Lion King Weekend!

The voyage to mecca began on a sunny 25 degree day. The ferries were a bit windy... but the views were awesome. We rode on one of the new ferries, which, unlike the old ferry we passed by (pictured above), these new ones have semi-open air parking:

There were so many people out in boats; we were surrounded by them!

Apparently we were also surrounded by whales!

Orcas!

Once in Vancouver, we made our way to the Radisson in Richmond... and the top floor room was nothing to complain about. The airport-bound planes cruised past not far above our heads!

View from our window:

But we weren't here for the planes. After the shirt was freshly ironed...

We headed out to a little show I've been wanting to see since I first heard about it back in costume design class...

And our seats couldn't have been better... although I had no idea that "Centre Section, Row 1" really meant front and centre. Literally. It didn't look that way on the map! The orchestra was at our feet and we could almost touch the costumes. I was in heaven.

The red arrow is the stage. The green arrow points down into the orchestra. Note the dude with the bongos!

Cam was quick enough to snag a photo of the orchestra, which was made up of about ten people playing various instruments. (red arrow points to stage)

After one HELLUVA show, Cam chatted with the conductor, which I would never have the guts to do. He seemed like a pretty chill guy. 

Then we hit the streets, which were overtaken by a dress code of skirts no longer than six inches and heels no shorter. Yes, it was the summer club scene.

Sunday morning we woke to the conclusion of the Tour. We were hoping Contador would get a flat and Andy could do a good revenge attack, but alas it was just your typical dull tour finale, complete with pistol salutes from Contador.

Before heading back to the ferry, I dragged Cam to Ikea, where we mused over the kitchen islands, and even solicited a second opinion from the parentals.

In the end we settled on one we liked. Cam's currently assembling it, and knowing Ikea furniture, it may take until midnight :)

Tour-rific Times

I haven’t posted much lately because not much has been going on! Other than the usual garden tending, cleaning, cooking, and, of course, bike riding…

We’ve avidly been watching the Tour. Well. I’ve been avidly watching the last hour of the Tour in the morning and then updating Cam on it.

Our stalwart Canuck is sure showing those Europeans how to ride. Though some of it comes down to luck and good timing. On Sunday, people were dropping off their bikes like flies in front of Lance. He could easily have been up where Ryder is, if it weren’t for the bad luck. But that’s the Tour for ya!

All in all, it should be an interesting. I admit I’m hoping that Lance pulls a monumental move and regains the 10 minute gap between him and Andy. But not more than I hope Ryder kicks everyone’s butt.

Speaking of the Tour, I’m in the very early stages of planning a little trip for us next year: three weeks in France to see the 2011 Tour! Planning the logistics of a trip like this is kind of daunting, so I’m leaning towards going with a tour company for part of the trip. Some companies organize it all for you – from road bike rentals right down to getting you the best viewing spots for stages and booking you a bed and breakfast. I think in between touring around on road bikes, we’ll catch maybe three stages of the Tour before seeing the finish in Paris.

Time to book French lessons! Je pense que ce sera amusement!

In other news, I’ve discovered a new inspiration. Guy Roy is a Eastern Canadian artist and I absolutely love what he does with paint:

I have a couple blank canvases kicking around and I think I might try translating his style to either Yukon or Saskatchewan landscapes.



And of course, who could forget... twelve more sleeps until our Lion King weekend! Or rather, our Tanya weekend… Lion King + Ikea!

I’ve already got a list going and am in the process of measuring our rooms. Maybe an island for the kitchen? Or an entertainment centre for the TV? The possibilities are endless!

MORE garden

On Sunday we introduced a few new characters to the garden:

A platoon of green peppers...

A battalion of tomatoes…

And these lovely girls to round it all out.

If I were a flower, I’d be Orange Symphony.

Again courtesy of Giada, I made these scrumptious stuffed peppers for Sunday night dinner. Grated zucchini, Romano cheese, orzo pasta, tomatoes, garlic, salt & pep… all stuffed inside these bad boys.

They were MASSIVE.

I made four.

Then someone came home from mountain biking at 9:45pm and they were no more.



PS: Still trying to figure out how to edit the GoPro vids Cam has been making... so stay tuned.

Map My Ride Fun

Had a little fun mapping my ride from last Saturday!


MapMyRide.com View 07/05/2010 Route in Victoria, British Columbia

Jersey's Breakfast

Our breakfast bar was boisterous this morning:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zX7X-2Fr0w

I can see Summer from here!

This was what we were meant to be conquering on Canada Day:

Hurricane Ridge.

Elevation: 5,200 ft.

But instead, the weather decided to plunge to 10 degrees that morning, accompanied by rain, and what fun is it to climb up to a low-oxygen, freeze-your-ass-off summit in JULY? It's supposed to be summer, after all.

So, in the spirit of summer, we decided to spend the day cleaning the apartment (cleaning? what's that?). Then we bicycled out to the in law's -- ahem -- Cam's parent's place and stole the jonda honda, which did an excellent job of helping us restock the fridge and liquor cabinet.

Wine rack courtesy of Ikea.

Empty wallet courtesy of Hillside Liquor.

And man, I tell ya, there is nothing like having a well stocked fridge and liquor cabinet (the wine should last us a while -- we ain't alchies!). No more coming home and trying to figure out how to make the last zucchini into a meal.

This red pepper/Italian sausage toss was on the menu last night, thanks to the lovely Giada:

Looks like rice, tastes like pasta! Giada says orzo pasta is the perfect easy-to-eat pasta for kids: no twirling around the fork required.

In other news, Michael, Jill and Isabella are coming to visit!! We're so excited the little one has finally decided to leave the New World and come back to the old country. We'll cook her some borscht and put her to work in the fields.

Now that the weekend's finally here, I'm looking forward to some good riding weather, while Cam is looking forward to some solo-fishing to get away from it all. (10-hour work days will do that to ya.)

And hey...

 

... I think I can see Summer from here!