around the corner from the oldest library in America, I was excited to explore the fine arts section and even bought a visual diary for my ideas and inspirations, only to find out that I cannot even look at the books without a library card which they won’t issue me because I do not have a piece of paper with my name and US address on it.

We considered getting one for Jarek since his name is on the lease and then using it myself but somehow I can’t imagine that old, flaking albino librarian posted at the fine arts desk will let that one slide. So the next step was of course nothing less but Harvard….nope…no luck there as you need a student card to just get in the door……so my final resort was MIT which had a library stocked to the liking of every geeks wet dream but no FINE ARTS …..

How dare I be denied knowledge…..must I resort to the one last lowly alternative?
CABLE TV which at the moment we only have in the “basic” range which over here is roughly 10 Christian Evangelical channels and a couple of Spanish soap opera’s.

All I can say is “HELP ME G...E..E..Z..O.. S...”

I feel much better now.

An update: I managed to use my Gym membership to finally score a library card...yey!!!. I have never been so excited to receive one in my life. Now my brain can get more gooder!!!!

Until next time
Freedom Hugs to you all
Ev

It's been a while........

2007-06-04T20:27:00.000+01:00

Hi Everyone,
Apologies for the delay (yeah I know a bit of an understatement!!!) in our updating you all with our news.But as you can see on our flickr site, Jarek and I are more visual people...stacks of photos....little words...that's my excuse anyway. So far 2007, and I can't believe we are halfway already has been good to us. We managed to sneak off to Vegas (no still not married) for Jarek's 28th Birthday. And Jarek's been over to Boston a couple of times for work. I am working for Accenture in Downtown Vancouver......don't ask....... . And yes.....its Spring here....and since Vancouver's winter's and I don't exactly get along, I am in love with Spring and Summer is just the icing on the cake. Speaking of icing, I've been on a killer detox diet for the past 2 month's and going strong. For those of you who can't believe it, I have not had any alcohol, sugar or wheat for 2 month's with the exception of my birthday where all of the above were consumed :) with great pleasure, after all I was celebrating LIFE and all its pleasures.Dot our little crazy kitty is doing well, although Jarek's affection has cooled off somewhat towards her as her behaviour is the opposite to that of a dog's...duh!!! (Jarek's preference)I guess he is just not kitty compatible and resents the fact she only shows him affection when she needs to be fed. Still, she wins in the end......hmmm what do they say about cats and women?...hmmmm. lol.
We received a lovely surprise that my Sister is having her first child in November. So I will be flying over to Perth for a month in early Nov, I'm very excited about that since we grew up with no extended family in Australia and now I'm gonna be an Auntie :) I'm also looking forward to seeing what giving birth is like. Jarek on the other hand is planning to fly over to Poland and visit his Grandparents and Family since he has not been back since he was in grade 3. So we are both looking forward to catching up with Families this year.
As usual, we have had some guests stay with us this year, the Zdziech boys came in early Jan. Artur, Robert and Marcelle and more recently our friend's Brett from Germany and Mark from Oz which is always a pleasure. We managed to go white water rafting in Chilliwack with a bunch of friend's which was fantastic. I loved it especially because its so exciting you don't even realise your getting a thorough workout. Besides the *$%&!#$%#@ COLD WATER which you eventually got used to, it was the best fun I've had in ages.And of course the Canadian forests and mountains are always breathtaking scenery.
Well that's me in a nutshell, I hope to keep you all more updated...but who am I kidding. Warm Hugs to you all
xoxox
Ev

Minilogue

2006-12-10T00:43:00.000Z

This is an amazing video of animation composed on a whiteboard... VERY COOL!!

Dailymotion blogged video
Minilogue
Video sent by yom_

Thanksgiving

2006-10-13T18:52:00.000+01:00

Well we finally got to celebrate Thanksgiving, and like any other holiday not everyone was quite sure what the day was for but it had something to do with the native Indians helping Europeans when they first arrived. Needless to say that the tradition calls for a feast staring a HUGE turkey.

