Well, as it turns out, I only went to one Bluesfest concert after Sunday with Norah Jones. I saw a band called Reverend Raven and the Chain Smokin' Altar Boys. I went just for the name. I mean, come on, they had to be good!
Well, they weren't bad. Five 60-year-old, 250+-pound men from Northern US, where the Blues have always been prominent.The problem was that Bad Religion was playing at the same time, on the main stage, and overpowered the Reverend quite a bit. It was annoying, so I left after 45 minutes.
Not a whole lot happened immediately after Bluesfest. However, the highlight for the summer (and likely for the entire year) came last weekend, when I visited Niagara-on-the-Lake.
My friend Freya (a name you should remember from my trip to Prague, among other stories) invited me to visit her and her family in Wine Country. I felt that this was an offer I could not refuse, so I flew to Toronto to catch a train to Burlington which connected me to a bus to St. Catharines. It sounds complicated, but it's not.
When I arrived in St. Catharines, I met with Mrs. Seeger, who drove me to their lovely home. A lovely home, surrounded by vines, bike paths, and a river. The words "serene" and "perfect" barely do it justice. The area is really a paradise for anyone who enjoys relaxing, or wine, or good food, or any combination of these. There's the word I was looking for. Paradise.
I dropped my things off and changed into my swimming trunks and sandals, because that afternoon, I was to join Freya for a Jetboat tour. I had no idea what that meant at the time (well, that's not strictly true, I looked it up on the Internet, but still...) so when I got there and signed my first waiver, I was intrigued. Any activity involving boats, open water, and the possibility of death or serious injury must be thrilling. And boy, was it ever! Before the tour, though, I stopped in at Reif Estate Winery, where Freya's sister works, to try some wine. I only had time for a quick tasting, and Pia was off giving a tour, so I had my 3 glasses and I left. More on wine later.
Back to the Jetboat. Unfortunately, Freya was unable to join me on the tour, due to her work schedule. Nonetheless, my guide Jay took good care of his tour group. I got absolutely soaked from every angle, whether from rushing through rapids, making quick 360-degree turns, or from the captain opening the hull to use the river as a giant brake. This is a boat that can go up to 96 km/h (or 60 mph) and it provided the ride of a lifetime.
After the tour, I changed into slightly drier clothes, and went back to Freya's for dinner. I was told there wasn't a whole lot to do in the St. Catharines / Niagara-on-the-Lake area at night, but that was somewhat of a lie. We went to visit some of Freya's friends at an apartment, then from there went to a bar to meet up with more friends. From the bar, we made our way to a club which had some pretty good music. Freya had work the next morning, so we had to head home early (about 2:30). I still haven't figured out how she managed to get up the next morning.
Day 2, Saturday, was more or less a lazy day. Freya was at work, I woke up after 11, and didn't have any set plans until dinner time. I took the time to study Spanish a bit (my exam was yesterday, but that's not important right now), play some piano (in the greatest room in any house I've ever seen), and go to a winery. I chose Reif Estate again, because it's a 2-minute walk from Freya's house, and I hadn't had every wine on their tasting menu yet (about 15 or 20, total). Well, I rectified that over the course of an hour. Damn, they make good wine. I had tried so many by the time I left, I was telling other customers what to try, and I ordered a half-case, because I really enjoyed the wine, and the staff were so wonderful. Also, as soon as I arrived back at Freya's, I fell asleep on the lawn chair outside. Have I mentioned how serene and amazing it is there?
I was only slightly embarrassed when Freya had to wake me up an hour and a half later. Our dinner plans included a drive through Clifton Hill, dinner at Skylon Tower with a view over the falls at sunset, and a nice walk along the river by the falls after sundown. There's something magical about the falls at night. Maybe it's the lighting, or the fact that there are slightly fewer tourists in the way than during the day. It's also quite impressive to see them from 1000ft above, but walking along the river and watching the colours change (the falls are lit by giant coloured spotlights) is simply beautiful.
I'm not even sure how to transition into Sunday morning, so I'm going to put this out there: I got to ride in a helicopter. Freya had organized a morning tour of the falls by helicopter, because there is apparently no end to her ability to plan awesome things to do. I mean, a freakin' helicopter! The pilot was a jolly Swiss man named Ruedi, and he walked around like he owned the place. Possibly because he actually used to own the company. Now, he just flies, and damn is he good. You can see everything from up there. He had me sit in the front so I could take pictures, and listen to his description on the falls, rather than the pre-recorded one he has tourists listen to. What a way to start the day.
