I'll be Home For Christmas...I am, I am!

Yes, I'm home, sweet home again and, considering the weather I was greeted by, a title like "I'll be Home For Christmas" somehow seems fitting. Exhausted and only slightly battered and bruised (suitcases and bus aisles did a number on me!), it's good to be home. Looking back over my blog, I realize I didn't really keep up my part of the bargain in the blog update department. Let's see if I can redeem myself a little bit.

Now, where did I leave off? Belleville, Ontario. From there we carried on to a few more Ontario cities. It was a great run, finishing in Ottawa. I was reminded again how much I love Ottawa. It's such a beautiful city with such a different pace, even if it is the home of all of our politicians! We had a little bit of time so we wandered Parliament Hill. A bunch of us decided it was time to go for a tour of Parliament itself. Government was in session so we couldn't see all of it but it was still a fun adventure...the cynicism of the western Canadians in the crowd was barely contained...barely.

The Ottawa event was the last event for a bunch of our recruiters so goodbye's were also a part of the day. We had a pretty good laugh at our wrap up meeting as Robert retold of his adventures from earlier that evening in the cab he caught after he was left behind by the bus. Still feel bad about leaving him behind but we had to go...sorry, Robert! He was so good about it and had us all in stitches as he told his story. I don't know if it was so much the story or how he told it. So funny.

Next morning, the remainder of us were off to Montreal. It's probably not fair to say we were in Montreal since that would lead people to believe that we actually experienced Montreal. We didn't, really, although some of us were able to get a taste of real Montreal Smoked Meat and poutine. What more can you ask for? The event was great, too. Longer than any of our others but pleasantly surprising. It was the first time the CCUFairs had been in Quebec at all. Like a lot of other things, Quebec has it's own spin on the education system so we weren't really sure how we would be received. Our host, Jack Bauer (yes, that was his real name), had done a lot to make sure that it was good for everyone. I look forward to working with him again.

Then we had a big ole' driving day. Montreal to Fredericton. Who knew our country was so darn big!? It was a full day but, like our Montreal event, pleasantly surprising. My favorite part was for sure the camaraderie that we experienced...even with only 14 of us spread throughout a coach bus. I think it helped that our number was smaller. Oh, and the stop where no one in the town spoke English other than us was probably helpful to. I managed to get my order right at Tim Horton's mostly in French! There were movies, pictures, conversations, jokes, laughter and even some sleep. We hit a big snowstorm on the way but, as we expected, Wib, our driver was a genius. If we hadn't been looking out the window to see the beautiful winter wonderland (or treacherous roads, depending on your perspective), we never would have known!

Now, on to the maritimes.So excited! First impressions? Things to note?

• Fredericton and Moncton were much smaller centers than I had expected seeing that they are major centers.
• Our hotel in Moncton was fantastic! The Crystal Palace, complete with an Amusement Park, a themed pool, and a Chapters and Starbucks. To Tim's disappointment, the amusement park was closed but a few of us did get to take advantage of the video games. Definitely a highlight. Thanks, guys! And yes, having Starbucks in the hotel was not half bad...even if I did end up with a gingerbread latte minus the gingerbread.
• The people. It really is a different feel in the Maritimes! All of our hosts at the different venues were fantastic and friendly people. If they are any indication of the type of people in that part of the country, it is definitely a good place to live and grow up!
• Seafood. I've eaten so much seafood in the last couple weeks (and enjoyed it) and I don't even like fish! Scallops, lobster, shrimp, salmon, haddock, mussels....mmmmm....
  
• Having the opportunity to see some of the sights of a part of the country I'd never been to:
• Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick side
• Hopewell Rocks, New Brunswick
• Magnetic Hill, New Brunswick...blows my mind, really!
  
• Confederation Bridge, PEI - 13 km of bridge over ocean. Pretty incredible!
  
• Cavendish, PEI
• The ocean side cliffs in PEI with their beautiful red rocks...nearly lost Lane to the tide! Yikes.
  
• Anne of Green Gables Provincial Park, PEI
• Confederation House, PEI - I've stood in Canada's birthplace...so great!
  
• Open mic night in Charlottetown, PEI. My friend's Tim and Shelly gave to peer pressure and shared their talents...and they are talented. It was pretty incredible. The locals wanted an encore even! Thanks guys!

