Finding the Best Priced Plane Ticket to Saint Martin to Visit My Best Friend

I am fortunate that I have made a few good friends throughout the course of my teaching career. Most of my teacher friends are retired now with some leaving Toronto and moving to other smaller communities. Li, my best girl friend, took up a job offer in an exotic location. Recently, she called and invited me to visit her at St. Martin for a week.

I hesistated for a few days, not sure if I should accept this invitation. First of all, it was a short notice and I was not sure if I could get a reasonable priced plane ticket. Secondly, it would be a busy month ahead of us as we have planned for a long trip coming up in a few weeks.

Then Li. called again informing me that there were some very reasonable flight tickets available from Westjet flying to St. Martin. It was under a thousand Canadian dollars. Why not, I thought. If I didn't go this time to see my best girl friend, when would I have this opportunity again to spend a week with her in a tropical island famous for its sunny weather and sandy beaches?

Siezing this opportunity, we started researching for the best priced ticket to St. Martin. Of all the airline companies from which we tried to buy the return ticket, Westjet airline came out on top offering the lowest price with the best flight time, beating out other airlines and third party agencies like Expedia and Cheapo Air.

Pleasantly surprised, I was able to purchase the return tickets from Toronto, Canada to St. Martin way below a thousand dollars. Off I went to see my best friend and looking forward to visit St Martin for the first time! RT, Toronto, Canada 042024

Cobourg, a Beautiful Small Ontario Waterfront Town with a Lovely Beach

We visited our good friend and celebrated his birthday with him in Bellville, a small town about two hours drive from Toronto. After spending a couple of days with HP and Ra., we stopped and visited Cobourg, a small town about 80 Km from Toronto on our way home.

Though we drove by Cobourg many times in the past many years, for some reason, we never felt the need to stop there for a visit. This time, we did and we discovered another beautiful small town within driving distance from our home.

Cobourg, with a population of around 20,000, is growing. We visited the downtown street lined with some nice shops and restaurants. We enjoyed a hardy traditional breakfast at one of the trendy eateries. It was relaxing and enjoyable.

After lunch, we explored the city a little and discovered the city's lovely waterfront park close by. This small town is evidently growing as we saw many new modern homes recently built along the shore.

To our pleasant surprise, we also discovered a nice sandy beach in the waterfront area. How lovely it was walking barefooted on a prestine beach!

Another interesting fact about Cobourg - it was the site of the location shooting for a Netflix series called Ginny and Georgia. Apparently, the production team like Cobourg so much that they returned to shoot there for a second season. After our visit to Cobourg this time, we will definitely will return in the future again! RT, Cobourg, Ontario, Canada 042024

Keeping Connected and Celebrating My Best Friend's Birthday in His Bellville Retirement Home

As we get older, we gradually come to the realization that the most precious things we have in this world is not necessarily our material possessions, but the relationships we have cultivated over the years. I have been fortunate as I have made some good friends over the course of my teaching career in Canada.Eact time as I started working at a new workplace I have always been fortunate to be connected with a nice person who eventually becomes one of my good friends. HP is one of my best friends whom I befriended when I was teaching in a school near the Ontario Science Centre.

Though we both have retired more than a decade ago, we have managed to keep in touch with each other. We visited regularly and are able to support and have fun together in our retirement years. HP moved to a smaller town about two hours from Toronto, but we still visit him at least two to three times a year. It was his birthday in April, we took the drive and celebrated with him and his new friends at his new home. Yes, we both have grown older but we still are very good friends and share each other's joy and sorrows.

I am not a baker, but I did it for my friend, HP. For his birthday, I baked two cakes using two packages of cake mixes and then I put them together as one cake and decorated it with some chcoclate rolls. Voila, a custom made birthday cake for my best friend. We had a blast visiting HP and celebrated his birthday with him. RT, Bellville, Ontario, Canada 15042024

Experiencing a Total Eclipse with My Loved Ones in Hamilton, Canada

One of the very special experience we had in 2024 was expereinceing a total eclipse in Hamilton, Canada. We heard reports both on the radio and tv that there would be a total eclipse that could be viewed in a few cities in Canada. One of which was in the Niagara Falls area. Niagara Falls is a very famous Canadian tourist destination. Initially, we wanted to spend a night there and also view the eclipse. But after hearing report that there might be a million visitors flocking to Niagara Falls and chekcing the price of the hotels there, we changed our plan.

