The good, the bad, and the impromptu road trip

I've been procrastinating on this blog for so long now you'd think it was a high school assignment.

At the time I began this entry it had been raining in Vancouver for 4 days straight. The weekend was so dark and depressing that I reluctantly left the house for an hour or so on Saturday morning and spent the rest of my time indoors, in our dingy basement apartment. The icing on the cake was when we were walking back from our new favourite local deli - Cardero Bottega (check it out - http://www.carderobottega.com/). Steven pepped up when he thought he spotted a patch of blue sky heading our way, only to deflate three seconds later when he realised what he thought was blue sky was actually a blue-tinged building in the distance. Fail.

It's funny, excuse my French, but when we first moved here it was like we thought the sun shone out of Vancouver's ass. The city could do no wrong and we had no trouble telling everyone who would listen about how wonderful it was. A month and half into our first winter I now realize that the sun doesn't seem to shine out of anything here very often, for very long.  Even the "summer" was pretty tough. I actually think it might be worthwhile playing hard-to-get with the sun here.  It thinks it's soooo special - everyone raves about it when it comes to the party - but if we pretend as though we couldn't care less, maybe it'd decide to play nice more regularly. Nevertheless the good still seems to outweigh the bad in a lot of respects and we can't complain about our proximity to one of the world's best ski resorts ... which is where we were lucky enough to spend Christmas 2011.

Steve tastes treats send all the way from him mum - the beginning of the end for our healthy eating

View at the Canucks game - we all went on Matt's first night in Vancouver

Jenna bakes tasty Christmas treats for the team

Our Christmas celebrations started early - December 16th to be precise - when my friend Carly arrived in Vancouver. Her arrival marked the start of a barrage of visitors joining us for Christmas festivities  - and we couldn't have asked for better company. We were eventually joined by Nathan and Jenna (our honeymooning friends), Matt (Steve's former housemate and our good friend) and Bronwyn and Matt (Steve's cousin and her husband - also honeymooning). Combine the eight of us with another five of our Australian-Vancouver friends - and it's safe to say our first Christmas in Canada was a memorable one. The 13 of us rented two, three bedroom self-contained units at Creekside in Whistler and spent five days skiing, drinking, eating, rapping (thanks to Teddy's Rapstar), zip-trekking and arguing over boardgames. Fun times indeed. I'd give you a more in-depth overview if I could, but unfortunately for me and my inability to withstand more than two alcoholic beverages in one evening, I can't remember a whole lot. Once I hit the two-drink threshold I usually find that in addition to not remembering anything from said night of drinking, I also forget everything from the day preceding and the day following. So, Christmas eve went something like this:

- Attempted to attend church with Jenna, Carly and Matt -

- Walked around Whistler Village and watched ice skaters for 20 minutes -

I do remember taking this photo - view of Whistler Village all lit up at night

- 1 x  red wine at the Brewhouse, Whistler Village, while we wait for everyone else to join us -

- 1 x double mojito -

- BLANK -

- Poutine -

- BLANK -

- 1 x single mojito -

The mojito photo I do not remember ...

- Slice of pizza -

- BLANK -

- Fireball shot -

- BLANK BLANK BLANK -

- Left restaurant, followed by snow fight -

I wouldn't have remembered if it wasn't for this picture ... EVIDENCE!

- BLANK -

I believe this is how we made it home ...

- Somehow got home -

- May have Skyped with Family ... BLANKITY BLANK BLANK -

- Rapstar (Kanye and I are not friends - I was terrible) -

Nat vs. Rapstar - Rapstar won, I also don't remember this photo. The rule: When rapping, one must ALWAYS sport Wigga hat

- Woke up from nap at table ... BLANK (Consumed Fireball shot - I cannot confirm this) -

- BLANKITY BLANKITY BLANK (Nat - 0; Alcohol - 20 million)

- Put self to bed after drinking five glasses of water (Nat - 1; Alcohol - 20 million) -

- Christmas Day Ziptrek - feeling pretty ordinary -

My great Christmas regret was not attending a church service. I found Christmas really didn't feel like Christmas without my traditional midnight mass. The funny thing was that we were all there, ready to go, but when we arrived at the hall in Whistler Village we found out we had the wrong time and the service was finishing. I felt like God would forgive me and appreciate my efforts nonetheless, especially when we turned to leave and a woman (who had just attended the service) came outside yelling out to her children who were playing in the nearby garden bed. As she called out to them -  "Truth ... Truth! Come here!" (and I won't quote her but I'm sure her other child's name was 'Fern') I took that as a sign from God it probably wasn't the kind of church service for me anyway.

