Feast of Musicians

Never before have I seen so many amazing musicians all in one small area.  It was a privilege to walk amongst so many performers, a real feast of sight and sound; such colour, texture and rich notes reverberating to the beach and ringing through the streetcar tracks.  I glided through lightheaded, a permanent smile stuck on my face. Thank-you JazzFest! 



And then walking home there was a wedding on the beach.

My Children on the Beach

What a glorious childhood my children had growing up in the tropics, raised in a small hotel where their parents both worked.  Swimming in the pool, dancing with customers and receiving toys and tips for being so darned adorable, and when I wasn’t working (slogging away serving and fetching for  umpteen tourists) we would set off for the palm fringed, almost idealic white sand beach, of Josiah’s Bay, just down the road.  They strolled naked down the peaceful arc of the bay and built sand castles while I clicked away and shot endless photographs. 

My daughter, Alana was fearless in the water, body surfing at a young age and nimbly jumping from rock to rock at the bay’s edge.  At only 10 months old, she was swimming under water in the deep end of the pool; she had her own style of swimming, totally submerged at the bottom, only to surface occasionally, spurting water like a counterfeit mermaid, golden hair trailing down to her bottom.  My son, Tye however, was not so brave, he had to be coaxed and sweet talked into the water and even then he would cling fast to me.  Gradually though with time, he began to feel more comfortable and to enjoy himself, but he was never entirely trusting of the water and didn’t like to go under.

 There was a day when my visiting father took him into the water, whilst I swam further out into the waves with Alana.  And, my Dad went a little deeper than his grandson was used to (he was only 2 years old).  Luckily I looked over to see how they were faring and my father was topping a small boy on his head, Tye’s little arms and legs were wrapped round his Granddad’s neck, looks of terror on both their faces, the older not being able to breathe and the younger clutching on for dear life, convinced he was going to go under.  By the time I reached them, Tye looked like a wee frog sitting on a lily pad.  Alana took her brother ashore to play in the sand while I led my choking father over to Rufus’s beach hut where Cane Garden Bay Rum Punches were served.  He downed his Rum Punch and laughed exclaiming how he had survived WW11 but had nearly drowned with a 2 yr old boy on his head.  Crikey!

Beaches

Surfing inevitably makes me think on beaches.  I have been extremely fortunate to have lived near a beach in almost every place I've resided. Every day the mood of a beach changes and if you are lucky enough to live near one, walking the beach daily will comfort a stressed mind as well as give a rare joy of relishing in the act of doing nothing.  Gazing to where water meets sky, stimulates positive thoughts, reflections and puts aside trivial worries.  When I say stimulates thoughts, this can also mean again, stimulate thoughts of nothing and since I’m basically a lazy person, doing and thinking of nothing suits me enormously, especially after a huge move and leaving behind a tormenting job. (Hurray!)

The beach I now stroll aimlessly each morning is one that I had not forgotten, but think I failed to appreciate when I lived here years ago, this is Lake Ontario in Toronto.  It certainly helps that the days have been sunny and hot, the azure waters sparkle like the Caribbean Sea and sailing ships bob dreamily on the horizon.  Can this really be a lake?  An elderly gentleman with tweed cap, cane and brilliant red shorts sat next to me on a bench, (dedicated to a man called “Hot Tubs”) at Kew beach yesterday, and explained proudly that the whole of the British Isles could fit into Lake Ontario.  “How mind-boggling!”  I responded.  But then as I strolled down the board walk, I thought, (Oh, but I’m thinking too much) as I’m starting to imagine it all, this mess, looking down from outer space. How could all those people fit into Lake Ontario, along with all their houses, planes, trains, Double Decker buses, taxis, roads, farms with sheep and highland cows?  Not to mention all the fish and chips, teacups & saucers, bacon and eggs, the Royal Family and all their palaces.  I’ve spent a lot of time in Britain and so, I think this dear old bloke must have got this wrong; the population of Britain is over 60 million, while the whole of Canada is just over 34 million. I’ll have to do some research.

Anyway Kew Beach on Lake Ontario and eastward to the water treatment plant is an ideal place to wander and wade in the now clear waters for a delicious break.  Photo below taken with my mother's pocket Sony as I was too lazy to carry my big Canon. 

And who would have thought to find a Pirate ship on Lake Ontario on the way to Niagara Falls.  Amazing!

Surfing

While I am on the subject of surfing, I must say, I have always been fascinated by the sport and I have tried it myself many times while in the Caribbean.  After multiple mouthfulls of sand, rolling ashore without my bathing suit bottoms, and crashing my head a few times, I decided I wasn't very good at it and so, settled for body surfing and even then I found the waves humbling, I learnt to read the undertow, the moods of the tide and determine my own short comings in the depths of the invigorating waters. I can watch surfers for hours and the sea is definitely my favourite swimming pool.

Moving

It's amazing to me that I am back in Ontario.  Twenty-eight years ago I left for the beautiful Caribbean island of Tortola in the British Virgin Islands to work at a small hotel.  I intended to stay for a year or two and yet it turned out to be twelve amazing years.  I have been extraordinarily blessed to have a wonderful partner and two fabulous kids, daughter born in Cornwall, England and son in Tortola.  Now once more, after spending fifteen years on another lovely island, Vancouver Island, at a variety of locales and diverse jobs, we decided to make another change.
I have never blogged in my life before, (thought it was a dirty word actually)  so, I thought it might be a new beginning to post photos of where I've been and the wonderful people I've met.  I'm obsessed with taking photos (drove my kids bonkers) and I have thousands that I've never shared.
Anyway, I thought this would be a suitable outlet for sharing, with family and friends, (if you're interested) so bear with me please, as I'm not very organized, so photos and thoughts will probably bounce all over the place.

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Right now, my partner and son are in Cornwall England, beautiful place where surfing is huge!  Many people who've never been to the South West of England are surprized by this. 

My old, loveable dog, Jango, resting on my brother's lawn in Victoria, before his big drive across Canada