We Must Never Forget.

Have you ever stepped away from an experience knowing that you really should know more about history. I certainly felt that way, after viewing the World War One Memorials in Belgium. On the second day of our Bruges experience, we had the opportunity to go on a Tour of Flanders and the World War One Memorials. Phillipe was our tour guide who had a great-grandfather who had lived through World War One. He was a passionate speaker who brought you back to a time I knew so little about.

Lest we forget. I was humbled as I viewed the thousands and thousands of grave markers that marked those who had died in World War One. Over 270,000 Allied Soldiers died in World War One and of those only one third had been identified. We saw so many graves that indicated only that it belonged to a soldier of WW1 and that he was known only to God. Hearing about the use of mustard and chlorine gas was devastating. The conditions that the soldiers fought under were horrendous. The Canadian soldiers are well remembered and respected in Belgium. I really wish that our children could see these war memorials and understand what these young men, many as young as 15-16 years old did for our country and the world. This generation of young men was simply obliterated.

The tour of Flanders was very moving. This experience gives you the opportunity to think and ponder about about life as we know it today. I will come to Remembrance Day with an entirely different perspective this year and definitely pause to give thanks to these many young soldiers who gave their lives in the name of freedom.

In Flanders Fields By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918) Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow Between the crosses row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders fields.

The Struggle. The Pain.The Courage

As we prepared for the race, there hung an uncertainty about whether Rick could run the race without too much pain. He had been fighting a hamstring injury for a few months. Such a great opportunity and yet so much pressure to perform well. I hadn't really thought too much about the night aspect of the race but that could be challenging as well. We worked through mixing up the "potions" for the race, picked out the right clothing for Rick and myself the running crew!

I wished Rick good luck with a big hug. I couldn't help anymore, he was now in the hands of the racerunning gods. I left with all the supplies for our aid station with Armand our team manager.

We struggled to find the aid station mainly because we couldn't find an organizer that knew where our station was!! Finally after some deliberation and seeing the Americans in the same quandrary - we just pulled out tables and starting setting up. Eventually the organizers arrived to set up tables and put up names for each country.

My partner at the table set her watch and we started estimating when the runners would make it to our station. Our station was located at Kilometer 5, then 16, 35km, 55km, 74km and 93km.

Within 15-20 minutes runners came by most initially were marathoners, then soon after the ultra marathoners arrived. It was so exciting to see all our runners come by at 5km, as everyone was still smiling! Over the next few hours we assisted our runners with drink or nutrition.

By 35 km it became apparent Rick was struggling with the pain of his hamstring injury and except for a miracle would not be able to carry on much further. As I heard later he completed 42 km and came to the aid station where the team manager was. When he didn't pass my aid station at 55km I knew then he had not carried on. A real disappointment for him. He remained at the aid station by the finish line to encourage his teammates as they passed by each lap, until about 5am or so. I was picked up at my aid station by some of the other crew around 5:30 or so. We made it back to the hotel after checking on a couple of other crew members around 630am. I cannot remember the last time I was up all night!!

This world championship provided us with another perspective on running a race such as this. Its very good to know "when to fold them". It is very important for Rick to run another day, another race. I am glad he didn't risk further injury and will carry on to run again perhaps at another World Championship or another Ultra. It takes courage and discipline not to carry on and risk future running events.

We really appreciate everyone's support for our endeavours in the Ultra World and look forward to running - in an easier fashion around Bruges and Brussels - our new way of sightseeing.

Late for the Parade!

Its been a whirlwind couple of days since we arrived in Belgium. After almost 18 hours of travel, including a short layover in London, we got off the train in a little town of Lichtevelde. We were met by a very nice group of volunteers from the race organization who happily shuttled us to our hotel just outside of Torhout. The hotel itself lives beside a castle which was buit in 1790. Fortunately the hotel is a little newer! The surrounding grounds and gardens were simply beautiful.

