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October
5, 1999
Well, this is our third day and so far things have
been great. The weather here has been a bit damp. But apparently it is the end
of the rainy season so there is good weather to come. The hotel we are staying at is
very nice. It is a Marriott and it has great service so far. Not to mention a
wonderful pool. The restaurant is also quite nice, but not much of a menu.
I sent my first resume out today. The language
barrier is going to be a little of an issue getting work. Not many people speak
English. Hopefully we will be getting a tutor.
Yesterday for dinner Kris, and I had dinner with a
girl that is on this project as well named Karen. We went to this Sushi place...it
was quite good. Today I went grocery shopping...no lack of food here, they have more
brands than we do in Canada!!! I also went to the Canadian Embassy and registered
Kris and I. Heavy, heavy security, and the people who work there are Salvadorian!!
Anyway, other than that not much else going on but a
tropical shower...more soon.
Ana
October
7, 1999
Well last night we had out first real taste of
Salvadorian night life. We first went with some of Kris' friends from work (Luis and
Eric) to dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Guadalajara. I was excellent food,
but most interesting was the waiters that spent most of their time going around holding
the patrons down and force feeding them tequila shots. Needless to say Kris didn't
resist too much. For us non-tequila drinkers they just went around and pretended to
spill assorted drinks and scare the shit out of us....ok just me!!
Later on Kris' boss Rafael and another Shell
person, Eduardo came and we proceeded to the bar next door called Senhor Frog's.
Anyone who has been to Mexico will know this name well. Same concept....shots, shots
and more shots and lots of good Latin music. Not bad for a Wednesday!!! Can't
wait to hear about the hang-overs at Shell tomorrow.
Adios for now,
Ana
October
12, 1999
Well a successful week here in San Salvador. I
am by no means an authority after only being here for one week, but it seems not at all
like the place I had been described or read about. It is truly a jewel, and the
people the gems around it. I have been to few placed where people are so nice and
genuine. Already we are making friends. This weekend, Kris' boss took us to
his beach house in an area called La Libertad. Although there is certainly poverty
hear, this was not it. It was a 3 bedroom house with a pool, a jacuzzi and a private
beach. Needless to say we had a wonderful time.
On Sunday, Kris, Karen and myself when on a volcano
crater diving trip. I don't dive but Kris and Karen said it was spectacular.
As they were diving I was negotiating an exchange with the owner (Alex). I build his
website, and he teaches me to dive. A fair deal, I think.
Actually Alex turned out to be a great guy and we
are hoping to have Papusas (a Salvadorian food) with him this week.
Well the gym awaits so more another day.
Ana
October
24,1999
Well another week and finally some work for me.
I'm working on the diving site I mention earlier and as well a local bakeries
website. As well I may have a lead to work at the American Language institute.
I'm not sure what I'll be doing or even if it will happen, but it looks like it
maybe a good lead. Last weekend on Saturday we went to the local mall to see what
things San Salvador has to offer. Nice stuff, but definitely no deals. On
Sunday, we went with our friend Eduardo to see some of the Mayan ruins called Joya de
Ceron, and San Andres. It was really beautiful.
This weekend was a slow one. Kris worked on
Saturday morning and the rest of the time we just sat by the pool. I think that this
coming weekend we are going to go to Guatemala. Our destination there is a place
called Antigua. Its a little town that is apparently filled with culture...lots of
old buildings and a great wildlife.
Well, it's Monday and we are back to the grind...Ok
maybe not. The weather is still gorgeous and apparently only gets better. It
looks like we are going to be here until the first week of December and them off to Costa
Rica.
Ana
November 3, 1999
Hello all...so much more to tell you about.
This past weekend was a great time. We had planned as I said earlier to go to
Guatemala. Well that didn't happen. But we didn't want to stay all cooped up in the
hotel so we rented this cute little house at a place called Salinitas. It is about
one and a half hours west of San Salvador. We first thought about going to a hotel
somewhere but a privately owned summer home was highly recommended and available to rent.
Karen was also joining us for the weekend. Saturday morning we had our
interactive Spanish class with out teacher, Hugo. He took us to this place where
there is stall after stall of pupusa vendors. (Pupusas are a Salvadorian
delight...sort of a flat bread pancake with cheese and beans or pork inside.) The
pupusas at this place were made from rice instead of flour. They were amazing.
Then we met back at the hotel.
The owner of the house was actually going to take us there. We met him
and realized that we got a bit of bad information. We had been told that there were
lots of restaurants and things around the house, we were told wrong. So off grocery
shopping we went.
Secretly, the thought of actually cooking
after all this eating out was very appealing. Well the drive was as always an
adventure unto itself, but with Kris' Central American driving skills, we managed to
arrive alive....barely.
The house, was to our surprise in a secluded private
area, just steps from the beach. It had it's own pool and 3 bedrooms and kitchen of
course. And no summer house is without 3 large hammocks and a butler...Hilberto.
Hilberto and Kris got along great, even thought Kris practiced on Hilberto's
"Spanish and not a stitch of English" qualities. Well, we BBQ and
sunbathed and sat to candlelight and gossiped. It was an enchanting place and an
enchanting time. Not soon to be forgotten.
Well after our great weekend retreat we had to
return. But then it was Monday night and Tuesday was All Saints day which means a
day off for Kris and another night out on the town. We did a pubcrawl sort of
...well not quite. Salvadorians generally go to the beach for the weekend, so the
Monday night festivities were weak. But we did find a new haven. Could be the next
"Hammerheads" for those who know it. It was called La Luna. An
eclectic little place, kind of place the creative minded hang out at...or as our friend
Eduardo puts it...a Hippy Hangout.
Well it was still interesting. If not for a
play going on, we would have staying. But this weekend La Luna awaits and we get to
see the local Rock and Roll band. Also this weekend out friend James is coming to
visit us. He worked with Kris in the Bahamas and is now in Guatemala. We are
going to a place called Bahia Del Sol in Costa Del Sol. We have a cottage booked
there for the weekend. All the reviews have been good so I look forward to sending
some more notes when we get back. For now....adios amigos.
Ana
November
8, 1999
Hello everyone. All is well here in El
Salavdor. It's been another great weekend. As I mentioned we had a friend
James come into town. On Friday night, we introduced him to Salvadorian night life
and took him to dinner at La Luna. It was great. They had a live band that
played classic rock and roll...in English. It was quite a treat. Later we went
to several other local drinking holes. It was a fun night.
Saturday morning we ventured off for our all
inclusive weekend at Costa Del Sol. The ride there as very pleasant and a short
hour. When we arrived we were surprised to see the cute little apartments with 3
bedrooms and a jacuzzi in the back. Just what we were looking for. To our
surprise our first try of the food was amazing. With an all inclusive package we
didn't expect to be getting huge prawns and seafood....that actually taste great.
Well the boys got into the beer and the girls (Karen and I) into the Pina Colada's and
Margaritas. We spent the afternoon and dinner sitting at the very same table by the
pool and even convinced the staff to plug in our CD player and speakers for
entertainment. We're not sure what they thought at first, but as soon as Ricky
Martin was on, we saw the smiles. It was truly a great spot. The beach was
long and wide and in the late afternoon we were joined on the beach with a herd of cows.
