Day 5 in Romania!

Nick and I have been in Romania since late Saturday afternoon. On Sunday we walked through the pedestrian area of Pitesti witnessing small children driving around the electric vehicles - a vendor is there on a daily basis and rents them out - so it does look like a midway ride area and you have to keep watch to avoid being involved in a collision. Most buildings are concrete structures built by the communists. It is quite bleak looking but changes are rapid throughout the city. Gardens are being planted, outside exercise centres for adults with treadmills and stationary bikes and large big box stores are sprouting up although they are local brands. A real highlight of this area is it is PRE touristry - few restaurants will take credit cards and very little english is spoken. Thank goodness for our HFH - Habitat for Humanity affiliate rep., Alex who is with us for each meal and has showed us around the city on several occasions. He chooses our nightly restaurant and we have not been disappointed. Nick has even managed to get the choice meal for several nights now - i.e. we all wished we would have ordered what he ordered. Our HFH Team is small but absolutely awesome!! Out team leader Ernie who is from Victoria, Max and Cathy from Nanaimo and us!! We started our build on Monday morning at 8 am. Each day we go from 8 am to 5 pm at the work site. The Construction Manager briefed us on Monday and outlined that a scallfolding structure (120 feet in length - 2 stories high) needed to be built by Friday when larger groups would be joining us. We exceeded expectations and the structure was completed by Tuesday morning and the chipboard cladding needed to be fixed in spots where it warped on the second storey. The entire team is kept busy at all times. We are working with some partner families who are eligible to receive one of these flats when they are complete. We saw a flat on Tuesday and it is tiny, with one bedroom for the parents and children, a small bathroom and small open area with kitchen space and living room/ dining area. Perhaps 500 square feet at most! The unit that is being completed will have 8 of these flats in it. Apparently, current living conditions are quite terrible with up to 3-4 families sharing an apartment together. That is, 4 bedrooms in one apartment would house four families so the prospect of having one of these units is a dream!
We are having trouble uploading pictures so we will have to go to another internet cafe to try again another day.
Alex is meeting us at 5 pm where we will meet with a family who is awaiting one of these units. I must admit the work is tough at times and we're both quite tired. We hope to hear from you soon as we're missing everyone A LOT!! Me especially!! I apologize that we're not able to write individual emails to you all but our days are pretty full with only time to get something on the blog. Thinking of you always!!
Brenda and Nick

We're in Romania!!

lost our post - we just wrote a post to you but lost it - we're out of time -
miss you
B & N

So Long to Derby!!

Sadly we must say farewell to Derby once again!! Nick and I have certainly appreciated being able to stay at Trace and Terry's place - it certainly felt like our home away from home - so THANK YOU!! Tomorrow we leave for London then Saturday, we fly to Romania. So with our final few days in Derby - we managed to get out and enjoy some sunshine and see some sites!! Nick was ecstatic to be able to frequently have his sea salt and black pepper crisps while I enjoyed the odd package of really fresh Maynard wine gums!!
On Wednesday, we walked to Elvaston Castle and strolled the interesting gardens shown below.

Then today, Thursday, we made it to the Derby Royal Standard to try some of the brews being made locally. Nick was ready to put in his application form for the position of Assistant Brewer but I reminded him that we have a few things on the go at present!














I thoroughly enjoyed walking to the old sites I frequented on a regular basis: the river walk, Derby Cathedral, and Waterstones!! It was a great sunny afternoon and we topped it off by having chips and mushy peas and chips and curry for dinner!! Yummy!!

Out and About in England!!

Since Friday, Nick and I have been busy visiting friends in England. On Friday afternoon, we met with my Writing Club Ladies from 2003-2004 and this was a welcome and refreshing visit!! Then on Saturday, we were off to Oxford to see Sunny and Mike who have relocated to England. It was a great visit filled with lots of BSS memories!! Sunny and Mike are BSS grads of 2002. Nick and Mike, being the engineers, had no trouble finding lots of fascinating topics to discuss while Sunny and I enjoyed just catching up. Here is a picture in Oxford and a picture of us together. Thank you for being such wonderful hosts!!







On the way back to Derby, we saw this old chevy and Nick exclaimed - Jack would like this one! - so I managed to get a picture as we drove by.






























We went in the afternoon to Strutt Mill in Belper where Ann, a dear friend, gave us pamphlets and brochures on the history of this now World Heritage Site. I was excited to pick up some materials as this will contribute to the geography course in the future. Thank you for the informative DVD as well - we enjoyed it!!



After an afternoon of travelling the A6 to all of our favourite old stops - Belper, Matlock and then Bakewell - we stopped in Bakewell for a pudding but alas all shops were closed so we decided to have a pizza instead!! So English huh?? Above is a picture of the medieval bridge in Bakewell.


