29 July 09
We are having “fun” in Montreal.
We are at quite a nice campground some forty miles from the city, where we have good Wi-Fi but have to put up with some road noise, can’t have everything.
We arrive just in time for Christmas, the campground had decided to relieve the boredom and have a Christmas parade an hour after we arrived and so in the blazing sun, Father Christmas made his rounds on a golf cart! The children were delighted.
Our trip into the big city started well with a trip to the Montreal Olympic site, the buildings now have new practical uses, one as Canada’s answer to the Eden Project in Cornwall. This kept us amused for half a day then we moved on to the city quayside for a look at the market and the canal (no big deal). When we returned to our truck we found that someone had had a very successful go at it. The ignition lock was all smashed up and wires hanging everywhere and we were missing many items including a bicycle and the sat nav. Also we needed to get the truck “rescued”.
Sorting this problem in Canada, where the natural language is English, should not be a problem, but in this part of Canada they don’t speak much English, it’s more sort of French!
For all that the French infuriate me with their very Frenchness; these guys take it to a new level!
Even the insurance company is being difficult, so we anticipate paying for our own problems.
We have already found a superb GPS sat nav courtesy of the internet and a few other things that we need but I expect that a new bike will wait till we are back in America, hopefully day after tomorrow!
Today, the saving grace has been the fact that we have “Skype,” and so can make the many phone calls courtesy of the internet; thankfully we have a decent internet connection at the campground.
Freda spent a lot of time today on the “phone” sorting problems. A very full day, even sorting a rental car was difficult as we need to have it delivered and we are not near a major town. We have got one eventually (hopefully, tomorrow) so that we can return the 50 miles to Montreal to collect our truck which is at the Ford dealer for repair. Ford roadside rescue got us and the truck to the nearest Ford dealer, but we had to get a taxi back to the campground as all the car rental places were closed. Our most expensive taxi ride ever, at 123 CAD, that means Canadian dollars.
The rest of Canada has been fun even if it is generally 10% below the USA in terms of efficiency and service.
The weather has been very mixed, heavy rain followed by hot sun. Today has been nice and sunny even if a bit humid.
Normally I enjoy France and the French, one minute being bloody minded and then absolutely charming, but this lot in Canada, words fail me. Perhaps it is partly due to the theft problem. I have since been told that Montreal is the crime capital of Canada. I have had problems with theft in Spain, Italy and England so theft is pretty universal but I was still glad to leave behind French Canadians and head to the USA.
Maine, New England and it is the time of the Lobster Festival, well, it would be rude not to try some, wouldn’t it?
We have had a run into Rockland where the festival was in full flight. The most amusing event we saw was a row of wooden crates (about a hundred yards long) strung together and floating in the harbour. The idea was to get across as quickly as possible, and attracted the young people of the area. This was no careful walk; they were running like hell! The last competitor we saw was going like a train and hailed from Alaska, so I don’t suppose he’d had the opportunity to practice in previous years. I think I should put the video onto “You Tube” it was so much fun!
I have a new bicycle now, $99 in Wal-Mart with front and rear suspension and twenty one gears, how cheap can this sort of stuff get?
Sunday and after the promise of a bright sunny day, we had a dull and drab day, bad enough to cause the NASCAR race at Pocono to be cancelled due to rain. I had contemplated making the run down to Pocono only because my petrol head wife would have loved it all but it would have meant a considerable change of plan, glad I didn’t do that.
Monday was a stunning day and we chose to go into the nearby town of Boothbay Harbor, very New England and very Peyton Place for those of you with a long memory. We had a pleasant amble round the town and noted a two hour cruise on a 56ft schooner, Shall we? Shan’t we? We did, and what a good decision that was, thirty on board including crew and jolly good fun for all, and all for $25 a head, great stuff. The sailing part was good but we also saw seals and ospreys, lots of other stuff including a whale, although I must confess that the whale was one that had washed ashore and was very dead!
We had a coffee in the local hotel and a gentle stroll back to where our bikes were parked, a quick shop for food and then home to organize a superb evening meal.
Onboard the schooner, we had been told where to buy soft shelled lobster, cooked to order for only $4 per pound. Lobster is not our normal fare , it always seems so overpriced but at that kind of value, we had to give it a try and so after the boat trip, we went and ordered a couple of Lobsters to be collected later in the afternoon.
The previous evening we had been to a seafood restaurant and while Freda sorted out the boring stuff, I took time to video the young lady dousing the live lobsters into the steam and then preparing them for the table, a fascinating learn to be put to good use the following day!
While we were having our own lobsterfest outside our RV, our neighbor came along and introduced himself, and we made an appointment to attend his RV for wine “tasting” later in the evening.
