Travel and Adventure 2.0

  July 30 rickshaws and rainfalls Masala Chai makes the world a better place. After a lovely breakfast our motley crew of travellers loaded onto the bus for a jam packed day.  Our day began with a visit to a massive Hindu temple, Akshardham. I cannot even begin to describe the intricate carvings and ornate beauty. The complex is made from sandstone while the inside of the temple is carved in Italian marble.  To protect and preserve the temple we were not allowed to carry anything on our person: no phones (hence internet images), gum, bags, cameras, cigarettes, lighters etc.  It was a HOT day today. That said, the real enemy is the humidity. 4 bottles of water later…. We were off to the races, quite literally. We took bicycle rickshaws through the narrow streets of old Delhi. It is quite the site to behold. The colours, the smells and the sounds are other worldly.  We rode through the “wedding district”. Here, a bride and her family can come to poke through stalls, to barter for discove

  July 29 Delhi Arrival It was a long day, and not uneventful, but to worth it. We arrived in Delhi to a balmy 28 degrees and a humidity level that caused my hair to instantly friz. Of course,our arrival gate was “as far as possible” from immigration. It’s a BIG airport. It is 1.5 km (inside) to get from gate to customs.  We were the last rag tag group to be wondering down the hallways, so we were offered a ride.We piled most of our luggage and half the team into the cart! Delhi airport has never been busy when I have arrived. But today was magic. At immigration we must fill out a paper with our intended destination. The entire immigration process was less than 15 minutes for a group of 10 people. Stunning.  Luggage was our downfall. Sadly, two bags did not make the jump from a Calgary flight to our plane. Corette and Alexandra are true Girl Guides. They both came prepared with some carryon items and a smile to boot.  Bhanu was waiting for us as we stepped into the concourse. After som

  July 28 Explore India 2022 It’s been a long time coming, but I am finally travelling internationally. Today I left for a near month in India. I’m flying from Pearson to Delhi with my daughter Emma and 12 “sisters”. First success was taking the GO Train to the airport. For $17 we didn’t have to fight the traffic if the 401 and we were able to sit back and enjoy the ride. The skies opened moments after we settled on the train. Most if our group were travelling through Toronto. We met there, with the intent to carry on together. Alexandra and Corette were delayed coming from BC, but did manage to make our flight. Linda B from the US arrived in time, but sadly she fell victim to the fates of Pearson airport. Her plan could not get an assigned gate and then there were no crew available. She will join us tomorrow.  Based on the photo and the signals given by my AirTags, it appears that my checked luggage may also appear tomorrow. Emma and Catherine were upgraded to business class. My lovel

  07/23 - Going to Gagetown We packed up camp this morning and began the drive back to New Brunswick. A stop at Tim Hortons to fuel the passengers and we were on the road! We made a quick stop at the “welcome” centre at the border of NS and NB. Our Baby Trailer tends to attract attention anywhere we go. Especially when we part with “the big kids”. We stopped at one final historic site in NS.  This time we learned about a vibrant Acadian community at Beaubassin. While it has not be excavated or reconstructed, there were information panels explaining the importance of this trading space, the value of the farming techniques employed and the tragedy of the Deportation (again). Emma refueled here, soaking up some vitamin D. Mama was pretty excited about our next stop! I found a good looking soldier to kidnap for 24 hours! we made our way to the historic district of Fredericton and had a walk-around. Cameron steered us to a hand crafted ice cream shop. It was fabulous, but beware …one ice cr