After this adventure, Freya and I went for a drive to run some errands. She was expecting some friends from Toronto, one of which I knew from university. We needed to get some bicycles for our winery bike tour. Early afternoon, we left to discover some wineries. We started with Inniskillin, a fairly large winery not far from Freya's. We then ventured over to, wait for it, Reif Estate. It was my third day in a row, and I was on a first-name basis with most of the staff. I tried two wines I had missed, and a few others I already knew about in advance. Once again, I was not disappointed. I bought more wine, this time opting to fit them into my luggage rather than have them shipped. Note: 4 bottles of wine fit fairly well into my smallest suitcase.
Our friends from Toronto had to leave early, wanting to see the falls then get back to Toronto for a family event, so we had a quick barbecue at Freya's then said goodbye. That night, we both had some packing to do. First, though, we returned the bicycles we'd borrowed, and then stopped at one last winery (at the request of my colleague and her friend). I got to taste ice wine out of a dark chocolate cup. I think I will be buying some little chocolate cups when I find them. Anyway, packing went fairly well. It's difficult to find space for 4 bottles of wine in a full suitcase, but I managed. When I was done, I watched a bit of the Olympics. I'm not that interested in the Games, but some of what these athletes can do is just damn impressive.
Freya joined me after she finished her own packing, and promptly fell asleep on the couch. In her defense, I would like to say that Olympic weightlifting is not particularly invigorating for spectators, at least not for me. Also, after a weekend of working during the day, organizing and executing activities for my benefit in the evening, and trying to figure out her plans for her upcoming move to Copenhagen during what would normally be considered a good time to sleep, I just can't imagine how she didn't crash sooner.
It was a fantastic weekend. The setting, the Seegers' hospitality, and Freya's planning all helped make it, well, perfect. Coming back to Ottawa has never been harder. Let this be my public Thank You to Freya and her family.
I cannot forget to mention, before concluding this post, that I also got to visit my grandma in Toronto before my flight home. We had lunch and talked about life and politics, as you do. It made for a very nice afternoon and a fun conclusion to my long weekend.
All this week, I've been wondering why I bothered coming home, and my conclusion is that it's only because I had a Spanish exam to write yesterday. Which I killed. So, you know. I can go back now.
I hope you all have a great August!
Well, they weren't bad. Five 60-year-old, 250+-pound men from Northern US, where the Blues have always been prominent.The problem was that Bad Religion was playing at the same time, on the main stage, and overpowered the Reverend quite a bit. It was annoying, so I left after 45 minutes.
Not a whole lot happened immediately after Bluesfest. However, the highlight for the summer (and likely for the entire year) came last weekend, when I visited Niagara-on-the-Lake.
My friend Freya (a name you should remember from my trip to Prague, among other stories) invited me to visit her and her family in Wine Country. I felt that this was an offer I could not refuse, so I flew to Toronto to catch a train to Burlington which connected me to a bus to St. Catharines. It sounds complicated, but it's not.
When I arrived in St. Catharines, I met with Mrs. Seeger, who drove me to their lovely home. A lovely home, surrounded by vines, bike paths, and a river. The words "serene" and "perfect" barely do it justice. The area is really a paradise for anyone who enjoys relaxing, or wine, or good food, or any combination of these. There's the word I was looking for. Paradise.
I dropped my things off and changed into my swimming trunks and sandals, because that afternoon, I was to join Freya for a Jetboat tour. I had no idea what that meant at the time (well, that's not strictly true, I looked it up on the Internet, but still...) so when I got there and signed my first waiver, I was intrigued. Any activity involving boats, open water, and the possibility of death or serious injury must be thrilling. And boy, was it ever! Before the tour, though, I stopped in at Reif Estate Winery, where Freya's sister works, to try some wine. I only had time for a quick tasting, and Pia was off giving a tour, so I had my 3 glasses and I left. More on wine later.
Back to the Jetboat. Unfortunately, Freya was unable to join me on the tour, due to her work schedule. Nonetheless, my guide Jay took good care of his tour group. I got absolutely soaked from every angle, whether from rushing through rapids, making quick 360-degree turns, or from the captain opening the hull to use the river as a giant brake. This is a boat that can go up to 96 km/h (or 60 mph) and it provided the ride of a lifetime.
