We had a few visitors yesterday! Wendy and Phil are long time RV'ers and blog readers who live in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan and they came to visit for the weekend. They didn't bring their RV though, so they're couchsurfing with us.
And our full time employee Valine is also living in the house with us for the time being, because none of the washrooms are hooked up yet. So we got to move back in to Sherman for the weekend!
And, we had another visitor!
Moose on the loose. Heading for the playground!
Young female moose.
So that was kind of fun. We've only seen one other moose here in the park and it was last September as one wandered through in the evening.
Saw another cheap airfare deal this morning. We're looking for something to do for the full month of November through mid December. We'll be in Ottawa for most of October, so this flight deal I saw this morning was from Ottawa to San Juan, Puerto Rico for $349 CAD ($275 USD) return, taxes included.
So a good airfare price, but for some reason we weren't thrilled. Although we would like to visit Puerto Rico sometime, it simply wasn't one of those deals where we got right online and jumped in to book it right away.
Puerto Rico is an oddball place. It's a U.S. territory, and the people born there are automatically U.S. citizens. And yet, it pretty much operates as an independant country. It even has it's own Olympic team. And of course it uses the U.S. dollar, so the exchange rate isn't currently the best for us to visit anywhere that uses the U.S. dollar. And in doing some basic research, it doesn't seem like very many Americans visit Puerto Rico. I wonder why that is. And yet they all seem enthusiastic about being able to visit Cuba. Strange.
So, we didn't book it. Lots of time left, so something will come along that screams "book me now"!
Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful Moms out there!
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Ha, ha...this is a kind of a funny product...
I wonder if the moose was looking for water? Although I am sure he could have accessed the lake from a different point. Maybe he has been hanging about all winter and is surprised you are now there :)
ReplyDeleteShe might have been but yes, she could have gotten it from anywhere along the river. We did see a moose here last fall so it is possible that it might be the same one. I think she loves all the trees and greenery, makes for a nice salad. ;-)
DeleteNice to see a moose walking through the campground, we have see a few over the years. Amazing creatures and so huge.
ReplyDeleteWe love seeing her walking through the campground!
DeleteAs always we love visiting here with Kevin and Rith and also love having them visit us, great hospitality
ReplyDeleteThank Wendy, it was nice having both you and Phil stop by for a visit. It was a pleasure to repay all the hospitality that both of you have given us in the past. :-)
DeleteCuba is an exotic, authentic, and extremely "retro" destination that has been off-limits to Americans for over 50 years---and still is, for most. It's considerably less populated and much more rural than Puerto Rico, which has become so Americanized that when tourists try to speak Spanish there, they are almost laughed at.
ReplyDeleteLol Doug. You gotta do some more research! Cuba has 11.5 million peopl, Puerto Rico has 3.5 million!
DeleteHardly anybody who visits Cuba goes out to see the real Cuba anyhow...they go to all inclusive resorts and never leave the compound.
95% of the population in Puerto Rico speaks Spanish only.
Lol,95% might speak Spanish, but 95% definitely do not speak Spanish ONLY. English is taught from first grade on. Regarding population, I meant population density---PR is to Cuba as Florida is to Texas: four times as crowded.
DeleteWell, Spanish is definitely the dominant language. English may be taught, but it doesn't seem to be used much from what Im reading. So I'm still curious why most Americans don't visit Puerto Rico.
DeleteWe visited Puerto Rico a few years ago, and our experience was definitely of the "Spanish is dominant" variety. Around San Juan, it was easy enough to get by with English, but many of the areas we went to I had to dig out my basic Spanish to get by.
DeleteThanks Sarah, it's always good to get firsthand info!
DeleteThe Zika virus is very prevalent in Puerto Rico!
ReplyDeleteNeither one of us is pregnant!!
DeleteThe Zika virus, if you become infected, is a very minor affliction. Many people who get the virus don't even know they've got it. Unless you are pregnant. Then, it can be a serious problem.
Looks like they need to revise those maps that show no moose in your area.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think that they need too!
DeleteI have a friend who spent a couple of months in Puerto Rico. He didn't care for it. Said the beaches were very trashed out, and poverty was prevalent. He's a very down to earth guy and easy to please, so if he didn't like it, I figure it must not be that great. But just his opinion. I don't know how much of the island he actually visited.
ReplyDeleteIt's too bad that was your friend's experience. We went to many different areas of Puerto Rico a couple years ago. I don't remember trash on any of the beaches we visited. There was a lot of poverty in certain areas (compared to where I'm from), but I'm not sure why that would be a reason to avoid the island. We really enjoyed our time there, and definitely plan to go back!
DeleteSpotted Dog Ranch, as you said that is just his opinion and everyone's opinion is different. We have found many people that like somewhere we don't and vice versa.
DeleteAgain, thanks for your insight Sarah. We definitely want to go visit Puerto Rico but for some reason, we just didn't feel that the flight deal was a "great" deal it was good just not great. We will continue to keep our eyes open though and one day we will get there.
we have been to Puerto Rico several times and really enjoyed our stay in El Junque
ReplyDeleteGood to hear another positive report on Puerto Rico. It isn't going to be in the cards this time around but it is definitely still on our list.
DeleteKevin I am happy to hear you're not pregnant! Puerto Rico is in bad financial shape right now. City buses have been throttled back to little or no service and not allowed to sit idling to save fuel. We have friends in PR who have lived there all their lives and they say they haven't seen it this bad. Could be a good time to go, lower prices.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it though, Chris! ;-)
DeleteWell it is offical, we won't be going there this fall but that doesn't mean we have taken it off our list. The deal just wasn't good it enough for us!
Totally agree with you Dinah! Just because one person or even a couple of people had a bad time somewhere doesn't mean that the next person will. We always try to keep an open mind when we travel, especially when it comes to culture. We may not always agree with it but we are willing to learn more about it in order to understand the people an their ways better.
ReplyDeleteKevin has always said that if we had the opportunity we would go just about anywhere and I am sure we would meet wonderful people and have some interesting moments, hopefully good ones! ;-)