It was quite a site. In fact the hotel was filled with strange animals.
They had 6 parrots. One male named Pedro and the rest his harem. They
were beautiful so we've got photo's to follow. They also had a bunch of geese and
skinny horse. The geese were beautiful but a bit violent. No thanks to the
boys, Karen saved me from being attacked by a goose.
The evening was beautiful and it turned into a
beautiful Sunday as well. The sky was turquoise blue and not a cloud in it.
Our first adventure for the day was a short boat rise over to a local island. On
the island they has small little stands selling beer, and fish or all sorts. Being
it was an all inclusive package at the hotel none of us had any money. Us 4 bitter
tourists sat in hammocks as we watched the others drink. Thankfully our ships'
captain saved the day. He must have recognized our dry throats, so he loaned us some
money for some drinks.
The rest of the afternoon we ate and drank and
laughed and swam. Our ride home we stopped for puposas with James. As we
were leaving we realized that the guys couldn't take the bottles of beer in the
car...(they need them to get money in exchange). So the puposa lady kindly offered to but
the beer in small sandwich bags with straws. It was quite a site looking at the back
seat and seeing James and Kris holding bags of beer with straws in them as they laughed
their faces off.....you can just imagine!!!
Another weekend, more wonderful memories.
James left this morning, back to the Bahamas to do some work for Shell and hopefully sell
their boat the Lost Shaker. We'll miss him, but hopefully see him again soon.
Anyway better go for now....thanks to everyone for
all the feedback on the site. More soon...
Ana
November 15, 1999
Hello everyone, it's another sunny day in El Salvador and more adventures to tell
about. As our time here in San Salvador slowly comes to an end we are trying to do
and see as much as we can before we leave. This weekend was quite relaxed. On
Saturday we had Spanish classes in the morning and then went to a few book shops in town.
Saturday was a great day...the local pay phone company had a promotion on that so
that calling Canada was only $.10 per minute....so we tried to reach as many of you as we
could. It was nice catching up with friend and family.
Sunday we had decided to help out at a local event.
Our friends at El Salvador divers, (who we went diving with a few weeks ago and
also who are licensing me this week)....were holding a lake clean up even at Llopango
lake. Llopango is quite close to the city and many people live around the coast, so
annually about 50 divers get garbage, tires etc. etc. to keep it clean. It was a
great event. Coke, Shell and Pizza Hut were major sponsors so it worked out well.
If nothing else we got good tans from being on the boat for a few hours.
Other than that folks, not too eventful...this week
with be another busy one. Me training for my Diving course and Kris at work....keep
in touch.
Ana
November 30, 1999
Hello everyone, our apology for not writing sooner, but it's been quite busy
lately. For those of you who didn't know my birthday was last week on the 25th of
November and it was quite an event. Kris took me out for lunch and promised
dinner with friends at a nice restaurant. Well what a surprise to find all of our
friends at a surprise party at the hotel roof top patio. Kris had arranged the entire
event....cake, food, beer and even a pinyata. It was a wonderful way to turn 28.
This past weekend we finally got the opportunity to
take out long awaited trip to Guatemala. It was great. We took the public bus
system to get there on Friday morning at 7:00 am. For $45.00 return you get a meal
and drinks. We ended up in Guatemala City, the capital and had lunch at a cute
italian restaurant in Zona Viva...or Zone 10. It is the tourist area or wealthy area
of the city. Later in the afternoon we met a work friend of Kris who drove us to
Antigua. It is a small tourist village about 40 minutes outside of the city.
It was the highlight of the trip. We proceeded to look for a place to stay for the
night and found this cool hotel. It use to be a house with several large rooms with
cathedral ceilings and a garden in the centre of the house. After settling in we
went for a walk around the town. It is filled with bars and nice restaurants.
Many foreigns and backpackers have discovered this place, but it's still not
commercial. We give it a few more years before the Mc Donald's and Burger Kings
invade.
Apparently this town was filled with monestaries and
many many churches centuries ago. Then a earthquake destroyed many of the structures
and today there lies the haunting memories.
The next day we decided to tour around. We had
breakfast at the most gorgeous and unique hotel I've ever seen. It is called Santa
Domingo and it use to be an old monestary. They have taken the rooms where the nuns
use to live and converted them into hotel rooms. The wonderful thing about this
place is that they have not tinkered with the original architecture but just enhanced it.
The reception is at the alter for example and near the pool is an area of ruins
that can be explored during your stay. It is a popular spot for outdoor weddings.
Apparently they are booked for events years in advance. I'm not surprised.
Well after a day of exploring we returned to
Guatemala city to have dinner at our friend Eric's home. He and his wife Rosa fed us
well. We went for a brief drink after dinner at a local bar. Kris was in
shock to know that last call for drinks in Guatemala is an early 12:30 pm!!! Unual
for Central America.
The next day was our last day and we took advantage of a local spa we found and I
had a massage and our friend Karen also on the trip, was pampered as well. A perfect
end to a perfect weekend.
As our final days in El Salvador approach we are
sad. We have recently met some wonderful friends Jessica and Memo. I
met on my diving course and they are wonderful. We are sad we can't spend more time
with them. Hopefully they will visit us on our travels.
Our last week has also been busy with work.
We've been wrapping up last minute business and I've been finishing off some of my
websites. Work in Costa Rica looks promising so I'm happy about that.
That's all for now. Please e-mail us when you
can.
Ana
February 24, 2000
We apologize for our lapse in communication via our website.
Unfortunately we had experienced some technical difficulties and were unable to edit the
site. But here we are again, back bigger, bolder and hopefully better than
ever.
For those of you who have lost track of us, we are still in Costa
Rica. We will be here for another month and then we are off to Suriname on March 23.
I'm really looking forward to it. We really haven't enjoyed Costa Rica as much as
we had expected. The city is quite dangerous so we are quite limited to what we can
do here. The weekends have been lots of fun. We have seen both the Carribean and
Pacific side and its beaches and spent much time in Costa Rica's rain forests. It is
truly a beautiful place except for the thieves. We have done one extraordinary
thing...we've learned Spanish. We took 4 weeks at Christmas and went to an intensive
Spanish school. It was great. Kris has done wonderfully, I'm really proud of
him. Unfortunately in Suriname they speak English and Dutch so the Spanish won't
come in handy.
Work for both Kris and I has been going really well. Kris likes his job here and
thankfully no long hours yet. I've been really busy. I have a few websites
that I am working on right now. Mostly English speaking clients thankfully.
We have had houseguests quite steadily here in Costa Rica. My parents visited for
two weeks in January and my two friends Jennifer and Angela were just here last week. My
parents did all the touristy volcano tours and the beach. They had the time of their
lives. The girls and Kris and I spent a good part of the week they were here
on a beach on the Pacific coast called Jaco. It was nice and really great weather,
so they went home with the necessary tans.
This weekend Kris' boss and his wife arrive from El Salvador for three weeks here on the
project. We are looking forward to having some familiar faces around. As well,
we are off to Belize next weekend for a quick 4 day diving trip. We are meeting a
few friends from Bahamas....Mike, Nola and Karen. It should be a blast!!!.