We got together with a few of our closer friends to celebrate this feast. Thanks to Ed for providing the kitchen and desert, Jill for the fantastic (I would call it perfect) turkey, Evelyn for decorative centre piece (with the flags to represent all the nations present at our dinner) the

sauerkraut polish pancakes and that salad(yum)... also Sanja, Barney, Tom, Andre, Lister and Edith for coming to help us celebrate. (After going to Ed's for leftovers, I realised that Edith had also brought two fantastic salads... thanks)

Here are some photos.

Waiting For Guests Close Up

2006-09-17T01:11:00.000+01:00

Waiting for Guests

2006-09-17T00:32:00.000+01:00

Hey All!!!

Its Ev here!!
Yep still alive…well…..I do have the flu…so barely.
What can I say just as summer ends here I get a full blown dose of the flu….nice!
It’s a sunny Saturday and Jarek went on a 10hour hike and I’m in doors L
But on the plus side I have been inspired by some produce I bought at a farmers market this morning not far from our place….beautiful organic tomatoes…grapes and handmade bread. It was all just too beautiful to eat straight away so I of course had to photograph it first.
No the painting above doesn’t really hang in any gallery (that would be nice), it is meant to look like it is but its really super imposed in a shot taken at our visit to Chicago’s Metro Gallery. I decided to use the photo of the produce I took and super impose it with a photo taken of a picture of Queen Victoria and another photo of a famous painting ( I can’t be bothered goggling it for your convenience…do it yourselves!!). Anyway, a few edits and effects on Photoshop later and whallaa!! …I call it “Waiting for Guests”…because it reminds me of me when I have all the food ready on the table and I am just sitting still waiting for guests to show up (except I’m not Queen Victoria)….what da ya think? Could it pass as an oil painting in the Lourve? Move aside Mona!!!

Hey c’mon….I spend my days working at Chevron (on of America’s largest oil company) working as a mail clerk…I need a creative release sometimes. Yes my job is repetitive and boring…the funny thing is I have not been issued my own computer at work (even though I need one) but I did get 500 business cards!!!.........I tell ya….these wacky Canadian’s J

Oh and I also completed a rowing course in beautiful Horeshoe Bay…I really did, I know I can’t believe it either. I am still waiting for the promised certificate but I have the t-shirt to prove it (one size too small I must add…not happy) I learnt that its bloody hard and it requires 100% concentration which is difficult for me sometimes since the view keeps distracting me. One time we had 2 seals appear about 2 meters away from us…I just wanted to jump in then and there. In a nutshell at the end of the course we had a regatta and my boat lost….twice so there!!!! Next!!!!

Other than that I am doing fine. If my dear friends you make no sense of what I have written I place the blame squarely on the antibiotics I am taking to survive…poor me L

Ciao Darlings
xoxoxox

The Chief day walk

2006-08-24T23:12:00.000+01:00

Edith taking a quick shower
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

I invite you to take a look at the photos... sorry I can't be stuffed writing it up. I will mention that taking a quick dip after the walk was awesome!

Oh by the way (and I feel I deserve to brag) last week I achieved a personal goal... 100+ miles on my mountain bike in one week, that's right more then 160km (it may be nothing to some but I really had to work hard for it). If your wondering, I ride my bike to work and it works out to be 160km if I do it every day of the week.

Cheers,
Jarek

Not Really Suitable for Children

2006-08-19T00:18:00.000+01:00

Not Really Suitable for Children
Originally uploaded by firechick.

Just spotted this on Flickr.. lol

Its been a busy couple of weeks

2006-08-12T00:33:00.000+01:00

Evelyn and I have been throwing parties to celebrate the "Celebration of lights" the worlds largest fireworks competition... I think were over hosting parties for quite a while :)

It was conducted over two weeks... Wednesday was Italy, they were great or so I thought till I saw China perform on Saturday. China had some amazing displays that just blew the mind! I thought you couldn't top it until I saw the Czech Republic (that's right!?!?) on Wednesday and they actually choreographed Swing music to they performance... WOW it was amazing, my favourite (I'm a sucker for swing music). The closing night was (Sat) Mexico... well I didn't think much of them but they won for some reason...

As you look through the photos you may ask why haven't we taken a greater sample of photos from all the nights? well the answer is quite simple (and those that know Ev and myself well should already know) that's right we got too caught up in the celebrations and were too smashed to operate the camera :D yep. The few photos we did get were thanks to Evelyn.

