December 12-20, 2008 Anaheim, California trip
Well as most of you know Thomas and I love to travel to California, not only because of the great wineries but it has diverse scenery (which I like to think it has much to offer like Texas). This trip began as a business trip for the 2008 International Respiratory Congress and this is the 54th annual convention. Each year it rotates the location and we lucked out to come to this one in CA. Typically it is held the first week in Dec but for whatever reason this one is closer to the middle of December which puts a rush on Christmas when we get home this year! Since we were going to be gone so long I felt Caitlynn would enjoy seeing Nicole and the kids in Texas so we flew her there yesterday from Greensboro, NC then Thomas & I did a little shopping and stayed the night in Greensboro since we had a 5:50 AM flight to catch at the GSO airport.
I have been a RT for many years (Brandon was a baby when I started school) and I had not ever come to this particular convention until the year I opened the sleep lab (Sleep EZ Diagnostics, Inc.) in Dec. 2005. The first one I attended 2005 was in Las Vegas but they only had a small amount of classes/seminars related to sleep medicine. Thomas also had never attended this particular conference even though he’s been a therapist for 20 + yrs. Last year it was held in Orlando, Florida so we both attended as the information in sleep medicine had increased. Not to mention VA Tech made it to the ACC Championship game which the announcement was made to hold the game in Jacksonville, Florida. We made that game day one that we were not going to be able to attend any classes and we headed out in the rental car-driving to the game! VA Tech won but it was a struggle…ironically so Helene had gone with some friends from the hospital to also attend so we hung out with her for the latter part of the game and afterwards as we ate. Needless to say our agenda will not be involving a playoff football game this time but I’m sure we’ll find plenty to do while we are here in addition to our classes.
We arrived at 10:45AM into LAX (Las Angeles, CA) and gathered our luggage and retrieved our rental car. As we checked out our rental car at Enterprise, we noticed gas prices to be more than home but much less than when we were in this area for part of our honeymoon 4 yrs ago-$1.71 per gallon currently. We made an immediate stop at one of our local burger joints-“In-N-Out”….it was delicious as we remembered! We had barely driven 3 miles outside the airport property when Thomas stumbled upon it….or did he put it in his GPS (“Karen” he affectionately named her) anyway we are here! So for you to better understand the ‘difference’ of this burger place from others, I will quote their wrappers that come on their burgers:
• The first In-N-Out opened 1948
• All our burgers are made with fresh beef that’s never frozen
• Our buns are made with-out preservatives the old fashioned way-from real sponge dough
• We hand-leaf our lettuce every day
• Our fries are peeled and diced daily from fresh whole potatoes
• We’ve cooked our fries in 100% cholesterol free oil since 1948
**Not to mention they use a dressing that tastes similar to Thousand Island and since I am probably one of the few people left in the country that actually still order that as my salad dressing-I love it!
After we sat outside and ate our meal in the beautiful sun shine and a temperature of 72 degrees, we proceeded to locate our timeshare. Gotta love the LA traffic and its lunchtime so everyone’s out running around.
I like to see the Metro system in use as they utilize it so effectively in this area, it is generated by electricity and the stations are located strategically for public use.
We weren’t exactly sure where the timeshare is other than it’s located within 1-1/2 from the Anaheim Convention Center where our seminar will be held this week. As we neared the address Thomas and I realized much to our surprise since we are not familiar with this area of California that we are in the Disneyland property also. The name of the timeshare is the Dolphin’s Cover Resort. It’s a nice property and conveniently located for our use while we are here. After checking in we got unpacked for the next 8 days and look at all the literature that the resort gave us regarding all the events happening. Later we located the hot tub for Thomas and the exercise room for me (I haven’t been on the treadmill in a week as we stayed very busy getting ready for this trip and also having our Christmas party for our employees as we do a Sleep EZ/Freedom Respiratory party). Since I am contemplating my participation in a 5K on Sunday here, I had better get started! As we returned to our condo we planned our evening. We went in search of groceries and retrieved them then we ate our dinner which consisted of our Macaroni Grill leftovers from the night before in Greensboro. Yes, I hand carried them with us (we hate waste) and we enjoyed them almost as much as the night before. I say it would have been the same if we would have had endless bread being supplied along with olive oil with fresh ground black pepper for dipping that delectable bread in………anyway we did have a loaf with our leftovers so we enjoyed it! I made my way to seek a tub filled with hot water and bubbles-now that was nice. We completed this Friday evening as we watched the brilliant full moon tonight (read attached article relating to it):
Year's Biggest Full Moon Friday Night
By Robert Roy Britt
Editorial Director
posted: 11 December 2008
01:24 pm ET
The full moon Friday night will be the biggest one of the year as Earth's natural satellite reaches its closest point to our planet.
Earth, the moon and the sun are all bound together by gravity, which keeps us going around the sun and keeps the moon going around us as it goes through phases. The moon makes a trip around Earth every 29.5 days. But the orbit is not a perfect circle.
The moon's average distance from us is about 238,855 miles (384,400 km). Friday night it will be just 221,560 miles (356,567 km) away. It will be 14 percent bigger in our sky and 30 percent brighter than some other full moons during the year, according to NASA.
Tides will be higher Friday night, too. Earth's oceans are pulled by the gravity of the moon and the sun. So when the moon is closer, tides are pulled higher. Scientists call these perigean tides, because the moon's closest point to Earth is called perigee. The farthest point on the lunar orbit is called apogee.
Some other strange lunar facts:
The moon is moving away as you read this, by about 1.6 inches (4 centimeters) a year. Eventually it'll be torn apart as an expanding sun pushes the moon back toward Earth for a wrenching close encounter.
There is no proof the full moon makes people crazy.
Beaches are more polluted during full moon, owing to the higher tides.
The moon will rise Friday evening right around sunset, no matter where you are. That's because of the celestial mechanics that produce a full moon: The moon and the sun are on opposite sides of the Earth, so that sunlight hits the full face of the moon and bounces back to our eyes.
At moonrise, the moon will appear even larger than it will later in the night when it's higher in the sky. This is an illusion that scientists can't fully explain. Some think it has to do with our perception of things on the horizon vs. stuff overhead.
Try this trick, though: Using a pencil eraser or similar object held at arm's length, gauge the size of the moon when it's near the horizon and again later when it's higher up and seems smaller. You'll see that when compared to a fixed object, the moon will be the same size in both cases.
You can see all this on each night surrounding the full moon, too, because the moon will be nearly full, rising earlier Thursday night and later Saturday night.
Interestingly, because of the mechanics of all this, the moon is never truly 100 percent full. For that to happen, all three objects have to be in a perfect line, and when that rare circumstance occurs, there is a total eclipse of the moon.
Gallery: Moon Images
Skywatcher's Guide to the Moon
Top 10 Strangest Things in Space
Then followed by Disney’s firework display they do nightly @ 9:30 PM as we stood on our balcony in fascination at the amazing colors.
Today is Saturday, December 13, 2008 and the weather is expected to be a high of 59 degrees today with cloudy skies. Thomas and I woke and he fixed breakfast and we prepared for the day as we would be walking to the convention center to gather our registration packets. It’s a mild but pleasant day. Thomas had left Dietmar a message yesterday announcing our arrival and dates we would be in the area as we’d love to spend some time with him.
After out down time with Thomas at the hot tub and me in the exercise room we returned to the condo to watch the announcement show for the recipient for the Heisman Trophy. This is the first year in history that there is not a senior nominated and the 3 nominees are from Univ. of Texas-Colt McCoy, Oklahoma Univ.-Sam Bradford, and Florida State Univ.- Tim Tebow. I love football, especially college ball and being from Austin (which is where I grew up) I LOVE the Longhorns so this is significant to me. Plus I truly enjoy watching the program/selection as they interview each nominee and give a little history on their lives. The thing also that I liked the best this year is the fact that all 3 of these amazing young talented men are strong in their faith, family and mentoring. They mentor rather it’s to young people, missionary work, or mentoring the players that they play. The gentleman that won was Sam Bradford from OU. Bradford, who leads the nation in touchdown passes with 48, received 1,726 points. Texas quarterback Colt McCoy was second with 1,604 and Tebow—who received the most first-place votes—was third with 1,575 points. Between the 3 nominees their teams were 35-3, now that is impressive. As I have always said since Lynn and I divorced-my daughter is my primary responsibility meaning that it is my job to raise her to be a responsible adult as we live in an atmosphere of mutual respect, love, and accountability in our home. With Tebow’s acceptance speech he said to his parents: “There were many times that you pushed me in times that I didn’t want to do anything and you always expected the best from me regardless of what I was doing-playing or being organized & motivated, for that I love you and couldn’t have done it without you!”
We prepared to leave as we went to The House of Blues as they were holding a Welcome Party for the AARC attendees with John Waite performing live for us. We enjoyed the food and entertainment for a couple of hours then we came back to get ready for bed. I have to be up by 5:50AM to report for the 5K Fun Run the AARC is sponsoring. Lucky me, I registered yesterday when the conference opened and ironically I got my favorite number 8 as I walked up to the booth, it was on top so it was mine…..I’m feeling good about this.
Well I left this morning Sunday, December 14, 2008 at 6:20AM to walk to the Marriott which is where the 5K will begin. I left Thomas in bed to sleep in today. The temperature is 42 degrees without the sun being quite up yet but it feels good, especially for a run. I noticed at the convenient stores around our resort that gas prices had dropped today to $1.59 per gallon.
I completed it with a 37.23 time, not bad considering I haven’t been running regularly since the 1st week of October. Came back to the condo and Thomas was watching the Cowboy news and since the time is 3 hrs behind here from home, that means he’ll be able to catch some of the football games today in between our classes. The Cowboys will not play until 5 PM here. I fixed us breakfast and off for a bubble bath (I never take the time at home to take these so I’m enjoying them here!). Dietmar called and we will meet him on Monday afternoon, we’re looking forward to seeing him as we have not seen him since Thomas and I came on our honeymoon to spend a day with him and Rose. Rose passed away about 2 yrs ago. She had a very charismatic personality while Dietmar was quieter but just as cordial.
We went to our classes then back we came for the “big game”. Dallas defeated the Giants 20-8 so Thomas was ecstatic! I thought we were going to get thrown out for disturbing the peace as he was jumping up and down and screaming at his team thru the TV. Dietmar called and we confirmed our place to meet and time for tomorrow. I spent some of my time watching the football game and downloading family pictures on Snapfish. Caitlynn and Nicole called us today as they are enjoying their time together as they rested after church then off to bed. We ordered pizza and spaghetti to be delivered and enjoyed an evening in. We finished the night off watching the magnificent fireworks as Disney’s ritual at 9:30PM.
Monday, December 15, 2008 is another great day in California…though it started raining during the night and continued on through most of the day. The temperature was a high of 56, though it felt slightly cooler with the rain. The people from this area feel as if this is a cold-front so they are wearing coats, no flip-flops (as usual) and some even had on toboggans? Thomas and I went to our classes then returned to get the rental car form our resort so we could make our way to meet Dietmar and his friend for dinner by 6:00PM. We are unsure about the traffic so we thought it best we leave ahead of time as we were traveling on unfamiliar ground for us so we were going to depend on “Karen” to navigate us. Dietmar had given Thomas a cell number to call as we left Anaheim and as I had predicted it was a female’s cell number. Since we were going to be early as Dietmar told Thomas our reservations were not until 6:00PM, I thought we might need to call the restaurant and be sure we are not too underdressed as we were casually dressed. The hostess said it was a casual environment so we felt good about it. Thomas took me to Martin & Kathy’s for New Year’s the last year we dated and he did not inquire about attire, So horrified to my surprise when we arrived at their new home in Chesterfield, they would be dressed formally with a tux and floor length dress for Kathy…we brought casual slacks and winter sweaters-no dress or tux. In deep regret Kathy and Martin dressed down more than they had originally planned but needless to say-we were VERY UNDRESSED for the occasion!
The restaurant was located in a very quaint area of San Juan Capistrano which is located about 25 minutes from Anaheim. We arrived almost 30 minutes early so we wondered into Chico’s which is located in this strip mall area. I love Chico’s but it is really too expensive for me but the signs advertised on the front window was “65% sale”, so I thought what the heck when Thomas headed inside….So I looked around on the sale racks and found a cute skirt and it was originally price at $98.00 and got it for $5.38, that’s right less than $10.00-I love those kind of sales. Thomas just smiled.
Cedar Creek had a beautiful Christmas tree with a roaring fireplace in the area we were seated. Their tag line is: food-spirits-ambiance and its address is: 26860 Ortega Hwy., San Juan Capistrano, CA, 92675, 949-240-2229 www.cedarcreekinn.com. We were fortunate to meet Dietmar there in a timely fashion and be introduced to his friend Marie. We had a lovely dinner and ironically we all ended up ordering some type of fish. There was plenty of good conversation and I shared with Dietmar the story that I so enjoyed writing on our recent trip with Hans to Canada. I forewarned him that there are stories about him in there also, he grinned and said “umm humm”. The meal was great and the company was very pleasant. We told Dietmar if he can’t remember how long it’s been since he came to VA then that is too long-he needs to come visit us soon! Marie told Thomas & I we should come back to this area to sight-see as across the street there is one of the missions that are in CA and they have a good history about it and it is something to see she says.
From the website regarding the missions: Much of California's history began with the Spanish Missions. The chain of 21 missions along California’s El Camino Real (“The Royal Highway”) represents the first arrival of non-Native Americans to California. Life for the California Native Americans was forever changed. In addition to Christianity, the missions brought many other things to California such as livestock, fruits, flowers, grains and industry. This was also the start of the civilization in which we live today. However, as a result of the arrival of the Spanish, many Native American lives were lost. Every one of the California missions tells a story about the history of California. All have been, to some extent, restored and can be visited today.
Dietmar is headed to Albuquerque, NM on the 18th this month and he will be going to the Santa Fe area also while he’s there. He tells us he used to work in the area so he’s familiar with it. Marie has 2 children-1 daughter and 1 son that live in area. The son is an attorney and never married, the daughter has 2 kids which are her only grandchildren. Marie is quite the conversationalist and we had a nice time learning about her. Dietmar told us how much he enjoyed the sibling’s trip to Germany this past May, and yes he clarified that he would like to make the trip again! After our meal we took pictures and said our good-byes to each of them and headed back to our condo in the light drizzling rain. Regardless of the rain everything is so pretty though as the quaint areas are decorated for Christmas. After our short drive back to the resort we got ready for bed and listened to some Christmas music as we wound down. We missed the fireworks but it was worth it!
Today is Tuesday, December 16, 2008 and the day started off cloudy but cleared off by lunchtime and stayed clear for the rest of the day with a temperature of 54-56 degrees. Thomas & I took care of catch up issues with our offices and computer work for the morning as we also had breakfast he prepared. We then made our way to the hot tub and workout room for activities. After we got back to our place we got online to compare ticket prices for the Anaheim Ducks hockey game. This is the last night they will play here until Dec. 31st, we will be home by then and Thomas wanted us to go to a game while we are here. We secured our tickets online so we got ready and planned our bus route after we bought our tickets to take the A.R.T. which is one of the local transportation trolleys for this area. It cost $3.00 per person for the day so we bought our passes at the resort office. While we were in our resort I gave him a shirt that I found at the Marriott gift shop on the morning of my run. It was on the clearance rack and marked down since it was for the “2007 Stanley Cup Champions-Anaheim Ducks” and it in X-Large also. I surprised him and gave it to him as I said, “I figured you’d need a hockey shirt to wear to the game”. He put it on immediately and out the door we went.
It was interesting talking to a lady that came to the same conference we did for Respiratory and her husband was with her-they are also going to the Ducks game. They are from Canada so we got into a conversation regarding the difference in socialized medicine vs. our industry with our government here in the states. Thomas told them that it really bothered him that the US has taken over the NHL. So they talked about that and she told us that we are fortunate to be able to go to game for a reasonable cost as they are unable to do so. She said they’ve been married for 20 yrs and this will be their first NHL game to go see. She felt it was a good thing for the sport that the US took it over as the program needed more $ to make things happen for the players and it has since the US got involved. The game was held at the Honda Center here in Anaheim. It is huge! The building is 650,000 sq. ft. and is lined inside and out with marble and granite from around the world. The building’s roof spans 444 ft. by 329 ft. with more than 100 ft. above the arena floor. It has 3 levels of seating and can hold 17,174 people for hockey games and as many as 18,325 for stage events. Tonight’s game is the Anaheim Ducks vs. New York Rangers. This is the Ranger’s 1st trip to Anaheim since Nov. 1, 2006 so the crowd is really fired up. The goalie for the Ducks is a native of Switzerland who is 26 yrs old named Jonas ( pronounced “Yo-nas”) Hiller and his goals-against average an save percentage both ranked in the top 5 in the league. During the final week of Nov. when he went 2-0-0 with an eye-popping 0.50 goals against and .984 save percentage so the NHL named him one of their “Three Stars” of the week. He won 6 of his final 9 appearances and saved just under 95 percent of the shots fired at him last season. In June of this year the team rewarded his progress with a contract extension that pays him more than $1 million annually this season and next. So needless to say this was a good game but the Ducks lost 3-1.
We caught the trolley back and Thomas had me get off early (before our stop) with him. After we got off he walked right to P.F. Chang’s for us to have a nice dinner. This is one of our favorite restaurants when we are in an area that has them. We counted and we have been to 5 different P.F. Chang’s in different states. The first one we ate at together was when I had husbandnapped trip to Nashville, TN that I totally planned with his office and he knew NOTHING about until I told him at the airport that he was going with me! So for the next 3 days we spent time in a wonderful bed & breakfast that was ran by a grandson to one of the original men who founded Nashville. So of course for dinner our first night I took Thomas to have his first dinner at a P.F. Chang’s…he’s loved it since!
After we finished our dinner, we took a couple of pictures outside and made our way walking the rest of the way back to our resort which was about 6-7 blocks. We needed to work off our meal anyway. Tonight we missed the fireworks but it was a good evening regardless….
This morning we were woke up to the sound of rain and the high temperature for the day was predicted to be only 52 degrees. Today is Wednesday, December 17, 2008. Everyone in this area said that if the rain was so needed they wouldn’t like it. Thomas and I got caught up on office work we both had to do and then we got ready to head out to Temecula for our tour of the wine country. We haven’t been out to Temecula in 2 yrs so we were looking forward to the day. The weather continued to be rainy/overcast with occasional downpours….
As we left our resort and start out on 95-E we passed the Angel’s Stadium. The entrance design on the outside was cool as it had 2 baseball caps facing each other so that all who entered had to pass. It was quite a stadium.
The traffic is 4 lanes each way with an option of 2 more lanes but they are toll roads that you can use at a cost….next we took 15-S about 24 miles from Temecula. At this time the rain is heavy and we came to a community named “City of Elsinore” since we asked “Karen” to find us a post office en route to our destination-this was her choice. It was a good one I might add as this town had a lot of character and very historic. It was founded in 1888 and celebrated its 100th anniversary this year and a little history on this town:
Native Americans have long lived in the area. Lake Elsinore was incorporated as a city in 1888 (even before Riverside County's creation in 1893) but was inhabited well before then. In the 18th century when the lake was natural it provided a spot for Spanish ranchers and American trappers to replenish their supplies. It was named Elsinore after the Danish city in Shakespeare's "Hamlet", which is now its sister city.
The lake went dry in the 1930s and was refilled in the early 1960s. More than a week of heavy rains in 1980 flooded the lake, destroying surrounding homes and businesses. Since then there has been a multi-million dollar project put into place to maintain the water supply at a consistent level allowing for homes to be built close to the lake. Unfortunately there are no provisions to allow the water to spill out via a river, so the overflow must be diverted into the Temescal Canyon Wash. In 2007 there was an aeration system added to help with the lake's ecosystem.
This would be a nice place to spend a little more time in…maybe next time. As fate would have it, the rain almost stopped in time for Thomas to drop me off to mail all 14 of my postcards I had gotten finished yesterday and wanted to get them in the mail to our loved ones.
As we drive into Temecula we located their Chamber of Commerce for free maps of the wineries. Our goal was to go to different ones than we’ve already visited. Evidentially when we were here originally as we drove through here to go to Las Vegas on our honeymoon, we stopped at Callaway’s and then go back on the road for Vegas. A good memory of Callaway’s was when I discovered that Thomas had never tasted a pomegranate. As we drove up the driveway to the winery, they were hanging from trees along the drive. I told Thomas what they were and he didn’t even know what a person would do with them. I explained to him that as a kid my parents would give them to us for snacks to eat. Ironically the winery as we went inside for the tasting, had a wine made from pomegranate and we sampled it. As we departed I asked one of the employees if they minded if we got a pomegranate off one of the trees-she obliged so we did just that. Thomas pulled the rental car under one of the trees on the driveway and I assisted hoisting him up (from the car door on the passenger side) and he collected one for us to sample (him initially) the rest is history.
Then 2 yrs ago when we were came to Carlsbad, CA and toured the Baja of California we also took a day during that stay from Christmas Eve thru Jan 2nd to drive to Temecula for the day. We enjoyed it tremendously as it is much smaller wineries from what we saw in Napa Valley (on our honeymoon) and the people took a lot more time to explain processes, etc. to you. We when we here before, there were some wineries that we WERE to only ones there at that particular time. Thomas found his most favorite Port (he LOVES a good Port) at a winery named Palumbo, we did not purchase it since it was $85.00 bottle but the winery only made less than 1,000 bottles to sale. But he remembers it every time he tastes another Port-anywhere, never found one better to date he says! On that visit we ended our day with a wonderful dinner at a steakhouse in historic downtown Temecula and Thomas vowed we would return at that time.
We gathered our maps and off we went in search of a new winery. The weather was still balmy but only mildly sprinkling now as we called and made reservations for our first winery as it was by reservations only. It’s named Briar Rose and was only 10-12 minutes from where we left town. We took Rancho California Rd, Calle, and then Madera DePlaya Dr and then another turn to the winery located at: 41720 Calle Cabrillo, Temecula, CA, 92592- It sits on a small mountain that overlooks a valley: Located on the grounds of a former Disney set designer's home, and named after Sleeping Beauty's alias, this magical winery is modeled after Snow White's cottage, and produces all estate-grown, moderate-level production wines (about 2,400 cases per year). Copper walls and wood furnishings give the tasting room an "inside the barrel" feel; VIPs are led into an adjacent space, which is outfitted with plush couches, a river stone fireplace and offers herbs and flowers at an essence table for a multisensory experience. Fun Fact
The property boasts one of the oldest olive trees in Temecula that was planted by one of the Valley's early pioneers.
Many years ago before developers discovered Temecula, the valley was dotted with small, family owned farms, orchards, and vineyards. Briar Rose Winery marks a return to those idyllic times as Temecula's first, reservation only, boutique winery. It is the fruition of a lifelong dream. In a sense the owners, the Linkogle's, have come full circle and want to celebrate the return to a small, family-owned business. They welcome you to enjoy their wines, wander the gardens and savor the enchantment. They are dedicated to producing small lot, limited production wines made from the most intensely flavored grapes from their lush vineyards. Annually, they produce about 2400 cases. Specializing in red, the estate-grown offerings include an intense award winning Estate Zinfandel, award winning Viognier, Orange Muscat and Reisling. Other offerings include a lively, fruity Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sherry, Chardonnay, Sauginon Blanc and a special Reserve Aleatico Port.
Thomas & I BOTH enjoyed their cabs and I usually don’t like cabernets but their production is smooth and clean tasting. They have a unique wine that has a very slight hint of lemon and it’s very unique as it finishes crisp and clean-a good all around wine to share with others, it’s called Citronier. Needless to say after we sat around for a very extensive wine tasting and a nice talk with the winemaker (the husband-Leslie, to the lady Doreen that assisted us) we joined their wine club. He and Thomas had a lot in common as he is a German also. They’ve been married for 31 yrs and bought this place in 1985 but grew and sold grapes from their land to other wineries until 1998. They started the process of acquiring all the CA license, etc. and it took 5 yrs to finalize all the requirements the state mandates. In 2003 they had their vintage year and just recently did a press release as they were chosen by the Indians in this area (The Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians has called the Temecula valley home for more than 10,000 years) to make a wine for the mission grapes that only the Indians have the rights to and the vines are 120 yrs old. After the Indians approved the production/taste this winery made this summer, they were allowed to produce less than 200 bottles. The winemaker opened an unlabeled-private bottle to allow us to taste it and share our thoughts of it with him. They are waiting on the artwork for the label to be approved by the Indians and then they will name the pricing for its release. How cool is this to be trying such an exclusive wine with this couple! Since the “mission grape” was used and the Indians are very traditional with the worship, they are leaning toward naming the wine “Sacrament” as long as the Indians approve the name also. We will watch their website for any updates regarding this….. www.briarrosewinery.com We laughed together as we walked out since Jason had been texting me to ask about details for Dickens of a Christmas at home in Roanoke. I guess he has never been and was looking into taking Lauren but was unsure due to her busy work schedule. It’s funny because my daughter prefers to talk to him and his son typically texts me more frequently than his dad-funny how that happens but not at all bad…at least they contact us!
As we depart and drive to our last winery, since we started after lunch and we spent 2 hrs and Briar Rose (but enjoyed every minute of it-education & all) it has started to rain again. We proceeded our drive to Maurice Car’rie Vineyard & Winery located at: 34225 Rancho California Rd, Temecula, CA, 92591, www.mauricecarriewinery.com . It is a much bigger winery but no one was there but us, just like the previous winery. I’m sure a lot of it is to do with the weather and the fact that it’s in the middle of the week, not to mention Christmas holiday time. We were greeted with a most pleasant older lady who spoke with a very strong German accent. Thomas asked her where she was from and indeed it was Germany. Of course he then had a lot to talk about with her-including the history of all his siblings (and his own) names and where they came from. They were having a end of the season sale of 20-50% off on all products (other than wine) in their winery so we found several things we felt like we’d enjoy taking back to VA with us. A little history: The Maurice Car’rie Vineyard & Winery is nestled amidst the rolling hills of beautiful Temecula Valley. The winery was founded in 1986, and designed after a Victorian-style farmhouse. The 46 acres of vineyards were the first vineyards established in the region in 1968. Owners, Buddy and Cheri Linn, and winemaker, Gus Vizgirda, are focused on wines that are ready to drink at a fairly early age. They handcraft 14 varietals that have received hundreds of awards and accolades in a long list of competitions.
After a relaxing afternoon in Temecula we are now in search for Penfold’s Cattle Company in historic downtown Temecula. They are located at: 42072 5th St., 3rd Floor, Temecula, CA, 92590. Description: A study in dark woods and warm lighting, this romantic eatery and special occasion favorite plays host to mostly locals enjoying splurge-worthy lunches and hearty steak and seafood dinners. Faded sepia-toned photographs of the Old West hang over high-backed booths and regally upholstered Victorian-esque chairs inside, while an expansive deck overlooks the street below. It is more expensive than we typically treat ourselves to but we feel since we only come every 2 yrs (if we’re lucky!) then we can splurge this evening. We are celebrating some down time together after our conference and recognized how blessed we both are in many areas-we toast to this together to start our quiet evening filled with great ambiance. Penfold’s has recently undergone a new management team (according to Doreen form Briar Rose) and they have now decided on which local wines to carry for the restaurant. Since Thomas really liked their 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon he bought a bottle to bring in with him and had our waitress open it & pour it as he also expressed to her his great interest in Briar Rose. The waitress laughed and said “the couple that owns it comes in frequently to eat and always ask if they are carrying their wines yet.” She stated they are very nice and also make very nice wines. First we ordered an appetizer of scallops (Thomas’s favorite) but they had an awesome sauce that was slightly sweet and tasted wonderfully! Next we ordered our meal and Thomas had their Ribeye and I had their filet with a lobster tail-umum good! We closed our meal off with Bananas Foster-we paid our debt and off into the rain we went…..
On the drive back to our resort Thomas said that if he didn’t know better he’d think it was snowing as we moved through the mountain areas headed back to Anaheim-about 78 mile drive for us to our resort-we missed the fireworks but what a great evening we spent together!
Today is Thursday, December 18, 2008 and we woke to see snow on the mountains that are off in the distance-not sure how far but they have not had snow on them during our entire stay until now? As I turned on the FISH (Christian contemporary music that is carried on satellite also) radio station they have been playing Christmas music this week as I listened and they made an announcement that CA had snow for the first time in 3 decades in the Malibu area-so it is snow! It is sunny today but the temperature is only 48-52 degrees. Thomas and I opted to just hang out in our resort and relax. So we went to the ice cream social 2:30PM at the snack bar here at the resort ($1.00 per scoop/$1.00 for a brownie). Afterwards Thomas got into the hot tub while I worked out, had to counter the brownie I had split with Thomas…I talked to Caitlynn & Nicole several times today and they are making Christmas desserts and had lunch with Justin at school today. It’s so hard to believe he’s in the 2nd grade already-where does the time go?
