Long time away!

Yes we have been away...but not for that long. I have become very lax in my postings but here we are again! We had decided that this year we should go back to the UK as we hadn't been for 3 years and we were also invited to a 90th Birthday party! Now going on vacation is not really that hard to plan. Decide on a date, book a flight, get a friend to water the plants and put the dog in kennels! Well it seems to be a bit harder for us! Due to our caretaking commitments we have to have someone present at all times. That means if we go away we have to pay another caretaker. This time we prevailed on some friends who live aboard a converted tug boat and know the coast very well. They also have two 6 month old pups so Rosie was in for a busy month! They were quite eager to be here so that took care of the house and the dog sitting! Next we had to get to Port Hardy, then to Vancouver, then on to the UK. We were going to take the boat to Port Hardy, fly to Vancouver and then on to the UK The flight to Vancouver was purchased, or should I say, exchanged for rewards points from our local supermarket. We spend enough money there so get 2 return flight to Vancouver each year. A value of approx $400. The boat idea had to be abandoned as the weather was not cooperating. That meant flying was also iffy, but a plane appeared on the last minute and we were off. Delays in Vancouver meant we started our journey in Port Hardy at 6.45am thursday and arrived in Manchester at 9.00pm friday!

Parents House. Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire During our stay in the UK we also traveled to southern France and Spain. An area we were not familiar with but loved it right from the start. Glorious sunshine, great scenery and wonderful hosts made for a very enjoyable 4 days. It is interesting to note that to get to France we used a discount airline used by many european travellers...Ryan Air! Now there are many horror stories to tell but we were well prepared and had no trouble. For 2 adults return to Barcelona Gerona was equivelant to $179.00. Our flight from home to Port Hardy cost $200.00 one way, one person! I have yet to work out how these airlines price their flights!!

Once back on this side of the Atlantic the holiday was over but we still had the spring shop to do! The 8 page grocery list alone was daunting but that did not include all the other sundry items which make it to the miscellaneous list! Home a week later to unloading and finding space for all the purchasers. The caretaking had gone well. No disasters and the dogs all got on fine. In fact there was a distinct sadness on Rosies face for a few days wondering where her two playmates had gone! We are now back home and rested (I think) from our vacation.The summer season is just around the corner so hope there will be more to post about soon.