We'll keep you posted.
If you haven't noticed we have a new Chatboard, so please let us know what you think of our new site.
Be careful, the whole world can see your comments. Welcome back friends....more
soon.
Ana and Kris
March 10, 2000
We finally have our domain name ready and the site buffed up.
Welcome!! I know a few of you have seen the site already via the IP address, but now
you will be able to simply type in www.lifeisgrand.com.
We only have a week and a half left here so are getting quite
excited about another move. My boss Rafael, his wife Cynthia, and another one of the
people on this project, Claudia, are all here for the duration. I am afraid we
haven't had time to show them much other than the insides of shopping malls and a few
restaurants.
We received an announcement yesterday about the hottest website on
the net. You can find it at www.internettrash.com/users/houseofillrepute
and it has some great shots of the Olsonboys and friends getting drunk.
In other news, after more than thirty years of smoking my mother has
quit! So all the years of giving her a bad time has finally paid off. Way to
go Mom!
Guess that is all for now. I am still waiting for
ideas/pictures from all of you who were once part of the crew of the Lost Shaker.
Also, we are working on a very special page for all of our friends and family so you can
keep in touch with each other as well as us.
See you soon!
Kris
March 21, 2000
Our stay in Costa Rica has come to an end. Our flight is
tomorrow and to be honest I've had enough of this place. I'm looking forward to our
new location in Suriname. From what we've heard there is lots of jungle and not a
lot of tourists....it should be very interesting. We do have a stop in Miami before
we arrive in Paramaribo Suriname and we are taking advantage and doing some
shopping!!! I can't wait!!! I'm also looking forward to having my adventurous friend
Wendy come to visit us with her boyfriend Bob. You'll get all the details and some
pix on the site soon. Don't worry Wendy...no bikini shots, I promise!
I've been spending a lot of the last week or two collecting money
for my website work. Of course debt collecting is never a pleasant experience, but
it is nice to see some money after all this work. Kris is wrapping up last minute
things at Shell and is happy that the project has gone very well here.
Hopefully when we get to Suriname, setting up internet will be fast
and easy. We'll keep you updated. As well, I have updated the "Reach Us" page, so if any one need to reach
us the information is there.
Looking forward to hearing from more of you on the
Chatboard.
Ana
March 28, 2000
Well it took a while, but we finally arrived in Suriname. Our shopping days in Miami
went extremely well and we managed to spend my website earnings in one day!! But it
was well worth it. Kris even seemed to enjoy it!! I also got my driving fix.
I hadn't drove since we left Canada and I really missed it, so we rented a great
little automatic car and I zipped around Miami like a pro!!
We got to the Miami airport well ahead of schedule and had some last minute sushi.
Moments later we find out that our flight from Miami to Curacao was on time
but our connection from Curacao to Suriname was cancelled and we would have to endure the
sun and beautiful beaches of Curacao for two days. The Olson/Borges horseshoe
strikes again as many would say. We knew nothing about Curacao, except that it had
beaches, so we picked up some brochures at the airport and did a quick overview of the
place. We ended up staying in the Sheraton hotel, on the beach, and with a few of my
Sheraton points were able to upgrade to a suite!! We actually needed the room just
for our luggage.
We spent the first day in the downtown checking out the local brew
and some of the Dutch style shops. It was quite nice and the most interesting part was
this moving bridge, that would sound an alarm and start floating sideways when a boat
needed to get into the harbour. In the evening we went on a spectacular night dive
and saw some amazing underwater fish and a big turtle.
Our short stay in Curacao was a much needed break from Costa Rica
and prepared us for the new location....Suriname. We are now here and so far it is
wonderful. Our apartment is huge and beautiful. We have a great deck that
looks onto the Suriname river only a few feet away. We also have a pool which is
very appropriate for the hot humid weather. The town itself is a lot more developed
then we expected. There are lots of shops and restaurants. There is one resort
in the city and it is in a great little area with a bunch of nice restaurants, all with
patios....even a great cafe with cappaccinos!! The mix of people here is
unbelievable. There are the native Surinamise, Japanese, Chinese,
Indians, Brazilians and even a few Dutchmen. They speak Dutch and English and their
own native language as well which is called Takki-Takki. The surprising thing is,
everyone seems to get along!! In fact downtown there is a mosque right beside a
synagogue!!
This weekend we plan to go into the interior with Kris' new kickass
half-ton Shelltruck to see some of the jungle. We are also planning at some point in
the next few weeks to go on a tour to see these huge leatherback turtles lay their eggs at
a beach on an island near the French Guyana border. Oh and of course I'm looking for
website work!!
That's all for now, more news from sunny Suriname to follow.
Ana
Here is Kris' part:
Yip, we have finally arrived in Paramaribo, the capital (and only)
city of Suriname. On my first day of work they gave me this cool half-ton truck that
kicks ass! It is big enough to drive right through the potholes and through the
ditches. I can't wait to drive that beast into the jungle and run over some monkeys.
Since our apartment is right next to the Suriname River we can see
all the little fishing boats going by in the morning. As well, there are
a thousand
little crabs which live in holes along the muddy banks. This place made us decide we
definitely want to live beside water. On the way home I stopped at a local Indian
shop and picked up a couple of Rotis which were delicious and cost a grand total of $3.
We are starting Dutch lessons this week so by the end of our stay we
should be able to say "Two Beers Please" I hope. I have not done a beer
review on the local brew Parbo yet as I have only had one. I will do a more thorough
sampling this weekend then write a full review.
Over and out.
Kris
April 4, 2000
Things here in Suriname are going very well. This past weekend was wonderful!
Saturday we spent going around town getting food at the butcher and
the baker. It was fun. We took a stroll downtown and it was pretty
interesting. Kris says it reminds him of Pakistan but cleaner. Lots of shops
selling everything you can imagine. And lots of fake stuff, purses, perfume etc.
You name it, they re-make it. One thing I found really interesting is that
you see all these people walking around with these bird cages with small little birds in
them. Kris thought maybe it was a good luck charm for one of these backwards
religions. But as it turns out, they have these "bird chirping contests"
and they carry these winning birds around like a status symbol!
We found out on Sunday that you
don't have to travel too far in Suriname to lose touch with civilization (not that
Paramaribo has much anyway). This weekend, Angelique, a co-worker of Kris', took us to
this creek for a swim. It is about a 40 minute drive from our place. The creek water is
clean, but is the darkest blackest water you'll ever see. It was really spookyl.
After that we went for a drive down one of the roads which leads to
the interior. After about 5 minutes on a semi-paved road, there was a dirt road. But not
your regular dirt, it was RED, really, really red. Apparently this place is full of
bauxite, that they make aluminum with and that is why the soil is red. We drive another 5
minutes and there in the middle of a field is a Bush Negro (apparently that is the proper
name) village. No electricity, no cars, nothing. It was quite extraordinary. All
this is about 40 minutes away from our apartment, I can't imagine what it is like farther
in.
I have finally found website work. My first job is for a tour
operator. The owner was telling me yesterday that there is one place called
Galibi and that is where these huge turtles lay their eggs on the beach. We have decided
to go there for Easter weekend with a group from work. I'm really looking forward to
it.