We decided afterwards we would walk to Downtown Disney to ESPN Sports so we could watch NFL game tonight. Due to us being on PST (pacific standard time) that is 3 hrs behind us while in VA, the game would be on at 5:00PM. We did just that and walked back to our resort and ended our evening by watching Disney’s fireworks then watching a Christmas movie on the Family Channel together on the couch. I fell asleep at the very end so afterwards Thomas woke me so we could go to bed……
I woke this morning and called Nicole and Caitlynn, they will go to see Marcus and his family as they drive to San Antonio to spend the night tonight. Juan has his office Christmas party there so they will stay the night then head back to Pflugerville before lunch so they can put Caitlynn on the plane by her flight tomorrow at 5:40PM. We will leave at 1:40PM from here then we change planes in Dallas where we will meet up with Caitlynn there so we all fly into Greensboro, NC together. Thomas and I went down for the continental breakfast the resort provided today and met a really nice family form Utah that are vacationing together for the week. They are Mormons and the parents we spoke with have 6 girls and 1 son, the grandkids are also with them. He has traveled extensively and has recently been researching the possibility of buying land in Belize. He says he just bought a book to study the land that is “2 ½ inches thick”. So we talked about our experiences when visiting there, etc. They had a 2 yr old grandson named “Carter” and he was a cutie. Carter is next to the youngest (being 3 months old) and before him is his sister that sat next to me. She had 2 older brothers there also but she was the talker-I guess since she was the only girl out of 5 kids. She had a lot to tell us! Afterwards we said our good-byes and headed back to our condo. I researched the Crystal Cathedral as I thought I saw a sign and did not know that we were less than 2 miles from there! Caitlynn & I have watched Dr. Robert Shuler from the cathedral for years on TV. We packed a couple of boxes that we were mailing home to ourselves (airlines charge $15.00 per bag checked on American Airlines nowadays) and then I googled the information and off we went to the location: 12141 Lewis St. Garden Grove, CA 92840
Constructed from more than 10,000 plates of glass, the Crystal Cathedral is packed with more than 3,000 seated worshippers every Sunday for service, as well as hundreds more who experience drive-in worship in the parking lot, via a nine-storey tall sliding glass doors which allows them to view the service. The cathedral is also most famous as the filming place of Dr. Robert H. Schuller's "Hour of Power" TV show.
Building History
Dr. Robert H. Schuller said, "When the local congregation reached 10,000 and we needed a bigger church building, I remembered how wonderful it had been at my little drive-in church (where the ministry began in 1955) where there had been no walls or ceiling-it was there I fell in love with the sky! And that's why we built the Crystal Cathedral with walls and a roof of glass-crystal-clear glass that lets the sun and sky sparkle through our wonderful sanctuary." On September 14, 1980, in Garden Grove, Calif., Dr. Robert Schuller dedicated the Crystal Cathedral "To the Glory of Man for the Greater Glory of God."
Affiliated with the Reformed Church in America, the church then known as Garden Grove Community Church was founded in 1955 by the Reverend Dr. Robert H. Schuller and his wife, Arvella, and is considered the world's first "seeker sensitive" church. The first church services were held in space rented from the Orange Drive In Theatre. In 1961, the congregation moved to a new sanctuary designed by famed architect, Richard Neutra . Construction on the Cathedral began in 1977 and ended in 1980. The initial estimated cost of the church was $6 million, but the final cost was over $17 million (about $55 million in 2007 dollars). One way Dr. Schuller found to help finance the construction of the Crystal Cathedral was to invite donors to give $500 for each of the 10,000 rectangular panes of glass, which raised over US$5 million by its completion. The entire building was built to be “green”-eco-friendly. Upon moving from the old Neutra sanctuary to the new Johnson sanctuary, the congregation changed its name to the Crystal Cathedral Congregation. One of the church's mission statements is, "Find a need and fill it; find a hurt and heal it." The Crystal Cathedral organ is one of the world's largest pipe organs, located at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. The Cathedral pipe organ, made possible by a gift from the late Hazel Wright of Chicago (viewer from the Hour of Power), is the third largest church pipe organ in the world. Conceived by famed organ virtuoso Virgil Fox, the organ unites the Aeolian-Skinner organ from Avery Fisher Hall of Lincoln Center in New York City with the Ruffatti organ built for the former sanctuary in 1977.
There have been numerous additions and refinements by noted organ builders. There are 287 ranks of pipes and over 16,000 individual pipes, all playable from two five-manual consoles. White oak cases hold the nearly 11,000 pipes in the chancel area. Included there is a rank of forty-four 32-foot pedal pipes, originally in the organ at Bovard Auditorium at the University of Southern California-a gift of the Mt. Olive Lutheran Church of La Crescenta. The South Balcony divisions of the organ contain 5,000 pipes, and in the East and West Balconies are 549 horizontal trumpet pipes-the largest collection of such pipes in the world.
The statues (there are around 20 total inside & outside) are all donated among the campus which is now 40 acres. They were preparing for the play “Glory of Christmas” that is performed live before Christmas, with live animals performing. It was a very good tour provided by Bill Russell who is a current member of the church and is retired.
We left and found a UPS shipping store and then….you guessed it-a “In-N-Out” burger restaurant and we indulged ourselves in the rental car. Off we headed back to the resort and I started packing while Thomas went to the hot tub for a bit. He came back and we watched the Richmond vs. Montana in the Football Championship Subdivision title game with the University of Montana-Richmond won. We then watched several Christmas shows on the family channel here in the condo, then to our surprise as we had lost track of time the fireworks were going off outside our balcony door so we again watched for our final night. I talked to Nicole as they had driven to San Antonio for the night since Juan’s office was having the Christmas party there and Caitlynn wanted to watch all 3 kids. She said Caitlynn did very well with them! Nicole text me to say “good birth control”-I agree! Off to bed after gathering things to pack and preparing for our final California morning……
Good morning-December 20, 2008 today will be the warmest day since the day we arrived-looking to be 60 degrees for the day. We got up and Thomas fixed breakfast that was pretty much a smorgasbord as we were eating the last of our breakfast fixings and any other leftovers we acquired the last couple of days. It was all good and we got our bellies full and put the finishing touches on getting ready and packing as our flight is at 1:40PM but the rental car has to be checked in by noon. Off we head in the CA traffic headed towards L.A. and as usual there is quite a bit of traffic even on this Saturday morning. Thomas is thinking maybe because it’s the last weekend before Christmas? Maybeeeee but I’m thinking this is just L.A. Everything is on schedule as planned until we get to LAX (airport) and when Thomas used the kiosk as I waited in line with the luggage he came back to me and said “we need to talk to someone because when it printed our tickets it shows our departure time as 8PM and we are supposed to change planes in Dallas at 7:45PM”. So we waited our opportunity and spoke with an American Airlines ticket agent and she explained to us that they took 2 planes out of commission due to “mechanical issues” this morning so several flights had to be cancelled and are backed up to get people out. That made us confirmed on the 8PM flight but we could go on stand-by before that flight if we’d like. So with much effort on Thomas’s part as we were ready to get home AND the Dallas Cowboys play at 8PM tonight (but it’s only on the NFL Network) so it will be very difficult to watch unless we are somewhere where the game is be televised, we made our 2nd flight attempt on standby. Meanwhile I got hold of Jennie (our niece) and she will pickup Caitlynn in Greensboro as we were originally scheduled to change flights in Dallas along with her from Austin so we would be flying into Greensboro all together, now our plans are changed. I spoke with Nicole to be sure Caitlynn knew what was going on with us and everyone’s good and squared away but us. As we fly into Dallas, much to what I expected, the football game is on every TV in the airport-after all we are in Dallas. Thomas & I saw on the boards that display all flights coming or going that there were no more going to Greensboro tonight as we arrived at 8:15PM so he sat in front of one of the TVs and watched the game while I confirmed we had no other options for today and confirmed our options to resume our trip tomorrow to go home. We are scheduled to be at Louise’s for Christmas dinner/gift exchange at 2PM. We are confirmed for the only flight with availability tomorrow which will get us into Greensboro at 11:15PM but we decided to come into the airport early to go on standby for the only other flight tomorrow which is at 8:15AM. If we make it we should be able to make the Rothe Family Christmas celebration!
The airlines put us up in a Holiday Inn Express by the airport and gave us food vouchers for tonight and tomorrow for breakfast. We get $10 each for dinner tonight and $5 each for breakfast. Since it is 10:50PM as we catch the shuttle to the airport, we decided to order food in the room to be delivered. Of course we have none of our luggage as it went on from LA so we will wear the same clothes tomorrow and the hotel gave us a toothbrush & toothpaste for our personal hygiene for the night.
Sunday, December 21st, 2008 Thomas and I catch the airport shuttle from the airport on a nice brisk windy morning at 6:05AM. We get to the airport nice and early to try to make the first flight on standby. After we get thru security we decide to go have a nice breakfast to kill some time. I chose burritos and Thomas had a regular full line breakfast-both were great! Much to our delight we made the standby list and we were the only ones since there were 2 seats left only-good choice to get up early!! So we landed at noon in Greensboro and made the Rothe Christmas Family celebration at 2:20 PM. I love this time of year as we spend time with all our family, it’s great!
Thanksgiving in Canada 2008
Thanksgiving 2008-Our trip to Canada
Well, here we are a week and a half from Thanksgiving for 2008. As the last few years have evolved and we have taken on several major life changes (like getting married and moving to VA from TX for starters, starting a new business, then transitioning to having a college child, not to mention my daughter becoming a high school student….) So Thomas decides that maybe we should take his parents and go visit his home country-Canada. Much to our regret Denyse is unable to come on this short notice as she has other commitments that she feels obligated to attend and we understand and appreciate the servant’s heart that she has for touching terminally ill patients and their families, so we graciously accepted her decline. Thomas and I found a resort in Quebec City, Canada that actually had availability for our Thanksgiving stay. We met Denyse in Lexington, VA to pickup Hans for our driving trip headed to our destination of choice! We left Roanoke by I-81 northbound and will continue on this highway until we get to the US/Canada border. Of course in grandma’s fashion she has emailed us a list of contacts/family members-complete with names/addresses/phones that she would be honored for us to visit. And then the following day she sent another email with an added list-haha! Thomas’s last trip to Canada was at least 8 years ago and this is Caitlynn’s first trip to Canada. Me, while I went to Canada for business the first year Thomas and I were married but wasn’t able to do a lot of sight seeing then so I too am looking forward to this trip. The temperature here at home was 32 degrees Fahrenheit as we left our house.
As we get stopped for gas in Pennsylvania, several hours into the drive I asked Hans when his family came to Canada as I knew he met Denyse while they were going to Ottawa University. We had a very enjoyable time as he relived the time of their meeting, marriage, children being born and the transforming of his career in the midst of those times. He talked of his career and the many turns it took as he was a very detailed/exploring young professional that strived to figure things out and liked practical application that he could teach others along the way which is how he became a professor and was involved in academics. He spoke of the times when he took his family as the few exiled from Germany to Canada and at that period he stated the French Canadians preferred to be by themselves and did not want to be “blended citizens”. He told us the university required the students to either take English or French courses and they required you to take classes opposite of their natural tongue. That in itself tells me that the students in that era and that setting had to be very motivated but as he speaks you realize they felt so fortunate to obtain an education they never questioned their abilities, they just accepted it as the way it was and set their sails to accomplish all they could with passion. He spoke of the many obstacles he encountered after completing his studies but in an effort to begin his own business (which occurred during Thomas’s early high school years) it required him to be away from Denyse and the kids for that period. Which I found interesting as he stated, “After being there for a while and listening to people, I realized their struggles even though most had a bachelors degree but never utilized it”. “Many of them helped me sort my ideas and I learned a lot but soon knew that it was not the place that I wanted to raise my children”. Most of the times Thomas also recalled with his dad and it’s good to hear the two of them exchanging thoughts as Thomas asked his dad details of his specific job/business during those years. I feel he was learning more of his dad’s thoughts during that time of their lives. He spoke of things that are typically not discussed at those times with parents and children. During the times when we grew up, children typically did not question though they wondered-we just accepted what we were given and definitely did not question our parents efforts. Those times have changed and at times I feel it’s better but in some ways I feel we have learned to grow in relationships with communication, especially when it’s constructive in our daily lives.
Throughout our highway travels en route there are many temperature changes, including beautiful snow showers. As we got to NY, I was sure to bring it to Caitlynn’s attention though its dark since she has always wanted to go spend time in NY-she likes the big city busyness. The snow falls in nice big flakes and it is really pretty as we watch it flow outside the truck window as we travel down the highway. There have been several wrecks, mostly on the opposite side of the interstate that we have seen. Some areas looked to have black ice and the others as the snow is coming down heavily it seems like people just don’t want to slow down. As it is getting close to 8 PM we decided to make plans for stopping for a quick dinner as the GPS “Karen” is telling us our ETA will be 3:05AM at the timeshare in Québec City where we will be staying for the next week. Hans told us of a restaurant that he and Denyse often stopped when making this trip, he was unable to recall the name but felt it was within this area. So Thomas thought they’d call Denyse on his cell phone & she “googled” it then called us back and gave us directions for our safe arrival. Caitlynn asked grandpa what kind of restaurant it is and he told her “you know a truck stop but Denyse and I have always enjoyed the food”. That brings back memories for Caitlynn & I when my dad moved to Oklahoma City and he loved for us to meet him at the “Petro” which also had a diner named the “Iron Skillet” and it was exactly that- a truck stop. He was like me in that aspect as he worked odd hours, preferably night shift and so he often would eat at places such as this since not everyone was up!
At this time the temperature is 14-19 degrees Fahrenheit with occasional snow fall. The restaurant is named “Longway Café”, we ate dinner while Hans had breakfast. We all enjoyed the meal and conversation now we are off to complete our destination. At this stop we are 26 miles from the Canadian border. Of course as we enter Canada, the signs are bilingual and the distances are indicated in kilometers only. Going thru customs was quite simple and we were glad that Thomas & Caitlynn had made a meal list and a grocery list before they went grocery shopping before we left Roanoke, and everything is neatly packed in the back of the truck. Denyse was concerned as she thought it might be an issue when crossing the border-thankfully not. Hans had told Thomas before we left that Canada had recently passed a new law requiring all travelers to have snow tires and all terrain tires were NOT considered acceptable-only snow tires effective Nov. 1st. He had checked again before we met today and due to the high demand and the lack of supplies to convert for the new law, they extended the timeframe to Dec. 15th so we were safe. We drove on the outskirts of Québec City to the timeshare (Chalets Mont-Sainte-Anne in Beaupré) and we arrived at 4:05 AM. Caitlynn & I were amazed that Hans had not slept at all not even taking a cat nap the entire trip. At times when she & I woke Thomas and Hans would have classical music on the radio as they escorted us onward! We, of course were awaken when Thomas pulled up to the Tim Horton’s (which is a very Canadian tradition and it’s comparable to Dunkin Donuts with the added benefit of sandwiches or Panera in our area-their pictures on the menu have a donut with every sandwich!) for donuts & café at 3:20 AM! Very good! We stopped for gas and noticed that the price is the same regardless of where you go here in Québec at .85 cents per liter. We unloaded everything from the pickup truck into the chalet, which had a large open floor plan with a fireplace, 4 bedrooms, and 3 floors so plenty of room. The four of us drank a toast to our week of family time, safe travels, and the ability to enjoy it all. Hans spoke of the times as he grew up in Germany during World War II when there was nothing to eat and the unemployment rate was 60% before Hitler put everyone to work building the Autobahn. He tells us that’s why he can’t stand to see waste especially of food and he questions why people would put more food on their plates than they can possibly eat.. Off to bed we all went @ 5:20 AM on this Saturday, November 22, 2008.
Our tradition (Thomas & I) since we began traveling together as we dated then married was to cook a nice full breakfast where we are staying then we would either eat lunch out (typically lunch is cheaper than dinner when eating out) as we are sightseeing then cook our dinner back at our condo or vice versa, so our plans are the same for this trip. Thomas & Hans were on the cell phone making contacts with family so they could plan our next few days according to travel, etc. Caitlynn & Thomas went to register us into our chalet and bought an arm full of wood for $7. As we begin our first day we have chosen to stay close to our area of Beaupré/Québec City since we had driven 958 miles the day before. Our first visit was to one of Denyse’s sisters who is 64 yrs old (she is the baby girl of the family) her name is Clémence and Marc Paquet is her husband (address: 375 route du Pont #44, St-Nicolas, QC, Canada which is not far from the bridge that crosses the river to go to Québec City, home# 418-288-5159, email: kemianctil@hotmail.com ). Clémence babysits a lawyer’s children and her husband Marc is a sailor who just returned from the Caribbean after bringing a ship back for the owner who lives here but vacations there seasonally. Upon our arrival, Caitlynn & I were surprised as they greet with a kiss on each cheek. As Caitlynn stated later, I’m just not there yet with the “kissing thing”-haha. Marc served us coffee which they call café here and it is very European as it is dark/strong. They do offer cream/sugar but no one uses them, Caitlynn & I enjoyed the flavor of the coffee and were generous with the cream/sugar using almost all of it -haha. Their lifestyle here is much slower paced and they look forward to having café with visitors/family, almost as a custom it seems. We talked about many things including how Hans got to Canada and he enlightened us that he was a gymnast while in school in Germany but could not compete because of his left elbow. He cannot straighten it and this would count against him in competition so he became a trainer instead. Hans had jumped over a fence when he was 6 yrs old, landed on the elbow and must have shattered the bone in 3-4 places. During this era though medicine was not as developed as it is today and there was nothing they could do for it the doctors told his parents. Hans said his parents would talk about him and refer to him as “always doing crazy stuff”. Trust me, he’s only changed slightly over these years! Marc’s English is fairly good and Clémence’s English is broken but understandable. Hans remembered coming to Canada less than 10 years ago for 15 days in a French immersion program to improve his ability to communicate. This trip has been good for Thomas to freshen up on his French also though I never heard Hans speak it. Hans told me that Denyse could never speak German in spite of the classes she took in college.
They have 2 daughterswith the oldest being Maude-pronounced ‘Mode’ (356 Des Sizerins, St-Nicolas, QC,Canada, G7A 3H6, home # 418-836-2094, Cell 418-806-1452 email: paquetpooh@hotmail.com ) Maude just turned 30 on Oct 31st and her husband is Keven. She and Keven married in July 2004, same year as Louise/David in Sept 2004 and Thomas/I in Oct 2004. They have a baby named Sofiane (pronounced Sophia) and she turned a year old Oct 25th, she’s trying to walk but not quite able to do so though she entertained us with her attempts! Keven built their home and Maude is a lawyer who practices in highway safety laws. She told us that Canada only requires license plates on the back of a car and that they are finally getting digital cameras in place to use as cars go through customs at the border. She said they were having issues though as people will travel with a bike rack on the back of their vehicle so the image is distorted, that’s their next focal point. Interestingly enough, her sister Manon (pronounced ‘Mon-o’) lives only 2 houses from her. Manon (348 Des Sizerins, St-Nicolas, Canada, G7A3H6 ) is expecting a baby in early March, her boyfriend Jean Philippe built their house 3 years ago. Both of them are very pretty ladies and the men in their lives play hockey together on a regular basis (along with the entire country here!). We spent more time at Maude’s today as she wanted to give us a tour of their home. The nursery is very cute and she told us that her sister (Manon) did all the painting in the room which included some scenery-the painting is very good. Maude seems to be very outgoing and enjoys being with people. The baby was asleep in their bedroom upon our arrival but woke up and was entertaining all of us later. We watched football as it is the Canadian football playoff series. Maude enjoys going to NY shopping and she tries to go biannually. She spends 3-4 days there, she & friends made the trip and she had just returned recently. Manon is already on maternity leave as in Canada a whole year is taken off for maternity leave unless you are employed by the government (socialized medicine in Canada) Manon being a nurse, will have a year before and 1 year after the baby is born. The time off is interchangeable between the mother OR father during the leave which I thought was very interesting. If you do not work for the government then you are still given 1year maternity leave as Maude was telling us that the government gives a rebate for childcare in Canada. We had a great visit with both girls as we walked to Manon’s home to visit for a bit. She was quieter than Maude at first since Caitlynn & I just met her (noone can be too quiet around Caitlynn or I since we enjoy talking…..) . She is currently 26 yrs old. They both remembered Jason and asked Thomas about him and how old he is now and what he’s doing. Manon showed Maude a new stamp (Stamp It Up) that she had gotten and they were both admiring it. I asked them if they also scrapbook and they both smiled and told me they do and they love “stamping” also which is very popular in the States. Manon asked if she could prepare lunch for us as she states “I can make food that you will like”, so on Wednesday when we take Hans to catch the train for Ottawa we will come here for lunch with her as she is on maternity leave currently with the baby due in March. After our visit with the girls we drove Clémence home and asked her to join us as we would travel to St. Jean-Port-Joli in the morning, she was glad to come with us since she will be off from work.
Today our objective this morning (Sunday) was to get Thomas a new goalie stick and begin searching for some ski gear for Caitlynn. She says she is ready to attempt some Canadian skiing this week. Oh my gosh… they have hockey stores like we have Dollar Generals in the US! The store we went into was 2 times bigger than Gander Mountain, it’s huge and even with it being a Sunday before lunchtime there are people everywhere! I’m talking about whole families-moms, dads and kids. I got Jason a new Canadian hockey hoody for Christmas. After our purchases we picked up Cémence from her home and she joined us for our day trip. As we started down the road she told us she was the only child of Denyse’s siblings to actually be born in St. Jean-Port-Joli.
The drive is flatter than I expected, except for the mountainous area on the north shore close to where we are staying. We drove close to the St Lawence River on Hwy 20 and on the south shore. We can see where the water is icing over. The temperature today as we begin is 23 degrees and it is quite windy. Hans was reminiscing of a time when he was driving to St. Jean-Port-Joli with Denyse before they were married and he was stopped by 2 police officers as he was exceeding the speed limit. He didn’t speak French well enough to communicate nor could they speak English so the cop consulted with his partner and after deciding they could not communicate effectively with him, the one office walked back to Hans’s car and as he leaned into the window he just pointed at the speedometer so Hans would know the correct speed and let him go! He & Denyse had met at the University of Ottawa as they were involved in the Drama Guild which was sponsored by the university. He said the professional group later tried to get him involved in theater as a career but he said not interested as his interest were more in science!
After graduating from college in Ottawa, Denyse went to the School of Rehabilitation at the University of Montreal. After her second year she spent her four months of internship in Vancouver in physical and occupational therapy. As we drove into the small community of St. Jean-Port-Joli, Hans and Thomas both pointed out the small church in the center of the village. Denyse’s parents’ funeral services were held in that church. Our destination was Denyse’s brother’s place, Raymond Anctil (190 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port Joli, QC,Canada, G0R 3G0, email: anctil@globetrotter.net , can be reached @ Odette’s 418-598-3446) he is the youngest child of Denyse’s siblings and is 62 yrs old now. He manages a manufacture of plastic business but he says he’s trying to retire but continues sailing as that is his passion. He and Odette have 3 daughters with the youngest being 22 and she is a dancer in Quebec and she goes to college and performs in the theatre arts at the university. She actually has a performance scheduled for Dec. 13th that her parents boasted about to us (She was also born on her dad’s birthday as he so proudly tells me). He says none of the girls have a license to drive except the youngest, though they all do drive. He takes care of 2 of his grandchildren: Melina and Cedric whose mother is his daughter Sophie. He stays very involved with Izaak who is the oldest of the 3 grandchildren and is Julie’s child. He is also very actively involved with the marina and trying to get the youth of the area involved with sailing as they will learn “to survive and rely on themselves when they are out to sea”. His daughter Julie was actually born at sea and spent at least 2 yrs on the boat as they sailed. As I listen to his stories of life and sea, it is very obvious that he is a simple family oriented man that loves the sea! He described to me how the river outside his home flows. The arctic waters flow deep and they flow upstream because it’s cold and is drawn up. The inland waters are the ones that flow downstream and flow on top of the river then when the tide comes in (high tide) the salt water floats on top and pushes the rest down so you can have a mixture of all 3 at any given time. I was amazed at all the frozen salt you can see on the shore. Raymond and Odette live in separate places (this is her home she designed that we met them at: 605 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port-Joli, QC, Canada G0R 3G0, home # 418-598-3446 or 418-598-7045) but they get along well as they are very involved with their children and grandchildren and as he said to me during our meal, “we had 3 children together and now grandchildren and we do what’s best for them”. As an artist Odette simply signs her work simply with “Odet”. She is a“Maquettiste Sculpteure” and creates a wide variety of fascinating forms of art, including wood carvings from wall hangings to photo albums. When we arrived, we were greeted with great excitement by both! They have an amazing view of the river from the front of the home here; there is a lighthouse on a small island a few miles off shore. Odette seems like a very happy spirit as she smiles all the time. They had our lunch being prepared and Denyse’s sister Françoise Anctil who is 72 yrs old (502 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port-Joli, QC, Canada G0R3G0, home # 418-598-6713 email: franctil@videotron.ca ) met us there to see us all and spend time with us as well. She is a retired nurse and was in the teaching aspect of healthcare, she has not worked as a nurse for years but had achieved a high rank as facilitator. She walks with a single tip cane and has just recently had to get her eyeglasses changed and is having to wear her older ones that she is not fond of as they are tinted and longer the right lenses. She states she’ll hopefully be coming to “the city” meaning Quebec City to get her new ones. I laughed as she told she thought it could be done as she sat there and was disappointed when they told her they’d call her when they were complete! Her husband died 1-2 yrs ago and he ran a dairy before he died. Thomas remembers bringing Sherry & Jason to spend a couple of days with them previously as he learned a lot about the diary business. Françoise never had children of her own, though she has great memories of helping raise Clémence due to the age difference and she has a very special godchild named Annick who was a daughter of a nursing classmate. Annick “chose her to be her second mom” as she reports to me with great pride. Françoise is 13 months younger than Denyse (4th girl born to Eustache and Cecile’ Anctil). We learned many things about the family history. It was very educational and interesting to sit around and visit with the family members. Françoise speaks broken English, Raymond speaks English very well but Odette does not speak any English but she is a very socially gracious and a happy individual. We had a wonderful time as Odette and Raymond served a 5 course meal accompanied by a nice, wide selection of wines, finalizing with cafe. There was a very generous vegetable platter with never-ending fresh French bread/butter (I loved every piece I ate!). Then Sturgeon (at type of fish-smoked) was served as a delicacy, Caitlynn & I had some new tasting experiences as we were all seated around the table together as one big family. Our next serving was sautéed escargot (snails) which I had never eaten but they taste like a strong mushroom, the seasoning was one with cheese, garlic, & etc on top as it was baked, Raymond explained how he created it. I ate all of mine but Caitlynn graciously gave hers to Raymond and ate more bread and vegetables instead. The meat entrée was grilled cod, done perfectly and then he served almond flavored rice followed by fried potatoes-all was delightful to our palates! The final touches were a wonderful wide selection of cheeses from the area and Raymond explained each of them to us as what type and where they originated from as Odette refilled the bread baskets and placed a variety of crackers with it for us to choose from. As European fashion we closed with fresh café. I see by spending time with this family where the traits of my mother-in-law come from and I have been blessed for it to trickle down to my husband. I heard the story of this family’s gratitude when Hans accompanied Clémence to Janine’s wedding when Denyse was in Vancouver and unable to attend so Hans went to represent her for her family. Even Raymond commented on how they were all truly touched that he would participate in such a manner regarding their family event. Raymond spoke of the recent trip he made to help Marc bring the sail boat back from the Caribbean as it was a very difficult time he stated, what typically took 10-13 days for each section of 2 ended after 40 days then having to get the coast guard to pull them in for the final stretch. There is a palm tree decorated in the living room of their home as a Christmas tree and when I commented how cute it was he stated that Odette loves the sun/heat so this is how they choose to remind them of warmth. Raymond talked with us about sailing as we were surrounded by Odette’s recreation of many sails boats made of wood including the one that used to be at Eustache’s home. He told us he took it as a younger boy and played with it in the bath tub until it broke! Odette has restored it and it is placed in a glass case in their home. There was also a lighthouse that was made by Eustache and it has a neon light that glows on it currently as he pointed it out for us. Raymond tells us the light has never been changed since it was created by their dad as it continues to glow. It was very pretty and created with much detail as we observed it with honor and we listened to the stories Raymond so graciously shared with us as I asked many! Odette escorted us to her workshop where she creates her art. The two of them showed us many pieces that hold a lot of history for their family. Raymond was sure to point out and demonstrate the use of an antique iron that was used by his mom. Caitlynn was amused to hear the story of its use. It required the user to place the base on hot coals then taking the “iron” part out and ironing with it. He also told us of Odette’s responsibility for the upkeep/restoring of the markers in the area across from their house. This is a small parking area advertised as a landmark where people can park and enjoy the river and read of its history (later Janine tells us Violette was responsible for creating this area). After we finished our meal we went to Francoise’s home which is a short distance from Odettes’s house and towards the village. Françoise’s house is where Denyse’s parents spent their last days. Raymond followed us but Odette, after thanking us for coming to visit and giving us hugs/kisses (including a big, big hug to Thomas that he delighted in!) stayed at her home.
