Northern Travels

Here a new update. After travelling now for a couple of weeks in Cuba and Mexico, I start to get back into the real travellers vibe. I am totally adapted to the warm weather and I have totally lost track of time or days. I forgot what a pleasure it is to meet all these wonderful and inspiring people. Every day is a new adventure. Without making any plans you can live in the moment and enjoy everything that comes on your path. This trip definitely reminded me that I have to travel again in the future.

Back to Canada, The final trip

After my sister left I had only one more exam. It was weird to put an end to my minor in Canada. It reminded me a lot about my final exams in secondary school. Sitting in the gym, waiting to start on your final exam and realizing that this is the last test. When your studying you constantly work towards this moment and when it’s finally there it seems much sooner than expected. Suddenly you realize how time flies and that this is the end of another chapter, Minor in Canada.

I was planning to visit some Canadian friends after exams. It turned out that most of them were still busy and when I got invited to a final trip up North I couldn’t resist. These so called “Northern Travels” would be a quest to see the Northern Light and, more importantly, have a great time. The group existed from a now well known French friend: Clement, a Dutch girl Annick and a friend of her Björn. It was not the first trip together with Clement and Annick and we really became close friends during our time in Canada. Sharing meals, having drinks, playing squash, several road trips and much, much more. This would be our final trip and it will be a good one! I never met Björn but I was sure he would only improve the company.

Northern Travels

I didn’t do much research on the destination because I joined only last minute. The plan was to drive around Georgian Bay(the same way I drove back with Jo from Manatoulin Island) and stay in a cabin for 3 days on the St. Joseph Island, the second biggest fresh water island, located right next to it’s bigger brother Manatoulin. I knew it would be a long drive and I hoped we would have more luck with the roads than my journey from Montreal. Annick and Clement picked up the car so I could have a quick Skype session with my girlfriend. We started driving around 9 and had to pick up Björn first in the centre of Toronto. As I did several trips in the centre it was way easier to navigate. After a lot of traffic and a short stop in Toronto we started making our way north around 12. It would be at least another 8 hours of driving but there was a good vibe in the car. Björn turned out to be a great guy that had a good sense of humour and a lot of energy.

The road was much better compared to the journey from Montreal but it was still snowing along the way. This made the driving way more intensive so we switched between drivers. We had dinner along the way in a restaurant called “Dragonfly”. They were very committed to their name and there were thousands of wooden dragonflies hanging around, paintings of dragonflies and when the waiter came walking down with our burgers we all started laughing. The icon was burned in the bum of the burger in no other shape than, of course, the dragonfly.

After some good food we continued our way down the island and after another 2 hours of driving in the dark we finally arrived on the island and it didn’t take long before we found our cabin. It was located right on a lake and the host had set up candles on the path to our cabin which made it look very romantic. Very happy and tired we stepped into our new contemporary house. After a short drink we all fell asleep into something that could be compared with a coma.

The next day was very lazy and easy going. We walked to town and discovered the area a bit. Along the way we had plenty of snowball fights. It really felt like a holiday and the weather was perfect. A nice blue sky and a warm sun that made the cold temperature a bit more mild. There was a very sweet little town centre. We first walked to the dock and found a nice lighthouse. After walking back we got some food and drinks for our stay the coming days. We walked back to our house to drop off the food. I introduced Bjorn to a very local snowstorm that happened just to be at the cabin when he opened his jacket. This became a nice theme during the next couple of days. After the local snowstorm we continued our journey up the hill to the house from the host. We saw some deer trails in the snow along the way and I was immediately scanning the woods to find any sign of life. Unfortunately no animals along the way and also the host was not there when we knocked on the door. We just continued our way and walked through the woods that were all part of their property. It was a nice little hike and on our way back we saw there was someone at home. We introduced ourselves and were invited to come inside. The old barn that was transformed in a house was very pretty from the outside but when we stepped it was even prettier. Everything was made from wood and although the owners were not so happy with it, we were very amazed. Our host was a very friendly German couple, named Daniela and Detlev, that lived in Canada for over 20 years. We felt a good connection with them and it felt more like visiting family or friends than just hiring a cabin.

