Finally, a Holiday
Tuesday September 14, 2021
My badminton friends and I managed to snag some super cheap flights to Calgary a few months ago (Air Canada seemed desperate to get people back on planes, and were offering $254 return flights as well as free postponement in case COVID restrictions changed), and last week we spent Labour Day Weekend until the following Saturday covering Yoho, Banff and Jasper National Parks. It was my first time out of the province in over 18 months, and that alone was cause for celebration, but the scenery and wildlife that we saw was incredible. I've been to a few places in my travels, but this area in Canada, the Rocky Mountains, is a unique and absolutely stunning part of the world.
After arriving into Calgary on Saturday, we wandered around downtown and Chinatown - almost completely deserted - before walking down the Bow River. We stopped for some ice cream at Marble Slab Creamery before heading back to our carpark on the East Village. We went for dinner at my friend's uncle's Chinese restaurant before heading back to our Airbnb. A friend of mine was supposed to join us for the walk that afternoon but he was in Edmonton instead, and so we met up after he got back to grab some ice cream (second round of ice cream!) from Village Ice Cream.
On Sunday, we covered Takakkaw Falls, the second highest falls in Canada, and the nearby Emerald Lakes, in Yoho National Park, British Columbia. The falls were definitely the highest falls I've ever seen in my life, and the thundering roar of the water crashing into the rocks below and the force of the wind and spray in your face as your climbed up the rock face are something you have to experience yourself. You can't accurately depict the sheer size of the waterfall in a picture.
The next day, we were up early to get to Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. Easily the most famous lakes in Banff National Park, these two incredibly popular tourist destinations are busy with Instagrammers trying to get the perfect shot for the attention and the likes. It was raining when we got to Lake Louise, but it cleared up an hour or so later as we were climbing the Saddleback Pass Trail. We saw a marmot on the way up - I had never heard of such an animal before. We made it to the top of the trail but didn't get to climb any of the mountain peaks since people were pretty tired, so we headed back down to the lake. On the way, I dropped by the Fairview Lookout for a beautiful picture of the green waters of the lake, and then we headed to Moraine Lake. While Lake Louise is green in colour, Moraine is a vivid cerulean colour, and we spent a while on the rockpile taking photos before heading to the Consolation Lakes nearby (the name matches the experience of the view). On the way back to our Airbnb in Canmore, we saw a bear on the other side of the railroad tracks - another tick in my list of Canadian experiences!
On Tuesday, we were supposed to go to Johnston Canyon but the police had closed the entire section of highway due to suspicious activity at the canyon from Sunday. It later turned out to be non-criminal in nature, but instead we spent the day looking at the Vermilion Lakes, walking around Lake Minnewanka and Stewart Canyon, and hiking the Hoodoos Trail in Banff town itself. On Wednesday we headed out to Jasper National Park, a good three hour drive away, but we stopped by Crowfoot Glacier, Bow Lake, Athabasca Glacier and the Columbia Icefield Skywalk.
The next day, we saw a male elk on the way to our morning hike, who almost charged at us while we taking photos in the car. We explored the Valley of the Five Lakes before heading to the Edith Cavall Meadows to look at the Angel and Cavall Glaciers. While we were by the glacial lake, a part of the ice shelf of the Cavall Glacier fell into the lake - this is something that many people will not get to see in their lifetimes, and something I'll remember forever.
Our last full day started off with another elk sighting (and it almost charging at us again) between Hinton and Jasper. We spent an hour walking around Maligne Canyon and its beautiful blue rapids before starting the drive back to Banff. Our timing was perfect - we managed cover the Lower and Upper Falls of Johnston Canyon and have enough time to drive back to Calgary to meet my friend for dinner at Bolero, a Brazilian Steakhouse.
All in all, we were super lucky with the weather, as well as all the wildlife sightings - two elk, a marmot, a bear, several deer and countless chipmunks and squirrels. All the pictures we took were postcard quality. There was that magnificent aquamarines of the lakes, the yellows of autumn starting to emerge, the luscious deep greens of the forests in the area as well as that distinctive light blue of the glaciers. And of course, a week was not enough to cover everything that we wanted to cover. We'll definitely be back some day.
Posted by Jeremy at 1:26am on Tuesday September 14, 2021 :: 0 comments :: 
Four Year Canadaversary
Saturday July 31, 2021
Today marks four years since I landed in Toronto to start a new life and a new job at Ubisoft Toronto. It hasn't felt like I've been here for four years - although 16 months of pandemic has not helped - but it feels like I haven't been back in New Zealand for ages. The last year has definitely been quite trying on many people, myself included, but with 70% of Ontario fully vaccinated, things are beginning to return to normal and I'm able to see friends, dine in at restaurants, go to the gym and get injured at badminton.
I rolled my ankle quite badly last week on the badminton court, and ended up losing consciousness while I was icing my foot. The last time this happened was when I was cutting garlic and I split my thumbnail quite badly, and apparently this is called "vasovagal syncope", which is when your body reacts to a strong stimuli (in this case, pain, but can also be blood or other emotional distress) and causes a drop of blood pressure and heart rate, which in turn leads to fainting. My ankle hurt like hell and after passing out, my friends decided they should probably call an ambulance in case there was something wrong with me. The paramedics arrived and checked all my vitals - nothing wrong - then carted me via ambulance to Scarborough General Hospital where I got an x-ray taken. No broken bones, just a bad sprain, so I went home with a pair of crutches that cost me $35. Bless the Canadian healthcare system. The foot's healing well, I was able to walk around yesterday and bike around today, but there will definitely be no badminton for a while.
