Hello/Bienvenue from Canada! Incredibly happy you've decided to join in my adventures from last week! I hope the universe has blessed your last week with many moments for which you are grateful for.
I've been reintroduced to cold weather and snow as part of returning to Canada. The temperature change between Barbados and Canada has been literally breathtaking. I experienced about a 50 degree C drop in temperature (30C to -20C) in a matter of six hour flight to Pearson Int'l in Mississauga. The absence of active weather on arrival in Canada was a definite blessing!
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Winter beauty! -
photo courtesy of Dave H.
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One key achievement for the week was getting Sam's car part ordered and shipped to him. Mike at the Clarington Kia Superstore was fantastic to work with. With Mike's help I was able to avoid traveling to Bowmanville to pick up the part as well as visiting Canada Post to arrange the shipping to Barbados. Mike was able to make all the arrangements through either the online store or by phone. The expected delivery date is January 30. I look forward to Sam's update on the A/C being restored in his car!
What a magnificent week overall! I had a fabulous coffee with my good friend (and editor) Janet. I also visited the Leaside library prior to meeting up with my good friend Dave at his home later in the day. My most notable library observation is how much noisier the common area has become. One person was talking on the phone while walking about the library stacks and young people at the tables were speaking loudly. It was fortunate that he few people sleeping in the comfortable chairs were doing so without snoring! On Thursday afternoon I had a chance to visit with Judy and her husband Bill at their beautiful home in Oakville. I was treated to wonderful hospitality including two types of freshly baked cookies. I was also gifted with a bag of cookies to take with me. How blessed I am with this generosity and kindness. Judy was also gracious enough to receive a new laptop I ordered in December which I picked up during my visit.
I avoid taking photos of most personal visits so this blog has far less photos. There is always this fine line between what I think is public (for blog sharing) and what is private. The universe continues to shine its benevolence on me with all these amazing visits with kind and thoughtful friends. I do hope you also enjoy a blessed life like I enjoy!
Let's continue getting physical...
How is your exercise routine going in the past week? I've made marginal progress with my pushups - I'm now consistently doing 22 pushups. I'm also making progress with holding the plank - averaging around 1 min. 30 sec. I skipped the situps this week for an unknown reason - laziness, perhaps. The daily targets are 30 sit ups without cracking a sweat, 25 - 30 pushups and holding the plank for 2 minutes. I've continued with my daily stretching to keep moving in the direction of increased flexility. It's a longer journey, my friends, when you ignore your body's needs. Gentle reminder to include stretches as part of your exercise routine.
May the universe bring endless blessings and moments of magic 🦄 to you and your loved ones in the week ahead. 🙏
Travel Administration
I've purchased a new
Travelpro Maxlite® 5 29" Expandable Spinner (softside) for my upcoming travels. My preferred choice was the VersaPack®+ Large Check-In Spinner (29"/softside), however I thought given the destinations I was trying to the less expensive version a better choice. Travelpro is one of the few suitcase makers which are consistently highly rated. Samsonite is in the mix as well. I'll let you know how this decision works out for me in the weeks ahead.
Travel Update
Another small change in my travel plans. I'm now planning to fly to Chennai on March 4 for four nights during which time I'll visit with Praveena's parents and explore the Chennai area. I'm also looking forward to returning to the Park Hyatt Hotel which has become a second home. I'll travel to Kathmandu on March 8 as planned, connecting through New Delhi.
Travel Maps
It's country transition week; flying to Canada on Sunday, January 18, 2026 for exactly eight nights before boarding a flight to Male (via Vienna) on Monday, January 26. Lots of local driving in the greater Toronto Metro over the week.
Canada (Ontario): January 18 to January 24, 2026
Inter Country Travel: Barbados to Canada - January 18, 2026
Week in Review - Canada
My week in Canada was all about catching up with friends and reprovisioning for my upcoming adventure.
Snow & cold
Well, the temperature in my part of Canada was about 50 degrees Celsius lower than Barbados when I arrived at Pearson International Airport. Brrr! 😰 I've reintroduced 'layering' in my vocabulary! There is plenty of snow on the ground with additional snow falling from the sky mid-week along with a big snow storm promised for Sunday, January 25. Thank goodness I travel with sufficient layers, a woolen hat (it's called a toque in Canada) and gloves. Just need to remember to allow more time to get around with the slippery road conditions and the occasion accident slowing the traffic flow. Unlike the welcome sea breezes in Barbados, the wind in Canada at this time of year is most unwelcome. Think wind chill which makes the cold weather feel even that much colder.
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| Welcome back greeting from Mother Nature |
High on my week's agenda was visiting my friends Lisa, Francesca and Dr. Dave at the dental office on Monday afternoon and having my teeth cleaned and inspected. The three of us have the best convos whenever I visit. We catch up on our respective adventures which always proves to be interesting. I've also shared my blog link with the team as they expressed a desire to keep track of me.
Sadly, I had three small cavities requiring attention! The good news was Dr. Emma was available on Wednesday afternoon to fix the cavities. The crown I had recemented in Auckland last January appears to be holding up just fine. However, my days of biting into apples has now passed for fear of dislodging the crown once again.