As far as weather goes....it's hot and humid. This time of year is
suppose to be rainy season, but like in all other parts of the world, the climate is
screwed up here too. So it has been sunny and hot most days. Today it is
raining but you still sweat from the heat....I love it!
Hope all of you are well. Still waiting for
info for our Amigos page from many of you!
Ana
April 19, 2000
Suriname is as beautiful as ever and things are good.
Since our last journal we have found both a Spanish teacher and a Dutch teacher, so
much of our time has been spent learning. Our Spanish teacher is a 20 year old
missionary from Columbia. He is quite interesting and for 20 years old has many
stories to tell. He is also a good teacher. Our Dutch teacher is an older
lady who is Surinamese and is a school administrator. She's also a good teacher, but
I'm afraid that the Dutch is taking a bit longer to learn.
This past weekend we went on our first trip to the
interior. We went to a few places which were all very tranquil and beautiful.
Our tour guide and our cook were quite knowledgeable about the places we visited and also
knew many of the Amerindian people that we met along the way. It is amazing that in
year 2000 so many people still live in huts and hunt and fish for food. Their only
income is selling handmade pottery to the few tourists. We also found it amazing that most
of them speak 3 languages; Dutch, Taki-Taki (the local street language) and also their own
tribal language. They put us to shame in the language category. The place we
finally spent the night was called Blakawatre, which means "black water".
They call it this because there is a large creek there which flows black water. It
actually has the exact colour of coca cola! It was very peaceful there. We
swam, made a fire and did all the wilderness stuff, including getting eaten alive by
mosquitoes. Better precautions will be taken next time.
This weekend we go to Galibi to watch the leatherback turtles lay their eggs. I'm
excited! It is right on the border of French Guyana, so are hoping to spend one of
the days there eating French food!! Also my friend Wendy arrives next Tuesday for a
2 week visit and we have many things planned for us to do with her. Never a dull
moment. More soon.
Ana
May 8, 2000
For those of you who are looking for a wonderful place to
go on holiday, Suriname is it. We are still
in love with this country and for the last few weekends, have been able to see much more
of it.
In the last
journal I commented about our trip to Galibi. It
is beautiful!! On the eastern coast of Suriname, Galibi is a peninsula full of nice
beaches and small villages accessible only by boat. For
the first day we just hung out and settled into our camp. We were with a group of friends
and families that work for Shell. They had
all traveled together before, so there were no strangers in the group and they made us
feel right at home. Luckily for us there was
a strong wind blowing which kept the mosquitoes away.
Because this was
Easter weekend the two local villages, Christiankondre and Longamankondre were having
traditional celebrations. This was gearing up
to be a weekend to remember. The second day
we spent walking around the villages, and playing a Dutch game called Jewel. Kris also created a game of horseshoes with
coconuts. The sun was hot and the water cool. We couldn’t ask for a nicer and more relaxing
day. The evening plans were to go and see
the turtles lay their eggs. We left at 9:00
pm and after going up the river on the boat for an hour, the guide finally stopped. After checking in with the Galibi Nature Reserve
“police” we went on foot to look for the huge turtles. I didn’t think it would be too hard to spot
one as they are quite large and kick sand high in the air when digging their nests. After 5 minutes of walking there she was. Apparently after turtles start to lay their eggs,
they don’t move until they are finished. This
mama turtle had just begun. She was about
500-700 lbs. She was very still except for
the dropping eggs and the nod of her head every few seconds. It was an unforgettable experience! Not just watching her lay, but simply being this
close to such a beautiful animal. After the
eggs were laid she started covering them up with sand, a process that normally takes about
15 minutes. But she took her time. We could all sense that she was scared. Every time someone would speak she would stop and
look around. She was extra careful making
sure her eggs were protected. We watched her
return to the ocean and we happily got on the boat. It
was a bitter sweet experience I won’t soon forget. Sweet because it was special to
see one of these creatures and be part of nature’s wonderful miracles, but also
bitter because I felt like we were almost intruding on something that maybe humans
shouldn’t be allowed to participate in. The
debate continues in my own mind. But I am
grateful I was able to experience it.
The following
weekend was another fun filled adventure. My
friend Wendy arrived from Seattle and we planned to go to a place called Raleigh Falls. It is accessible by car and boat, but only after a
5 hour journey. We decided to cheat a little
and fly. We arrived at the airport and got
our gear and bodies weighed for flight 001 on GUM Air.
Believe it or not, the “GUM” part of the name does not refer to
the stuff that holds the wings on. The six
seater Cessna carrying Kris, Wendy, Rute (our guide) and I took off and after a scenic 45
minute flight landed on a grass airstrip in Raleigh Falls.
The guides were there to welcome us. There
are no villages in this area, only one research station and a few tourist cabins. We met Marcel who was the manager of the research
station and Steven and Natasha. All had done
research about the primates in the area. There
are eight types of monkeys on the nature reserve, which happens to be one of the
world’s largest. During our first day we
traveled by boat to visit another tourist cabin and to go for a walk in the jungle.
The jungle was full of life everywhere you turned.
There were spiders, frogs and lizards. The
lushness of the trees provided a blanket from the rain and the sun. After our walk they took us for a swim under a
small waterfall. It was great after a few
hours of walking in the humidity. That
afternoon we relaxed at camp and Kris went fishing. After
lots of bites (mosquitoes, that is..) he finally caught two piranhas! It was cool seeing one up close and personal. It is the fish of choice in this area.
The next day we
took a hike to a granite mountain called Voltsberg. It
was a two hour walk through thick jungle to get to the base of the mountain. The two researchers Steven and Natasha came with
up to see if they could spot some monkeys. After
5 minutes of walking one of the researchers, Natasha, called us over to look at a male
Howler Monkey sitting in a tree above us. None
of us had a clue how she spotted him. It is
no wonder she is a monkey researcher! It
wasn’t long before we spotted another group of monkeys. Then another.
Both of different varieties. We also
saw a small animal that looked like a big rat. We
finally reached the base of the granite mountain and before too long had made it to the
top. After a few moments I heard a strange
echo in the distance. I realized it was a
Howler monkey! Marcel confirmed it was and
we all sat and listened to the strange, eerie howl. We began our descent just as it was
beginning to rain, which made going down steep granite a little tricky. We then made our way back along the same trail
to our boat and returned to camp. The rest of
the weekend we relaxed!
This past weekend was our final trip into the interior of the country. We decided to go to Jaw Jaw village on the Upper
Suriname River. Jaw Jaw is a traditional
Maroon tribal village again only accessible by boat.
We went with my friend Nesta and some friends as well as our guides from
Raleigh Falls, Rute and Marcel. It was a full
bus! We left early on Saturday morning and
arrived at Jaw Jaw four hours later, the last hour by boat.
We were immediately welcomed by about 20 village kids, mostly naked. We first settled in then took a tour of the village. Most of the men were not there. There is an election in Suriname in a few weeks
and the political parties were busy spreading their propaganda throughout the villages. The villages take full advantage of the election
and also of the bribes for votes that many of the parties give out. As were swimming a boat came into the village full
of food, beer, whiskey and a brand new outboard motor.
