Whistler Blackcomb, BC

We spent the past weekend enjoying Whistler Blackcomb.

Whistler Olympic Plaza is the site where global audiences gathered nightly to see the best athletes in the world step up to the podium at Victory Ceremonies during the 2010 Winter Games.

The alpine hiking trails are a major highlight during the summer months. There are 50 kilometres of hiking and walking trails covering both mountains.

Near the peak before heading to the top of Whistler Mountain.

The Inuksuk before heading up to the peak.

 

At the peak - 2180m (7152ft).

Compassionate Resource Warehouse

We spent a good part of Saturday organizing and packing donations to bring to the Compassionate Resource Warehouse.

Our shipment was scheduled to be sent to Sudan. We showed the kids on the map how far our items would be travelling and explained about the hardships in that area.

Sailing

Gabriel the Builder

Building a crane.

Building a robot out of a pop can (careful, they can become sentient and rebel against their creators).

Building a princess castle for his little sister.

Gorge Waterway

The body of water known simply as “The Gorge” to Victoria locals is a narrow inlet that connects Victoria Harbour to Portage Inlet.... The Gorge has a rich history as an important spiritual place and fishing area for First Nations, and a fishing, bathing and recreational area for early Victoria residents.

The Selkirk train trestle has been converted to a pedestrian and cycle bridge that forms part of the highly used Galloping Goose multi-use trail.

Source

Last Sunday, we explored The Gorge on our bicycles.

Getting ready to cycle

Yes, CamelBaks do come in pink for the little princesses on your shopping list.

Off-roading?

U2 360° Tour

On July 8, we saw U2 perform for a crowd of 80,000 people in Montreal in an open-air stadium built just for them (funded in large part by U2’s own money). We arrived in Montreal a week before the concert and immediately felt how pumped the city was for their arrival.

Here is a picture of the balloon that they erected over one of the Metro stations close to the site of the show:

The public transportation was madness getting to/from the concert.

Léah was ecstatic that a last minute ticket became available for her to join us.

The centerpiece of the stadium consisted of a cylindrical video system of interlocking LED panels and a steel structure rising 150 feet from the floor over a massive stage with rotating bridges designed to give the titular 360 degree experience.

It was truly a spectacular show.

Strawberry Fields

During the summer, each month brings the availability of a different fruit or vegetable. On Vancouver Island, May/June is the time to go strawberry picking.

Strawberry Facts and Tips (source)

• Select plump, firm, fully red berries. The small berries are often the most flavourful.
• One cup of strawberries contains only 43 calories.
• Unripe berries will not ripen once picked.
• U-pick strawberries are much healthier than store-bought. Consumer reports says store bought strawberries have so many pesticide and fungicide residues on them that they don't recommend you eat them!
• It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to pick a quart, if the berries are reasonably plentiful.
• Strawberries were originally called “strewberries” because the fruit was “strewn” amongst the leaves of the plant. (When Léah was very little, she called them “straw babies”.)
• Cultivation of strawberries began in Europe in the 1300’s, but the berry only became very popular in the early 1900’s in California.
• You can easily freeze berries that you can not use right away - just wash, cut the hulls off and pop them into a Ziploc bag, removing as much air as possible. The berries will keep for many months frozen without air.