Carly and I dog sledding on our first day in Whistler

There were puppies! This is Bear.

The local pub - right next door!

The view of Creekside from our units

Team Room 201.

Steve takes his turn at Rapstar - note Wigga hat.

The group - Wigging out with Rapstar.

Christmas Day - Matt dressed up as Santa and distributed presents!

When he started "Ho Ho Ho-ing" outside, people started looking ...

Christmas Day feast

Steve and I having a drink at Dusty's (the local pub) after a hard day on the slopes - as you do!

Dinner on our last night in Whistler - at Sushi Village - awesome sashimi!

Box sushi (on the right) - most amazing sushi ever.

Whistler was beautiful as per usual - we were lucky enough to enjoy plenty of snowfall - but the weather wasn't awesome. Despite great powder, visibility was fairly horrendous. Listen to me, I sound like a skiing snob. I shouldn't be really. I mean, I love my skiing get-up but skiing and I aren't quite friends just yet. Although I think I have the basic technique down-pat, I haven't yet been able to completely embrace the terror of skiing. I need to work out how to turn my brain off when I'm going down the mountain as it often tends to wander, effectively concocting these elaborate and utterly terrifying visions of me plummeting off a cliff to my death. Who invented this crazy sport anyway? Over my three days of skiing I could safely and confidently say my favourite moment on the mountain was when I had finally completed a run and was standing in the space between the gondola and the lift line. This meant that I had successfully completed a run without dying and, as a bonus, I wasn't being harassed by anyone in a lineup. As it stands at this moment in time,  I liken my relationship with skiing to my relationship with animated movies. At first, the thought of it makes me feel ill. When I finally give in though, I actually do enjoy it but I've really got to be in the right mood. Nevertheless I anticipate a few more Whistler skiing trips on the horizon and I know if I keep on risking my life by partaking in this undeniably dangerous sport it will only become less daunting.

Skiing Steve

Me kitted up on the lift

Steve kitted up

Patiently waiting in the lift line

A rare action shot of me!

Three days after Christmas Nathan & Jenna and Bronwyn & Matt left. I also had to go back to work for the three days before New Years. Thankfully Matt and Carly were still around and Steven had the three days off so together, so on the 28th they moved us from Apartment #4 in our building to Apartment #8. [Just before Christmas we received word from our building manager that #8 was available. Better kitchen? Check. Better bathroom? Check. A move away from our noisy neighbours? Priceless. Well, a $30 rent increase to be exact, but well worth it. Believe me.]

By the time I arrived home from work on December 28th, we had moved into our new apartment. Missy and Dave weren't far behind and together, the six of us sat in our new lounge room to discuss options for our upcoming New Year's celebrations. Our first idea was Victoria. Potentially Seattle. Both viable possibilities. And then ... Dave had an epiphany. Banff. A completely insane idea. We were sold. Unfortunately I had to work on the 29th and 30th. Fortunately, less than 24 hours and a sneeky bout of gastroenteritis (for me) later, we were off on our 12 hour road trip to Banff. Although eight hours in and several five-hour energy shots down for both Dave and Steve, I was seriously questioning our sanity. At times it was as though we were on an episode of Ice Road Truckers. It got pretty hairy driving through the night, semi-trailers hurtling towards us in the snow and all in dodgy, icy road conditions. Fortunately their driving skills were superb and we all survived, pulling into Banff, Alberta, at approximately 5am.

Road trip roll call - we're ready to go!

