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Ground Hog Day!!!

2007-02-02T08:53:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it, it's Ground Hog Day. I thought that it was made up for the movie but apparently it is real. So... they monitored the Ground Hog's at a place called Balzac which is just north of Calgary about 15 minutes and the Hog's have stuck their heads up out of the ground and as they couldn't see the shadow of 3 of them apparently legends says that Spring is going to be early this year. Pity it couldn't come earlier.... I am sick of the snow.

Mind you there is no sun today - any wander there is no shadow!!!!

A quick history of Ground Hog Day...

The legend of Groundhog Day is based on an old Scottish couplet: "If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year."

Every February 2, people gather at Gobbler's Knob, a wooded knoll just outside of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania.

Residents contend that the groundhog has never been wrong.

The ceremony in Punxsutawney was held in secret until 1966, and only Phil's prediction was revealed to the public. Since then, Phil's fearless forecast has been a national media event.

The groundhog comes out of his electrically heated burrow, looks for his shadow and utters his prediction to a Groundhog Club representative in "groundhogese." The representative then translates the prediction for the general public.

If Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, it means six more weeks of winter. If he does not see his shadow, it means spring is just around the corner.

Approximately 90% of the time, Phil sees his shadow.

Phil started making predictions in 1887 and has become an American institution

At 7:28AM on Friday February 2nd, 2007, Punxsutawney Phil, King of the Groundhogs. Seers of Seers, Prognosticators of Prognosticators, Weather Prophet without Peer, Imitated but Never Equaled gave the following proclamation:

El Nino has caused high winds, heavy snow, ice and freezing temperatures in the west;
Here in the East, with much milder winter we have been blessed.
Global warming has caused a great debate;
Mild winter makes it seem just great.
On this Groundhog Day, we think of one thing:
Will we have winter or will we have spring?
On Gobbler’s Knob, I see no shadow today;
I predict early spring is on the way!

Sunrise at 8.30am

2007-01-28T19:50:00.000-08:00

I took these photo's out the window from work at 8.30am the other morning. I couldn't believe it when the sun was still rising so late in the morning. Unfortunately they came out blurry but thems the breaks...

This is a picture of Joyce's new truck. Joyce and i worked together and Calgary stampede.

New Years Eve

2007-01-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

I spent New Years at a Pub called Aussie Rules in Calgary with Trina and her friends. There is practically nothing Australian about the pub except it is called Aussie Rules and they serve VB and Bacardi Rum, which is no good to me as i drink neither. But a good time was had by all. Aussie Rules has 2 grand piano's and they play music all night, mostly what people request. The only aussie songs they know are Land Down Under, Tie me Kangaroo down sport and Walting Maltilda. Pretty weak, but it was a different kind of atmosphere and loads of fun. So thanks to Trina for taking me to Aussie Rules and making it a great new years....

Photo's from Fernie

2007-01-14T18:46:00.000-08:00

Assorted photo's from Fernie. I took some up on the Ski Hill and some down town.

Thank you John and Julie for letting Nathan and I come and stay and spend Xmas....

Xmas in Fernie

2007-01-14T18:06:00.000-08:00

Well this year was really good to be able to go to Fernie and spend xmas. My friend Nathan came with me. We debated for quite some time where to spend xmas as all we wanted was a white xmas and we were invited to go and stay with John and Julie O'Shannessy. Their house was really nice and we were greeted when we got there by Julie's parents. They were so welcoming they were offering us drinks and food as soon as we walked in the door. We got comfortable very quickly and soon met up with John and Julie. They had to work nearly the whole time we were there but all is good Nathan and I entertained ourselves. We spent time walking around the town and then on xmas day we went up to the Ski hill with John and Julie and skiied while they worked. John is a ski instructor and Julie works in guest services. It actually snowed on xmas day and i had my first real go and skiing. So it was a great day. We spent all day on the hill and then came back to the house to get ready for dinner. We did presents at 7 o'clock and dinner at 8. Dinner was great. I made everyone a prawn cocktail and we had turkey and potato's and plum pudding. Of course i made sure that there was lots of chocolates and we had good wine.

After xmas day poor Nathan got sick and spent time in bed and so i spent time wandering around the town and cooking dinner for everyone. Boxing day we had left overs and on the 27th i cooked Gnocci with chicken in my garlic cream sauce. It went down well. I was lucky that i had it ready when i did as we had a power black out and had to eat dinner by candlelight which was actually really nice.

John and Julie have the most gorgeous dog. It is an Alaskan Mallamute called Nooksie. He was so friendly he didn't even bark.

These are some of the photo's i took on xmas day:

The Hockey

2007-01-14T17:24:00.000-08:00

Since my last update i was really lucky and was taken to the Hockey to see the Calgary Flames play against Detriot. As i managed to stay friends with Brad from the Oil company that i worked for and there were some spare tickets that night we got to go. The tickets are in the second row and we sat behind the players bench. The flames won 4 to 0 that night so the atmosphere was great. Thanks Brad!!! I have posted a few of the photo's that i took that night the last one is funny. Seeing the other team pout as they were losing.

An update

2006-12-11T18:12:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a while since i have updated everyone. Since coming back to Calgary i stayed in a hostel for about a week until i finally got my own place. I have been lucky to share with some really nice guys. It was an all male household until i moved in and even though they are only about 23 they are nice guys to share with. The house is usually messy with beer cans everywhere and empty pizza boxes in the lounge but it's a cozy and friendly home so i don't care.

So i have been working as a temp since i got back and at the moment i have been placed in a great position in a hospital. I am working with the Southern Alberta Tissue Program as a secretary. My position involves doing an awful lot of Data base work and updating clients files. I was even allowed to go to the lab and help to throw away human hip bones (Femur Heads). It was not grose like you would think, it was a good day. I am also working nights and weekends at a store called Shoppers Drug Mart. It's my first time at being a check out chic and although it's boring and hard to stand on your feet for a long time i am kind of enjoying my first experience at being a check out chic. It's also good because staff members get a 30% discount.

Calgary has been experiencing some of the coldest weather on record. We have days where the weather has been up to minus 28 degrees with the wind chill making the weather feel minus 40 degrees celcius.. I have had to wear thermals to and from work. One day stupid me forgot to wear them and man did my legs hurt. I have never known my skin to hurt so much. I have to wear snow boots to and from work and take a pair of shoes in my bag and then change my shoes when i get inside. Winter is high maintenance. But once your inside the snow is really pretty to look at. Bloody slippery to drive and walk in and looks yukky when it goes brown. Makes for a really funny scene when i try to walk down the street and fall over with arms and legs flying everywhere like something out of a cartoon.

It's only about 4 weeks now until my visa expires and then it will be time to head home. I have not started making plans yet for coming home it will all be last minute after Xmas when i see how much money i have. So god only knows i night be swimming.

Anyway am gonna fly now...

More later

Shell
xxxxx

Photo's from Grand Cache and Fort McMurray

2006-12-10T20:34:00.000-08:00

Walking thru the bush and Falling down the hill in Fort Mac, Quad course in Grande Cache

11 Days in the field

2006-11-06T10:23:00.000-08:00

Well after 11 days in the field i had to quit. I got up to my new job and the terrain was much easier to handle. Compared to Grande Cache it's flat but by flat this means compared to mountains. The ground is very uneven, the forrest is mossy and most of the ground is really soft. So again i go out having to bush bash to get to each point that needs surveying. The bush was getting thick sometimes and i was finding it hard to crash my way through. I have so many bruises on my leg it's not funny. I am sporting some of the biggest bruises that i have ever had in my whole entire life. So i struggle through even after my first 2 days of falling in the swamp. The first day i fall in and get that wet that i had to go and sit in the truck and dry off while everyone went back and kept surveying. The second day i literally walked 5 minutes on the way to our line and get to my first creek and tried to cross and i literally fell in up to the waist. I had to be pulled out. Again soaked we went back to camp and i spent the day in camp because they had to keep working and i was too wet. You have to be so careful of hyperthermia especially me i am not used to the winter weather so i stayed in doors that day. So on day 3 we go out again and i get through the day without falling in. Cool. But then after a couple of days, even though i was getting used to the work that i had to do, the weather started to go below zero. It got to minus 10 and i just found it so hard to cope with the weather that on what turned out to be my last day one of my bosses looked at me and said i think you should stop doing this, you can keep doing this if you like but you look so miserable and i think that you are going to struggle more when the weather gets worse. Minus 10 sounds so cold and believe me it is, but to a true blue canadian it's not that cold. People kept saying to me what are you are going to do when it gets cold. I was not sacked and it was completely my choice to go in the end and i cried tears of relief when i made the decision and it does take a while to get used to a winter this cold. There are some that adjust very quickly and then there's me. Most of the time i struggle with Melbourne winter. So i gave it a go and decided that it just wasn't for me. I am back in Calgary now and think that i will just stay here for the next couple of months as i only have 8 weeks left on my visa and i know a couple of people here so i shall just stay here and then decided when to go and where i am going to go on the way home.

