December 19 - 22
It has not seemed like Christmas until now. Carols in Walmart and lights on a palm tree did not really do anything for me. We hear lots of reports of snow, ice and bitter cold from home and we really love the warmth and sun here in Florida but only in the past couple of days have I really begun to feel that Christmas is almost here. Greg and Tara arrived on Friday. Tara's parents, Andy and Joan McEvoy have a condo here and their son Paul and his wife Makiko and their children are already here. On Sunday, Jack and I went to Calvery Baptist Church right near the RV park and the dry place in my heart was well watered with God's Word and the wonderful music of Christmas carols. Now I'm looking forard to Christmas - its truly a time for family and sharing. Derek comes tomorrow from Michigan to be with us for 5 days! We're looking forward to that.
Monday, December 22, 2008
RV Superstore
December 17 and 18
Lazy Days is a huge RV dealer had I got a coupon for 2 nights free stay in their "Rally Park" . This site includes a free newspaper at your site every morning, free breakfast and lunch in the Rec Hall, cable TV and wifi at your site and large heated pool in a beautiful lanai. Nearby is a Cracker Barrel resturant and Flying J Truck stop. We looked around at new and used RVs. Sales are sharply down so the salesmen are dealing but we were never bothered by a salesperson as we looked around. We are not in the market at all but it's always interesting to look.
Lazy Days is a huge RV dealer had I got a coupon for 2 nights free stay in their "Rally Park" . This site includes a free newspaper at your site every morning, free breakfast and lunch in the Rec Hall, cable TV and wifi at your site and large heated pool in a beautiful lanai. Nearby is a Cracker Barrel resturant and Flying J Truck stop. We looked around at new and used RVs. Sales are sharply down so the salesmen are dealing but we were never bothered by a salesperson as we looked around. We are not in the market at all but it's always interesting to look.
Naples to Venice
December 15 and 16
This morning as we took our usual am walk in the campground, we saw a bobcat walking thorough some campsites! It was foggy but burned off as we drove north to Venice. We spent two days walking on the beach and looking up friends from home in Ontario. Fred and Jane Reinders were happy to show us their home here - they have found that they really like the warm temps and easy living. Simon and Martha Kowenhoven live nearby and Ray and Carol Zomer are camp hosts at the Oscar Scherer State Park. Their lovely campsite which they do not pay for because they volunteer many hours of labour in the park, was right on the river and Ray has made a pet of a bright red cardinal by giving it peanuts.
This morning as we took our usual am walk in the campground, we saw a bobcat walking thorough some campsites! It was foggy but burned off as we drove north to Venice. We spent two days walking on the beach and looking up friends from home in Ontario. Fred and Jane Reinders were happy to show us their home here - they have found that they really like the warm temps and easy living. Simon and Martha Kowenhoven live nearby and Ray and Carol Zomer are camp hosts at the Oscar Scherer State Park. Their lovely campsite which they do not pay for because they volunteer many hours of labour in the park, was right on the river and Ray has made a pet of a bright red cardinal by giving it peanuts.
Monday, December 15, 2008
December 14
Today we explored the Collier- Seminole State Park at the west edge of the Everglades. It is named after Barron Collier, a financier who helped build the Tamiami Trail from Tampa to Miami in the 1920s. The part of the road through the Everglades was extremely difficult - men were fighting with mosquitos and alligators as they blasted the limestone and coral under the swamp and used it to make the road
bed. There is a continuous canal along the side of the roadway and we saw hundreds of white egrets wading in the water as well as half a dozen alligators sunning themselves on the banks of the canal. There is a walking dredge in the park that was used in the roadwork. At the boat basin on the Blackwater River, we saw a manatee slowly swimming around and feeding on the plants in the river as well a
great blue heron waiting patiently to catch a fish. We hiked a trail to one of the original old stands of
royal palms left in Florida. We saw several gumbo limbo trees with their characteristic reddish trunks.
The wood was often used to make carrosel horses.
In the afternoon. we drove to nearby Marco Island to spend time in the sun on the wide white sand beach. What an enormous number of shells!!!!!! We watched some playful dophins jumping and cavorting in the surf. Saw a lady reading the book "The Shack" and had a nice discussion with her
about the book.
