Chapter Eighty Two: F#$@%#& Canada, I love you Canada!

The night was very quiet.
And a tad shinny.

Early this morning, I woke up, like every bourgeois, noble and cerfs in Victoria, to that:

It was snowing, it had snow, and it has been well done.

I just smiled.
Now, I really as back in Canada.
I have no snow gears whatsoever, as all my stuff is still in storage, but I still smiled.
I though of Jessica and the conversation we have had the day before, about how cold and damp it was in Victoria.
I kept on smiling.

Meghan was playing outside with Libby, and it looked like if we were back east, or in the Prairies.

Meghan & Libby

The dog collected balls of snow iced on it's hair, it was something else.

Snow day...
A good ay to do what you should be doing.
I spent most of my day dealing with my obligations, and it turned out pretty good, lots was done.
Then, eventually, I went out and took some shots:

Some of the black and white shots are interesting.
I am not crazily in love with black and white, but in certain circumstances, it works pretty well.

I still have tons of things to do, and cook, and some other things, so, I am going to let you go.
I am ready to go to France.
Only few days left.

And, that's all folks.

Sincerely

Serge
February 23rd

Chapter 81: Winter

Yesterday, I got soaked walking in the rain.
It took me hours to get warm after that.

It is most definitely winter.
The light, the smell outside, how nippy it is, how the cold get you and stay with you.
I guess I am just adjusting.
Don't get me wrong, I don't mind winter, and that's better cause my wife loves it.
But, I guess I am not use to it anymore.

The quietness of Victoria is almost odd.
The town is quiet.
The grey of the clouds lights, somehow, the streets and devours it's colours.
It's a camaieu. Mainly in grey and red greenish.
It's smells nice though.
The air seems very pure, but don't let it fool you, it ain't.
This, I know.

I feel overwhelmed by everything I have to do in so little time, so I made a list, and I am sticking to it.
More or less.
I did a fair bit today already.
I am pretty much booked until Saturday, the day Ethan and I are leaving.

I have so many things that are in constant ricochet in my head.
Brazil is obsessing me, and so is my wife.
I cannot but compare my life here and there.
It is nor good nor bad.
It just makes me realize what I want. And, of course, what I don't want.
It's hard to have it all... Sometimes...

I am at peace at Meghan's, that's very good.
I have good friends here, very good friends, and that, is admirable.
It truly is wonderful.
I feel more... less alive though, that the past six months.
I guess I feel more mellow, more Canadian would I almost say.

North America sucked my travel energy out of me in 48 hours...
I guess that has to be some kind of record, for me at least.


This morning, again, I woke up early and had coffee outside.
Again, there was a quite wonderful sunrise.
It's interesting because it's winter colours, it is not really... Bright was I going to say, but that is not the proper term.
It's a little faded, I would say, but still wonderful.
Here is the story of a morning in Victoria, during winter time:

I woke up, and the sky was like that...

And a little like that too.

It almost looked like a sunset.

The day was full of promises

I went inside the house, and the street was like illuminated.

And then...

... It turned into that.

I am smiling.
The day has been like that all day, on and off.
I guess it's not so bad.
It's winter...


Voila, that's all folks.
Have a good day, where ever you are.

Sincerely,

Serge
February 22nd

Chapter 80: Gloomy Monday

I feel like if I had tons of things to do.
And I do.
But I overwhelm myself for nothing.
I notice that i didn't use to be like that in Brazil, but that I use to when I lived here.
North America is something else.
I need to ponder on that a little.

This morning, while having my coffee outside, in the cold, cause, it is cold here, I was fortunate enough to witness a beautiful sunrise:

James Bay

James Bay

James Bay

James Bay

The colours were changing very fast, subtleties of subtleties, a million of options per minutes.
I though of having a series, taking a picture every 10 seconds maybe, or once a day...
But before I could come to a sort of agreement with myself, the grey clouds covered the sun, and we were gone for the entire day.

Welcome to gloomy Victoria.

That's all folks.
More tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Serge
February 21st

Chapter 79: First days back in Canada

Saturday was sunny.

I spent the afternoon walking around victoria with Mike, taking photos.
I had the camera, but forgotten the card... So I had to take pics with my phone...
Embarrassing.

Anyway, it was nice and somehow, kind of warm.
The difference of temperature when you're in the sun and out of it is stunning.
I had forgotten.

Here are some photos of that afternoon:

Beacon Hill Park

A floating house in Cook St Village

Beach on Dallas Rd

Ocean on Dallas Rd

Rocks & Ocean on Dallas Rd

Ocean Walkers

Mike looking at the Ocean Walkers

Me looking at Mike

A Cruiser

We walked for a long while, and the pace was fine.

In the evening, the same Mike dude had a gathering to celebrate my return...
It was nice to see my good friends, I must admit I had a good time, and some good conversations.
Meghan and I drank some of that stuff:

Cachaça

With lemons, ice and sugar, and after few glasses, that stuff hits you bad!
Anyway, it was a lots of fun, but I miss my sweetheart.


On Sunday, I was pretty rough.
I spent the morning doing nothing, then spent the afternoon with my little boy, went to watch I am Number Four, which was whatever, but it's good being with him anyway.
We walked in Victoria, stopped by to say Hi to Mike and Jessica, and I went back to Meghan, exhausted.
Not only, am I not 25 anymore, but I can't seem to get rid of that time lag/jet lag, however you call that thing...
I went to bed at about 8.00 pm...