Francoise lives in a small home but it is filled with many memories and history. It has a breathtaking view of the Saint-Lawrence River and all the way to the North Shore as it also has a huge picture window in the living area. Conveniently she also has a lounge chair sitting where she can take phone calls and a small dining table in the front area-all arranged ideally around the awesome view! She has a wall grandfather clock that is similar to Denyse and Hans in their home but she states is not as old. Immediately upon entering Raymond wound the clock and told us that it’s due to be done every Sunday afternoon on a weekly basis so he was taking care of it for his sister. This is also where they had the family celebration that Thomas speaks of when the whole family came in 2000 and the Chalet that all the kids loved playing in by the water. We saw pictures of their parents Eustache and Cécile and looked through their 50th wedding celebration album as they had been married 50 yrs on July 13, 1981. Eustache passed away in 1990 and Cécile passed in 1991. Eustache was 27 yrs old when they married, he was born in 1905 and Cécile was born in 1907. From the stories that were told it sounds as if Eustache was very talented and could do anything he made his mind to do, even in those difficult times. Their parents did not raise Denyse as it was difficult times and her father’s brother Adrien and his wife Antoinette never had children so they took Denyse to help out. As time pasted she remained living with them in Thetford Mines at first then the family moved to Victoriaville, while the rest of her siblings (all 7) were raised in St. Jean-Port, Joli area. They had a sister that passed away from cancer at her age of 42 named Violette. Raymond describes her by saying she was “free as the wind”, meaning free spirited. He recalled that she went to see a D.O. (doctor of osteopathic medicine) in Belgium and was told she was having “the usual female problems” when in fact she became increasingly ill so she went to a M.D. (medical doctor) when she returned to Canada and by that time the cancer that actually started in her ovaries had now spread to her lungs and she lost her life to it after a 2-3 year battle. The siblings present were describing Jean-Yves (1 rue des Passants, Marsoui, QC, Canada, home #418-822-5159? email: jyanctil@globetrotter.net ) who is now 65 yrs old. I can tell by their description of him that he is probably similar to Raymond in the aspect of he loves the outdoors and the water that they choose to live near. He’s recently retired but not currently married, and he has 3 children with 2 boys and a girl. The description of him by his siblings was that he “preferred being alone in the wilderness”. Denyse says that he lives “way far east of the Gaspe’ peninsula and a very detailed map of Quebec is needed to locate his town of Marsoui”, that alone means he probably likes for you to call before you come see him-haha. Evidentially he uses a CPAP and Thomas spoke with him on the phone earlier today as he brought him supplies from the US, we left the box with Raymond as he will be sure Jean-Yves gets them. During our time together eating, Raymond told us their dad was involved in the forestry service as a supervisor, he loved the outdoors. When he traveled (walked) throughout the woods he would come upon a chalet that usually was deserted and stay on the front porch to sleep as he felt more comfortable in the open space. He told us also that Eustache had made the decision to have his body given to science when he passed away instead of burying him because he “didn’t want anyone looking at him dead!” He also felt strongly about children being able to learn and this would be a way that the university could still use him and he’d make a difference even after he was gone. Raymond states he knew that would be his dad’s wish and agreed with him, Clémence also states she was one of the few that supported his decision also. The family tells us that if you die in the winter in Canada they store your body on ice until the ground thaws and they can bury you in the spring. I thought they were kidding but they all verified this as a fact of life , so if I were around, I too would have to support Eustache’s decision to be donated to science instead of going on ice! I’m not so sure I could be on this earth without talking for 6 months so take me then! Francoise snickered along with Raymond as they talked about the funeral having a hundred people present but there being nothing there but flowers-no casket or urn as the university has a biannual ceremony for the donated bodies (ie: 40-50) then divides the ashes after cremation into the same number of urns and ships them back to the donating family-6 months later (Francoise explained this in great detail as she used to work in that area of the university). Then their family had another ceremony and 30-50 people attended with Eustache’s urn. I’m thinking Eustache was a smart man!
Raymond took us down to the legendary Chalet that sits below Francoise’s home. It sits closer to the river and is small but has a lot of character not to mention a generation of memories for all the family. The wind was bone chilling, the night very dark but the excitement was worth the wait for Caitlynn and I as we darkened the doorstep with Raymond, Hans, and Thomas. It was small to my surprise but maybe it’s because the stories Thomas has been telling me were so big in his heart! It was a single room with several small single beds, table with a couple of chairs, and an old stove for fires. The side wall to your right as you entered had several brooms and a dust pan hanging in a holder across the wall. Raymond tells us that they have never locked the door and for some reason the Chalet is always well kept. The area was very tidy on the inside, even to be outside. He states “young kids” from the area have used this place for years to hang-out but have always taken good care of it, including the family when they get together. He says they all understand that they are to leave it in good order when they leave, even the neighbors. This place allowed the kids to feel like they were on their own but close enough if they changed their minds and needed to come back to the house. Thomas recalls many good times spent down here with friends and family, it was a very chilly evening with the wind briskly blowing and the temperature to be 22 degrees-Fahrenheit (without the wind chill). We found our way to the Chalet as we carried a couple of flashlights to guide us, Raymond in the lead. As we made our way back to Francoise’s house Raymond, being a true sailor he is was sure to point out Neptune and Venus across the open sky for us to admire as he seems to love so much in his world here. The water around the shore was frozen, there were even parts that looked like a wave was about to make shore in all it’s glory and was frozen in motion around us, it was a great night to reminisce with family memories as I learned so much more of this family I had joined 4 years ago now.
Upon our re-entry to join Clémence and Françoise at Françoise’s home, I noticed a picture of Lauren Henry on her dining table. Françoise told me she is Louise’s godmother and informed me with great pride so I shared my stories of keeping Lauren just last week for Louise. Louise’s team played hockey against Thomas’s team and I shared photos/video on my phone that I had taken then. I told them of getting her to say “Go Mommy Go” then after Thomas saved a shot to his goal I got her to say “Go Uncle Thomas” and her pronunciation was perfect with Tho-mas being 2 full syllables! Everyone in the stands were laughing and clapping for her with great excitement from her, of course she grinned from ear to ear in all their praises! They all aahh’d and oohh’d at her and how big she’s gotten, being the proud aunt I also grinned ear to ear! Raymond took care of Francoise’s wall clock as she told us the story of her clock, she told Hans it is not as old as the one at his and Denyse’s home since theirs was made in 1928. One of my favorite stories was one that was shared with us was the one Raymond spoke of the family reunion that they had here at Françoise’s as a big canopy had been installed to shelter the guests from the summer sun and that is where food was served and people visited all day. Hans and Denyse’s whole bunch came in 2000. Thomas had told me it was because of a family reunion/celebration had been planned that they came from VA, while it was because they were coming that the rest of the family had been invited to come for that “celebration” time. They stated Jean-Yves loves kids (better than adults Raymond really said) and he got into the mud, covered himself and came out as a “mud monster”. Raymond said he was naked but his entire body was covered in mud-scared all the kids who loved it and made all the adults mad. Later, Thomas and Hans told me after we left that evening that he actually had a Speedo on and he wasn’t naked. It was hilarious to hear Raymond tell the story with Françoise and Clémence commenting on the event! Thomas remembered a story that he loved as he was about 15 yrs old (1976) when he came to Canada with his French club from high school and most of the cousins were in the Chalet down from Francoise’s house (the one we had just visited while here) playing tug of war when his cousin Jean Francois had the opposite end from Thomas and then decided to let go. As he did, Thomas went out the door, off the porch and fell backwards as he rolled and hit a big rock. His head was busted open and everyone was asking him if he was ok, Jean Francois was apologizing and due to the blood/gash they took him to the hospital. He lost consciousness at some point so they performed a CAT scan while he was in the Canadian ER. They said in great humor that Jean-Yves tried to pass him off as his son due to the Canadian health system as his ER visit would be paid for by the government but since Thomas kept speaking English they did not believe the story. Jean-Yves tried to tell them what had happened when he hit his head and woke-up-suddenly he spoke English??? Thomas found Eustache’s certificate for auto mechanics form 1953 sitting on Françoise’s dining table, I told Thomas that’s where he got his genes for being able to fix things. Raymond said their dad had an “engineering mind, there wasn’t anything he could not do!” Evidentially, Denyse’s birth mother- Cécile never drove though her husband did and her aunt and uncle that raised her (Antoniette and Adrien) neither one ever drove either-I found this to be interesting. They were all trying to remember different dates and who all had been to VA since Denyse and Hans moved away from Canada. Thomas remembered that it was 1967-1968 between Christmas and New Years when they left as he said Hans didn’t let them take any snow gear to VA as he stated “it never snows there so you won’t need any of it”. Thomas said they arrived in Iron Gate on Dec 31st and it was snowing. Thomas told Hans, “I was livid with you since we didn’t have any gear and it WAS snowing here the first day we got there!” Hans laughed and didn’t recall what he had told the kids before leaving to move. Thomas also shared the story of how his mom taught him to drive-by getting him a paper route when he was 11 yrs old. He said he started asking her if he could drive and she said no since he was not old enough. He said he kept asking each year and finally when he was 14 yrs old she said, “next year you’ll be old enough” and the next year he learned and it was all history from there. Then he told us everytime Hans and Denyse left the house together he could use a screwdriver and start the Volkswagon Bug and move it around in the driveway just so he could “drive”. Upon their return they’d ask about it-if that’s where it was left or not and Thomas would never really answer them as he went about his business……It was a wonderful evening filled with great memories as families come together to relive and remember each other!
As we headed back to Québec City and were going to take Clémence home first she told us their elections were coming up on Dec 10th, she said she dreads election time-Hans just laughed. Here in the states on November 4th this year, we had just made history by electing the first African-American president. For most this was a monumental time in history, for others they questions the time/reasoning for the public electing him for this position-time will tell only. Regardless who is in office for our country, God is still in control.
It was weird for us as it seems to get dark by 4:30 in the afternoons here, Clémence said that after winter starts, Dec 21st, the days get longer but it really feels like Belize time to us! We came back to our chalet and ate a light dinner, started the fireplace and watched Sunday night football. Hans told us of when he learned to drive as he was fighting in World War II in the Hitler’s youth. One day during the war, Hans was in a tank with another guy who was driving the tank and after the driver got shot Hans was told to take over the driving. He told them he didn’t know how to drive but they didn’t care-he either drove or stayed where he was and got shot at. He told Caitlynn & me that he was drafted when 15 years old and that he was deeply affected when he saw a good friend of his, who was only at an arm length’s distance being hit and having his head blown off-it was horrific and he said to this day he still recalls the memory in great detail. Hans remained active in WWII for 2 years as he fought for Hitler in Germany. He told us “anyone who believes in war is stupid, it’s absolutely senseless he said!” As they talked again of the move to VA, Thomas remembered attending the Expo before they moved from Canada and he was so disappointed he couldn’t ride the roller coaster as he was not tall enough. Hans said the measurement tool just showed that he was too short. Thomas said he didn’t recall that but thought his parents just didn’t want him to ride.
Today was the football game for the Gray Cup, which is the Canadian teams “superbowl” and Calgary Stampede beat the Montreal Allouettes.
The temperature as we began was 24-28 degrees Fahrenheit with overcast skies and occasional slight snowfall and today we started off slowly as we have had a schedule each day until today-Monday, November 24, 2008. We ate breakfast together and after we all prepared for the day our plan was to sight see and have a leisurely day to enjoy the beauty that surrounds us here in Québec City, Canada. Québec has a population of 750,000 and is celebrating its 400th anniversary this year. Denyse called this morning before we left to be sure Hans went to the bank to get money and make sure to use Canadian money while in Canada. I did so en route to town and he laughed! Denyse wanted me to ask Thomas if he recalls Clémence coming to live with them in Cornwall to finish high school when he was just a few years old. At first that was not a memory Thomas had remembered some details. Hans told us of his and Denyse’s honeymoon trip to NY and their return to Canada as they went through customs. He said they asked what they had brought back and he told them the few items they purchased and they still went through everything in their vehicle and left it a mess he said. Hans asked them to straighten the mess they made of their luggage and vehicle since they found what he told them originally to be true. They told him they were not responsible for doing that, he told them then he’d just wait and hold up the line until they fixed what they messed up. So they straightened things and the newly wed couple was on their way home! Now I know where my sweet husband’s disposition tends to become stubborn when he feels you should just do the right thing. Hans told us the story of him being at Ottawa University for his 2nd year and needing money to make it through the year when he applied for a job with the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) to report to a post in the Northwest Territories. He and Thomas told us that’s where the phrase “cabin fever” came from as due to the snow in the winter where they were stationed they were not able to do anything but sit in a building with the other police and not see anyone, etc. Hans said it was the strangest test he had to take as it asked if he played bridge, did he like cards, etc. He said this was to determine if he was able to get along with others but stay in a closed off area for extended periods of time without going crazy. Two days before he was to leave and they were flying him there since there was no other way to get you in after the winter came there, he received a phone call and they weren’t going to allow him to go since he wasn’t a citizen and there were security clearances needed so he was very disappointed he recalls. He states he just struggled through that year with various odd jobs as his parents were never able to help him or any of his siblings financially. He said he feels this was the best lesson, people tend to overindulge their kids and then they never strive to excel or truly appreciate their help.
Our first stop for pictures was at an old church that Thomas says Denyse has brought the family on several occasions to visit, it is well known for the miracles that happen to people when they have come to be healed- la basilique de St. Anne-de-Beaupré’. It is truly magnificent in splendor. Our next picture point was Chute Montmorency. It is very icy as the water falls and Thomas said it has been made tourists friendly. There is a gondola that can be ridden up for a closer view of the falls with a restaurant on top of the mountain. It is closed most of the winter because of the cold weather, as the rails to the gondola are iced over. Next we drove into Québec City and parked our truck to walk down to Old Downtown “Le vieux Québec”. We took pictures and went in all kinds of shops. We stopped in one store that had quite a few figurines of all sizes that reminded me of the Michelin Tire advertisement when I was a kid, a man who used to be on commercials when I was a kid. He was a big and round man with different round bands of white around his entire body. The lady in the store explained to Caitlynn and I to answer our questions about the small figurines. She said there is an Indian tribe called “Inuit’s” that settled in the northern part of the province and these were some of their symbols. Neither Caitlynn nor I, knew there were Indians here in Canada. The sights are beautiful and very European in art and architecture. We stopped in a local market/bistro for sandwiches and soup with some café as all people in this area seem to enjoy around us-Hans & I fit right in! After our touring here, we proceeded to drive around the area Keven suggested to go look for ski equipment. Caitlynn and Thomas found the store Keven had told them about which is where his friend’s the manager, named “Hype-Radical Sports”. Thomas got his skis waxed and Caitlynn got new boots/skis before they venture off for skiing this week. Grandpa was the entertainment as he and I waited on Thomas while he assisted Caitlynn with the multiple attempts to find the best fit for her boots. Grandpa found a white feather Christmas tree that was about 12 inches tall and he wore it as a hat-quite funny! After an afternoon of wondering around and taking pictures we returned to the chalet for dinner. We grilled chicken while Hans found us some music to listen to and Caitlynn built the fire in the fireplace. After dinner Caitlynn & I took the men to enjoy and relax in the hot tub until 9 PM. Us ladies went to Tim Horton’s for French vanilla lattes, to the IGA for more eggs, and to pickup some more firewood then returned to retrieve the men. They placed their swimming trunks on the back cover of the truck and upon our arrival to our chalet they were frozen like popsicles! As we sat by the fireplace and watched the weather channel, Hans shared with us a story about he and Denyse driving all the way up to Gaspé’ in the Volkswagen about 6 months after they married and took a tent to camp along the way. Hans said the area wasn’t really ready for campers but they found a great area with a beautiful view and setup their tent. He said he heard a rumbling outside of the tent after they got settled for the night and he went to see what it was-to be greeted by a bear! He said Denyse screamed, he laughed as he remembered the event. I asked him if she stayed or made him sleep in the car with her, he said “no we slept in the tent”. Thomas laughed and said “now that’s love!” They married when Hans was 30 yrs old and Denyse was 22 yrs old. Hans said that Denyse’s aunt/uncle that raised her communicated with them via amateur radio after they moved to Virginia every Sunday morning after we came back from mass at 11:00 AM, without fail. He said he’d talk to Adrien and Denyse would talk to Antoniette. She passed away in 1988 while in Clifton Forge after he preceeded her in death from Victoriaville in 1981.
As we watched some Monday Night Football, Hans and Thomas spoke of a time when Hans smoked cigarettes-a time I am unfamiliar with as I never knew he smoked. To hear Hans’s version of the story was entertaining as Thomas was laughing and he remembered the time they talked about well. Hans said it was a football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins, evidently a very intense game and when Hans started to light a cigarette-he realized that he already had 2 of them burning he told himself, “that was ridiculous and I quit”. That was over 15 years ago and he’s never resumed the habit since. I admire his willpower and in the last several days of listening to him I realize that he is all about self-control and common sense when it comes to personal matters in his lifetime (as well as my husband’s thoughts). He takes no medications at his age of 80 yrs old currently and is the picture of health. He states that at one time the doctors tried to give him medication to take so he wouldn’t get up so many times at night to go to the bathroom but after using it for a prescription period that they gave him to use, he thought it was “useless and stopped taking it and accepts it as part of his age”. The doctors had placed him on high blood pressure medicine a year or so ago for 6 weeks but during that time decided to monitor it himself at home along with changing his activities on a daily basis and monitoring his foods. Upon his return to the doctor for a check-up they verified that his blood pressure had stabilized without the medication. Today he remains active as he loves to hike and he swims on a regular basis at the YMCA when home. Best to my knowledge he also has Denyse swimming somedays now in between her busy schedule she maintains!
So today is Tuesday, November 25 and we all slept in then had a good breakfast together. I first got up in the early hours of the morning and the snow was falling lightly but when we all started moving before breakfast the snow was really coming down and the wind was blowing-accumulating very nicely. So you can imagine with the new ski gear, which one was ready to get outside on the slopes and give it a shot! Caitlynn and Thomas prepared and it was only within walking distance so Grandpa and I escorted them to the slopes. The outside temperature is 29 degrees Fahrenheit and the wind is very strong! The skiing is very different from what we are accustomed to and the elevation is also different. One of the trails is 4 kilometers long and due to the conditions today there are only several trails open and they were only open until 3:00PM. So off they went and as Hans and I got to the lounge we met a very nice lady from Germany, she and Hans had many things to talk about. She is currently living in Georgia and is in academics, she is probably in her mid 50’s with 2 children that are here skiing with their father today. She asked Hans if he was an academic and he began telling her what his career was most recently after retiring. I enjoyed the part that he told her about working with some of the first computers that required punch cards and she also did recall that time period. Hans laughed as he told her of bringing them home and his children would be so excited to see him bring them home and LOVED to use them to play with, Thomas would use it as a track to race his toy cars on! (I like to think this is where his passion for fast cars began!) She was fascinated that Hans was 80 yrs old as she told him, “you radiate with health!” She inquired if he has been healthy most of his life. He told her that when he arrived at the University of Ottawa he had a pinched nerve between the 2nd and 3rd cervical vertebrae and was then told my many doctors not to do anything or he risked “snapping it one day and being paralyzed” so as his nature he told them “forget it!” then left. Hans said you can look at their wedding pictures and see him leaning to the right as it still bothered him. He had another doctor see him and wanted him to come see him so he did. This doctor told him that he had been following some of the research and believed that he should exercise to strengthen the muscles so that he wouldn’t go to sleep one day and wake paralyzed because he moved a certain way and the muscles were weak. Hans said that doctor gave him exercises to do and after 20 yrs of doing them “nature fused the vertebrae together and have never had problems since”. She asked him if he or I ski and I told her it had been 19 yrs since I have done it but Grandpa actually skied last April with the Boy Scouts he volunteers with, after 60 years of not skiing and didn’t even fall! We all laughed together, mine was not because of the entertainment but in gratitude and pride to be a part of such a driven yet loving father to my husband, I know how very blessed I am to be a part of their family! We each spoke of the changes in culture and families have in this period of our lives as she spoke of the busyness each of us undergo in our daily lives and the need to slow long enough to enjoy our families. She told us they have at least 1 family vacation a year even though her kids are 17 and 20 yrs old now. She spoke of the 20 yr old (girl) being very driven and lives/works in NY so she NEEDS to slow and this is the only time each year she takes off from her job. Hans told her about the European trip that Gudrun and Dietmar, his only surviving brother and his only sister attended with him last May. It took him and Gudrun a year to talk Dietmar into finally agreeing but they felt since he had lost his wife, Rose he really needed this trip. After his long delay in agreeing, he was the first to depart after they all got to the airport to return home after being together for 2 weeks for their trip to Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the surrounding areas. Hans affectionately recalls Dietmar telling both of them that he “had a very good time and they needed to do this again”. He feels this was a very good thing for Dietmar as he was so saddened and withdrawn after Rose’s death. Hans was pleased in having a part in bringing needed happiness to his brother by the 3 of them traveling their home country together. Thomas and Caitlynn returned with the stories of the slopes and we headed to the chalet to rest and eat. Hans talked about when his brother Horst was in WWII and hated it. He said he was driving an artillery truck and saw soldiers coming (they were from England) and he had decided enough was enough so he parked the truck and waved his white flag as he wanted it to end-regardless of what the consequence were at that point. Lucky for him they just took him back to England and just used him as a worker in the fields for a couple of years before they allowed his return home. During 1945 Hans spoke of Oma (his mother) basically “going crazy” as 2 of her 3 sons were involved in the war and she was unsure which ones were dead or alive. Dietmar was only 9 yrs old when the war began so he was home with their mom. They did not find out until they came to Canada and were contacted by the military that Siegfried was killed while operating a tank in 1943 at the age of 18 in Sicily. They were told that he had a leg wound and was able to get out of the tank but must have died after that escape. They said others tried to help him but he told them to save themselves and stayed there until the end of his time. Hans describes Siegfried as amazingly talented, he said “he could do anything and all of it was well done, he painted and drew along with wonderful articles he’d write-things that were published all over in different papers and magazines”. He was obviously never married nor had any children.
Hans spoke of times when he or his brothers (Siegfried, Horst and Dietmar) would go out after dark to get the fruit that was not ripened to take to their house. He said they did this because the food was so scarce and if they waited until it was ripe it would all be gone. Food was very hard to come by during that time.
Horst passed away shortly after his retirement at age 67, he was survived by his wife Helga and 1 son-Stephen. His wife Helga passed away in 2006. Stephen hasn’t ever married nor had any children. Horst was also Thomas’s godfather.
We watched a movie together as it continued to snow outside. We rested for the rest of the evening after we ate our dinner. It was a nice quiet evening that we all enjoyed.
Today is Wednesday, Nov 26, 2008 and we woke to rain, so much it actually cleaned off our truck from the days past during our travels (it desperately needed that!). The temperature is 34-37 degrees Fahrenhiet for the duration of the day. The four of us are off to Tim Horton’s to eat breakfast out this morning as we have not eaten breakfast out since we arrived. I personally am looking forward to their French vanilla latte with cream & sugar as it has proven to be very delectable since my first sample the morning we arrived here so I am excited! We ate then took Hans to a local bank as Denyse had asked him to do. We noticed as we were driving that gas prices had dropped to 82.4 cents per liter which created curiosity and conversation amongst us for what could be happening in the US since we’ve been out of touch….Afterwards we made our way to a local post office as Thomas is curious about retaining his citizenship and I need stamps for the postcards I’ve been working on for a couple of days. Next stop is to take Hans to the train station to travel to Gudrun’s where we will join him Friday evening. We laughed as I reviewed his ticket voucher last night since he will have Wi-Fi on the train and we don’t even have that in the chalet we’re staying. He recalled his time in Germany as a youth that the only transit (unless you were very wealthy) was trains but it was freight trains and you had to “just catch it” meaning most were on the top, etc. and he said there were times that a person would be on top and as the train proceeded to go under a bridge, that person was knocked off! He also said the trains had no restrooms, Thomas said that’s where the phrase “mooning” came from. “If they hung half out the window then it was called a half moon, if the whole bottom was hung out the window then it was a full moon”. I’m not so sure about that but I know the trains traveling today are equipped with bathrooms and Wi-Fi! After we left the train station, we were asked by Manon to come for lunch so we were en route to her home as planned. Upon our arrival she greeted us and we sat around and talked as she put the finishing touches on our meal. She also gave us a tour of her home and she had started on the nursery a little but was working on it currently. She had her Itunes pulled up on her computer and the song that it was stopped on was James Blunt and when Caitlynn inquired about the type of music she likes in reference to this artist she stated “oh I like him okay”. Manon told us that Maude and Keven have tickets to see him in concert as they like him very well. There were several pictures around that looked as if they were taken in the Caribbean so I inquired about 2 of them. She told us she and Jean-Philippe joined her dad Marc and her uncle Raymond last year when they were bringing the sail boat back to Québec, the one Raymond spoke of earlier. She told us it was just the 4 of them on the boat and she said the boat was named “Moby Dick” and they were aboard for 13-14 days. Manon told us stating, “it was an old boat-nothing worked. Everything that should work did not, all broke”! Sounded as if they had quite a time with that trip and she was glad to be home.
I have noticed in our visits here that everyone dresses the table with linen tablecloth and serves wine with every meal. Thomas actually drank Canadian beer with his meal after she offered it to him, this was the first Canadian beer she’s drank since we have been here. They are like me in the respect that I feel that when you eat with your family it is really a valued quality time to spend together. I have always enjoyed meal time with my family, rather if it’s 2 or 20 of us together-it’s always good! She then finished preparing a great chocolate dessert that she baked and offered us café with it. Manon has a nice latte/café machine in her kitchen that does it all! She created a perfect latte!
Manon drove with Caitlynn as Thomas and I followed them to the mall, she thought we should definitely see their mall after she and Caitlynn talked during our meal. We did a little shopping then she escorted us to Colette’s to greet her then she was off for her maternity yoga class for the evening. We had a good visit with her and she doesn’t think her English is very good but she seems to do well with us. She told us she has had to learn it since she works in the ER at the hospital and during the tourist season (which is spring-summer) she has to be able to communicate with the people from the cruise ships, etc. She told Thomas that the maple syrup was out of season as they are usually collecting it during April, Thomas was wanting to get some fresh to take back with us for gifts. I told her next time she and/or Maude go to NY they need to call us or we should just make this an annual visit so it’s not so far between visits and seeing everyone-she agreed as she smiled and departed!
Colette and Rodrigue Forcier (2680 Rue Vigneault, Quebec, QC, Canada G1W 1X5/Ste-Foy, which is located on the North Shore but not far from the Saint-Lawrence River and a suburb of Québec City, phone 418-651-9917 and email: coursforcier@videotron.ca), Colette is Denyse’s oldest sister and she is 75 yrs old. Her English is VERY limited so we thought it best to come here with Clémence or Manon to translate for us but Clémence was working this week. Colette was so excited to see us and Thomas did a fabulous job communicating in French with her. She had told him that “everyday that passed during our stay and she had not seen us yet, she feared we would not be able to come visit her before we left for home”. Colette has 7 children with only 1 girl as the middle child. She currently has 22 grandchildren and all but 2 of her children live in this area. I thought it was interesting that none of the family we have visited here have great grandchildren to date, I believe it may have been due to the fact that most of them completed their studies and then started their families later in life than what we currently see as the trend recently in the states. We had a very good visit with Colette and she insisted on preparing dinner for us to eat with her so we obliged. Caitlynn told Thomas that she’d like to learn French for a foreign language instead of Spanish as she enjoyed listening to the language. Colette and Thomas had a lot of catching up to talk about and she told him several times that she was so glad we came as she said “each day that went by I didn’t think I would get to see you and your family”. We ate soup, cheeses/crackers, vegetables/salad, croissants with ham and drank wine except Caitlynn had Coke. Colette asked Thomas how to pronounce Caitlyn’s name and her best attempt was “Kat-Lin”, we all laughed as she tried so hard with each attempt. She mixed ketchup with mayonnaise together for a dip and Caitlynn loved it. Thomas told her that his mom used to do that also but she had not done it in a while, Caitlynn told him she’d be sure remind grandma next time-haha. We finished the meal with grapes and fresh prunes from Iran and café. She said her husband has been ill and he is a diabetic so he was upstairs resting. She was very proud to show us her family pictures that are in her basement, she has them arranged very nicely with mounts on the wall. The pictures included 2 individual pictures taken of Eustache and Cécile when they were 50 yrs old. She also showed us her high school graduation picture dated 1951-1954 and I was surprised to see their sister Janine in it also. She said that Janine was with her because she skipped a grade. As we gathered in the living room Thomas and his aunt talked summarizing the visits we’ve had with all the family. Colette told us that Raymond & Jean-Yves as young men used to swim in the river we saw (St. Lawrence) at St. Jean-Port-Joli from the church that their parents services were performed to Francoise’s house, almost daily. She said they loved the water from the time they were born! Outside of the picture window Colette has a big tree with a white trunk. She pointed to a piece of fabric tied higher than half way up the tall tree as it marks how much snow they had last year. It actually is at the same level as the 2nd floor of the house-amazing! Caitlynn and I were in awe so we took pictures….As I watch Colette talking to Thomas I notice how she has several mannerisms similar to Denyse’s, especially the way she rests her left hand on her cheek/jaw area and her pinkie finger rests on her mouth, Denyse does the same when she’s evaluating her thoughts as she speaks to you. I noticed when I first saw her how much she physically looks like Denyse also. That’s always so funny to discover how 2 members of the same family, who’ve been far apart for a long time could behave the same way and still resemble each other so much. Thomas called Denyse on his cell and let the two of them talk while we were there. Colette brought Thomas the printed email that Denyse had sent her siblings announcing our planned trip in hopes we would be able to visit each of them. As we began to leave we talked to Colette about tomorrow being our Thanksgiving and she showed us on her calendar that the Canadians celebrate their Thanksgiving in Oct, this year it was the 13th. We said our good-byes and as we pulled away she stood there waving until we were all the way down her street. Thomas said she had tears in her eyes as she hugged him good-bye.