The next day we wanted to be a bit more active and took the car down to a park to go snowshoeing. Since I would only be in Canada for another two weeks I didn’t buy any good, water proof shoes. As a true mechanical engineer we found a solution by putting plastic bags around my feet and sealing them with duct tape. Nobody of our group had any experience with snowshoeing. It was an amazing experience. The bad thing about hiking in the snow is that you always have to follow a trail. With the snowshoeing you can go wherever you want to go. Bjorn took the lead and we started following a deer trail through the woods.  We saw some deer along the way from the car but I guess we made too much noise to see them while snowshoeing. We made our way to the shore and walked around the lake. Here we saw a huge boat cruising. You could feel the waves underneath the ice and we decided not to try and  come any closer to the boat. After about two hours we made our way back to the car and drove back to the cabin to get some lunch and to get ready for a cross country skiing tour.

I did not have any experience with the ccs but it was a lot of fun because everyone was struggling and every 10 minutes someone would see the snow from a bit different perspective. After laughing we usually helped each other back on the feet. We sometimes raced a small distance. This was so much fun. It felt like running and sliding in the same time. Daniela and Detlev took us to a small maple syrup factory. Here he showed us how the juice was sucked out of the tree and condensed into syrup. This was a modern version of what I’ve seen prior on Manatoulin Island, where they still collect buckets with the juice. Here all the trees were connected with tubes and the juice was simply sucked out of it. This did take away the natural look of the forest. After skiing back to the home of the house I felt tired. I could feel the morning walk in my legs and I started to develop blisters around my feet. We were invited to come inside but someone had to go back to get the cars. Everyone said they would join to go back. My Dutch proud was a bit stronger than my tired legs and I decided to join also. After 10 minutes I was already regretting my choice, haha. My feet really started to hurt and it was very hard to keep up with the others. It turned out that there was a lot of ice on my skates and this was why they were not sliding anymore. After it went better but the trip seemed way longer than I imagined. When it got dark and I couldn’t see the others I realized I really didn’t want to get stuck around here. In the far distance I saw some lights and finally I made it! We drove back to the house of  Daniela and Detlev and got invited inside to try some homemade beer and cider. We couldn’t resist to try it and it was very delicious. It all tasted so pure. We really became friends with the Daniela and Detlev and we got invited to come on a trip the next day. We would drive up to another park where they used to live to do a hike on snowshoes for about 4 hours. After they would cook us dinner. It sounded perfect and we were all very enthusiastic. I saw a picture on the wall of a small house covered in snow and asked about it. She told me that it was a sauna that they build at their old house. This reminded me of what I would like to do that trip so I asked her were the best place would be to visit a sauna on this island. She said I should follow her and she took me to the back of the house where the sauna was located. It was a wood fired Sauna and outside was a nice terrace where we could rinse after the sauna. We were welcome to use it after the hike of the next day. I couldn’t be happier. It was really like a dream, first a nice hike followed by a good sauna session and finish with some proper food. My smile didn’t disappear the following couple of days.

We got back to our own cabin and made some dinner and played some card games after. I learned them the Dutch game “boeren bridge” that is very famous in my beloved student house “RKSH JVB 71 B’vo!”. After a few games we had some interesting conversations with also a recap on the amazing experience in Canada. Bjorn actually studied in Quebec City which is located much more north than Toronto. This made a huge difference on a temperature base. The stories sounded more like what I was expecting it to be, before I came to Canada but I’m very glad that Waterloo was much less extreme. After a few beers, jagershots and whisky we decided to call it a day.

 Winter wonder land

After a good night of sleep I woke up and it was so nice to be in such a beautiful area. It was completely quiet and we really felt part of nature. We made some breakfast and prepared for the big hike. This time I was able to borrow some real winter boots from Detlev which made the entire trip much more enjoyable. The day was just perfect. A beautiful blue sky and a lot of fresh snow. Not to cold not to warm, just perfect JIt had not been very windy so there was still a lot of snow in the trees what transformed the forest in a true winter wonder land.

