Vancouver moments...

Here are some pictures we have taken at various times....the sunset today was just amazing! The seagull often visits us at our apartment, i think he used to get fed by the previous owners! He is huge!!!!! xx

Girlie Nights..you can't beat them!!!

So, Saturday night was 'girlie games night in', with the girls from the baby store! What a fab night, everyone brought nibbles - everything from gorgeous and elaborate dips and veg - thanks Anita!...to toasties - made Brazilian style - thanks Chris! Rounded off with plenty of wine - thanks Patti and Kika! I provided the now world famous 'chocolate biscuit cake', of my mum's original receipe! Yum Yum! I have never eaten so many nibbles!!! We had an excellent night as you can see, just eating, chating, playing games and mostly laughing!!!! Towards the end of the night the boys returned, and the fun continued! All in all an excellent night! I love girlies! p.s. Moose and Tskijji also joined in, check out Moose's blog for his experience! I think he enjoyed himself!!!! xxxxxx

Hot Hot Heat! You Say Party, We Say Die!

Last night we went to see the band Hot Hot Heat....an up and coming indie rock band from Canada. It was a good night...considering we nearly forgot all about it! Around 7:30 last night Mark said, 'just check the tickets to see when Hot Hot Heat are on'....good job he did - it was last night!!!! It was at a club called The Red Room....quite a nice venue, small and cosy, but not too packed...infact clubs over here never get too packed. By law bars are only allowed as many people in as they can sit....not like at home, where it is as many as you can sit, stand, squeeze and pile! It means that there is plenty of room to move around, but still a great atmosphere! If gigs sell out and there is still demand then they simply change the venue to a bigger one - i like it!!!! Anyway, Hot Hot Heat.....there were two supporting acts, one called You Say Party, We Say Die..they were ace...again indie rock, but quite quirky, with 2 female singers, one of which looked like Vicky (Porter) - can you see the resemblance? They had a way of starting songs which made you think they were okish...but by the end of the song you were blown away! Next up were a band that i don't think i ever knew the name of....but with a singer / front person who looked / sang / acted just like Jack Black!!!! It honestly could have been him! They were pretty good, although a bit repetitive! Finally Hot Hot Heat - now we have heard a lot about them recently over here, but i have to say....my fave band last night was You Say Party, We Say Die...again, HHH were quite repetitive, and the lead singer reminded me very much of David Bowie! Mark found them a bit too stylised! Still a good listen though! All in all an ace night - especially as it was a surprise (just when we were settling down for American Idol!!!) One thing really stood out for me from the night, in all three bands, the biggest thing was the charisma of the front person...each one had their very own distinct style and personality; each one, whether you liked them or not, gave the band a focal point, a face (without detracting from the rest of the band); each one put on a show; each one had attitude. xx

Skiing! (and the return of the STF TShirt challenge!)

So, yesterday was my final skiing lesson! The conditions weren't great - well actually they were pretty bad - absolutely NO visability at all, but i was not going to give up! I got my gear and was out on the slope nearly an hour before my lesson - time for practice! It was actually snowing the whole time i was out there! The poor conditions meant the slopes were quite empty! Probably a good thing! After a few falls...mostly in trying to use the rope pulls (that whisk you back up the hill you just skied down!), i gained my confidence. I am proud to say i can now ski with control....as opposed to skiing with luck...which is what i was kind of doing before!!!! I can also ski with a kind of slalom style in and out of cones! (Placed on the slope for the 'Ski Wees' to use - tiny children who are learning to ski!), but i'm not proud, if they can turn around the cones then so can i!!!! Me and Mark now plan to hit the slopes together...him with his board and me on my skis! Close to Vancouver there are Mounts Seymour and Cypress as well as Grouse Mountain which i have learnt on. There is also Mount Baker (technically in Washington State, but on the Vancouver skyline!) so plenty of places to try! It feels great skiing soft fresh snow! Fab! xxxx

It really is a small world!

Our travels have really made me see how small the world truly is.....not only because i have never felt too far away from anyone at home, but also because we have met and bumped into all sorts of people with connections or ties to us, or people, or places we know. Just the other day a couple came into my baby store....and guess where they were from....Ipswich!!!! It is so random...and perhaps a sign that we are on the right path, i like to think so! We have seen and experienced so many different cultures and met so many people, but at the same time, it really is a small world! xxxx

More Paddy's Celebrations!

Sunday was the anual Vancouver St Patricks Day Parade! I caught some of it on my walk to work! It looked fab! The Canadians are sooo proud of their heritage, and their Celtic ancestry, it is really nice to see and experience! It inspires me to want to find out more about my roots and my ancestry! Perhaps a new project for when we get home!!!! Also - check out the TShirt someone was wearing at a gig we went to last night....hehehehe - one for all you Scottish readers! Mark had to say he agreed! xxxx

Chin and Lip beard update...