Cheers,
Jarek

Kiteboarding

2006-07-26T20:05:00.000+01:00

Yet another awesome activity that BC is more then able to offer the best conditions for. Jaczek and Chery (neighbours) asked us if we would be interested in going to Squamish to watch Jaczek try out his new Kiteboard, and of coarse to have a go!

It was a great day out, and since Jaczek hasn't mastered the art of Kiteboarding I wasn't too willing to give it a go with no pointers. Although it is definitely a sport that I am eagerly interested in... and will have to pursue.

Hiking the Black Tusk

2006-07-21T18:36:00.000+01:00

IMG_2160
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

My first hike in Canada, 3 days accompanied by Ed, Matt, Olivier and Casper.

Here come the guests

2006-07-11T19:45:00.000+01:00

Magda in BC
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

For about a month our place changed into a Hotel.

I was thinking of describing the adventures with our guests but as I started too I realised how many things we actually did, so I will just invite you to see the photos. Both Evelyn and I had a great time thank you Magda and Rafal, Stan, Wolly, Mila, Matt and Magda for stopping by to visit us.

Harrison Hot Springs

2006-07-11T18:22:00.000+01:00

IMG_1543
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Wow! I haven't ~~bogged~~ blogged in a while... I do apologise but we have been SO busy with the onset of summer, there are SO many activities to do here!

Well lets start with a our boys weekend away at Harrison hot springs. We arrived ont the weekend that
high school kids were having their schoolies weekend! wow what a great atmosphere that provided (I mean there must have been 1000 people ont he beach)

Needless to say we had a GREAT time, part of which involved watching a truck get rescued that ran off the road...

We also did go see the Hot Springs... nothing special though, just some wooden barrels that has Hot water tapped from the mountain flowing though them.

TaskBar Shuffle

2006-05-13T01:32:00.000+01:00

home of the n3rd c4ve | computer stuff.

Some blooper Reels

2006-05-09T19:09:00.000+01:00

I have been having a great time here in Vancouver! especially now that spring is in full swing and I have taken up Mountain Biking.
Since I have the camera I am the one usually shooting the videos/photos, most of the stacks are of Ed.. he he. That's not to say I don't have my fair share of falls, the camera is usually strapped to my chest when I'm falling!

Anyway enjoy...

Another beautiful sunset as seen from our Apartment

2006-04-19T17:39:00.000+01:00

Another beautiful sunset as seen from our Apartment
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

he he, just wanted to show off this photo. The weather is rapidly getting warmer and I have started to ride my bike to work (approx 1hour journey each way). It shouldn't be too much longer till the warm sea currents enter the bay and I can finally go for a swim.

Being surrounded by Canadians and Americans I'm starting to pick up some lingo :( Instead of "cool" I have unconsciously started using "nice" and instead of "man" I use "dude"!!! I have to try and stop this before it gets out of hand!!

Cheers,
J

Snowboarding Blackcomb

2006-04-05T19:22:00.000+01:00

This is a clip from Feb (when I owned a head mounted camera for a day), its me snowboarding the Seventh Heaven area... it may not be the best but it should be more then enough to rub it into Artur and Robert :D

The beginning may not be too impressive to watch but there is tree skiing at around the 3 minute mark!

Hi Everyone, its Ev here!!

2006-03-28T01:55:00.000+01:00

Yes I'm still alive yet not as prompt with updates as Jarek, sorry!!but I feel one is well over due.

And since I am currently sitting at a desk "working" in a Government building with nothing to do, what better opportunity. I managed to get work via a recruitment agency and have been working in all sorts of offices in and around Downtown Vancouver. Some jobs good (like this one :) ) and others not so good. But all in all interesting experiences.

Apart from hearing Michael Buble's "Let me go Home" virtually everywhere I go it seems ( oh! and that time I went and saw Ben Lee perform for only 21 bucks at a pub)….I am not home sick. We have made lots of friends here but I also miss all you lot back home.

