The Tale of the B's

So it is 3am. 3:35 am German time as I pen this. I am wide awake and the silence is only interrupted but the breathing that fills the room.

As is I assume, quite normal when one is wide awake 3 hours or so ahead of the time set on one's alarm clock, my mind is wondering. We are to take another trip to Berlin -this time, apartment hunting - and I am currently thinking of the comparisons between my first German experience and the one I am currently experiencing.  

Berlin and Bernburg. That I would live again in a place beginning with B in Germany must not be a coincidence right? They were both located on the eastern side of divided Germany - at least where I lived in Berlin, and  both capitals. Bernburg, the capital of the district of Salzlandkreis and Berlin, is in most ways, the capital of Continental Europe owing to the fact that the strongest leader in the EU is seated there. Although "Capitols" the scale is incomparable. Bernburg (first mentioned in the 10th century) population 35,000 Berlin ( first documented in the 13th century) is home to ten times as many, 3.4 million persons. 

Berlin - Fernsehturm

In Berlin one has a huge selection of restaurants - Indian, Japanese, Thai and even a Caribbean, a variety of neighborhoods which offer anything you can ever want. If you want to be around artsy fartsies. There is an area for that. The rich. Also an area for that. The young and educated. You are covered. And if you are middle-aged with a family and just don't want to leave the city, Berlin has a Berzik (as the neighborhoods are called) where you can live among your peers and not retire to the suburbs. In Bernburg, there is one Boulevard albeit lovely and quaint, an old castle which houses bears (the town's mascot) very little restaurant selection and beyond 7pm is kind of dead. For a town, though it is not bad. I have recently been to worse. 

Many people in Bernburg speak of their life events in relation to "die Wende". Nach der Wende (after the fall of the Berlin Wall) is a typical phrase I hear in my daily dealings with Bernburgers. Although the Wall was a physical installation in Berlin with a foreboding presence, I have never heard the phrase being mentioned as much as I have heard it here. Upon reflection, the times prior to the construction of the wall, during and after its famous deconstruction may have been very traumatic for Berliners. One has to contemplate that families who lived just streets apart, were essentially continents apart within their own city. The Stasi presence was stronger and more influential. Maybe for the town folks the trauma, although clearly experienced, may have been numbed. This is really ever so clear to me when hearing of René's tales of his mischievousness in his Church. Under the regime, practicing a religion openly, was all but forbidden. René was baptised, had a first communion and confirmed without being ostracized (or worse) and one of his best Uni mates, also from the East is often also intrigued by René's accounts which he too, acknowledges was very unheard of.

Bernburg sunset

The black persons who live in Bernburg are mainly asylum seekers and male ones. There is also a big African immigrant community in Berlin, but also African Americans and one or two Afro Trinis! This leads to most try to categorize me as "something else". "No! You are not as dark as the blacks here", "Why do you call yourself black. You are brown!" when they ask more about me. "And your German is excellent" - a bit of an exaggeration but usually a big step to acceptance for them and I guess many other countries of the world. I have also heard "You are beautiful!"after they have been able to observe me for a while. Of course that last one bothers René (lol). Although I was anonymous in Berlin, I am a bit of a wonder here I guess. 

Fields of Bernburg

But all in all, the province has accepted me and sometimes I get looks of awe I really have no complaints. That being said I am ready for another big city adventure. Berlin, here we come!!

Now, to sleep

Superiority at its finest

As you all will know, my summer has serendipitously become a wonderful exploration of the wonders of Canada!

I live on Lake Ontario and have kayaked there, swam in Lake Huron, hiked and swam in the Georgian Bay (see Northern Bruce Peninsula post) and this past week, I've added Lake Superior.
The largest fresh water lake in the world is a mere 900 km from Toronto (!!!), which translates to an 11hour drive!! No no, I didn't do this trip alone. Actually Lake Superior wasn't on my list of must see's but my partner in exploration had it on his bucket list so we rented a Dodge ( add smirk) and headed on up on a Friday afternoon.
The bump and grind of Toronto traffic enhanced the desire for the serenity that "up North" would offer and boy it didn't disappoint.

Scenery on Hwy 400

The mist and the beauty

Just a mere 2 hours outside of Toronto on the 400 N, though beautiful, the scenery was a mere segue into what we would see and we were already enchanted.  What wasn't lost on us was the immense amount of labour it took to carve out a roadway up through the rocky terrain though the countryside was still unspoilt.  So much so, I could still visualize the Native Indian tribes that explored, hunted and lived on these lands.

It was a wonderful feeling of solitude but without feeling disconnected.  The further North we drove, the less cars and people we saw, the smaller the towns and interestingly the more connected we felt to humanity.   I guess living in a big city desensitizes this connectedness as strange as it may sound.  Along the way we saw more Provincial Parks to visit (...look out, the adventures might not be over).