It's beautiful watching the snow and seeing it all around on the roof tops and across the paths and stuff but man it's cold. Also i find that the snow sticks to everything and then it melts and things get wet. So what is a pretty thing turns out to be a right royal pain in the ass. But only about 8 weeks left and then i come back to summer.

There were some photo's taken of me out in the field and so when i get ahold of them i will post them so you can see some of where i was.

take care as always

Shelley
xxxxxx

A quick update on the work situation

2006-10-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

So after touring for the month of September and then coming back to Calgary to wait to be sent out in the field Shelley starts to run out of money. This of course became a bit stressful and i was extremely lucky that i was able to stay with a couple of Australians that i became friends with at Stampede. Poor Rachel and Tim. When i got back from my travels i was supposed to be going out to the fields within a few days but the job kept getting delayed and i ended up staying there for nearly 3 weeks. I also bought my friend Nathan up from Vancouver to come out to the fields to work with me and he was staying there also. So after staying longer than ever intended due to lack of funds we finally were able to go out to work in the field. Although not before i had another lot of stress fall on me. As i was getting low in funds and i had already been a temp with Wolf Surveying (which is how i came to know about jobs out in the field) the company needed a temp Receptionist again and so agreed to let me work for a few days on the Reception desk for some extra money. So when all of this was happening with the phone calls to the agency to let them know i was working in the office for a few days the agency then realised that i had agreed to take up a position with Wolf and then asked for a fee for me as they introduced me to the company. So suddenly i was faced with the prospect of not being able to go out into the field and work as Wolf would not pay a fee for an unqualified employee. Oh my god. So the company was kind enough to negotiate with the agency for me. This went on for 2 days and to cut a long story short they eventually agreed to waive the fee. So 2 days later we finally get sent out to the field.

My gosh what an experience it has been. So i end up going out to the field one day later than everyone else as i was looking after the Reception desk until Friday so i went on the Saturday instead. So on my first day i get to do Quad training in the most mud i have ever been in in my whole entire life. So then the second day i set off to the fields. I wear my Australian Ecco hiking boots and layers of clothes and set off up the mountain. Well that turned out to be a big mistake wearing the Ecco's. I slipped about 8 times going up the mountain, which was about 800 metre's vertical and about a 55 degree incline, and then kept slipping throughout the day even though the terrain was flatter and then just to top things off we decided to take a short cut home straight down the face of the mountain. It was bloody steep practically straight down and of course i just about went all the way down on my bum. After about the 78th time that i fell i finally burst into tears through sheer frustration and so was made to wear better boots the next day. If it wasn't for two of the Slashers - who are Newfies ( People from Newfoundland for those who don't know what newfies are) i wouldn't have gotten down safely. I had one holding my hand behind me and the other one in front of me to make sure that i didn't fall too far. They looked after me all day. They gave me a dry pair of gloves, they cut me a futon to sit on at the fire that they made at lunchtime, they cooked me weiners on a stick for lunch, and on one of out breaks they cut me a bench to sit on with their chainsaw. Talk about spoilt..... Ya!!! Newfies!!!!

The next day i wore my Canadian bought boots which worked a whole lot better. Not as much falling over but lets just say that i have quite a few battle bruises to show off. Again the next day we had to walk too far up the mountain for me to handle and again we came staight down the side of the mountain and though i did not slip over half as much it still scared me a little. The Newfies stayed with me again, they are such gentlemen... I should bring one home with me, though the only problem with that is that i barely understand their accent making conversation difficult at times. Their accent is very influenced by Irish decendents so mix that with Canadian and i am sure you can figure it out for yourself how hard it would be to understand them.

So after my second day i went to the company and explained that i thought that the terrain was too hard for me and thankfully they understood and are sending me to another part of Canada which is flatter. I still worked the third day which we started in a different area which was flatter than the previous days.

With the work that i am doing in the mountains it is supposed to be that you survey about 1 to 2 km's into the bush and then when that is done you are supposed to be taken to work in a helicopter and fly over the part you have already surveyed and then get out and keep going. The client for this job is tight with money and didn't want to pay the expense of the helicopter and so far haven't supplied one. So on my second day i had to do a 3km walk into the bush survey 1.74 km's and then do a 2 km walk out. So you can imagine my apprehension at completing the job. knowing i was going to have to walk up mountains everyday when i had already had so much trouble staying on my feet. So i completed the third day and then came back to Calgary with someone who was driving come back and am going out to a new job site on Wednesday. This time the terrain is flatter and i may even get to do some quad biking which will be cool fun....

I am just lucky that the company was so understanding about it. so fingers crossed that the next job goes heaps better.

take care all and keep me up to date with news back home...

Shelley
xxxxxx

The Chiropractor

2006-10-12T10:26:00.000-07:00

So while i am staying in Calgary waiting to be sent out in the field to work as a surveyor my back has been a bit sore and a bit stiff. So i decide it would be best to go and get it looked at before i go out into the field and wreck it some more. So i find one that is in Calgary near to where i am staying and make an appointment to go. When i get there i see that there are photo's on the wall of famous people. There were 3 photo's and i recognised all of them though i could only put a name to Burt Reynolds. So i ask him the names of these people as they are signed photo's specifically to him all saying with gratitude for his help. This automatically meant to me that he has good credentials.

I figure if Joyce De Witt, Burt Reynolds and Bruce Davison can give him a signed photo in appreciation for his work then i can probably let him loose on me. So luckily i felt better after seeing him.

He was ceratinly good at his job but of course not as good as Rodwell back home and i am not sure if Joyce, Burt and Bruce are as good as all the football teams that Rodwell has treated. I guess there is nothing like home...

Shelley
xxxx

Todd Vance's - Grassy Butte Ranch

2006-10-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

Todd's Family

So next off to Todd Vance's, Grassy Butte Ranch, this is where i had the most fun. We did cattle drive on the Saturday and branding on the Sunday.
On the Saturday i was up at the crack of dawn had breakfast and got ready to go and help out with cattle drive. I got to ride a quad, a Kawasaki KVF 650 V Twin, bloody fast. Goes up to 110km p/h, i only went up to 80km. So we go out to the top paddoch to start rounding up the cow's and the Cowboy's take off on the horses and we go off in another direction on the quads. We start riding around and we end up getting a bit lost as there was some really thick bush and i was being led by a 7 year old and a 9 year old. So we didn't help much with the first part but had fun riding until one of the quads got stuck and so we had to leave it there and so i had a kid on the back with me and there we rode for most of the day until we shifted things a bit and he got to ride one of the other quads later on. Poor kid it broke his heart. So once the cow's came down off the mountain it was my job to go ahead of them and block off drive ways and roads and make sure they go the right way. So there was alot of waiting around to do but worth it once done. The next day my arms were so sore from riding the bike. And i didn't get too cold throughout the day as we had a bottle of Jagameister to drink. So a few shots of that and i was right. After seeing that the cow's had been moved safely into their new paddoch we head back to the house and i was first in the shower. Thank god i did because as soon as i got out of the shower they told me we were going into town for Pizza. I didn't exactly look the best at the end of the day.

Pictures from the Cattle Drive: (I was so much in awe of watching them round up the cow's on horse back that i forgot to take pictures of that part).

On the way to cattle drive

Our quads - mine is on the right

Bringing the cattle down from the paddoch

The Bull had a sore foot so he got to hitch a ride

Me on my quad - i had a blast riding the quad

Some of the cows hid in the bush so we had to go back and get them the next day.

What the trailor looks like after you have carted 10 cow's in the back - Yuk!

Todd's Dodge 1 Tonne Megacab Dually towing a 22 foot Gooseneck Trailor. I drove it for a short while and man it was cool to drive. Felt like i was driving a truck.

The mountains are right next to Todd's property

Todd's property - I took so many photo's that i couldn't put them all on the net

So Day 2 of staying at Grassy Butte Ranch we have a branding party. Shelley, a couple of other girls and the Cowboys drank the whole time we were branding. Everyone drinking Beer and me drinking Jack Daniels. Todd wanted me to feel welcome at his family Ranch so he went and bought me a Litre of Jack Daniels. I laughed and nearly died at the same time as there is no way i could drink a litre of alcohol in one weekend but i drank as much as i could. So even under the influence of alcohol i managed to get some good photo's, brand a cow and pull the nuts off a Bull Calf. Yep that's right i Castrated a Bullcalf!!!! So look out next time you piss me off i now know how to do pull nuts off.....

