The Feisty Traveler - A Quirky Memoir by Lil Cromer

Author:Lil Cromer [Cromer, Lil]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-11-11T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Canada

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Travel engages us with the world — it teaches us new ways to measure quality of life

Years ago Hal and I traveled by car up to Ontario and Québec to visit friends and neighbors. For years we lived in a mobile home park with the majority of owners and seasonal residents being Canadian, so it was only natural to a take a summer and travel up there. The towns and cities I can recall are Aurelia, Ottawa, Montreal, Québec City, Toronto and Peterborough. Since this was before I began keeping a journal, there’s not much to report here. I do recall learning to play darts at the Canadian Legion in Aurelia, the beauty and cleanliness of Ottawa, the quaintness of Québec City, the gorgeous view from the CN tower in Toronto, the manicured golf courses in Peterborough and the fact that our hotel in Montreal had the audacity to charge fifty cents for a teeny bucket of ice.

Canadian Rockies — 2007

This trip started in Sioux Falls, SD, a fine little city that typifies what America is all about – good decent, law-abiding people with a good work ethic. I walked from the hotel to take a look at Falls Park which hosts a series of small waterfalls over granite rocks.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police Academy near Regina, Saskatchewan is set on beautiful acreage studded with many buildings. It’s a training ground for recruits. We took a look inside the chapel, which was originally the Mess Hall. After it burned down the end of the 1800s, it was restored and converted to the chapel. We spent the night at a hotel down the road in a town called Moose Jaw. The staff couldn’t have been more accommodating, providing drinks and food which was appreciated after a long day on the bus. They were some of the nicest people I’ve ever met.

I bonded with one of my fellow travelers, a character from the east coast of Florida. At each overnight stop, while the rest of the travelers were waiting to retrieve their bags (see letter to YMY below regarding the lazy bus driver), she and I headed to the bar as it was usually cocktail hour. We met and interacted with some of the locals, learning about them rather than running to our respective rooms. Here is where I sampled my first Kokanee beer and continued drinking the rest of the tour whenever it was available.

This was my first view of the Canadian Rockies. I was more accustomed to the Great Smokey Mountains, what a contrast! These mountains were formidable to say the least, barren of trees and peaked with snow.

When we got off the bus and rounded the corner at Lake Louise, I dropped my jaw. The view was so breathtaking I couldn’t stop staring. It was fortunate that my camera card had plenty of space. Couldn’t resist walking through the impressive Chateau Lake Louise where rooms started at $350 per night. Banff was a bit on the touristy side for me, kind of reminded me of Gatlinburg, TN.

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