As you can see in the photos, Vancouver is a beautiful city and the people are really into fitness, fresh air and four legged friends. It almost does not seem right to not be doing something active on the weekend like taking a bike ride around the seawall…and I particularly love that they love dogs….Jarek is particularly in his element here, Vancouver has become an adventure playground for him, he is always up for going snowboarding and mountain biking. I have tried Yoga (Birkhram Yoga in a 27 degree Celsius room) which was not a very good idea as an introduction to Yoga…15minutes into the class I had to rush out and throw up…

Well that's pretty much it from me for now. I'm not sure how much longer I will be temping as I haven't had any luck finding work myself…so cross your fingers for me.

XOXOXO Ev

Another day moutain biking

2006-03-26T04:22:00.000+01:00

Just wanted to show a short clip of where we have been riding... Andrew and Ed are the guys I've been riding with and are shown in respective order.

We have VIDEO!

2006-03-21T23:17:00.000Z

I have finally managed to find a way to share the videos we capture on our new Digital Camera (oh, I forgot to mention that we picked up a Canon SD450) along with what we can get from fiends (mostly Ed). Anyway, there is a lot of snowboarding footage (and mostly of me trying to showoff unsuccessfully... good for a laugh), and mountain Biking (my new summer sport)

I apologies that the video and photos aren’t in one convenient place but its the best I can do without forking out money ;)

Snowboarding videos: contains video from both Whistler and the local Cypress Mountain
for the corresponding photo just click on the photos

Mountain Biking Videos: I did this for the first time last Sunday and fell in love with it immediately. Luckily I was able to draw on some of the skills I learnt from Trail Biking and Cycling to work! I have also posted the photos.

I have also updated a whole bunch of photos from the last couple of weeks so feel free to brows and leave comments.

Cheers,
Jarek

WTF?

2006-03-14T06:24:00.000Z

Whats with that? An Australian wine maker "Proud sponsor team Canadia 2006" XVIII Commonwealth Games! Tasted great though :)

Wednesday night at Cypress Mountain

2006-03-10T03:59:00.000Z

Heading home....
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Some photos from our trip to Cypress Mountain... during a snow storm :D

3 Nights & 3 Days in Whistler! and... POWDER!!

2006-03-03T05:22:00.000Z

Taking a rest on Whistler
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Here are some pics from Whistler, Agilent business development team was having meeting up there so I figured that I crash on the floor and get some free accommodation. Whistler is a great party Village but like Queenstown everything closes really early, around 2am.
Needless to say the snowboarding was great, and on the last night it started to snow... around 25cm :D anyway enjoy the photos...

Just click on the photo to see the rest

2006-02-23T08:30:00.000Z

These are pictures of our place... I'll let everyone determine what is what... if you have problems let me know... and yes that is an LCD TV :)
Cheers J

Just uploaded pictures from Chicago

2006-02-21T01:40:00.000Z

Evelyn the art student
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Just wanted to let you know that i have uploaded the pictures from Chicago... here is a sample (Evelyn exhausted after about 6 hours in the gallery... and not even close to the end!)

Hookah Bar

2006-02-07T21:37:00.000Z

We went out on Saturday night, saw a live band and after bar hopping for a while we ended up at a Hookah Bar!

Those things are brilliant! great for chilling out and long conversations... Anyway all I wanted to say is that you all should all try it...

J

Just updating the profile photo

2006-02-06T04:44:00.000Z

more rain :)

2006-02-02T19:52:00.000Z

We have been getting more and more snow on the mountains. Yesterday Evelyn, Ed and myself went night skiing on Cypress mountain (3.65 m with 25cm fresh snow), which meant I left work at 3:30 to start Boarding at 4:00... The conditions were GREAT, I finally managed to do the Double Black Diamond (DD) runs, in the dark! (those runs aren't lit up but you can still make out what’s in front of you)... I also realised that it wasn't my lack of ability that had made those runs almost impossible to enjoy, it was the snow conditions.
Lets just say that going full speed and flipping out on the DD run was painless, LOL. It was great I managed to get more tree boarding done on the DD.
I still haven’t taken photos on the mountain since I don't want to take care of the SLR, but Ed and Andrew have, so I will get a copy from them.

In the mean time here are the pics from Grouse Mountain on Dec 16th 2005.

Cheers,
J

Thats right, thats Vancouver City in the background!