That night we stopped in Sault Ste. Marie because it's a place my mother always wanted to see and the last big city before we hit the Provincial Park and hence last place to get a hot meal.  

After re-fueling we headed on the last 100km of our journey.  Just as we got accustomed to the meandering roads and the hilly terrain, there it was....

The first sight....

Another 20km and we entered the Lake Superior Provincial Park which is bisected by the Trans-Canada 

Highway.  I happily registering at the Office - which is something all hikers do- only to realise that the questions they asked weren't just to be overly intrusive.  "What's the colour of your backpack" and "What's the colour of your tent" really brought me back to the main purpose of our trip.  I was going to hike AND camp.  EEeeepp.... I forgot to mention that there were signs on our way up warning "Entering wolf country", "Moose warning at night" and the many deer that we saw along the way

So that panic attack aside, we headed down the bumpy, winding, dirt road to the Gargantua Trail. 

Small waterfall on the way

The trail ended on Warp Bay on Lake Superior which was to be our home for the night 

Warp Bay

Building the tent

Small islands in the Lake

After a quick dip in the Lake, we set off on another hike to Devil's Bay which matched the beauty of Warp Bay...

The silence, the solitude and peacefulness were unmatched.  We saw few people but didn't feel alone, which sounds somewhat of an oxymoron but it exists.  The rest of the time was spent enjoying the chirping of birds, or owl and the other nocturnal animals (yes there were wolves and bears - thank God no sightings)

Dawn...

Morning mist on the Superior

Summit

The beauty of the Lake

The beauty was unfounded, the peace was refreshing and the trip totally worth it! Until next adventure...

Our Northern Bruce Peninsula Adventure

To continue our adventure we drove 4 hours north of Toronto to the Northern Bruce Peninsula.  Along the way the city life lent way to the wonderful Ontario countryside

Bales of Hay

Our accomodation was to be Little Cove camping grounds which provided a rustic outdoorsy feeling that didn't leave us city folk in need of anything.

Each cabin was cosily outfitted with a comfy bed and minimal furniture and outside a firepit and park benches. These amenities proved essential for our campfire bar-b-que...

Cabin @ Little Cove

Meat on grill

Spot the one getting beaten at cards?!?

After a restful night we were re-energized and ready to explore the area named by Unesco a World Biosphere

A hop skip and a jump from our cabins was the Cyprus Lake Trail which gave us beautiful views of the Georgian Bay coastline and nature with a scary surprise along the way....

Yup..Rattlesnake on trail

Despite our encounters with nature, we arrived (safely) to our first of many breath-taking scenes along the Northern Bruce Peninsula

Further along, we stumbled upon the inconspicuous Grottos. We had to Mission Impossible our way down to the Grotto but it was worth it... 

Pulling a Tom Cruise

Group at Grotto

Braving the cold water...

Brrr....!!!!

Stone Beach

Trail...

This photo was un-edited....beautiful skyline

Keeping us on track

 Wonderful weekend, weather and company! Definitely a must see :)

Wandering...thousands of miles away: Canadian Summer - Exploring Kelso Conservation and Hilton Falls

Wandering...thousands of miles away: Canadian Summer - Exploring Kelso Conservation and Hilton Falls

Canadian Summer - Exploring Kelso Conservation and Hilton Falls

I've never really considered myself the "outdoorsy" type but I must admit that in my childhood, the outdoors and such activities were so seamlessly integrated that there was no definition for that.  In stark contrast to the childhoods of today, I rode my bike with my sisters on our street, hiked with my swim team for exercise, flew kites with my family and climbed a tree or two in order to obtain its purest and most perfect fruit.  Though at that time, I often despised the times my father would call me out to help him gather the latest batch of Avocados, nature and the outdoors was as ubiquitous as the water that surround our shores.
My life in Berlin, was surrounded by parks, lakes and wooded hideaways.  Toronto too is very much the same.  Just a few blocks north of me, one can find a network of Nature Parks that immediately transport you into the world of trees, birds and brings closer those who want to escape (even though briefly) from the sounds of the city.
On the last major holiday here in Canada, I decided to start exploring the Great Canadian Outdoors!  Along with 2 dogs (of course we needed protection.... also notorious are the Bears in the Canadian wilderness :-) )we visited two hiking trails along the Bruce Trail.
Background: The Bruce, is almost 900km long and follows the Niagara Escarpment.

Hilton Falls Map

Our first stop was Hilton Falls.
A nice beautiful trail with runners and bikers.  At 9am, just as the trail opens, it's quiet, with very little people traffic with one major amenity on the trail (pic below).

