Journey: Taiwan - Vancouver (flight 15 hours), Vancouver - Revelsoke (Hitchiked 12 hours), Revelstoke - Victoria (Bus/Ferry 16 hours), Victoria - Hornby Island (Bus and Ferry 4 hours), Hornby Island - Victoria (Ferry and Hitchiked 4 hours), Victoria - Vancouver (Bus and Ferry 2 hours), Vancouver - Toronto (Flight 4 hours), Toronto - Hamilton (Drive 1 hour) Total duration: 58 hours, over the course of one month...Happy 2008 everyone. Time to say hello to the new and toss the old out like a bag of rotten potatoes, taking the good ones out of the bag first of course... It has been a long time since I wrote and informed all of my wonderful friends around the planet what it is that I am up to these days. It's strange to be writing a blog from home, as I feel that it is a way to tell you about my travels, and I don't think home = travelled territory. Nonetheless, here's the past few months in a nutshell...
When I left Taipei, I felt a little anxious about returning to my homeland as it was never part of my plan. I felt that I needed some time with friends in beautiful BC before going back to Ontario to get adjusted to Western culture again. I met up with a couchsurfer Darren in Vancouver and he let me stay in his wonderful home right in down town Van, near the beach. My friend Dustin came the second day and met up with us, and we continued on to Revelstoke (where he lives) together in a travelling art form commonly known as (dad don't read this part) hitchiking! It took us about 12 hours and we travelled in about 5 different vehicles and met some really great people including an interesting woman with all of her material posessions in the backseat, and the father of two guys Dustin knew from Revi.
When we finally got to Revi I decided to stay for about a week to spend some time with my ol friend from Taiwan and get aquainted with his wonderful girlfriend Shannon. Not to mention the amazing scenery of Revelstoke being a magnet keeping me there. All those pictures of beautiful landscapes with snow capped mountains in the backdrop, picture that and more. During the week we hiked a lot, saw lots of bears, went swimming in the nearby lake and visited Dustin's newly purchased land, which is in the middle of nowhere, well it's close to Neeeewwww Denver! That one was for you Dusty ;) I made some new friends as well and as it turned out, through a very strange coincidence, Ryan knew a guy that I'd met in Thailand three years ago, Randy. Such a small world. So I contacted Randy and told him that I'd met Ryan and he said, "well why don't the three of us meet up and hike a glacier?" Well it wasn't coffee but hiking a glacier sounded like a good idea to me, so off we went.
We left Revelstoke with Ryan's friend Tom who was passing through on his way to Calgary. The three of us hiked up Roger's Pass, which is beside the highest point on the cross Canada hiway. When we reached the top, the weather changed incredibly fast, and as we were walking down, we got hit by hail the size of peanut m&ms. Afterwards, Ryan and I drove for two hours to a wee little "town" called Spillimachine, although I don't know if it can even qualify as a town... We set up camp and went to Radium hotsprings, which is actually a very large outdoor swimming pool equipped with hot water and chlorine... We made a feast back on our campfire and then turned out the flashlights. The next morning Randy magically appeared! The three of us set off on our big adventure. He brought us to the old little cabin that he used to live in as a child, and a waterfall close to the glacier. At the base of the Bugaboos (name of glacier) we had to porcupine proof our car but putting a fence around it and wooden pillars. There were also signs around saying, "Do not pee on or near the deck as porcupines love urine flavoured wood." Welcome to Canada folks :)
It took us about 3 hours to hike the trail up and the view was indescribable, amazing beauty that made me so proud to call this my country. We reached the top, which had a cabin with a full kitchen and HEAT! It was September but even in the summer, there's ice and snow at the top, being a glacier and all. We couldn't stay long cause sun down was coming fast so we made our way down, eating fresh raspberries along the way. It was an incredible experience and I felt blessed to meet and be reunited with two wonderful people.
I took the overnight bus back to Vancouver and then a ferry over to Vancouver Island the next day. I met up with two of my best friends Hayley and Troy and we went straight to the ocean. I stayed at Hayley's house with she and her roommate Dan, who was a very friendly and environmentally aware kinda guy. The three of us and Troy went dumpster diving at the local health food store one night, justifying along the way how doing this was saving the world by saving perfectly good food that used up fuel to transport it there and energy to break it down afterwards. That's just us, saving the planet one bunch of kelp at a time...
Hayley and I took the bus to Hornby island the following weekend. It's about a 3 hour bus ride from Victoria and then a 40 minute ferry to Denman then Hornby. The only mode of transportation once on the island is hitchiking unless you choose to use your feet. Everyone is used to this though and helps everyone else. We stayed at a wonderful place called Deerheart Sanctuary which was in a beautiful forest setting with deer running around day and night. We camped and used their outdoor facilities, washroom and kitchen. They also had a Yurt which is a mongolian hut, in which we did yoga and meditated. The island has a very special feel to it, people feel drawn there for very profound reasons and some never leave. Hayley and I both felt the beauty of the island and enjoyed exploring it. The fall festival happened to be on this weekend so we went and met up with many of the locals, which was a fortunate opportunity as Hornby at other times of the year is overrun by tourists. We both felt sad to say goodbye and knew that we'd be back.
I spent another week in Victoria and celebrated Hayley's birthday with her. She came back to Vancouver with me and I got to spend some time with my cousins, whom I hadnt seen in years! We also hiked the grouse grind, which I was very proud of as last time I forgot my inhaler and didnt make it... I again felt so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people in such a beautiful place. It was time to leave BC and continue on to Hamilton Ontario, which was my purpose for being in Canada.
As most of you already know, I came back to Canada to help a family member. My mom found out in the summer that she had breast cancer. My initial reaction was of course shock and fear but I soon replaced that with strength and certainty that she will get through this. I began to look at the word Cancer and realized that you can approach it in two different ways. You can see it as a disease, as something responsible for taking lives. Or you can see it as an opportunity, if caught in time, to fight it and look for reasons to survive. To not say "I may die of cancer" but rather "I can-cer-vive!" So that was my attitude and I came home to see to it that this is exactly the way it would go.
Surprisingly, despite my plans to travel, my return for this reason was not a difficult decision, although I was really afraid of coming back to live in Hamilton after 9 years! My mom didn't know that I was coming back when I did so my dad picked me up at the airport and I surprised her. It was a very emotional reunion and I knew that this is exactly where I am meant to be at this time.
Life is tricky and the universe has a way of placing you exactly where you need to be at certain times. Sometimes things don't always go as we plan, but that's why a plan is just a plan and not a certainty. We never know until we're actually there doing it. Therefore the only time and place that we can truly depend on, is here and now. I've tried not to resist being here, although at times challenging, it has been surprisingly comforting and positive. I've been given fantastic employment opportunities which have put me in two wonderful organizations, working with very positive people. I have a new niece whom I love spending time with. I've met some really great new people and had a great time catching up with old friends. And I felt so excited to be able to spend Christmas with my friends and family. I again feel very greatful to be provided for and I'm certain that when the time is right, I will continue my worldly journey.
I wish everyone reading this a magnificent 2008. It is going to be a great year, filled with positive change, growth and happiness beyond our imagination. I feel that 2007 was a challenging year for many and I feel confident that after every period of suffering, an even greater period of joy will follow.
I look forward to hearing from you and your feedback is always welcome.
Love and peace
Tiffany
Check out my photos from BC and Ontario at: http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=a415xus7.7brszinj&Uy=-tvrhju&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0
Click on the above link or cut and paste it into your internet address line. Enjoy :)
