Day.. I have no idea what number

I apologize for the lack of posts. It just means we're out and about doing cool things! And that I am lazy. We are in Niagara Falls right now. We drove down to the Falls last night and saw them all lit up with changing coloured lights and fireworks. It was great. We just stopped on the side of the road with our four way flashers on, heh. I was NOT about to spend $14 on parking, no siree! I hate spending money.. I digress.. Where were we last time I posted? Gatineau/Ottawa.. right. Well we went whitewater rafting on the Ottawa River, that was fantastic. Pretty cold water but we both swam in it for a bit. I got taken away by the current away from my boat, that was exciting. I was saved, don't you worry. After that we drove to Montreal and stayed there for three nights. It was nice, not spectacular, but I did enjoy it. My favourite day was walking up Mont Royal and looking over the city. At the top we had a really tiny hot dog with amazing fries, drowned in vinegar. I have become a vinegar-holic, please beware when I come back home. After Montreal we drove to Halifax, staying overnight in the car in Fredricton, and stayed there for three nights. It was fantastic and I will be back. Soon. We had the most amazing dinner at Salty's overlooking Halifax Harbour. Delicious halibut and scallops and oysters. Man I'm hungry.. It was probably the best meal I've ever had. After Halifax we drove to Quebec City. That was a long drive. We stayed there for two nights. On the day of our exploration it was pouring rain so that took a bit of the fun out of it, but it was still quite beautiful. We had crepes on both mornings, so good!! I'm going to make them at home. They might even be a replacement for my beloved fried egg sandwiches.. Oh I doubt that really. After Quebec City we drove to Burlington, an hour outside of Toronto, with a quick dinner stop in Ottawa and to meet up with my friend Jesse from school. Alas, Jesse was nowhere to be found, the jerk (kidding, only kidding Jess), but we still got to eat shwarma, this Lebanese donair type thing that is to die for. Have I mentioned that this trip has turned into more of a food excursion, rather than seeing actual things? I love food. We went to the Sarah Slean concert in Kitchener, that was really great. The day after that, yesterday, we went on an African Lion Safari, woo. It was a drive through open air zoo thing. We opted to take the Monkey Bypass because we are driving Stella's Audi, and it was a damn good thing too. When we were in with the zebras and rhinos, we saw the monkey and baboon pen and they were crawling over all the vehicles! It was hilarious. Now, like I said, we are in Niagara Falls and trying not to fall into all the tourist traps set out every 5 meters. Did I mention parking is $14?? Goodness. I say we just throw our four ways on, pop the hood, and go for a jaunt along the falls. hah. I'm only half kidding.. Alrighty, time to go. Getting our nice usual 11am start to the day. heh. Time for breakfast/lunch, my favourite meal. Hope everyone is doing really great, can't wait to see all of you. We'll be back on the 2nd! Not long now. love andie. Some photos for you! Us at the Manitoba/Saskatchewan border: Stella at her bay (ha ha) but this is quite appropriate for Aunt Carol as well. Old Woman Bay in Ontario somewhere along the way. Our defamation of federal property: (okay okay, it was just a street corner IN Ottawa, and it was mostly dry when we got there so it's probably barely even there..) Me and Stella at the top of Mont Royal, Montreal New Brunswick/Nova Scotia border! I had no tripod, thus the grass in the bottom of the photo.. heh. Me being swallowed by a massive wave along the Halifax harbour. Stella trailblazing in the woods around Quebec City. It was rainy, we were soaked, why not go off the beaten path? hah. Us chilling out, catching some rays in Burlington. Love this photo. Burlington again. Alright so I neglected to tell you all what we were actually doing in Burlington, seeing as it is not a common stop on most itineraries.. Well, take a look at the photos. My turn... Yes. It looks like I've been shot. I was not as stoic as I had hoped, and not even close to Stella's level of stoicism. She's a master. I didn't think it was very fair to only put one calf through that, so let's double it up, shall we? So that was our adventure in Burlington, ON. A way to remember this trip, my previous adventures, and ones yet to be discovered. andie.