Our New Year's is certainly one we'll never forget. Four days in beautiful Banff with gorgeous blue skies and temperatures well into the negatives. I don't think I've ever been colder in my entire life. It's hard to be cranky at Banff though, you can't help but fall in love with the picturesque scenery and the small-town feel. Our Banff trip included a gondola ride, trip to Lake Louise for ice skating and hockey, chilling out at the hot springs and of course hot chocolates at the Fairmont (well, the girls did hot chocolates while the boys amused themselves for about an hour throwing chunks of ice into Bow Falls ... my mum always said small things amuse small minds ...). We spent New Year's eve dining at a local Swiss/Fondu restaurant (my first fondu ever - so much cheese .... SO MUCH CHEESE) and finishing up with drinks at a local bar (with main street fireworks interlude). Sadly for me I managed to catch a strain of my beloved KCFC (Killer Canadian Flu-Cold) and I retired fairly early, suffering a really bad fever and body aches. I rolled with the punches though. I knew the Universe was punishing me for my fake gastro bout. But you know, you only live once.

In the Banff Gondola.

View from the top - spectacular!

Steve and I at the top

Banff Hot Springs

Arriving at Lake Louise for our day of skating and hockey

Steve and I in front of Lake Louise

Lake Louise - yay!

The Team with the ice castle sculpture on Lake Louise



Nat plays hockey



The beautiful town of Banff

New Year's dinner - fondu

Plate of cheese dish.

The girls post-midnight on the main street in Banff.

Banff esky.

Dave wonders what ice really tastes like ... (frozen water, actually!)

Cool ice bar at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel

I'm not sure what Carly and Dave did to make the Universe mad, but at 4.30 am on New Year's Day Missy burst into our room (still half drunk), turning on the lights and ordering us to check ourselves for staph rashes. Carly and Dave were unlucky enough to contract what they originally thought may have been a staph infection (presumably from the hot springs). As a side note, it didn't end up being staph, but, for your own benefit, please don't Google it. I just did. It's disgusting. (I bet you just Googled it!). Thankfully no one else was affected, but this, combined with the fact we all had a pretty late night and I was fairly sick, meant that our plans for New Year's Day skiing at Sunshine Village were foiled.

My most interesting observation from our time in Banff? In Banff no one walks very often, they just slip. There is so much black ice everywhere, it's like the hilarity of people slipping over is completely lost - it's just a given. It actually made me kind of disappointed. I like to see a good slip every now and then. Provided no-one gets hurt, you can't deny it's pretty funny. The fun wore off for me about 30 minutes into us making our way into the main part of town, slipping all over the place like complete idiots, along with everyone else!

And ... some views ...

We've been back now for ten days and I'm already keen to look at our travel plans for the remainder of 2012. Although perhaps we should work on the funds first. This weekend we're off on our first leg of "Missy's Farewell Tour". Sadly, Missy is heading back home on February 5th because of uni commitments. In her honour (and in a feeble attempt to suppress thoughts of the inevitable), we're embarking on four consecutive weeks of (fairly) local tripping. First stop? Seattle!

P.S - Some video footage (if you're interested) - I'll put up more in the near future but for now, I'm over fighting with Blogspot.



Mexico 2.0: Heaven & Hell in Cozumel

Even though it has taken me a while to find the time to actually sit down and share my thoughts on Cozumel, I already know where to start. 

First and foremost (... this sounds like I'm about to break into speech ... I kinda am) I want to dedicate this blog entry to a woman by the name of Lynda Watson Plummer (Competitor #103), a woman I've never met before, but who, single-handedly aided and inspired Steve to complete his second Ironman race (well, her and the three dreaded letters D-N-F). Through her actions, Lynda sacrificed her own Ironman journey to enable Steven to complete his and in doing so displayed sportsmanship and unparalleled selflessness in the true sense of the words, ever so slightly restoring my faith in humanity. If you're interested in learning more about this enlightening afternoon, you'll just have to read on ...

 

Our trip was fairly smooth. As Cozumel is an island off the coast of mainland Mexico, our first flight was from Vancouver to Cancun. Boy was I sitting next to a cracker. By the end of the five hours I was convinced this man had absolutely no concept of spatial boundaries. For five hours he sprawled himself all over my area (including stretching his legs out in my leg space), hogged the common elbow rest (so badly that I couldn't even get to my tv remote controls) and he even tried to pull at my seat belt several times because he kept thinking it was his. No amount of dirty looks and loud, exaggerated sighs seemed to register with this man. He did however, redeem himself slightly when he helped us get our bag down from the overhead locker.

