Brrrrr!!

And... we're home! Safe and sound. And cold. Ick. Thank goodness it's only for a few weeks! The trip to Red Deer was uneventful... well, semi-uneventful... I put myself through about 12 hours of major stress when I decided to leave my passport behind at Terminal 1 of Pearson Int'l Airport... Yes folks, I "temporarily misplaced" the most important thing I own!!! Can you say DUMBASS!! Luckily I didn't lose my boarding pass, so I was able to catch the flight to Calgary, where I proceeded to make multiple phone calls back to Toronto to try and locate my most prized possession. Thankfully, it had been found and turned in right away, and for a small fee (yeah right!) it will be couriered to me sometime this week. **PHEW** I am not normally that careless, ever!! The sun and ocean must have really mushed my brain! Or at least that's the excuse I'm using. In truth, it was probably all that yummy Kweyol spiced rum I ingested (non-stop) over the past 12 days! Heh heh...

At any rate, reality is cruelly setting in... back to work in just a few hours... more Ick! But I guess until I win the lotto, that's how it has to be, right? Could be worse!

Cheers!

We Shall Return

Only a couple of more days and it will all be over... D'OH!!! We have seriously been enjoying St Lucia - the people are amazing, the resort is awesome, and of course the weather rocks! With highs of 32C and lows of 26C, and the occasional, refreshing, nighttime or early morning rain shower... well it really is hard to imagine going back to winter, ever! We have been spending almost every day, all day, down the beach at 2Elements. They definitely have a sweet setup for kiting - the side-onshore winds and the shape of the bay make the location super safe, plus they have a rescue boat and someone paying attention at all times in case of a kiter in distress. The ocean is bathwater warm and the shorebreak is minimal. Massive waveriding or relatively flatwater riding can be found within hundreds of meters of each other, and the area is large enough that it never seems crowded. The trade winds make for a fairly smooth and steady breeze, although it hasn't been the howling 25kts that Todd was hoping for - but he has been out on the water nearly every day, so he really has nothing to complain about! This is a place we would definitely come back to, and it would be super fun with a large group of friends.

Well, the local merchants are setting up their tables this morning - so I'm off to spend my last few ECD's on souvenirs. Todd's already pumping up a kite and will be starting his regular 6-hour, non-stop kiting routine shortly... crazy man... gotta love his obsessive/compulsiveness... heh heh...

Cheers!

Back on the Water

Todd finally got back out riding yesterday... and he can hardly keep the grin off his face!! It wasn't stellar wind, but it was enough. He rode for several hours, and when he took a break... I gave it a go!! The wind had lightened up substantially by then, so I didn't get in a great session, but it was good to be in the water and practice some things. I still get a bit creeped out by what I can't see below me, but all in all, it was pretty fun. And I got stung by my first jellyfish - just a little guy, looked like a tiny blue-bottle or something.
Anyhow, the breeze is up again today, so we're off to the beach (of course!). Hope all is well with everyone back in the winter wonderland!
Cheers.

Underwater world...

What a fabulous day Sunday was! Todd wanted to give his back one more day of rest... so we went on a dive/snorkel trip to Soufriere. We hooked up with a local divemaster, who took us to some absolutely beautiful spots near the Pitons. It was very cool to see the massive pinnacles up close, plus the waters on the Caribbean side of the island are crystal clear and sooooo warm!! I had a blast puttering around for hours with my mask and snorkel while Todd and two other visitors from Spain went diving. The landscape on the west side of the island is nothing but lush, thick jungle, pretty much right down to the ocean... I would have loved to have spent many more hours sightseeing and taking pics... but there are only so many hours in a day, and what we did get to see was amazing, so I really shouldn't complain!

Cheers!

Sun, fun, and rum!

Darn. Our vacation is now half over. Darn! Aside from Todd's back-tweaking mishap a couple of days ago however (trying a new kitesurfing trick - gee, would you ever have guessed??!!), everything has been fabulous! He's feeling a thousand times better today than he did on Thursday, so tomorrow we are taking a dive/snorkel trip to the west side of the island. And he's hoping to be back riding by Monday.

We have met some super cool people - Chris (the owner of 2 Elements Wind Sports http://www.2elements.co.uk/ ), Jimmy, Gavin, Franck, Bruce, Daniel, Richard (a pro photographer here on a photoshoot http://www.freelanceimaging.com/ )... and the other night I joined a group of them and headed into town to check out one of the local pubs. Vieux Fort is relatively small and has totally retained the St Lucian culture. The evening was fantastic! I look forward to seeing more of the island this upcoming week.

I also have to say that the resort is great - the staff are all unbelievably friendly, the entertainment is top notch, and the food is stellar! Oh, and did I mention the spiced rum!! It is better than any I have ever tasted. Mmmm! Plus we've both had massages at the spa... it doesn't get much better than this!

Well, it is +30C here (again!) and the wind is blowing (again!), so I think I've finally built up the nerve to give the kitesurfing thing a try this afternoon... I'll be sure to post and let you know how it went!

Cheers!