whatever you do.

It is absolutely amazing here. There has been constant rain and drizzle, but the scenery, and daily experiences have still made for one truly glorious honeymoon.

First off, I am married to the most amazing girl in the world. I know this. And, most likely, you know this too. Amy is my best friend and the best part of who I am and am becoming. Our first week of married life has been so wonderful. Of course, we are still in a dreamland, far from our life in reality, but there are innumerable little joys that pop up when you get to share such intimacy with someone. Just the smell of her hair when I wake up in the morning makes me smile.

I think the wedding went quite well. It was great to be able to share the day with all of our relatives and friends. The evening was done so quickly though and we were suddenly off on our cross-continent adventures.

Sunday afternoon we left the hotel in London and drove down to the Detroit/Windsor border and bolted through the dull landscape of interstate 94 through Michigan and Illinois. The woods and lakes of Wisconsin and Minnesota were a nice break from bleak highway billboards, but still not what we had in mind. So we pressed on.

After a brief stop in Minneapolis for coffee and bagels at Caribou Coffee we scooted up to Fargo, North Dakota where we encountered our first headaches of the trip. I took the car in to get the oil and such freshened which ended up taking about 4 hours. Plus, I found out that VW’s don’t require oil changes every 5000km’s but only every 8000. So it was a monumental waste of time and money. Bah.

After cursing and spitting was done Amy and I bolted across North Dakota and lightening speed. Reaching speeds of 210km/hr we reached Williston ND in time to set up camp in an interstate standard motel. SLEEEEEP.

The next day (Tuesday now) consisted of a drive across the great bare state of Montana and a quick turn that took us back to Kanata and specifically to Calgary, AB. We popped our tent up on a hill overlooking the cty (a few hundred meters from the ‘88 Olympic ski hills) and SLEPT.

—-I realize this is a very dull accounting. I trust that pictures will brighten things up.—–

Wednesday … a quick pop-in at Wycliffe Canada headquarters and then a drive across town to go traipsing around central Calgary. This would be the last beautifully sunny day we have so far been lucky enough to enjoy.. (more on that later) We ate at Milestones Restaurant thanks to the generosity of our friend Karen Choi who had flown over for the wedding from Langley, BC. (more on her later) Thank You Karen!

That evening we decided it was time to head west and check in to a campsite within the boundaries of the Canadian Rockies. Hurrah!!! Finally!!! …… (well, not so fast)

Driving through the Eastern ranges was lovely. Clouds were rolling in and the mountains were very hazy in the distance, but we were undaunted, afterall… how long can the weather stay poor in the beauty that is an Alberta summer?…… FOUR DAYS AND COUNTING

Mosquitos have really good noses. Do mosquitos have noses? I do not know.

The mosquitos in Johnson Canyon were unlike anything I have ever endured. Terrible. I looked like a victim of nuclear fallout the next morning. Gastly bumps and sores covered the entirety of my face and arms. In the morning when I packed up the tent in torrential rain they gathered in clouds around my neck whenever the rain let up. It was hell.

The day brightened up a bit and the sun peaked occasionally while we hiked through Johnson Canyon and made the requisite appearance at Lake Louise. (which of course is gorgeous, still). Filling the tank with gas, we made our way down to the southern tip of the parks at Radium Hot Springs. Here nature cut us a deal. When we first arrived at our campsite the rains came down again. Just as I was setting up the tent. But they quickly relented and actually packed up and left for the night. Wonderful! Our tent dried, our sheets were warm and unsoaked, and we even were able to prepare breakfast in the morning without a million bloodthirsty dinner guests. Also, our neighbours at the next campsite were quite lovely. A young couple from Edmonton who were on their way home after visiting family down in Idaho. Seriously great people.

So we set up camp and cooked us some good food, and then drove over to the Hot Springs for a relaxing soak. The pool was nicely uncrowded with very few urinating children about. Amy and I breathed deep, allowed our tired muscles to turn to butter and then went back to the campsite for a deep, quite sleep.

Things are improving! I must say though, that even though the weather and mosquitos have been less than enjoyable at times, our trip has still been very fun all along the way. I have never regretted making this trip. I think I can speak for Amy too, although sometimes she has been a bit discouraged by the situations. It is just really great to be able to go through all this together.

Friday.. we drive through the BC interior and find a relative inexpensive Ho-Jo in downtown Surrey where they don’t know the difference between a croissant and a muffin. Fun times.

Saturday we got to spend most of the day with Karen (the same wonderful Karen that en-gifted us with the wonderful gift certificate for steak at Milestones!) Karen was my friend while living in Oakville when I was a student at Sheridan College. She was an animation student and is now a linguistics major. TESL in particular. Karen welcomed us to her apartment where we were able to get our laundry washed and unwind with a quite evening in Fort Langley. And we even spent the night there in the spare room. FREE accommodations are always a plus. In the morning we said goodbye to Karen. Probably for the last time in this life as she is only in Canada for 3 more weeks and then will be moving back to Eastern Asia (S. Korea or elsewhere) possible for good. Karen, you will be greatly missed. It is an honour to be your friend and brother in Christ. Karen has big things in her future. I know this. And, most likely, you know this too.

Today, we woke up early to catch the ferry over to the Island. Amidst rainclouds and ocean mists we made our way across the inlet and drove down to Victoria for a nice afternoon of window gazing and picture taking. We ate at a decent Caribbean restaraunt. Amy had curry (goat) and I had roti (goat). The rains continue to fall. However we now sit in an absolute stunner of a B&B about 20 minutes north of Victoria in the gorgeous Island mountains, called The Prancing Horse Resort. Here we sit in luxury for the first time in a week. This shall be the pinnacle in finery for our 2 weeks of romance. While I’ve been writing this, Amy has been out running along the mountain road and taking a long hot shower. I’ve been sitting here typing and drinking a tasty Cypress Honey Lager from Granville Island Brewery. Good stuff.

And now I depart, for now. Part two of the honeymoon diaries will follow.
Peace. See you all soon.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 22nd, 2007 at 11:15 pm and is filed under Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.