I feel like I must be forgetting so much. It was just such a good trip in so many ways. Sure, numbers at some of the venues were not what we might have wanted but I think we can be thankful for the people that came, the conversations we had and the way that God will use the seeds we had the opportunity to plant.

It's been good for me too. I feel like, in many ways, it was the mirror that I needed to see some truths about myself and the talents I have. One of the personal highlights for me was the presenting that I did. It gave me the opportunity to find something surprising about myself. I love to speak. Not just talk. We knew that before. I'm a talker. I get that. I just had no idea how much I would enjoy that level of public speaking. My last presentation was at a Christian high school an was easily the most intimidating as all the reps were there for the first time. I was so nervous! It was, however, one of the presentations I'm most proud of. It was like the nerves fed me a little, actually. I kept somewhere around 70 grade 9-12 students engaged as I presented on college and finances for nearly 40 minutes. That's not an easy feat, I decided! And it was fun! Just one of many personal surprises along the way!

I learned a lot about community too. I guess you can't avoid it when you spend that long with the same people, basically doing life together 24/7. The trick will be figuring out how to find a way to live more 'in community' now that I'm home.

To finish off,I took advantage of being in a new part of the country and had a little sightseeing adventure. Sean and Cheryl met me in Halifax and we spent a couple extra days exploring. We decided we were not the average tourists! We ended up in all sorts of funny places, walked tons of the city and, we think, really experienced the city. It was fabulous. I could probably go on for hours but I won't. Frankly, I applaud you if you're still reading this novella I'm penning! Here's a point form itinerary of our adventures:

Wednesday
- foot ferry across the harbour
- pier 21
- garrison beer
- harbour walk
- The citadel
- found our hotel (no left turns, it seems, are allowed when driving in Halifax!)
- McKelvies delicious fishes dishes (supper). Isn't that a fun name!?

Thursday
- Peggy’s Cove
- Mahone Bay
- Lunnenberg...home of the Bluenose II, replica of the beauty on our dime.
- Beautiful drive!
- Tug’s pub (snack), where we got a heads up on all sorts of places to find traditional maritimer music in the evenings.

Friday
- wander city streets
- Freak Lunchbox, a super fun candy shop. Like a walk through my childhood!
- Rum Shop/Sugars on the water
- Chocolate shop…to make 3 candy shops by lunchtime!
- Economy Shoe Shop (lunch)
- Salty’s (supper)
- Lower Deck – Signal Hill, an up and coming maritimer band played. They were fantastic!

Saturday
- Saturday farmer's market - NA's oldest farmer's market
- Keith’s brewery
- Spring Garden Road
- Rogue’s Roost (supper)
- Lighting of the Christmas tree, complete with fireworks, in front of city hall...apparently a big deal in Halifax!

Sunday
- Victorian Christmas at the Citadel
- Spring garden road pt. 2
- Public gardens
- Maritime Museum
- Walk the McDonald Bridge from Halifax to Dartmouth and back
- 2nd half of greycup game – Saskatchewan!? While I was hoping for such an outcome, it leaves me with one question: has hell frozen over too?
- Triangle (pub for supper)
o Live music by the Wingnuts, a fun pair of maritimer musicians
- Halifax Alehouse (lunch), decked out exactly like you would expect an alehouse should be

Monday
- massages at a spa on Spring Garden Road for Cheryl and I
- wandering through the Ship yards
- Pointe Pleasant Park
- some last minute stops in downtown Halifax
- Bubbles eatery (drinks) - creepy sign had my attention all week. turns out it's the pub owned by the guy who plays Bubbles in the Trailer Park Boys
- Halifax Alehouse (supper) - a great group was just finishing as we walked in. Must have been some Christmas party before we got there that had them hired...a little disappointing they didn't stay on. They were great.

Tuesday
- up bright and early to fly home...

Add hot tubs, photo opps and lots of good conversation into that and you've got our trip. I'm really glad we took the opportunity and that Sean and Cheryl could join me. Adventures like that are much more fun with friends!

So there you have it. 1 1/2 months. Coast to Coast. 2 countries (did I ever write about my Chicago visit?). All but one of Canada's fine provinces. 6 out of 6 1/2 time zones. Lots of fun. Lots of learning.

*You can find pictures of the adventures at my shutterfly sight: www.spareparts.shutterfly.com