So at the end of the branding and castrating we took the Prairie Oysters (the nuts) into the house and cooked them up and ate them. Man what a legend i am!!! I actually can't believe that i did it but i did. So in one weekend i (hung out with cowboys) helped with cattle drive, watched the calves get roped, branded, pulled the nuts off the calf and then cooked them up and ate them. I am really proud of myself now!!!!!!

See i really did pull it's nuts off - It was so funny to see them walking funny afterwards

Almost off.....

off now... my little helper collected them for me... He's so cute

Roping and Branding the calf

And i did literally get on a horse. This one is Paschaw who is 26 years old.

A quick picture by picture description of castrating a bull - while your branding it cut open the nut sack and pull out the testicles.

Pull the testicles and then pull them off one at a time

Some of the bull's may bleed not all of them did

finally cut the nuts off and pour some iodine over the wound

Eventually they end up in a bucket for the kids to play with

Look at Lenny - Brokeback Mountain or what!!! - It's the hat that does it

Canadian Ranches - Hamilton Farms

2006-10-01T15:23:00.000-07:00

So coming back from Toronto i head out to stay on 2 different ranches. First one i went to was with Gale and Rob Hamilton. I stayed there for 2 nights and went out with them to Weigh, Vaccinate and watch the cow's get preg tested. It's funny to see the Vet stick his arm up the cow's bum. It was absolutely freezing that day so i rugged up with layers and gum boots and followed everybody around. I had the clipboard to write down the weights of the cow's and if they were pregnant or not. It was cool to see a Canadian Ranch in action.

So next off to Todd Vance's, Grassy Butte Ranch, this is where i had the most fun. We did cattle drive on the Saturday and branding on the Sunday.

On the Saturday i was up at the crack of dawn had breakfast and got ready to go and help out with cattle drive. I got to ride a quad, a Kawasaki V Twin 650, bloody fast. Goes up to 110km p/h, i only went up to 80km. So we go out to the top paddoch to start rounding up the cow's and the Cowboy's take off on the horses and we go off in another direction on the quads. We start riding around and we end up getting a bit lost as there was some really thick bush and i was being led by a 7 year old and a 9 year old. So we didn't help much with the first part but had fun riding until one of the quads got stuck and so we had to leave it there and so i had a kid on the back with me and there we rode for most of the day until we shifted things a bit and he got to ride one of the other quads later on. Poor kid it broke his heart. So once the cow's came down off the mountain it was my job to go ahead of them and block off drive ways and roads and make sure they go the right way. So there was alot of waiting around to do but worth it once done. The next day my arms were so sore from riding the bike. And i didn't get too cold throughout the day as we had a bottle of Jagameister to drink. So a few shots of that and i was right.

Niagara Falls

2006-10-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

While i was in Toronto i went to Niagara Falls for the day. I took a heap of photo's but i have only put a few on the internet. Niagara really is beautiful to look at.

From behind the falls

10 Days in Toronto

2006-10-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

So after the 10 day Hiking tour i head to Toronto to stay with Nathan for 10 days. The weather in Toronto was good most of the time but it was cloudy and a little rainy. It's very muggy and so my skin felt sticky everytime i went somewhere. I didn't go up the CN tower as the clouds were about too much and it costs a bit to get up to the top so i just took photo's from the bottom. The CN tower can wait for another day.

So as Nathan had to work alot when i was there i spent alot of time walking around doing the tourist thing. I was out walking when i went past the Police station and remembered that i had a Victorian Police badge to swap. So in i go and enquire about swaping the badge when 1 very nice policeman (No not hot) comes out and swaps a badge and starts talking to me about Oz and stuff and then another comes out (Not hot either) and starts showing me all his badges that he has for swaping and so i end up taking some off him promising to have some posted to him from OZ. So they start talking to me about all the things there are to do in Toronto and i end with a written list of things to go and see and then they tell me to fill in form and go out as a ride along for a night. So we do just that and a few days later i go out for an afternoon/evening with a Sergeant for a ride along. Unfortunately i got one with no personality and no interest in having a ride along so i did get to do some things but not alot. However it was fun to be out in a police car. We did get to see the SWAT team get called out, though it was a false alarm, conviscated a machete, checked a rigged up ATM for the camera after the electronic reader was removed by a member of the public, and went looking for a stolen handbag that we didn't find.

Anyway in Toronto i caught up with Mark and Trudi who were over from London and Sam who i met at Stampede. It was good to see Mark again as i have not seen him since i left London.

So below are the photo's that i took of Toronto:

First Post Office in Toronto

Hard Rock Cafe - Yonge St

Dundas Square - Yonge St

Eaton Centre - Yonge St

Now that's my kind of Choclate

Dundas Sq - Yonge St

Eaton Centre - Yonge St

Parks in the middle of Toronto

The Subway

There was a Gas scare in out street so 5 fire trucks turned up. I got a photo with the captain.

Hockey Hall of Fame

CN Tower from below

Mark and Trudi

A building used in a movie that Russell Crowe was in but i don't remember which one.

Anything for advertising in Toronto

The Hippo Bus reflection in the window

I did a Hippo tour while in Toronto, it's a bus that drives around the city and then goes in the water. It was kinda corny but fun.

The water after the bus went in...

Fire Brigade playing with their hoses

The Boat Club in Toronto

China has just listed Toronto as a tourist destination so they have put up chinese dragons and lanterns for them

CN Tower from the water

Canadian Idol coming soon - again!!!

Water Fire Rescue

Nathan and I in the pub on my last night

True North Tours - Waterton Leg

2006-09-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

Day 7:

Come day 7 of the tour we get picked up by our new tour guide, a 6 foot 2 inch Canadian girl called Barb who is a top chic. So we drive down to Waterton and head into Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo-Jump. That's where the native Indians used to roung up the herd of Buffalo and chase them over the edge to kill them to get meat for their tribes. It was named this as one of the young indians wanted to stand and watch the Buffalo fall past him like he was standing behind a water fall and one of them fell on his head and smashed his head in. Thus it got it's name.

So after we stop at the historical site we head on into Waterton. Waterton is a cute little town. The whole town centre fits into about 2 blocks. There were deer wandering around the whole town.

Day 8:

We hiked up a mountain for about 2 1/2 hours to Bertha Lake. Again like all the hikes it was beautiful. There were reports of black bears around but we didn't see any. So we sat at the top of the mountain and ate lunch and wished we had of taken our bathers with us to swim in the lake and cool off.

Day 9:

We went for a walk in the morning where there had been sighings of Moose but we didn't see any. So we walked around and looked at the lake and tdhen we hired canoes. The lake actually borders the US (Montana) so you can actually row to the US and back. So we did just that. There were 3 of us in my canoe. I sat in the middle of the canoe and made sure that i splashed the person in front of me and behind me as much as i could... Just becasue i could.

Ok i have a whole lot of assorted photo's to put up from the rest of Waterton and the canoeing day so i am just going to list them all below:

10 Day Rocky Tour with True North Tours

2006-09-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

Day 1:

We got picked up in Calgary and drove to Banff to pick up the rest of the people. As it rained on our first day there was no hiking so we did a drive around Banff and went and checked out Bow Valley Falls.

Our tour consisted of our Canadian Tour Guide, Doug, Luuk - from Holland, Karen and Leena from Holland, Maori a Japanese girl and 5 Taiwanese people ( i am not even going to attempt their names). The tour became interesting on the first day when we went to Bow Valley Falls and we were told to be 10 minutes. The Taiwanese obviously didn't understand and followed a path and kept going. We were starting to get worried, especially the tour guide who had never lost anyone before, so Doug drove the ones that had returned to the van to Banff Springs Hotel and appointed me tour guide of the Banff Springs Hotel as i had been there before so i took a group of us through the Lobby and Mezzanine level shops and stuff. It was nice to get out of the rain and wander around inside a building for a while. In the mean time Doug had to go back and find the missing Taiwanese people who had followed a path way too far. So finally when we get the group back together we head off for our first lunch at a place called Bank Head Trail. We lit a fire and made sandwiches. The clouds had come over the mountains and though you couldn't see much it still looked interesting.

After lunch we head off towards Johnson Canyon to do a short hike and on the way we sore a Male Elk in a paddoch on his own.

Further down the road we sore 2 Grizzly Bears on the side of the road eating Berry bushes. They look so cute and cuddly.

Obviously we didn't get out of the car to look at the bears we took photo's from the windows of the car. We watched them for about 10 mins and then left them alone. So then we get to Johnson Canyon and do the short walk to Canyon. It rained that day so we looked beautiful in the poncho's that we bought for $1.00 to try and keep dry.

We finished off Day 1 at Lake Louise. We just went and had a walk around and looked at the Lake. Due to the weather we didn't go to far, though i had already seen it before.