All were “gifts” from one of the parties.
In the village,
which consisted of 2000 people and almost as many huts, we visited some of the older
ladies making cassava bread and were offered samples.
The men and women sleep in separate huts but have communal kitchens. Men are allowed to have more than one wife, but no
more than 6, and of course at least a dozen kids. The
women still wear the traditional dress, and some not much at all. It was unbelievable to see that so many people
still live this way and seem very happy doing it. Everyone
was very friendly to us and very welcoming. They
mostly communicate in their native language but also speak Dutch. After dinner, we had the local band come to our
camp and play the traditional African drum music for us.
As there is not much to do after dark, most of the village showed up for the
party. And can they dance!! All the kids were on the floor before you knew it. It was quite a site and an unforgettable evening. The next day we took a trip upstream to visit more
villages. All of them seem to have their own
traditions, but still live very primitively. The
women cook, clean, grow crops and have children. The
men hunt and build huts. They have few
luxuries and seem to do quite well without them. They
have all the essentials of life and most have never been to the city. It was a peaceful and eye-opening experience that
will be long remembered by us.
Until Barbados,
where I’m sure there will be more adventures,
Ana
P.S. Wendy and I went to French Guyana, France for the day.
It was so cool!! We ate
croissants, sipped cappuccino and spoke French to the locals (ok that’s not true). We also hit the only bank machine for miles
around, and the closest one to Suriname. Ahhh,
la vie en rose!!
May 30,
2000
We have arrived in
Barbados safe and sound. It is beautiful hear but very hot. We have finally managed
to settle in at our apartment.
So far we have found it very expensive, meals are on average $15 - $20 US per person for
dinner. The only place where it is cheaper is at KFC!! But the beaches are
beautiful, the beer is good and the seaside bars are plentiful. Kris and I have
actually been amazed at the quantity of restaurants here. There is a new place to go
every night. Our weekends have mostly been going for drives, and going to the beach.
Quite a notch down from hiking and climbing throughout the rainforests of Suriname.
Hopefully in the coming weekends we will be able to also do some scuba diving.
Our friend Karen (who is also working on this project) is arriving from Guataloupe this
weekend for a while, so we are looking forward to catching up with her.
Unfortunately I
won't be able to work here (strict immigation), so I foresee boredom setting in soon.
This is my plea to all of our amigos....come visit me!!! We have a nice couch
that can sleep one very comfortably.
That's all for
now....more soon.
Ana
June 14, 2000
Yes it is true, we are getting married!! The last few days have been a dream come true! This past weekend was a long weekend so we decided
to go away to one of the islands close to Barbados. Our
friends Karen and Sara who are also on Kris’ project came as well. We got tickets to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. We knew nothing about the place, other than it had
beaches. It was truly a paradise. Green and lush and because of its volcanic origin
there were many mountains, a nice change from Barbados’ flat environment. So we arrived late Friday and had a nice dinner at
our hotel.
The next day Kris and I got up
early and went for a walk on the beach and that is when he popped the question. Of course the answer was an
overwhelming…YES!!!
The rest of the weekend was
like being in heaven, talking about the wedding, staring at my beautiful engagement ring
and making calls to the moms and pops.
The island was the perfect
setting, beautiful beaches, cliffs and waterfalls. An
unforgettable weekend!!
The have decided to have the wedding
in fall of next year, likely the beginning of September.
But we will keep you posted on details.
More news to follow…AHHH... isn’t life grand!!!
Ana
June 28, 2000
As this project
nears an end we prepare for new adventures in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Kris' new project has finally been set and we are moving there for at least
6 months in the beginning of September. This summer will be a very busy one.
I leave for Brantford this coming Saturday and Kris follows a few weeks later.
Wedding planning and visiting friends and family will definitely be the focal point of
this trip.
We also have a
wedding in Denmark on July 29 where Kris will be best man for his Danish friend Martin.
I've never been to Denmark so I am excited to go and also to meet Martin and his
soon to be bride Marianne. After a week in Denmark we are also going to England to
visit a few of Kris' friends and have a reunion with a few of the boys from Bahamas.
Then back to Canada to visit Kris' family in Saskatoon. As they say no rest
for the wicked!!!
We hope that we will still be able provide some updates on the website at some point this
summer, but with this crazy schedule we can't make any promises. We do promise
to continue documenting the summer adventures in September when we have settled in Santo
Domingo.
We are hoping to
have many of you visit us in Santo Domingo, so plan your holiday's and let us know.
For now, have a great summer and take care....til September.
Ana
September
26, 2000
After a
long summer break we are finally back online and back to updating Kris and
Ana's Great Adventures. This summer was a great opportunity to catch up
with good friends and family. We spent some time in Europe visiting our
friends Marianne and Martin and attended their wedding. We also made a pit stop
in Portugal to sort my EU citizenship (which I now have.....YEAHHH). And
of course we couldn't leave Europe without a trip to Kris' old stomping grounds
in London. We had a short but sweet visit with Toddy and John, and of
course the Bahamas boys, James and Steve.
Our
next stop was a visit with Kris' family in Saskatoon. It was great to be
able to see the folks again and start making some plans for the Wedding Bash
in the WEST! It was also great to finally meet a few new additions to
the crew... Kris' new cousin Janessa, Darren's little boy Aidan and also
Curtis and Marty's girlfriends, Carrie and Jenn. It was also my first
visit to the "Lake". Kris' grandparents have left a wonderful
legacy for many generations to come. I look forward to someday bringing my kids
to this wonderful place.
We returned to Ontario mid-August and spent lots of quality time with mom
and pop Borges. Kris was fed hoardes of good old Portuguese cuisine.
We also spent some time in Kingston with Mark and Linda and in Font Hill
with Michael and Anna. A big congratulations are in order to Michael and
Anna on their new cookbook!!! Our last visit was to our friends
Tom and Linda from Detroit. We hope to see them again for a visit in
Dominican Republic.
It was also a busy time getting ready for the big event next
September. The Olson/Borges wedding will be held on September 22, 2001
in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. Book your calendars and prepare your
livers, it's going to be a WILD one!!!
We are
now in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. After a week of adjusting we
are back on track. Kris' project is going well and my job search is underway. The interviews have been steady but nothing
yet.
We
have managed to find a place to live. It is a two bedroom apartment in
the heart of the city. It is close to a park and is fully equipped with
a swimming pool and generator (for the daily electricity outages). So
the extra bedroom is available for vacation bookings anytime!!
The
weather has been a little weird for this time of the year. Some tropical
storms in the area have caused much rain. But it is a nice break
from the hot, humid sun.
This
weekend we plan to take our first trip out of the city to a beach about an
hour away. We will report back next week on how it went.
Well,
we are glad to be back and we look forward to hearing from you all!
Ana
October
29, 2000
After
six weeks in Santo Domingo I would now say that we have completely settled
in. Our apartment is looking great and feels very much like home.
And the best part is that ANA FOUND A JOB!!! Yep, that's right, her
carefree days of sleeping in and killing time are over. She is the
production manager for a local web design company. She has a department
of ten web designers and has been enjoying the job very much. The first
week was a little tough as she has been away from the office environment for a
while. As well, her co-workers speak only Spanish so she has been
learning plenty of new words!