Instead, we drove to Hamilton which would be right on the north edge of the path and the city would see the maxmium solar eclipse for about two minutes. We could also visit our sister and spend a night there. The next day, after lunch, We walked to the park near my sister's condo about an hour before the eclipse was to take place. People were starting to trickle in to the park with their children, lounge chairs and blankets to keep themselves comfortable.

We strolled around leisurely waiting for this rare natural phenomenmom to take place. The anticipation of this great event had been building for a while. Days before, We called around for special eclipse viewing sunglasses but they were all out everywhere. Our pubic library and the Ontario Science Centre was giving them out for free to people but we didn't get them in time. We thougt we might have to miss it but we were lucky that we found a science shop still had some special glasses in stock.

We got them and off we went to Hamilton and there we were. It wasn't easy trying to see the sun through these special glasses. Wearing these glasses, what I saw was blackness except for a speck of light which was the sun peeking through from the cloudy sky.If it were a sunny day, the view could have been easier. But it wasn't. We were afraid that we woud have missed the entire solar eclipse due to the cloudy sky.

Around 2pm, the sky slowly turned grey over a period of about ten minntes. Then around 3pm, the sky turned darker and darker and at around 3;18PM for about 1 minute and 47 seconds less than two minutes, the entire sky became black in the middle of the day and the air turned colder. What a strange feeling all of a sudden. The other spectators turned quiet , then uhs and aws as the eclipse progressed.

Then it was over, too short and too soon. How we wished the eclipse could last a little longer. But to experience this wonderful rare space event, I felt immensely grateful that I was a part of nature that day to witness God's creations.

RT, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada 08042024

An Excellent Outdoor Activity for Children in Spring - Looking for Sweet Treats in Our Garden

We thanked God that we landed back in Canada safe and sound after our oversea trip in March, 2024. It was spring, around Easter time and everything was coming alive again. In this day of age when children are so used to gluing in front of their computers or cell phones, it was a joyful sight to see all the little kids filling our backyard, running around looking for the little plastic eggs, exercising their little legs, laughing and having fun.

We hosted an outdoor fun activity in spring around Easter for B. and her little friends from school and church last year. They had so much fun that she wanted to have this special event again in our backyard. We love seeing children happy, particulatly if they are having fun in our house. We gladly agreed to host this event again.

There were some prparations we needed to do ahead of time, such as cleaning up the backyard, removing debris from last year's backyard renovation and making sure our house was presentable should our little guests or their parents need to come in for a rest or something. We were glad that Al. was helping us to finish many of these tasks. We cleaned up the whole yard, hid the Easter eggs all over the garden and finally got the tables set up with the prizes for the children.

We even offered refreshments to parents who were dropping off their kids for this Easter Egg Hunt party. They were happy as they sat on the deck, drinking their hot beverages and watching their children running around and having fun in the garden.

It was absolutley delightful hearing the children's laughter and shout for joy as they discovered the hidden eggs and collected them into their baskets. It was a really fun event not just for the kids, but for us as well. Thank God that we still were able to host this children's event. RT, Toronto, Canada 042024

Hotel Canada - A Review of Our Hotel in Lisbon, Portugal

We were on holiday in Lisbon, Portugal at the beginnnng of March 0f 2024 and stayed at Hotel Canada for our entire stay there. The best thing about Hotel Canada is its convenient location to some nice districts and neigbourhood in Lisbon. From the hotel, it took us merely ten minute walk to Principe Real, an easy and comfortable walk for us. We walked by this neighbourhood almost everyday.

We visited a couple of modern spacious shopping malls with trendy shops on Avenida da Liberdade. We ate dinner a couple of times in the nice cafes and restaurants in the mall. When we frist visited the area, we were impressed by the tree-lined wide aveneue dotted with a few outdoor beverage bars.

We gave Hotel Canada two thumbs up not only for its excellent location but also for its delicious complimentary hot buffet breakfast provided by the hotel each morning. There were both traditional hot and cold breakfast items served such as scrambled eggs, bacons, beans and delicious sausages.

In addition, there were fresh veggie salad, fresh fruits and fruit juices, a vareity of freshly baked breads and pastries, cheese, yoyourt etc. We have had many complimentary breakfasts at different hotels around the world, Hotel Canada's breakfast was among one the best we ever had.