I was so happy that they took us up to the park because it was a real treasure to visit it. Only locals can recommend the best places or show you their favourite spots. We were surprised by how fit this German couple was and together with their niece we had an awesome group. The terrain was quite rough and every now and then someone would slip and make a nice “Touchdown”! I started counting everyone’s touchdowns and the final score. The niece definitely won with a good score of 9 touchdowns followed by Bjorn with 7. Annick and Clement both scored a good 6 touchdowns and I made 5. The German couple did pretty well with Detlev 2 and Daniela 4. We found several tracks of wolves, deer and a couple of other animals but we didn’t see any. After taking pictures at a very pretty viewpoint we had a little lunch break. It was quite warm to hike around in the snow but after sitting still for a few minutes the cold temperature started to kick in again. I was very happy when we decided to continue our journey. We made a nice loop around the mountain and in exactly 4 hours we came back to our cars. It was a very pretty hike and to be honest I didn’t mind to do another couple of hours. After we got back to our car it was time for a little toilet stop. We were joking that Annick should try to write her own name in the snow. When I started to cry out of my stomach I was still laughing about that joke and before I knew it I was writing my own name followed by a nice circle around it. I simply couldn’t resist. Haha. I was actually not keen on taking a picture but when I walked away I had to think about this thing that is always said at my surf club: “pics or it didn’t happen”. As I was very proud of this little piece of art I took my camera out and took a picture, haha.

After a drive back we took our clean clothes and towels up to get ready for a couple of good sauna sessions. We settled down and prepared some buckets with water to put outside for the after rinse. The first session was just a quick one and we only rinsed ourselves after the sauna. The second one we increased the heat and I imitated one of the “opgiet sessies” I once saw at a sauna park Elysium in Holland. It was much hotter and we decided to climb down to another terrace and cool ourselves with some snow. This was much better and we sat down on a couple of chairs outside before heading back in. On the last session Detlev joined. This was a little less hot session but very long because we started asking about his life and why he came here. It was so special and for about half an hour we were listening to his stories. He came down with some friends from Germany to build a log cabin in the woods. When a fire caught their tipi they were sleeping in he lost everything, including his passport. He decided to stay in Canada but after two years he was caught by immigrations and almost thrown out of Canada. He fought for a reminder of departure which would give him the ability to re-enter Canada. If he would be deported this would not be possible again. He booked the cheapest flight to Amsterdam and within a week he was back in Canada. In this time he already met his current wife and they actually married to be able to stay in Canada. A very inspiring story about a passionate man that followed his dream and we all had so much respect for this guy. When he was done with his story it was getting time to cool down. Clement was never a big fan of sauna’s and really begged to get out of it. We decided to climb down the terrace into a field of snow where we all made snow angels. This was another activity that I can now proudly cross from my bucket list: Making a snow angel, naked.

Everyone was starving and I felt like I was just floating. After that long hike we didn’t had much to eat so it was time to fill our stomach. During our sauna adventure the rooms slowly filled themselves with the delicious smell of some Chilli con Carne. We brought some beers but I first had to eat something in order not to get drunk within a zip or two. When they put some bread on the table and said we could start I simply couldn’t keep waiting patiently and started grinding food, haha. Every bite tasted like pure gold gliding down my stomach. We brought the Jagermeister. The couple was a big fan and the guy kept asking for another shot. It was almost like he was the young guy among us. It felt really like a big family which gave the cabin a much higher value. I never met any host with such a high level of hospitality.

Canada, The start of the winter.

When I chose to come to Canada I knew it would be a cold experience. With this in my mind I was very surprised how good the weather still was during the first weeks. There was still a reasonable amount of summer and good weather left. After, during autumn, it was still warmer than I expected. On my trip around Georgian bay with my stepdad during thanksgiving, I was still able to wear shorts and flip flops! My girlfriend didn’t pick the most fortunate time to come around. The weather was changing and in the two weeks she was here it doubled the amount of rain I’ve seen in Canada so far.

From the day she was here, it really started to get cold. First with some wet snow and rain but soon it was cold enough for the snow to stay around. I didn’t bring a winter jacket so it was time to buy one. Noëlle is the best shopping buddy ever. Every time we go into a store we walk out completely satisfied within 10 minutes. This time, there was no difference. The first shop we walked in had some awesome snowboard jacket’s and for a good price. The first jacket I tried was immediately a winner. I wanted to try other ones to compare, but eventually I bought the first one.

Now I was all set for the winter. At least, that’s what I thought. It was still very cold and my body had to adjust to this cold climate. Within two weeks I was completely adapted to this new temperature and also trained to dress up for a cold climate. This includes scarf, beanie and gloves. If you dress up warm it is actually not that bad.