Unfortunately once we'd arrived in Cancun, so had another four flights, thus ensuring a long and painful wait for baggage, which included Steven off searching for his bike and me standing with our carry on baggage waiting for him, next to a snotty little three year old who knew only two letters of the alphabet (B & C incidentally) and proceeded to recite them over and over again in some kind of sick, messed up alphabet tune. I like to think of myself as a patient person (when I'm asleep) but after five hours next to space-hog man, my tolerance levels had dwindled significantly. My little friend then progressed to licking the retractable straps of the line up poles - a special child that one! 

As I mentioned, Cozumel is an island off Mexico (Fun Fact: Mexico's largest Caribbean Island), so our second (and final) flight was via MayAir. Walking in to the small, almost makeshift MayAir terminal, a federal police officer with a massive machine gun pops up out of the darkness and says "Good Evening Miss". I nearly had a coronary. Three things I knew in that moment for certain:

1. The only things I could clearly see were his pearly whites and glistening combat boots/machine gun combo;

2. He could shoot me dead in one swift action; and

3. If I didn't say "Hello" I was probably going to die.

Melodramatic? Maybe slightly....

So as my brain went in to overdrive siphoning through French, Italian, Japanese and maybe a little Russian (if you've read the Cancun entry, this will make sense!), I managed to crack back into Spanish just in time to whimper a little "Hola" and swiftly make my way into the terminal.

Our MayAir flight took approximately 15 minutes. It basically involved 15 minutes of praying for my life (and imagining a host of plane crash scenarios in which I'd miraculously survive and end up in the ocean and be able to safely swim to shore). The MayAir plane sat no more than 20 passengers and was one of those 'so small and fragile looking you don't tell your mum you ever stepped foot on or she'd have a heart attack' type scenarios (Hi Mum, Love you!). Thankfully we survived and all agreed on the entertaining aspects of the plane trip - a) the 70's style carpeted roof of the plane  b) the fact that the pilot and co-pilot used the intercom system to announce departure and arrival, even though they could easily just turn around and tell us (we could see all the controls and them, quite clearly) c) the mysterious white smoke that began billowing through the cabin shortly after take-off (I swear the people behind us fell silent once this started and I thought they'd been gassed and we were next).

Thanks to the super organised, researching extraordinaire Lisa, the four of us (Steven, Richard, Lisa and myself) stayed in this amazing three bedroom condo which boasted awesome amenities (I was thrilled with the fact there was a hairdryer) and even better views. We even had a personal cleaning lady who came in every day to tidy and clean the apartment (I think we need to employ her here).

Gorgeous views!

Gorgeous views #2

Our condos - from the front

Our home phone - yes, it's a real, big-person's phone!!

Chilling in the pool

The first two days I am sorry to say I spent mostly sleeping. Cozumel reminded me a lot of the Sunshine Coast - a lot more laid back and less party central (whereas Cancun would be more like the Gold Coast). The gorgeous ocean breezes didn't help with my sudden onset of chronic fatigue either. Thankfully after a few good rests, I was able to enjoy swimming in the pool and the ocean (yep, we could dive right in!) and sun-baking with Lisa, while the boys did their race prep. The ocean was magnificent and the water was so clear, dissimilar to Hawaii in that there were no colourful fish, turtles or coral etc, but clear and gorgeous nonetheless.

Nap time = all the time!

Sun baking and general relaxing-ness!

Our ocean playground!

A gorgeous Mexican sunset

Pre-race, our days consisted mostly of swimming, sun-baking and grocery shopping at our favourite supermarket - Mega. True to its name, Mega was, well, mega. It was pretty much a combination of Woolworths and Big W and every visit was an experience - you try grocery shopping in Mexico! Even though we were restricted in what we could buy prior to race day (i.e. no chicken, limited vegies and fruits, generally stayed away from dodgy looking things - we've all heard the stories about Mexico) Lisa excelled as head chef and cooked up a storm. Groceries in Mexico are crazy cheap too, so we ended up eating really well for very little. For example, when Steve and I braved Mega for lunch supplies on the Friday, we bought 6 large, fresh bread rolls and a packet of peanut M&M's for US $1.30.