The
most recent news to report is that we have already had our first
visitor. My friend Earl made a surprise appearance on Friday afternoon
then left Saturday. He had to make an emergency "US visa" run
out of the country so he came to Santo Domingo. But we will be seeing
him again very soon as he plans to return next weekend with his girlfriend for
a two week stay which we are really looking forward to.
The
area where we are living is superb. Within three blocks we have a
bakery, gym, movie cinema, park, grocery store, pharmacy, movie rentals,
shopping mall, Jaguar dealership (just in case...), and at least a dozen
restaurants.
So
things are going well, but hectic. We have finally booked our flights
for Christmas. We arrive in Toronto on Dec. 20 and depart for the New
Years bash in Saskatoon on Dec. 29. We then return to Santo Domingo on
Jan. 6. It will be nice to be with family and friends this
Christmas. They can fill the streets with lights and trees here, but
without cold, snow and family, it just doesn't seem like Christmas!!
More
soon....
Ana
and Kris
Dec 4,
2000
Just a little more than two weeks
until we leave for Canada!
Things have been quiet of late.
We have both been working and getting home after 7:00 most nights so after we
have had supper and gone to the gym there isn't much time left. We have
been spending most weekends at home relaxing, catching up on the internet, and
basically just enjoying the comforts of having a permanent apartment!
We are having a Christmas pool party
here next weekend which should be a good laugh. Most of Ana's staff is
coming as well as some of the people from Shell. The landlord is
"sharing" the party with us by inviting the rest of the tenants here
so it should be a good crowd.
The weather has been beautiful up
until a few days ago when it got rainy and overcast. Don't mind the rain
for a few days but hopefully the sun will shine the next couple weekends so we
can work on our tans before returning to Canada for Christmas!
That's it for now, take care!
Kris
February 5, 2001
So much to tell and so little time to
write it seems. As Kris mentioned we went to Canada for Christmas (which
already seems like a lifetime ago). We had a fantastic time, but as
always, too short.
We spent Christmas with my parents and
then New Years with Kris' family in Saskatoon. We did all the Canadian
winter activities like ice-fishing, tobogganing and snowmobiling. It was
so nice
to see everyone again. We have some photos of the holidays on our Saskatoon
page.
Since returning to Santo Domingo I have quit my job
and we've had Mark and Linda (Kris' aunt and uncle for a visit). My job
was as the production manager at an internet company. I quickly found out
that the Dominican way of doing business is a lot different from what I am
used to. It was a very good learning experience and I made many new
friends, but it simply was not worth the money or the hours spent. I
have returned to making websites and also translating at home. It seems
to be going well and I'm much happier. As well, it was nice to be
home and spend some time with Mark and Linda during their visit. We
spent many nights on our balcony and a few afternoons by the pool sipping
cervezas. It
was a great visit.
A few weeks ago Kris and I went to the north coast to Puerto Plata for
the weekend. It was fun, especially because we got to spend some
time with my friend Julie from Toronto. She has been living there for
the past 2 years. She gave us a great tour of the Puerto Plata area and
we also had a great seafood dinner at a local restaurant owned by a Canadian
couple.
On our way back to Santo Domingo we stopped at Caberete, which is a small town
about 40 km east of Puerto Plata. We think we have discovered our
favorite place on the island. After much searching for a place with some
character and no all-inclusive resorts we finally found it. There is not a resort in sight and it is said to be one of the best
windsurfing locations in the world. This little town is full of small
hotels and restaurants and has one of the nicest beaches we've seen on the
island. We only spend the afternoon there, but our next trip will
definitely be to Caberete!!
We are going to be quite busy with
guests in the coming months...on February 17 both my friend Christina from
Brantford and our friends Tom and Linda arrive. Tom and Linda are
staying at a resort a couple hours from here but we still hope to spend some time with
them. A week later our friends Mike and
Nola arrive from Chicago. Three weeks after that our Danish
friends Martin and Marianne arrive for 2 weeks. That's a full schedule!
The timing for all of our visitors has
been perfect as Kris will begin doing some traveling with his job soon.
We aren't sure of where but we are both getting a bit of the traveling itch,
so it will be nice to see some new spots. Don't get us wrong, the past
few months of living a somewhat normal lifestyle has been great!
Unpacking our suitcases for more than 3 weeks has been a real pleasure!!
Thanks for your patience in waiting
for an update to our site. Now that I'm working from home, I hope to dedicate some more time
to it. Hope to hear from you all soon.
Ana
May
13, 2001
This is a start of a new year for me
(Kris) as I turned 29 years old yesterday! We had a very relaxing day,
and finished it off with dinner at a nice steak restaurant and a marvelous
cigar. We have been very bad recently at keeping our site updated so I
thought today is a fine day to write another update.
Since last time, we have had visits
from our friends Tom and Linda from Detroit, Mike and Nola from Chicago, and
Martin and Marianne from Denmark. As well, Ana has found herself a new
job....at Shell! In fact we are now working together on the same project
and having a great time of it! She has been involved mostly in the
training and documentation side and has been doing a superb job. We will
be finishing the work in Dominican Republic within the next couple weeks then
the plan is to move on to doing the rollout of our system to the other 17
countries in the region. We don't exactly know what will happen yet,
though we will likely be keeping a central base then just traveling out to the
other countries periodically. That will be nice for us as we don't have
to pack up and change homes every month, we were not looking forward to that.
Of course, the wedding is fast
approaching. Ana is returning to Canada at the end of May for two weeks
for her bridal shower and also to send out invitations and sort out the
remaining tasks on our "Wedding To-Do List". We will update
the wedding page today with the
latest so check that one out.
Ana and I recently took a long weekend
trip to Barbados and Puerto Rico. Part of the reason was to get a repair
done to Ana's engagement ring, which I purchased in Barbados last year.
We had a very nice time and checked out some of our old favourite hangouts
such as the almighty Mojos drinking hole where I imbibed in the frosty delight
of many delicious Banks
beers. On the way back from Barbados we spent a full day in San Juan,
Puerto Rico. Our friend Tico picked us from the airport and played the
perfect host. We had a great tour of old San Juan and spent a few hours
there. We also hit the malls (Plaza de las America) and did some damage
to the credit card. The majority of things were cheaper than in Santo
Domingo so we stocked up on a lot of stuff. We both really liked the
city and would love to spend more time there exploring the country side.
I suppose that is all the news for
now. I'm also going to update the Dominican
Republic page today with details of the new places we have visited so have
a look at that one.
Oh yes, today is Mother's Day, have a
wonderful one Mom!!!
Kris
November
7, 2001
We have just spent several
minutes trying to figure out why all our journal entries since May 13
are gone. It turn out that we haven't updated this page since
then! How embarrassing...
Our wedding has come and gone
and here we are back at work and back in the Dominican Republic.
It is unbelievable how that long year of waiting, planning, and
stressing finally paid off with a beautiful wedding day surrounded by
all of our wonderful family and friends. Have a look at the wedding
page to see some pictures.