On Monday, we met with our old neighbours on Calvert Street, Perrins and Carter, and enjoyed an awesome time at The Brunswick hearing about the DERBY WIN in Saturday's match. It was the first win in 52 games thus it was a time to celebrate!! A great dinner at a Spanish restaurant, El Toro, made the evening!! Here's to great friends!!

On Wednesday evening, we met more friends: Steve and Marie-Annick at The Standing Order. Again a great evening chatting about the travels we have all taken!! Our only regret is not getting back out with Steve and Vivian and to get to George's in Belper!! We will be back to Derby again someday and all of you are more than welcome in Canada! Nick and I will miss being with friends for the next part of our journey but we look forward to meeting new people!

Ireland Adventures Sept 10-12

The Ireland adventure continued from Dingle to Schull. We drove the Ring of Kerry and took a side trip to Valentia Island which gave extraordinary views. It was very windy and rainy this day and, as luck would have it, every time we got out of the car, we got soaked!! First picture is of the Ring of Kerry and the second is the view from Valentia Island.



















On Valentia island, we visited a slate mine. The huge chunks of slate just lying about were incredible!! Awesome samples for grade 9 geography and Earth and Space Science but I didn't have enough room in my pack to bring any home!! Plus Nick knew he'd be the one carrying them and I got quite the look!! It was a working mine so I don't think the people running the mine just gave out free samples anyway!!









On Thursday, we were in Schull and we took several of the walks we found in the visitor brochure. The most interesting was the one taken from our Bed and Breakfast - Stanley House. We travelled up a hill and then onto small laneways that took us over a cliff to breathtaking views on the other side. This is a shot from one of those spots. I look great in my Mr Incredible jacket that just loves the wind!!
























The rest of the day we drove to the most southwesterly point of Ireland - Mizen Head. It was a single laneway up a steep cliff with little passing room when you met another vehicle. As per usual, I closed my eyes and all was well. Nick was driving of course!!



















This is a picture taken from the Mizen Head coastline!! We crossed this footbridge - built in the ealy 1900's across the chasm to Mizen Head. At Mizen Head, there are a number of displays about shipwrecks and stories of the sea. In one particular display, a ship departed from Halifax, Nova Scotia of the 'United States'!! It actually said this on the display board!! Nick pointed it out to me then proceeded to inform the gentleman working there so hopefully this may be changed at some point!!








The best example of a folded mountain I think I have ever seen!! So I am including this for all those geo-types out there!! Isn't it a beaut?







On our way out of Mizen Head, we noticed this beautiful beach and I even went wading in the water. It was rather CHILLY though!!

As well we stopped at Drombeg Stone Circle - it reminded us of a mini Stonehenge!!



We spent Thursday night at the Rockview Bed and Breakfast in Kinsale and enjoyed being back in this coastal town. Lots of entertainment in the pub - this time by Liam O'!! The next day - we were up early and back to the airport to return to England! A great trip!!

Another great tune!!

Another great tune from the evening at Murphy's Pub - I'm sure Dave and Liam would have loved singing to this one!! Enjoy!!

Live Irish Tunes!!

I hope you enjoy this lively irish song that we experienced in Murphy's Pub on our last night in Dingle!! Thinking of the Casey Clan and Kirby too!! We should have been singing along and yelling a few additions but I was too busy taping!!

Ireland Adventures Sept 8 - 9

Once we arrived into Cork airport, we picked up our lovely rental car and got organized. Our two mascots - Shelley the Turtle and The Tiger both approved!! Yes Nick rolled his eyes too when he discovered I packed both creatures into my backpack for a 5 month journey!!

The rain was a bit extreme for the first few days but we made the most of it. Whenever the sun hinted at coming out - we went on hikes and explored the small villages. On the first day, we drove north from Cork to Limerick on all small roads so we had to wait for sheep or cows to cross the roads which makes life interesting. We stopped at Desmond castle in Askeaton and walked around the village to see many sites including the Knights Templar Tower. It was right beside a school and all the students had just finished their day. We then travelled the coastal roads, then south to Listowel, which we'd like to get back to one day to explore more throroughly. We needed to get to Dingle so no more stops could occur and we drove the most efficient route - i.e. no Connor Pass!! Dingle was our chosen destination for two nights. We stayed above Gavin's Travel Agency on Main Street - the name of the bed and breakfast is Sraid Eoin. This is our second visit and it is a wonderful place to stay - Maurice and Kathleen are excellent hosts!! Nick loves the full irish breakfast!! It is so central and easy to park the car on the street.