December 13
We left the Keys this morning and drove all the way to the eastern end and took the Card Sound
road back to the "mainland" - but Florida sort of "peters out" in islands and mangrove swamps almost
too numerous to count. We went to the Everglades National Park ( we bought that $80 interagency pass so every park we enter from now on will be "free"). Will we see alligators?? That is the question. The
Anhinga Trail took us on a boardwalk where we indeed saw several of the huge black/brown water
birds drying their wings in the sun. And sure enough - we did see 2 large alligators - lots of teeth when they yawned! On the way from the park to the Tamiami Trail, we passed dozens of gardens and plant
nurseries full of hisbiscus, ficus and palms ready to be shipped up north where we will pay a good price
for plants that grow abundently here in the south. We stopped for the night at Collier - Seminole
State Park and tonight we will hear from Ranger Pete about the building of the Tamiami Trail
December 12
Yesterday we had quite a thunderstorm - lots of rain and wind - interesting to see the palm trees almost
bent over in the wind. It was a day for reading and "vegging", but I did get Christmas cards written - we'll
get some pictures to put in them and send them off soon. Got caught up on laundry and groceries and other chores
December 10
In the Keys, locations are by mile markers. Our campground is in the middle Keys at MM 59. The Keys begin at MM 120 and Key West is MM 0. Just 13 miles from our RV park is the Seven Mile Bridge. In the
1920s, Henry Flagler built a railway from Miami to key West. One of the feats of construction was a bridge across open water for 7 miles. There are many bridges in the Keys from island to island but this is the longest span over water. It later became a roadway. Now there is a new bridge and the old one is a
long fishing pier. We walked the first couple of miles - lovely nice beezes and charter fishing boats coming and going under it, then drove to Key West.
What an interesting town! Old town Key West has pastel painted homes most with second floor balconies (similiar to New Orleans construction) to catch the breezes.
We parked the car and walked most of the afternoon after a seafood lunch. We peeked in Ernest Hemminway's house and Harry Truman's "Little White House" . A Carnaval cruise ship was leaving from the harbor after the passengers had spent their bucks in the numerous shops, several of which sport the rainbow flag. The most interesting place was the cemetary! Crypts are built 4 and 5 high because the coral rock is too hard to dig. There is a memorial to the USS Maine - blown up in Havana harbor in 1898 - the start of the Spanish American War. We got home after dark with tired feet but enjoyed our day a lot.
December 9
Yesterday we drove from Pompano Beach to Grassy Key and the Jolly Roger RV Park. The island is so narrow that the park is between the Gulf and the Atlantic. There is a dock that has been taken over by the pelicans and cormorants and there are lobsters under the edge of the seawall. We had to sign a waiver when we checked in not to take any of the lobsters (shucks- we'll have to buy them in a resturant!)
Today, we explored a bit and checked 2 nearby State Parks - Currey Hammock and Bahia Honda - both so popular tha you have to book 11 months in advance. We found a nice beach in Marathon - Sombrero Beach and we took a picnic and spent the afternoon in the sun - love it!
Today we explored the Collier- Seminole State Park at the west edge of the Everglades. It is named after Barron Collier, a financier who helped build the Tamiami Trail from Tampa to Miami in the 1920s. The part of the road through the Everglades was extremely difficult - men were fighting with mosquitos and alligators as they blasted the limestone and coral under the swamp and used it to make the road
bed. There is a continuous canal along the side of the roadway and we saw hundreds of white egrets wading in the water as well as half a dozen alligators sunning themselves on the banks of the canal. There is a walking dredge in the park that was used in the roadwork. At the boat basin on the Blackwater River, we saw a manatee slowly swimming around and feeding on the plants in the river as well a
great blue heron waiting patiently to catch a fish. We hiked a trail to one of the original old stands of
royal palms left in Florida. We saw several gumbo limbo trees with their characteristic reddish trunks.
The wood was often used to make carrosel horses.
In the afternoon. we drove to nearby Marco Island to spend time in the sun on the wide white sand beach. What an enormous number of shells!!!!!! We watched some playful dophins jumping and cavorting in the surf. Saw a lady reading the book "The Shack" and had a nice discussion with her
about the book.
December 13
We left the Keys this morning and drove all the way to the eastern end and took the Card Sound
road back to the "mainland" - but Florida sort of "peters out" in islands and mangrove swamps almost
too numerous to count. We went to the Everglades National Park ( we bought that $80 interagency pass so every park we enter from now on will be "free"). Will we see alligators?? That is the question. The
Anhinga Trail took us on a boardwalk where we indeed saw several of the huge black/brown water
birds drying their wings in the sun. And sure enough - we did see 2 large alligators - lots of teeth when they yawned! On the way from the park to the Tamiami Trail, we passed dozens of gardens and plant
nurseries full of hisbiscus, ficus and palms ready to be shipped up north where we will pay a good price
for plants that grow abundently here in the south. We stopped for the night at Collier - Seminole
State Park and tonight we will hear from Ranger Pete about the building of the Tamiami Trail
December 12
Yesterday we had quite a thunderstorm - lots of rain and wind - interesting to see the palm trees almost
bent over in the wind. It was a day for reading and "vegging", but I did get Christmas cards written - we'll
get some pictures to put in them and send them off soon. Got caught up on laundry and groceries and other chores
December 10
In the Keys, locations are by mile markers. Our campground is in the middle Keys at MM 59. The Keys begin at MM 120 and Key West is MM 0. Just 13 miles from our RV park is the Seven Mile Bridge. In the
1920s, Henry Flagler built a railway from Miami to key West. One of the feats of construction was a bridge across open water for 7 miles. There are many bridges in the Keys from island to island but this is the longest span over water. It later became a roadway. Now there is a new bridge and the old one is a
long fishing pier. We walked the first couple of miles - lovely nice beezes and charter fishing boats coming and going under it, then drove to Key West.