So what's new? Since we
returned back here we have been keeping a pretty low profile and doing
lots of relaxing. This past weekend was a long one so we made a
trip up to the northern coastal town of Las Terrenas and met up with
our Canadian friends Mark, Terri, and Carolyn Haugen. Besides
being eaten alive by mosquitoes we had a great time! We found a
superb little Vietnamese restaurant in the town which we visited a
couple times. On the Sunday we took a horseback ride to a
waterfall called Salto de Limon. The horses were quite good and
the ride was very scenic. By the time we returned three hours
later we were filthy, tired, and extremely hungry so we devoured a
delicious Domincan lunch of rice, beans, and chicken.
This coming weekend Ana's
friend Julie, who lives in Puerto Plata, is planning to visit us here
in Santo Domingo. We haven't seen her for a while so that will
be nice.
Not much else to report.
The Presidentes
here are still icy cold!
Kris
January
12, 2002
Welcome to the new
year! After more than three weeks of glorious vacation, Ana and
I are leaving for Holland today to begin work on Monday. We are
both extremely excited about it and ready for what will surely be an
interesting year.
For our Christmas
holidays we spent two superb weeks in the Azores! We were joined
by Toddy Van Hees for the first ten days then by Ana's parents for the
second week. We stayed with Ana's aunt who is also named Ana and
lives in a town called Santa Cruz which is in the Lagoa area of the
island of San Miguel. Ana, Toddy and I also traveled to the
other islands of Faial and Pico and spent a few days exploring.
The weather was very rainy for the first part of the trip, but the
temperature never fell below 15 C so it was actually very pleasant.
Some of the
highlights include seeing the natural ocean pools in Pico and Lagoa, a
scary plane ride from Ponta Delgado to Horto, the harbour in Horto, the view from Scrimshaw's house in Faial, the
volcano blasted landscape on the west of Faial, the Furnas hot springs
in San Miguel, a tea factory, the delicious red wine from Pico, fresh
local bread and cheese with Tia Ana every morning, every meal we ate
at Tia Ana's house, picking fresh bananas and oranges in the backyard,
seeing a dog riding on top of a trotting horse, New Year's Eve on the
Avenida, and the beautiful view from Lagua do Fogo!
I also had the chance
to meet the rest of Ana's family who live in the Azores and they were
all exceptionally nice people! In fact, all the people living
there were very friendly and helpful, making it a great place to
visit!
After returning to
Brantford from the Azores, we decided to take a trip to see Marty and
Jen in Ottawa. So we rented a PT Cruiser (groovy little car) and
made the trip. It was so nice to see where they were living and
how things were going. They are both doing very well in school
and enjoying Carleton University. They gave us a great tour of
downtown Ottawa including the parliament buildings which were
spectacular.
On the way back from
Ottawa we stopped in at Mark & Linda's in Kingston where they
treated us to a delicious lunch. We had a good, but very short
visit, before we were on our way to Toronto. We stayed with
Ana's brother Mark in Toronto and that night we met up with Carmen,
Diane, and Lena and had a nice dinner out.
To finish off the
vacation, we had a couple days in Brantford to sort things out and get
all our things packed.
So now it is on to a
brand new year and a brand new adventure!! We really hope to see
lots of you as visitors so don't be shy!
Kris
February
17, 2002
Greetings to all from
Den Haag!
We are settled into
our apartment which is a two bedroom unit with a beautiful view
overlooking Scheveningen beach. In fact, the view is quite
similar to the view from our apartment in Puerto Rico. The only
difference being that the temperature is about 20 degrees lower...
It is great to be
living in Europe. We took a trip to Paris last weekend, which
was a very easy 3.5 hour train ride from here. Saw a few of the
tourist spots such as Arc du Triumph, Notre Dame, La Louvre and the
Eiffel Tower. We also did some shopping, much to Ana's delight.
The weekend before
that we met our Danish friends Martin, Marianne, and their little boy
Benjamin in a Dutch town called Apeldorn. They were visiting
their friends Roy and Anka, who are absolutely wonderful people.
They invited us to stay with them so we all had a very nice weekend
together. I was surprised to find that another Danish friend
named Lars was visiting as well and I hadn't seen him for a long
time. Roy and Anka have a beautiful home and treated us just
like family so we really enjoyed the weekend. Little Benjamin is
growing fast and already trying to steal the old man's beer!
More news soon,
Kris
March
6, 2002
It's been a while
since I've contributed to the journal so I suppose this better be a
good one. As Kris has said we are well settled into The
Hague. We are really enjoying our apartment, even though we seem
to spend very little time here. One of our goals for this year
is to see Europe and we have already accomplished a little of that
goal. Our friend Nancy from work has got us hooked onto this
"last minute" area on the KLM Airlines site called
"Click and Go". So every
Thursday at 1:00 pm they publish cheap flights for going away that
coming weekend. So at promptly 1:01 pm Kris and I logged on and
Athens, Greece was at the top of the list. To be quite honest,
we had never really thought about going to Greece. There are
many other spots on out list, but it was cheap and available....so off
to Athens we went.
We really didn't know
much about Greece, but after a little surfing on the web we found
there were plenty of things to see in Athens, such as historic
monuments and the old city. So we arrived late on Friday night,
took a bus to the city centre then got ripped off by a taxi driver before
reaching the hotel and checking in for a good
night sleep.
The morning brought
sun and warm weather, which we have been craving since our departure
from the Caribbean. So we spent the morning climbing Acropolis,
which was beautiful, but as expected full of tourists. We also
went to the Temple of Zeus and saw from a distance Attica. By
that point we had reach our threshold of touristy spots so we headed
to Plaka (the Old Town) for lunch. We found a cozy spot and
proceeded to get our suntan/burns back as we ate. We spent the
rest of the afternoon moving from outdoor cafe to outdoor cafe
contemplating how to spend the rest of the weekend.
We both agreed that
we would enjoy seeing more than just the city, so we thought we would
inquire about a boat tour or country tour. Much to our delight
there was a boat tour the following day which stopped at 3 of the
Greek islands. So we spent our Sunday in Poros, Hydra and Aegina.
They were all quite beautiful, although Hydra was the nicest. On
board we met a couple from Lisbon, Portugal and I had some nice
conversations with them, as Kris tried to fill in the blanks with his
broken Portuguese (which is improving dramatically, I must say).
Soon the cruise was over and we came to the quick realization that
work was only hours away. But we loved it and now are
considering doing this "Click and Go" thing more often. The weeks
are flying by and we are enjoying every moment. Even the work is
challenging and rewarding....10 hour days don't even bother us
anymore.
So I guess that is
all the news for now. We'll update you on our future travels to
Atyrau, Kazakhstan in a week and our Easter trip to the Borges
Residence and the east coast of Canada.
Much love,
Ana
March
22, 2002
Hello everyone,
Can you believe it is almost Easter???
Things here in The Hague have been great. We have been busy traveling
and working and are looking forward to our upcoming trip to Canada.
In the last 2 weekends we have been to
Brussels, Belgium and Atyrau, Kazakhstan. Both places on the opposite
ends of the spectrum.
We hadn't planned to go to Brussels,
but a we thought why not. Brussels is a 2 hour trip on train, from
where we live, so it was a easy place to get to. Well.... we loved
it!! It is a very typical European city with lots of little
cobblestone streets and restaurants and cafes for miles and miles.
