Travel

For Pause Blog followers who are interested in travel adventures and art, here’s a link to a collection of sketches from our week in New York City. These are posted to an album on my Facebook page, but you don’t have to be a FB friend to take a peak. Enjoy!

REFLECTION: It was a sunny clear October day, and my husband, Dave, and I (along with another 20 passengers) were enjoying a sailing adventure on the Mar, a 65 foot tall ship that plies the Halifax Harbor. About a half an hour into the trip, we made our way to the stern to check out the view from aft and chat with the crew.

After a few minutes of conversation, Captain Tim looked at me and asked, “So, do you want to steer the ship?” Of course this prairie flat-lander jumped at the opportunity. For the next 30 to 40 minutes, I found myself at the wheel, taking instructions from the Captain: “Line up to the second pillar on the bridge. Hold her steady. Shift a bit – one spoke to starboard.”

Wind in my hair. Sun on my face. Excitement in my blood. I’m pretty sure my Norwegian Viking ancestors were bursting their buttons to see one of their own as a deckhand.  Although I made no navigation decisions, only followed instructions, I turned the ship around in the harbor, sailed between two offset marker buoys, came around the other schooner cruising the harbor, and headed the Mar to dock. Thankfully, the captain took over before we got too close to land. Steering is one thing – braking quite another! (Can you actually brake a ship?)

Anyway, the adventure turned out to be one of the highlights of my vacation. As I’ve been reading this week about motivation and engagement in the workplace, my brief sailing experience has morphed into a learning lab of its own. (more…)

Nothing says New York more than Times Square – unless of course it’s the Empire State Building or Statue of Liberty. Well, come to think of it, there are a lot of things that say New York!

We walked through Times Square many times during our visit to New York. The Square is central to Manhattan and the Theatre District, and it’s a great place for people watching.

Aside from the people, the other thing you can’t escape in Times Square is the advertising. Every surface that can be turned into a billboard, marquee, or projection screen has been nabbed by corporate America eager to promo the latest and greatest. The displays are dizzying –  up, down and all around. In my opinion, it’s worth a look, but not a linger!

Here’s my take on the commotion that is Times Square. Quickly sketched from my sidewalk perch looking south down Broadway from w50th (Gershwin Way).

Although I took lots of photos and painted many sketches while visiting New York City and traveling the coast of New England and Atlantic Canada, as you will have noticed, the blog remained silent throughout the vacation. I found myself too absorbed in the experience to want to spend time at the keyboard. So, now that I’m back to the everyday world again, I’m planning to post a few treats from my days away throughout the next couple of weeks. Here’s an appetizer – a sketch done at the top of Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park near Bar Harbor, Maine. Wonderful landscape views and vibrant colors. I ate it up! Hope you enjoy it, too!

An earlier Pause e-zine posting invited people to share their travel tips for staying well and healthy on the road. Here are the ideas shared so far by Pause readers. Hope they make your life on the road a bit easier to manage.

Carla T writes: I wanted to share a tip for travelers who are trying to find a healthy balance.  When I am going to be at a conference or meetings for a few days, I try to book a hotel with a kitchenette.  I do the grocery shopping on the first evening and make easy healthy meals instead of eating out at a restaurant every evening.  Most restaurants serve portion sizes 2-3 times larger than what people need and it is harder to find healthier choices at many restaurants.   (more…)

We met Jorge on Labor Day weekend as we strolled through the Old Strathcona Farmers Market in Edmonton. As you can see from his photo, Jorge stands out from the crowd.

When I complemented him on his haberdashery finery, he explained his reason for being dressed so well so early on a Saturday morning. You see, at 85 years old, Jorge is looking for a wife. And, in case, the opportunity arises, he wants to be prepared for the wedding. Now, that is what I call being ready for life!

Jorge told us he arrived in Canada from Bulgaria when he was five years old, and spent many years performing as a magician. He certainly worked his magic on us that morning, leaving us with smiles on our faces, and warmth in our hearts.

Good luck Jorge. I hope your search for a mate turns out well! I’m sure she’s out there somewhere!

PS – Here’s a sketch of the Old Strathcona Farmers’ Market that I did from our hotel room earlier in the day.

If you’re ever in the Whyte Avenue vicinity on a Saturday morning, it’s worth taking the time to drop in – especially this time of year when the produce is tumbling out of the gardens and into the market.

REFLECTION: I spent last week attending the National Speakers’ Association Convention in Orlando, Florida. As I’m sure you know, Orlando is the eastern US headquarters for the Disney operation. I did manage an evening visit to the Magic Kingdom and took an extra day post-conference to visit Epcot.

Disney theme parks are renowned for their high level of service to their guests. And, we encountered many kind, welcoming and helpful employees. That’s what made our contrasting experience with a couple of employees stand out so strongly. With both of these individuals, the word, perfunctory sprang to mind.

Perfunctory: mechanical, indifferent, careless, listless, superficial, as a formality only. You know perfunctory when you see it or hear it. How many times has a  ‘Have a good day’ greeting been carelessly tossed your way, with no investment of emotion? That’s perfunctory. (more…)

For those of you who are fans of the travel tales, here’s a post Morocco tidbit for you. I was very taken with the flavors and foods of Morocco. My ‘personal chef’ (AKA foodie husband Dave) has been working away trying to recreate some of the North African goodies I enjoyed so much. Here’s a link to a recent posting on his Kitchen Savvy website with the inside scoop on his Pear, Apricot & Pork Tagine. Enjoy!

PS If you are a foodie yourself, Dave’s always glad to field food and cooking questions. You can submit them via the Kitchen Savvy site.

Apparently Bad Hair Days are not just a North American phenomenon. At least, that’s what we can assume from the ‘cap-tion’ on  this fellow’s head.

I noticed him catching a few ZZZ’s in the Marrakech airport when we arrived in Morocco. All in all, though – as you can see from the series of photos – he looked comfortably at ease and not too overly concerned about the state of his hair, or anything else for that matter. May we all take our ‘problems’ this lightly!