LineaLanoie's Weblog

I guess technically this is not strictly about Vancouver.  But how can you tell the difference when one town blends into the next with only a slight alteration in flavour undetectable to those of us from small town Saskatchewan.  We put space between our cities.  Space that lets you drive 110K’s on our 100 K per hour roads.  Here there is no space.  Hardly a car length between your car and the next going 110 K’s on the 90 K per hour roads.  Here I had so little space that there was nowhere to even pull over to check the map.  Getting off to a side street may mean a half hour delay since you then have to find a way to get back on this “freeway” and get locked back into the flow of traffic again.   

But I did it.  I drove in Vancouver – downtown.  And tonight out to Cocquitlam and back.  Found my way back to my hotel in the night and avoided getting off the freeeway on East Hastings.  Now tomorrow am – I hear there is a huge funeral for the last vetran to receive the Victoria Cross in WWII.  Streets will be closed.  I wonder if I will make it to a parking garage closer to the conference centre? 

I guess if you don’t hear from me again – well I didn’t.  But I think I can try a few blocks in the centre of this city in the early morning in the light of day.

I spent Monday night in the little town of Erickson with a friend.  It’s 45 years or so since I lived there.  The roads haven’t changed too much but the houses all along them that I knew then are gone.  The church has moved, the store across the street is no more – just the tell tale slab of concrete – and the elementary school where I began grade one is totally brand new.

The big cliff where we played as kids is not quite as tall as my memories made it and not at all off in the forest any more.  But it is still there.  My friend and I drove around in the evening revisiting places I should have remembered and discovering new ones.

Tuesday, I headed up the 3A towards Nelson.  The road is every bit as winding as I remember.  And the glass house is still there but, since no longer lived in it is open for tours.  So I did.  All the exterior walls are constructed of embalming fluid bottles. 

The trip was beautiful along the eastern edge of Kootney Lake.  Those mountain lakes are long, very long and extremely beautiful. 

The road ends at the ferry pier.  Waiting the two hours to catch the ferry wasn’t too great but at least we could sit by the lake while waiting. 

I was going to drop in on some of the Covenant churches along the way.  I drove by two but they were closed and I don’t know the pastors well enough to disturb them.  Besides, I needed to get on the way by then  I hadn’t counted on the wait for the ferry being so long. 

The back roads in the interior of BC must hold some of the most beautiful mountain scenery in the world.  I would come over the crest of a rise and there before me was a mountain peak , a stream or gorge or mountain lake.  Later I will put some pictures up on my Flikr site.  I would love to return this way if time permits on the return trip.

Tomorrow night I should be in Vancouver.  Driving there will be my biggest challenge.  I have to find my hotel in the middle of downtown!

This holiday is partly about being in and enjoying the beautiful world God has created and partly about getting to know and reconnecting with people.

Being a part of the blogging world has opened a whole new set of friendships up for me but it is so much more fun actually meeting the people.  It gives a whole new level of understanding to the words they write.  So Thursday I took one family out for supper and had the privilege of staying in their home.  I met the kids and dog and it was good. 

Yesterday, I made my way down to Strathmore – after being lured in to a Chapters store before leaving Edmonton.  It didn’t take much.  It was visible in the distance in a mall along the street where I was driving. 
That killed an hour and a half and I didn’t resist temptation well either. 

I had a wonderful visit with the friend and her daughter I am staying with and with other friends we shared a meal with last night.  We did some discussion on women in ministry, since she is one.  (I have this strange feeling of being drawn this way myself but am not sure at all about what that means for me.  I am not young anymore – God let me retire!)  She lives in a neighborhood that has many open windows into the internet world so it is letting me blog and catch up on my e-mail.

Today I move on again to visit my sister in Cochrane – just a shot hop away from here.