We had a good first night in Blegium - only a little sleeplessness. Some of our group including myself headed into Torhout for some groceries and a little sightseeing. It is a small town that seems to have a mixture of old and new buildings.

After a much needed nap in the afternoon, we regrouped for a few photos outside the hotel. Then climbed into the cars to head in for the traditional parade, speeches and pasta dinner. However when we arrived at the appointed destination, the contingent of countries with their colours had left already!!! How disappointing - for the athletes and the parade. Fortunately, a couple of our party members were in town early to pick up friends from the train station, they were our representatives in the parade! Oh my - of course there was lots of drama! Need I say more. The one good result however, was that we arrived at the pasta dinner early!! We had our choice of tables and stayed close to the food buffet!

As we ended our day I was hoping that this incident would be an isolated one - we needed everything else to go on time - including getting to the start line! Despite missing the parade, most were still happy and optimistic - just enjoying the wonderful opportunity to be in a different country, meeting previous friends from past races and finding new friends. One of the girls in our group had the chance to exchange jerseys with a French runner and was excited to do so. All in the spirit of comraderie and good competition.

To Belgium, To Belgium!

This is our third World Championship we have had the opportunity to attend for the Ultra Marathon. Our travels will take us to Belgium this time. We will start our Belgian journey first in the little town of Torhout which is about 30 minutes south of Bruges. The race will begin and end in Torhout and starts on Friday evening June 19th - yes, that's right - its a night race. The start time is 8 pm local time.

Following the race, Rick and I will spend 4 days in and around Bruges, hoping to see some the the World War One and Two Memorials as well as the quaint medieval town of Bruges. The last two days of our trip we will check out Brussels.

This will be an excellent adventure both for running and touring! As we tour we will toast you all with the great Belgian beer we will be sampling!

Cheers!!

Jamexica!! A Family Event!

On occassion I find myself doing a life review, not in a macabre fashion, but simply in a wow have I been around for that long! And each time I do this I am very happy with my life! Of course there are always - What if... but everyone has those in their lives.

A few months ago I was in the middle of one of these moments of reflection when I thought about chapters in our lives. And we were approaching the end of another chapter. Neil was graduating from university. Not that we ever thought he wouldn't but still its was such an accomplishment. And then I realized that John had been working in the real world for almost a year. And thinking further I thought of Ali - our baby - only 3 semesters from finishing her geology degree. Where had the time gone. Time - time spent - time together - oh my - Bob and I had been together almost 29 years! We must celebrate all of these landmark events! where better to do it than together as a family in a nice place. Mexico had provided all of us with great holidays and wonderful memories in the past. We should do it there!!!

Now, to plan! which I love to do. The difficult part will be to find a time when we can all go. Finding an opportune time for five of us will be challenging, but trying to find a time when eight of could go would be almost impossible. Our family event is going to include Kevin who had been with our family for over two decades and very special friends of Neil - Nicole and Ali - Scott.

The middle of May turned out to be the best time for everyone. Around the 20th of April I started the booking process. By the first few days in May it became very apparent that we would not be going to Mexico. The Swine Flu - now know as H1N1 - hit Mexico with a vengeance. Air Transat cancelled all flights and vacations to Mexico! What to do?? We desparately wanted a vacation, no one wanted to cancel. After the worst winter in years, exams to just about make you want to commit harikari and just working, we all wanted this break.

The Travel Agent called to say two other possibilities might be available for us: Domincan Republic or Jamaica. The dates would work for Jamaica. Ya Mon!! Once we all got our heads around this change in direction - we were very excited.

As we checked out the reviews and the photos of the Iberostar in Montego Bay - it seemed that it would be a fine alternative to Mexico. My bottom line was that we would all be together to celebrate the great landmarks in our lives.

The morning of May 15th we headed to the airport hearing terrible weather reports for Calgary for the next week - good thing we were leaving.