No, that is not my new gear, I have basically replaced everything except the hat

Chinese New Years 4703, Year of the DOG

2006-01-31T05:38:00.000Z

Dragon
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Well we have another laptop... So I will be slowly backlogging all the photos that we've taken during the down time.
Anyway, I thought we would start with some colour, this set of photos was taken during the Vancouver Chinese New Years... Not much to say really, it was extremely long and very festive. The crowds were huge and not fenced off.... but it worked!!

J

Whistler... WOW

2006-01-26T22:45:00.000Z

wow...

Trail map of Whistler/Blackcomb

The place is fuckn huge!!! it takes at least 3 long chairlifts, and about half an hour to get to the peak from Whistler village, oh and you have to pop your years at least twice to compensate for the altitude change(and at the middle and end of longs runs)! The place had 3 different weather systems, Base (slushy and overcast), Alpine (foggy, as in “in the clouds”) and at the peak (overcast and windy if exposed to the East face).
Although I didn't get fresh snowfalls before we went up, it’s bad to assume there wasn’t any powder around! I still managed to find some among the trees... lol, that is heaps of fun, and SCARY! I had never imagined what boarding through (that’s right not "on") powder felt like... it’s like a giant pillow, soft and forgiving. Just remember to lean back on the snow board or you’ll be doing a superman (with a soft landing). Getting back up after a fall isn’t a trivial matter! You can't push down on any solid surface, you just push through... and in my case get a face full of snow J

I won’t be going back up until there is a fresh cover of powder! or until I can't wait anymore. Oh did I mention that it only takes 1.5 hours to get there from my place! That means only a 7am start!

Once again I did not have the camera just because I didn't want to stop myself from doing stupid stuff... maybe next time (I wish I had a compact camera!).

I hope everyone back in Melbourne is enjoying the "worm" weather... “with a change of FIRE”! lol
J

lol, this made a little home sick!?!

2006-01-25T20:42:00.000Z

Australian whale vomit find worth a fortune

This will make you keep a keen eye out for blubber next time your on the beach!

lol, J

Rain.... rain... and even more rain = lots of SNOW

2006-01-20T01:01:00.000Z

The record of the most consecutive days of rain was almost broken if it weren't for a clear day on Sunday, that’s right we had 28 days of consecutive rain, one day short of the record! Sure this probably doesn't sound too nice but on the positive side we have been getting AWSOME snow falls on ALL mountains. Cypress Mountain (only 30 minutes from home) is open for night skiing till 10pm EVERY night, and with a snow base of 250cm and with fresh snow falls almost every day who could resist going after work! (Mt Baker was closed because it go TOO much snow... Avalanche danger)
Lets just say that I don't think I will EVER be satisfied with Australian ski fields again, my standard has been cranked up several notches... I expect fresh powder with a substantial base! This weekend we will be going up to Whistler and the conditions are expected to be fantastic!
I did mention that I got a new snowboard (in my previous blog), and I'm loving it! It outperforms any rental I had used before by miles... Now I can start to really push myself (especially since it doesn't hurt to fall on soft snow)

I make no apologies for bragging, I invite you all to come and experience this for your self, I LOVE LIVING IN VANCOUVER!!

Cheers,
J

Hopefuly bad luck only comes in threes

2006-01-09T22:04:00.000Z

Happy New Year and all that crap... if you didn't already know we have returned back to Vancouver, I'll blog the Chicago trip when I can upload photos... only after I fix the laptop situation.

I assume you have all read about the laptop incident before Christmas... well I just got the diagnosis of the problem, the main board is fried ($$$) but all other components are fine (eBay here I come) That makes one.

Last Friday I was crossing a 6 lane road back from a great lunch (burger, chips and beer) when I decided to run across the road and beat the traffic... well as I started to run I felt my new mobile phone slip out of my pocket and onto the ROAD!!! There was no way I was turning back and risking life and limb for a Sony-Ericsson, however it did drop on a lane divider :) perhaps it could survive! I was given about two minutes of hope until some asshole decided to use their entire lane... Oh well :( that makes 2
(I’ll post picks of the damage once the laptop situation)

On Sunday Ev and I went shopping to buy ourselves snowboards... sounds harmless enough, although when we returned to car after spending big $$$ we found a parking ticket on our windshield... fuck it, as long as that was number 3!

