The south end of the beach at Hua Hin, Thailand.
Where are Kevin and Ruth now? Hua Hin, Thailand.

Where are Kevin and Ruth going next? Maldives on March 23rd.

Thursday, May 17, 2018

Sorry we lied to you!

But we were planning a surprise, and we couldn't let the cat out of the bag!

Yes, as it says above in the "Where are Kevin and Ruth now?" line... we are in Ottawa right now.

We had bought the tickets about three weeks ago and we figured we would surprise the family. So we didn't tell anyone about it. But of course as the day got closer, we had to sort of fib here on the blog!

So while we posted here that we overnighted near Harris, Saskatchewan.... we actually overnighted at Saskatoon airport in order to get up for our 5:55am flight to Ottawa yesterday!

We really did stop at Harris for lunch, at it would have been a fine overnight spot. But instead, we kept on going into the city and stopped at the Victoria City Park to go for a walk along the river.

Sherman, parked for the afternoon at Victoria Park, Saskatoon.

Heading for downtown Saskatoon. Tuesday was a beautiful day!

Ruth, on the pedestrian bridge.

We stayed at Victoria Park until after supper, and then drove to the airport about 8 kms (5 miles) away. I had checked out the various long term parking options, and they advertised seven "oversized" long term spots, one of which was going to cost us $98 CAD ($77 USD) for the week.

But when we got there, we found that they are doing a bunch of construction and those spots are gone. And the parking guy was no help at all. And the main lot was close to full so it's not like we could try to take up more than one spot.

We continued through to the terminal, following the temporary signs that said "Overflow long term parking". They led us to a grassy area at the side of the road where they had erected some barriers and made a temporary parking lot. There were a few vehicles in there, and lots of room for Sherman. We got ourselves parked up in the back, and I'm sure Sherman is fine there for a week. Interestingly, it seems there is no charge!

Thanks for the bottle Jo and Steve... Wayne Gretzky makes a good bottle of wine!

We were up at 3:30am. Silly o'clock!

Got our bags packed, and walked over to the terminal. 

We wanted to use of the last of those Air Canada coupons that we were given when we were bumped last spring. They were due to expire in June, so we figured we would make a quick trip to Ottawa to visit the family before our drive up to the Arctic Ocean. We still had to pay the taxes, but there was enough left to pay for the one way ticket from Saskatoon to Ottawa. Then, we had enough Air Miles to pay for one of us to return on Westjet. And enough Visa points for the second flight to return.

In total, it cost $156 CAD for the both of us to fly roundtrip Saskatoon to Ottawa. Not bad.

The first flight was Saskatoon to Winnipeg.

Little puddlejumper for the one hour flight from Saskatoon to Winnipeg.

Then a one hour wait in Winnipeg for our fight to Ottawa.

We boarded the plane, and were happy to learn that we were seated in an exit row! They normally try to sell these seats for an extra $25 because they are extra leg room, but we had not checked in until we arrived at the airport for our flights. This risks not being sat together, but it also gives you the opportunity for these seats if they have not been sold to anybody, so we lucked out!

Lots of leg room!

On the way to Ottawa.

Uneventful flight, and we both managed to have a snooze.

Arrived at Ottawa (with a two hour time change, and a two hour flight) and it was around 1;00pm. We had a car rental booked downtown at 2:00pm so we took the city bus from the airport to downtown. $3.50 CAD ($2.75 USD). Ottawa has the most expensive public bus system in North America.

I had booked the car and got a lucky deal through Priceline. $135 CAD ($106 USD) for the week.

We then headed over to surprise our son Alex. We parked at the World Exchange Center downtown and paid $5.00 CAD ($3.95 USD) for an hour. Walked across the road to his office and got the receptionist to call him because there was a "client" in the waiting room!

He walks around the corner, looks at us, and says "oh, surprise". He reads the blog every day and thought it was odd that we were headed to Saskatoon. He's really busy at work right now and could only spend a few minutes with us, but we'll see him again before we leave.

Then we drove over to my mom's apartment and surprised her. Simply knocked on the door. She answers it, and with a surprised look on her face says "What are you doing here?!" Too funny.

Had a quick visit with her, and then it was off to our daughter's place south of the city. We parked around the corner, and we weren't even sure they were home. Walked up to the side door, and I spotted some movement inside. Granddaughter Sadie saw me through the window and said "Grandpa?" Lindsey was there too, but she was expecting her husband Justin, and thought Sadie was just being silly. She turned around and saw us... it was fun!

Fun to spend some time with the kids.

Here's Sadie on the zip line that Justin built for them...



Cameron (age 7) on the monkey bars.

Sadie (4 1/2)

Ruth and our daughter Lindsey.

Lindsey, Chester, and Justin

Kids on the trampoline with their dad!

So, we're here in Ottawa for a quick one week visit. Sorry to make you wait another week for our Yukon adventure, but a visit with family was in order!

Today, we're headed up to Arnprior to visit with Ruth's dad.

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Record low price on the LG 8,000 BTU window air conditioner...


And in Canada...





38 comments:

  1. Surprise! I couldn't wait to check for new blog post to see the drive would be like and found air planes!! You sure did a number on us too...haha. Have a good visit. Lindsey looks like her mom.