Day 2:

Instead of doing a hike today i went Whitewater Rafting. I was nervous at first but enjoyed it after as soon as we took the raft into the water. It was ACE. We rafted down Bow Valley River. The water was 4 degrees so we wore wet suits, fleece, rain coats and gloves. We made the boat go up on a rock and spin around and we stopped in a hole and made the raft surf. Then towards the end we jumped out of and went swimming. It's not so bad swimming in 4 degree water when you have a wet suit, 2 fleeces and a rain coat on. Once we got back into the change rooms i was relieved to get out of the wet gear and into dry clothes and start drinking hot chocolate.

After rafting we got dropped off at Lake Louise to meet up with the others that didn't go rafting and as we couldn't be bothered walking around and looking at the Lake again we decided to sit in the lobby and eat our lunch. So now we can say that we had lunch at the Lake Louise Fairmont Hotel. Cool!!! Next it was a drive to Moraine Lake which is a breath taking view. It was one of the most beautiful spots that we sore on the whole tour.

We stopped at Crowfoot Galcier (which is a glacier that used to be called Crowfoot) and then at Peyto Lake which is shaped like a dog.

At the end of the day we arrived at Shunda Hostel. Once you get into the rockies the hostels are interesting as there is no running water and so you have to use stinky pit toilets. There is a special cook house to keep the food in as you are not allowed to have food in the dorm rooms because the smell of food will attract the bears. But the fires at night are great, thankfully i took lots of marshmallows.

Day 3:

On day 3 some of the crew went horse riding and others went for a walk. There is a ghost town in Nordegg so i decided to go and visit that. The tour guide and i went for a drive to see what the town of Nordegg has to offer. Well the ghost town in crap as it consists of 5 buildings in which 2 of them are occupied. On the way back to meeting the ones that went horse riding we stopped at the mining museum. There was alot of newpaper articles on the wall about the great fire that burnt down the mine. But there was also lots of trophy's in a cabinet and i was tickled pink to discover that the women of Nordegg were national champion pillow fighters, needle and thread and wine racers.... Oh boy! I am scared of the women of Nordegg. So for the afternoon we walked up Mount Baldy. Oh my god it was so steep. My legs were sore going up the mountain. I had to stop and stretch part way up. But of course once you get to the top the view is worth every ounce of pain. It felt like you could see every part of Canada. It was a beautiful place to sit and eat lunch. The walk down was seeming easy until my feet went out from under me on some loose gravel and i slid on my ass. Of course right in front of everyone. Luuk who i became friends with sore it and was going to ask me if i was Ok but couldn't stop laughing long enough.

So we head back to the hostel and everyone heads straight for the showers. It was explained to us that there has been some digging going on and they had hit a sulphure line. So we knew that the water looked black in color. I showered in it and it was fine, however what i didn't realise was that sulhpure turns sterling silver a rusty color and completely freaked out when i sore my ring in the shower looking worse for wear. So i got out and went and got dressed and went down stairs and yelled at the tour guide for not telling me. I mean i completely went off tap at him and practically left him speechless as he didn't even know that that could happen. So later on i was talking to a lady in the toilets and she suggested cleaning my ring with toothpaste and believe it or not it worked. Toothpaste got my ring looking as good as new. So then i had to apologise for yelling at him. Ouch!!! So then off to the fire for me to make more marshmallows.

Day 4:

We stayed at Rampart creek hostel which is one of the most beautiful hostels that we stayed at as it is literally at the foot of the mountains. We had one of the best fires there and spent alot of time looking at the scenery in awe. They have a sauna there. So everyone goes in (i went topless) and get all sweaty and then you are supposed to go and jump in the river which is about 0 degrees. I chickened out.

We went Glacier hiking at the Athabasca Ice Walks. Our tour guide was a south african by the name of 'Dani', pronounced "Dunny", so i couldn't help myself i had to ask him how much water the glacier lost each year and how many dunny flushes it equated to.

It was quite a warm day but once you get up to the top it's quite windy and starts to get cold. It's interesting walking up the glacier with spikes on your shoes and looking down the crevases(Giant cracks) to see how far they go. I filled my water bottles up with water and took them with me to drink.

We stopped at Tangle falls on the way to the Jasper hostel that night which was kind a cool.

That night we went out for dinner. That night it was out for dinner at Jasper Pizza and Pasta for some great pizza. On the way home from pizza we were driving out of the cat park and had to stop for some Elk. A mother and a baby just walked right thru the car park like they owned the place. Not scared of cars or humans at all. They come down into the town of Jasper and they're bloody everywhere. Pesky little buggers.

Day 5:

We hiked around Maligne Lake and Moose Lake Loop. We were lucky we sore a moose that day. Out of 7 tours that had been there only 3 of them sore a moose. It was on the other side of the lake but still we sore one. So far 2 Grizzlies, Elk, 1 Moose and later on that day Bighorn sheep.

So after seeing the moose we walked thru the buch to the other side of the lake. I was walking directly behind Doug and typical Shelley walker with her head down and walked head first into a tree that had falled across a path. I was embarrased more than anything. Again Luuk was gonna ask if i was ok but couldn't stop laughing long enough. So we walked through to the other side and then sat down and had lunch overlooking the lake. We walked around and sat and looked for ages. There were deer wandering around and so i got photo's of them as well.

Day 6:

This is the day when sadly the first leg of the trip came to an end. So on our way back to Calgary we stopped at Athabasca Falls.

Sunwapta Falls.

Mistaya Canyon.

So it was time to say goodbye. Everyone was a little sad to see each other go. So i got photo's fo the ones i hung out with the most.

Even Doug and Luuk were sad to see each other go.

Some of us went on for another 4 days but i said goodbye to Karen, Leena, Luuk, Amy and Doug.

Touring around Canada

2006-09-27T10:52:00.000-07:00

Well it's been a month or so since i updated my blogger. I finished working in Calgary the day before i went on my 10 day rocky tour. I was so excited to go on my tour that i didn't even feel sad to leave Calgary or my accommodation that i had there.

So with my stuff all packed i set off on a tour of the Rockies for 10 days then onto Toronto for 10 days and then out to stay at a couple of Ranches for about 3 days and now i am getting ready to go out in the field in North Canada doing Seismic Surveying. After temping at a company in Calgary for one week that happens to be an Oil and Gas Company i learnt while working there that there are entry level jobs out in the field. As it happens the head Surveying Engineer (Operations supervisor) is Australian (from Frankston would you believe!!!) so i asked him if i would be able to do one of these jobs and he said yes so i put myself on the list for when the next lot of jobs become available and i was able to get into one of them... So look out Grand Prairie here i come....

Banff

2006-08-27T16:50:00.000-07:00

View from bridge below Sulphure mountain

A cute Squirrell

Bighorn sheep

Rain coming in

Banff Golf Course

View part way up the mountain

Gondola up Sulphure Mountain

I went to Banff on the same day and then went back a couple of weekends later to have a better look. On the day trip we just looked at the Fairmont Hotel. The Telus Skins was being played there though i didn't see any famous golfers.

When i went back for the weekend i walked up Sulphure Mountain. The hike took me 2 and a half hours and i was knackered but it was worth it in the end. The view was spectacular. I was so excited when i got to the top that i rang my Mum and Dad and woke them up at 5.00am in the morning. OOPS!!!

I have put up some of my favourite photo's from these two trips as well.

Shelley
xxx

Lake Louise

2006-08-27T16:23:00.000-07:00

The Bow River

Naked Ski Hills

The Fairmont Hotel

Lake at Lake Louise

I went to Lake Louise on the Saturday 5th of September. I went for a day trip to Lake Louise and Banff in the same day. We didn't do much but walked around and took photo's. It is so picturesque i just stood and looked for ages. We walked though the Fairmont Palliser and then just walked around the Lake. It is so clear and the water is so blue. The snow capped mountains in the background are magical. It was hard to believe i was actually standing there looking at them.

I took heaps of photo's so i only put a few on the blog page...

Shelley
xxx

The Ranch

2006-08-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

Joyce and a glass of wine

The cows ran away

The most beautiful sunset

Sunset over the wheat fields

Mule Deer on the side of the road

Well i was lucky enough to have met Joyce at the Stampede who was working in security with me. She was riding around on the police horses while i was inside working at the security desk. So as i do i always manage to make friends with someone and so ended up going out to stay with Joyce and Wayne out on their 'Ranch' for the night. It was so cool. I was really lucky and we had wonderful weather. I took heaps of photo's of the 'Ranch' but stupid me forgot to take one of the house. So i am gonna have to go back and visit again to take some more photo's.

So i head out there after work with Joyce, stopping at the store on the way home to get supplies and make it home in time for dinner which was good as we had Roast Beef, yorkshire pud and vegies - it was so yummy!!! It used to be one of their cowes until they chopped it up and froze it. Man was it nice. It was good to see that someone in North America knows how to make yorkshire pudding.

