Whale Watching in Vancouver, British Columbia

Whale watching in Steveston, British Columbia

We have not seen J. for a couple of years and we decided to meet in Vancouver.

One of the activities he really wanted to do was whale watching. We did whale watching when we travelled o the east coast of North America but we never got a glimpse of any whale while on the tour.

With only a day in advance, we were lucky enough to book a tour for 3 people and this company guaranteed sighting of whales on the tour so we decided to try it again.

The tour company had a paid shuttle which picked us up at the Ramada Inn downtown which was close to where we were staying. We were picked up around 1 pm and were at the Steveston wharf at 1:15pm.

We had good weather that day. The sky was clear and the temperature was comfortable. 

The tour company even provided tour participants with free raincoats and other gear, very thoughtful indeed.

We board the small motor boat with about two dozen people on board. The captain was in charge of the boat while a young lady acted as our guide.

We chose a shady spot of the boat and enjoyed a pleasant boat ride around the waters of Vancouver.

The water was blue so was the sky. The breezes were gentle and cool.

It was a fantastic feeling! 

This was our first family outing for a little while; I and we were enjoying it.

Whenever there was a possibility of seeing a whale, everyone on board got excited and rushed to the side of the boat to get a good look of the marine mammal.

The water was busy filled with tour boats, small and medium size trying to get a close look of these marvelous creatures.

With modern technologies and better tracking devices, there were way more actions this time than we had even seen in previous outings. 

With communications from the other boats that saw whales close by, our captain was able to pilot the boat close to the locations where whales had been sighted by other vessels.

The most exciting moment for us was when a couple of whales swam close to the bow of our boat and did  some flipping.  Many of us were able to capture these rare moments and close encounters.

We had sightings of whales during a whale watching excursion in Vancouver, B.C. !

Along the way, we also saw some sea lions suntanning on an island close by.

It was an enjoyable and informative tour! A great family activity.

After the whale watching tour, we walked around Steveston and boarded the shuttle taking us back to downtown Vancouver. 

We took a stroll around downtown Vancouver and went for dinner in China town. It was a delicious meal after all that walking!

We walked back to our hotel after dinner and called it a day.

R.T.
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada

Visiting Vancouver and Meeting Our Loved Ones in Gastown

We were pretty excited as we would be meeting our loved ones and enjoying a great holiday with one of them. It made me happy just thinking about the next couple of weeks.

We left Toronto at 6am boarding a plane for Vancouver. It was an uneventful flight as everything went according to schedule.  The scenery while flying over the Rockies was spectacular!

We arrived at Vancouver Airport after  a three hour flight. We did not ask anyone to pick us up as it was easy taking the Sky Train to our downtown hotel.

We arrived at the hotel around 12pm and were able to check in and rested for a little while before we got connected with J. who was staying at a hostel on Granville Ave as well.

We met him at a Thai restaurant for lunch. J looked happy and he shared with us enthusiastically about his brand new ultra modern high resolution small camera that he bought recently.

We had a really good conversation at this fast food take our place.

We visited Gastown, Vancouver. We were there at a few  minutes before pm. I visited Gastown a few times but never was not there right at the hour for its hourly steam whistles.

We saw a few musicians busking at the street corners as well as a few interesting characters such as this big head character poking his huge head from behind trees and street lamps.

 My favourite was the musician singing Lenny Cohan's Alleluia while a huge lady figure dancing around on the street to this song.

We had dinner at a restaurant in the Vancouver Chinatown. The food was good and we had another nice conversation and caught up with what J has been doing.

By the time we walked back to our hotel,  I was exhausted from our activities and straight to bed!

R.T.
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada   

Spending a Lovely Afternoon in Bryant Park, Manhattan, New York

Recently, we attended a  conference in New Jersey which finished at 12pm on Sunday. We were able to get a ride from Fifi and her husband who live and work in the vicinity of the conference venue.

They dropped us off at the Trenton Transit Centre. The first thing we did after leaving the TCNJ campus was to check our phone messages and wifi as we were unable to get wifi access and phone messages at the conference location.

A street blocked off for pedestrians i downtown Manhattan, NYC, USA 

Thank goodness, we were able to connect with E. on S’s cell. Then took the 2:37pm New Jersey train to Penn station in New York. I  was surprised how crowed the train was on s Sunday afternoon.

By the time we were out of the Penn Station, it was 4:40pm. We waited for E, at 5^th and 33^rd Street for a few minutes. Then we saw an excited E. running towards us to greet us! What a feeling to be so welcome. E. was dressed in his gym outfit and he looked fit and well.