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    1. Yep, I am sure it was quite the surprise to you our readers as it was to our families! :-)

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  2. I think Lindsey looks like Kevin! But in a good way, I promise. Have a great visit with the family. I'm sure they were delighted to see you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, agree with Emily: for sure Lindsey looks very much like her Dad, Kevin!

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    2. I think Lindsey takes after her dad and his side of the family as well.

      Yes, I think everyone was happy to see us. :-)

      Delete
  3. What a wonderful surprise to spend time with your family!!!! The grands are growing so fast. Love the zip line in the yard with lots of things to do. Enjoy every minute - we know you will!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We are looking forward to our week with the family! :-)

      Yes, Cameron and Sadie sure are growing up fast. The zipline and the monkey bars are a new addition to their tree house and swing set this spring. Good thing that Justin is a carpenter.

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  4. Ruth, you look like your mother in the picture with Lindsey!

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    Replies
    1. I used to think that I looked a lot like my dad when I was young but now that I am older think agree that I am looking more and more like my mum. :-)

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  5. An excellent ruse! Have a fun filled family week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think we did a good job pulling it off! We will definitely enjoy our time with the family.

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  6. Way to pull that off!! What a nice surprise for your family, enjoy the week!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Definitely quite the surprise for them and one that I think they are all happy about.

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  7. Good for you for pulling it off, thankfully no one was away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep, we managed to pull it off. Nobody was away the day that we arrived but our son, Alex is away for the weekend so we won't see too much of him. :-(

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  8. Replies
    1. Yes, Sadie having GRAND time on zipline her talented Dad made for them! Even though Sadie was going backwards, she was NOT afraid! Brave little girl, almost 5 yrs old! NO fear! Amazing! Lovely family!

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    2. Yep, the zipline and the monkey bars get used a lot! The kids spend a lot of time out their playing.

      Sadie is a brave young girl, just like her mom and Cameron is a real monkey. We are surprised that his arms aren't longer from all the time he spends on the monkey bars. ;-)

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  9. I caught it in the blog about being in Ottawa & then Sash. Knew you were doing something & guessed visiting family members for some type of surprise! The part of Ottawa & Sash. caught my attention Immediately....knew something was up! GREAT SURPRISE & FUN! Very glad you got to use your travel vouchers, etc for almost free trip roundtrip; that's awesome price! Have FUN!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kevin only changed the location on the blog once everyone here in Ottawa pretty much knew that we were back.

      We loved being able to use our vouchers and our points for the almost free flights, one of the reasons that we decide to come to Ottawa this spring!

      Delete
  10. What a fun time to visit with family and surprise them. enjoy your time there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad we were able to make the trip back and surprise them! :-)

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  11. SO glad you managed to squeeze in some family time while on the road. It's one of the things we've missed most this past year and like you are determined to remedy the situation (which is why we've not scheduled anything for the next six months). Have a fantastic week and spoil those grandchildren like there's no tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We were happy to be able to make it back here as well to see the family. It is true, it is the one and only downside to traveling full time like this. We do like to try and see them several times throughout the years whenever it is possible. We will see Lindsey and family again at the end of August out in British Columbia, so we are really looking forward to that as well.

      Enjoy your time back home and hope that you manage to get lots of family time in too!

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  12. I wondered too. Cabri to Saskatoon via Ottawa was a stretch and I did pick up on it. Enjoy!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Actually it was Cabri to Saskatoon, we really did do that part but then to Ottawa. Kevin only changed our where are we once most of the family knew that we had arrived in Ottawa. We just sort of told a white lie about us staying in Harris for the night rather than in Saskatoon. ;-)

      Delete
  13. Haha, I just figured Saskatoon was on the way to the North Pole! Shoulda checked the map more closely lol. Bet family was overjoyed to see you.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Well Saskatoon is north but it wouldn't have been the direct route north for us from the park. We were wondering if anyone was going to pick up on that. ;-)

      The family was very happy to see us! :-)

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  14. Nice surprise for the family. Good way to keep a secret by pretending to on your adventure very clever. Enjoy your stay with your family. Sherman will miss you both.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was fun to surprise our family. We weren't pretending to be on our adventure because we are, we just haven't starting up north. ;-)

      We will enjoy our family time but we will miss Sherman too!

      Delete
  15. It's hilarious that they try to sell exit row seats for so much more when in reality the passenger has a huge responsibility to the other passengers and crew. Should be discounted seats.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But they know how many people want that extra leg room and are willing to pay for it!

      Delete
  16. So much fun to surprise family and the best thing is to see their reactions! I just surprised my Mom on Mother's Day with a visit. Loved to see her reaction and smile after the surprise!

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    1. It was fun to surprise the family! We were very happy to make the trip home to visit almost everyone on this visit, unfortunately I won't be able to see my sister and her family until we return again in the fall as she lives 5 hours away. It was fun to see their reaction, I think Sadie's, Lindsey's and my Dad's reactions were the best :-)

      Delete
  17. Replies
    1. Trust us we are enjoying the time with our families! :-)

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  18. I liked that line, "before our drive up to the Arctic Ocean!

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    1. Yep, that drive is going to be a big adventure and one that we are looking forward too. It isn't everyday that someone gets a chance to drive to the Arctic Ocean!

      Delete

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