Today has been a two hundred mile drive down to Middleboro, Massachusetts, after driving through three states (there was a short loop through New Hampshire). I had done enough driving by the time we got here, passing through Boston was crazy busy and so was the stretch to the south. I was glad to get out of the driving seat and Freda had done enough navigating thank you very much. Life is so much easier when you have sat nav and of course, more difficult without.
Caroline is travelling to this part of the world next weekend and then we will have our new sat nav at last (it was delivered to her address a couple of days ago)
We now have an agreement with our insurance company, they are going to pay and so I am feeling about a grand more cheerful!
The next day we visited Plymouth, MA where the Pilgrims first landed in USA on the Mayflower. We visited the Mayflower II, a replica of the original built in Brixham, Devon and sailed over a few years ago. It was a very hot day and we enjoyed a lovely cool milk shake full of ice cream.
Our next day out was to Martha’s Vineyard, a very exclusive part of America. Getting there cannot be complicated as it’s only thirty miles. Don’t you believe it! Drive to the outskirts of town (Falmouth) and take the shuttle bus to the ferry. The shuttle turned out to be (for us) the bike bus. This was another novel experience. We all sat one side of the bus and the bikes (about twenty of them) hung on hooks on the other side. The day was not too hot, you don’t see much when it’s too hot as you cannot be bothered to make much effort and so the temperature suited us just fine.
A forty-five minute boat ride across the water to the Island which has similarities to the Isle of Wight in some respects, (except that the homes all seemed to be very very up market). Like the Isle of Wight ferry, it is crazy expensive to take your car across so the bikes were the only way to go. I pedalled myself to a standstill and had to stop for a beer whilst the bike shop mended a puncture in my new bike! At the end of the day I was well worn.
Rhode Island. My son-in-law Bruce’s employer has spent a fortune building real estate in this part of the world. He has had constructed a tower block at a cost of $400 million and several houses, one of which we got to stay in for the weekend. It’s not every weekend that you are loaned a $2.4 million house but that’s the way the guy works. You had better be prepared to work 2.4 million hours per week for the privilege.
Bruce gave us the guided tour of the complex and it was all amazing, especially the penthouse that was looking for a new owner, someone with $15million spare change but it was lovely.
We are back to reality now, our house on wheels but it is ours and this is not difficult living. It was nice to make our way home aided by our new sat nav.
Last proper camp tomorrow in New York State for three nights then down to Quakertown, PA to clear out all our stuff before putting our “house” into store for a few months
Newburgh, near Albany, New York State.
Deep in the woods but the weather is very hot and we are glad of the shade and the air-conditioning,
We have two days here, we can spend a day getting sorted before the trip into storage and a day sight seeing, the only problem is my wife’s over active imagination. Day one sort all our stuff but only after we have been here there and everywhere. Day two is well planned but the sorting out sort of got missed!!
As if the site owners know that they have to beat the opposition and they have heard about Christmas in July at Montreal and not to be outdone by the “Hayride” offered on most camp grounds, this lot have a beautiful old fire engine that they thrash round the campground loaded with kids each day! Sirens and bells going flat out, all good fun!
Day one and we haven’t had breakfast at “Cracker Barrel” for a long time and there is one locally. This is a country style sort of place, a bit up market but very old world and nice, we just had to go. It was not much further to West Point Military Academy and it would have been rude not to go. The next day we drove into the Catskill Mountains and visited the Belleayre Ski resort. This was a not desperately exciting place but it was all trees and sunshine in a relaxed manner so it was good. Sod all was achieved re packing today!
We have fair internet connection here; this is normally free on most campgrounds we’ve been to. I note with dismay that the British Camping and Caravanning Club are offering this service at £4 per hour, an outrageous fee!
My new bike was getting scratched against the side of the truck bed as was the truck bed itself and so I dived into “Lowes” (DIY superstore) and bought some timber to sort the problem. The timber was very cheap and not the usual crap “white deal” that we have in B&Q, this was respectable hardwood that would make something durable, what a pity that I only have limited tools here, one has to have some tools but eventually one has to draw the line. Lowes is like B&Q and it is easy to see where B&Q got the idea from, to be more precise, go to “Home Depot” next time you are in the USA and you will feel very, very “at home” like you would not believe. The prices are different of course but the stuff on sale is a similar sort of stuff, same colour, same layout!
Time to move on back to Philadelphia area and empty the RV of most of the stuff before it goes into store. There’s just one problem, this morning we had an e-mail from our friendly RV dealer, who normally stores our RV, that says he is shutting down his business in a few days!
We have had a hunt round the dealers after we had parked up north of Caroline’s house in the mud of Tohickon Family Campground. They cannot help the rain (and we have had a lot!) but the place does quickly turn into a bog with little provocation. I must find somewhere else to start and end our trips.
Caroline grabbed a phone and found us a really good storage deal not far away so that will be our next and final stop for the R.V. for this year
We are having “fun” in Montreal.