NBA: Chicago Bulls vs Toronto Raptors

One thing I always wanted to do was watching a NBA match of the Chicago Bulls. Conveniently, they were coming to play in Toronto. This is only an hour away(two by bus) and with a huge group of international students we made our way to the stadium. Some of them purchased fake tickets and had to buy new ones. Luckily we bought them at an official place and I didn’t have any troubles to get in. As it was my first time to go to such a big event, I was completely lost in the madness and had no idea where to go. I asked everyone and eventually managed to get to the section I was seated. The stadium was huge! Apparently they also have the Maple Leaf games in this stadium(Ice Hockey). Within three hours they can transform the Ice Field in a basketball field. The whole experience to watch this game was amazing. There is so much stuff going on around the game. It starts with the National Anthem followed by cheerleaders that come up in every break or time-out. It almost seems like the game itself isn’t exiting enough. Actually the game was, compared to most games, not that exited. Within 5 minutes, the Bulls were way ahead with more than 10 points and the entire game there was no real comeback from the Raptors. I was cheering for the Bulls, but it seemed like I was the only one. I was a bit scared that people would beat me up if I would be making too much noise, so I kept it down a bit. Haha. On the other hand, when there was anything happening on the Raptors side, the entire stadium went nuts. Just a steal would bring so much live into the stadium, this was usually punished by a score from the Bulls and everyone would be quiet again.  It was very amusing to see. The final score was: Chicago Bulls: 96 – Toronto Raptors: 80.

After the game we finished with a couple of beers and while other international students went partying, I made my way to Nathan, a Canadian friend. He would go to Waterloo the next day so after spending the night with him he brought me back to WCRI.

The following weeks I was quite busy with studying. We were nearing the end of the term and had to finish the last assignments and midterms. The pressure that comes with the prospect of the final exams was noticeable. It was very hard to find a place to sit in the library and they transformed it with hundreds of study tables. I did not share this pressure because at my university we only have final exams. Back home I would be nervous at this time. At this university, the final exam is a part of your grade but most of it you earn along the way by making exams and assignments. Most of the assignments and midterms went pretty well so it was not in doubt if I would pass or not.

New York

In one of our last free weekends we decided to plan a trip to New York since it is located so closely to Waterloo.  We had some troubles with finding enough beds for the entire group at one hostel so we had to split between two. There were 7 of us and also a group of Swedish exchange students but we did not see them during our trip. We took the bus on Thursday night and returned on Sunday night so we would have 3 full days.

We chose the perfect weekend to come to New York. It was still very mild and the weather was amazing. After the first morning with a bit of rain we could enjoy the next day without wearing a jacket! This was a bit cold if you were standing on a windy corner in the shade but warm enough if you walked around.

After we arrived at the bus terminal we immediately continued to time square. It had always been a dream to stand on this world famous square and I was very pleased to cross this of my bucket list. With the rain and daylight it was still impressive but we decided to come back during the night. We split up with our group to check in our hostel and decided to meet at a subway station later that day. As New York is very big we were a bit anxious that we might not be able to find each other again. The subway trip took a bit longer than expected, so we ran a bit late but when we showed up at the point where we planned to meet, they just showed up as well. It was just perfect. After walking around in Little Italy, Soho and China town, we made our way to the Brooklyn bridge. This gorgeous, state of the art bridge gave an amazing view over the skyline of NY. It caused the same behaviour as I had with the Niagara Falls. I just could not stop taking pictures. From every piece of wood, every cable, every stone and every clinch to the flag on top of the towers could be appreciated by itself and gave another picture perfect look. The entire time in NY it all seemed so familiar. It was almost as walking through my hometown, DELUUUFFTTT!!! I can understand why so many films are shot here and it was funny to recognise some of the images in the city. After the Brooklyn bridge, and a thousand pictures, we made our way to the Central Station and MoMa(Museum of Modern Arts). I was so hungry at that time so we went for some food from the street. This so called “The halal guys” seemed very good since it had a huge line. First we walked past it but it looked and smelled so good so we decided to step in line. The service was very quick and before we knew it we scored some amazing kebab. In the museum we sat down and literally bulldozered the food inside.

After that quick meal we made a small tour through this huge museum. The first floor was not so impressive but the other floors contained some high quality art. I found some Dutch art: Vincent van Gogh, Piet Mondrian, a chair from Rietveld but also other giants like Picasso. It is funny how my interest for art has grown by following the course Expressive Drawing. It changed the way you look at the composition and the use of light. I was never a big fan of any form of art but I start to appreciate it more.