They are progressing nicely!!!

Happy St Patricks Day!!! (and this time i had my camera!)

So, yesterday was St Patricks Day.....a very happy one to one and all!!! Actually it is St Patricks week over here! There is a festival called CeltiFest going on all week....ending tomorrow in a huge parade! As well as being very Scottish, the Canadians are very Irish too! (Do we notice a pattern?!!!) Mark was working last night (a very busy night for him!), so I went out with Aaron and Sara to see Uncle Adrian's band play once again! After a queue to get in, during which a rather drunken reveler wee-weed up the bar (something i have never seen before, and for which he soon was helped to leave the establishment!!!), we finally got in around 10:30! A bar more like home, with people standing, and bar service! We dutifully purchased our pints of guiness and settled back to enjoy the fun! It seems anyone can make merry and dance a jig on St Patricks Day! Adrian's band had been playing since 5:30pm, and were still going strong during their 6th set at 11pm! Suitably dressed in green of course! Infact throughout the whole day there seemed to be slightly more green in the world!!! As you can see I managed to procure a shamrock from one of the walls....just to complete my Irish look!!!!! I think it suits me! All in all a very jolly time was had by all! xxx P.s. I've no idea who the couple are behind Aaron and Sara, but they look good in the picture!!!! hehehe

Vancouver Weather!

How changable it can be! One day brilliant sunshines, the next pouring rain!!!! Makes for some amazing scenery though - check out the rainbow!! And there is a certain way to carry an umbrella, a certain way to negotiate city streets full of other people with umbrellas, there are rules...who goes high, who goes low, and for the very skillful, a sidewards tip of the brollie to fit through! The things you learn!!! xxx

Carnival Time!!!

Samba is everywhere!!!! Brazilian Carnival was in Vancouver this weekend, and of course i was there!!!! It was great to hear those samba rhythms once again! Not a huge band like Suffolk School, but more like the small band i played with in Liverpool - with trumpets and guitars as well! The costunes were awesome, and there were an array of dancers, as well as people doing capoeira - the Brazilian martial art that is a dance....so majestic and strong! As Mark was working I went with Anita - a friend from work - and we met Jackson (from work) there! We danced like i haven't danced in a long while! My knees ached on sunday!!!! I had to buy special flat shoes to make sure my feet survived, and even then they were sore!!!! It was an ace night, and makes me want to go to Rio for real Brazilian Carnival!!!!! Maybe next year!!! xxxx

Baby Store!

Perhaps it should be a 'childrens' store....we have quite a lot of childlike fun!!!! Patti said the other day......"close the doors and we would be a crazy house, open them and we are a circus"....i kind of like that!!!! Meet my work mates.....Patti is in the orange top in the chair, Cris is beating up Jackson in the stockroom, and Shona, Anita and Goca are at the cash till. Can you spot our newest staff member???!!! Finally, we decided to redo the front window display...Anita volunteered to paint!!!

Much More Music! Ben Lee!!!!

Thank you Thank you Thank you to Rachel for introducing us to Ben Lee...he rocked! He is an Ozzy star who Rachel made us listen to downunder, and we are glad she did! We went to see him on Wednesday, and it was ace.....he played some great tunes, and some very funny tunes - lyrically, and he very daringly unplugged everything for his last song (not an encore - he doesn't believe in the theatricality of an encore!!!), and it worked - it was soooooo quiet, but everyone really hushed down and sang along! A brave move, but it paid off!!!! Nice one Ben! Check out the flowers on the mic stand....i loved it, what a great idea! Oh, and check out the hair!!!!!!! so cute! xxx

Mark grows a chin and lip beard....

Watch this space for progress reports!

Belly Dance Party Night!!!

So, what a busy few weeks we have had! I have a lot to catch up on!!! Firstly came the belly dance party night! Me and Kate went....and initially wondered what we were doing as we pulled up in our taxi outside what looked like a rundown, and not particularly lively social club, in the middle of nowhere! But all turned out well, there were lots of people there....although i have to say, mostly women!!!! (is that a surprise??!!) We settled in to watch the dance floor for a little while....including a show by the professionals! Then after a few wines, and the promise of anonymity we were up there!!! It was fab....all you have to do is wiggle your bum a bit!!!! We then got quite carried away, and ended up purchasing bells and skirts! We thought we had done this quite quickly, but when we returned to the room....everyone, and i mean everyone, had gone!!!! we were dancing on our own! But now we had our bells there was no stopping us! We even ended up dancing with one of the old guys working behind the bar! We were the last people to leave...when we left the party ended! Literally!!! It was only 11pm though, and we were just getting started, so we headed round to a house party that was going on at a friend's of one of my workmates - Cris.....we stayed there for about an hour, then headed downtown to surprise Mark.....it being his first night at work and all!!!! All in all an excellent nights work me thinks! xxxx