This morning is Thanksgiving for the US and we woke up to a nice slow snow which would stop then proceed. The temperature is 32-36 degrees Fahrenheit for the day and we had decided yesterday we would grill American burgers for our meal this afternoon. I had fallen asleep last night after reading my Living Faith reader that Denyse gives each of her children, it’s an annual subscription for Christmas from her to each of them. I am very thankful for my family, friends, and my many blessings. Thomas and I talked after we both woke up how thankful we are for many things, including our health. Nicole, my niece called me first thing this morning as we speak frequently as if she’s my own daughter. My cell phone rang from a call with Kati Hurt on the other end. She was crying and asked to speak to Caitlynn. Her stepmom had passed away during the night and we are unsure exactly what happened as she just said her dad told them this morning that “Lane got sick during the night and they took her to the hospital and she didn’t make it”. Lane had just turned 31 yrs old in May. She and Willie, Kati’s dad had been married 19 months only. We had actually invited Kati to come with us to Canada but her dad preferred her to be home with the family for the holiday, I can’t help but be sad and feel bad that we are not there for Kati during this time as she has kind of adopted our family since we met her 3 yrs ago. After Caitlynn got off the phone with Kati she shared with us Kati’s concern as she felt unsure if she missed leading Lane to the Lord as this is Kati’s passion. She is a very good example of a balanced young lady and she is always consciously confirming that she acts as a Christian example and she felt convinced that she didn’t do her job for the person that had married her dad less than 2 yrs ago. Caitlynn reassured Kati that she is an example and for someone to be around her and not be witnessed to was definitely a rarity. We had so much to be thankful for in our lives and we should know that things can change in any second. We will keep her and her family in our prayers and stay in touch with her until we arrive home.
It has been snowing then raining now as the afternoon comes around it is snowing again-it’s calming yet pretty! We headed into Québec City after we ate breakfast at the chalet, but stopped by the registrar’s office to connect my laptop to the wireless internet to check emails. Denyse had sent another email with more information for us as we headed to Montreal as Thomas had spoke of wanting to visit Victoriaville & Drummondville so Densye sent us some addresses to refer to. Thomas took us to downtown Québec and dropped Caitlynn & I off at “Benjo”, the famous toy store that Manon told us about. It was huge, like 10 times the size of Toys ‘R Us in the states! We did a little shopping for the kids in the family (even though some of the toys have instructions in French) and then we came back to the chalet to start the fireplace and watch football before we grill….Dallas Cowboys are playing and Thomas was feverishly trying the be sure it would be on our TV at the chalet! Halftime score is Dallas 24, Seattle 6-Thomas is happy! So, as the game is going, Caitlynn & I prepare our dinner which consisted of spaghetti and grilled hamburgers. After we ate the game ended and Dallas won so Thomas was off to the hot tub as I began packing up our things so we could depart by 8:30 AM. Caitlynn is talking to Kati on the phone again and as the evening is winding down and I’m upstairs by myself I decided to read the Living Faith for today, as I read the daily portion at the end of each day to review the day and its events. I have always told Thomas & Caitlynn how its ironic how more times than not it is exactly what I was dealing with for the day. So as I open it up and read I realize it is very appropriate for the day regarding Thanksgiving as it’s dated for today. I then go into the room with Caitlynn and have her put me on speakerphone so I can read it to both of the girls (she & Kati), this is what it read: The title: Welcome Each Day In Gratitude, Thursday, Nov 27, 2008 **Enter his gates with thanksgiving, his courts with praise; Give thanks to him; bless his name. Psalm 100:4 The reading: My spiritual director, who died suddenly earlier this year, taught me a lot about being thankful. Long before we ever met he had been diagnosed with cancer and given only a short time to live. But to everyone’s surprise, he survived. The cancer was successfully treated. From that time forward, he saw every day as a gift. God had given him more to do. He didn’t dwell on this. He didn’t want people to mistakenly believe that one needed to brave death to realize and be thankful for God’s goodness. Indeed his cheerfulness in the face of continuing chronic health problems showed there was more to it than that. I miss him. But his life and death helped serve as a reminder that one of the beauties of our faith is that even in death we find reason for thanksgiving for all that those we love were to us and continue to be in our memories and prayers, and in our gratefulness for all those we love who continue to share our table……
The morning (Friday, November 28, 2008) welcomed us as we woke with nice thick snow flakes and a temperature of 29 degrees Fahrenheit as we loaded the truck and prepared for our travel day. We are headed to Montreal to see Janine and Jean Fortier as we are scheduled to have lunch with them. Our breakfast this morning consisted of you guessed it-Tim Horton’s as we pulled away from the chalet at Mont-Ste Anne in Beaupré. Tim Horton’s made a mistake and gave me and Caitlynn sausage when we ordered bacon but their hot chocolate and French vanilla latte with cream & sugar made up for that! Thomas definitely enjoyed the ‘extra’ sausage from us. As we began driving thru Québec City the snow continued and the temperature was 31 degrees Fahrenheit with everything covered in snow around us. The churches in this area are quite majestic and they are throughout the communities, even in the snow covered areas they are still so bold and are sure to catch any looker-by’s eyes. The snow continues as we drive and it is a very pretty snow fall for us to witness-we enjoyed the view. Thomas recalled when grandmaman came to Clifton after Denyse “talked her into it as she needed someone to assist in her care at that point in her life so she moved in with Hans & Denyse. He stated that in her last days, he tried to help care for her as much as he could also but couldn’t take care of “changing her” as he did not feel comfortable in that area since she was a woman, admirable of a grandson I’d say. He talked a little about her final days, spent in Alleghany Regional Hospital as one of her sisters had come. Yvonne (the sister) had flown in from Ottawa to be here to help in the last few weeks of Antoinette’s life. After death grandmaman was cremated so her ashes could be brought back to Victoriaville and be buried next to grandpapa. We turned off the main road and headed for Victoriaville just on time to see the sun trying to make an appearance as we drove over a bridge. Thomas felt easier about traveling off the main road in the truck as he saw the glimpse of sun appearing since we do not have four-wheel drive! The road we traveled is quite wooded and Thomas said it’s common for caribou to be out here eating. We were going to 545 Notre Dame Ouest, Victoriaville, QC, Canada G6P 1T2 as this was Grandmaman and Grandpapa’s (Antoniette and Adrien) home where Denyse grew up. Thomas said they referred to Denyse’s birth parents: Eustache and Cécile as Grandpapa Eustache and Grandmaman Cécile. As you enter Victoriaville you can look to the north-east and see small mountains and the town has several factories that function and a dairy. Thomas told me he sailed on the lake one time that you see to the north in the town. The town is about the size of Christiansburg, VA. The original home of Grandmaman & Grandpapa is a duplex style and has been renovated to be white with blue trim. Thomas said he remembers someone always living on the top since they lived on the bottom half. We took a picture as we drove by and stopped. Now we are in search of cheese curds-Denyse LOVES them fresh, Thomas told me! So we’re thinking if we get them today, Sunday would still be considered fresh for her…..Our stop for them was at Fromagerie @ 101 rue Aqueduc, Victoriaville, QC G6P 1M2 819-752-6821 www.fromagerievictoria.com We stopped to get gas as we headed to Drummondville and as Thomas pumped it a gentleman came for to the truck and cleaned all the windows for us, I remember this at service stations when I was growing up, they performed these services on a regular basis for customers. (Are you sure you did not miss the fact that you were not supposed to pump your gas and attendants are the ones to do it? ) Haven’t seen that in a LONG time! As Thomas returned after paying and he had a bag of Lays Ketchup chips-never seen those before either but he remembers walking to the store from his grandparents house and getting these as well as cheese curds for a snack. So are we drove the same route Thomas said they drove back and forth to Grandmaman & Grandpapa’s from their home here, we ate cheese curds-my first experience. It tasted like more definite tasting mozzarella cheese as it squeaked my teeth with each bite-Thomas and I enjoyed a whole bag together! Caitlynn opted to pass since she “didn’t want her braces squeaking on anything” she told us…
The temperature is 33-35 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow is dissipating as we drive northwest to Drummondville, there’s much less snow in this area. As we drove into town we passed Domaine Trent which Thomas described as a place they perform theatre arts like the outside play “TEXAS” which I took he & Jason to see with my Aunt Mary and Uncle Phifer, it’s located near my dad’s home town in Texas. We did this with one of his first visits to Texas with me when he and Jason drove. As we get towards downtown we see a DQ-Dairy Queen and it was very small. Thomas said they are only up half the year as people don’t want ice cream as it gets so cold here. We laughed as we spotted a KFC-Kentucky Fried Chicken as the sign read “PFC” instead of “KFC” due to French translation, now that is funny! (I took a picture) The next address is 290 Laurziere, Drummondville, Canada which is where Thomas grew-up and lived until they moved to VA when Thomas was a 3rd grader. His parents sent him to a school with nuns who taught him English as they prepared to move to VA. He laughed and grinned as he told the story of forgetting his bus pass one morning and the bus driver waited while he ran back to the house to retrieve it, he can’t imagine today a bus driver waiting……He said they only had 1 car and Hans worked at the factory so he had the car. When he got to the house to get the bus pass Denyse ran behind him yelling and chasing him though she was pregnant with Martin yelling “Zut, Zut!” He said he was thinking how embarrassed he was at that time bit I bet he never forgot his bus pass again! Thomas says this town is about the size of Roanoke and the housing looks mostly modern. The main street is Boulevard St Joseph and we passed the hotel named Le Daulphin which is where Thomas recalls they all stayed there while the movers where packing their belongings ready to move to Clifton Forge. He said Martin was 3 weeks old at the time. Thomas said the kids in his family that were of school age attended catholic school while living here.
We are now driving southwest to Montreal and at this point there is very little remaining snow in very few areas along the highway. This part of the trip actually looks like I-35 North as you leave Ft Worth, Tx. pretty flat with a few trees and fields. We continue driving until we begin to get closer to Montreal where we will visit Janine and Jean Fortier (1064 Bernard Ouest Apt#34, Montreal, QC, Canada, email: jafort@videotron.ca, home #514-495-1011) Denyse’s sister and brother-in-law. They really live in Outremont which is a suburb of Montreal.
Jean (the husband) recently had surgery in October for intestinal cancer and his health is still guarded but at least he’s home now. Janine says after being in the bed for 6 weeks it is hard to regain his strength. Thomas talked to his aunt on the phone while we were at Raymond’s as she was planning our visit and wanted to know the timeline for our travel there. Thomas spoke with her again as we got to the outskirts of Montreal and we’ve decide to meet at Maiko Sushi (Japanese food@387 rue Bernard Ouest, Montreal, H2V1T6, 514-490-1225) for our lunch.
As we enter the city we have to go thru a tunnel and as we come out it is surprising to me that with it being such a big city they only have 3 lanes of traffic per way. Thomas said that on the other side of town there are 4-5 lanes of traffic for each direction. Montreal has a population of 1-2 million. Caitlynn wanted to know why everyone’s license plates still say “Québec” and Thomas explained to her that we are still in the province of Québec, Canada has 10 provinces with Quebec being one. Caitlynn responded by saying so we are divided into 50 states and Canada is divided into 10-correct!
It is very obvious this is a big city as there are a lot of people and traffic. Montreal is known for its great subway throughout the city to transport a lot people and by the looks of things around us it is effectively utilized.
The restaurant where we met Janine for lunch was actually a block and a half from her house which in this area are multileveled housing that are 3 or 4 stories tall. The restaurant was nice and Janine stated that they entertain friends at this place as the food is good and cost is efficient. Her husband did not come but she apologized as he is still not feeling well enough to get out except for when he has to go to therapy. She told us the doctors gave the impression that when they removed the cancerous mass they got it all. It did not seem to have spawned any cells off and it looked like an amazingly clean removal. They are hopeful as he is 76 yrs old currently and seems to be improving slowly. He will see a gastroenterologist the first week of Dec. for follow-up. She also looks like Denyse and the difference in their age is 11 months with Denyse being the younger of the two. She laughed as she told me “for 1 month of the year we are the same age”. Janine had 4 children but lost 2 sons in wrecks at ages 26 and 33. They have only one grandchild which is a granddaughter named Zoé, she is 22 yrs old and goes to college. She will finish her degree this year but is looking to get a PhD in counseling. Zoé comes to stay with them when she is on breaks from school and works with children on her summer breaks. She recently took a trip to Sénégal, Africa. Janine tells me she’s been trying to retire for 15 yrs but works only occasionally as a social worker, she currently has 4 active cases, regarding kids. She says she “doesn’t know how to retire”, must be a common trait in this family along with them all giving back to their youth in their areas and with being providers for people they love. She told me she has been to VA twice and both times flew into Roanoke so she’s seen our city she said. She is a very pleasant sweet spirited woman who is obviously been diversified in her life and describes many things with a positive outlook. She laughed as she remembers Denyse coming to visit when she was younger and she always felt so close to Denyse and thought she was a special person. When she and Denyse were talking on that particular trip she told her “you’re my favorite but don’t tell the others”, she smiled from ear to ear as this was such a pleasant memory for her. Janine told us that she has always tried to keep up with all of Denyse’s children but she “feels there’s still so much more to know about each of them!” We enjoyed a nice bottle of Riesling (Caitlynn had Sprite) with our meal and then had café and cappuccino with our desserts. Caitlynn loved their steamed rice as she reported it as “amazing” so she ate Thomas’s also! Janine commented on how well Thomas speaks French, I was glad she told him that as I thought he was doing very well but he told her he really struggled calling Clémence on Saturday as it had been so long since he had spoken the language even though it was the first language he knew. I think as we were there for a week he became familiar with speaking it with much ease and elegance. Janine talked about our visits with the family before our arrival here. She told us a story of Manon (as she described her as a “very patient person”) when she had taken a trip in the last couple of years with some friends, I was unsure where she told us they had gone. She said that Manon likes to mountain climb, she described it as “rock climb” and recalled Manon telling her friends as she left by herself to go “if I am not back by 8 PM, send someone after me” and she laughed as she left them for her adventure. As it turned out Manon did not come back as thought by the evening time nor by morning so they sent someone out to search for her and found her on a ledge where she had slept for the night. The story was the weather got foggy and she was unable to leave so she stayed there without fret as she is that type of person her aunt described in saying “she knows what to do to survive on her own”. Janine also told us that Manon is a blackbelt in self-defense, she seems like an athletic young lady. She spoke with Thomas about how Jean-François “felt sorry about the accident when you busted your head at Françoise’s home, he spoke of it often”. She told us that recently Raymond swam the distance from Odette’s home to the church in St, Jean-Port-Joli just to be sure he could still do it! We continued to talk about this area and our plans as we are nearing the end of our trip to Canada. She pulled a plastic bag out from under the table and gave me a candle with a lovely scent, she said Denyse told her that would be something I would like, she gave Thomas a Canadian calendar with wonderful pictures for 2009, and gave Caitlynn a really nice ink pen and she explained to her that her granddaughter Zoé loved these type of pens and she hoped Caitlynn would also. We all thanked her and apologized for not doing the same and she smiled and said, “you all being here is my present” and she again thanked us for coming to visit her. Caitlynn noticed that the pen was the same brand of markers that Grandma (Denyse) had given her for Christmas a couple of years ago, Janine told her they are a popular German made brand from this area. Caitlynn told her she would enjoy them like she has the markers! We noticed as we sat there that there were many Jewish people walking outside the restaurant. Janine told us there is a very big community of Hassidin Jewish in Outremont and that they typically have many children at a young age, like 4 kids by age 20. She says they are difficult to work with as they do not like to allow anyone in their communities and they are very private people that DO NOT like ANY change. She told us their Jewish culture forbids them to do anything after sunset on Fridays as that time is considered sacred. She actually has a neighbor who called her one evening at dark to come turn off her oven since that was considered labor to perform….I can’t imagine. Thomas inquired with her about their sister Violette that has passed. Janine described her as “very strong willed, best fashion with clothes, and had the best taste for food”. She tells us that she had a boyfriend for 8 yrs and then they married but separated after 2 yrs in the marriage without ever having children. She said Violette told her once that she didn’t think she wanted children and then confirmed to her that having children wouldn’t make her a woman-she already was one! She said all children loved Violette and that sometimes she thought most of them “rather have Violette as their mom, kids loved her!” Violette was extremely intelligent she said and worked as a translator for the university in Québec, which is where she lived when she passed away. She had also worked in Alaska and when she came back she was the one responsible for creating the park area dedicated to the ships looking outside Odette’s house, Janine described this project as being “very special to Violette”. I think it’s very nice that now Odette maintains its upkeep for that area. Janine recalled a time when “she was dating an Inuit Indian from that area and he obviously had hit her and she left him but went to retrieve her Italian typewriter that was a prize possession of hers from their place they lived together”. “He must have hit her again upon her return and needing to sort things out in her mind/feelings she went to Eustache and Cécile’s home (her parents)”. Janine said that it was “obvious of the markings on her face that something happened but neither parent asked her any questions, just welcomed her and made her comfortable until she was gone again after sorting things in her mind for her next venture in life”. She said that’s how their parents were, loving people that loved their family unconditionally or with judgement. I see these same traits in Denyse as I have always told Thomas that I hope one day to be able to love our children in the same aspect as his mother does her children.
As we prepared to leave she walked down the sidewalk with us toward our vehicle and she asked Thomas if Hans & Gudrun would like some fresh bagels as they have the best in North America (she said its been featured in magazines) and wanted to get him some for us to take him if he’d like that. The bagel place is named St-Viateur Bagel and is located at 263 St. Viateur-West which is only a few blocks from Janine’s home. The story of the bagel shop is as follows:
Since 1957, St-Viateur Bagel has been a central part of the culture and daily life of Montreal. Its legendary landmark bagel shop operates 24/7 and sells over 1,000 dozen bagels a day.
St-Viateur Bagel was founded by Myer Lewkowicz who brought his, now famous, recipe from Eastern Europe. The art of bagel making means hand rolling each one and baking them in a wood-burning oven. The current owner, Joe Morena, with over 45 years of experience in the bagel business, ensures that the traditions at the St-Viateur Bagel continue to be respected.
Over half a century, this family business has grown to include 4 bakeries and 2 Bagel Cafés in Montreal.
So she rode with us and she & I went in to get them-it was “fabulous” (Janine’s word!) as they were open 24 hrs and were kneading the dough and had some baking in a huge brick oven and coming out by the dozens! There were 20 lb bags of flour all in the front of the store. We also got some cream cheese for us and for grandpa and Gudrun to enjoy! Thomas covered the bag of bagels with his leather jacket to keep them warm hopefully. We drove her back to her neighborhood and ironically so I looked up and there was a street named “Avenue Bloomfield” and I pointed it out to everyone as that is the street we live on in Roanoke. As we said our good-byes I gave her the last of our bag of cheese curds Thomas & I had opened after we left Victoriaville, she was thrilled and departed after hugs and cheek kisses for all….. The downtown traffic is intense as we get out of Montreal @ 3:50 PM. Caitlynn called Kati to check on her from my cell and offered her our house if she needed it while we are gone. I was sad we weren’t there to be with her in her time of need…..
As we drove we passed over Lac des Deux Montagnes (Lake of Two Mountains) which is a very big lake. The temperature is 34-37 degrees Fahrenheit and it’s getting dark as we drive. Now we are crossing into Ontario, which Thomas describes this as the English speaking area of Canada. I have noticed that the traffic signs are in both French and English and the license plates now say “Ontario”. The temperature has dropped since we left and we are 75 minutes from Gudrun’s and it is snowing again.
We are heading to Orleans where is Gudrun’s home is located, it is a small community outside of Ottawa. Ottawa has a population of 1,200,000 which makes it the 4th largest urban area in Canada. It is ranked 6th in the world in terms of its quality of life by the Corp. Resources Group. It is the capital of Canada also.
Gudrun is Hans’s only sister and she has 2 sons: Berni Bannach who is a forensic pathologist for North Alberta (17117-69 Ave., Edmonton, AT5T2W6, cell 780-991-9651, email: bernardbannach@yahoo.com). Bernie has 2 sons- Mitchell who is 12 and Garrett is 10. Mitchell takes fencing lessons and is planning a trip out of the country this next year with his teacher to study and learn more about that sport. As Bernie’s mom, Gudrun, says “Bernie is a CSI guy”. Shawn is the younger and he lives in Ottawa, very close to Gudrun’s house. He is in the army and his position requires him to travel all over the world frequently to many different places, this week he is in Ukraine. His wife Jacqui was in the military for 8 yrs then in the reserves for 2 yrs. She just changed jobs within the last year but still works for the government in the Rescue and National Defense division but has a “desk job” now as she describes it. Best part she says is its 8-4 Mon-Fri. Jacqui turned 40th in June this year and she will be going to Cuba in January to celebrate with her twin sister. She was raised in South Africa and met Shawn in the service while in Yukon Territory and they’ve been married for 18 years.
As we enter the area Gudrun lives in, it is now sprinkling with snow mix and is 31 degrees Fahrenheit but you can see the ground had been covered with snow. Thomas decided that we’d kill a little time before getting to Gudrun’s and changed sets with Caitlynn (15 yrs old) and allowed her to practice her driving skills in an empty parking lot. He encouraged her to give the truck more gas so she could feel the change in the tires and the way the vehicle handles. She did very well and so he allowed her to drive the last couple of miles to Gudrun’s including going through a traffic light then into her neighborhood. Upon our entrance into Thomas’s aunt’s home, I noticed there are quite a few paintings on the walls. Several of the paintings were by Rothe’s and I inquired about a couple. She had a beautiful ocean scene painting by her formal dining table and I asked about it and she said it was a painting that their dad (Herbert) had seen at a local art display and fell in love with it so he bought it. She got it after his death and I can see why he loved it at first sight as when you look at it, it just comes alive with brilliance. It looks as if there is a dim spot light shining on it but in actuality its just the painting itself and it just makes you feel warm even though it seems that it is a scene that would have wind blowing on the water. Gudrun and Hans were sitting at the table with a bottle of red wine and had a bowl of pistachios so since we’re family we loved joining in …haha. As I looked around later I also saw a watercolor painting that Herbert had painted himself and it was of a sailboat in the water-very well done! I thought it was interesting that when Hans & Denyse married, they brought the French and the German worlds together yet each of the 2 families had a lot of similarities such as the love of the water which was very common in both families and I can also see their love for their family. Hans & Gudrun had gone to a play last night named “The Constant Wife” by W. Somerset Maugham performed at the Ottawa Little Theatre. We sat up and talked about old times, people/family, and travels. The one thing I did notice while we were talking is that Gudrun would call Hans by his first name “Guenter”, he says he never went by that name after coming to Canada since NO ONE ever pronounced it correctly which frustrated him (he reports to us as he smiles but shakes his fist) so he solved it by just using his middle name instead. Gudrun called Jacqui, her daughter-in-law (Jacqui and Shawn Bannach, 541 Rougemount Crescent, Ottawa, ON, Canada KYA3A1, home #613-834-4572, email: jbannach1213@rogers.com ) and told her we were here and asked her to come with her daughters: Jessica (14 yrs old) and Nicole (10 yrs old). They came and joined us and this was the first time I had met Jacqui though I’ve met Shawn when he came for Hans and Denyse’s 50th wedding anniversary last December in VA. He had come with Gudrun and his 2 girls but Jacqui had just changed job and wasn’t able to attend with them. Their daughter Nicole was the highlight of the evening for the 50th wedding anniversary as she entertained us all with her love for dancing at the reception. Hans was amazed at her and her ability to “just go out there and dance around with all these people here”. We enjoyed a lot of conversation with memories filled from the Rothe side of the family. Jessica, Nicole, and Caitlynn enjoyed each others company and getting to know each other as they played Skip-Bo, Table Ping Pong, and a German game called Menich-argere-Dich-nicht throughout the house. Jessica tells me that her favorite subjects in school are French and math, Nicole’s favorites are gym and music. Nicole is longing to get a guitar as she wants to be a “rock star”, she is very entertaining! Jacqui and Gudrun told us that they have been addressing an issue with Nicole since she has been forgetting to bring her homework home with her after school, they said it’s because she gets distracted “with other things she tries to keep up with going on around her”, she is very smart and doesn’t miss much! Jessica is quieter but just as smart and already 5’ 10” and looking more mature than at our meeting last year. She told me that at her catholic high school they can choose English or French for each of their courses. This is a little different from when Hans went to Univ. of Ottawa as they had to choose English or French for the entire curriculum as a whole but not for individual classes. Hans laughs as he said when he enrolled they said “now what are we going to do with you!” as they did not offer classes in German. We have enjoyed spending time with the girls as they are very nice young ladies. Interestingly enough, Gudrun and Hans have 2 totally different versions of Horst how he was taken as prisoner of war by the British and was sent to England for 2 yrs before returning home. Gudrun’s version was that they got tired and stopped and asked a farmer if they could have dinner and get a place to sleep. The farmer offered them the barn to sleep in and while they were sleeping apparently the farmer reported them and the British soldiers came and got them and took them to England as prisoners of war. So we all laughed hysterically and Gudrun decided that we would have to call Dietmar and he’d tell how he heard the story for the one with the most accuracy….
Gudrun shared a story of she and Joe (Joe and Gudrun were together 11 yrs before his passing with cancer in February 2007, and he was from Portugal) driving through Portugal at midnight when they had electrical problems with their car and the lights would not work. She said they had to stop where they were on the road at the nearest area available to park and TRY to sleep until morning when they could drive without needing lights. She told us they might have slept an hour or two only because they were worried about gypsies in the area. Caitlynn was unfamiliar with what the word ‘gypsy’ meant so she explained it, she thought that was interesting as she has never been exposed to them. As Gudrun told the story she laughed with the memories and said that it was only 1 of a couple of times she had to sleep outside and she was thankful there were so few.
Hans reported the story about the 3 of them (Hans, Dietmar, and Gudrun) traveling back to Germany in May this year as they encountered issues trying to get to Prague. He said they had recently opened the Czech Republic borders to the rest of Europe and they wanted to travel through during their visit as it would cut the distance for where they were planning to go. The police stopped them and they were unsure why but it was required by law to have lights on while driving a vehicle. Obviously without their knowledge the rental car had only 1 light that came on so Hans got out and tried to work on it a bit. It suddenly came on and so they proceeded with their trip. As they drove they realized they needed diesel fuel so they stopped but the store wouldn’t take Euros as payment-only Czeck marks. The three of them got back in the car and drove on to find some place else where they could get diesel with a credit card and they also wanted to buy lunch at this time. They were rethinking their decision at this point as the next place they stopped told them they should not go to Prague as they have had a lot of car theft, even when you stop, people were stealing cars. Finally as Gudrun says, “we found a run down joint and just got coffee only as they were very unfriendly”, they then returned to their vehicle and “went straight to just get out of there!”
Gudrun had a black and white picture in her office space upstairs that she put Caitlynn in to use while we were visiting her home. She told me Joe had done many things in his life to make a living (Hans also said this about himself frequently on our trip) and this particular picture is when he was a matador-now I do not have any uncles that I can say that about, even being from Texas-haha! That’s an exciting job and I’m sure never a dull moment-no pun intended…
Thomas spoke about a time about 14 yrs ago when he and Jason came to visit Oma in Kitchener and stopped in Ottawa to attend the Buxter’s Festival on Sparks Street, he said Jason absolutely loved it and wanted to go again, and again, and again during the stay! They went to Guelph to Oma’s apartment, which was a retirement community and listened to her play the organ for at least an hour, it was beautiful as Thomas described it. Gudrun has the organ Oma owned and played in her upstairs room but there is noone in her immediate family who can play it fluently she states.
Hans and Thomas talked about the trip in 1998 that all 23 Rothe’s took as Hans had dreamed to do. Hans planned the trip so his children would learn the history of what/where his background was as he grewup. And what his story was, the places where he lived, the relatives he still had. Denyse’s role was really to see that the trip developed as Hans had planned it. (Janine said to us “this traits of organization and timeliness is a typical German aspect which Denyse has this feature and less common in Hans” and we all laughed) even though they made a lot of miles and had to catch many trains for transportation. Hans said that “no one took that picture with all 23 of us pulling our luggage from train to train within 10 minutes only between changes and none of us missed even 1”. At this time when they went to Europe, Martin was living in Belgium as he worked there and the family spent 2 weeks traveling Austria, Switzerland, Germany, France, Luxemburg, Holland and Belgium. It was quite entertaining hearing the stories as most of the grandchildren were young and pulling their own suitcases. The group was large and the week at the timeshare was divided so everyone would have a time to stay there. However, they joined together to have a look at the house in Oppach where Hans and his family lived during his youth. Oma lived in that village and that is where she married Herbert (Opa) in the small Lutheran church in that village. Thomas said the church when they saw it was about the same size as St. Joseph in Clifton Forge, VA. Thomas and Hans told us about Denyse actually getting to play the pipe organ there on their visit to that church with great joy as obviously it was very involved with the history of the Rothe family! Hans said that Denyse felt truly blessed sharing that “through music one is able to communicate with people even if your can not understand each other through language”. Hans spoke with admiration about her music ability for that occasion and as she had first played “Amazing Grace” for Homer’s benefit. It’s at times as these that I see and believe in true love between two people regardless of their backgrounds or how many years they are together or regardless of the circumstances-it’s a constant passion to believe in each other and their lives together. Hans actually glowed when he recalled this event with his entire family present!
Herbert (Opa) and Ella (Oma) Rothe were among fortunate couples who were able celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary and then among the elite few to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. They celebrated their 60th out west in Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island in June 1983 with the family. Thomas remembers a salmon fishing trip while they were there with Hans, Martin and Francois. Thomas and Gudrun commented how much they love that area of the world and would love to be there anytime! Herbert passed away in September just 3 months after the 60th wedding celebration with his family and Gudrun recalls him saying as the family started to leave that he’d never see them again though at that time he had no signs of bad health other than just being older. He lived to be 80 yrs old and passed away in 1983 with lung cancer-he smoked for years and even in the end he would smoke 2-3 a day. Gudrun says he’d re-light the same cigarette several times after putting it out. Ella (Oma) lived to be 94 yrs old and passed away in 1998. She celebrated her 90th birthday with her family in Kitchener 1994. She lived in Kitchener by herself until the 3-4 months before her death when she moved with Gudrun. She states Oma had asthma as a child and it went away in her adolescent years but returned in her adult years. As she got older she used inhalers to help her breathing Gudrun tells us. She told us a story of Oma (Ella) dancing with a young man at a dance when she got “winded” and couldn’t breathe and the guy thought she was breathing like that because she was with him, when in actuality she was unable to breathe! Needless to say she must have waited for more dancing with other guys until she met and married Herbert (Opa)….