They also have a very impressive square with gold covered buildings
and a most impressive city hall. We enjoyed a great evening out with our friends James and Lisa
and kids Cassandra and Ainsley. We especially liked a great jazz bar
we found which featured a live band and a good crowd. Chocolate, waffles and beer were the staples of
the weekend. We plan to return to Belgium soon to explore Bruges.
Well now Kazakhstan....it was quite an
experience. We went there on a business trip as our company's
other office is located there. From there they support the rigs that
are drilling for oil in the Caspian Sea. So we left Friday and spent most of
the day traveling to Atyrau (where the main office is). Saturday
morning we had to travel to another town called Bautino where the
materials base is. So another 1 hour plane ride and 2
hour drive got us to Bautino. The drive was extremely dull as the place
looks like a lunar landscape - no trees and everything covered in dust. Apparently nothing grows because of the salt content
in the earth but we suspect that all the nuclear testing the Russians
did in Kazakhstan doesn't help either.
The hotel room we had was
fantastic...with a kitchen and VCR and even movies. It was a busy trip
but ended up being a better a place then we had anticipated.
So that is the latest. We are now
gearing up for a hard work week and then our Easter trip to Canada.
The plan is to spend the first 4 days with my mom and dad and then
leave for Moncton for an east coast Canada holiday.
I hope everyone has a great
Easter....and we'll write more soon.
Ana
May 5, 2002
It is a windy and rainy Sunday in
Scheveningen. Our friend Carmen Demelo arrived last week to work
on our project! So we had a big movie night here at our place
last night and Carmen stayed over. We just finished a big
breakfast and are planning on spending the day doing lots of nothing.
We had a trip back to Canada during
easter which was great. We spent half the time in Brantford and
the other half on a vacation through the east coast of Canada where we
finally got to see the provinces of New
Brunswick, Prince
Edward Island, and Nova
Scotia. We flew first to Moncton then picked up a
rental car and started driving. Since we were there before the
beginning of the tourist season, things were very quiet, including the
bed and breakfasts we stayed at - often we were the only ones there.
Since returning, we have been quite
busy at work, but have also had some weekends away. We caught up
with Steve, Abby, Mike, and Toddy on a recent trip to Cambridge in England.
It was a very tranquilo weekend and a great chance to catch up with
some good friends we haven't seen for a while. I also had the
pleasure of a ride in Stevie's sports car!
Last weekend we did a KLM "click
and go" to Bergen, Norway!
The weather was not superb, but we enjoyed it nonetheless. I
bought myself a brand new Norwegian sweater to replace the one which
seems to have found a new home with my brother...
Ana and I are looking forward to a very
busy month. Grandma, Grandpa, and Lynn arrive next Sunday, which
also happens to be my 30th birthday! They will be staying with
us here until May 23rd when they depart for Sweden to visit our
cousins Birgit and Stig. On May 24th, Curtis and Carrie arrive
and will be here with us for a week. We are taking them on a
"surprise" weekend trip....destination unknown to them, but
which is sure to be a blast! Unfortunately Ana and I have to
work during the week but I'm sure our visitors will enjoy exploring
the Netherlands on their own while we are slaving away!
Of course, the next big event coming up
will be the Olson Family Reunion this summer! We are counting
the days...
Take care,
Kris
June 2, 2002
Another Sunday night...we are
absolutely exhausted after a very busy few weeks. Our visitors
have now come and gone, but left us with some wonderful memories and
stories! Grandma and Grandpa Gustafson were here with Lynn
visiting for a week and we all went away for a weekend to Paris which
was very nice. The rest of the time they spent exploring various
locations around the Netherlands and the Hague. They walked some
pretty serious kilometers while they were here and seemed to enjoy the
exercise.
Curt and Carrie arrived just after the
first guests left so we off again on a weekend trip - this time to
Barcelona, Spain. We all got a good dose of sunshine and Spanish
culture including some nice seafood meals and a long, long session at
a great tapas bar which we nearly cleared out. Toddy joined us
for that one as well so we had a nice chance to catch up.
I'm afraid the eyes are getting
droopy...so this will have to be a short one for now!
Kris
July 1, 2002
Happy Canada Day to all you Canucks out
there!!!
Ana and I are on the last day of our
long weekend trip in Budapest, Hungary on the way back from
Kazakhstan. Ana was working there for almost a month, and me
almost three weeks so we are happy to have a few days off before
returning to the Hague.
The time in Kazakhstan was actually
quite pleasant. We had a few nice meals out in the town but most
of the time we hung around the office and hotel complex. One
Sunday we did take off a half day to visit two of the museums in town
(Atyrau) which were very interesting. We also went for some nice
walks along the banks of the Ural river which runs through the city to
the Caspian Sea. One of the key things the Caspian Sea is known
for is the sturgeon which produce the world's best caviar. I
actually managed to find the fish store so I picked up a few tins of
it before we left. I believe we'll be having a little caviar
party tonight in The Hague with James and Carmen so we'll finally get
a chance to sample some of the stuff. To purchase it outside of
the region is extremely expensive (up to $400/can) so I suspect we
will not make caviar eating a habit!
Back to the present. Budapest has
been a lovely city to visit. We arrived on Friday afternoon,
relaxed for a couple hours, then went out to the opera! The
Danube Symphony Orchestra was playing with four opera singers, who
rotated through various snippets of famous operas and it was
absolutely splendid! The voices of those singers have to be
heard live to be believed.
We spend much of the rest of the time
exploring the city on foot. There are hundreds of beautiful
buildings and interesting monuments to see. The Danube river
flows through the city and on Sunday afternoon we went to a boat cafe
on the river to watch the Germany/Brazil final of the World
Cup.
We were happy to see Brazil win, but the only problem was that we had
drawn Germany as one of our teams at the sweepstakes we had at the
office so a German win would have pocketed us 150 euros!! Oh
well.
Our trip to Canada is approaching very
fast, in fact we only have around three weeks left of work before we
leave! We'll be happy to catch up with all of you again!
See you soon,
Kris
July 25, 2002
It is our last 15 minutes in the office
and I have time to do a quick update on our very envious
situation. We have decided not to renew our contracts and
instead go on a round the world backpacking trip!! To start
things off right, we are leaving for Portugal early tomorrow morning
to spend four days vacationing then we will be returning to The Hague
to catch our flight back to Toronto then onwards to the big Olson
reunion. But, as usual, we both have that happy/sad feeling of
leaving our friends and familiar surroundings and moving on to
something new. We can say that we took advantage of our short
time in Europe and explored a great number of interesting places and
met some special people.
Time up! Many more updates to
follow as we begin our big journey.....
Kris
Sept 10, 2002
It is the end of the Canadian summer and the temperature
outside today is 32 degrees celsius, yow!! We are coming to the
end of the longest vacation I have had in Canada for many years.
We spent three weeks in Saskatoon with the Olson crew and are now at
the end of our second week here in Brantford. Though we have
kept ourselves quite busy, it has not been at the usual chaotic pace
of our trips home so we have had a very relaxing and enjoyable time.
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