Our Cozumel transportation was a story in itself! We ended up renting a beat up, stripped down, bright yellow VW punch buggy. Another one of those 'don't tell your mum you actually drove around an island in this car'. With no seat belts, every trip was a life threatening experience and for some inexplicable reason, even though the entire roof was off most of the time, I always felt compelled to lock the door.

Our little buggy

Don't look Mum, I'm not wearing a seat belt!!

If life was always easy, it'd never be any fun ... that's what I was telling myself (and trying hard to believe) most of Saturday afternoon. Steve's group was due to rack their bikes for Sunday's race at 3.30pm but fortunately we decided we'd head off a little early just so we had plenty of time. We needed every second. This is the point where the wheels started falling off (can't think of a more fitting pun!) ...

Preparing to drive to Transition, Steve dismantled his bike (by taking off the front wheel and placing it against the car) and I was stuck in the back of our beloved little buggy holding the rest of the bike. As Steve went to reverse we heard a heartbreaking crunch. At that moment my heart stopped beating and I was pretty sure I was about to vomit. I knew straight away – the front wheel! The result was four broken spokes and a whole lot of emptiness.

The beloved bike - prior to wheel incident (cringe!)

The car trip to Transition was very quiet. I opted for the "stay out of the way yet be as helpful as possible" strategy. After spending a good couple of hours or so trying to work out what to do (try to get it fixed, look at renting a front wheel, look at buying a front wheel, figuring out how we were going to get the money to buy a new wheel because our stupid bank had a daily cap), in the end, we decided we'd have to buy a new front wheel - a lot of money but what else do you do? The alternative is for Steve to pull out of a race he'd been training for for pretty much the entire year. It’s hard to convey in words how distraught we were both feeling. So, once the money issued had been sorted, we bought the wheel. It was in this moment I almost burst into tears – the feeling of relief – I can’t even imagine how Steve was feeling but for a while there I think we’d both slipped into thinking of the worst possible outcome. God works in mysterious ways and after Steve himself acknowledging he didn’t feel as focused for this race, I think Saturday's events really sparked the anger and motivation he needed.

But, just when we thought the Universe had already dealt us its most unfavorable hand, along came race day.

Ironman Cozumel started off in what some would term "spectacular" fashion, with a dolphin show following the starting gun. Lisa and I opted not to stay and watch though as we were both feeling afflicted, given that these dolphins have to be injected daily with antibiotics so they don't get sick from all the germs humans pass on to them when they touch them. I firmly believe if more people were aware of this, swimming with dolphins (in captivity) would not be anywhere near as popular as it seems to be.

The boys pre-race

Just about to head off to the start

Out of the swim and on to the bike leg

Rich on the bike

Lap 1 on the bike - going well!!

From the Support Crew perspective, Ironman Cozumel was pretty entertaining. Combine cute little Mexican children handing out Gatorade on the run course ("Gay pour aide!"), Brazillian and Mexican drumming and dancing, having local Mexican kids asking for photos (I don't think they'd ever seen anyone so white!) and almost getting "arrested" by police for attempting to cross through the course (we joked, but were half serious - we didn't want to be thrown in Mexican jail!). As for the competitors - the day was hot and windy (at times), it even included a torrential downpour which resulted in flooding through much of the run course (and associated putrid wafting smells - I don't want to know what was coming up out of the flooded drains!!) and athletes having to run, at times, through shin deep stink-water. A very tough day indeed, but my proudest as a supporter yet. As Lisa and I waited for Steve on the run course, we talked about how you liken your expectations and hopes as a supporter on race day to your expectations as a bride on her wedding day, based on how the day begins to unfold - i.e.

Race Supporter: "I hope he's in a good position in his category"; "I hope he's not too far behind now"; "I hope he hasn't pulled out"; "I hope he's not in that ambulance I just saw go past" ...

Bride: "I hope the weather is gorgeous and sunny the whole day"; "I hope it's sunny for the ceremony"; "Even if it does rain during the ceremony, I hope it will just hold off for the photos" ...

As my watch hands moved further and further away from his expected arrival on the run course, I knew something was up. I started walking back to the T2 tent and felt a wave of relief when I saw him. He then proceeded to stop and walk next to me, giving me the low down on the events that had unfolded on the bike course ...

