Okay, this is the first time we ever had friends come to dinner – in a CANOE!
Another wonderful thing about living the coastal life. 🙂
June 8th was World Oceans Day. World Oceans Day has been unofficially celebrated on June 8th since 1992 when Canada proposed the idea at the Earth Summit in Rio, and was officially recognised by the United Nations in 2008. The official website is worldoceansday.org.
Here is my contribution to a weekly travel theme challenge created by wheresmybackpack.wordpress.com. Because I live by the Atlantic Ocean here in Canada, I thought I would share some pics from last year when my daughter and her family visited, and had fun on our sandy seashores.
We said goodbye to half of our group whose time had come to fly home, as well as “ciao” to Tuscany, then the four of us rode by train to northern Italy. Nestled by Lake Maggiore in the foothills of the Italian Alps, the pretty little town of Stresa was a welcome sight. We checked into a B & B, our home for the next few days.
Here are some scenes I captured a couple of weeks ago when our backyard bay was full of ice and “bergy bits”. Maisie and Vivian, being the naturally curious creatures they are, simply had to take a closer look. On tentative paws and their noses in the air, smelling the invigorating ocean breeze, they took me along…
“Be careful what you wish for, Jennifer…”
I have always adored animals, and was enjoying getting closer to nature since my husband and I moved back to rural Newfoundland, but THIS IS A LITTLE TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT.
Yes, the big visitor showed up in our little town just yesterday, one of four recent reports of polar bears being on the island of Newfoundland so far this spring (read further and view actual pictures from yesterday from the linked article below). The Ursus Maritimus doesn’t often make its way this far south. It is when it is hungrily hunting seals, which are found on icepans this time of year, that it may end up in some of our backyards. Yikes!!
“Don’t worry,” says my husband. “Nobody has ever been attacked by a polar bear in Newtown before.”
Gee, thanks, Honey. I don’t know why I was worrying. We are, after all, only talking about the LARGEST LIVING LAND PREDATOR IN THE WORLD.
Silly RCMP, too, for warning us to be on the lookout. Oh well, as the old joke goes, I won’t have to outrun the bear, I’ll just have to outrun the husband…
I have never professed to be a winter-loving person. I don’t ski, skate or snowmobile, and here in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, the winter can drag on longer than many of us like.
But it isn’t all bad. I do like to go outdoors on the sunny days for walks, or just to take some pictures of things that catch my fanciful eye. Last week I snapped a few shots of the glittering aftermath of a sleet storm. It is also satisfying to find signs of wildlife…and finding wildlife itself.
(For better viewing, click on the first photo to start the gallery)
But then, as pretty as all this is, my heart is looking forward. It waits patiently, yet eagerly for summer.
Coming soon: Cold and Dreary February? Nahh… Part Two (Indoors)