We are at quite a nice campground some forty miles from the city, where we have good Wi-Fi but have to put up with some road noise, can’t have everything.
We arrive just in time for Christmas, the campground had decided to relieve the boredom and have a Christmas parade an hour after we arrived and so in the blazing sun, Father Christmas made his rounds on a golf cart! The children were delighted.
Our trip into the big city started well with a trip to the Montreal Olympic site, the buildings now have new practical uses, one as Canada’s answer to the Eden Project in Cornwall. This kept us amused for half a day then we moved on to the city quayside for a look at the market and the canal (no big deal). When we returned to our truck we found that someone had had a very successful go at it. The ignition lock was all smashed up and wires hanging everywhere and we were missing many items including a bicycle and the sat nav. Also we needed to get the truck “rescued”.
Sorting this problem in Canada, where the natural language is English, should not be a problem, but in this part of Canada they don’t speak much English, it’s more sort of French!
For all that the French infuriate me with their very Frenchness; these guys take it to a new level!
Even the insurance company is being difficult, so we anticipate paying for our own problems.
We have already found a superb GPS sat nav courtesy of the internet and a few other things that we need but I expect that a new bike will wait till we are back in America, hopefully day after tomorrow!
Today, the saving grace has been the fact that we have “Skype,” and so can make the many phone calls courtesy of the internet; thankfully we have a decent internet connection at the campground.
Freda spent a lot of time today on the “phone” sorting problems. A very full day, even sorting a rental car was difficult as we need to have it delivered and we are not near a major town. We have got one eventually (hopefully, tomorrow) so that we can return the 50 miles to Montreal to collect our truck which is at the Ford dealer for repair. Ford roadside rescue got us and the truck to the nearest Ford dealer, but we had to get a taxi back to the campground as all the car rental places were closed. Our most expensive taxi ride ever, at 123 CAD, that means Canadian dollars.
The rest of Canada has been fun even if it is generally 10% below the USA in terms of efficiency and service.
The weather has been very mixed, heavy rain followed by hot sun. Today has been nice and sunny even if a bit humid.
Normally I enjoy France and the French, one minute being bloody minded and then absolutely charming, but this lot in Canada, words fail me. Perhaps it is partly due to the theft problem. I have since been told that Montreal is the crime capital of Canada. I have had problems with theft in Spain, Italy and England so theft is pretty universal but I was still glad to leave behind French Canadians and head to the USA.
Maine, New England and it is the time of the Lobster Festival, well, it would be rude not to try some, wouldn’t it?
We have had a run into Rockland where the festival was in full flight. The most amusing event we saw was a row of wooden crates (about a hundred yards long) strung together and floating in the harbour. The idea was to get across as quickly as possible, and attracted the young people of the area. This was no careful walk; they were running like hell! The last competitor we saw was going like a train and hailed from Alaska, so I don’t suppose he’d had the opportunity to practice in previous years. I think I should put the video onto “You Tube” it was so much fun!
I have a new bicycle now, $99 in Wal-Mart with front and rear suspension and twenty one gears, how cheap can this sort of stuff get?
Sunday and after the promise of a bright sunny day, we had a dull and drab day, bad enough to cause the NASCAR race at Pocono to be cancelled due to rain. I had contemplated making the run down to Pocono only because my petrol head wife would have loved it all but it would have meant a considerable change of plan, glad I didn’t do that.
Monday was a stunning day and we chose to go into the nearby town of Boothbay Harbor, very New England and very Peyton Place for those of you with a long memory. We had a pleasant amble round the town and noted a two hour cruise on a 56ft schooner, Shall we? Shan’t we? We did, and what a good decision that was, thirty on board including crew and jolly good fun for all, and all for $25 a head, great stuff. The sailing part was good but we also saw seals and ospreys, lots of other stuff including a whale, although I must confess that the whale was one that had washed ashore and was very dead!
We had a coffee in the local hotel and a gentle stroll back to where our bikes were parked, a quick shop for food and then home to organize a superb evening meal.
Onboard the schooner, we had been told where to buy soft shelled lobster, cooked to order for only $4 per pound. Lobster is not our normal fare , it always seems so overpriced but at that kind of value, we had to give it a try and so after the boat trip, we went and ordered a couple of Lobsters to be collected later in the afternoon.
The previous evening we had been to a seafood restaurant and while Freda sorted out the boring stuff, I took time to video the young lady dousing the live lobsters into the steam and then preparing them for the table, a fascinating learn to be put to good use the following day!
While we were having our own lobsterfest outside our RV, our neighbor came along and introduced himself, and we made an appointment to attend his RV for wine “tasting” later in the evening.