We continue to work from home for the time being, the office is scheduled to return in October but we will still have the option to work 40% of the week from home, and I think that's a good balance for me. I've taken on a lot more responsibilities lately so my days have been very busy, but I'm super glad that we get Friday afternoons off to enjoy the most of summer, which everyone can agree is something we have needed for a long time.
Posted by Jeremy at 7:56pm on Saturday July 31, 2021 :: 0 comments ::
Double Vaxxed
Monday June 28, 2021
I was privileged to be part of Toronto's Vaccine Day today, which saw more than 26,000 people vaccinated at Scotiabank Arena. The atmosphere was amazing, with entertainment and DJs. They gave away Maple Leafs and Raptors tickets for every 1000 vaccines administered (Go sports teams!), and everyone got a free rally towel to commemorate this record-breaking day. It truly felt like an "us, the team of Toronto" thing, and to be in Scotiabank Arena for the first time getting my vaccine felt so momentous.
Restrictions have started to relax, and the weather is blazing hot. Things are looking up. Being able to see people again has really lifted my spirits. Having social events to look forward to makes my week so much more enjoyable. I've kept up my fitness by joining Toronto's Bike Share program, so I can get around town and burn calories at the same time. I've biked all the way out to Woodbine Beach on the east side, and Mimico Waterfront Park on the west side. The Martin Goodman Trail is super nice to bike on, and High Park during weekends, since they close it to cars. We biked the Don River Trail one afternoon as well, starting at ET Seton Park by the Science Center and heading to Tommy Thompson's lighthouse - where I saw a fox for the first time! - and I still biked home down Bloor Street after all of that.
I caught the magnificent partial solar eclipse sunrise on the 10th of June as well. I woke up at 4.30am and got a car share car to drive to Woodbine Beach where I found a bunch of other nerds setting up their massive cameras and equipment for this spectacular one-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The weather was almost perfect, with a few clouds around the horizon, but not enough to obscure our view. At 5.35am, the "devil horns" sunrise appeared, two distinct spots of light emanating from the sun while the moon obscured the central part. As the sun rose further into the sky, the more familiar crescent shape appeared, illuminating the waters of Lake Ontario. I was truly lucky to be able to witness an event like this - and I've already bookmarked the next major eclipse event in Toronto, a total solar eclipse in 2024!
Posted by Jeremy at 2:38am on Monday June 28, 2021 :: 0 comments ::
Tired
Saturday April 17, 2021
We're in our sixth month of lockdown. We are well into our third wave. Our case numbers have spiked hard, causing the provincial government to issue another stay-at-home order for four weeks. That was two weeks ago; today they announced even more restrictions, as well as a two week extension to the stay-at-home order. It's looking grim, and I'm tired. I'm tired of this lifestyle. The new variants are running rampant through the health system. The vaccine rollout is slow. My area is listed as a hotspot, so apparently I'm eligible for a vaccine earlier than expected, but there's no indication of when I'll get an appointment. I was one of the quick ones who managed to register while the website was active, but haven't received any further information.
I keep looking at flights back to New Zealand. I'd have to fly to Vancouver, then to Los Angeles, and then to Auckland. It's expensive. Then I have to quarantine for fourteen days. Also expensive. It's an option I'd rather not take unless absolutely necessary. Also I'd be flying back into winter, and that's just depressing.
I'm tired because my patience is running out. I don't have motivation to do anything. It sucks.
Posted by Jeremy at 3:02am on Saturday April 17, 2021 :: 0 comments ::
(Almost) One Year of Pandemic
Sunday February 28, 2021
We're coming up to a whole year of working from home, marking what has been an extraordinarily disappointing and depressing year for many of us, myself included. Winter has been tough. What is normally a festive time with gatherings for Christmas, New Year, Chinese New Year and Random Events in March became a long, cold and literally dark lockdown over four months. I've made it clear I've struggled a lot throughout this time; I like to think of myself as very mentally stable but even this has been taxing on me. I got a sun lamp from Bed Bath and Beyond just after Christmas, and that's definitely helped. Walmart was supposed to deliver one before Christmas but they screwed up the order and it ended up getting sent back to the supplier, some random dodgy house in Seattle. I bought some bathroom scales as well, and I've lost 4kg since a year ago.
It's frustrating because it feels like I'm not doing anything with my life at the moment. I'm just passing time until everything is back to normal. It feels like a massive waste, and it's even more disheartening for me because I look back at my friends and family in New Zealand, who have enjoyed a magnificent summer and an almost COVID-free lifestyle. Our case numbers are dropping though, it might give us a bit of reprieve from lockdown as the weather starts to warm up. I've tried to get outdoors every so often, even though it's usually been below zero. Really the only reason I leave the house now is for food, be it to pick up some takeaways from my favourite neighbourhood joints, or to walk to Nations to get groceries. Sometimes I bike out to Cherry Beach along the waterfront trail, which is really nice. There's a fantastic sunset viewpoint at Polson Pier, which I've caught a few times.
Even in times like this, there's still some beautiful scenery to see around the city. But I miss travelling and going to restaurants and playing badminton and going to the gym. I guess I'm missing social interaction a lot more than I thought I would.
Posted by Jeremy at 4:27pm on Sunday February 28, 2021 :: 0 comments ::