Welcome to Turkmenistan, country #61

We had to get up at 4:15am in order to walk to the airport bus stop for its 5:00am departure. We had said goodbye to Cheryl the night before so we didn't have to wake her. We packed our bags and headed out the door.

A twenty minute walk in the rain got us to the bus stop where the bus was already loading. We paid our 149 lira ($7.25 CAD, $5.34) and with very little traffic at that hour we made it to Istanbul Airport (IST) in an hour and ten minutes. Much better than the two and a half hours it took when we arrived!

Busy day touring Istanbul

We had made arrangements to meet up with Lauren, one of the girls who we will be touring Turkmenistan with. She was staying on the opposite side of the Bosphorus Straight, so Ruth and I hopped on the ferry at about 9:30am to do the 20 minute ride to the other side.

Much better weather today, with a high around 19C (66F).

Arrived in Istanbul!

It was chilly when we stepped outside our accommodation near Paris airport. Only 4C (39F)! Good thing we didn't have to wait long for our bus to the terminal.

Made our way through the terminals to our departure gate without much of a problem. Our Air France flight from Paris to Istanbul was supposed to depart at 11:20am.

Exploring Nature's Playground: Hiking and Fishing in Perfect Harmony

 Nature's playground offers a perfect harmony of hiking and fishing, allowing you to immerse yourself in the beauty of the great outdoors. Hiking trails take you on a journey through breathtaking landscapes, where you can witness the wonders of nature up close. But the adventure doesn't end with hiking alone. Fishing adds an extra layer of excitement and tranquility to our outdoor experience.

In this perfect harmony of hiking and fishing, you explore nature's wonders and embrace the serenity and peace it offers. It is a chance to disconnect from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and reconnect with the simplicity and beauty of the natural world. 

Heading back to the airport!

Made our way to our Airbnb located near Paris airport. Had to buy tickets for the local bus at a cost of €2.10 ($3 CAD, $2.20 USD) each, and of course bought 4 tickets because we also need the return journey this morning. We could have walked it, but there is one section with too much traffic and it's not pedestrian friendly.

Less than a ten minute bus ride and we were getting off in the village of Roissy en France. This is the same village we stayed at in the hotel back at the end of August, so we already knew our way around.

Arrived in Paris!

A little tired, but we are here! It's almost 2:00pm here and it's a bright sunny day. Not sure what the temperature is, but it looks very nice outside. We're still at the airport as I write this because we can't get into our Airbnb for another hour, and it's only a short bus ride away.

Everything went smoothly.

And... we're off!

Writing this from Halifax Airport where we've got an all afternoon wait for our WestJet flight to Toronto.

There are only two overseas flights that go from Halifax, one goes to London, and the other one goes to Frankfurt. Everything else is stuck routing through either Montreal or Toronto. So in our case, we are flying Halifax to Toronto, then Toronto to Paris CDG.

This area is nice in the fall

Lindsey had the day off Thursday, so the three of us took Chester the dog for a walk to Little River Falls. Bit of a cloudy day, and we even had some showers during our hike but nothing too wet. Temperature has cooled off to a high of about 14C (58F).

But first, we made a stop at Luckett's Winery...

Fun afternoon out at the Bay of Fundy

Kirsten is one of our regular readers, and she lives with her husband Jeff here in Nova Scotia on the Bay of Fundy at Margaretsville. They invited us to spend some time with them yesterday afternoon.

The Bay of Fundy is world famous because the highest tides in the world occur here. The tide was about 22' yesterday, but some areas can have a difference of up to 50' between high tide and low tide.

The Pumpkin People of Kentville

Here in the Annapolis Valley, the fall harvest is in full swing, and it will be like this leading up to the end of the month and Halloween. All of the towns do something special to take part, and the town of Kentville is well known for it's Pumpkin People displays.

So yesterday we went for a drive to see them!

Vacation is almost over!

Well, our six week vacation back to Canada is almost over. This coming Saturday we will return to our normal life of travel.

We are really excited about the next few months. Actually, the next few weeks! What a crazy start it is going to be! 

Fall Harvest

The Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia has Atlantic Canada's richest agricultural land. Combined with the climate, it makes for the perfect place to grow apples, pears, grapes, and many other fruits and veggies.

Our daughter Lindsey's house backs onto a huge apple orchard. Yesterday, Ruth and I went for a walk to see the stuff that is ready for fall harvest...

I had never fired a handgun... until now.

Being from Canada, where firearms are not as common as they are in the U.S., we never had as much opportunity to be involved with guns. And I've never had any ambition to be a hunter, so I've never needed to own a gun for that reason. I have fired a rifle quite a few times though, and I find target practice to be fun.

But I had never fired a handgun, and always wanted to.

Day trip into Halifax with granddaughter Sadie

We're a little off schedule with our regular early morning blog postings. But we're spending time visiting, so we'll post when we can!

Yesterday, we took Chester for a nice long walk in the morning. We did about 6.5 kms (4 miles).

Made it to Nova Scotia!

Well, we are now here at our daughter Lindsey's place in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley with her husband Justin, and our grandkids Cameron and Sadie. And of course Chester the dog.

We were up at 5:30am Tuesday morning in order to get to the Ottawa Airport for our 8:30am flight.