Maple syrup, maple leaves & me - greetings from Canada !

Surprise :-)

I am writing this from the beautiful state of Manitoba in Canada. For those who don't know where that is, get an atlas ;-)

My "baby" brother and only sibling M turns 30 this Sunday. M moved to Canada last year to live with his Canadian girlfriend, E. We are a very close family so my folks decided that M couldn't celebrate his 30th birthday without them. Just after I got back from Nepal, I decided that there was no way I was missing out on the big party so I applied for unpaid leave & booked myself an expensive flight - 6 weeks, 5 plane meals, 4 hours hanging out in Vancouver airport, 3 flights and a 2 hour drive later, here I am :-)

I flew into Winnipeg (via Honolulu via Vancouver) after about 28 hours travelling at about 8pm last night (Thursday) where my folks were waiting to pick me up from the airport (they have been travelling in the USA for a few weeks) for the long drive to M's house. With the assistance of E, we had managed to keep our visit a sekrit so you can imagine my brother's surprise when he answered a late night knock at the front door and discovered my folks standing there - I was hiding in the garden around the corner & walked in the house about 5mins later for a second surprise :-) What came out of his mouth when he saw me will be part of family folklore for years to come ;-) Due to a distinct lack of annual leave, unfortunately I only have a few days here before heading home but my folks are staying for a few weeks before continuing their travels.

Of course it's summer over here at the moment which makes a nice change from Sydney's weather. Today it will be in the high 20s with weather in the 30s expected. Bewdiful :-)

Despite sitting on my butt for 30 odd hours to get here, my hip has improved considerably. I was tempted to head out for a run this morning but decided to give it another days rest & stretching before heading out for a short (test) run. I have been warned to keep an eye out for skunks when I do head out for a run. Ai ai ai. M & E live in a very small town - there is a 'gym' but it is apparently part of a woman's clothing store. Weird. I'll head down there a little later to do my physio-ordered stuff & an upper body weights session check it out.

We are heading off tomorrow to spend a couple of days at cabins by a lake in the national park a couple of hours drive away. Apparently the park has 400k of trails so finding somewhere to go for a run (assuming my hip co-operates) should not be difficult. However this is Canada and you know what that means...

Yes, that's right.

Bears.

Black bears to be precise.

Holy guacamole Batman.

I have closely studied the 'You are in Black Bear Country" brochure issued by the park, paying particular attention to the "If you encounter a bear" and "If an attack occurs" sections - did you know that there is a very big difference between what your response should be if it is a defensive or offensive attack? No? Me neither. I also have to carry a bear bell - yes a bell designed to warn bears of my presence in the area which makes an incredibly annoying yet hopefully effective noise. I must
say the prospect of coming across a brown snake along a trail somewhere close to home doesn't seem so scary anymore....

I'm off to have a jet-lag induced nana nap before getting ready for M's birthday party tonight. We are heading up to the park tomorrow morning so if a bear happens to mistake my bear bell for an announcement that 'dinner is served', it's been nice knowing y'all ;-)