J

Chicago Blackhawks vs St. Louis Blues

2005-12-31T03:22:00.000Z

Well, we finally went to see an Ice Hokey game, and I understand why its easy to get hooked on it! its a quick VIOLENT game :D We saw the Chicago Blackhawks defeated by St Louis Blues even with a home crowd advantage... oh and did I mention we also got to see a few fights which included a fist fight that lasted at least 2 minutes!! This is a game I can get very used to, the beer wasn't great (American) but the crowd, the game, the fights and the "ice girls ;) " were enough to compensate.

I have photos, but there all on my phone... so until I work out how to get them out, stay tuned.

Cheers,
J-Man

Chicago...

2005-12-22T01:15:00.000Z

Chicago
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Its a HUGE city... You can see more planes then stars in the sky! and the customer service is rude at best, I find it to be a novelty ;) (I know, I'm such a tourist). We are having lots of fun here, we are staying at Stanley's and his fathers house. We a also taking LOTS of photos so stayed tuned.

J

News Flash: Wine and Laptops DO NOT mix!

2005-12-16T19:06:00.000Z

Shit Shit Shit! If you hadn't guessed by the heading yet, I spilt some red wine on the laptop... and now it doesn't work!! I think its the CPU... While I try to work out exactly what to do about this (pay for new one, get this repaired, or buy spare pats and start swapping damaged components out!) we won't be available online in the evenings... I am pretty sure that all the info on the Hard Drive is safe though.

SHIT!

Clumsy Jarek

the Queue, lol

2005-12-14T23:12:00.000Z

Canadians are so nice eh! Yet again we went out on the town on Friday night with Tom, Ed, Evelyn and myself (after a whole day of skiing Grouse mountain, I thought I wouldn't have the energy... amazing what alcohol does). We ended up going to a club in Gas Town (the dingy part of town) the Lamplighter, there were live bands and the music was GREAT. What freaked me out however was when I went to buy a round of beer, standing at what appeared to be a fairly empty bar Tom politely telling me that there was a line for the bar... lol.

I have heard of this occurring, and dismissed it as being a bit of bullshit. Back in Melbourne I was used to having to shuffle my way to the bar and try getting attention over everyone else in order to be served. Queuing up is probably a good system, but personally I tend to forget my manners when under the influence, so I found myself chuckling while "participating" in the queue.

We should be going back there next Saturday so I will attempt to take a photo of this phenomenon of Canadians remembering their civility in a dingy part of town, in a crowded bar with loud music while consuming alcohol! LOL

Cheers,
Jarek

Vancouver according to Jarek

2005-12-07T09:30:00.000Z

Still having a great time here... pretty much enjoying everything that the city has to offer. However while it is still fresh in my mind I would like to summarise my thoughts and observations so far:

Coffee:
There is a Starbucks around almost every corner, serving up their version of "coffee"(we had to go into one out of desperation and had to order a double shot just so it could taste remotely close to a cappuccino)

Otherwise there are a lot of cafes to choose from, some of them quite nice. We have noticed that in order to get a cappuccino similar to back home we have to ask for a latte!?!

Spoons! well they just don't seem to use them, they have long flat sticks to stir with... (it makes it difficult to enjoy our foam) we have however found a cafe that does have spoons... thank god)

Liquor:
The choice of alcohol is great... however its expensive, you get the chose to buy from either of two places; Government owned liquor stores where the prices are always the same, or Private stores that purchase all their alcohol from the government and naturally they are more pricy. There is one other place, Hotels but the prices are astronomical!

Public Transport:
Great! Clean, friendly service and frequent. The sky train comes every couple of minutes so there is NO reason to ever run! The Busses come every 5 minutes or so (well the ones I need to catch anyway). I haven’t caught a sea fairy but I'll let you know when I do.

People:
The people are NICE! I haven’t met someone that wasn't. The bums (homeless, and there are lots of them) are polite and courteous... lol

Culture:
Everyone seems to do some sort of outdoor activity, and there is no activity that you need to go far to find... There is also a fantastic collection of stores to cater for everything.