In 1967 Oma and Opa left Ontario after Opa retired at age 67 and moved to British Columbia. Gudrun described that time as “my heart being broken since Hans and Denyse took their family to VA that same year as her parents moved also”. Herbert told her he didn’t think he’d survive Ontario’s weather another season and Horst (his son) was also there in British Columbia.
Horst & Helga had moved to British Columbia in 1953 without jobs at the time as they heard it was beautiful. They had lived in the Black Forest region in Germany and were looking for something like that in British Columbia “it would be like home” they told Gudrun and the family. They caught the train and when they ran out of money they stopped and picked apples and stayed in Vancouver. Helga never drove or shopped, Horst did all of that. Gudrun recalls “he even bought her undergarments for her”. I’m not thinking I would allow Thomas (my soulmate) to even do that for me! After Horst had completed 8th grade he switched to the Trade school and he learned to become a Baker and Hans recalled him making “wonderful cakes”.
Hans served the last of the wine bottle, I made sure he divided it between me AND him and much to humor us he licked the bottle opening and said, “no worry, no waste”. We all cracked up laughing at him!
Horst was married to Helga and they had 1 child-Stephen, he turned 40 yrs old this year. He never married. Horst was Thomas’s godfather. Hans and Gudrun told us Horst was the only left-handed sibling (and Thomas too is left-handed) but when Horst was young, the teachers did not allow him to write with the left hand. Gudrun and Hans said Horst never had guitar lessons but “played wonderfully”-maybe this is where Jason got his gift for playing guitar? I joked and told Thomas maybe that’s why Horst drove so FAST, he could express himself that way or maybe in the commanding behavior he demonstrated? The family left Horst with their grandparents for 3 yrs while Herbert and Ella moved and took the rest of the family to Switzerland. Hans doesn’t recall the move personally but he thinks they may have left Horst there as it could be due to his medical needs at the time since he was born with a cleft palate.
Thomas shared a story with us when he and Sherry (Jason’s mom) came to visit and see Deception Pass. He said Horst picked them up and was driving a tiny little car (with Helga in the front seat also) that looked like it wouldn’t make it down the street much less on the scenic tour he was about to take them all on! He said Horst drove it 110 MPH and Sherry was about to rip his arm off the entire trip! They obviously knew him at White Rock, British Columbia at the border as they called him by name and then just waved him on. Later Thomas found out that Horst would go across the border to get gas frequently so they saw him a lot. He drove “like he didn’t care if he ran off the road or ran over something-he just kept on driving!”
Hans had 4 siblings in his family 4 boys first, then a girl. Horst was the oldest-19 yrs older than Gudrun, Zigfred-18 yrs older than her, Hans-14 yrs older, then Dietmar-8 yrs older than Gudrun and then she came quite a while later. Their parent’s names were Herbert and Ella Rothe and they did not learn English until they came to Canada in 1967. Gudrun said that her mother never told her she had 2 more brothers other than Dietmar and Hans since the other 2 were gone due to the war, so she recalls a knock on their door at home and a young man stood there whom she didn’t know. Her mother screamed and started crying as she started running to the door, Gudrun unsure what was going on, also started screaming because her mom was doing that….it was Horst! He had been taken to England & kept as prisoner of war and had been released to come home. Gudrun says she doesn’t remember much about Germany as she was 2 yrs old when they left East Germany, moved to Hanover in West Germany and then came to Canada in the spring of 1952 when she was 9 yrs old- she came with Oma (Ella) and Dietmar. Hans, Horst and Opa (Herbert) had come in 1951. Gudrun recalls their arrival to Canada as it was 7 yrs after World War II and peoples attitudes were still negative about Germans….I can only imagine how they felt since the only time I’ve been in a foreign land was when I CHOSE to travel there not when I exiled out of my home country to a new country and didn’t have a choice but be there-I wasn’t “googling” a great place to spend some quality relaxing time of my choice”…..
We talked about the Christmas holidays and what our plans were and shared with Gudrun about Louise’s family tradition she started years ago. She takes ALL the nieces and nephews for the entire weekend usually the last weekend before the 25th of December. On Sunday of the kids stay their parents along with Hans and Denyse come back for a turkey dinner and family gift exchange, it’s a great time and we all enjoy it. Since there are 13 grandkids (counting the families stepchildren also) now from 21-2 yrs old it’s rare that we all get together so we look forward to this time all together. Gudrun smiled and rolled her eyes as she remembers when Hans would hitchhike from University of Ottawa to Kitchener for his breaks since he didn’t have his first vehicle until after his first year of working during college. I asked him how long it would take him to get where he was going and he said “about the same time as if I drove myself”. He said Ella (Oma) never learned to ride a bicycle and Herbert (Opa) took his driving test 4 times but was not ever able to pass the exam for his driving license so he never drove. So we learned on this trip that neither set of Thomas’s grandparents ever drove which would be extremely rare this day and time. Raymond (Thomas’s uncle) talked with us previously on this trip about how he thought it would have mentally helped Cecile (their mom) to be able to drive during their childhood as she would have been able to get out of the house with good reason occasionally, I feel it possibly could have helped, as I frequently take different routes or get on the Parkway in Roanoke since I’ve moved in Virginia, because I’m not used to living in town. It’s my refuge on some days.
Good morning Ottawa!
Today is Saturday, November 29, 2008 and we started with a delightful breakfast that Gudrun had prepared. The temperature is 32 degrees Fahrenheit with bright sun shining and clear skies as the snow is melting from yesterday. Our plan is to take Caitlynn to her cousin’s house so Jacqui can take the girls to the movies and the mall-as girls love that stuff at their ages! They made these big plans last night before they left Gudrun’s place.
Hans, Thomas, and I went to downtown Ottawa to see all the sights. This does seem to be more of a bilingual area of Canada, probably because it is the capital so they are use to English speaking visitors. The current gas prices here are 75.2 cents per liter which is lower that we saw in the Québec area.
In Ottawa there is no subway here but there is a great bus system to transport people and it is well utilized. Hans told us that Gudrun parks her car in Orleans (the suburb where she lives) and takes the bus into Ottawa so she doesn’t have to worry about parking or traffic. They too have 2 lanes each way for traffic. As we entered the town the sign read “Centre-Ville”. We toured the Parliament buildings after we parked and then we walked to the Chateau Laurier (which is a hotel with performers at times in concert) where Hans had worked while in college. He says “I did whatever it took to make money”. By this time the sun was hidden as the skies turned overcast. We continued our walking tour and as I had made it a ritual since we founded Tim Horton’s I thought it only proper on a blustery day to get a French vanilla latte so we located one in the mall area where we were on Rideau street. Thomas thought it was only customary to introduce me to a local treat called “Poutine” which he went in the same area to get the treat at New York Fries, which was located in the food court of the Rideau Mall. It is a snack known in Québec City, it is French fries covered in what I call roast gravy and sprinkled with cheese curds. Now I would not have known what to think had I not had the opportunity in Victoriaville to sample cheese curds and to my surprise this snack was quite tasty! So the 3 of us shared an order and enjoyed café and my latte.
We continued our walking tour as we passed the “Ottawa Little Theatre” and Hans told us he and Denyse first met in theatre arts. Denyse helped with props (which also required some sewing of costumes) and Hans was building sets before he actually got a small role. Then he says he had “a fabulous man who directed and really encouraged him to learn to speak English well until he finally got a role as the main character for a play”, he was thrilled at his accomplishments as he relayed this memory. Thomas laughed and said, “yes he just kept practicing with the words but had no idea what he was saying”…haha.
We toured the campus of University of Ottawa, which includes about a 12 block area (Hans says, “Wow it has grown!”) in the downtown area of Ottawa. Denyse finished her college here in Ottawa before she went to the University of Montreal for 3 years, Hans completed his Bachelors Degree from this university also.
There is a canal that divides the city, the “Rideau Canal” and Hans tells us when it is iced over people ice skate on it….by the looks of it now it’s not quite frozen completely. Not enough for ice skating so there are people running and bicycling on the walkways to the side of it. Hans showed us where Denyse’s college dorm was, on the other side from the main campus. I laughed and said, “a long walk for a date Hans”, he just snickered.
We started our drive back to Gudrun’s and the weather turned as it created small snow flakes falling around us, it’s always so nice to see snow for me. We returned to Gudrun’s by 5PM as she was planning to have dinner ready by 6 PM. The girls and Jacqui would be returning from their excursion to join us. Gudrun called Dietmar and left a message for him to call so he can settle the discussion on the details of Horst being taken as a prisoner of war from our conversation from the previous evening. Shortly after that the phone rang at Gudruns it was Denyse checking on Hans then it rang again and it was Dietmar. Gudrun told us he had not felt well last week when she spoke to him but he had taken the flu shot and thought it was just a cold. Dietmar wanted to know both versions from Gudrun and Hans regarding the incident that lead to Horst being taken as a prisoner of war and he agreed with Gudrun’s version. Thomas laughed and said Hans must have seen his version in a movie or something, Hans laughed as well and just shrugged his shoulders.
Dietmar and Gerda had 2 children: Erik and Fred. Erik is currently 47 yrs old and is married with 3 small children. Erik is still working on completing his college studies as he and his wife juggle the children. Fred is 45 yrs old and not currently married with 1 daughter who is 20 yrs old, works as a teller at a bank as she continues her college.
Dietmar and Gerda divorced and Dietmar remarried September 1, 1985 to Rose and she passed away with cancer on July 17, 2007. Rose never had children. This past October, Dietmar came to visit Gudrun. He came to attend the 50th anniversary of his engineering class graduation, in Hamilton, Ontario. Hans shared how intelligent Dietmar has always been as he told us Dietmar “had finished grade 10 when he arrived to Canada so they went ahead and put him in grade 10 then 2 months later put him in grade 11 and then shortly after Christmas he finished!” Hans declared, “Dietmar watched me struggle with money for school so he learned from that so he worked a few years then completed his studies”.
Gudrun pulled out some family photo albums for us to look at with her. Their mother Ella (Oma ) was stunningly beautiful, I would describe her as flawless. Gudrun also has a painting from a picture of her mom that is in her entry way as you enter her home that was recreated very well. We looked at all kind of pictures including a small photo album that was obviously aged and Gudrun said her grandmother had given it to her when she was a little girl-Hans loved looking through it with her. We saw pictures of Denyse and Hans when they married and Gudrun commented, “Isn’t Denyse beautiful? I have always thought she just looked so pretty, sophisticated, prim and proper” as she marveled at the picture with the two after exchanging vows. We agreed as they were and continue to be a charming couple! I’ve always told Thomas since my first visit to his parent’s house and saw pictures of Hans on the wall with the family that he looked like Al Pacino so Thomas loved telling Gudrun that I think Hans looks like a movie star, she of course just chuckled. She did show us pictures when she married Gerhart , her sons’s father on December 31st 1960 and he passed away in December 31st, 1994. Hans & Denyse went to the wedding but Hans had been injured in the lab, an explosion happened close to his face and he had to have stitches in one of his eyelid. They lived in Cornwall, Ontario at that time and Madeleine & Thomas were small kids. Thomas said Hans has always had a knack for “fixing things” and he told us that in the mid 70’s Hans got a new Zenith television kit that he had to put TOTALLY together, in other words it came completely unassembled. So he worked on it for a long time, actually until Denyse told him it had been there long enough and told him he’d have to move it upstairs until he could finish it! They laughed at the memory of it together. Obviously this is where Thomas learned where to take apart and put things together as he does so well around our house! There is NOTHING that he can’t fix.
Gudrun reminded us of how proud she was that Hans & Denyse entire group of children and their grandchildren attended Bernie’s wedding in July 1993 in Edmonton, Alberta. Thomas told us about him canoeing with Martin on Lake Louise and they saw an avalanche, it was the first and only time in his lifetime to date to experience this! The family described Lake Louise to be a breath taking sight as it was so calm, turquoise in color as you looked across it but if you looked down in the water it was crystal clear and you could see everything! Gudrun was admirable when she told me that Hans and Denyse’s children “gifted them a wonderful room in The Banff” (resort in the Canadian Rockies).
Today is the day we will head home to Virginia, it is Sunday, November 30, 2008. The temperature is 21-23 degrees Fahrenheit as we woke at 6:30 AM so we could be on the road by 8:30 AM. As Gudrun style we woke to have a full breakfast feast that she prepared for us to eat together before we departed, it included the bagels Janine sent for she and Hans. Hans said his favorite was the poppy seed, Thomas teased him and said that’s probably what affected his short term memory and they both chuckled. Gudrun is a fabulous hostess and very gracious to allow Thomas and I her room as she slept on the couch, not to mention that she’s a great cook! She would not allow us to help clear the table, she said “I have all day to do that, sit down and we can talk”. We talked about children and parents and Gudrun told us the story of Eric (Dietmar’s oldest son) having some behavioral issues when he was an 8th grader so Dietmar and Gerda decided it was of his best interest to send him on a sail boat to the Mediterranean for school. He didn’t like it much so he begged to be able to come home for Christmas and they allowed him to do so after struggling with their decision. He hid his passport when it was time to return to the boat and they never found it nor he never told them where it was so he was unable to go back and finish the year, though his parents had paid for the whole year.
Hans told us at the table that the US was slow and let very few people in when he came over in 1951 so that was another reason he went to Canada as they would allow them in immediately.
Our initial stop as we left for VA was 1124 5th St. East, Cornwall, Canada which is where Thomas lived before the family moved to Drummondville. As we drove from Orleans, Canada (Gudrun’s home) the drive looked a lot like that we drove between Anton, TX. which is where we lived-it’s near Lubbock, TX. where I worked-flat with several dairies and farming animals. Except for the snow that was still evident around us. As we enter the town of Cornwall, Hans had some recollection of several landmarks before getting to their old home. The house was originally built when Hans and Denyse bought it 50 years ago. Thomas was born in the local hospital and we drove past it on our way to the house (I took a picture of it). Hans saw a Santa Claus on the front porch and said the house looked the same except for the Santa! As we sat in front of the house I took a picture and Thomas described the street as being dirt then, not paved as it is today and he said he remembers the milkman coming in a horse-drawn carriage. Hans worked as a chemist while they lived here and Denyse stayed at home with her hands full as she cared for Madeleine and Thomas and Hélène. Hans said that in those days you very rarely would see women work outside the home, especially when there were children at home. The town is very active with hockey (as they ALL are in this part of the world!) and we were unable to find the factory where Hans worked, he believes there is now a shopping area where the factory used to be. We left town heading towards the “bridge to the US” as Hans stated. We went over the bridge then into customs, I noticed as we waited in line there were 2 cars with NY license plates. I commented aloud that I had found it unusual that once we got into Canada, I had seen so few license plates other than Canadian ones. Thomas said that was because this is not tourist season, people tend to avoid coming in winter for fear of bad weather here. Now we are in upper NY State and the temperature is 33-35 degree Fahrenheit. There is light shining from the snow in the fields around us as we drive.
Hans told us as we spoke about the Christmas holidays coming up that as a kid in Germany they never put their Christmas trees up until Christmas Eve, I can’t imagine waiting until that time in our home. I find a lot of the enjoyment in coming home after work and on weekends, pulling in the lights and playing Christmas music to make the holiday feelings last longer than just for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I think a lot of the feeling is the ambience around you.
Outside Syracuse, NY the temperature is 31 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow is blowing with mild accumulation. This is a pretty town with a lot of old historic looking buildings. The University Hospital is a magnificent building with a lot of splendor. We’re all admiring the sites as Hans munches on the M&M’s he got when we stopped for gas. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen him eat candy before but I know he likes sweets as well as I do. Denyse is good at having a dessert after a meal-I so look forward to those visits with them! Denyse called to check our progress and said it is freezing rain in Clifton and we made plans to meet her with Hans in Lexington to have dinner with her at that time if our trip stays uneventful.
As we drive I LOVE to sing, all kinds of music-even though my family’s opinion is I should stick to my regular profession. I have them convinced that I should have been a back-up singer! So if I’m in my glory and sing the wrong words Caitlynn loves to correct me (as if that will frustrate me enough to stop singing-NOT) then I just tell her that was the live version of the song….haha!
We just drove across the Pennsylvania border and it is 34 degrees Fahrenheit as it is raining and currently no signs of snow except in the far distance on mountaintops. The further we got into PA there are signs of scattered snow and then we had a light sleet. Because of construction, the traffic narrowed to a single as we came through NY so we were delayed and further slowed down because of the sleet. It looks like we will not be able to wait and have dinner with Denyse as our ETA reads between 10:00-10:15PM to Lexington. We made our phone call to Denyse and decided we’d eat on our own and meet her in Lexington, VA at 10:45PM. It still amazes me when we drive this route, even after several years how we see the Welcome to West Virginia sign then it’s not long before we see the Welcome to Virginia sign as it just seems like such a fast trip between the 2 states. I’m still used to driving in Texas when it takes a full day to drive the state before you even get to another state!
Our choice was Golden Corral in Winchester, VA since we wouldn’t have to wait for our food and could eat and get back on the road. The food was good and we all got our bellies plenty full-off we go!
Denyse was there in the Walmart parking lot as we arrived so we unloaded Hans’s stuff and gave Densye the cheese curds we brought her. She was very happy and we all said our goodbyes and gave our regards as we departed for our last stretch and they drove off for Clifton Forge.
As we got closer into VA we noticed that the gas prices are now $1.65 gallon and even more enlightening as we drove into Roanoke we were shocked to see the prices are $1.43 gallon, now that is good! The temperature is 37-39 degrees Fahrenheit with light fog, we had to make a detour off I-81 coming in from Arcadia because of a wreck, there was an occasional slight drizzle. At the time we pulled in our driveway we had driven a little shy of 2,700 miles since we left our driveway 9 days ago. Many miles to see many people/family for many experiences and stories-quite enjoyable!…
I’m looking forward to seeing a magnificent sunset at home, we have the best view in our backyard but it really makes it nice when we are sitting outside by the chimney-together!
Hans quote pertaining to our trip as we came to the end: I enjoyed how everything came together and the reception we received from everyone. I also enjoyed talking with Raymond because I haven’t had a chance to spend time with him like this visit.
Thomas’ quotes pertaining to the trip: I surprised myself on how well I was able to communicate with my French family. I am impressed on how well on both sides of the families the future generations have already began to settle with families and homes of there own. I am thankful for the weather we experienced.
Caitlynn’s quotes pertaining to the trip: Grandpa is amazing he is so fabulous. I am so glad he came with us. The trip was pretty awesome and I would enjoy going again, but only if grandpa comes he is such a party animal. I just love him.
Raquel’s quotes pertaining to the trip: I found consistent similarities between both families, they both have very loving and giving spirits and are humble people. They were all so genuinely happy to see us! I missed my 3 Rat Dogz though…
http://www2.snapfish.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=272574352/a=91520860/t_=91520860
Well, here we are a week and a half from Thanksgiving for 2008. As the last few years have evolved and we have taken on several major life changes (like getting married and moving to VA from TX for starters, starting a new business, then transitioning to having a college child, not to mention my daughter becoming a high school student….) So Thomas decides that maybe we should take his parents and go visit his home country-Canada. Much to our regret Denyse is unable to come on this short notice as she has other commitments that she feels obligated to attend and we understand and appreciate the servant’s heart that she has for touching terminally ill patients and their families, so we graciously accepted her decline. Thomas and I found a resort in Quebec City, Canada that actually had availability for our Thanksgiving stay. We met Denyse in Lexington, VA to pickup Hans for our driving trip headed to our destination of choice! We left Roanoke by I-81 northbound and will continue on this highway until we get to the US/Canada border. Of course in grandma’s fashion she has emailed us a list of contacts/family members-complete with names/addresses/phones that she would be honored for us to visit. And then the following day she sent another email with an added list-haha! Thomas’s last trip to Canada was at least 8 years ago and this is Caitlynn’s first trip to Canada. Me, while I went to Canada for business the first year Thomas and I were married but wasn’t able to do a lot of sight seeing then so I too am looking forward to this trip. The temperature here at home was 32 degrees Fahrenheit as we left our house.
As we get stopped for gas in Pennsylvania, several hours into the drive I asked Hans when his family came to Canada as I knew he met Denyse while they were going to Ottawa University. We had a very enjoyable time as he relived the time of their meeting, marriage, children being born and the transforming of his career in the midst of those times. He talked of his career and the many turns it took as he was a very detailed/exploring young professional that strived to figure things out and liked practical application that he could teach others along the way which is how he became a professor and was involved in academics. He spoke of the times when he took his family as the few exiled from Germany to Canada and at that period he stated the French Canadians preferred to be by themselves and did not want to be “blended citizens”. He told us the university required the students to either take English or French courses and they required you to take classes opposite of their natural tongue. That in itself tells me that the students in that era and that setting had to be very motivated but as he speaks you realize they felt so fortunate to obtain an education they never questioned their abilities, they just accepted it as the way it was and set their sails to accomplish all they could with passion. He spoke of the many obstacles he encountered after completing his studies but in an effort to begin his own business (which occurred during Thomas’s early high school years) it required him to be away from Denyse and the kids for that period. Which I found interesting as he stated, “After being there for a while and listening to people, I realized their struggles even though most had a bachelors degree but never utilized it”. “Many of them helped me sort my ideas and I learned a lot but soon knew that it was not the place that I wanted to raise my children”. Most of the times Thomas also recalled with his dad and it’s good to hear the two of them exchanging thoughts as Thomas asked his dad details of his specific job/business during those years. I feel he was learning more of his dad’s thoughts during that time of their lives. He spoke of things that are typically not discussed at those times with parents and children. During the times when we grew up, children typically did not question though they wondered-we just accepted what we were given and definitely did not question our parents efforts. Those times have changed and at times I feel it’s better but in some ways I feel we have learned to grow in relationships with communication, especially when it’s constructive in our daily lives.
Throughout our highway travels en route there are many temperature changes, including beautiful snow showers. As we got to NY, I was sure to bring it to Caitlynn’s attention though its dark since she has always wanted to go spend time in NY-she likes the big city busyness. The snow falls in nice big flakes and it is really pretty as we watch it flow outside the truck window as we travel down the highway. There have been several wrecks, mostly on the opposite side of the interstate that we have seen. Some areas looked to have black ice and the others as the snow is coming down heavily it seems like people just don’t want to slow down. As it is getting close to 8 PM we decided to make plans for stopping for a quick dinner as the GPS “Karen” is telling us our ETA will be 3:05AM at the timeshare in Québec City where we will be staying for the next week. Hans told us of a restaurant that he and Denyse often stopped when making this trip, he was unable to recall the name but felt it was within this area. So Thomas thought they’d call Denyse on his cell phone & she “googled” it then called us back and gave us directions for our safe arrival. Caitlynn asked grandpa what kind of restaurant it is and he told her “you know a truck stop but Denyse and I have always enjoyed the food”. That brings back memories for Caitlynn & I when my dad moved to Oklahoma City and he loved for us to meet him at the “Petro” which also had a diner named the “Iron Skillet” and it was exactly that- a truck stop. He was like me in that aspect as he worked odd hours, preferably night shift and so he often would eat at places such as this since not everyone was up!
At this time the temperature is 14-19 degrees Fahrenheit with occasional snow fall. The restaurant is named “Longway Café”, we ate dinner while Hans had breakfast. We all enjoyed the meal and conversation now we are off to complete our destination. At this stop we are 26 miles from the Canadian border. Of course as we enter Canada, the signs are bilingual and the distances are indicated in kilometers only. Going thru customs was quite simple and we were glad that Thomas & Caitlynn had made a meal list and a grocery list before they went grocery shopping before we left Roanoke, and everything is neatly packed in the back of the truck. Denyse was concerned as she thought it might be an issue when crossing the border-thankfully not. Hans had told Thomas before we left that Canada had recently passed a new law requiring all travelers to have snow tires and all terrain tires were NOT considered acceptable-only snow tires effective Nov. 1st. He had checked again before we met today and due to the high demand and the lack of supplies to convert for the new law, they extended the timeframe to Dec. 15th so we were safe. We drove on the outskirts of Québec City to the timeshare (Chalets Mont-Sainte-Anne in Beaupré) and we arrived at 4:05 AM. Caitlynn & I were amazed that Hans had not slept at all not even taking a cat nap the entire trip. At times when she & I woke Thomas and Hans would have classical music on the radio as they escorted us onward! We, of course were awaken when Thomas pulled up to the Tim Horton’s (which is a very Canadian tradition and it’s comparable to Dunkin Donuts with the added benefit of sandwiches or Panera in our area-their pictures on the menu have a donut with every sandwich!) for donuts & café at 3:20 AM! Very good! We stopped for gas and noticed that the price is the same regardless of where you go here in Québec at .85 cents per liter. We unloaded everything from the pickup truck into the chalet, which had a large open floor plan with a fireplace, 4 bedrooms, and 3 floors so plenty of room. The four of us drank a toast to our week of family time, safe travels, and the ability to enjoy it all. Hans spoke of the times as he grew up in Germany during World War II when there was nothing to eat and the unemployment rate was 60% before Hitler put everyone to work building the Autobahn. He tells us that’s why he can’t stand to see waste especially of food and he questions why people would put more food on their plates than they can possibly eat.. Off to bed we all went @ 5:20 AM on this Saturday, November 22, 2008.
Our tradition (Thomas & I) since we began traveling together as we dated then married was to cook a nice full breakfast where we are staying then we would either eat lunch out (typically lunch is cheaper than dinner when eating out) as we are sightseeing then cook our dinner back at our condo or vice versa, so our plans are the same for this trip. Thomas & Hans were on the cell phone making contacts with family so they could plan our next few days according to travel, etc. Caitlynn & Thomas went to register us into our chalet and bought an arm full of wood for $7. As we begin our first day we have chosen to stay close to our area of Beaupré/Québec City since we had driven 958 miles the day before. Our first visit was to one of Denyse’s sisters who is 64 yrs old (she is the baby girl of the family) her name is Clémence and Marc Paquet is her husband (address: 375 route du Pont #44, St-Nicolas, QC, Canada which is not far from the bridge that crosses the river to go to Québec City, home# 418-288-5159, email: kemianctil@hotmail.com ). Clémence babysits a lawyer’s children and her husband Marc is a sailor who just returned from the Caribbean after bringing a ship back for the owner who lives here but vacations there seasonally. Upon our arrival, Caitlynn & I were surprised as they greet with a kiss on each cheek. As Caitlynn stated later, I’m just not there yet with the “kissing thing”-haha. Marc served us coffee which they call café here and it is very European as it is dark/strong. They do offer cream/sugar but no one uses them, Caitlynn & I enjoyed the flavor of the coffee and were generous with the cream/sugar using almost all of it -haha. Their lifestyle here is much slower paced and they look forward to having café with visitors/family, almost as a custom it seems. We talked about many things including how Hans got to Canada and he enlightened us that he was a gymnast while in school in Germany but could not compete because of his left elbow. He cannot straighten it and this would count against him in competition so he became a trainer instead. Hans had jumped over a fence when he was 6 yrs old, landed on the elbow and must have shattered the bone in 3-4 places. During this era though medicine was not as developed as it is today and there was nothing they could do for it the doctors told his parents. Hans said his parents would talk about him and refer to him as “always doing crazy stuff”. Trust me, he’s only changed slightly over these years! Marc’s English is fairly good and Clémence’s English is broken but understandable. Hans remembered coming to Canada less than 10 years ago for 15 days in a French immersion program to improve his ability to communicate. This trip has been good for Thomas to freshen up on his French also though I never heard Hans speak it. Hans told me that Denyse could never speak German in spite of the classes she took in college.
They have 2 daughterswith the oldest being Maude-pronounced ‘Mode’ (356 Des Sizerins, St-Nicolas, QC,Canada, G7A 3H6, home # 418-836-2094, Cell 418-806-1452 email: paquetpooh@hotmail.com ) Maude just turned 30 on Oct 31st and her husband is Keven. She and Keven married in July 2004, same year as Louise/David in Sept 2004 and Thomas/I in Oct 2004. They have a baby named Sofiane (pronounced Sophia) and she turned a year old Oct 25th, she’s trying to walk but not quite able to do so though she entertained us with her attempts! Keven built their home and Maude is a lawyer who practices in highway safety laws. She told us that Canada only requires license plates on the back of a car and that they are finally getting digital cameras in place to use as cars go through customs at the border. She said they were having issues though as people will travel with a bike rack on the back of their vehicle so the image is distorted, that’s their next focal point. Interestingly enough, her sister Manon (pronounced ‘Mon-o’) lives only 2 houses from her. Manon (348 Des Sizerins, St-Nicolas, Canada, G7A3H6 ) is expecting a baby in early March, her boyfriend Jean Philippe built their house 3 years ago. Both of them are very pretty ladies and the men in their lives play hockey together on a regular basis (along with the entire country here!). We spent more time at Maude’s today as she wanted to give us a tour of their home. The nursery is very cute and she told us that her sister (Manon) did all the painting in the room which included some scenery-the painting is very good. Maude seems to be very outgoing and enjoys being with people. The baby was asleep in their bedroom upon our arrival but woke up and was entertaining all of us later. We watched football as it is the Canadian football playoff series. Maude enjoys going to NY shopping and she tries to go biannually. She spends 3-4 days there, she & friends made the trip and she had just returned recently. Manon is already on maternity leave as in Canada a whole year is taken off for maternity leave unless you are employed by the government (socialized medicine in Canada) Manon being a nurse, will have a year before and 1 year after the baby is born. The time off is interchangeable between the mother OR father during the leave which I thought was very interesting. If you do not work for the government then you are still given 1year maternity leave as Maude was telling us that the government gives a rebate for childcare in Canada. We had a great visit with both girls as we walked to Manon’s home to visit for a bit. She was quieter than Maude at first since Caitlynn & I just met her (noone can be too quiet around Caitlynn or I since we enjoy talking…..) . She is currently 26 yrs old. They both remembered Jason and asked Thomas about him and how old he is now and what he’s doing. Manon showed Maude a new stamp (Stamp It Up) that she had gotten and they were both admiring it. I asked them if they also scrapbook and they both smiled and told me they do and they love “stamping” also which is very popular in the States. Manon asked if she could prepare lunch for us as she states “I can make food that you will like”, so on Wednesday when we take Hans to catch the train for Ottawa we will come here for lunch with her as she is on maternity leave currently with the baby due in March. After our visit with the girls we drove Clémence home and asked her to join us as we would travel to St. Jean-Port-Joli in the morning, she was glad to come with us since she will be off from work.