After dinner our group split up once again. Everyone was a bit tired after the long bus ride and the long and exiting day in NY. I could definitely use some sleep at that time but others felt more like partying. After we said goodbye to the party animals we left to go and see Time Square by night before heading back to our hostel.  It was AMAZING!!!! Better than my expectations and much better than earlier that morning. It just felt like a dream to walk around here. Before I came to Canada I did not expect to visit New York and I’m so happy we decided to come here. It was picture perfect and all the different screens created so much light that the street lighting was really unnecessary. We made tons of pictures and after walking around for an hour one of my new Australian friends, Sheldon, bought us ice cream. Delicious Ben & Jerry’s in different flavours. After seeing the biography of this company I appreciate it even more. The reason why it’s so tasty is because one of the makers, I believe it was Ben, had really bad taste buds so they put 3 times the amount of flavours in it than the “how to make ice” book described.

The next day we took a ferry to Staten Island which was free and cruised along the Statue of Liberty. It was actually smaller than expected but still quite impressive. After a quick coffee on the island we made our way back to NY and walked around in the financial district, visiting Wall Street and seeing Tower One. We wanted to see the “Ground Zero” memorial, but there was an enormous line to get in and we were not feeling like waiting for an hour. We tried to meet up around the memorial but we couldn’t reach each other. This would be our last night in New York so we wanted to go out drinking and maybe see one of the shows on Broadway. Most of these shows were very expensive. More than a $100 for one ticket. We found a place where they sold tickets for half price and decided to go to iluminate, Artists of Light. Still a bit expensive but much more affordable than the other ones. Sheldon heard of these artists because they won the show: “America’s got Talent”.

Before the show we met with our other friends again we decided to go for dinner at this Chinese Restaurant. It was a good choice because they had a good and cheap selection of cocktails and after spending three months in Canada where alcohol is very expensive this was a real blessing. After some good food and delicious cocktails we were ready for the show. It started snowing but this was not a real problem.

When we walked in the theatre I really hoped we made the right choice, because I had no clue what we were about to see. We sat down and it started immediately, it was a perfect timing. It was completely dark in the theatre. This already gave a special feeling. A voice started and told us we were not allowed to use our phones during the show but that it was an interactive show and that you could make noise or clap if you see something you liked. The show started and this figure came walking up the stage. He only wore black clothes with lights sewed to it. Because it was completely dark you were only able to see the lights. It looked amazing when he was dancing and it really gave an entire new dimension to dance. I’ve never seen anything like it and when the audience started to applause during the first trick, I felt goose bumps all over my body and knew that the money was well spent. It was so amusing to see and it is so much better for the experience to give applause during the show instead of doing it only at the end. It is also better for the performers, because it will give them some sort of feedback to see which tricks work and which don’t. The dancers were very skilled and the combination of good music with the lights made it very spectacular. I was a big fan of the music and it was similar to music like “Disclosure”. The entire show took a bit more than an hour but I never enjoyed a show this much. I can recommend this to everyone and if you want to have a bit of a better idea of this great performance, you should try and find some video’s on Youtube.

After the great show we went in town for some shopping. In NY was one of the biggest H&M’s in the world and it is ENOURMOS. The selection was great and the prices were much cheaper compared to Holland. I bought a nice sweater. I think the most clothes I bought here so far were sweaters. Every time I walk into a store it was very cold outside and the only thing I could think of was warm stuff. I think I bought 4 sweaters so far. Haha.

We caught up with some other friends around SoHo to go out for some drinks. It was a great coincidence to find Annick, a Dutch friend, in one of the biggest subway stations, when we were waiting for the tube. She was actually not planning on coming with us because of a misunderstanding but we could convince her and now we were complete again with all our friends.

The bar we went was great and luckily Sheldon had no problems coming in, since he is still under 21, the legal drinking age. The beers were cheaper compared to Canada and with some great company it made the perfect formula for a wonderful night. I was very happy. After a few beers we walked around and started dancing on one of the small tables. Others were standing on the little bench that was next to the table so it seemed that they would approve. As we, Sheldon and me, climbed up on one of the tables the bartender started to take a torch and try to signal us that we should come down. The light was very bright and we first thought that someone was trying to make pictures. Haha. Eventually I saw that the light came from the bartender, so we climbed down but we gained a lot of kudos from the other guests. The night ended in a drunk walk to a hotdog place. We started to order more and more hotdogs. It was really funny. After we took a taxi back home and started to play pool. Since my stay in Canada I played a lot of pool because our residence owned a pool table and almost all the bars have one. I really improved my play but this didn’t came out this particular night. I played horrible and it took forever to finish the game.