The bars and clubs fill up during the weekend, but seem to close early (about 2am if memory serves me right, and it probably doesn’t)

Banks:
They like to charge for everything!! and you have to make an appointment to open an account! Forget about earning interest on your money here, either you have heaps of money to invest or your just paying bank fees.

AU$:
Well it’s hurting! CA$0.86 for AU$1. We just have to limit spending until Agilent pays me in the Looney. Although I have discovered the best way to transfer money between countries at great rates while avoiding bank fees is to use: Xe.com

That’s about everything I have to say for now (and my hand is getting sore, and its 2am ouch)... I'll let Evelyn explain the couch situation later...

Cheers,
Jarek

Pacific Sands Apartment

2005-12-07T08:51:00.000Z

Pacific Sands Apartment
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Well we finally moved into our new place... it on the 19th floor overlooking Stanley Park and English Bay. I must say that we have a fantastic view!!

Here is a Google Maps link to where it is located

Oh, and this is one of the sunsets we observed from our balcony... jealous ;)

Initial impressions of Vancouver

2005-11-29T19:26:00.000Z

I must say that we love being in Vancouver, we have however been unable to get out of the city since we have to prepare to move into our rental apartment (Ev is doing great job there!), it gets dark at 4:30 and we have cable TV in the hotel.

I must have a rant though. Since we drive on the left hand side in Australia, and it is so embedded subconsciously I have been having trouble with the following.

1) I still walk up to the wrong side of the car to drive (fairly stock standard)

2) Parking lots are confusing, I always find myself on the wrong side (getting better though)
2b) I have also found myself driving down the wrong way on a one way street in downtown!

3) I find myself on a collision path with other people in crowded places. Since locals tend to want to pass you on their right, it makes it difficult when I want to pass them on the my left! (This is compounded by the fact that I have to walk through a buisy shopping center to get to the food court, and Christmas shopping season is on!)

I'm such a spaz... I think that everyone else gets past this far quicker then me...

Cheers,
Jarek

First Week in Vancouver

2005-11-23T18:41:00.000Z

Christmas Parade
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

Hi Everyone,

Well it’s been a week since we arrived in Vancouver. After a tearful goodbye with loved ones in a sunny Melbourne it was time to set out on our adventure. After selling, giving away or distributing all our belongings amongst friends and family we lived like gypsies for a while. What a great feeling to have all that you now own fit into a suitcase and 2 backpacks!! Before we left, like some of you pointed out, it seemed like we were saying goodbye’s for almost a month, but once we were on the plane it hit us that we were not just going on a holiday and that what we were dreaming of doing for many years has finally happened. It was a beautiful feeling.

The flight from Melbourne to Vancouver was a total of 26 hours including a 7 hour stop over in San Francisco to wait for a 2 hour flight to Vancouver!!! Prior to our flight we were enthusiastically planning to squeeze a sightseeing tour to Alcatraz during that time, however its amazing how much flying for many hours kills the eagerness.

I have to add that at one point on the flight I missed home very much….particularly my Mum’s 3 hens whom I adopted as my own. Having feasted on their fresh eggs for a week before I flew out, I could not help but sigh when I opened up my “scrambled” eggs breakfast on the plane and paused at the sight of a mysterious grey mush that didn’t resemble anything egg like in neither appearance or taste. I know…I know….I was asking for it when I ordered it.

We were told that San Francisco Airport is very busy, hence the need for the people in customs and immigration to treat people like herds of cattle through all the checkpoints. Every 10 or so minutes a pre-recorded message alarms anyone who witnesses a suspicious parcel or person to contact 911, complete paranoia.

We finally arrived in Vancouver Airport to a much calmer and friendlier service; we picked up our rental car and made our first nervous journey into the city driving on the wrong side of the road. The driving bit is getting easier and as yet Jarek and I haven’t tried killing each other over the map directions which is short of being a miracle.

Within our first week of Vancouver, Jarek and I both have very good first impressions although we have not really had a chance to travel out of the city much due to Jarek starting work relatively straight away. I spent the first week exploring the city.

