Highlights of the Summer 2015

September 7, 2015 / Peter Klopp / 6 Comments

Enjoyable Visit with our Son Anthony and his Partner Lisa in Victoria (3)

A definite highlight of our visit was a trip to the Victoria harbor, where Tony went shopping for our evening meal at the local fish market. Wild Pacific salmon and halibut are so fresh – so I am told – that only a few hours before they land in the customer’s shopping bag they were still roaming in the nearby ocean waters. In the meantime Gertrud and I took in the colorful sight of this busy tourist attraction at the water’s edge. Some brightly painted homes here were actually boats that were permanently moored at a huge ramp-like structure, which looked more like a street with a board walk.

Colorful Boats Serving as Permanent Homes

Early in the morning, when everyone else was still sleeping, I sneaked out of the house and strolled down to the beach. In the cool air it took me less than five minute.s to reach the ocean..There my friends, the seagulls, greeted me with their raucous cries.Canada geese seemed to have made Victoria their permanent home. On another morning I was lucky to encounter a blue heron, which was feeding at low tide on the barnacles clinging to a concrete wave breaker. Accustomed to human beings it allowed me to come close enough for a great picture of this majestic bird.

Blue Heron Surveying Barnacles on the Breakfast Menu

To be continued …

Highlights of the Summer 2015

September 2, 2015 / Peter Klopp / 1 Comment

Enjoyable Visit with our Son Anthony and his Partner Lisa in Victoria (2)

The first thing Tony and Lisa did was to show us their home. They gave us the grand tour starting at the spacious basement complete with two bedrooms, storage room, work room, bathroom, then going upstairs to the wonderful living room with its original parquet floor and its large windows to let lots of light come in, the modern kitchen with a view onto the deck and the backyard. Upstairs under a slanted roof was their cozy bedroom. Gertrud and I instantly fell in love with the house and jokingly mentioned that we were going to stay there for good. The house, built in the 1930’s, impressed us with its fine blend of good solid construction and tastefully decorated interior.

Tony, Biene and Lisa on our first Evening Stroll to the Beach

From the huge deck behind the kitchen we had a first look at their beautiful garden with an abundance of flowers, shrubs, raised beds for vegetables and strawberries. We also admired the large arbor completely covered with grape vines, which were promising to provide a bumper crop later in the fall. Here one could retreat and under its dense foliage find relief from the hot afternoon sun.

Tony and Lisa were excellent hosts and did their best to make our stay as enjoyable as possible. It was sheer delight to see them harmoniously work together. They amazed us with the fantastic meals they lovingly prepared for us.

Biene Enjoying a Lobster Meal

Culinary Delights on the Deck

One morning Tony took us to one of the many beaches, where we whiled away several hours collecting pebbles in all kinds of shapes, sizes and colors. A particular challenge was to find tiny pieces of glass from broken bottles that the incessant pounding of the sea on the sandy beach has ground them into smooth slivers. After Tony showed us how to find and identify them, the hunt for these little treasures was on.

To be continued …

Highlights of the Summer 2015

August 31, 2015 / Peter Klopp / 5 Comments

Enjoyable Visit with our Son Anthony and his Partner Lisa in Victoria

Tony’s and Lisa’s House in Victoria

On the last weekend in June Gertrud (Biene) and I traveled to Victoria, the picturesque capital of BC on Vancouver Island. Tony and his lovely partner Lisa had invited us to come for a visit. When on the way we stopped for lunch in Kelowna, the thermometer at the Orchard Shopping Mall showed a scorching 40 degree temperature. Gertrud and I were looking forward to spending a few days at the coast, where a cool breeze from the ocean would bring a welcome relief from the unbearable heat wave we had been experiencing for the last couple of days.

BC Ferry on the Way to Vancouver Island

The 90 minute ferry ride turned out to be sheer delight in the refreshing wind and under a cloudless sky. Having taken an earlier ferry, we had some extra time to explore Sidney, the most northern town on the Saanich peninsula close to the ferry terminal. There we went on a leisurely promenade on a trail very close to the beach.

Around supper time we arrived at Burdick Avenue, where Tony and Lisa had recently bought a house.Great was our joy to see them again for the first at their new place.

To be continued …

Father’s Day Camp-Out

June 21, 2015 / Peter Klopp / Leave a comment

Three Days at Taite Creek

Biene took the school bus to Nakusp on Thursday, where the students attended a number of cultural sessions presented by the aboriginal people of the region. Our Ford Escape was therefore available for me to pull our trailer to the local campground at Taite Creek. I was lucky. Our favorite camp site was still vacant. It offers the most beautiful view onto the lake and is located right above the bocce field, which our son Tony had once built for us many years ago.

By setting up the trailer and having all supplies ready for a three-days stay, we had almost gained an additional day of camping. Right after Biene returned from Nakusp, we headed out to the lake. After a delicious chicken dinner I made a campfire. I played the harmonica and was amazed to discover how many of the folk songs and scout melodies I still remembered, while I was playing one tune after another. Later on at the crackling sound of the campfire, we started our outdoor crib competition. Soft popular classical music, a glass or two of red wine for Biene and a bottle of Pale Ale added a romantic touch to the relaxing evening atmosphere.

On the following days, which were mostly sunny and warm, Mother Nature provided for body and soul peace and tranquility at the lakeshore and in the nearby woods. In the shade of a pine tree, Biene immersed herself in the fascinating book ‘Suite Française’, while I took walks to the Taite Creek bridge, strolled along the rocky lakeshore, or ventured into the deep forest. Of course, my camera accompanied me on all my excursions capturing images of flowers, some so small that they would escape notice for most people walking by.

Early in the morning, well before the blazing sun could turn our gaming pleasure into pain, we played a round of bocce. Biene and I are very competitive by nature and often fiercely argue over whose ball is closer to the jack and score the point. However, at the end, we would congratulate each other for having played such an ‘amiable’ game.

On the night before Father’s Day, we sat once more at the campfire. I opened a bottle of Henkell Dry. While we were chatting and sipping champagne, we listened to our favorite music of the 60’s. At the rhythmic beat of a particularly lively hit from our teenage years Biene spontaneously started to dance. When the rain came later on, we looked at the event as a blessing from above for the tinder dry forests all around us. Cheerfully we withdrew into the shelter of our cozy trailer and listened to the music of the raindrops on the trailer roof, while drifting off to sleep.

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