So then come nightfall after we have done the guided tour of the Ranch and watched the most beautiful sunset - No kidding the sky went from orange to redish, then red with purple in it, it was just amazing - we lit a fire in the backyard. (That's a small part that is surrounded by trees out the back door that looks like a backyard until you go on the other side of them and see that you are surrounded by farmland). So we are drinking wine around the campfire and we get the stuff out to make 'smoors'. Smoors are a canadian thing. They are made of Graham biscuits, and square of chocolate (we used the thin Lindt chocolate) and marshmallows. So you first toast the marshmallow and if your anything like me you let the marchmallow catch on fire and burn it until it's black and then you take a graham biscuit put a piece of chocolate on top then the burnt, melted marshmallow and then another biscuit (like a biscuit sandwich) and eat it. It's really yummy. So there we sat up and talked around the campfire until it was time for bed.

So the next day we wander around the farm again and i watch the farrier shoe the horse. One of the horses just had it's hoof trimmed and the other one had 4 shoes put on. Though we obviously have this in Oz i had never seen it from start to finish. I didn't know that they heated the horse shoe up and put it on the horse when it is hot and steam comes out everywhere. I got some great photo's of it. I spent time with Wayne in the truck as they had finished swathing (Cutting down the hay) that morning and they were then picking it up with the combine (picking it up and chopping it up and putting it in the back of the truck) and then taking it and dumping it in a pile where it is going to be covered up and kept dry for winter. It ferments under the plastic and therefore keeps itself warm so that it is nice for the cowes in winter. It's like giving them a warm breakfast. See even the farmers think of their cowes in the winter time - something warm while they live out in the snow. After the ride in the truck i spent some time in the tractor - a massive big John Deere. Man it was big and it had air conditioning in the cab.

So then come the end of the day we head back to my place and stop off at a restaurant called Joey Tomato's. I ordered the Lamb Chop Grill. It came with 2 lamb chops (which was nice to eat after so long without lamb chops) and a t-bone steak. It was the smallest t-bone steak i have ever seen. But it was nice all the same. We got home at about midnight that night and it was time for bed and up for work the next day.

It really was great to go out to the ranch and see what it's all about.

I have put photo's in the second flickr badge on the right hand side. The Blogger was playing up the day i uploaded the photo's and wouldn't post them on the site so i will try another day.

Coming into Calgary...

2006-07-20T20:55:00.000-07:00

I just got some photo's emailed to me from a nice guy who was sitting next to me on the plane flying into Calgary. I was too lazy to get my own camera out and take them myself. The view of the Rockies is beautiful from the plane. Thanks Dennis!!

More Stampede photo's...Cowboys & Cowgirls

2006-07-19T19:01:00.000-07:00

Self Explanitory really!!!!

Apparently these ones are world famous - NOOOO Idea!!

I am no Cowgirl!!!

Cute Bums!!!

More Stampede photo's...Rodeo Time!!!

2006-07-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

More Stampede photo's... Chuck Wagon Races

2006-07-19T18:45:00.000-07:00

More Stampede photo's...

2006-07-19T18:28:00.000-07:00

Outside The Big Four where my office was located

The Grand Stand Show

View from the Bud Big Rig

Cotton Candy Stand

The Lemonade Stand

'Achuil' My favourite employee from Sudan

(14) CALGARY STAMPEDE

2006-07-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

Well, Well, Well.... Stampede has been and gone and it all now seems like a blur!!! I get to Calgary and go to the Stampede and find by boss eventually. I get there and start work that day. Little did i realise that i would be working 4pm to 4am and sometimes longer. I was actually working at the Scheduling desk with the security department. It was my job to work the night shift and schedule in hours for people to work and make sure there was enough staff to secure the park. I worked closely with my Supervisor Tom and together we made night shift happen. I never knew i was capable of working those kind of hours but obviously i can. So with the Stampede being short staffed i worked 12 hours a day along with just about everyone else. My god i feel like i need to sleep for a week!

With the hours that i worked i didn't get to see very much. I thought that i would be walking around the park and seeing lots but no - i was stuck in the security office. But when i did get out i went to see some things. I did get to see 2 days of the rodeo. I went to the last 2 days so i got to see the best of the best. I got some ripper shots. I quickly went to an hour of the Grand Stand Show and the Chuck Wagon Races and quickly ran around the park and took some photo's before i started work one day. It's very much like the Melbourne show but with a Rodeo. I met a Kiwi called Sam and she took me around quickly one day and introduced me to a couple of Cowboys. Lucky for Sam or i wouldn't have met any.

There were free berakfasts down the street from the back of Chuckwagons but due to my hours i missed out on that. Though it was just pancakes, sausagses and bacon. I can make that any day.

My poor Boss Paul Burrows got some ear bashings from me because i was sitting inside feeling like i was missing out on all the fun. But i am so glad for the experience that i had and proud that i proved i could work the overnight shift and at the same time got to meet some really nice people. Especially Park Patrol. They were the guys that went out to break up the fights, deal with the trouble and keep us safe throughout the Stampede. They put up with so much crap and have to wear heavy gear in the heat. Thanks guys!!!! You were all so great to work with.

The Park @ 6.00am in the morning

Me and my supervisor Tom on my very last morning

Paul Burrows and Jackie Lachapelle - my two bosses

Park Patrol - (Now it's all Over) Mike 'The Freak'

Park Patrol - Jeff one of the nicest

Park Patrol - Curtis, Jason and George

(13) Calgary here i come

2006-07-05T23:23:00.000-07:00

calgarystampede.com

To sum up the past week i have spent ages looking for accommodation in Calgary because so many people go to the Stampede all the accommodation is booked up. So finally in have found a place to stay with a lovely lady and her daughter and i have work at the Stampede with the security department. I am going to be an information officer (i think) i will be in different places throughout the stampede and will be able to direct people to where they can get first aid etc... The part i am most excited about is that i get my very own cowboy hat and i get to keep it!!! How cool will i look!!!!!

So i am flying to Calgary on Friday and i don't know how busy i will be or when i will update the website again but i will as soon as i can. So if i am not in touch with people over the next couple of weeks then please understand that i am just busy and caught up in the stampede and will be in touch when i can.

I think of you all often and miss home from time to time.

Shell
xxx

Grouse Mountain cont...

2006-07-05T23:18:00.000-07:00

Getting to the top was a relief to say the least. I took some photo's previously of Grouse Mountain with snow on the top but as it is summer now i got some photo's without snow. The Ski hills are now naked. ha ha ha. It's interesting to see them with and without snow.

Grouse Mountain cont...

2006-07-05T23:02:00.000-07:00

I was absolutely knackered walking up the grouse grind. It was tough going but i got some good shots. The walk takes everyone about 1 and 1/2 hours but it took me 2 and a 1/2 hours because i had to keep stopping. I drank a litre of water on the way up. And it did feel good when i got to the top.

(12) Grouse Mountain

2006-07-05T22:31:00.000-07:00

The Grouse Grind

Challenge yourself with Vancouver's most famous hike, the Grouse GrindTM - often referred to as "Mother Nature's Stairmaster." This rigorous 2.9 km (1.8 mile) hike takes you straight up the face of Grouse Mountain. By the time you reach the plateau, your ascent will have gained 853 metres (2,800 feet) - one and a half times the height of Toronto's CN Tower! Once you make it to the top, take a minute to enjoy the adrenaline rush, spectacular views and all that you have accomplished!!!!

(11) Vera's Burger Shack

2006-07-05T22:06:00.000-07:00

www.verasburgershack.com

Well after working 7 days a week (with 1 full day and night off) for nearly 5 weeks in two jobs i have finally quit both and am moving onto Calgary. I worked during the day for Searchlight 9.00am to 5.30pm (previously talked about) and then started working after work (2 - 4 nights a week) 6.00pm to between 10 & 12pm and then weekends as well both Saturday and Sunday and so as you can imagine by the end of those 5 weeks i was extremely tired and feeling pretty exhausted. Hence the reason i look awful in the photo's.

So i can now say that i have worked in a North American Burger Shack and loved it. I had great people to work with and they make pretty good burgers. I was amazed when i got there and discovered that the works was as follows:

Ketchup
Mustard
Dijon Mustard
Vera Sauce
Hot Sauce
BBQ Sauce
Relish

Hot Peppers
Raw Onions
Tomato
Pickle
Lettuce

Plus the patti and then there were even more extra's that can be put on the burger... I don't know how they do it!!!

And More Bears

2006-07-05T21:53:00.000-07:00

They are just so cute i can't help but take photo's of them!!!

More Bears

2006-06-24T16:47:00.000-07:00

and they just keep coming...

Bear Section

2006-06-24T16:39:00.000-07:00

The bear's that are up around Vancouver are going up all the time. Belinda and Steven took a heap of photos of the bears and so did i. We have different photos so you can look on their website through the link of the right and see their bears as well as mine...

