Oh Canada!

Ya know, immigration people get a bad press. And trust me I can understand why. The most vivid immigration experience that I can recall is when I was returning to NYC from Niagara Falls. The immigration woman at the land border was not going to allow me to return since I had 3 Egyptian visas in my passport! I expected her at any moment to whip out the latex and give me a full body search....

So picture the scene. I'm arriving in Canada after striving to get there for 2 days. I have researched and taken advice and all the conventional wisdon tells me that I have no need for a visa as a UK citizen for at least 6 months. But I'm still nervous. This seems to good to be true. So I'm sweaty and a little shaky and look just as suspicious as the drug dealer next to me in line....

Called forward and the man takes my passport. He asks me why I'm in Canada, and how long I intend to stay. I answer to the best of my ability- and thats it!! He waves me through. With- get this!- a smile and a "Have a great stay!' Totally unbelievable.

The best part about arriving in Edmonton is that Carlee was there to meet me (you remember her- the 6 foot blonde that I worked with in Vietnam!) After so much travelling on your own its nice to actually be met at the airport occasionally. And its Carlee, one of my favourite folks!

So we hug and we laugh and we go to my hostel and then go for a drink and then talk and talk and talk. But its 2am and I'm dying on my feet so we agree to meet again tomorrow.
Edmonton is not the most memorable place I've ever been. The river valley is quite pretty and there's a good busy vibe about the place- not to mention a great YMCA. But thats it. Of course my view may be affected by the fact that once again I had a return of the dreaded LURGY-will this ever leave me alone??- and had to spend a couple of days in bed.

But catching up with others is always wonderful and continually reminds me of how lucky I am. First of all to meet these great people but also to be able to see them again and view their lives and see what they have been up to since I saw them last. Its a great priviledge.

But it can't last forever and I'm aware that my bank account is in a critical condition. So I search for volunteer farm work on the Help Exchange website- you get food and accommodation in return for working. And finally I talk to Donna, who agrees that I can come to her for a few days. She lives in Kevisville which is near Innisfail, which happens to be where Carly is driving through at the weekend. So its obviously meant to be!

At Innisfail I have to say goodbye- sadly- to Carlee. Who knows when I'll see her again? And I'm met by Donna. She doesnt look anything like I expected- she's younger than she sounded on the phone, very pleasant with long country style hair. And the first thing that she and her sister Liz do is whisk me off to a local country music festival.

Now lets make one thing clear. When I was growing up I enjoyed all kinds of music and warmly welcomed all styles into my life and my MP3 player. Except country music. I have no explanation except that I was often tortured for hours by my best friend listening to CMT for days on end. Billy Ray Cyrus- need I say more?

So I was little apprehensive. I've become a little more accommodating since then to the extent of appreciating Alan Jackson and Johnny Cash (love 'em!) But still....
I loved it! The vibe was fun and relaxed, the players played outside till it got too cold and then they moved inside. And I was introduced to the joys of two steppin' which I have to say I mastered quickly- just one or two toes trod on...
It was a late night and we eventually got home at 3am. To my horror I recalled that farms never sleep and we would still have to be on the job early the next day. And so to bed....
Working on the farm was one of the best times I've ever had. I arrived in the middle of haying season so it was certainly busy. We cut and raked and baled for days. But the weather was fantastic and it was great to be outside so much. And it was fun! I learned how to operate the raker and the baler. I learned how to operate the tractor and the 3 ton lorry. And it was enjoyable when we had put out some sweat to see Gus making his way across the field with a string of cold tinnies under his arm. Ahhhhhh, Kokanee.....
Donna also ran a greenhouse business and was wrapping that up for the winter. There were cows and horses and some gardening to do. Donna and Gus were fun, Gus' dad David, lived on the same plot and their two daughters Amanda and Tina lived right there. So it was a warm and comfortable homey place. And the house was a log house that they had built themselves, and it was beautiful.

I happily stayed there for 2 weeks and then it was once again time to move on. Donna took me to Calgary and there I met up with Steph (South Africa and NYC!) She is in residence at the University of Calgary so I spent week sleeping there, eating my head off at Steph's expense and chilling out. We hung out and went out when Steph wasn't in class and had a chance to catch up and bare our souls. Which is what friends do :-)
I felt sad leaving Steph behind at the end of the week. She has been having a hard time of it and I wished that I could stay and be supportive. But it was time to go to Winnipeg and catch the train to Churchill, my next volunteer experience.......