Huntsville

The symbol of Ontario, Muskoka chairs.


















It's winter here but these are the last remnants of autumn.
















These deer were visitors during my first breakfast at Chuck and Jeannie's.

These black squirrels were also breakfast guests.















Chuck and Jeannie's house at Huntsville. The snow that you see was the last remnants of the snow from a few weeks ago. But it has snowed each day since, just lightly so the lanscape continues to change.

I arrived in Canada on December 23 after staying in Toronto one night with Barrie and Jan Bennett. It was great to catch up again but it was such a short time. Better one night than not at all. Let's see what happens in 2012.

I went by the Northlander train to Huntsville and chatted all the way with a Canadian who was telling me about the delights of travelling in Cuba (frequented by Canadians and not Americans because there are no direct flights there from the USA) and the value for money that you get. We also discussed our tastes in literature. That killed three hours and I never read a page of my book.

More New York Photos

Reflections of New York in Macy's window. I bought myself a suit there.













New York streetscape.





















The Rockerfeller Building.








Skating at Bryant Park.

Going down ... at the Empire State Building.

More from New York

The Flat Iron Building, one of
New York's first steel
skyscrapers.

The financial district of south Manhattan. Wall St is here.

Times Square is always lively and fun, particularly at night.

Reading the stocks at Times Square.

Whilst I'm now in Canada I wanted to share some more of my photos from New York with everyone. I really enjoyed this city and more time here would have allowed me to explore it in more detail than what I did. I saw only the most obvious tourist places but when I was talking with a Canadian in the train on the way to Huntsville he was telling me where he went in Greenwich Village to hear the music he loved. He also went to the Whitehorse Inn, the pub where Dylan Thomas drank himself to death with 18 scotches. Now that's really definng your tourist interests.

More Photos from New York

The Chrysler Building is an amazing building. It was built in the early 1930's and it is a great example of art deco design. There is marble everywhere and lots of design that reflects the industrial age.

Chrysler Building interior: art deco par excellence

Times Square

Photos from New York

Outside the Guggenheim Museum Brooklyn Bridge

My time in New York

If you are wondering why you are not seeing any photographs yet it is because Cynthia's Internet is not working properly at the moment and even publishing a print version is problematic. I can't always edit the work and I can't always correct the errors easily because her iPad is using p.redictive text and it sometimes slips new suggestions in that I do not want and it won't allow me to correct them. Rest assured, I have been taking some photos. I will publish them as soon as I can.

Cynthia's apartment is just like in the photos on airbnb and it is a delight to live in. It is a two minute walk to the subway and a 5 minute walk to Central Park. Cynthia is also a delight. She is so helpful.

This is what I have done over the last few days:

* joined Cynthia in a photo shoot with Marjalla ( a girl from the Netherlands who was in the apartment for the first two days). Cynthia was using a 5 x 4 large format film camera for this.

* Went to Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn for dinner at Trix. The food was delicious: fois GRAS and scallops washed down with a white Burgundy. And well priced too.

* I've been to Times Square a few times as it is so lively. it is also a place to go to see Broadway and off Broadway plays. Last night I saw Freud's Last Session, an excellent two hander that dealt with a meeting between Freud and C. S. Lewis which was really a debate about the existence of God. You could argue that it was a draw at the end of the play. I've also seen War Horse at the Lincoln Centre and it was a highlight. No wonder it won so many awards. It was a little too narrative at times but still quite extraordinary in its scope and stagecraft, not to mention the excellence of the puppet horses which were full size.

* I've been to B & H, one of New York's finest camera stores. I've decided to buy my R3880 printe r in Australia because it has a $300 cash back there at present and the shipping costs are way too high. I'll have to wait as Australia is currently out of stock. I've seen the printer though and it is quite a size and heavy (20 kgs).

* On Sunday night I had dinner with some of Cynthia's friends. I really enjoyed a conversation with Zelda, who at age 95 is to be honored with an award by the Nigerian Government next year for her work in raising awareness about female genital mutilation over a number of years. What a life she has led.

* other tourist spots include the Guggenheim Museum, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Chrysler Building, Grand Central Station, the Empire State Building, Bryant Park and the Rockerfeller Centre.

That just about does it for now. Tomorrow is my last full day here before I head off to see Barrie and Jan Bennett in Toronto..

New York

A business class upgrade to LA was a great start to this holiday and a welcome turn around in my fortunes immediately preceding the flight: a storm which gave me a lot of extra wood cutting (which awaits me when I return), Andrew's accident and then being hit by a kangaroo when driving home from Julia and John's.

The A380 is a very comfortable plane and business class is so good: horizontal seats so you can lie flat to sleep, real cutlery and real food. And space!

I also managed to get through LA airport quickly, so different from my previous experiences.

December 16 was also my wedding anniversary and that occupied my mind for some of the flight. Not all bad thinking. There will always be regrets about not having more time together.

The best made plans...

Well it sounded like a good idea at the time. And the time was last Christmas and Nicholas, Jennifer, Andrew, Caz and I thought that it would be great to have a white Christmas in Canada. It would be our first, especially as Caz and Jennifer had never been to the snow before. It also meant that the offspring of the Zizzo, Harris and Kemp family could meet for the first time, not a bad thing. Why let the older generation have. All of the fun!

Our plan was put in place, tickets bought, thermals bought and packed and then... Andrew's accident. What is it about the Kemp boys, motorbikes and holidays? Well we have a broken femur, broken wrist and a dislocated elbow and our touring party is down to three. So no matter how well this trip goes it will not be as good as the original concept. Sorry about your plans Andrew and Caz, our dreams are dashed too.