What an interesting town! Old town Key West has pastel painted homes most with second floor balconies (similiar to New Orleans construction) to catch the breezes.
We parked the car and walked most of the afternoon after a seafood lunch. We peeked in Ernest Hemminway's house and Harry Truman's "Little White House" . A Carnaval cruise ship was leaving from the harbor after the passengers had spent their bucks in the numerous shops, several of which sport the rainbow flag. The most interesting place was the cemetary! Crypts are built 4 and 5 high because the coral rock is too hard to dig. There is a memorial to the USS Maine - blown up in Havana harbor in 1898 - the start of the Spanish American War. We got home after dark with tired feet but enjoyed our day a lot.
December 9
Yesterday we drove from Pompano Beach to Grassy Key and the Jolly Roger RV Park. The island is so narrow that the park is between the Gulf and the Atlantic. There is a dock that has been taken over by the pelicans and cormorants and there are lobsters under the edge of the seawall. We had to sign a waiver when we checked in not to take any of the lobsters (shucks- we'll have to buy them in a resturant!)
Today, we explored a bit and checked 2 nearby State Parks - Currey Hammock and Bahia Honda - both so popular tha you have to book 11 months in advance. We found a nice beach in Marathon - Sombrero Beach and we took a picnic and spent the afternoon in the sun - love it!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
December 7
We are back to our "home" - still parked in Pompano Beach, Florida. Last week Sunday- November 30 - at 9:15am,
brother-in-law- Cor Bos , husband of Jack's sister Margie, lost his 33 year struggle with cancer and his soul was
recieved in heaven by his loving Father. Cor had his first bout with Hodgkins disease (cancer of the lymph system)
when he was only 22. He and Margie met 3 yeas later when cancer had returned and they both lived with this
disease in their horizon but God granted them many years to raise their 3 children and see 7 grandchildren born.
We flew from Fort Lauderdale to Calgary via Toronto on Wednesday, Dec 3 and met Jack's brothers John and Dave
at the airport to drive the 2.5 hours to Taber. The funeral was on Thrusday - bitter cold especially for Jack and I having
become a bit used to warmer weather but the Alberta skies were clear and bright. It was a real testimony to Cor to
hear so many people talk about what a good and gentle man he was and how Margie was the great love of his life.
We had opportunities to visit with Cor's mother and brothers and sisters and hear more stories of this man that we
will miss very much. As we left the cemetary, the skies were low and overcast and sad but we know that there is
true resurrection joy for those who die in the Lord. Yesterday (Saturday) was a long day of driving back to Calgary
and plane trips back to Florida. It was snowing lightly in Toronto and the plane had to be de-iced before we could
leave - just a little taste of the white stuff for our enjoyment and making us realize more firmly that we really like
warm weather best!! Thanks to Henry and Jan Wildeboer who used our car to go to the airport themselves on
Thursday, our car was waiting for us and we got back to the RV at 1:30am - very tired but happy that we could
be at the funeral and spend time with Margie and her children.Today is Sunday and truly a day of rest for us.
We are back to our "home" - still parked in Pompano Beach, Florida. Last week Sunday- November 30 - at 9:15am,
brother-in-law- Cor Bos , husband of Jack's sister Margie, lost his 33 year struggle with cancer and his soul was
recieved in heaven by his loving Father. Cor had his first bout with Hodgkins disease (cancer of the lymph system)
when he was only 22. He and Margie met 3 yeas later when cancer had returned and they both lived with this
disease in their horizon but God granted them many years to raise their 3 children and see 7 grandchildren born.
We flew from Fort Lauderdale to Calgary via Toronto on Wednesday, Dec 3 and met Jack's brothers John and Dave
at the airport to drive the 2.5 hours to Taber. The funeral was on Thrusday - bitter cold especially for Jack and I having
become a bit used to warmer weather but the Alberta skies were clear and bright. It was a real testimony to Cor to
hear so many people talk about what a good and gentle man he was and how Margie was the great love of his life.