Today our objective this morning (Sunday) was to get Thomas a new goalie stick and begin searching for some ski gear for Caitlynn. She says she is ready to attempt some Canadian skiing this week. Oh my gosh… they have hockey stores like we have Dollar Generals in the US! The store we went into was 2 times bigger than Gander Mountain, it’s huge and even with it being a Sunday before lunchtime there are people everywhere! I’m talking about whole families-moms, dads and kids. I got Jason a new Canadian hockey hoody for Christmas. After our purchases we picked up Cémence from her home and she joined us for our day trip. As we started down the road she told us she was the only child of Denyse’s siblings to actually be born in St. Jean-Port-Joli.
The drive is flatter than I expected, except for the mountainous area on the north shore close to where we are staying. We drove close to the St Lawence River on Hwy 20 and on the south shore. We can see where the water is icing over. The temperature today as we begin is 23 degrees and it is quite windy. Hans was reminiscing of a time when he was driving to St. Jean-Port-Joli with Denyse before they were married and he was stopped by 2 police officers as he was exceeding the speed limit. He didn’t speak French well enough to communicate nor could they speak English so the cop consulted with his partner and after deciding they could not communicate effectively with him, the one office walked back to Hans’s car and as he leaned into the window he just pointed at the speedometer so Hans would know the correct speed and let him go! He & Denyse had met at the University of Ottawa as they were involved in the Drama Guild which was sponsored by the university. He said the professional group later tried to get him involved in theater as a career but he said not interested as his interest were more in science!
After graduating from college in Ottawa, Denyse went to the School of Rehabilitation at the University of Montreal. After her second year she spent her four months of internship in Vancouver in physical and occupational therapy. As we drove into the small community of St. Jean-Port-Joli, Hans and Thomas both pointed out the small church in the center of the village. Denyse’s parents’ funeral services were held in that church. Our destination was Denyse’s brother’s place, Raymond Anctil (190 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port Joli, QC,Canada, G0R 3G0, email: anctil@globetrotter.net , can be reached @ Odette’s 418-598-3446) he is the youngest child of Denyse’s siblings and is 62 yrs old now. He manages a manufacture of plastic business but he says he’s trying to retire but continues sailing as that is his passion. He and Odette have 3 daughters with the youngest being 22 and she is a dancer in Quebec and she goes to college and performs in the theatre arts at the university. She actually has a performance scheduled for Dec. 13th that her parents boasted about to us (She was also born on her dad’s birthday as he so proudly tells me). He says none of the girls have a license to drive except the youngest, though they all do drive. He takes care of 2 of his grandchildren: Melina and Cedric whose mother is his daughter Sophie. He stays very involved with Izaak who is the oldest of the 3 grandchildren and is Julie’s child. He is also very actively involved with the marina and trying to get the youth of the area involved with sailing as they will learn “to survive and rely on themselves when they are out to sea”. His daughter Julie was actually born at sea and spent at least 2 yrs on the boat as they sailed. As I listen to his stories of life and sea, it is very obvious that he is a simple family oriented man that loves the sea! He described to me how the river outside his home flows. The arctic waters flow deep and they flow upstream because it’s cold and is drawn up. The inland waters are the ones that flow downstream and flow on top of the river then when the tide comes in (high tide) the salt water floats on top and pushes the rest down so you can have a mixture of all 3 at any given time. I was amazed at all the frozen salt you can see on the shore. Raymond and Odette live in separate places (this is her home she designed that we met them at: 605 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port-Joli, QC, Canada G0R 3G0, home # 418-598-3446 or 418-598-7045) but they get along well as they are very involved with their children and grandchildren and as he said to me during our meal, “we had 3 children together and now grandchildren and we do what’s best for them”. As an artist Odette simply signs her work simply with “Odet”. She is a“Maquettiste Sculpteure” and creates a wide variety of fascinating forms of art, including wood carvings from wall hangings to photo albums. When we arrived, we were greeted with great excitement by both! They have an amazing view of the river from the front of the home here; there is a lighthouse on a small island a few miles off shore. Odette seems like a very happy spirit as she smiles all the time. They had our lunch being prepared and Denyse’s sister Françoise Anctil who is 72 yrs old (502 de Gaspe Ouest, St. Jean-Port-Joli, QC, Canada G0R3G0, home # 418-598-6713 email: franctil@videotron.ca ) met us there to see us all and spend time with us as well. She is a retired nurse and was in the teaching aspect of healthcare, she has not worked as a nurse for years but had achieved a high rank as facilitator. She walks with a single tip cane and has just recently had to get her eyeglasses changed and is having to wear her older ones that she is not fond of as they are tinted and longer the right lenses. She states she’ll hopefully be coming to “the city” meaning Quebec City to get her new ones. I laughed as she told she thought it could be done as she sat there and was disappointed when they told her they’d call her when they were complete! Her husband died 1-2 yrs ago and he ran a dairy before he died. Thomas remembers bringing Sherry & Jason to spend a couple of days with them previously as he learned a lot about the diary business. Françoise never had children of her own, though she has great memories of helping raise Clémence due to the age difference and she has a very special godchild named Annick who was a daughter of a nursing classmate. Annick “chose her to be her second mom” as she reports to me with great pride. Françoise is 13 months younger than Denyse (4th girl born to Eustache and Cecile’ Anctil). We learned many things about the family history. It was very educational and interesting to sit around and visit with the family members. Françoise speaks broken English, Raymond speaks English very well but Odette does not speak any English but she is a very socially gracious and a happy individual. We had a wonderful time as Odette and Raymond served a 5 course meal accompanied by a nice, wide selection of wines, finalizing with cafe. There was a very generous vegetable platter with never-ending fresh French bread/butter (I loved every piece I ate!). Then Sturgeon (at type of fish-smoked) was served as a delicacy, Caitlynn & I had some new tasting experiences as we were all seated around the table together as one big family. Our next serving was sautéed escargot (snails) which I had never eaten but they taste like a strong mushroom, the seasoning was one with cheese, garlic, & etc on top as it was baked, Raymond explained how he created it. I ate all of mine but Caitlynn graciously gave hers to Raymond and ate more bread and vegetables instead. The meat entrée was grilled cod, done perfectly and then he served almond flavored rice followed by fried potatoes-all was delightful to our palates! The final touches were a wonderful wide selection of cheeses from the area and Raymond explained each of them to us as what type and where they originated from as Odette refilled the bread baskets and placed a variety of crackers with it for us to choose from. As European fashion we closed with fresh café. I see by spending time with this family where the traits of my mother-in-law come from and I have been blessed for it to trickle down to my husband. I heard the story of this family’s gratitude when Hans accompanied Clémence to Janine’s wedding when Denyse was in Vancouver and unable to attend so Hans went to represent her for her family. Even Raymond commented on how they were all truly touched that he would participate in such a manner regarding their family event. Raymond spoke of the recent trip he made to help Marc bring the sail boat back from the Caribbean as it was a very difficult time he stated, what typically took 10-13 days for each section of 2 ended after 40 days then having to get the coast guard to pull them in for the final stretch. There is a palm tree decorated in the living room of their home as a Christmas tree and when I commented how cute it was he stated that Odette loves the sun/heat so this is how they choose to remind them of warmth. Raymond talked with us about sailing as we were surrounded by Odette’s recreation of many sails boats made of wood including the one that used to be at Eustache’s home. He told us he took it as a younger boy and played with it in the bath tub until it broke! Odette has restored it and it is placed in a glass case in their home. There was also a lighthouse that was made by Eustache and it has a neon light that glows on it currently as he pointed it out for us. Raymond tells us the light has never been changed since it was created by their dad as it continues to glow. It was very pretty and created with much detail as we observed it with honor and we listened to the stories Raymond so graciously shared with us as I asked many! Odette escorted us to her workshop where she creates her art. The two of them showed us many pieces that hold a lot of history for their family. Raymond was sure to point out and demonstrate the use of an antique iron that was used by his mom. Caitlynn was amused to hear the story of its use. It required the user to place the base on hot coals then taking the “iron” part out and ironing with it. He also told us of Odette’s responsibility for the upkeep/restoring of the markers in the area across from their house. This is a small parking area advertised as a landmark where people can park and enjoy the river and read of its history (later Janine tells us Violette was responsible for creating this area). After we finished our meal we went to Francoise’s home which is a short distance from Odettes’s house and towards the village. Françoise’s house is where Denyse’s parents spent their last days. Raymond followed us but Odette, after thanking us for coming to visit and giving us hugs/kisses (including a big, big hug to Thomas that he delighted in!) stayed at her home.
Francoise lives in a small home but it is filled with many memories and history. It has a breathtaking view of the Saint-Lawrence River and all the way to the North Shore as it also has a huge picture window in the living area. Conveniently she also has a lounge chair sitting where she can take phone calls and a small dining table in the front area-all arranged ideally around the awesome view! She has a wall grandfather clock that is similar to Denyse and Hans in their home but she states is not as old. Immediately upon entering Raymond wound the clock and told us that it’s due to be done every Sunday afternoon on a weekly basis so he was taking care of it for his sister. This is also where they had the family celebration that Thomas speaks of when the whole family came in 2000 and the Chalet that all the kids loved playing in by the water. We saw pictures of their parents Eustache and Cécile and looked through their 50th wedding celebration album as they had been married 50 yrs on July 13, 1981. Eustache passed away in 1990 and Cécile passed in 1991. Eustache was 27 yrs old when they married, he was born in 1905 and Cécile was born in 1907. From the stories that were told it sounds as if Eustache was very talented and could do anything he made his mind to do, even in those difficult times. Their parents did not raise Denyse as it was difficult times and her father’s brother Adrien and his wife Antoinette never had children so they took Denyse to help out. As time pasted she remained living with them in Thetford Mines at first then the family moved to Victoriaville, while the rest of her siblings (all 7) were raised in St. Jean-Port, Joli area. They had a sister that passed away from cancer at her age of 42 named Violette. Raymond describes her by saying she was “free as the wind”, meaning free spirited. He recalled that she went to see a D.O. (doctor of osteopathic medicine) in Belgium and was told she was having “the usual female problems” when in fact she became increasingly ill so she went to a M.D. (medical doctor) when she returned to Canada and by that time the cancer that actually started in her ovaries had now spread to her lungs and she lost her life to it after a 2-3 year battle. The siblings present were describing Jean-Yves (1 rue des Passants, Marsoui, QC, Canada, home #418-822-5159? email: jyanctil@globetrotter.net ) who is now 65 yrs old. I can tell by their description of him that he is probably similar to Raymond in the aspect of he loves the outdoors and the water that they choose to live near. He’s recently retired but not currently married, and he has 3 children with 2 boys and a girl. The description of him by his siblings was that he “preferred being alone in the wilderness”. Denyse says that he lives “way far east of the Gaspe’ peninsula and a very detailed map of Quebec is needed to locate his town of Marsoui”, that alone means he probably likes for you to call before you come see him-haha. Evidentially he uses a CPAP and Thomas spoke with him on the phone earlier today as he brought him supplies from the US, we left the box with Raymond as he will be sure Jean-Yves gets them. During our time together eating, Raymond told us their dad was involved in the forestry service as a supervisor, he loved the outdoors. When he traveled (walked) throughout the woods he would come upon a chalet that usually was deserted and stay on the front porch to sleep as he felt more comfortable in the open space. He told us also that Eustache had made the decision to have his body given to science when he passed away instead of burying him because he “didn’t want anyone looking at him dead!” He also felt strongly about children being able to learn and this would be a way that the university could still use him and he’d make a difference even after he was gone. Raymond states he knew that would be his dad’s wish and agreed with him, Clémence also states she was one of the few that supported his decision also. The family tells us that if you die in the winter in Canada they store your body on ice until the ground thaws and they can bury you in the spring. I thought they were kidding but they all verified this as a fact of life , so if I were around, I too would have to support Eustache’s decision to be donated to science instead of going on ice! I’m not so sure I could be on this earth without talking for 6 months so take me then! Francoise snickered along with Raymond as they talked about the funeral having a hundred people present but there being nothing there but flowers-no casket or urn as the university has a biannual ceremony for the donated bodies (ie: 40-50) then divides the ashes after cremation into the same number of urns and ships them back to the donating family-6 months later (Francoise explained this in great detail as she used to work in that area of the university). Then their family had another ceremony and 30-50 people attended with Eustache’s urn. I’m thinking Eustache was a smart man!
Raymond took us down to the legendary Chalet that sits below Francoise’s home. It sits closer to the river and is small but has a lot of character not to mention a generation of memories for all the family. The wind was bone chilling, the night very dark but the excitement was worth the wait for Caitlynn and I as we darkened the doorstep with Raymond, Hans, and Thomas. It was small to my surprise but maybe it’s because the stories Thomas has been telling me were so big in his heart! It was a single room with several small single beds, table with a couple of chairs, and an old stove for fires. The side wall to your right as you entered had several brooms and a dust pan hanging in a holder across the wall. Raymond tells us that they have never locked the door and for some reason the Chalet is always well kept. The area was very tidy on the inside, even to be outside. He states “young kids” from the area have used this place for years to hang-out but have always taken good care of it, including the family when they get together. He says they all understand that they are to leave it in good order when they leave, even the neighbors. This place allowed the kids to feel like they were on their own but close enough if they changed their minds and needed to come back to the house. Thomas recalls many good times spent down here with friends and family, it was a very chilly evening with the wind briskly blowing and the temperature to be 22 degrees-Fahrenheit (without the wind chill). We found our way to the Chalet as we carried a couple of flashlights to guide us, Raymond in the lead. As we made our way back to Francoise’s house Raymond, being a true sailor he is was sure to point out Neptune and Venus across the open sky for us to admire as he seems to love so much in his world here. The water around the shore was frozen, there were even parts that looked like a wave was about to make shore in all it’s glory and was frozen in motion around us, it was a great night to reminisce with family memories as I learned so much more of this family I had joined 4 years ago now.
Upon our re-entry to join Clémence and Françoise at Françoise’s home, I noticed a picture of Lauren Henry on her dining table. Françoise told me she is Louise’s godmother and informed me with great pride so I shared my stories of keeping Lauren just last week for Louise. Louise’s team played hockey against Thomas’s team and I shared photos/video on my phone that I had taken then. I told them of getting her to say “Go Mommy Go” then after Thomas saved a shot to his goal I got her to say “Go Uncle Thomas” and her pronunciation was perfect with Tho-mas being 2 full syllables! Everyone in the stands were laughing and clapping for her with great excitement from her, of course she grinned from ear to ear in all their praises! They all aahh’d and oohh’d at her and how big she’s gotten, being the proud aunt I also grinned ear to ear! Raymond took care of Francoise’s wall clock as she told us the story of her clock, she told Hans it is not as old as the one at his and Denyse’s home since theirs was made in 1928. One of my favorite stories was one that was shared with us was the one Raymond spoke of the family reunion that they had here at Françoise’s as a big canopy had been installed to shelter the guests from the summer sun and that is where food was served and people visited all day. Hans and Denyse’s whole bunch came in 2000. Thomas had told me it was because of a family reunion/celebration had been planned that they came from VA, while it was because they were coming that the rest of the family had been invited to come for that “celebration” time. They stated Jean-Yves loves kids (better than adults Raymond really said) and he got into the mud, covered himself and came out as a “mud monster”. Raymond said he was naked but his entire body was covered in mud-scared all the kids who loved it and made all the adults mad. Later, Thomas and Hans told me after we left that evening that he actually had a Speedo on and he wasn’t naked. It was hilarious to hear Raymond tell the story with Françoise and Clémence commenting on the event! Thomas remembered a story that he loved as he was about 15 yrs old (1976) when he came to Canada with his French club from high school and most of the cousins were in the Chalet down from Francoise’s house (the one we had just visited while here) playing tug of war when his cousin Jean Francois had the opposite end from Thomas and then decided to let go. As he did, Thomas went out the door, off the porch and fell backwards as he rolled and hit a big rock. His head was busted open and everyone was asking him if he was ok, Jean Francois was apologizing and due to the blood/gash they took him to the hospital. He lost consciousness at some point so they performed a CAT scan while he was in the Canadian ER. They said in great humor that Jean-Yves tried to pass him off as his son due to the Canadian health system as his ER visit would be paid for by the government but since Thomas kept speaking English they did not believe the story. Jean-Yves tried to tell them what had happened when he hit his head and woke-up-suddenly he spoke English??? Thomas found Eustache’s certificate for auto mechanics form 1953 sitting on Françoise’s dining table, I told Thomas that’s where he got his genes for being able to fix things. Raymond said their dad had an “engineering mind, there wasn’t anything he could not do!” Evidentially, Denyse’s birth mother- Cécile never drove though her husband did and her aunt and uncle that raised her (Antoniette and Adrien) neither one ever drove either-I found this to be interesting. They were all trying to remember different dates and who all had been to VA since Denyse and Hans moved away from Canada. Thomas remembered that it was 1967-1968 between Christmas and New Years when they left as he said Hans didn’t let them take any snow gear to VA as he stated “it never snows there so you won’t need any of it”. Thomas said they arrived in Iron Gate on Dec 31st and it was snowing. Thomas told Hans, “I was livid with you since we didn’t have any gear and it WAS snowing here the first day we got there!” Hans laughed and didn’t recall what he had told the kids before leaving to move. Thomas also shared the story of how his mom taught him to drive-by getting him a paper route when he was 11 yrs old. He said he started asking her if he could drive and she said no since he was not old enough. He said he kept asking each year and finally when he was 14 yrs old she said, “next year you’ll be old enough” and the next year he learned and it was all history from there. Then he told us everytime Hans and Denyse left the house together he could use a screwdriver and start the Volkswagon Bug and move it around in the driveway just so he could “drive”. Upon their return they’d ask about it-if that’s where it was left or not and Thomas would never really answer them as he went about his business……It was a wonderful evening filled with great memories as families come together to relive and remember each other!
As we headed back to Québec City and were going to take Clémence home first she told us their elections were coming up on Dec 10th, she said she dreads election time-Hans just laughed. Here in the states on November 4th this year, we had just made history by electing the first African-American president. For most this was a monumental time in history, for others they questions the time/reasoning for the public electing him for this position-time will tell only. Regardless who is in office for our country, God is still in control.
It was weird for us as it seems to get dark by 4:30 in the afternoons here, Clémence said that after winter starts, Dec 21st, the days get longer but it really feels like Belize time to us! We came back to our chalet and ate a light dinner, started the fireplace and watched Sunday night football. Hans told us of when he learned to drive as he was fighting in World War II in the Hitler’s youth. One day during the war, Hans was in a tank with another guy who was driving the tank and after the driver got shot Hans was told to take over the driving. He told them he didn’t know how to drive but they didn’t care-he either drove or stayed where he was and got shot at. He told Caitlynn & me that he was drafted when 15 years old and that he was deeply affected when he saw a good friend of his, who was only at an arm length’s distance being hit and having his head blown off-it was horrific and he said to this day he still recalls the memory in great detail. Hans remained active in WWII for 2 years as he fought for Hitler in Germany. He told us “anyone who believes in war is stupid, it’s absolutely senseless he said!” As they talked again of the move to VA, Thomas remembered attending the Expo before they moved from Canada and he was so disappointed he couldn’t ride the roller coaster as he was not tall enough. Hans said the measurement tool just showed that he was too short. Thomas said he didn’t recall that but thought his parents just didn’t want him to ride.
Today was the football game for the Gray Cup, which is the Canadian teams “superbowl” and Calgary Stampede beat the Montreal Allouettes.
The temperature as we began was 24-28 degrees Fahrenheit with overcast skies and occasional slight snowfall and today we started off slowly as we have had a schedule each day until today-Monday, November 24, 2008. We ate breakfast together and after we all prepared for the day our plan was to sight see and have a leisurely day to enjoy the beauty that surrounds us here in Québec City, Canada. Québec has a population of 750,000 and is celebrating its 400th anniversary this year. Denyse called this morning before we left to be sure Hans went to the bank to get money and make sure to use Canadian money while in Canada. I did so en route to town and he laughed! Denyse wanted me to ask Thomas if he recalls Clémence coming to live with them in Cornwall to finish high school when he was just a few years old. At first that was not a memory Thomas had remembered some details. Hans told us of his and Denyse’s honeymoon trip to NY and their return to Canada as they went through customs. He said they asked what they had brought back and he told them the few items they purchased and they still went through everything in their vehicle and left it a mess he said. Hans asked them to straighten the mess they made of their luggage and vehicle since they found what he told them originally to be true. They told him they were not responsible for doing that, he told them then he’d just wait and hold up the line until they fixed what they messed up. So they straightened things and the newly wed couple was on their way home! Now I know where my sweet husband’s disposition tends to become stubborn when he feels you should just do the right thing. Hans told us the story of him being at Ottawa University for his 2nd year and needing money to make it through the year when he applied for a job with the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) to report to a post in the Northwest Territories. He and Thomas told us that’s where the phrase “cabin fever” came from as due to the snow in the winter where they were stationed they were not able to do anything but sit in a building with the other police and not see anyone, etc. Hans said it was the strangest test he had to take as it asked if he played bridge, did he like cards, etc. He said this was to determine if he was able to get along with others but stay in a closed off area for extended periods of time without going crazy. Two days before he was to leave and they were flying him there since there was no other way to get you in after the winter came there, he received a phone call and they weren’t going to allow him to go since he wasn’t a citizen and there were security clearances needed so he was very disappointed he recalls. He states he just struggled through that year with various odd jobs as his parents were never able to help him or any of his siblings financially. He said he feels this was the best lesson, people tend to overindulge their kids and then they never strive to excel or truly appreciate their help.
Our first stop for pictures was at an old church that Thomas says Denyse has brought the family on several occasions to visit, it is well known for the miracles that happen to people when they have come to be healed- la basilique de St. Anne-de-Beaupré’. It is truly magnificent in splendor. Our next picture point was Chute Montmorency. It is very icy as the water falls and Thomas said it has been made tourists friendly. There is a gondola that can be ridden up for a closer view of the falls with a restaurant on top of the mountain. It is closed most of the winter because of the cold weather, as the rails to the gondola are iced over. Next we drove into Québec City and parked our truck to walk down to Old Downtown “Le vieux Québec”. We took pictures and went in all kinds of shops. We stopped in one store that had quite a few figurines of all sizes that reminded me of the Michelin Tire advertisement when I was a kid, a man who used to be on commercials when I was a kid. He was a big and round man with different round bands of white around his entire body. The lady in the store explained to Caitlynn and I to answer our questions about the small figurines. She said there is an Indian tribe called “Inuit’s” that settled in the northern part of the province and these were some of their symbols. Neither Caitlynn nor I, knew there were Indians here in Canada. The sights are beautiful and very European in art and architecture. We stopped in a local market/bistro for sandwiches and soup with some café as all people in this area seem to enjoy around us-Hans & I fit right in! After our touring here, we proceeded to drive around the area Keven suggested to go look for ski equipment. Caitlynn and Thomas found the store Keven had told them about which is where his friend’s the manager, named “Hype-Radical Sports”. Thomas got his skis waxed and Caitlynn got new boots/skis before they venture off for skiing this week. Grandpa was the entertainment as he and I waited on Thomas while he assisted Caitlynn with the multiple attempts to find the best fit for her boots. Grandpa found a white feather Christmas tree that was about 12 inches tall and he wore it as a hat-quite funny! After an afternoon of wondering around and taking pictures we returned to the chalet for dinner. We grilled chicken while Hans found us some music to listen to and Caitlynn built the fire in the fireplace. After dinner Caitlynn & I took the men to enjoy and relax in the hot tub until 9 PM. Us ladies went to Tim Horton’s for French vanilla lattes, to the IGA for more eggs, and to pickup some more firewood then returned to retrieve the men. They placed their swimming trunks on the back cover of the truck and upon our arrival to our chalet they were frozen like popsicles! As we sat by the fireplace and watched the weather channel, Hans shared with us a story about he and Denyse driving all the way up to Gaspé’ in the Volkswagen about 6 months after they married and took a tent to camp along the way. Hans said the area wasn’t really ready for campers but they found a great area with a beautiful view and setup their tent. He said he heard a rumbling outside of the tent after they got settled for the night and he went to see what it was-to be greeted by a bear! He said Denyse screamed, he laughed as he remembered the event. I asked him if she stayed or made him sleep in the car with her, he said “no we slept in the tent”. Thomas laughed and said “now that’s love!” They married when Hans was 30 yrs old and Denyse was 22 yrs old. Hans said that Denyse’s aunt/uncle that raised her communicated with them via amateur radio after they moved to Virginia every Sunday morning after we came back from mass at 11:00 AM, without fail. He said he’d talk to Adrien and Denyse would talk to Antoniette. She passed away in 1988 while in Clifton Forge after he preceeded her in death from Victoriaville in 1981.
As we watched some Monday Night Football, Hans and Thomas spoke of a time when Hans smoked cigarettes-a time I am unfamiliar with as I never knew he smoked. To hear Hans’s version of the story was entertaining as Thomas was laughing and he remembered the time they talked about well. Hans said it was a football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins, evidently a very intense game and when Hans started to light a cigarette-he realized that he already had 2 of them burning he told himself, “that was ridiculous and I quit”. That was over 15 years ago and he’s never resumed the habit since. I admire his willpower and in the last several days of listening to him I realize that he is all about self-control and common sense when it comes to personal matters in his lifetime (as well as my husband’s thoughts). He takes no medications at his age of 80 yrs old currently and is the picture of health. He states that at one time the doctors tried to give him medication to take so he wouldn’t get up so many times at night to go to the bathroom but after using it for a prescription period that they gave him to use, he thought it was “useless and stopped taking it and accepts it as part of his age”. The doctors had placed him on high blood pressure medicine a year or so ago for 6 weeks but during that time decided to monitor it himself at home along with changing his activities on a daily basis and monitoring his foods. Upon his return to the doctor for a check-up they verified that his blood pressure had stabilized without the medication. Today he remains active as he loves to hike and he swims on a regular basis at the YMCA when home. Best to my knowledge he also has Denyse swimming somedays now in between her busy schedule she maintains!
So today is Tuesday, November 25 and we all slept in then had a good breakfast together. I first got up in the early hours of the morning and the snow was falling lightly but when we all started moving before breakfast the snow was really coming down and the wind was blowing-accumulating very nicely. So you can imagine with the new ski gear, which one was ready to get outside on the slopes and give it a shot! Caitlynn and Thomas prepared and it was only within walking distance so Grandpa and I escorted them to the slopes. The outside temperature is 29 degrees Fahrenheit and the wind is very strong! The skiing is very different from what we are accustomed to and the elevation is also different. One of the trails is 4 kilometers long and due to the conditions today there are only several trails open and they were only open until 3:00PM. So off they went and as Hans and I got to the lounge we met a very nice lady from Germany, she and Hans had many things to talk about. She is currently living in Georgia and is in academics, she is probably in her mid 50’s with 2 children that are here skiing with their father today. She asked Hans if he was an academic and he began telling her what his career was most recently after retiring. I enjoyed the part that he told her about working with some of the first computers that required punch cards and she also did recall that time period. Hans laughed as he told her of bringing them home and his children would be so excited to see him bring them home and LOVED to use them to play with, Thomas would use it as a track to race his toy cars on! (I like to think this is where his passion for fast cars began!) She was fascinated that Hans was 80 yrs old as she told him, “you radiate with health!” She inquired if he has been healthy most of his life. He told her that when he arrived at the University of Ottawa he had a pinched nerve between the 2nd and 3rd cervical vertebrae and was then told my many doctors not to do anything or he risked “snapping it one day and being paralyzed” so as his nature he told them “forget it!” then left. Hans said you can look at their wedding pictures and see him leaning to the right as it still bothered him. He had another doctor see him and wanted him to come see him so he did. This doctor told him that he had been following some of the research and believed that he should exercise to strengthen the muscles so that he wouldn’t go to sleep one day and wake paralyzed because he moved a certain way and the muscles were weak. Hans said that doctor gave him exercises to do and after 20 yrs of doing them “nature fused the vertebrae together and have never had problems since”. She asked him if he or I ski and I told her it had been 19 yrs since I have done it but Grandpa actually skied last April with the Boy Scouts he volunteers with, after 60 years of not skiing and didn’t even fall! We all laughed together, mine was not because of the entertainment but in gratitude and pride to be a part of such a driven yet loving father to my husband, I know how very blessed I am to be a part of their family! We each spoke of the changes in culture and families have in this period of our lives as she spoke of the busyness each of us undergo in our daily lives and the need to slow long enough to enjoy our families. She told us they have at least 1 family vacation a year even though her kids are 17 and 20 yrs old now. She spoke of the 20 yr old (girl) being very driven and lives/works in NY so she NEEDS to slow and this is the only time each year she takes off from her job. Hans told her about the European trip that Gudrun and Dietmar, his only surviving brother and his only sister attended with him last May. It took him and Gudrun a year to talk Dietmar into finally agreeing but they felt since he had lost his wife, Rose he really needed this trip. After his long delay in agreeing, he was the first to depart after they all got to the airport to return home after being together for 2 weeks for their trip to Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the surrounding areas. Hans affectionately recalls Dietmar telling both of them that he “had a very good time and they needed to do this again”. He feels this was a very good thing for Dietmar as he was so saddened and withdrawn after Rose’s death. Hans was pleased in having a part in bringing needed happiness to his brother by the 3 of them traveling their home country together. Thomas and Caitlynn returned with the stories of the slopes and we headed to the chalet to rest and eat. Hans talked about when his brother Horst was in WWII and hated it. He said he was driving an artillery truck and saw soldiers coming (they were from England) and he had decided enough was enough so he parked the truck and waved his white flag as he wanted it to end-regardless of what the consequence were at that point. Lucky for him they just took him back to England and just used him as a worker in the fields for a couple of years before they allowed his return home. During 1945 Hans spoke of Oma (his mother) basically “going crazy” as 2 of her 3 sons were involved in the war and she was unsure which ones were dead or alive. Dietmar was only 9 yrs old when the war began so he was home with their mom. They did not find out until they came to Canada and were contacted by the military that Siegfried was killed while operating a tank in 1943 at the age of 18 in Sicily. They were told that he had a leg wound and was able to get out of the tank but must have died after that escape. They said others tried to help him but he told them to save themselves and stayed there until the end of his time. Hans describes Siegfried as amazingly talented, he said “he could do anything and all of it was well done, he painted and drew along with wonderful articles he’d write-things that were published all over in different papers and magazines”. He was obviously never married nor had any children.