Falls

Lake Kelso was next.  Because it was a holiday the lake was overrun with family, screaming toddlers, bratty teens and frazzled parents and of course young guys who wanted to show off their cool cars. So we avoided the Lake like a plague and choose just to hike on Kelso and got a magnificent view of Mississauga, Milton and a Toronto.

Happy Hikers

At the end, we had exhausted dogs (Max reportedly slept until 11am the next day) and dog owners but a sense of wonder and awe at the beauty that we were able to explore.  I've heard the fall season offers another perspective so we look forward to doing that!

Stay tuned for the trips to come...

Canadian Winter & Max

It's been a long time since I've gotten to blog. I've found myself in Toronto, Ontario living in the hip and young area of Yonge & Eglinton (also known as Young and Eligible -- but more about my neighborhood later).
As the winter winds down, I've come to a reflect on my first true Canadian winter and all that I've experienced. My winter would have been a totally different experience if it were not for my "nephew" Maximillian McGregor (my baby sister's dog whose stay for a while has turned into an 8 month and counting stint)!


Living in an apartment means that I must take Max out twice a day regardless of the weather so that he can release the energy that comes with being a 12lb minipoodle. And it seems that regardless of the temperatur; whether it be -30degrees with windchill, a 15cm snowfall from the night before, or a snow storm that continues throughout my walk time...Max is not daunted. We often have playdates with other dog owners so as to maximize the playtime and to help wear him out. However, Max with his bundle of energy is often not ready to return home though I'm frozen to the core (and he being 12 lbs must be as well).



So this morning as I awoke and peered out of my window to decide what to wear, I gaze out at what will hopefully be the last snow fall for the year (this is however Canada so I can't be too hopeful). I think back on all the walks I've taken and the beautiful scenery I've got to witness early in the mornings when only a few are outside to breathe in the crisp morning air, and the snow is still fresh, untouched and beautiful and I'm grateful to Max. Though I'll still be annoyed when he seems more interested in playing in the snow and eating it than doing his "buisness" it was an even more beautiful winter because I was out exploring it's beauty.
Though it's tough to say ... and I know I'll regret this when my sister reads this blog but, Thanks Maximillian!!

Die Ehepaar -- Herzlich Wilkommen

Guten Abend! I had a thoroughly interesting experience (no...not the Summit, although that was also interesting!) Easterweekend that (re) awoken me to the beauty of my country, our family life, our culinary skills and our culture. I had a girlfriend whom I befriended in my stint in Berlin visit along with her husband whom I never met.
I was a bit nervous - it was the first time that I have ever shared my culture with someone who was completely foreign to it. So my anxiousness was only compounded when I realised that their flight from Barbados (Liat) was delayed with no updated departure time posted on the Piarco Airport website. I arrived at Piarco after eventually scolding enough of Liat's agents who were eventually able to confirm the arrival time to find that they had suffered the same fate as I have on most of my flights. They didn't come with their luggage.
But that was to be the most negative thing about the trip. Their luggage arrived a day later but they celebrated with me and my family my Grandmother's birthday and easter with us. I think most of my family worried about how I had coped in Germany for 2 years but Grit and Andre (the couple) totally changed their perception of GERMS (my nickname for Germans). Andre wanted to hear steelpan and on Glorious Saturday, Silver Stars Steel orchestra was the only one that was practicing for the competition the following week. I was concerned that even though Andre had expressed an interest that he would not like steelpan. If you listen to it without an appreciation for it, it can sound like a lot of ... noise! So we arrived to the panyard to the tinkering of pans. The Orchestra was warming up and we stuck around to hear them play ensemble because they could not fathom how the sound would come together. As the group struck up to play they started with what I thought was Bohemian Rhapsody. After they played a few more notes, I realised that it was BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY! This was a treat not because I am a traitor (I have a pretty eclectic taste) but it allowed my friends to see that the steelpan can play an array of music but also it helped ease the transition because it was something they recognized. Well Silver Stars was great and we went home quite satisfied and my girlfriend's husband wanted more!
We went to the sister isle which never failed to be breathless and I taught them the art of what my dad's friends call "parangin'". Not to be mistaken for our Christmas music. Paragin' is his word for liming at a friends and drinking him out of Scotch! We visted my different family friends - most with open doors- and just waltzed right in without calling too much in advance ie when I was on the top of the street :))
But I have to say, I could've been the best hostess in the world but nothing would've been as enjoyable if I didn't have the best guests! So now they are a part of our family and I love Grit even more (though everyone called her Britt!). If only all visitors kept an open mind to our shores, culture, food and families ... the benefits would be limitless!