 He asked us what we would like to see in NY. We told him, we wanted to be outside enjoying the lovely weather.














He took us to his favourite park -

 the Bryant Park, a lovely public outdoor space for New York residents.


There were a few food stands and cafes opened and E. took us for a quick tour of the park.

The park was busy with visitors! 

Bryan Park was designed as a Scenic Landmark in 1974 by the New York Landmark Preservation Commission.









Designed in the French Classical style, Bryan Park covers an area of six acres.

It is an urban oasis with many mature trees, more than 100 types of woody shrubs, perennials and 150,000 bulbs!

Admission to the park was free and there were a lot to do for park visitors.

Enjoying reading and being outdoor at Bryant Park's Reading Room

We discovered a Reading Room in the park where free books and programs were available for children and adults.

What a great idea! An outdoor reading room to enjoy two of the most enjoyable activities in life - reading and enjoying the outdoors!

There were lots of things for families and kids to do, such as this carousel.

Playing mini golf at Bryant Park, NYC

 A mini golf course for the little park visitors.

People enjoying a ping pong game at Bryant Park, Manhattan , NY

There were ping pong tables for ping pong beginners and enthusiasts.

We saw a stage for performances and free movie showings during the summer months.

We ordered some cold drinks, a special taro chips, salsa and a kimchi bacon burger- delicious!

It was good catching up with what’s happening with E and his important papers.

We stopped at McDonald for ice cream and then
he took us to Time Square.
















 Lots of people, more than I remembered from our last visit.

People watching at Time Square, NYC

It was nice just sitting there and enjoying people watching and the breezes blowing on our faces.

Leaving New York City that evening at 8:45pm from the New York Port Authority, we needed to be mindful of our time. E. took us to the bus terminal, carrying my suitcase and finding us the right terminal. He was very helpful indeed. It was good seeing him even for a few hours! We are grateful for any time we could spend with our loved ones!

R.T.
New York CIty,
USA

Attending the New York Summer Conference at TCNJ, the College of New Jersey

The NYSC held at the College of New Jersey

Beautiful buildings on the campus of TCNJ

My girl friend has been attending the NYSC for the past decade. Each time she came back from it, she is always full of enthusiasm, on fire for God and keeps encouraging us to register for the conference the following year.

The 2019 New York Summer Conference was held at TCNJ 

We had politely declined her invitation for years. But this year, we decided to go and personally experience what she has been talking about.

Brower Student Centre, TCNJ

We were not disappointed at all!

Eating area outside the dining hall, TCNJ

The venue of the NYSC was at The College of New Jersey – TCNJ.

















TCNY is a campus of over 200 acres with mature trees and beautiful buildings.














I liked the buildings with modern design as well as those with classical Greek columns.

Students are accommodated in these townhouses. 

We were assigned to stay in a 3 level town house and slept on the bottom floor.

The conference schedule was full with two keynote speakers back to back in the morning.

Conference organizers and TCNJ were considerate of the needs of the attendees. There were golf carts available taking less mobile people to the various locations on campus.

Dining Hall at TCNJ

  We enjoyed our hour long lunch break each day and met some friends from Canada and New York,

There was a vegetarian option from which to choose for lunch and dinner.

There was about an hour for break in the afternoon, followed by an afternoon workshop of our choice, then dinner and evening keynote speaker again.

There were over 1000 people attending this annual conference with meetings and venues arranged for various aged groups.

I was glad that my girl friend kept encouraging me to attend this conference which has been happening for the past 49 years. This was their 50th year!

One of our two inspiring keynote speakers

Everyone enjoyed our two keynote speakers who were humble, knowledgeable men of God, well prepared for their messages and delivered them with sensitivity and humor.  

I was touched by the speakers deeply from day 1. When one of the speaker said that we could always serve God no matter where we were and how old we were. He cited many examples and inspiring real life stories when Christians in their last stage of their lives,  were still dedicated and served God.





 My eyes were filled  with tears.  God once again reminded me that my  husband and I are retirees who are enjoying the fruits of hard work of many years. 


We are moving towards the last stage of our lives and we need to fill our lives with meaningful things to do.

We enjoyed the beautiful architecture at TCNJ

We thank God for this great Christian conference where  we experienced the joy of corporate singing and praise, worship and fellowship.














 It was uplifting and inspiring!  It also confirms the new ministry of what we will be starting in September!

R.T.
2019 New York Summer Conference
The College of New Jersey
New Jersey, USA