It was a six hour flight - but the flight and the movement through the airport was smooth. We checked with the bus driver once on the bus .and he said we were at the Iberostar Beach. A little disappointing as I thought we were at the Suites. Upon check-in at the Beach I suggested that I thought we were at the next hotel - the Suites - well before I could say more - the young lady behind the desk said she would be happy to upgrade us to the Suites!! We jumped on the golf cart and headed to our upgrade! While we checked in with Jason - the young man behind the desk at the Suites who was working on finding us rooms. The rooms weren't quite ready so we checked out the lobby bar.

A few minutes later we entered our home for the next week and lo and behold we were in an ocean front room! As I phone everyone else - to suggest a meeting in the lobby bar before dinner - there was lots of excited chatter about how everyone had ocean front rooms - literally just a minute walk down the stairs to the beach!

As we gathered in the lobby bar I could feel the beginning of a great week!

When I awoke the next morning - I couldn't believe how beautiful the view was from our room! Looking out to see the ocean and seeing the bright sunshine glistening off the waves was simply breathtaking.

We started our day with a run around the resort. It was a great way to see the hotel and the grounds around it. We managed to get John to come out with us. Wow was it hot! As we made our way back to the beach area we started to see some of the rest of our gang. Hanging out at the beach! Everyone was in great spirits - just happy to be on holidays!

The first couple of days passed with lots of sun, a little rain and only a couple of minor sunburns. When the rain would come in the late afternoon, some of us would head to the beautiful spa for a soak in the tubs or some used the fitness centre.

Each evening we would gather for happy hour and chat about the day. These are some of the most special times in my life, having my family and our special friends all together everyday for a whole week. We had dinner together every night. I had planned a toast for five of the dinners we had together. I wanted to recognize the milestones and the special people in our life! The second night we had dinner in the Steakhouse I toasted Neil and his accomplishment of finishing his Engineering degree. Its never an easy road to an Engineering degree, but for fellows like John and Neil who have unbelievable artistic abilities it is definitely challenging.

The next night while having dinner at the Gourmet restaurant I toasted our three special friends who we were so happy to have with us, Kevin, our long time family friend and Ali's Godfather, Nicole, Neil's girlfriend and Scott, Ali's boyfriend. We are happy to welcome these special people in to our family.

On Monday we went on our first excursion - a catamaran trip! We had the opportunity to snorkle in Montego Bay, then visit Margaritaville. That night we were able to sample Jamaican food again at the buffet, which was outstanding. My toast this evening was to our Ali! She has worked very hard the last three years working on her Geology degree and worked equally hard at playing on the U of C Varsity women's team. And to be able to do that and to still have a social life including having a boyfriend, well done, Ali.

On our fifth night, we enjoyed a interactive dinner at the Japanese restaurant. Our cook sang us through the dinner. What a great experience!!!

On Wednesday while Ali and Nicole tortured themselves yet again with Beach Aerobics! the rest of us took a short excursion off the beach for snorkling.

This place had something going on for everyone all the time!! After Happy Hour this evening we found the Cajun Restaurant. I toasted our Johnny - he had been working for almost a year and yet had continued to keep balance in his life with hockey and language classes. I am very proud of each of our kids. They have all worked very hard to get where they are today.

Thursday, our last full day, found us heading to the top tourist attraction in Jamaica - Dunn's River Falls - you actually got to climb the water fall with the assitance of a guide. This day was actually more memorable as we climbed the falls in the pouring rain!! I, for one will not forget this day for a long time to come.

During our last dinner, in the Mediterranean restaurant, I toasted the one person who wasn't expecting a toast: Rick. We were quickly approaching twenty nine years of marriage - that was a milestone definitely not to be forgotten. As we recalled the fun times of the week and the many family gatherings at Happy Hours and dinners, I knew that I had one of the best weeks ever - as I was able to enjoy this holiday with some of the most important people in my life: My family!!

London At Last!

Leaving Italy was sad. We had been anticipating our trip to Italy for a few months and now it was over. The exciting part of leaving Italy however, was that we were heading to London!! What a great place to end our journey.