Party at Anthony's House

2006-06-24T16:36:00.000-07:00

Anthony's House

Of course then we went partying afterwards

2006-06-24T16:31:00.000-07:00

Partying at The Blarney Stone

(10) World Congress of Hemophilia

2006-06-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

I worked at The World Congress of Hemophilia for 3 days. We were given silk scarves to wear with our white shirts and black pants for the weekend. I was surprised to see so many Australians in attendance. There was quite a few doctors there. So i took some photo's of us all. I have stayed friends with the aussies that i worked with. So the photo is of Me, belinda, Anthony and Leigh and 1 Canadian called Jane.

More Photo's of Lynn Valley

2006-06-24T16:11:00.000-07:00

More Photo's of Lynn Valley - It was such a beautiful day.

(9) Lynn Valley Suspension Bridge

2006-06-24T15:55:00.000-07:00

The 3 of us went to Lynn VAlley the same day as Capilano. There was also a beautiful walk there and this Suspension bridge had rapids running underneath. I was snap happy that day and took as many photo's as i could from the bridge and the surrounding bush area. The photo's speak for themselves.

(8) Capilano Suspension Bridge

2006-06-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

On a beautiful nice sunny day Nathan, Chris and I went to visit Capilano Suspension Bridge. It's in North Vancouver. We had the best day hanging out together. All we did was laugh. There are some beautiful photo's that i have taken from the bridge. It was a great place to see. We only got to share in Chris's company for about 2 days but we had the best time.

(7) Grouse Mountain

2006-06-24T15:17:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to going up Grouse Mountain. I went up in the afternoon so i could stay there and watch the sunset. That's where i got alot of good photo's. My friend Nathan works up there so when he finished we walked around and saw the 2 bears that are in captavity. It was good we got there at feeding time so i got some good shots. The bears are still babies but on the verge of adulthood. There is alot of carvings up there - just like the ones in Lakes Entrance. The snow has not completely melted yet even though it is summer. Nathan and i managed to have a snow fight and then watched the sunset and man it was beautiful. I saw the sun go behind the two sisters and the mountains. I will attempt to walk up the side of the mountain - called the Grouse Grind.... There will be good photos then as well.

(6) Vancouver again

2006-05-06T21:28:00.000-07:00

Jayson, Sasha and Nathan at the Roxy Burger

So back to hanging out with Nathan at the Burger and then a couple of weeks later alone came Jayson. A new 3rd Musketeer. So after a couple of weeks of practically not drinking there was a couple of big nights out. One night we were out and completely pissed and walking down the street and some pissed guy falls through a bolted down fence while talking on his phone. Even when he landed and rolled on the ground he didn't drop the phone and kept talking on the phone. It was so funny... what a legend!

So skipping about a month where there is not much to talk about except to say the Nathan moved onto Toronto and Jayson has moved onto White water rafting. So we get to ANZAC day. There was a fantastic ANZAC day service put on here at an Army hall. It was at 7pm at night, which i liked because i didn't have to get up so bloody early. The guy giving the service was Australian which was good to see australia providing someone to do this. It was emotional as expected and afterwards there was a heap of Australian food. We were wrapt there was sausage rolls and something the resembled party pies, lamb in damper with mint sauce, fairy bread, cheesymite scrolls - oh my god it was so good. During the speech some guy called Kevin Lamb got up and spoke as the australian representative and we stated laughing as we thought that he sounded like a gay canadian!!

So what can i say Canada continues to be an experience. The weather us finally getting better. In a few weeks there will be some walks in the mountains when the snow melts so i can go up and have a look around. Canada is also a bloody expensive place to live. Drnking or no drinking.... I am already $4000.00 au in debt and so all Cash donations accepted!!!!!!!!!!

(5) Chilliwack

2006-05-06T20:46:00.000-07:00

Joan, Christian and Jonus at Cultus Lake

As i have stayed in touch with BJ and Dom from my Contiki tour in Europe in 2002 and she's Canadian (actually French-Canadian) she kindly volunteered her parents to have me for a weekend. So on the 24th of March i head to 'Chilliwack'. (Pronounced Chillawack)

Joan (BJ's mum) and Yves (BJ's Dad). Joan works in the deli department at save on foods and Yves is a prison guard. He had some pretty interesting stories from his days working in the prison. Yves is french canadian and Joan is native Indian. She has gorgeous colored skin.

One of my bosses from work happens to live in Chilliwack so he was kind enough to offer to drive me to Bj's parensts place. This was interesting as there was plenty of time for me to talk his ear off about Australia. There is also a sign hanging over the road that says 'Bare' and so i ask what this means. He proceeds to tell me that it means that there are bear's crossing for the next little while. I believed him and he let me go for about 10 minutes until he stared laughing and told me that it means bare conditions on the road - Stupid me!!! Anyway we get to chilliwack and go to the Hockey first because BJ's mum works there and that no one was at home yet. It happens to be the last Hockey game ever for that league in Chilliwack and the poor buggers lost. So Graham drives me back to BJ's mum's house as she doens't have the car there and hitches a ride with someone else. So we finally get to the street where they live after driving around for a bit and then we can't find the house. We had the number, but it was hidden behind the bushes and the street numbers and it's dark. So we are driving around looking at every single houses number and after a while i start laughing as Graham is asking me if there is some instructions that i should have remembered about the directions to the house but i couldn't remember what it was. Actually i should have remembered that their house is next door to the duplex, but hey i can't remember everything. So anyway we get there and he drops me off and it's so good to be in my own room. BJ's bed was so comfortable. The first night i sat in the lounge and talked to BJ's mum, Joan and BJ's nephew Jonus. It was so good to relax in a lounge room. Joan and I had a drink and then it was off to bed. I had the best nights sleep that i had had in a long time. On the saturday we went for a drive so that i could do my banking (Because the banks over here will open some branches on a saturday) and then we collected 3 grand children and went to wal-mart and then we drove out to Cultus Lake. Cultus Lake was really pretty. There is a jetty set up in a square like formation so the kids don't get run over by boats. The lake is over looked by heaps of houses and the Canadian Pine trees. I played tag with the kids and got out run by them. Not as fit as i used to be. So saturday night i go off to BJ's sisters place, Victoria, and we have bangers and mash for dinner. Man it was good to have a meal that resembled home. We watched some episodes of a soap called Corner Gas. They were pretty funny so it was back to Joan and Yves place for the night and then up late again the next day. Joan did a cook up for breakfast which was chopped up potato's, eggs, onion, capsicum and chopped up sausage. That left me pretty full for the rest of the day. The rest of the time we relaxed and watched and then it was time to go to work on Monday and do the 1 1/2 hour drive back. I spent most of the time silent as i was tired from getting up early. As for describing Chilliwack it was good to get away from the City into a much smaller place. Though it's a handy little place as there is absoluely everything that you need, every dept store and fast food place. It smells like cow shit at night because it's farming land. So it's back to work and going home.

Thanks to Joan and Yves for having me for the weekend!!!

(4) The Fun Continues!!!