The first night we went to Benny's Pub and enjoyed irish fare and live irish music!! Awesome!! The next day we took a tour, as recommended by Maurice, of the Dingle Peninsula. We have driven the peninsula several times before but this tour gave us a whole new perspective. It was given by Timothy Collins of Sciuird Archaeology Tours. We went to several sites along the peninsula and stopped and learned the history, of which I was greatly exicited!! It is nice to be a student for once!! The weather was awful - gale force winds - but we all survived!! At a beautiful beach, despite the cold rainy weather, a group of Aussies went swimming!! Just watching them - made me freezing!! The beehive building shown is the Gallarus Oratory - built about 1300 years ago - it is one of Ireland's best preserved early Christian churches. It is shaped like an upturned boat. It is waterproof due to its finely fitted drystone walls. Overall all the sites and stops were amazing!! Nick and I sat in the front with the tour guide so enjoyed a running commentary. One expression I loved was Tim's description of white caps in the Atlantic Ocean - he called them 'white horses'!!

This is us on the tour of Dingle Peninsula!!

Once we returned to Dingle, Nick and I wandered into the shops and then Nick went to Murphy's Pub for a cup of tea - did I mention how cold and rainy it was? - while I went shopping!! Later on in the afternoon the sun came out, and we knew this was our chance to drive Connor Pass!! You need clear views or it is not worth the effort. It was an amazing drive - stopping along the way for kodak moments.

Nick and I absolutely loved Ireland once again!! It is a relaxed country with beautiful views of the seaside. Our favourite part of the journey is finding the smallest road to drive on and see what new things we can discover!!

In Dingle - if you can believe it??? - We went into a SPAR which is a convenience store and found a display of Tim Hortons coffee and doughnuts!!! We were gobsmacked - as Nick would say!! We asked the clerk who informed us that the coffee has been available for about a year and the doughnuts were new spring 2008!! Sadly though, we did not have any - we don't miss it enough yet!! We did see a discarded coffee cup in a window sill which greatly disappointed me!!

We have lots more adventures to tell you about in Ireland and I'll continue on in another post!

Ireland is GREEN for a reason - it's RAINY!!

Nick and I are currently in Dingle and enjoying the rainy weather!! It was sunny yesterday afternoon and we took full advantage of this by hiking up to Brandon's Point. Last night at Murphy's Pub reminded us of the Gerry O'Kane days at the Welly in Kingston!! I recorded some of the songs just for the Casey Clan and will try to upload them if we get a chance. AND we have great pictures too!! We're off to Schull today after a quick walk about Dingle - maybe we'll see the dolphin, Fungie, today but he's probably left for sunnier waters!!

Tog Bog E - means Take it Easy in Irish -
Love - Brenda and Nick

Checking out Derby and Bacon Butties!!

Nick has certainly been able to get back into his routine of a bacon butty in the morning!! Proper Bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes, egg, sausage, and brown sauce on a cob (bun) - yes Nick has been in heaven!! Thank you Terry who is the breakfast chef extraordinaire!!

I'll stick with cereal though...more for Nick right?

We also went for a walk down memory lane or should I say Calvert Street and attempted to meet the people who currently live in our old place. No such luck though as no one was home. It does look like the same curtains and probably the same decor as when we lived there!!

We did enjoy a great walk down the river path today from Alvaston to Derby which was nice. The rain managed to stay away just long enough.

Tomorrow we're off to Ireland where weather forecasts more rain!! Ahh it tis the emerald isle!!

Hopefully we'll get a chance to blog from one of our destinations!!

Until then...take care everyone and know that we're missing you all!!

Brenda and Nick

Enjoying yorkshire pudding!!

Tracy and Terry made a true English supper on Saturday evening!! Roasted lamb, potatoes, steamed veg and yorkshire pudding!! Plum crumble and custard for dessert - YUMMY!!! Nick and I certainly feel spoiled after this dinner!! It was absolutely smashing!! Thanks mates!! Nick is hoping that we learned a little from their expertise and will be able to really impress our friends and family back home!!

Visiting the seaside!!

Today we had a wonderful day touring the seaside in Whitby. Whitby is on the northeast coast of England. It is a 2 and a half hour drive from Derby. We enjoyed the best fish and chips AND mushy peas ever!! Despite the rain at the beginning of the day - it turned into a beautiful sunny day by the end of the afternoon. Touring the tiny shops on the cobblestone streets really topped the day. Here are pictures of the lobster traps, the bengal tiger wrestling with a gigantic snail and Nick and I finding the best place to argue. All in all a smashing day!! Miss you lots and hope to hear from you soon -

Wed Sept 3rd

We are enjoying Derby!! Nice to be back and seeing our old hometown. Today we're going to Alvaston Castle. Hope all is well in sunny Canada - we're still enjoying the English rain - but I'm keeping busy by baking skor bar and cookies.

First stop - Derby!

Well, we made it to Derby without a hitch. Uneventful flight, easy transfer to the tube and up to the train station, quiet ride to Derby. Tracey picked us up at the station and took us home for a nice cup of tea! Here's a pic of Tracey & Brenda. We're a wee bit tired - not much sleep on the red-eye! Of course, its raining - the authentic English experience!