During our cab ride from Heathrow it was fun to chat with the driver about London and the changes we could expect since our last time in this city twelve years ago. As we landed on the doorstep of our home for the next few days, Cranley Gardens hotel, I had a sense of deja vu. We had stayed in this same hotel those many years ago as well. Fortunately this hotel had not changed and continued to be a wonderfully located friendly place to stay.

The theme of this part of our adventure was to find some of the most interesting pubs in London. After touring through churches and museums for the last ten days, it was fun to try to find the top pubs in this fine city. So on our first evening we ventured out to the neighbourhood: pubs The Zetland Arms and the Stanhope.

We had actually been in these pubs years ago! And who knew that we would really enjoy pub food! This was the end of our travel day. We were looking ahead to the next few days re-discovering Londontowne!

Our first full day in London was jam packed - bus tour, tube ride, walk around Trafalgar Square and then of course the Lamb and Flag for lunch - a pub listed as one of the top ten pubs in London. It was a pub that had been frequented since the 1800's.

After a short rest back at the hotel we took the tube to Barbican station to meet with Declan. Most nights at 7pm you will find him just outside this station waiting for willing participants to follow him on the Blood and Tears walking tour. He certainly did an excellent job of setting a mood of darkness and evil - discussing serial killers, murders and criminals from the past. John and Neil had also enjoyed this tour on their European trip.

That night for a late dinner, we found ourselves in one of the many Indian restaurants in "our" neighbourhood. What an experience that was! We had an excellent waiter who was very helpful in choosing our dinner items.


The next day we decided to run in the morning. After breakfast we headed to Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. We were out for about for about one hour and 50 minutes!!





What beautiful grounds even in the late fall. The parks were so well utilized by walkers, runners, those with baby carriages and even horse riders!!

After our run we continued on with touring the most notable pubs in London.

The first pub we hunted for and literally had to navigate through some small back alleys, was The Seven Star pub. It had recently celebrated its 400th anniversary. This stop was mainly a photo op as the "bar maid" did not seem pleased with us taking photos!





The Olde Cheshire Cheese pub was our next stop. It turned out to be a great place to have lunch. This pub was rebuilt in 1667 after the Great London Fire. The atmosphere was great, dark lighting, dark wood, and many levels.








Just outside the pub was a stop for the Big Bus - so we hopped on and toured past St. Pauls, Tower Bridge and ended the tour at Marble Arch. Once back in the hotel, we sat in the Lobby Bar and sat with the computer to download pictures and enjoy the ambiance of a lovely little sitting area.

We decided to stay in the neighbourhood for dinner. We walked up the road to the Gloucester Arms. This pub was bright and busy. The menu was much the same as all the other pubs and had what has been come our favourite meals inLondon - sausage and mash and meat pie and fries!!

Friday, our last full day in London, dawned cloudy,but no rain. Today, I was determined we would see the Changing of the Guard. What a crazy experience!! and people everywhere watching. I am sure in the summer months it must almost be unbearable with people watching this parade.

The other place I wanted to see before we left London, was Harrod's. Since it's November, the theme of the windows of Harrod's is Christmas but with a very modern theme - that of Quantum of Solace - the newest James Bond movie!!





























During our last evening in London we toured two very old pubs - the first was The George, built in 1676 - it has many rooms, with lattice windows and wooden beams. Just outside The George is a large courtyard with picnic tables and heaters for those daring to be outside.



The next pub was The Anchor Tavern - not quite as old dating back to the 18th century. There we found a table by a fireplace and enjoyed our last supper of sausages and mash!!






What an amazing way to see the city of London - the Big Bus tour, hop on hop off, running, including racing to get to see the Changing of the Guard and touring some of the most interesting pubs probably in the world. To see the highlights from the top of an open air bus to running along the Thames River then to finish the day in some of the best places to watch people and take in the day to day culture - the pubs and some as old as 400 years old! People have been drinking beer in those same places that we sat or stood in for hundreds of years.
Thanks London for a great finale to a fabulous trip!! Cheers!!