I had the habit of bringing home baked cookies to the dental office whenever I visited. Dr. Dave and his amazing team have sweet teeth! So, in lieu of being unable to bake this time, I bought the team a kilo of baklava from The Baklava King, my favorite Middle Eastern bakery.
Coincidentally, I had a chance to get reacquainted the person who served me at the bakery. It has been a few years since I last talked with him. He kindly dressed up my purchase which I sincerely appreciate!
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| Amazing baklava |
Harcourt Lodge No. 581 Visit
My good friend Dave invited me to join him at his Masonic Lodge meeting on Wednesday evening. As I had been an affiliated member for about five years about 20 years ago, this visitation was like old home week. At dinner, Dave offered a toast to the visitors and I had the blessing of responding to his toast. What a memorable evening! The universe continues to shine its benevolence in my life! 🙏
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| Harcourt Lodge No 581 brothers |
Peking Duck - Chinese Food Experience Extraordinaire
I had the blessing of meeting with my good friend Jes during the week. He suggested meeting at the QJD restaurant for dim sum. It's an incredible blessing to be eating an amazing Chinese restaurant with someone who is everything Chinese. What a meal! The waitress gave each of us a bottle of hot sauce (Jes is holding onto mine until I return later this year.) Jes and I share a common view of the world so we have the best convos when we get together.
QJD is a 153-year-old Chinese restaurant chain brand that is famous for its legendary Chinese Peking duck. Founded in 1864, the restaurant has since passed down the culinary tradition of a roasted duck that kept the whole country enthralled.
Praveena & Family
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| Family's first grandson! |
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Praveena's parents (visiting from India) and
daughter Krisha |
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| Food from traveler I was gifted! |
Country Bakery - Carnarvon
My thoughtful and kind friend Dave stopped by the Country Bakery on his way home from visiting his cottage at Big Hawk Lake. I even had the chance to put in my order which was anything that had apple as an ingredient. I was blessed with an apple twist and an apple turnover. Dave sadly noted he was unable to share the strawberry rhubarb pie he purchased as it needed to be baked. The bakery staff took the unbaked pie from the freezer to fulfill his request. I love small town bakeries and their extraordinary service! Definitely to visit in person later this year! Thank you Dave!
Week in Review - Barbados
My good friend Sam kept me in mind throughout the week, providing most of the photos in the following section. I had the gift of continuing to experience Barbados, at least vicariously, through Sam's thoughtfulness! I've also had Jackie, my friend who prepares my Sunday lunch, check in on me in the last week. Once a Bajan, always a Bajan!
Beachside
The following photos hopefully give you the sense of the sea's power and what the wave action is like when the sea is at high tide.
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| The sea giveth and the sea taketh! |
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| The waves can get much higher than this! |
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| Rainbow in the distance |
Wednesday was The Mount Gay Round Barbados Race which is coordinated with Errol Barrow Day. BTW - the race winner gets a fancy jacket and a barrel of rum equal in weight to the weight of the skipper on the winning yacht.
Errol Walton Barrow, a social activist and political leader, was the first Prime Minister of Barbados. He is also known as the ‘father of Independence and social transformation.
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| Alexander Van Humboldt II - training ship |
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| Strong wild for the race |
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| Cruise ship going in the opposite direction |
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| Keeping Barbados coastline and sailors safe! 😁 |
Barbados - Eastern coast
My photos during my visit were entirely from Barbados' west coast. Sam attended a celebratory lunch held in honor of Gabrielle, his nephew's (Pedro) daughter, who recently graduated earlier this year from university in Jamaica.
Bay Lounge Restaurant, Cambridge. St. Joseph
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| Round Barbados race on east coast |
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| Round Barbados race on east coast |
Flora - Barbados
I spotted this mango tree on one of my last longer walks in Barbados.
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| Mangos |
Fauna - Barbados
Sam captured these amazing photos during the week.
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| So sweet! |
Sunrise - Mississauga
This is the sunrise experience over Lake Ontario when the temperature is about - 22C (-8F).
Sunrise - Big Hawk Lake
Synchronicity was the order of the day on Saturday. I received a text from Dave with the photos below while I was snapping the sunrise photos above. Dave highlighted how much to the sun has shifted to the right in his photos as compared to photos I took in September.
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January sunrise - lots of snow and a
tad chilly! (D. Holding) |
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| Winter beauty! (D. Holding) |
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January sunrise - postcard perfect
(D. Holding) |
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| September sunrise - minus the snow and cold! |
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| September sunrise |
Sunset - Barbados
I had the blessing of continuing to experience Bajan sunsets through Sam's thoughtfulness in sharing the photos below!
Next Week
A big snow storm is forecast for Sunday which should be fun. Thank goodness my flight is on Monday evening! I'll be in Maldives on Wednesday morning after an eleven hour layover in Vienna. Ah, the warmth and sandy beaches (after a 90 minute speedboat ride from the airport) will soon return.
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