Hans spoke of times when he or his brothers (Siegfried, Horst and Dietmar) would go out after dark to get the fruit that was not ripened to take to their house. He said they did this because the food was so scarce and if they waited until it was ripe it would all be gone. Food was very hard to come by during that time.
Horst passed away shortly after his retirement at age 67, he was survived by his wife Helga and 1 son-Stephen. His wife Helga passed away in 2006. Stephen hasn’t ever married nor had any children. Horst was also Thomas’s godfather.
We watched a movie together as it continued to snow outside. We rested for the rest of the evening after we ate our dinner. It was a nice quiet evening that we all enjoyed.
Today is Wednesday, Nov 26, 2008 and we woke to rain, so much it actually cleaned off our truck from the days past during our travels (it desperately needed that!). The temperature is 34-37 degrees Fahrenhiet for the duration of the day. The four of us are off to Tim Horton’s to eat breakfast out this morning as we have not eaten breakfast out since we arrived. I personally am looking forward to their French vanilla latte with cream & sugar as it has proven to be very delectable since my first sample the morning we arrived here so I am excited! We ate then took Hans to a local bank as Denyse had asked him to do. We noticed as we were driving that gas prices had dropped to 82.4 cents per liter which created curiosity and conversation amongst us for what could be happening in the US since we’ve been out of touch….Afterwards we made our way to a local post office as Thomas is curious about retaining his citizenship and I need stamps for the postcards I’ve been working on for a couple of days. Next stop is to take Hans to the train station to travel to Gudrun’s where we will join him Friday evening. We laughed as I reviewed his ticket voucher last night since he will have Wi-Fi on the train and we don’t even have that in the chalet we’re staying. He recalled his time in Germany as a youth that the only transit (unless you were very wealthy) was trains but it was freight trains and you had to “just catch it” meaning most were on the top, etc. and he said there were times that a person would be on top and as the train proceeded to go under a bridge, that person was knocked off! He also said the trains had no restrooms, Thomas said that’s where the phrase “mooning” came from. “If they hung half out the window then it was called a half moon, if the whole bottom was hung out the window then it was a full moon”. I’m not so sure about that but I know the trains traveling today are equipped with bathrooms and Wi-Fi! After we left the train station, we were asked by Manon to come for lunch so we were en route to her home as planned. Upon our arrival she greeted us and we sat around and talked as she put the finishing touches on our meal. She also gave us a tour of her home and she had started on the nursery a little but was working on it currently. She had her Itunes pulled up on her computer and the song that it was stopped on was James Blunt and when Caitlynn inquired about the type of music she likes in reference to this artist she stated “oh I like him okay”. Manon told us that Maude and Keven have tickets to see him in concert as they like him very well. There were several pictures around that looked as if they were taken in the Caribbean so I inquired about 2 of them. She told us she and Jean-Philippe joined her dad Marc and her uncle Raymond last year when they were bringing the sail boat back to Québec, the one Raymond spoke of earlier. She told us it was just the 4 of them on the boat and she said the boat was named “Moby Dick” and they were aboard for 13-14 days. Manon told us stating, “it was an old boat-nothing worked. Everything that should work did not, all broke”! Sounded as if they had quite a time with that trip and she was glad to be home.
I have noticed in our visits here that everyone dresses the table with linen tablecloth and serves wine with every meal. Thomas actually drank Canadian beer with his meal after she offered it to him, this was the first Canadian beer she’s drank since we have been here. They are like me in the respect that I feel that when you eat with your family it is really a valued quality time to spend together. I have always enjoyed meal time with my family, rather if it’s 2 or 20 of us together-it’s always good! She then finished preparing a great chocolate dessert that she baked and offered us café with it. Manon has a nice latte/café machine in her kitchen that does it all! She created a perfect latte!
Manon drove with Caitlynn as Thomas and I followed them to the mall, she thought we should definitely see their mall after she and Caitlynn talked during our meal. We did a little shopping then she escorted us to Colette’s to greet her then she was off for her maternity yoga class for the evening. We had a good visit with her and she doesn’t think her English is very good but she seems to do well with us. She told us she has had to learn it since she works in the ER at the hospital and during the tourist season (which is spring-summer) she has to be able to communicate with the people from the cruise ships, etc. She told Thomas that the maple syrup was out of season as they are usually collecting it during April, Thomas was wanting to get some fresh to take back with us for gifts. I told her next time she and/or Maude go to NY they need to call us or we should just make this an annual visit so it’s not so far between visits and seeing everyone-she agreed as she smiled and departed!
Colette and Rodrigue Forcier (2680 Rue Vigneault, Quebec, QC, Canada G1W 1X5/Ste-Foy, which is located on the North Shore but not far from the Saint-Lawrence River and a suburb of Québec City, phone 418-651-9917 and email: coursforcier@videotron.ca), Colette is Denyse’s oldest sister and she is 75 yrs old. Her English is VERY limited so we thought it best to come here with Clémence or Manon to translate for us but Clémence was working this week. Colette was so excited to see us and Thomas did a fabulous job communicating in French with her. She had told him that “everyday that passed during our stay and she had not seen us yet, she feared we would not be able to come visit her before we left for home”. Colette has 7 children with only 1 girl as the middle child. She currently has 22 grandchildren and all but 2 of her children live in this area. I thought it was interesting that none of the family we have visited here have great grandchildren to date, I believe it may have been due to the fact that most of them completed their studies and then started their families later in life than what we currently see as the trend recently in the states. We had a very good visit with Colette and she insisted on preparing dinner for us to eat with her so we obliged. Caitlynn told Thomas that she’d like to learn French for a foreign language instead of Spanish as she enjoyed listening to the language. Colette and Thomas had a lot of catching up to talk about and she told him several times that she was so glad we came as she said “each day that went by I didn’t think I would get to see you and your family”. We ate soup, cheeses/crackers, vegetables/salad, croissants with ham and drank wine except Caitlynn had Coke. Colette asked Thomas how to pronounce Caitlyn’s name and her best attempt was “Kat-Lin”, we all laughed as she tried so hard with each attempt. She mixed ketchup with mayonnaise together for a dip and Caitlynn loved it. Thomas told her that his mom used to do that also but she had not done it in a while, Caitlynn told him she’d be sure remind grandma next time-haha. We finished the meal with grapes and fresh prunes from Iran and café. She said her husband has been ill and he is a diabetic so he was upstairs resting. She was very proud to show us her family pictures that are in her basement, she has them arranged very nicely with mounts on the wall. The pictures included 2 individual pictures taken of Eustache and Cécile when they were 50 yrs old. She also showed us her high school graduation picture dated 1951-1954 and I was surprised to see their sister Janine in it also. She said that Janine was with her because she skipped a grade. As we gathered in the living room Thomas and his aunt talked summarizing the visits we’ve had with all the family. Colette told us that Raymond & Jean-Yves as young men used to swim in the river we saw (St. Lawrence) at St. Jean-Port-Joli from the church that their parents services were performed to Francoise’s house, almost daily. She said they loved the water from the time they were born! Outside of the picture window Colette has a big tree with a white trunk. She pointed to a piece of fabric tied higher than half way up the tall tree as it marks how much snow they had last year. It actually is at the same level as the 2nd floor of the house-amazing! Caitlynn and I were in awe so we took pictures….As I watch Colette talking to Thomas I notice how she has several mannerisms similar to Denyse’s, especially the way she rests her left hand on her cheek/jaw area and her pinkie finger rests on her mouth, Denyse does the same when she’s evaluating her thoughts as she speaks to you. I noticed when I first saw her how much she physically looks like Denyse also. That’s always so funny to discover how 2 members of the same family, who’ve been far apart for a long time could behave the same way and still resemble each other so much. Thomas called Denyse on his cell and let the two of them talk while we were there. Colette brought Thomas the printed email that Denyse had sent her siblings announcing our planned trip in hopes we would be able to visit each of them. As we began to leave we talked to Colette about tomorrow being our Thanksgiving and she showed us on her calendar that the Canadians celebrate their Thanksgiving in Oct, this year it was the 13th. We said our good-byes and as we pulled away she stood there waving until we were all the way down her street. Thomas said she had tears in her eyes as she hugged him good-bye.
This morning is Thanksgiving for the US and we woke up to a nice slow snow which would stop then proceed. The temperature is 32-36 degrees Fahrenheit for the day and we had decided yesterday we would grill American burgers for our meal this afternoon. I had fallen asleep last night after reading my Living Faith reader that Denyse gives each of her children, it’s an annual subscription for Christmas from her to each of them. I am very thankful for my family, friends, and my many blessings. Thomas and I talked after we both woke up how thankful we are for many things, including our health. Nicole, my niece called me first thing this morning as we speak frequently as if she’s my own daughter. My cell phone rang from a call with Kati Hurt on the other end. She was crying and asked to speak to Caitlynn. Her stepmom had passed away during the night and we are unsure exactly what happened as she just said her dad told them this morning that “Lane got sick during the night and they took her to the hospital and she didn’t make it”. Lane had just turned 31 yrs old in May. She and Willie, Kati’s dad had been married 19 months only. We had actually invited Kati to come with us to Canada but her dad preferred her to be home with the family for the holiday, I can’t help but be sad and feel bad that we are not there for Kati during this time as she has kind of adopted our family since we met her 3 yrs ago. After Caitlynn got off the phone with Kati she shared with us Kati’s concern as she felt unsure if she missed leading Lane to the Lord as this is Kati’s passion. She is a very good example of a balanced young lady and she is always consciously confirming that she acts as a Christian example and she felt convinced that she didn’t do her job for the person that had married her dad less than 2 yrs ago. Caitlynn reassured Kati that she is an example and for someone to be around her and not be witnessed to was definitely a rarity. We had so much to be thankful for in our lives and we should know that things can change in any second. We will keep her and her family in our prayers and stay in touch with her until we arrive home.
It has been snowing then raining now as the afternoon comes around it is snowing again-it’s calming yet pretty! We headed into Québec City after we ate breakfast at the chalet, but stopped by the registrar’s office to connect my laptop to the wireless internet to check emails. Denyse had sent another email with more information for us as we headed to Montreal as Thomas had spoke of wanting to visit Victoriaville & Drummondville so Densye sent us some addresses to refer to. Thomas took us to downtown Québec and dropped Caitlynn & I off at “Benjo”, the famous toy store that Manon told us about. It was huge, like 10 times the size of Toys ‘R Us in the states! We did a little shopping for the kids in the family (even though some of the toys have instructions in French) and then we came back to the chalet to start the fireplace and watch football before we grill….Dallas Cowboys are playing and Thomas was feverishly trying the be sure it would be on our TV at the chalet! Halftime score is Dallas 24, Seattle 6-Thomas is happy! So, as the game is going, Caitlynn & I prepare our dinner which consisted of spaghetti and grilled hamburgers. After we ate the game ended and Dallas won so Thomas was off to the hot tub as I began packing up our things so we could depart by 8:30 AM. Caitlynn is talking to Kati on the phone again and as the evening is winding down and I’m upstairs by myself I decided to read the Living Faith for today, as I read the daily portion at the end of each day to review the day and its events. I have always told Thomas & Caitlynn how its ironic how more times than not it is exactly what I was dealing with for the day. So as I open it up and read I realize it is very appropriate for the day regarding Thanksgiving as it’s dated for today. I then go into the room with Caitlynn and have her put me on speakerphone so I can read it to both of the girls (she & Kati), this is what it read: The title: Welcome Each Day In Gratitude, Thursday, Nov 27, 2008 **Enter his gates with thanksgiving, his courts with praise; Give thanks to him; bless his name. Psalm 100:4 The reading: My spiritual director, who died suddenly earlier this year, taught me a lot about being thankful. Long before we ever met he had been diagnosed with cancer and given only a short time to live. But to everyone’s surprise, he survived. The cancer was successfully treated. From that time forward, he saw every day as a gift. God had given him more to do. He didn’t dwell on this. He didn’t want people to mistakenly believe that one needed to brave death to realize and be thankful for God’s goodness. Indeed his cheerfulness in the face of continuing chronic health problems showed there was more to it than that. I miss him. But his life and death helped serve as a reminder that one of the beauties of our faith is that even in death we find reason for thanksgiving for all that those we love were to us and continue to be in our memories and prayers, and in our gratefulness for all those we love who continue to share our table……
The morning (Friday, November 28, 2008) welcomed us as we woke with nice thick snow flakes and a temperature of 29 degrees Fahrenheit as we loaded the truck and prepared for our travel day. We are headed to Montreal to see Janine and Jean Fortier as we are scheduled to have lunch with them. Our breakfast this morning consisted of you guessed it-Tim Horton’s as we pulled away from the chalet at Mont-Ste Anne in Beaupré. Tim Horton’s made a mistake and gave me and Caitlynn sausage when we ordered bacon but their hot chocolate and French vanilla latte with cream & sugar made up for that! Thomas definitely enjoyed the ‘extra’ sausage from us. As we began driving thru Québec City the snow continued and the temperature was 31 degrees Fahrenheit with everything covered in snow around us. The churches in this area are quite majestic and they are throughout the communities, even in the snow covered areas they are still so bold and are sure to catch any looker-by’s eyes. The snow continues as we drive and it is a very pretty snow fall for us to witness-we enjoyed the view. Thomas recalled when grandmaman came to Clifton after Denyse “talked her into it as she needed someone to assist in her care at that point in her life so she moved in with Hans & Denyse. He stated that in her last days, he tried to help care for her as much as he could also but couldn’t take care of “changing her” as he did not feel comfortable in that area since she was a woman, admirable of a grandson I’d say. He talked a little about her final days, spent in Alleghany Regional Hospital as one of her sisters had come. Yvonne (the sister) had flown in from Ottawa to be here to help in the last few weeks of Antoinette’s life. After death grandmaman was cremated so her ashes could be brought back to Victoriaville and be buried next to grandpapa. We turned off the main road and headed for Victoriaville just on time to see the sun trying to make an appearance as we drove over a bridge. Thomas felt easier about traveling off the main road in the truck as he saw the glimpse of sun appearing since we do not have four-wheel drive! The road we traveled is quite wooded and Thomas said it’s common for caribou to be out here eating. We were going to 545 Notre Dame Ouest, Victoriaville, QC, Canada G6P 1T2 as this was Grandmaman and Grandpapa’s (Antoniette and Adrien) home where Denyse grew up. Thomas said they referred to Denyse’s birth parents: Eustache and Cécile as Grandpapa Eustache and Grandmaman Cécile. As you enter Victoriaville you can look to the north-east and see small mountains and the town has several factories that function and a dairy. Thomas told me he sailed on the lake one time that you see to the north in the town. The town is about the size of Christiansburg, VA. The original home of Grandmaman & Grandpapa is a duplex style and has been renovated to be white with blue trim. Thomas said he remembers someone always living on the top since they lived on the bottom half. We took a picture as we drove by and stopped. Now we are in search of cheese curds-Denyse LOVES them fresh, Thomas told me! So we’re thinking if we get them today, Sunday would still be considered fresh for her…..Our stop for them was at Fromagerie @ 101 rue Aqueduc, Victoriaville, QC G6P 1M2 819-752-6821 www.fromagerievictoria.com We stopped to get gas as we headed to Drummondville and as Thomas pumped it a gentleman came for to the truck and cleaned all the windows for us, I remember this at service stations when I was growing up, they performed these services on a regular basis for customers. (Are you sure you did not miss the fact that you were not supposed to pump your gas and attendants are the ones to do it? ) Haven’t seen that in a LONG time! As Thomas returned after paying and he had a bag of Lays Ketchup chips-never seen those before either but he remembers walking to the store from his grandparents house and getting these as well as cheese curds for a snack. So are we drove the same route Thomas said they drove back and forth to Grandmaman & Grandpapa’s from their home here, we ate cheese curds-my first experience. It tasted like more definite tasting mozzarella cheese as it squeaked my teeth with each bite-Thomas and I enjoyed a whole bag together! Caitlynn opted to pass since she “didn’t want her braces squeaking on anything” she told us…
The temperature is 33-35 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow is dissipating as we drive northwest to Drummondville, there’s much less snow in this area. As we drove into town we passed Domaine Trent which Thomas described as a place they perform theatre arts like the outside play “TEXAS” which I took he & Jason to see with my Aunt Mary and Uncle Phifer, it’s located near my dad’s home town in Texas. We did this with one of his first visits to Texas with me when he and Jason drove. As we get towards downtown we see a DQ-Dairy Queen and it was very small. Thomas said they are only up half the year as people don’t want ice cream as it gets so cold here. We laughed as we spotted a KFC-Kentucky Fried Chicken as the sign read “PFC” instead of “KFC” due to French translation, now that is funny! (I took a picture) The next address is 290 Laurziere, Drummondville, Canada which is where Thomas grew-up and lived until they moved to VA when Thomas was a 3rd grader. His parents sent him to a school with nuns who taught him English as they prepared to move to VA. He laughed and grinned as he told the story of forgetting his bus pass one morning and the bus driver waited while he ran back to the house to retrieve it, he can’t imagine today a bus driver waiting……He said they only had 1 car and Hans worked at the factory so he had the car. When he got to the house to get the bus pass Denyse ran behind him yelling and chasing him though she was pregnant with Martin yelling “Zut, Zut!” He said he was thinking how embarrassed he was at that time bit I bet he never forgot his bus pass again! Thomas says this town is about the size of Roanoke and the housing looks mostly modern. The main street is Boulevard St Joseph and we passed the hotel named Le Daulphin which is where Thomas recalls they all stayed there while the movers where packing their belongings ready to move to Clifton Forge. He said Martin was 3 weeks old at the time. Thomas said the kids in his family that were of school age attended catholic school while living here.
We are now driving southwest to Montreal and at this point there is very little remaining snow in very few areas along the highway. This part of the trip actually looks like I-35 North as you leave Ft Worth, Tx. pretty flat with a few trees and fields. We continue driving until we begin to get closer to Montreal where we will visit Janine and Jean Fortier (1064 Bernard Ouest Apt#34, Montreal, QC, Canada, email: jafort@videotron.ca, home #514-495-1011) Denyse’s sister and brother-in-law. They really live in Outremont which is a suburb of Montreal.
Jean (the husband) recently had surgery in October for intestinal cancer and his health is still guarded but at least he’s home now. Janine says after being in the bed for 6 weeks it is hard to regain his strength. Thomas talked to his aunt on the phone while we were at Raymond’s as she was planning our visit and wanted to know the timeline for our travel there. Thomas spoke with her again as we got to the outskirts of Montreal and we’ve decide to meet at Maiko Sushi (Japanese food@387 rue Bernard Ouest, Montreal, H2V1T6, 514-490-1225) for our lunch.
As we enter the city we have to go thru a tunnel and as we come out it is surprising to me that with it being such a big city they only have 3 lanes of traffic per way. Thomas said that on the other side of town there are 4-5 lanes of traffic for each direction. Montreal has a population of 1-2 million. Caitlynn wanted to know why everyone’s license plates still say “Québec” and Thomas explained to her that we are still in the province of Québec, Canada has 10 provinces with Quebec being one. Caitlynn responded by saying so we are divided into 50 states and Canada is divided into 10-correct!
It is very obvious this is a big city as there are a lot of people and traffic. Montreal is known for its great subway throughout the city to transport a lot people and by the looks of things around us it is effectively utilized.
The restaurant where we met Janine for lunch was actually a block and a half from her house which in this area are multileveled housing that are 3 or 4 stories tall. The restaurant was nice and Janine stated that they entertain friends at this place as the food is good and cost is efficient. Her husband did not come but she apologized as he is still not feeling well enough to get out except for when he has to go to therapy. She told us the doctors gave the impression that when they removed the cancerous mass they got it all. It did not seem to have spawned any cells off and it looked like an amazingly clean removal. They are hopeful as he is 76 yrs old currently and seems to be improving slowly. He will see a gastroenterologist the first week of Dec. for follow-up. She also looks like Denyse and the difference in their age is 11 months with Denyse being the younger of the two. She laughed as she told me “for 1 month of the year we are the same age”. Janine had 4 children but lost 2 sons in wrecks at ages 26 and 33. They have only one grandchild which is a granddaughter named Zoé, she is 22 yrs old and goes to college. She will finish her degree this year but is looking to get a PhD in counseling. Zoé comes to stay with them when she is on breaks from school and works with children on her summer breaks. She recently took a trip to Sénégal, Africa. Janine tells me she’s been trying to retire for 15 yrs but works only occasionally as a social worker, she currently has 4 active cases, regarding kids. She says she “doesn’t know how to retire”, must be a common trait in this family along with them all giving back to their youth in their areas and with being providers for people they love. She told me she has been to VA twice and both times flew into Roanoke so she’s seen our city she said. She is a very pleasant sweet spirited woman who is obviously been diversified in her life and describes many things with a positive outlook. She laughed as she remembers Denyse coming to visit when she was younger and she always felt so close to Denyse and thought she was a special person. When she and Denyse were talking on that particular trip she told her “you’re my favorite but don’t tell the others”, she smiled from ear to ear as this was such a pleasant memory for her. Janine told us that she has always tried to keep up with all of Denyse’s children but she “feels there’s still so much more to know about each of them!” We enjoyed a nice bottle of Riesling (Caitlynn had Sprite) with our meal and then had café and cappuccino with our desserts. Caitlynn loved their steamed rice as she reported it as “amazing” so she ate Thomas’s also! Janine commented on how well Thomas speaks French, I was glad she told him that as I thought he was doing very well but he told her he really struggled calling Clémence on Saturday as it had been so long since he had spoken the language even though it was the first language he knew. I think as we were there for a week he became familiar with speaking it with much ease and elegance. Janine talked about our visits with the family before our arrival here. She told us a story of Manon (as she described her as a “very patient person”) when she had taken a trip in the last couple of years with some friends, I was unsure where she told us they had gone. She said that Manon likes to mountain climb, she described it as “rock climb” and recalled Manon telling her friends as she left by herself to go “if I am not back by 8 PM, send someone after me” and she laughed as she left them for her adventure. As it turned out Manon did not come back as thought by the evening time nor by morning so they sent someone out to search for her and found her on a ledge where she had slept for the night. The story was the weather got foggy and she was unable to leave so she stayed there without fret as she is that type of person her aunt described in saying “she knows what to do to survive on her own”. Janine also told us that Manon is a blackbelt in self-defense, she seems like an athletic young lady. She spoke with Thomas about how Jean-François “felt sorry about the accident when you busted your head at Françoise’s home, he spoke of it often”. She told us that recently Raymond swam the distance from Odette’s home to the church in St, Jean-Port-Joli just to be sure he could still do it! We continued to talk about this area and our plans as we are nearing the end of our trip to Canada. She pulled a plastic bag out from under the table and gave me a candle with a lovely scent, she said Denyse told her that would be something I would like, she gave Thomas a Canadian calendar with wonderful pictures for 2009, and gave Caitlynn a really nice ink pen and she explained to her that her granddaughter Zoé loved these type of pens and she hoped Caitlynn would also. We all thanked her and apologized for not doing the same and she smiled and said, “you all being here is my present” and she again thanked us for coming to visit her. Caitlynn noticed that the pen was the same brand of markers that Grandma (Denyse) had given her for Christmas a couple of years ago, Janine told her they are a popular German made brand from this area. Caitlynn told her she would enjoy them like she has the markers! We noticed as we sat there that there were many Jewish people walking outside the restaurant. Janine told us there is a very big community of Hassidin Jewish in Outremont and that they typically have many children at a young age, like 4 kids by age 20. She says they are difficult to work with as they do not like to allow anyone in their communities and they are very private people that DO NOT like ANY change. She told us their Jewish culture forbids them to do anything after sunset on Fridays as that time is considered sacred. She actually has a neighbor who called her one evening at dark to come turn off her oven since that was considered labor to perform….I can’t imagine. Thomas inquired with her about their sister Violette that has passed. Janine described her as “very strong willed, best fashion with clothes, and had the best taste for food”. She tells us that she had a boyfriend for 8 yrs and then they married but separated after 2 yrs in the marriage without ever having children. She said Violette told her once that she didn’t think she wanted children and then confirmed to her that having children wouldn’t make her a woman-she already was one! She said all children loved Violette and that sometimes she thought most of them “rather have Violette as their mom, kids loved her!” Violette was extremely intelligent she said and worked as a translator for the university in Québec, which is where she lived when she passed away. She had also worked in Alaska and when she came back she was the one responsible for creating the park area dedicated to the ships looking outside Odette’s house, Janine described this project as being “very special to Violette”. I think it’s very nice that now Odette maintains its upkeep for that area. Janine recalled a time when “she was dating an Inuit Indian from that area and he obviously had hit her and she left him but went to retrieve her Italian typewriter that was a prize possession of hers from their place they lived together”. “He must have hit her again upon her return and needing to sort things out in her mind/feelings she went to Eustache and Cécile’s home (her parents)”. Janine said that it was “obvious of the markings on her face that something happened but neither parent asked her any questions, just welcomed her and made her comfortable until she was gone again after sorting things in her mind for her next venture in life”. She said that’s how their parents were, loving people that loved their family unconditionally or with judgement. I see these same traits in Denyse as I have always told Thomas that I hope one day to be able to love our children in the same aspect as his mother does her children.
As we prepared to leave she walked down the sidewalk with us toward our vehicle and she asked Thomas if Hans & Gudrun would like some fresh bagels as they have the best in North America (she said its been featured in magazines) and wanted to get him some for us to take him if he’d like that. The bagel place is named St-Viateur Bagel and is located at 263 St. Viateur-West which is only a few blocks from Janine’s home. The story of the bagel shop is as follows:
Since 1957, St-Viateur Bagel has been a central part of the culture and daily life of Montreal. Its legendary landmark bagel shop operates 24/7 and sells over 1,000 dozen bagels a day.
St-Viateur Bagel was founded by Myer Lewkowicz who brought his, now famous, recipe from Eastern Europe. The art of bagel making means hand rolling each one and baking them in a wood-burning oven. The current owner, Joe Morena, with over 45 years of experience in the bagel business, ensures that the traditions at the St-Viateur Bagel continue to be respected.
Over half a century, this family business has grown to include 4 bakeries and 2 Bagel Cafés in Montreal.
So she rode with us and she & I went in to get them-it was “fabulous” (Janine’s word!) as they were open 24 hrs and were kneading the dough and had some baking in a huge brick oven and coming out by the dozens! There were 20 lb bags of flour all in the front of the store. We also got some cream cheese for us and for grandpa and Gudrun to enjoy! Thomas covered the bag of bagels with his leather jacket to keep them warm hopefully. We drove her back to her neighborhood and ironically so I looked up and there was a street named “Avenue Bloomfield” and I pointed it out to everyone as that is the street we live on in Roanoke. As we said our good-byes I gave her the last of our bag of cheese curds Thomas & I had opened after we left Victoriaville, she was thrilled and departed after hugs and cheek kisses for all….. The downtown traffic is intense as we get out of Montreal @ 3:50 PM. Caitlynn called Kati to check on her from my cell and offered her our house if she needed it while we are gone. I was sad we weren’t there to be with her in her time of need…..
As we drove we passed over Lac des Deux Montagnes (Lake of Two Mountains) which is a very big lake. The temperature is 34-37 degrees Fahrenheit and it’s getting dark as we drive. Now we are crossing into Ontario, which Thomas describes this as the English speaking area of Canada. I have noticed that the traffic signs are in both French and English and the license plates now say “Ontario”. The temperature has dropped since we left and we are 75 minutes from Gudrun’s and it is snowing again.
We are heading to Orleans where is Gudrun’s home is located, it is a small community outside of Ottawa. Ottawa has a population of 1,200,000 which makes it the 4th largest urban area in Canada. It is ranked 6th in the world in terms of its quality of life by the Corp. Resources Group. It is the capital of Canada also.