2006-05-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

Hello All,

Oh my god i haven't updated my website for 2 months. So here goes. Firstly WORK: I have been working since a week after my birthday for a company called 'Searchlight'. Searchlight is a data collection company that takes documents from law firms and businesses and scans them into the computer and codes them so that when the law firms use the info in court they can take a computer with them instead of heaps of boxes of papework. If just makes all the information accessible electronically. For those that are interested the website for the company is www.searchlight.ca. There are some photo's of my work colleagues. So is started off working there in the coding department but moved into the scanning room and i like the scanning better. Both jobs are tadious and repetitive but it's the only consistent work that i have found so i am gonna stick with it. I earn a whole $10.00 an hour which is actually above minimum wage which is $8.00 an hour over here. I have had a few emails from people asking me what i am doing for work. I thought that i told everybody but obviously not. Anyway for now i am still in Vancouver and will stay here for atleast another 2 months and think about heading up to Toronto. My work has an office up there so it will be good if they let me transfer, We'll see! Last time i wrote i had been to Seattle for the weekend with a group of us which was a good weekend. A couple of days after returning from Seattle i went to my first Hockey match. We can get tickets through the Hostel and one of the staff members will take the group so they can explain the rules. Chad took us to that match so i made sure that i sat next to him so i could ask as many questions as i wanted. We got to the game early for Pre-skate so we went and sat really close to the court so we could see them come out and warm up. It's good being up close as everything looks so much bigger, but we had to go back to our seats back up away from the court. That didn't matter you can see from everywhere and the atmosphere is awesome. The atmosphere is as it looks on the tv, except when the Canucks are losing then there is no atmosphere at all. We saw the Canucks vs St Louis which is the worst team in the league and we still lost. Following the Canucks is like following Geelong!!! But not to worry about the loss i still had a good time eating hotdogs and watching the hockey!! February other than that was pretty quiet until my birthday. We ended up going out on the Tuesday night before. It wasn't planned and off-the-cuff nights always turn out to be the best. We ended up staying out until after midnight so that that way we celebrated my birthday on the Australian 22nd and the Canadian 22nd and so i celebrated both. Well the barmaid knew it was my birthday so she let me drink for free. I drank Gin and Pineapple and a few shots and oh my god i was so drunk. I didn't realise i drank so much and vomited twice when i got home and three times the next day. So i had to take the day off work i was so sick. What a birthday!!! Skipping to Wedneday the 1st of March i went to see Ben Lee in concert here in Vancouver. The concert was really good and i even knew a couple of his songs from the radio, i didn't realise i knew them until i heard them. I was lucky and got a photo of myself with him after the show. On the 7th of March i went and tried 5 Pin bowling. It's weird. There's only 5 pin's and the bowling call is like a wooden shot put. Just about all of my balls end up in the gutter. It's too hard to control a wooden shot put. Anyway onto Friday the 17th of March. St Paddy's Day. I was really looking forward to this day as it is huge in Canada as Canada was not only colonised by the French but by the Irish and the Brit's as well. After all Canada in French-Canadian and Vancouver is in BC - British Columbia. But as things are very good at going wrong for Shelley i got GASTRO in the morning and so i spent all day in the toilet and then spent the night sitting in the hostel on the couch looking and feeling miserable. It was here sitting on the couch that i got to know Nathan. He was curious to know who the 'ball in the corner of the couch' was so he came and talked to me. We talked for a bit before Heath came and joined in. He looked quite concerned that i was sitting there all pale and in PJ's so came to check out what was going on. Luckily for me he was carrying Gastrolyte so he gave me some and then he and Nathan sat there and encouraged me to drink a litre of water. I sat and chatted with them until midnight then i had to go and lay down before i fell down. Before going to bed we all discovered that we were bourbon drinkers - cool we had something in common. There we all became the '3 Musketeers', except that i could not go out drinking that night, they went out anyway as you would when you have only been in Vancouver for only and it's St Paddy's Day. So the two boys go out and find a bar that they can actually get into as there were cues a mile long and people were going crazy in the street everywhere so they stumbled across 'The Roxy Burger'. They drank there and then wento onto a couple of other bars had a really big night and then Saturday come around and they are keen to go out and do it again. As for me i tried to eat as much as i could as i had just emptied my system the day before and so then that night when they are like come out - i let Heath and Nathan twist my good arm and go out. Easily led i know!!! So we head out to the Roxy Burger and god only knows what they did the night but the bar tender is all like "Boys you're back" and gave us all a free shot. So we start drinking and talking to the bar tenders who are really nice. We now know it was JW and Sasha that we were talking to, JW gave us the shots.

*Break in the story for a minute - here's a run down on the staff the Burger*

SEAN: Not only one of the cutest bar tenders in Vancouver (though he' from Edmonton) but a great person to chat with. He's as popular as the high school quarter back has a sporting body but never played a whole lot of sport. All the girls like him!!!

JW: Though sadly he's leaving to go and work in another bar what can i say - So CUTE!!! Half African American and half Irish (though still Canadian) his skin color is beautiful. He's extremely friendly and a stylish dresser. JW sees the best in everybody so conversation is fun with JW as he tells a storty without bitching about people.

SASHA: Born in Serbia but also Canadian (another one from Edmonton) he has an extremely dry sense of humor and gets grumpy sometimes but i always make him smile because i love his grin. He's been lucky enough to live in Oz so we have lots to talk about.

BRIEN: Is a rapper. Everything is 'happening' when he's around. He wasn't happy with me when i left without paying my bill one night but quickly forgave me when i did. I laugh when i see him wearing any shirts with the letter 'B' on it for Brien. He's such a big kid. Then there is the girls: Sunny, Hillary, Odelia and Michelle. They are all really pretty. Sunny is really nice. I wouldn't want to do the wrong thing by her. She can handle people really well. She's a strong character and used to work at Hooters!!! how cool...

*Back to the story*

Since that day Nathan drank there for 28 days straight and we got to know all the bar tenders: JW, Sean, Sasha and Brien and some of the girls Sonny, Hillary, Odelia, Michelle etc... So for a whole month everyday after work i would come past 'The Burger' which is on my way home and say hi to Nathan and the bar tenders. I didn't drink all the time because i can't afford it so the bar tenders have learnt to ask "Are you drinking or not?" Nathan quickly became a friend of mine as well as everyong at the burger and so was someone that i hung out with for as long as i could. Heath was with us for 3 days before he took off the London and Europe. On the Saturday before we went out drinking we went walking around the streets and went past the 25c peep shows so i made the boys take me. You have to buy tokens to use the booths and man it was funny. The booths stunk, some of them like stale urine. They were tiny and only 2 people can sit down in them so i had to sit on the boys knees and they had to look around me at the tv screen. They're only videos not real people. We found a heap of tokens in one of the booths and so we took them and as they are gold and the same size as a loonie the boys used them for tips until one of the bar tenders figured it out and luckily saw the funny side. Luckily for them as this is North America and they're hell bent on tips. So moving on we go out on Saturday night and then get up the next day for the St Paddy's Day Pde. We watch that for an hour and a half which was fantastic. Their military people marched as well as the Irish dancers and the Irish music playing it was great. After the parade Heath and i go with a big group to watch the Gaelic Football. Australia vs Ireland - We lost!! I actually found the match kind of boring, but stayed for the whole thing anyway. Afterwards Heath and i went for a walk to Chinatown and got some chinese food. Heath is in the army and so there were some interesting stories to listen to. Anyway that night back at the hostel Heath decides that he would like to try some BC marajuana. So as i knew people in the hostel and he doesn't i go around asking everyone who can get him stoned. So finallly someone relents and gives him some. So then as he is paranoid he wants to not be around people so i offer for him to hide out in my room as i was on my own at this point. It was so funny watching somebody get stoned. He was going through all the different zones and trying to control what was happening to his body, which he can't. Eventually when he hit the zoned out stage he was falling asleep so i told him to lay down, put the doona on him and there he slepy until 5.30am when it was time for him to go to the airport. Anyway we say goodbye to Heath and so the 3 Musketeers become 2.

Onto the next Entry....

Sasha, Sonny, Sean, Hillary and JW - Staff from the Roxy Burger

Nathan, Me and Heath at the bar at the Roxy Burger

"Allo"

2006-03-16T20:58:00.000-08:00

Picture courtsey of Brendan Quinn (AKA: Irish)