After all our messing around on Saturday to find a new front wheel, it was the back wheel that was the devil on race day. After three flat tyres and nothing left to try, Steve had resigned himself to the fact his day was done. This was when Lynda Watson Plummer (Competitor #103) stopped to offer him her Co2 canister to inflate his tyre. When that didn't work, she proceeded to offer her bike to Steve, telling him she was only on her first lap of the three lap course and would not make the bike course cut-off time. Despite repeatedly refusing to accept her bike and telling her to keep going, she wouldn't take no for an answer and made Steve take her bike, enabling him to finish the bike course. In an event the scale of an Ironman - something that most people will never even attempt in their entire lives, something you don't dare take lightly and something you would have trained for and dreamt about for months - to have the ability to undertake such a selfless act is completely awe-inspiring to me. In all honesty, I don't think too many people could do it, but, even as a mere supporter, I am so grateful she did.

Lise - my fellow support crew!

Rich on the run

Steve - finally on the run!

So the events of the bike course, combined with the torrential downpour stink-water run and dizziness on the run leg resulted in not the greatest race time-wise for Steve, but I was truly humbled by his ability to overcome these obstacles and complete his second Ironman race. The test of a true champion is to see how they can overcome the greatest and most difficult of challenges. Steve is no double amputee but in the context of his race day, in my opinion, this was the most rewarding crossing of the finish line I have witnessed to date.  Cozumel didn’t love us like Busso did, but it made me feel so lucky that Steve had the dream race at Busso when he did – we were really spoiled by that and it took the events of Cozumel to remind me that a dream race is very rare.

In Ironman, survivors are grinners!!

Once we'd made our way home to our cozy condo, we capped off the night with some well-earned pepperoni pizza, garlic bread and coke (the dinner of champions!) and a Friends marathon. We then fell asleep listening to the sounds of what I swore was Hurricane Katrina #2 and I began dreading the MayAir flight back to Cancun on Tuesday if these cyclonic conditions kept up. Honestly, the wind was so strong and was howling so violently I thought for anyone still competing, the winds could have blown them straight across the finish line (or into the ocean, depending on their direction).

Although we'd initially planned to do some snorkeling on Monday, the bad weather wasn't particularly conducive to ocean related activities. In the end we decided on a sleep in and lunch at a local Cozumel home (I think these people had half converted their living space into a dining area/restaurant) - it was delicious! This was where I swiftly developed my guacamole and handmade corn chip obsession which continued through to dinner at El Focos restaurant. The afternoon was made complete with a Corona toast - it was my Mexican dream to finally drink a Corona overlooking the beautiful ocean!

Coronas on the balcony!

The house

Lunch at someone's house - in Cozumel!

The lounge room from the lunch house!

I don't know what it was, but it was tasty!

Delicious taco!

Dinner at El Focos with Rich & Lise

Taco selection at El Focos

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Cozumel. It was a lot more relaxed and laid back than Cancun (not that I didn't like Cancun - just a completely different experience) and I felt as though I had the opportunity to embrace Mexican culture a little more in Cozumel. The Mexican people are lovely - so friendly and have given up on the fact that stupid foreigner tourists like us only know how to say four words to them so they've (thankfully) embraced that and learnt English instead!

Didn't take him long ... post-race Fruitloops breakfast!!

A light pre-flight meal on our way home

In this moment we have been home for just over two weeks. Christmas is fast approaching and we're definitely looking forward to seeing some familiar faces, but at the same time I know it will be hard being away from our families too. We're trying hard to drown these feelings out by booking Zip Trek in Whistler for Christmas morning and skiing for four days. Also, much to the delight of Steve's "inner fatty" and the dismay of my hips, bum and thighs, I have recently embraced baking (I think it was mostly due to procrastination) - brownies, cupcakes and date loaf - and I am now a gas oven snob. We've just come off two weeks of wings, pizza, ice cream, creamy pasta, quiche and burgers (Fat Steve's rewards for Ironman #2) so it's almost time to face the reality of training and healthy eating again (I must say I think my body is looking forward to it!) - but let's face it, probably not before Christmas.

Our baby Christmas tree!

Happy Holidays xx