Last day NY

The next day was the last one in New York. We started by visiting central park and visiting one of the bakeries. New York is a real food capital and everywhere we went the food was delicious. This bakery was a real treasure and made some very tasty cookies and good sandwiches. After a nice tour around central park we planned to see the skyline from one of the high buildings. It was very expensive to go up in the buildings that had “official” look out points. We decided to sneak up. This was not possible at the Rockefeller Centre but when we tried the Hilton hotel we had more luck. It was rooftop mission 3.0 but we were with a big group this time. We did the same trick again. We took the elevator to the highest floor possible that you can reach without a special card. From there we took the stairs and walked up. We almost got caught because there was a security guy when we stepped out of the elevator. As an experienced rooftop sneaker, I managed to get everyone moving on so it seemed like our room was up here. When we took the stairs we didn’t know if we could get to the roof. After several floors, the staircase changed and there were no more floors which contained rooms. If someone found us here it was mission failed. We continued and found an open door. We stepped outside and it was mission accomplished! We were the only ones on the roof and we had a great view of the Rockefeller Centre, Central Park and The Empire State building. It was a great experience once again.

After the Hilton rooftop it was time to say goodbye. Other friends took a bus earlier and had to proceed to the bus station. Sheldon and I went to the Hostel to get our luggage and after we found a nice Greek restaurant to have our last dinner in this great city. We took a starter but this turned out to be huge! We were almost not able to finish our main course anymore, and completely stuffed we stepped into the bus back home. The bus to NY was pretty bad and this one was much better. The seats way more comfortable and more space. We drank our beers and after an hour the seats behind us became free so we both could have 2 seats. This was way more convenient and I was even able to find some sleep.

 Last weeks of school

The end of the lectures was in sight and with this also the Canadian experience. The time of saying goodbye started and suddenly I noticed how fast the time went. It felt like 2 weeks ago since I arrived at Toronto Pearson Airport. I remember how curious I was to this new country. All these preconceived ideas about big Canada would soon be confirmed or demolished. Are they really the friendliest people on the planet? Do I see a bear or moose every time I leave the highway and walk around a bush? Is it starting to get cold as soon as I arrive and will there be snow for 4 months long? Is the maple syrup really that legendary?

Looking back, it was such a great experience to learn about this new culture. The people are very friendly and that is the only preconceived idea that was confirmed. Sadly I didn’t spot any moose besides the floating piece of wood that we found in Algonquin park. I think the people and the rough nature would make it possible for me to live here one day. I did not have the time to see much more than Ontario besides 2 days in Montreal and I would really enjoy coming back in summer and travel more.

It was weird to be in the final lectures and to realize that this also comes to an end. I thanked every teacher for the ability of my participation and I told them how much I’ve learned during this term. After the lectures it was time to study. I wanted to finish the term with some nice grades so it was time to lock myself in my room again. Luckily I had only 3 exams and these were nicely widespread over 2 weeks, which gave me plenty of time in between to learn for the next exam. I just received the grades and I finished the courses with the following grades:

Expressive drawing: 85%

Green Entrepreneurship: 84%

Industrial Ecology: 82%

Social Psychology: 70%

Physiological Psychology 65%

 I am very pleased with the grades. It was such a nice experience to be able to choose al my courses. This made me so much more motivated and I enjoyed learning in all these courses. I will try to stay just as motivated when I will be back home.

Montreal

Before my last final of Social Psychology my lovely sister Myrthe came around to visit me for one weekend. She was staying in Chicago for work and on the way back she did a little sub tour to Toronto. From here she hired a car and came over to me. The day prior to her visit I had to say goodbye to most of my Canadian friends. It was such a pleasure to meet every single one of them. From day one I was surrounded by the friendliest guys that immediately  invited me to birthday party, house parties, Thanksgiving dinner, Hockey game and much, much more. I felt very welcome and without them the Canadian experience would not be the same. So here is a special thanks to all you guys!