We had opportunities to visit with Cor's mother and brothers and sisters and hear more stories of this man that we
will miss very much. As we left the cemetary, the skies were low and overcast and sad but we know that there is
true resurrection joy for those who die in the Lord. Yesterday (Saturday) was a long day of driving back to Calgary
and plane trips back to Florida. It was snowing lightly in Toronto and the plane had to be de-iced before we could
leave - just a little taste of the white stuff for our enjoyment and making us realize more firmly that we really like
warm weather best!! Thanks to Henry and Jan Wildeboer who used our car to go to the airport themselves on
Thursday, our car was waiting for us and we got back to the RV at 1:30am - very tired but happy that we could
be at the funeral and spend time with Margie and her children.Today is Sunday and truly a day of rest for us.
Monday, December 1, 2008
November 30
Today it was cloudy, humid and windy when we woke up. A storm front is on the way. The Wildeboers picked us up at 9:30 and we went to Calvery Chapel together. This is a mega church in Fort Lauderdale with 2000 people attending each of 3 services on Sunday morning. While in church, we got a phone message from Jack's sister that our brother-in-law Cor Bos in Taber, Alberta went home to be with his Saviour Jesus Christ after losing one of his many battles with cancer. The rain later today expresses our weeping hearts as we make plans to fly from here (Fort Lauderdale) to Calgary next Wednesday (Dec 3) for the the funeral and to be with Margie and her children.
November 29
We arrived here in Pompano Beach on Wednesday, Nov 26 after driving the road closet to the water again Route A1A - we have covered a lot of the eastern coast of Florida in recent days. It's warm and lovely the past few days - just what we have been looking for as we went further south. Our frineds from Oakville, Henry and Jan Wildeboer are near here in Hillsboro Beach spending 3 weeks at their condo. Jan made a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings for us on the American holiday. Walking off the feast was done on the beach though - what a treat! We went to Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church that morning. An absolutely
gorgeous huge organ played well but only a half full church since Dr Kennedy died last year.
We took a drive to Boynton Beach another day to see Jack's sister Alice and Ed's home in Boynton Beach - (sorry you were not home, Alice! - it's waiting in the sun for you to come)
November 25
Today we visited NASA at Cape Canaveral. It is expensive at $38pp so we made a long day of it arriving early and staying til closing. We took a hop on/off bus trip to see the Vehicle Assembly Building , the huge crawler transporter that takes the shuttle and its rockets to the launch pad and the huge 360' Saturn V rocket that launched astronauts to the moon. We saw two 3D movies that we fantastic - with the ugly goggles on, when the astronaut skuffed dirt as he walked on the moon, I had to duck to miss getting hit by a rock. By the time the sun went down and the park closed, it was quite chilly (16C) so we headed back to the RV. We took the computer and parked near a motel to use the wifi and get our email. This works for us when we do not have
internet connections in the campground we are in.
Today it was cloudy, humid and windy when we woke up. A storm front is on the way. The Wildeboers picked us up at 9:30 and we went to Calvery Chapel together. This is a mega church in Fort Lauderdale with 2000 people attending each of 3 services on Sunday morning. While in church, we got a phone message from Jack's sister that our brother-in-law Cor Bos in Taber, Alberta went home to be with his Saviour Jesus Christ after losing one of his many battles with cancer. The rain later today expresses our weeping hearts as we make plans to fly from here (Fort Lauderdale) to Calgary next Wednesday (Dec 3) for the the funeral and to be with Margie and her children.
November 29
We arrived here in Pompano Beach on Wednesday, Nov 26 after driving the road closet to the water again Route A1A - we have covered a lot of the eastern coast of Florida in recent days. It's warm and lovely the past few days - just what we have been looking for as we went further south. Our frineds from Oakville, Henry and Jan Wildeboer are near here in Hillsboro Beach spending 3 weeks at their condo. Jan made a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings for us on the American holiday. Walking off the feast was done on the beach though - what a treat! We went to Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church that morning. An absolutely
gorgeous huge organ played well but only a half full church since Dr Kennedy died last year.
We took a drive to Boynton Beach another day to see Jack's sister Alice and Ed's home in Boynton Beach - (sorry you were not home, Alice! - it's waiting in the sun for you to come)
November 25
Today we visited NASA at Cape Canaveral. It is expensive at $38pp so we made a long day of it arriving early and staying til closing. We took a hop on/off bus trip to see the Vehicle Assembly Building , the huge crawler transporter that takes the shuttle and its rockets to the launch pad and the huge 360' Saturn V rocket that launched astronauts to the moon. We saw two 3D movies that we fantastic - with the ugly goggles on, when the astronaut skuffed dirt as he walked on the moon, I had to duck to miss getting hit by a rock. By the time the sun went down and the park closed, it was quite chilly (16C) so we headed back to the RV. We took the computer and parked near a motel to use the wifi and get our email. This works for us when we do not have
internet connections in the campground we are in.
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