After the tour, I changed into slightly drier clothes, and went back to Freya's for dinner. I was told there wasn't a whole lot to do in the St. Catharines / Niagara-on-the-Lake area at night, but that was somewhat of a lie. We went to visit some of Freya's friends at an apartment, then from there went to a bar to meet up with more friends. From the bar, we made our way to a club which had some pretty good music. Freya had work the next morning, so we had to head home early (about 2:30). I still haven't figured out how she managed to get up the next morning.
Day 2, Saturday, was more or less a lazy day. Freya was at work, I woke up after 11, and didn't have any set plans until dinner time. I took the time to study Spanish a bit (my exam was yesterday, but that's not important right now), play some piano (in the greatest room in any house I've ever seen), and go to a winery. I chose Reif Estate again, because it's a 2-minute walk from Freya's house, and I hadn't had every wine on their tasting menu yet (about 15 or 20, total). Well, I rectified that over the course of an hour. Damn, they make good wine. I had tried so many by the time I left, I was telling other customers what to try, and I ordered a half-case, because I really enjoyed the wine, and the staff were so wonderful. Also, as soon as I arrived back at Freya's, I fell asleep on the lawn chair outside. Have I mentioned how serene and amazing it is there?
I was only slightly embarrassed when Freya had to wake me up an hour and a half later. Our dinner plans included a drive through Clifton Hill, dinner at Skylon Tower with a view over the falls at sunset, and a nice walk along the river by the falls after sundown. There's something magical about the falls at night. Maybe it's the lighting, or the fact that there are slightly fewer tourists in the way than during the day. It's also quite impressive to see them from 1000ft above, but walking along the river and watching the colours change (the falls are lit by giant coloured spotlights) is simply beautiful.
I'm not even sure how to transition into Sunday morning, so I'm going to put this out there: I got to ride in a helicopter. Freya had organized a morning tour of the falls by helicopter, because there is apparently no end to her ability to plan awesome things to do. I mean, a freakin' helicopter! The pilot was a jolly Swiss man named Ruedi, and he walked around like he owned the place. Possibly because he actually used to own the company. Now, he just flies, and damn is he good. You can see everything from up there. He had me sit in the front so I could take pictures, and listen to his description on the falls, rather than the pre-recorded one he has tourists listen to. What a way to start the day.
After this adventure, Freya and I went for a drive to run some errands. She was expecting some friends from Toronto, one of which I knew from university. We needed to get some bicycles for our winery bike tour. Early afternoon, we left to discover some wineries. We started with Inniskillin, a fairly large winery not far from Freya's. We then ventured over to, wait for it, Reif Estate. It was my third day in a row, and I was on a first-name basis with most of the staff. I tried two wines I had missed, and a few others I already knew about in advance. Once again, I was not disappointed. I bought more wine, this time opting to fit them into my luggage rather than have them shipped. Note: 4 bottles of wine fit fairly well into my smallest suitcase.
Our friends from Toronto had to leave early, wanting to see the falls then get back to Toronto for a family event, so we had a quick barbecue at Freya's then said goodbye. That night, we both had some packing to do. First, though, we returned the bicycles we'd borrowed, and then stopped at one last winery (at the request of my colleague and her friend). I got to taste ice wine out of a dark chocolate cup. I think I will be buying some little chocolate cups when I find them. Anyway, packing went fairly well. It's difficult to find space for 4 bottles of wine in a full suitcase, but I managed. When I was done, I watched a bit of the Olympics. I'm not that interested in the Games, but some of what these athletes can do is just damn impressive.
Freya joined me after she finished her own packing, and promptly fell asleep on the couch. In her defense, I would like to say that Olympic weightlifting is not particularly invigorating for spectators, at least not for me. Also, after a weekend of working during the day, organizing and executing activities for my benefit in the evening, and trying to figure out her plans for her upcoming move to Copenhagen during what would normally be considered a good time to sleep, I just can't imagine how she didn't crash sooner.
It was a fantastic weekend. The setting, the Seegers' hospitality, and Freya's planning all helped make it, well, perfect. Coming back to Ottawa has never been harder. Let this be my public Thank You to Freya and her family.
I cannot forget to mention, before concluding this post, that I also got to visit my grandma in Toronto before my flight home. We had lunch and talked about life and politics, as you do. It made for a very nice afternoon and a fun conclusion to my long weekend.
All this week, I've been wondering why I bothered coming home, and my conclusion is that it's only because I had a Spanish exam to write yesterday. Which I killed. So, you know. I can go back now.
I hope you all have a great August!
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