Oh, it's sunny suddenly...
That is surprising.

Voila, that's all folks.
Sincerely,

Serge
20th February

Chapter 75, 76, 77 & 78: From South to North, and after...

The sun shines on and off in Meghan's kitchen, it is 10.08 am, I had two coffees, and my host, apparently, is procrastinating.

I wonder of the effects of moving from one side of the world to the other.
In a way, it is extremely confusing.

But, the one who does not travel, does not truly understand the world.
Traveling teaches to be humble if you are honest with yourself, among many other things.

Traveling, the fact to go from A to B, is hell...
Period.

Here is the short tale of my trip.


We left Curitiba for the airport in the afternoon.
It was raining, the perfect sad day.
My heart was heavy, plus, as always, I was kind of concerned about my trip, for absolutely no reason.
The time I call the waiting time at the airport, before being separated from loved one, is absolute torture.
I can't ever get over it.
However, this time came and I kissed Silvia, and I left.
I looked back one more time, waved my hand, and here I was, once again, traveling around.

Flight from Curitiba to Sao Paolo, fast, not a huge plane, pretty much full, it went well and fast.
Everyone spoke Portuguese, which made my heart feel warm.

Sao Paolo.
Huge insane city, I mean, Europeans and North Americans cannot even start to grab the concept of how it really is.
In and around the airport, there is a thousand very talk buildings.
I don't mean 45, I mean at least 1000.
And this is around the airport, not even downtown, which seems to be multiplied anyway. Downtown I mean.
The city goes as far as the eyes can go from a plane.
In a certain weird kind of way, it is mind blowing.
The airport is huge, not that well organized, but not that bad either.
Get the connexion ticket, goes through the customs, which was mad cause the Policia Federale, for some reason, had stopped all planes and passengers. It was a stand still, and the canadians going home around me were really annoyed.
Being judgmental in an airport is pure absurdity.
I closed my eyes and my mind and waited patiently.
Soon enough, this was resolved, I got a fine for staying in Brazil for longer than authorized, fair enough, and I found myself in a huge 777 Plane.
The flight from Sao Paolo to Toronto was hell. I ain't going to go into too much details, but had to change spot few times, middle age Canadians were just atrociously annoying, the food was so so, and I managed to sleep only for a couple of hours.

Toronto was Toronto.
-6 degrees and almost no snow.
I passed the customs, and the gentleman there told me Welcome home, which was actually nice.
Connexion ticket taken again, suitcase secured, and I am in another 777 plane, the same I actually took in the previous trip.
I sit at the window, look outside, and yes, I am definitely in Canada, Toronto to be precise...

Toronto Airport in the early morning

Toronto Airport, waiting to fly to Vancouver

Now, just so it is said, this pictures are of poor quality, for they are from my IPhone, through the double glass window of the plane. So please, bare with me.

I looked at the tiny space where my legs are trying to rest, it is always too small...

No room for the wicked

And, my eyes go up... The TV is working this time. I'll end up watching some movies and some episodes of the Big Bang Theory...

En Route

And off we went.
The plane took off, such a weird feeling, and, after a short while, I stared to look down, and I was most definitely in Canada...

Just above Ontario

The clouds made a sea of fluffiness

Another secret landscape

The sun always shines here

Before long, we were flying over the prairies:

Over the Prairies

Everything reminded me I wasn't in Brazil anymore...

The Prairies

And before long, we were flying over the Rockies and British Columbia:

Above BC

Right pass the Rockies

More of BC

I would guess this was the Kootenays

And the plane landed in the big city of Vancouver.
My suitcase were actually there, which truly was amazing.
I just had to wait for ever to get them.

Running to the other side of the airport, getting a ticket for the PCL bus and the Ferry.
Freezing my butts.
It was freezing here, I had forgotten, most definitely winter.
And, of course, it was raining in Vancouver.

Bus went to the ferry.
Yes, I am most definitely back in BC...

Almost at the ferry terminal

Winter sun

Ferry trip, walked outside for a short while, to cold to stay there.
Free WIFI worked on and off, but that was better than nothing... I guess...
Then, the trip to Victoria from Swartz Bay was uneventful.
More and more, I was realizing that I was on the island, with everything I actually don't like.
But hey, such is life.
Regardless of everything else, the most challenging is that I missed Silvia so much.
Still, that was the most important thing. I love my wife.
I love her to death.
And, this, is very good to know.
I simply don't want to live without her.
And she will be here soon.

As soon as I got of the bus, at the bus terminal, I took a cab, and went to Meghan's.
Here she was, waiting on the porch for me, doing every possible thing to make me comfortable, and comfortable I have been.

The next few days, I saw the kids, which was truly wonderful, missed Sil more and more every minutes, I have been very comfortable staying at and with Megh, I went to see Mike a couple of time, and our conversations I had truly missed, dealt with some papers I had to, and slept odd hours.
This is the view from my room:

Quite lovely actually, and, from the backyard, here is some views from early this morning:

And now, it is sunny outside, I should go for a walk in a little while, I am already preparing myself for my next trip to France, in exactly one week from now, and I find myself missing Brazil quite a lot.
But I am happy to be with my friends here, and I miss my wife.
I just miss her so much.

Life goes on folks, and that's all for today.
More tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Serge
February 16th, 17th, 18th & 19th