Today has been a two hundred mile drive down to Middleboro, Massachusetts, after driving through three states (there was a short loop through New Hampshire). I had done enough driving by the time we got here, passing through Boston was crazy busy and so was the stretch to the south. I was glad to get out of the driving seat and Freda had done enough navigating thank you very much. Life is so much easier when you have sat nav and of course, more difficult without.
Caroline is travelling to this part of the world next weekend and then we will have our new sat nav at last (it was delivered to her address a couple of days ago)
We now have an agreement with our insurance company, they are going to pay and so I am feeling about a grand more cheerful!
The next day we visited Plymouth, MA where the Pilgrims first landed in USA on the Mayflower. We visited the Mayflower II, a replica of the original built in Brixham, Devon and sailed over a few years ago. It was a very hot day and we enjoyed a lovely cool milk shake full of ice cream.
Our next day out was to Martha’s Vineyard, a very exclusive part of America. Getting there cannot be complicated as it’s only thirty miles. Don’t you believe it! Drive to the outskirts of town (Falmouth) and take the shuttle bus to the ferry. The shuttle turned out to be (for us) the bike bus. This was another novel experience. We all sat one side of the bus and the bikes (about twenty of them) hung on hooks on the other side. The day was not too hot, you don’t see much when it’s too hot as you cannot be bothered to make much effort and so the temperature suited us just fine.
A forty-five minute boat ride across the water to the Island which has similarities to the Isle of Wight in some respects, (except that the homes all seemed to be very very up market). Like the Isle of Wight ferry, it is crazy expensive to take your car across so the bikes were the only way to go. I pedalled myself to a standstill and had to stop for a beer whilst the bike shop mended a puncture in my new bike! At the end of the day I was well worn.
Rhode Island. My son-in-law Bruce’s employer has spent a fortune building real estate in this part of the world. He has had constructed a tower block at a cost of $400 million and several houses, one of which we got to stay in for the weekend. It’s not every weekend that you are loaned a $2.4 million house but that’s the way the guy works. You had better be prepared to work 2.4 million hours per week for the privilege.
Bruce gave us the guided tour of the complex and it was all amazing, especially the penthouse that was looking for a new owner, someone with $15million spare change but it was lovely.
We are back to reality now, our house on wheels but it is ours and this is not difficult living. It was nice to make our way home aided by our new sat nav.
Last proper camp tomorrow in New York State for three nights then down to Quakertown, PA to clear out all our stuff before putting our “house” into store for a few months
Newburgh, near Albany, New York State.
Deep in the woods but the weather is very hot and we are glad of the shade and the air-conditioning,
We have two days here, we can spend a day getting sorted before the trip into storage and a day sight seeing, the only problem is my wife’s over active imagination. Day one sort all our stuff but only after we have been here there and everywhere. Day two is well planned but the sorting out sort of got missed!!
As if the site owners know that they have to beat the opposition and they have heard about Christmas in July at Montreal and not to be outdone by the “Hayride” offered on most camp grounds, this lot have a beautiful old fire engine that they thrash round the campground loaded with kids each day! Sirens and bells going flat out, all good fun!
Day one and we haven’t had breakfast at “Cracker Barrel” for a long time and there is one locally. This is a country style sort of place, a bit up market but very old world and nice, we just had to go. It was not much further to West Point Military Academy and it would have been rude not to go. The next day we drove into the Catskill Mountains and visited the Belleayre Ski resort. This was a not desperately exciting place but it was all trees and sunshine in a relaxed manner so it was good. Sod all was achieved re packing today!
We have fair internet connection here; this is normally free on most campgrounds we’ve been to. I note with dismay that the British Camping and Caravanning Club are offering this service at £4 per hour, an outrageous fee!
My new bike was getting scratched against the side of the truck bed as was the truck bed itself and so I dived into “Lowes” (DIY superstore) and bought some timber to sort the problem. The timber was very cheap and not the usual crap “white deal” that we have in B&Q, this was respectable hardwood that would make something durable, what a pity that I only have limited tools here, one has to have some tools but eventually one has to draw the line. Lowes is like B&Q and it is easy to see where B&Q got the idea from, to be more precise, go to “Home Depot” next time you are in the USA and you will feel very, very “at home” like you would not believe. The prices are different of course but the stuff on sale is a similar sort of stuff, same colour, same layout!
Time to move on back to Philadelphia area and empty the RV of most of the stuff before it goes into store. There’s just one problem, this morning we had an e-mail from our friendly RV dealer, who normally stores our RV, that says he is shutting down his business in a few days!
We have had a hunt round the dealers after we had parked up north of Caroline’s house in the mud of Tohickon Family Campground. They cannot help the rain (and we have had a lot!) but the place does quickly turn into a bog with little provocation. I must find somewhere else to start and end our trips.
Caroline grabbed a phone and found us a really good storage deal not far away so that will be our next and final stop for the R.V. for this year
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