If we wanted to, we could have enjoyed our delicious breakfast on the patio right outisde the dining room. Since the weather was still a bit cool in March, we were contented to stay indor. But I could imagine what a lovely time it would be in the summer enjoying our morning capuccino in this nice garden. We loved Hotel Canada and will definitely come back and stay there when we visiit Lisbon again in the future!

RT, Hotel Canada Lisbon, Portugal

Tram 28, Lisbon - Taking us Through the Different Districts of the City on Our Last Day

This was our last day in Lisbon, Portugal. We enjoyed our time in Lisbon tremendously! We wished to see as much of Lisbon as possible on our own, therefore, we took the most famous tram in Lisbon, Lisbon Tram 28 at Martim Moniz as receommended by some travel guidebook. It was a Sunday and we planned to attend an afternoon Sunday service after the ride. But the wait was very long, more than an hour.

I went to the park across from the station. Finally we got on the tram taking us through the popular districts of the city.

We saw some manificient buildings inclduing Se Cathedral in Alfama, Baixa - Chiado, a much visited and tourist-friendly Lisbon neighborhood, Sao Bento, Estrela and Camp Ourique.

It was a scenic tour of Lisbon and the most exciting part for us was riding through the narrow alleys and streets. Many times, I wondered if the tram would make it through some of the very narrow streets and tight corners withput hitting anything. Amazingly it did!

Riding on Tram 28, we had a general idea about Lisbon. However, two districts stood out for me - the Baixa Pombalina neighbourhood, only a stonethrow away from our hotel where we stayed during our vacation in Lisbon, Portugal. This week we learned about some of portugal's interesting history. Baxia Pombalina derived its name from Marquês de Pombal who was a senior government official and initiated many important reforms. After the catastrophic earthquake of November 1, 1755, two-thirds of Lisbon was reduced to rubble. MobilizING troops, obtaining supplies, and had shelters and hospitals improvised, the day after the devastating earthquake, Pombal already outlined ideas for reconstruction.

With help and plans from architect Santos, the old medieval Lisbon was changed into one of the most beautiful European cities which we come to love today. Pompal deserved much recognition as he oversaw the city's reconstruction as he had a lot to do with Lisbon's meticulously city design with a layout of straight, perpendicular streets centered around Rua Augusta.

Tram 28 also went by the neighbourhood where we walked by everyday, the Príncipe Real - Lisbon's Stylish and Cultural Neighborhood. This is a sophisticated upscale district offering high-end shopping on Avenida da Liberdade where visitor could find designer fashion and glamour.

The area is full of luxurious hotels and an iconic Hard Rock Cafe. We did enjoy afternoon drinks and dinners on the tree-lined wide avenue. We observed many well dressed locals strolling leisurely or enjoying drinks at one of the many beverage and snack bars placed at the middle of the pedestrain walks.

Tram 28 was a fun ride and we saw many of the great neighbourhoods in Lisbon! RT, Tram 28 Lisbon, Portugal 032024

Enjoying an Aerial View of Lisbon Without Riding the Santa Justa Lift - Portugal

There are many interesting incredible attractions to see in Lisbon, Portugal. In a couple of well known travel shows, the hosts recommended a place on one's Lisbon Portugal trip: the Santa Justa lift. Therefore, the Santa Justa Lift was also on our to see list while we were in Lisbon.

This wrought-iron elevator erected in 1902, is located in the Baixa -Chiado district. This lift was designed by Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, the architect responsible for the iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris. The lift transports visitors 148 feet skyward, offering an incredible bird's eyeview of Lisbon's historic neighborhoods.

Because the Santan Justa Lift was so famous that it attracted a lot of visitors to Lisbon. On the way, we visited the Baixa-Chiado district, there were many people lining up for the lift. Alway trying to avoid long lineups, we seeked an alternate way to get up to the hill instead of spending time on the line up. While walking up the hill instead of riding the elevator, we stopped, enjoyed some nice scenery, a drink on the patio cafe and some free music.

When we reached to the top of where the elevator was supposed to deliver its riders, we discovered a magnificent aerial view of the city of Lisbon. It was quite a breathtaking scene! The weather was mild and the scenery was spectacular. With nice music playng in the backgroun, we sat on the patio and enjoyed some famous local refreshments. What a lovely way to spend an afternoon!

RT, SANTA JUSTA lIFT Lisbon, Portugal