Day 6

Hello from Gatineau, Quebec! Originally we had intended to be in Ottawa today.. however, news to us, Gatineau is right across the river from Ottawa. We got in late last night and, after learning that the hostel we planned on staying at was particularly seedy, we ran across the river to another province, hah. Ottawa smells funny, is this familiar to anyone? Somewhat like fecal matter, to be blunt. Not overly nice, but I'm sure we'll get used to it, which is a lovely thought. We've been travelling now for 5 days and Ottawa is to be our home for at least two more nights. Today we are scouring the Rideau Canal for tulips as the Tulip Festival is now on. We will go to the Parliament buildings and check the goings on there and then later tonight try and find a pub with live music to eat to. Possibly a bar after that, who knows. Tomorrow we have a whitewater rafting trip booked!! We are going to be rafting the Ottawa River and it's going to be fantastic. It's really warm here, 18 today, 22 tomorrow, so I hope the water won't freeze the life out of us. And the brochure had a mention of bungee jumping..?? Who knows! Yesterday on the drive from Sault Ste. Marie to Ottawa, we found an intriguing sign: "Meteor Crater, Turn Right". So what the hell, we're road tripping, let's go! Turn off, see another sign saying 32 km. Well, okay, that's not so bad, quick detour. Then we see that this 32 km consists of nothing but forest, gravel road, and little clearings in the woods, perhaps new development or something. So we are on that road for a good long while, at least 30 minutes, and we get to a sign pointing in three directions. No mention of the crater whatsoever. So we were angry, of course, c'mon, we wanted to see aliens or something. A little disappointing, but it made us laugh. Have to go shower now cause I stink! Must be the air here. Avoir! love andie. ps. Did you know that Quebec is not a bilingual province? Nope! Mono.. goodness. I should've continued on with my French after grade 6.. Good thing I have a personal translator beside me, but still, it's a bit frightening not knowing what anything says. good thing we're heading back to Ottawa.

Day 2

After a late start yesterday at 2pm, as opposed to the 7am I had hoped for.., we drove to Calgary and stayed with Stella's cousin. Went out for my very first Indian meal, oh boy... I'm hooked. And no digestive problems, as Stella had warned me about, haha. But it was all good, I assure you! Because you all wanted to know. Today we left at a very respectable 6.30am and drove straight East. Not too eventful, however I had forgotten that Saskatchewan is not, in fact, the flat, boring plain that it's reputation perceives it as. It has better undulation (that was for you, mom) than the drive from Edmonton to Calgary! Rolling hills, it was beautiful! The big road side attraction for today was the Swinging Bridge in Wolseley, SK. It was quite a hoot. It was actually, however sarcastic that sounded. It really did swing. Took a few pictures, will post later. We had planned on taking pictures at every provincial border crossing, however the Alberta/Saskatchewan border was nowhere to be found. We did find the Sask/Manitoba one quite nicely, again, photos to come. The GPS system we have in the car is called TomTom and I joke that AndAnd does just as good of a job. Many times it has said that we are no longer on a road and to turn around when safe to do so. But... I haven't driven off the road, honest! And, news to us, we were driving over bodies of water that must have been underground.. or something like that. It was odd. Frightening if I wasn't paying 100% attention and I worried for a minute that it was truthful about me being off the road. I was afraid of drowning.. but no, again, it was wrong! AndAnd to the rescue. And to aid in that persona, I bought some STELLAR aviator sunglasses that are amazing and incredible and make me have superhuman confidence and abilities. They are phenomenal. Anyways, just stopped for some Subway in Verdin (I think..), Manitoba, and heading out now for Winnipeg! Will write soon for more adventure updates. Could we possibly beat the Swinging Bridge?? hah. love andie.

A New Adventure!

Hello everyone! Welcome to a new installment of Andie on the Loose. On Wednesday, May 7, 2008, my friend Stella and I will be heading out on a cross country road trip. Our turn around destination is tentatively set for Montreal, Quebec. It will be four weeks full of driving, seeing some sights, meeting some people, driving, and driving a bit more. I am really looking forward to it and cannot wait to finally go further East than Saskatchewan. Even though our original plans of going all the way to Newfoundland have been altered slightly, I have no doubts about the fun factor of this trip. Stay tuned for updates as we explore this great country of ours! andie.