Here is the summary. Vancouver is cold, can be very foggy (visibility within a quarter or a kilometer) and rainy. There are a lot of homeless people around especially in the evening. You can find them sleeping beside the traffic lights sometimes or busily collecting bottles and cans from bins to claim the refund…. they say the welfare system rejects them, but you could almost dismiss them as working for the council since they do such a good job at keeping the recycling system working. The Sushi here rocks and is cheaper and more creative than in Melbourne. Frustratingly…Jarek and I can’t seem to find a cappuccino place that we both like but I won’t go into that. Lots of movies are filmed in Vancouver, I witnessed the filming of a scene for the next X Men film and the Shopping Centres and some stores here are Bloody Huge!!!!

We found a cool apartment around the corner from Stanley park and a building away from English Bay. It is a corner apartment on the 19th floor which has lovely views. We move in at the beginning of December.

I promise next time I will write sooner and keep the entries shorter. Make sure you visit our online photo gallery on www.flickr.com/photos/jarek69 , bookmark it so you can visit it to see our photo updates.

Bye for now!!

More Photos from the Bon Voyage Part

2005-11-13T10:22:00.000Z

PA140122
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

I have updated the photos taken from the Bon Voyage Party... These were taken from Roberts camera

Bon Voyage Party

2005-10-19T13:46:00.000+01:00

IMGP0746
Originally uploaded by jarek69.

The time of departure draws near... let’s have a party :D

Hawksbury River Sun Rise

2005-09-07T15:07:00.000+01:00

Queenstown, Neaw Zealand 2005

2005-09-05T12:43:00.000+01:00

This is the view of Queenstown and lake Wanaka from the peak of The Remarkables

Lake Wanaka view from Queenston

Another view of lake Wanaka

A hang glider takes flight towards Queenstown

Kew Cemetery

2005-07-29T10:21:00.000+01:00

Infrared photography

2005-07-23T06:09:00.000+01:00

I have finally found out how to create Infrared effects in Photoshop, and am now able to give my photos the desired "mood". Here are some shots from our hike in Pretty Valley, Bogong High Planes (6/2/04)

Copyright (c) Jarek Zdziech. All rights reserved

2005-06-25T04:06:00.000+01:00

2005-04-04T13:19:00.000+01:00

2005-03-21T12:59:00.000Z

Sunset...

2005-02-28T11:54:00.000Z

Now for some Panoramics

2005-02-28T10:39:00.000Z

Falls Creek 2004

Falls Creek 2004

Grampian, Mount Staplton 2004

Grampian 2004

Grampian, Mount Staplton 2004

Little Catherdal Lookout, Cathedral Ranges 2004

Pretty Valley, Bogong High Planes 2004

Pretty Valley, Bogong High Planes 2004

Pretty Valley, Bogong High Planes 2004

Lookout from Mt Konika, 2004

Water Fall, Mt Konika 2004

Moonlight at Hawksbury River, NSW 2004

Copyright (c) Jarek Zdziech. All rights reserved

One Day in December

2005-02-24T11:30:00.000Z

Sunday at a Skate Park

2005-02-23T05:57:00.000Z

3 Day Hike through Wilsons Prom

2005-02-18T07:38:00.000Z

This post is still under development... I have to add more descriptions, but I thought people might want to take a look at the photos anyway.

Start of journey

Resting at Windy Saddle

Walking through Fernery part???

Board Walk

Entering Sealer Cove

Sealers Cove stage left

Sealers Cove stage right

River crossing, this can get waist deep at high tide

Taking a rest overlooking Sealers Cove Bay

Taking a swim at Refuge Cove

Soaking up the atmosphere at Refuge Cove

Day Two: Walking out of Refuge Cove

Taking a rest

Waterloo Bay, with white silica sand

Starting to walk the inland track toward Oberon Bay

Overlooking the inland track (looking toward Waterloo Bay)

We finally make it to Oberon Bay

Waiting for the sun set

one of the many colours of the sunset

Day Three: Staring to walk towards Oberon peak

Short stop at little Oberon Bay

Tidal river, almost there

Waiting to leave at Tidal River car park...

Copyright (c) Jarek Zdziech. All rights reserved

2005-02-09T01:54:00.000Z

Yarrawonga :)