I gave a route description to my sister and although this contained one mistake she managed to reach my house without too much problems and arrived spot on our arranged time. After a big hug I showed her my room and the drawings I made during my stay here. I made some soup the day before, so after a quick lunch with soup, epic eggs and a lot of catching up we hit the road to drive to Kingston. I booked a room for the night and this was a good stop station between Toronto and Montreal. I hoped we would be ahead of the traffic jams but unfortunately we got stuck on the highway around Toronto. This took us 2 more hours but after a long drive and loads and loads of talking we arrived in Kingston, the old capital of Canada. We stayed in the oldest hotel in Canada. We had a pretty, small room with a very comfortable bed. We dressed up as warm as we could because this weekend it hit -17 C. After a little walk through the lovely centre of Kingston, we found a very nice restaurant. We got a table right next to a fireplace and I was completely satisfied. It was a new experience to spend an entire weekend with my sister but it felt very good and this will definitely be repeatable in the future. The food was very tasty and for desert we went to another place to try some cocktails. We found a nice bar that was specialized in beer. The cocktail changed into tasting of several different beers. They had a unique concept. They imported every week different kegs (fusten) from different places and if the keg was finished it was finished so they had a huge variety. I really liked this concept and if I would ever open a bar in Holland I might use it. The bar was a good choice and after talking with the bartender a bit he offered us to try his new cocktail. Of course we agreed and it was DELICIOUS! It was whiskey mixed with black tea that had a very “smoky” taste. We got the cocktail for free and with the good service they provided we couldn’t resist in giving a good tip. When we arrived back in our little room we immediately fell into this deep, deep sleep.

The next day we proceeded to Montreal, passing a scenic route called “The thousand islands parkway".”It was a gorgeous drive but if we stepped out to take pictures it was too cold to take more than 2 pics before your hands started to freeze to the camera. The entire drive to Montreal went very well and Canada looked very pretty. The entire landscape was covered with a white blanket of snow. When we drove in the city it was a bit hard to navigate because our GPS wasn’t working that well. Eventually we found our hostel and it turned out to be a very “hippy” like place. The name of the room where we were sleeping was called “rouge” and I immediately send a picture to one of my housemates with the same nickname.

We dressed up as warm as we could and stepped outside to brace the cold. It was ridiculously cold with the wind and the “feeling temperature” was -25 C. After walking for 15 minutes in the cold we looked for some warm shelter. Interested in souvenirs or not, it didn’t make much of a difference, we would go in anyway. After a short stop to recover to our own temperature we tried again, but soon we escaped for a coffee into a Starbucks. After, we decided to go for dinner to a restaurant that was recommended by some international friends that went to Montreal a month prior to our visit. This was an Italian restaurant specialized in all sorts of pasta with an unlimited salad bar. The food was just as good as we hoped for and after filling our stomach with plenty of fresh veggies we went home. We wanted to have a nice drink before going to bed but the entire city was a bit deserted because there was a snowstorm in the prospect. We hoped that it would not be too much troubles for our journey back home because we had a lot of miles to kill.

The next day we woke up and discovered that over 30 centimetres (a foot) of snow fell that night. We were a bit worries and tried to leave as soon as possible to have bit of a time buffer. This was a good decision and released a bit of the stress because my sister had a plane to catch that night. When we returned to our car it was completely snowed in. We first cleared our car from all the snow. When we got all the snow off we discovered a parking ticket... This was my very first parking ticket ever. It was for the most stupid reason I could think of: parking in 5 metres of a fire pole. Why would they built a parking spot in front of a fire pole if you can’t park there?! A little confused we started our journey. Luckily my sister got the car out of the snow without too many problems. After escaping the city it was a very long, intensive drive to Toronto. It felt a bit like that movie: “The day after tomorrow” because it was still snowing a lot and we didn’t know how the conditions would be along the way. Along the road we saw over 20 accidents which reminded us to drive as save as possible. We arrived in time at the airport without too much problems and I was very happy when we finally returned the rental car with the knowledge that we didn’t crash along the way.

It was great to see my sister after such a long time of separation and it was a pleasure to spend an entire weekend together. It was a bit hard to say goodbye but I knew this experience really strengthened our band. After saying goodbye it was a three hour bus ride home, caused by all the bad connections between busses on a Sunday night. Exhausted I arrived at the Waterloo and I was warm welcomed with a nice meal, made by my French friend Clement. A great way to end this weekend and to fall asleep with some delicious food in my stomach.

I just arrived in Mexico safely and had an awesome time in Cuba, I will soon write more.

Lots of love,

Iori