Gudrun is Hans’s only sister and she has 2 sons: Berni Bannach who is a forensic pathologist for North Alberta (17117-69 Ave., Edmonton, AT5T2W6, cell 780-991-9651, email: bernardbannach@yahoo.com). Bernie has 2 sons- Mitchell who is 12 and Garrett is 10. Mitchell takes fencing lessons and is planning a trip out of the country this next year with his teacher to study and learn more about that sport. As Bernie’s mom, Gudrun, says “Bernie is a CSI guy”. Shawn is the younger and he lives in Ottawa, very close to Gudrun’s house. He is in the army and his position requires him to travel all over the world frequently to many different places, this week he is in Ukraine. His wife Jacqui was in the military for 8 yrs then in the reserves for 2 yrs. She just changed jobs within the last year but still works for the government in the Rescue and National Defense division but has a “desk job” now as she describes it. Best part she says is its 8-4 Mon-Fri. Jacqui turned 40th in June this year and she will be going to Cuba in January to celebrate with her twin sister. She was raised in South Africa and met Shawn in the service while in Yukon Territory and they’ve been married for 18 years.
As we enter the area Gudrun lives in, it is now sprinkling with snow mix and is 31 degrees Fahrenheit but you can see the ground had been covered with snow. Thomas decided that we’d kill a little time before getting to Gudrun’s and changed sets with Caitlynn (15 yrs old) and allowed her to practice her driving skills in an empty parking lot. He encouraged her to give the truck more gas so she could feel the change in the tires and the way the vehicle handles. She did very well and so he allowed her to drive the last couple of miles to Gudrun’s including going through a traffic light then into her neighborhood. Upon our entrance into Thomas’s aunt’s home, I noticed there are quite a few paintings on the walls. Several of the paintings were by Rothe’s and I inquired about a couple. She had a beautiful ocean scene painting by her formal dining table and I asked about it and she said it was a painting that their dad (Herbert) had seen at a local art display and fell in love with it so he bought it. She got it after his death and I can see why he loved it at first sight as when you look at it, it just comes alive with brilliance. It looks as if there is a dim spot light shining on it but in actuality its just the painting itself and it just makes you feel warm even though it seems that it is a scene that would have wind blowing on the water. Gudrun and Hans were sitting at the table with a bottle of red wine and had a bowl of pistachios so since we’re family we loved joining in …haha. As I looked around later I also saw a watercolor painting that Herbert had painted himself and it was of a sailboat in the water-very well done! I thought it was interesting that when Hans & Denyse married, they brought the French and the German worlds together yet each of the 2 families had a lot of similarities such as the love of the water which was very common in both families and I can also see their love for their family. Hans & Gudrun had gone to a play last night named “The Constant Wife” by W. Somerset Maugham performed at the Ottawa Little Theatre. We sat up and talked about old times, people/family, and travels. The one thing I did notice while we were talking is that Gudrun would call Hans by his first name “Guenter”, he says he never went by that name after coming to Canada since NO ONE ever pronounced it correctly which frustrated him (he reports to us as he smiles but shakes his fist) so he solved it by just using his middle name instead. Gudrun called Jacqui, her daughter-in-law (Jacqui and Shawn Bannach, 541 Rougemount Crescent, Ottawa, ON, Canada KYA3A1, home #613-834-4572, email: jbannach1213@rogers.com ) and told her we were here and asked her to come with her daughters: Jessica (14 yrs old) and Nicole (10 yrs old). They came and joined us and this was the first time I had met Jacqui though I’ve met Shawn when he came for Hans and Denyse’s 50th wedding anniversary last December in VA. He had come with Gudrun and his 2 girls but Jacqui had just changed job and wasn’t able to attend with them. Their daughter Nicole was the highlight of the evening for the 50th wedding anniversary as she entertained us all with her love for dancing at the reception. Hans was amazed at her and her ability to “just go out there and dance around with all these people here”. We enjoyed a lot of conversation with memories filled from the Rothe side of the family. Jessica, Nicole, and Caitlynn enjoyed each others company and getting to know each other as they played Skip-Bo, Table Ping Pong, and a German game called Menich-argere-Dich-nicht throughout the house. Jessica tells me that her favorite subjects in school are French and math, Nicole’s favorites are gym and music. Nicole is longing to get a guitar as she wants to be a “rock star”, she is very entertaining! Jacqui and Gudrun told us that they have been addressing an issue with Nicole since she has been forgetting to bring her homework home with her after school, they said it’s because she gets distracted “with other things she tries to keep up with going on around her”, she is very smart and doesn’t miss much! Jessica is quieter but just as smart and already 5’ 10” and looking more mature than at our meeting last year. She told me that at her catholic high school they can choose English or French for each of their courses. This is a little different from when Hans went to Univ. of Ottawa as they had to choose English or French for the entire curriculum as a whole but not for individual classes. Hans laughs as he said when he enrolled they said “now what are we going to do with you!” as they did not offer classes in German. We have enjoyed spending time with the girls as they are very nice young ladies. Interestingly enough, Gudrun and Hans have 2 totally different versions of Horst how he was taken as prisoner of war by the British and was sent to England for 2 yrs before returning home. Gudrun’s version was that they got tired and stopped and asked a farmer if they could have dinner and get a place to sleep. The farmer offered them the barn to sleep in and while they were sleeping apparently the farmer reported them and the British soldiers came and got them and took them to England as prisoners of war. So we all laughed hysterically and Gudrun decided that we would have to call Dietmar and he’d tell how he heard the story for the one with the most accuracy….
Gudrun shared a story of she and Joe (Joe and Gudrun were together 11 yrs before his passing with cancer in February 2007, and he was from Portugal) driving through Portugal at midnight when they had electrical problems with their car and the lights would not work. She said they had to stop where they were on the road at the nearest area available to park and TRY to sleep until morning when they could drive without needing lights. She told us they might have slept an hour or two only because they were worried about gypsies in the area. Caitlynn was unfamiliar with what the word ‘gypsy’ meant so she explained it, she thought that was interesting as she has never been exposed to them. As Gudrun told the story she laughed with the memories and said that it was only 1 of a couple of times she had to sleep outside and she was thankful there were so few.
Hans reported the story about the 3 of them (Hans, Dietmar, and Gudrun) traveling back to Germany in May this year as they encountered issues trying to get to Prague. He said they had recently opened the Czech Republic borders to the rest of Europe and they wanted to travel through during their visit as it would cut the distance for where they were planning to go. The police stopped them and they were unsure why but it was required by law to have lights on while driving a vehicle. Obviously without their knowledge the rental car had only 1 light that came on so Hans got out and tried to work on it a bit. It suddenly came on and so they proceeded with their trip. As they drove they realized they needed diesel fuel so they stopped but the store wouldn’t take Euros as payment-only Czeck marks. The three of them got back in the car and drove on to find some place else where they could get diesel with a credit card and they also wanted to buy lunch at this time. They were rethinking their decision at this point as the next place they stopped told them they should not go to Prague as they have had a lot of car theft, even when you stop, people were stealing cars. Finally as Gudrun says, “we found a run down joint and just got coffee only as they were very unfriendly”, they then returned to their vehicle and “went straight to just get out of there!”
Gudrun had a black and white picture in her office space upstairs that she put Caitlynn in to use while we were visiting her home. She told me Joe had done many things in his life to make a living (Hans also said this about himself frequently on our trip) and this particular picture is when he was a matador-now I do not have any uncles that I can say that about, even being from Texas-haha! That’s an exciting job and I’m sure never a dull moment-no pun intended…
Thomas spoke about a time about 14 yrs ago when he and Jason came to visit Oma in Kitchener and stopped in Ottawa to attend the Buxter’s Festival on Sparks Street, he said Jason absolutely loved it and wanted to go again, and again, and again during the stay! They went to Guelph to Oma’s apartment, which was a retirement community and listened to her play the organ for at least an hour, it was beautiful as Thomas described it. Gudrun has the organ Oma owned and played in her upstairs room but there is noone in her immediate family who can play it fluently she states.
Hans and Thomas talked about the trip in 1998 that all 23 Rothe’s took as Hans had dreamed to do. Hans planned the trip so his children would learn the history of what/where his background was as he grewup. And what his story was, the places where he lived, the relatives he still had. Denyse’s role was really to see that the trip developed as Hans had planned it. (Janine said to us “this traits of organization and timeliness is a typical German aspect which Denyse has this feature and less common in Hans” and we all laughed) even though they made a lot of miles and had to catch many trains for transportation. Hans said that “no one took that picture with all 23 of us pulling our luggage from train to train within 10 minutes only between changes and none of us missed even 1”. At this time when they went to Europe, Martin was living in Belgium as he worked there and the family spent 2 weeks traveling Austria, Switzerland, Germany, France, Luxemburg, Holland and Belgium. It was quite entertaining hearing the stories as most of the grandchildren were young and pulling their own suitcases. The group was large and the week at the timeshare was divided so everyone would have a time to stay there. However, they joined together to have a look at the house in Oppach where Hans and his family lived during his youth. Oma lived in that village and that is where she married Herbert (Opa) in the small Lutheran church in that village. Thomas said the church when they saw it was about the same size as St. Joseph in Clifton Forge, VA. Thomas and Hans told us about Denyse actually getting to play the pipe organ there on their visit to that church with great joy as obviously it was very involved with the history of the Rothe family! Hans said that Denyse felt truly blessed sharing that “through music one is able to communicate with people even if your can not understand each other through language”. Hans spoke with admiration about her music ability for that occasion and as she had first played “Amazing Grace” for Homer’s benefit. It’s at times as these that I see and believe in true love between two people regardless of their backgrounds or how many years they are together or regardless of the circumstances-it’s a constant passion to believe in each other and their lives together. Hans actually glowed when he recalled this event with his entire family present!
Herbert (Opa) and Ella (Oma) Rothe were among fortunate couples who were able celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary and then among the elite few to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. They celebrated their 60th out west in Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island in June 1983 with the family. Thomas remembers a salmon fishing trip while they were there with Hans, Martin and Francois. Thomas and Gudrun commented how much they love that area of the world and would love to be there anytime! Herbert passed away in September just 3 months after the 60th wedding celebration with his family and Gudrun recalls him saying as the family started to leave that he’d never see them again though at that time he had no signs of bad health other than just being older. He lived to be 80 yrs old and passed away in 1983 with lung cancer-he smoked for years and even in the end he would smoke 2-3 a day. Gudrun says he’d re-light the same cigarette several times after putting it out. Ella (Oma) lived to be 94 yrs old and passed away in 1998. She celebrated her 90th birthday with her family in Kitchener 1994. She lived in Kitchener by herself until the 3-4 months before her death when she moved with Gudrun. She states Oma had asthma as a child and it went away in her adolescent years but returned in her adult years. As she got older she used inhalers to help her breathing Gudrun tells us. She told us a story of Oma (Ella) dancing with a young man at a dance when she got “winded” and couldn’t breathe and the guy thought she was breathing like that because she was with him, when in actuality she was unable to breathe! Needless to say she must have waited for more dancing with other guys until she met and married Herbert (Opa)….
In 1967 Oma and Opa left Ontario after Opa retired at age 67 and moved to British Columbia. Gudrun described that time as “my heart being broken since Hans and Denyse took their family to VA that same year as her parents moved also”. Herbert told her he didn’t think he’d survive Ontario’s weather another season and Horst (his son) was also there in British Columbia.
Horst & Helga had moved to British Columbia in 1953 without jobs at the time as they heard it was beautiful. They had lived in the Black Forest region in Germany and were looking for something like that in British Columbia “it would be like home” they told Gudrun and the family. They caught the train and when they ran out of money they stopped and picked apples and stayed in Vancouver. Helga never drove or shopped, Horst did all of that. Gudrun recalls “he even bought her undergarments for her”. I’m not thinking I would allow Thomas (my soulmate) to even do that for me! After Horst had completed 8th grade he switched to the Trade school and he learned to become a Baker and Hans recalled him making “wonderful cakes”.
Hans served the last of the wine bottle, I made sure he divided it between me AND him and much to humor us he licked the bottle opening and said, “no worry, no waste”. We all cracked up laughing at him!
Horst was married to Helga and they had 1 child-Stephen, he turned 40 yrs old this year. He never married. Horst was Thomas’s godfather. Hans and Gudrun told us Horst was the only left-handed sibling (and Thomas too is left-handed) but when Horst was young, the teachers did not allow him to write with the left hand. Gudrun and Hans said Horst never had guitar lessons but “played wonderfully”-maybe this is where Jason got his gift for playing guitar? I joked and told Thomas maybe that’s why Horst drove so FAST, he could express himself that way or maybe in the commanding behavior he demonstrated? The family left Horst with their grandparents for 3 yrs while Herbert and Ella moved and took the rest of the family to Switzerland. Hans doesn’t recall the move personally but he thinks they may have left Horst there as it could be due to his medical needs at the time since he was born with a cleft palate.
Thomas shared a story with us when he and Sherry (Jason’s mom) came to visit and see Deception Pass. He said Horst picked them up and was driving a tiny little car (with Helga in the front seat also) that looked like it wouldn’t make it down the street much less on the scenic tour he was about to take them all on! He said Horst drove it 110 MPH and Sherry was about to rip his arm off the entire trip! They obviously knew him at White Rock, British Columbia at the border as they called him by name and then just waved him on. Later Thomas found out that Horst would go across the border to get gas frequently so they saw him a lot. He drove “like he didn’t care if he ran off the road or ran over something-he just kept on driving!”
Hans had 4 siblings in his family 4 boys first, then a girl. Horst was the oldest-19 yrs older than Gudrun, Zigfred-18 yrs older than her, Hans-14 yrs older, then Dietmar-8 yrs older than Gudrun and then she came quite a while later. Their parent’s names were Herbert and Ella Rothe and they did not learn English until they came to Canada in 1967. Gudrun said that her mother never told her she had 2 more brothers other than Dietmar and Hans since the other 2 were gone due to the war, so she recalls a knock on their door at home and a young man stood there whom she didn’t know. Her mother screamed and started crying as she started running to the door, Gudrun unsure what was going on, also started screaming because her mom was doing that….it was Horst! He had been taken to England & kept as prisoner of war and had been released to come home. Gudrun says she doesn’t remember much about Germany as she was 2 yrs old when they left East Germany, moved to Hanover in West Germany and then came to Canada in the spring of 1952 when she was 9 yrs old- she came with Oma (Ella) and Dietmar. Hans, Horst and Opa (Herbert) had come in 1951. Gudrun recalls their arrival to Canada as it was 7 yrs after World War II and peoples attitudes were still negative about Germans….I can only imagine how they felt since the only time I’ve been in a foreign land was when I CHOSE to travel there not when I exiled out of my home country to a new country and didn’t have a choice but be there-I wasn’t “googling” a great place to spend some quality relaxing time of my choice”…..
We talked about the Christmas holidays and what our plans were and shared with Gudrun about Louise’s family tradition she started years ago. She takes ALL the nieces and nephews for the entire weekend usually the last weekend before the 25th of December. On Sunday of the kids stay their parents along with Hans and Denyse come back for a turkey dinner and family gift exchange, it’s a great time and we all enjoy it. Since there are 13 grandkids (counting the families stepchildren also) now from 21-2 yrs old it’s rare that we all get together so we look forward to this time all together. Gudrun smiled and rolled her eyes as she remembers when Hans would hitchhike from University of Ottawa to Kitchener for his breaks since he didn’t have his first vehicle until after his first year of working during college. I asked him how long it would take him to get where he was going and he said “about the same time as if I drove myself”. He said Ella (Oma) never learned to ride a bicycle and Herbert (Opa) took his driving test 4 times but was not ever able to pass the exam for his driving license so he never drove. So we learned on this trip that neither set of Thomas’s grandparents ever drove which would be extremely rare this day and time. Raymond (Thomas’s uncle) talked with us previously on this trip about how he thought it would have mentally helped Cecile (their mom) to be able to drive during their childhood as she would have been able to get out of the house with good reason occasionally, I feel it possibly could have helped, as I frequently take different routes or get on the Parkway in Roanoke since I’ve moved in Virginia, because I’m not used to living in town. It’s my refuge on some days.
Good morning Ottawa!
Today is Saturday, November 29, 2008 and we started with a delightful breakfast that Gudrun had prepared. The temperature is 32 degrees Fahrenheit with bright sun shining and clear skies as the snow is melting from yesterday. Our plan is to take Caitlynn to her cousin’s house so Jacqui can take the girls to the movies and the mall-as girls love that stuff at their ages! They made these big plans last night before they left Gudrun’s place.
Hans, Thomas, and I went to downtown Ottawa to see all the sights. This does seem to be more of a bilingual area of Canada, probably because it is the capital so they are use to English speaking visitors. The current gas prices here are 75.2 cents per liter which is lower that we saw in the Québec area.
In Ottawa there is no subway here but there is a great bus system to transport people and it is well utilized. Hans told us that Gudrun parks her car in Orleans (the suburb where she lives) and takes the bus into Ottawa so she doesn’t have to worry about parking or traffic. They too have 2 lanes each way for traffic. As we entered the town the sign read “Centre-Ville”. We toured the Parliament buildings after we parked and then we walked to the Chateau Laurier (which is a hotel with performers at times in concert) where Hans had worked while in college. He says “I did whatever it took to make money”. By this time the sun was hidden as the skies turned overcast. We continued our walking tour and as I had made it a ritual since we founded Tim Horton’s I thought it only proper on a blustery day to get a French vanilla latte so we located one in the mall area where we were on Rideau street. Thomas thought it was only customary to introduce me to a local treat called “Poutine” which he went in the same area to get the treat at New York Fries, which was located in the food court of the Rideau Mall. It is a snack known in Québec City, it is French fries covered in what I call roast gravy and sprinkled with cheese curds. Now I would not have known what to think had I not had the opportunity in Victoriaville to sample cheese curds and to my surprise this snack was quite tasty! So the 3 of us shared an order and enjoyed café and my latte.
We continued our walking tour as we passed the “Ottawa Little Theatre” and Hans told us he and Denyse first met in theatre arts. Denyse helped with props (which also required some sewing of costumes) and Hans was building sets before he actually got a small role. Then he says he had “a fabulous man who directed and really encouraged him to learn to speak English well until he finally got a role as the main character for a play”, he was thrilled at his accomplishments as he relayed this memory. Thomas laughed and said, “yes he just kept practicing with the words but had no idea what he was saying”…haha.
We toured the campus of University of Ottawa, which includes about a 12 block area (Hans says, “Wow it has grown!”) in the downtown area of Ottawa. Denyse finished her college here in Ottawa before she went to the University of Montreal for 3 years, Hans completed his Bachelors Degree from this university also.
There is a canal that divides the city, the “Rideau Canal” and Hans tells us when it is iced over people ice skate on it….by the looks of it now it’s not quite frozen completely. Not enough for ice skating so there are people running and bicycling on the walkways to the side of it. Hans showed us where Denyse’s college dorm was, on the other side from the main campus. I laughed and said, “a long walk for a date Hans”, he just snickered.
We started our drive back to Gudrun’s and the weather turned as it created small snow flakes falling around us, it’s always so nice to see snow for me. We returned to Gudrun’s by 5PM as she was planning to have dinner ready by 6 PM. The girls and Jacqui would be returning from their excursion to join us. Gudrun called Dietmar and left a message for him to call so he can settle the discussion on the details of Horst being taken as a prisoner of war from our conversation from the previous evening. Shortly after that the phone rang at Gudruns it was Denyse checking on Hans then it rang again and it was Dietmar. Gudrun told us he had not felt well last week when she spoke to him but he had taken the flu shot and thought it was just a cold. Dietmar wanted to know both versions from Gudrun and Hans regarding the incident that lead to Horst being taken as a prisoner of war and he agreed with Gudrun’s version. Thomas laughed and said Hans must have seen his version in a movie or something, Hans laughed as well and just shrugged his shoulders.
Dietmar and Gerda had 2 children: Erik and Fred. Erik is currently 47 yrs old and is married with 3 small children. Erik is still working on completing his college studies as he and his wife juggle the children. Fred is 45 yrs old and not currently married with 1 daughter who is 20 yrs old, works as a teller at a bank as she continues her college.
Dietmar and Gerda divorced and Dietmar remarried September 1, 1985 to Rose and she passed away with cancer on July 17, 2007. Rose never had children. This past October, Dietmar came to visit Gudrun. He came to attend the 50th anniversary of his engineering class graduation, in Hamilton, Ontario. Hans shared how intelligent Dietmar has always been as he told us Dietmar “had finished grade 10 when he arrived to Canada so they went ahead and put him in grade 10 then 2 months later put him in grade 11 and then shortly after Christmas he finished!” Hans declared, “Dietmar watched me struggle with money for school so he learned from that so he worked a few years then completed his studies”.
Gudrun pulled out some family photo albums for us to look at with her. Their mother Ella (Oma ) was stunningly beautiful, I would describe her as flawless. Gudrun also has a painting from a picture of her mom that is in her entry way as you enter her home that was recreated very well. We looked at all kind of pictures including a small photo album that was obviously aged and Gudrun said her grandmother had given it to her when she was a little girl-Hans loved looking through it with her. We saw pictures of Denyse and Hans when they married and Gudrun commented, “Isn’t Denyse beautiful? I have always thought she just looked so pretty, sophisticated, prim and proper” as she marveled at the picture with the two after exchanging vows. We agreed as they were and continue to be a charming couple! I’ve always told Thomas since my first visit to his parent’s house and saw pictures of Hans on the wall with the family that he looked like Al Pacino so Thomas loved telling Gudrun that I think Hans looks like a movie star, she of course just chuckled. She did show us pictures when she married Gerhart , her sons’s father on December 31st 1960 and he passed away in December 31st, 1994. Hans & Denyse went to the wedding but Hans had been injured in the lab, an explosion happened close to his face and he had to have stitches in one of his eyelid. They lived in Cornwall, Ontario at that time and Madeleine & Thomas were small kids. Thomas said Hans has always had a knack for “fixing things” and he told us that in the mid 70’s Hans got a new Zenith television kit that he had to put TOTALLY together, in other words it came completely unassembled. So he worked on it for a long time, actually until Denyse told him it had been there long enough and told him he’d have to move it upstairs until he could finish it! They laughed at the memory of it together. Obviously this is where Thomas learned where to take apart and put things together as he does so well around our house! There is NOTHING that he can’t fix.
Gudrun reminded us of how proud she was that Hans & Denyse entire group of children and their grandchildren attended Bernie’s wedding in July 1993 in Edmonton, Alberta. Thomas told us about him canoeing with Martin on Lake Louise and they saw an avalanche, it was the first and only time in his lifetime to date to experience this! The family described Lake Louise to be a breath taking sight as it was so calm, turquoise in color as you looked across it but if you looked down in the water it was crystal clear and you could see everything! Gudrun was admirable when she told me that Hans and Denyse’s children “gifted them a wonderful room in The Banff” (resort in the Canadian Rockies).
Today is the day we will head home to Virginia, it is Sunday, November 30, 2008. The temperature is 21-23 degrees Fahrenheit as we woke at 6:30 AM so we could be on the road by 8:30 AM. As Gudrun style we woke to have a full breakfast feast that she prepared for us to eat together before we departed, it included the bagels Janine sent for she and Hans. Hans said his favorite was the poppy seed, Thomas teased him and said that’s probably what affected his short term memory and they both chuckled. Gudrun is a fabulous hostess and very gracious to allow Thomas and I her room as she slept on the couch, not to mention that she’s a great cook! She would not allow us to help clear the table, she said “I have all day to do that, sit down and we can talk”. We talked about children and parents and Gudrun told us the story of Eric (Dietmar’s oldest son) having some behavioral issues when he was an 8th grader so Dietmar and Gerda decided it was of his best interest to send him on a sail boat to the Mediterranean for school. He didn’t like it much so he begged to be able to come home for Christmas and they allowed him to do so after struggling with their decision. He hid his passport when it was time to return to the boat and they never found it nor he never told them where it was so he was unable to go back and finish the year, though his parents had paid for the whole year.
Hans told us at the table that the US was slow and let very few people in when he came over in 1951 so that was another reason he went to Canada as they would allow them in immediately.
Our initial stop as we left for VA was 1124 5th St. East, Cornwall, Canada which is where Thomas lived before the family moved to Drummondville. As we drove from Orleans, Canada (Gudrun’s home) the drive looked a lot like that we drove between Anton, TX. which is where we lived-it’s near Lubbock, TX. where I worked-flat with several dairies and farming animals. Except for the snow that was still evident around us. As we enter the town of Cornwall, Hans had some recollection of several landmarks before getting to their old home. The house was originally built when Hans and Denyse bought it 50 years ago. Thomas was born in the local hospital and we drove past it on our way to the house (I took a picture of it). Hans saw a Santa Claus on the front porch and said the house looked the same except for the Santa! As we sat in front of the house I took a picture and Thomas described the street as being dirt then, not paved as it is today and he said he remembers the milkman coming in a horse-drawn carriage. Hans worked as a chemist while they lived here and Denyse stayed at home with her hands full as she cared for Madeleine and Thomas and Hélène. Hans said that in those days you very rarely would see women work outside the home, especially when there were children at home. The town is very active with hockey (as they ALL are in this part of the world!) and we were unable to find the factory where Hans worked, he believes there is now a shopping area where the factory used to be. We left town heading towards the “bridge to the US” as Hans stated. We went over the bridge then into customs, I noticed as we waited in line there were 2 cars with NY license plates. I commented aloud that I had found it unusual that once we got into Canada, I had seen so few license plates other than Canadian ones. Thomas said that was because this is not tourist season, people tend to avoid coming in winter for fear of bad weather here. Now we are in upper NY State and the temperature is 33-35 degree Fahrenheit. There is light shining from the snow in the fields around us as we drive.
Hans told us as we spoke about the Christmas holidays coming up that as a kid in Germany they never put their Christmas trees up until Christmas Eve, I can’t imagine waiting until that time in our home. I find a lot of the enjoyment in coming home after work and on weekends, pulling in the lights and playing Christmas music to make the holiday feelings last longer than just for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I think a lot of the feeling is the ambience around you.
Outside Syracuse, NY the temperature is 31 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow is blowing with mild accumulation. This is a pretty town with a lot of old historic looking buildings. The University Hospital is a magnificent building with a lot of splendor. We’re all admiring the sites as Hans munches on the M&M’s he got when we stopped for gas. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen him eat candy before but I know he likes sweets as well as I do. Denyse is good at having a dessert after a meal-I so look forward to those visits with them! Denyse called to check our progress and said it is freezing rain in Clifton and we made plans to meet her with Hans in Lexington to have dinner with her at that time if our trip stays uneventful.
As we drive I LOVE to sing, all kinds of music-even though my family’s opinion is I should stick to my regular profession. I have them convinced that I should have been a back-up singer! So if I’m in my glory and sing the wrong words Caitlynn loves to correct me (as if that will frustrate me enough to stop singing-NOT) then I just tell her that was the live version of the song….haha!
We just drove across the Pennsylvania border and it is 34 degrees Fahrenheit as it is raining and currently no signs of snow except in the far distance on mountaintops. The further we got into PA there are signs of scattered snow and then we had a light sleet. Because of construction, the traffic narrowed to a single as we came through NY so we were delayed and further slowed down because of the sleet. It looks like we will not be able to wait and have dinner with Denyse as our ETA reads between 10:00-10:15PM to Lexington. We made our phone call to Denyse and decided we’d eat on our own and meet her in Lexington, VA at 10:45PM. It still amazes me when we drive this route, even after several years how we see the Welcome to West Virginia sign then it’s not long before we see the Welcome to Virginia sign as it just seems like such a fast trip between the 2 states. I’m still used to driving in Texas when it takes a full day to drive the state before you even get to another state!
Our choice was Golden Corral in Winchester, VA since we wouldn’t have to wait for our food and could eat and get back on the road. The food was good and we all got our bellies plenty full-off we go!
Denyse was there in the Walmart parking lot as we arrived so we unloaded Hans’s stuff and gave Densye the cheese curds we brought her. She was very happy and we all said our goodbyes and gave our regards as we departed for our last stretch and they drove off for Clifton Forge.
As we got closer into VA we noticed that the gas prices are now $1.65 gallon and even more enlightening as we drove into Roanoke we were shocked to see the prices are $1.43 gallon, now that is good! The temperature is 37-39 degrees Fahrenheit with light fog, we had to make a detour off I-81 coming in from Arcadia because of a wreck, there was an occasional slight drizzle. At the time we pulled in our driveway we had driven a little shy of 2,700 miles since we left our driveway 9 days ago. Many miles to see many people/family for many experiences and stories-quite enjoyable!…
I’m looking forward to seeing a magnificent sunset at home, we have the best view in our backyard but it really makes it nice when we are sitting outside by the chimney-together!
Hans quote pertaining to our trip as we came to the end: I enjoyed how everything came together and the reception we received from everyone. I also enjoyed talking with Raymond because I haven’t had a chance to spend time with him like this visit.
Thomas’ quotes pertaining to the trip: I surprised myself on how well I was able to communicate with my French family. I am impressed on how well on both sides of the families the future generations have already began to settle with families and homes of there own. I am thankful for the weather we experienced.
Caitlynn’s quotes pertaining to the trip: Grandpa is amazing he is so fabulous. I am so glad he came with us. The trip was pretty awesome and I would enjoy going again, but only if grandpa comes he is such a party animal. I just love him.
Raquel’s quotes pertaining to the trip: I found consistent similarities between both families, they both have very loving and giving spirits and are humble people. They were all so genuinely happy to see us! I missed my 3 Rat Dogz though…
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