Welcome to June in Canada:
[scroll to the very end for all the news and views]
WEATHER:
The weather is finally smiling on us. The weekends have been kind and the sun has shone. It's lovely getting out and about without wearing half your wardrobe. I wear my hat on yard duty [I am the only one!] and the sun screen has been bought in anticipation. Nice.
SCHOOL NEWS:
In the last week of school, Julie and Adam came in and ran an Aussie afternoon. We played cricket and footy and had an Aussie party. Mini showbags were given out with Aussie trinkets and farewell gifts. It was a lot of fun.
Our Aussie Mates project - sending letters and videos to RHPS, sending A3 postcards to RHPS, Kelly Koala visits and class book [sent to RHPS] had finally come to an end with a farewell video. Looking forward to my new class - I can't say yet as it is finalised the week before school goes back on September 2nd. We have a staff meeting in August. We will be starting off with Flat Stanley DownUnder, so I'll be pestering you all in Australia to be Flat Stanley hosts... PLEASE!!!!!!!!
Graduation: The kindergarten students had their graduation the week before school ended. The Grade 8 students [schooling is K-8 here] had their graduation complete with grad gown. Other than that, the Gr. 8 was similar to our Gr. 6 graduation - dinner out, slideshow, song, etc and then the last assembly. And spending the whole day to look glamorous and getting the hair done and the dress just right!!!!!! I'm sure I will have more stories to share with RHPS about the finer details on my return :-) :-)
Like every school, June is an interesting month. In both Australia and Canada, reports are being written. Here in Canada, they are the final, end of year reports. June heralds summer, packing up, class placements, planning for the next year, saying goodbye to the current class and handing out reports. Here there is no transition and no Christmas. It was really weird to be doing all of the above that is normally done in December in Australia. I felt like I should be writing out Christmas cards, doing the Christmas shopping, attending break up parties, etc. etc. A very weird feeling.
Graduation: The kindergarten students had their graduation the week before school ended. The Grade 8 students [schooling is K-8 here] had their graduation complete with grad gown. Other than that, the Gr. 8 was similar to our Gr. 6 graduation - dinner out, slideshow, song, etc and then the last assembly. And spending the whole day to look glamorous and getting the hair done and the dress just right!!!!!! I'm sure I will have more stories to share with RHPS about the finer details on my return :-) :-)
Like every school, June is an interesting month. In both Australia and Canada, reports are being written. Here in Canada, they are the final, end of year reports. June heralds summer, packing up, class placements, planning for the next year, saying goodbye to the current class and handing out reports. Here there is no transition and no Christmas. It was really weird to be doing all of the above that is normally done in December in Australia. I felt like I should be writing out Christmas cards, doing the Christmas shopping, attending break up parties, etc. etc. A very weird feeling.
CONDO LIVING:
There is light at the end of the condo as we plan our road trip that will take us to Eastern Canada for almost 7 weeks. Julie came to visit - the couch was her bed, and it was very cosy for a week - not much time spent there and a good excuse to go downtown and around each night.
We bought a mini grill for the balcony and have enjoyed sitting out and watching the traffic on Hwy 7 and the Express Tollway zoom past. It's a chance to evaluate the condo construction progress - landscaping has commenced of the opposite tower and repairs to the garden that died over winter on our side. Large trees have been planted. The opposite tower is filling up, we've had our windows cleaned [we watched the guy abseil up and down on one BBQ evening] and one shop has been opened - GoGo Tours. We wonder if the building will be finished by the time we leave.
ROAD TRIPS:
- Muskoka - Gravenhurst, Huntsville, Bracebridge. This is a beautiful part of Ontario. Known as 'cottage country' as many people [who have the money :-)] have cottages in this area. Almost uninhabitable in winter due to narrow roads, challenging river access in snow and ice, the area is just gorgeous in summer. Cottages invariably are much larger than the typcial Aussie house, so the word cottage is a misnomer. The towns are quaint and in Muskoka region, there are more waterways than land. I have discovered that the word 'cottage' can also be a verb... we 'cottaged' for the weekend, and explored for the rest. We visited the Grace and Speed museum, where Adam drooled over million dollar heritage boats. The boat cruise on Muskoka Lake was awesome and a visit to the cranberry wine farm was really good. Dinner at the cottage and lunch the next day with past exchangees meant lots of chat. A wonderful weekend.
- Montreal Jazz Festival, via Gananoque and the 1,000 islands which happened to be hosting a "RibFest". This is not to be missed.
The jazz festival was awesome. Montreal was packed with people... the main streets were blocked off and outdoor stages to rival the arena stages of Port Fairy meant lots of music everywhere. It was a hot weekend and a fantastic experience. We also spent time in "Old Montreal" down by the old harbour and port. We hired a tuk tuk and took ourselves off on an adventure.
DAY [AND NIGHT] TRIPS:
- Festivals - Unionville, Richmond Hill, King City, Newmarket.
- Kettelby for our favourite cafe fix.
- CN Tower and revolving restaurant.
- Pearson Airport to pick up Julie :-) with our Aussie flag flying.
OTHER ITEMS OF NOTE:
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| Unionville Festival |
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| Richmond Hill Festival |
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| King City Beer Craft Festival |
- Kettelby for our favourite cafe fix.
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| Great Italian bakery and great prices here. In a gorgeous heritage village about 30 minutes from our condo. |
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| We went up to the bubble -as far as you could go. The building moved! |
- Downtown Toronto Distillery district.
OTHER ITEMS OF NOTE:
- Lots of raptors flying around. Hawks, eagles, falcons, etc..... love that.
- The Ontario state elections were held. Sandwich boards were on every front yard and footpath. Billboards in every spare spot. The liberals [left wing party] were re-elected. Of more interest will be the Mayoral elections for Toronto - will Rob Ford win again despite his antics and rehab?
- Festivals - once the sun shines and June arrives, so do the large array of festivals. We have been to the Unionville festival, Richmond Hill heritage festival, King City beer craft festival, and missed out on so many more.... amazingly they close the main streets [and they are MAIN] to host these festivals.
- More farm paddocks are being sold off for condo and town house development. Sadly, in my opinion.
- Funerals - the police hold the intersection, letting all cars through. Cars have a funeral card on them which is stuck to their wipers, clearly identifying a funeral procession.
- School Fair on a Friday evening. Adam and I were in charge of the Gladiators Jousting inflatable for an hour - fun.
- It's really hard when you are far away and people who have been a part of your life pass away. RIP Julie's mum and Wendy's dad. You know I send huge HUGS your way.
HIGHLIGHTS AND LOWLIGHTS:
- Pulled Pork
- The LCBO and Beer Shop. No drive in bottle shops.
- Bugs
- The "Newmarket Six" - our friends who continue to look out for us and have us for tea as well!!!!!!
- Sick again. And again. And again.
- Trying to make a start on my research project about Principal selection and appointment process.
- Tornado warnings
- Julie's visit
- speaking French in Montreal and switching to Spanish to chat to Alejandro, our friendly artist. Just had to buy some of his work - how we are going to get stuff home is a mystery to me!!!
DON'T FORGET THAT YOU CAN FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK:
MARY AND ADAM IN CANADA
email: contrary33@gmail.com or adsfz001@gmail.com
Where do we live:
370 Highway 7E, #825
Richmond Hill - L4B 0C4.
Ontario
Canada