(3) Sleepless in Seattle

2006-02-25T15:22:00.000-08:00

Dear All,

Well it's been about 3 weeks since i wrote an update so i will have to try and think hard about what i have done since the first week as everything is becoming a blur....since there has been alot of drinking, recovering from a cold and then working a few days. After the first week i went into Detox for about....2 whole days then into it all again. I think this is when we ran into Australia Day at the Hostel and the party went for 2 days as we listened to the triple J top 100 countdown on the 24th here and then when it was the 25th we did it all again. The Hostel had meat pies and VB and everyone put on any aussie gear that they had and we all drank down at the bar. After Australia day i came down with a cold and was not drinking very much or doing anything but sleeping and recovering for a day. Just about everyone else was sick too. I was nursing everyone else then i got it myself. The hostel has had heaps of really cool people come through. Hostel life is great but the down side is that you meet really great people and then they have to leave. It was sad when one of the staff members had been kicked out for not paying their rent. It was obviously a good reason to kick this person out but as it was someone that i talked to all the time then i felt a sense of loss when that person was not there anymore. On top of that there are a few people that have been staying here for a while and then they leave to go to the mountains or get apartments and you walk around the hostel thinking that things don't feel the same after they have left. It feels weird when you make friends and then they leave. So most of the time i have been really social, which is quite unusual for me these days, and sometimes things are quiet and i don't do much. There was one night when i planned for 4 of us to go for dinner together and there ended being 9 people. It all started when i had a French roommmate for 6 days, called Stephanie (she was so nice) and there were 2 girls in another room who we got to know so we decided to go downstairs to the bar. On the way i got talking to a girl in the toilet and invited her to go and then i got talking to a guy in the lounge room and invited him to come along and then some others that i already knew joined in and then i ran into a guy that i knew met in Hawaii in the bar in Vancouver and so then 4 became 9 and man i didn't know what to do. I can't talk to that many people at once, but we ended up going out and drinking together which was cool. This is what travelling is about, meeting lots of people. I have been lucky and got some temp work for about 3 weeks with a company called The Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. I have been there since Wednesday last week. The work is quite boring but it's work so i don't mind. This weekend just gone myself and another girl from the Hostel ended up going to Seattle for the weekend with 4 guys that we met at the hostel. They were going to watch the superbowl and so we decided to tag along. We were just down at the bar drinking with them when the topic came up and suddenly we were planning to go with them. We all went down there on Saturday and it was cheaper to split the cost of a hotel room than stay at a hostel, so that we did. There was 6 of us so 2 rooms of people and lots of alcohol. We drank at the hotel and then went out to a bar on the saturday night which was a good night. 3 of us went back early and then got some sleep so that we could do a few things the next day. We went to see the music museum that they have, which has big tributes to bands that have come out of Seattle such as Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix etc... I quite enjoyed the music museum. There were original outfits from Kiss, elvis and heaps of musicians so it was cool to stand so close to the outfits they used to wear. The weekend was going well up until this point. The 3 of us that went sight seeing (the other 3 slept in and then went straight to the bar where we were going to watch the game) went to a mall to have lunch and we all got something different and sat down and ate it and all of us agreed it was the worst food we had had. It was awful. So we ate what we could and then went to meet the others at Jillians Sports Bar to watch the Suprebowl. We were so hoping that Seattle would win to be there in the atmosphere to celebrate, but not to be. The bar that we went to was huge!!! There were tv screen literally wall to wall so you could watch the game no matter where you were standing. The atmosphere was great while Seattle were winning but once they started to lose the place felt really dead and people started going home. We were hanging around with a heap of people, our own group and then others started to join in. There were these 2 American guys who kept talking to us and they bought Georgia (the other girl that was there) a drink. She didn't buy them one in return and one of them started to get really pissed off. He came up to her and said could she buy him a beer as he had bought her one and she just told him to go away. His mate kept telling him to let it go. So we went on to watch the superbowl for the next couple of hours and they also bought me a drink, but didn't ask for one in return but then got pissed off when i wouldn't talk to them all the time. We didn't ask them for drinks they just kind of bought them. After the game had finished our group had split, our boys were do drunk and had found American girls to talk to so they were nowhere to be seen. The two guys came and spoke to us and one of them got nasty and started calling Georgia a bitch and then she put her hand up and told him to f*&^ off and so he punched her in the jaw. I was so angry. And of course as usual there was no security anywhere to be seen. I went to get security but by the time i found someone he had split and so there was nothing that could be done about it. I couldn't believe it. So from when we had the bad food to the end of the game it all went down hill. After this i had to wait until 12.45 am to get the bus back to Vancouver, driving back at 4.45am, went to bed and then got up and went to work the next day. So with meeting people at the hostel and then meeting people through other people i have had some experiences and i have only been here for a month. As for facts about Vancouver: there are beggers all throughout downtown where i live and they are really friendly. They all ask for a quarter and when you say no they thank you and bid you a good day. They don't continue to hassle you for any money they leave you alone once you say no. Food is expensive. A block of cheese is between $6 and $10 and chicken is usually between about the same. Downtown is dirty and there is chewy all over the pavement. I can't believe how much Canadian's spit and of course it continues to rain almost everyday. I don't go anywhere now without the umbrella. I take the bus to work everyday, because i just work over the bridge and it's too wet to be bothered walking. The buses are electric and they look easy to drive. I reckon i could because all they have to do is put their foot on the pedal and go. Anyway i have used my lunch break now so i had better go. I hope that you are all well. One of these days i will figure out how to put my photo's on the web so that everyone can see. They are mostly of people but there are some view shots.

Take care all

Shelley

xxxxxx

(2) The first week

2006-02-25T15:05:00.000-08:00

Hello All,

Well what can i say i was not liking if for about 2 days and then i met some people in the Hostel and have been out drinking and talking heaps and so now i love it here and i haven't even found work yet...I had a room mate Tameeka from Ballarat and she was a nice girl but really quiet (well she didn't party) and anyway she was good because she showed me where things were and told me stuff that i needed to know, like where the laundry was etc... Anyway she left and then i had a girl called Claire move in. Claire is Irish and man could she party!!! She got me so motivated to go out that everything i did in the last few days is now a blur.... She moved in Sunday night and stayed until Wednesday morning (I think, but am struggling to remember already) Anyway Monday night she and i went down to the bar just for a couple of drinks and ended up drinking heaps and then went to a bar across the road with some others. They all bought weed out the front and went and smoked it outside while those who were not smoking it(like me!!!) stayed inside and drank some more. So that i did and got really drunk and eventually got sleep when the room stopped spinning. Somehow i was not too bad the next day and so the next night i went out again. I ended up going out without Claire at first as she went to bed. There is a pub across the road called the Royal. On Tuesday nights they have "Twoonies" night. [In Canda a $1 coin is called a Loonie and a $2 coin is called a twoonie]. So off i go with a couple of aussie guys from the Hostel called, Ezra and Alin, to the Twoonies ($2 hi-balls) night and so we start drinking and of course i tried to keep up with the boys. There is only basic spirits available for the $2 offer so i had to drink G&T. We played pool as well. The pool balls over here are bigger than Australia so it is easier to control the ball. It looks like mini carpet bowls on a table... Anyway even though the ball is easier to control i still lost, but i did better than usual. So Claire rocks up later when i am already drunk and gets me drinking more andshe starts to play pool and man was she a pool shark. So eventually when we get to bed again i had to lay in bed and hold onto the ladder to stop the room spinning to get some sleep. Obviously i did bugger all the next day but drink water and eat Pizza and complain. I got as much sleep as i could as i went to the Brian Adams concert that night which was just brilliant.... He was backed up by Daniel Powter so i was happy. I was also glad to get some sleep that night. Thursday morning Claire left and the that night it was one of the girls 21st Birthday that is staying here. Oh i had also met another girl here called Ruth, she's an aussie, and so we got out and went for a walk on Thursday. We went down to Stanley Park and then the aquarium. The aquarium was ACE.... The Beluga's were the best!!!! They are so cute. So i got some photo's and stuff. So then Ruth and i go to the pub downstairs together for a few quiet ones (yeah right!!) and end up talking to so many people at the bar and we get talking to some guy called Sharndor from McCrae. So as it is this girl's 21st birthday we went with the crowd and got to drinking again and got not as drunk but drunk. Ruth was off her face and that Sharndor guy was weird and left to go and find some Cocaine. So eventually get to bed and did not suffer much of a hangover as i think i am getting used to it. The next day (Friday) i went for a walk to Granville Island with Ruth and we took some photo's of the beach and stuff. Friday night was the Nickleback concert, they were backed up by Live and Daniel Jenko. It absolutely rocked!!!! So that's what i have been doing since i got here. Ruth left Saturday morning so will be interesting to see who i meet next. So as for an opinion of Vancouver, people told me that it was pristine clean. Well i find that hard to believe. Maybe the richer area of Vancouver but not downtown. There is chewy all over the pavement and they spit heaps on the street. There are so many homeless people that it's not funny and they all have an animal with them. Usually a pet dog, though one had a pet rat. There is so much weed and crack cocaine around (Apparently!!!) that when you walk down the street you can smell weed in the air. I actually find it quite amusing.... Also on every block there is a .99c pizza shop so that's nice and cheap. The hostel is really comfortable. Everyone here is nice and although i don't know them that well i speak to them and say hi when i see them and stuff so i seem to find someone to talk to most of the time... I have not got a job yet but will throw myself into looking for a job next week. I have had a great week and now it's time to detox and get serious about looking for a job. So that's all for now...

Take Care all
Shelley
xxxx

(1) I am here

2006-02-25T14:03:00.000-08:00

Hi All,

Well i am here. It's pissing down with rain and it's apparently been raining everday for a month straight. Ya!!!! Vancouver actually doesn't really grab me yet. The feel about it isn't the best in the whole world. It will be better when i get to meet some Candians and see some of the city that is pretty. The street the hostel is in is crap!!! I am just going to try and get some work here and save some money and then see where i go from there. It's been an easy city so far. I am going to organise a mobile phone today and then try and do a bank account and hopefully get a job after that. Luckily there are some really nice people staying in the hostel so i will have some people to speak to. When the rain eases up i will go for a walk and see some of the city, but i may have to relent and walk in the rain. Anyway Hawaii was an aboslute blast!!!!I met some of the best people and spent my time talking and drinking and then didn't do much but nurse a hangover.... Though i did go out to Pearl Harbour and that was crap. There is a big monument there which is nice but that's it. So that was a waste of time. I did buy a Digital Camera on the way to the airport and so i have some photo's and will email them at some point when i figure out how. But for now i am gonna go and get my mobile phone and stuff...More later. I am not too jet lagged but am a bit tired so will email more later when i do more...

Shell

xxx

False Creek, Vancouver

2006-02-14T15:45:00.000-08:00

100% Canadian Beef!!!!!!

2006-02-14T15:11:00.000-08:00

Me, a hot bouncer from The Buffalo Club called Terry and Stephanie (She's French!!!)