Cuba!

In early May we took an unexpected trip to Cuba!

The original plan was to head down to the Mayan Riviera in Mexico for the wedding of our close friends, Brendon and Charlene. And then came the swine flu, and the beautiful wedding plans dissolved in the chaos and confusion.

We were crushed that the wedding plans fell through, and that we would not be able to see our friends (who live 1/2 way across the country) - but we did end up having a wonderful (& much needed) break in Cayo Santa Maria, Cuba. Here are a few pictures from our trip:




We spent much of our time on the beautiful, powdery white beaches. The island has only 4 resorts, so most of the 15km beach was empty - absolute paradise! (Brad couldn't resist the opportunity to do a saucy beach pose!)

We also spent a lot of time relaxing by the resort's (Melia las Dunas) beautiful pools. (Note the lovely palm trees on the "island".)

When in Cuba... Brad did as the Cubans do - enjoyed tasting a few different types of cigars. He also rounded out his wardrobe with a Castro-style revolution cap!



We enjoyed a 1/2 day catamaran ride through the gorgeous cays. Made two stops for snorkeling, visited a idyllic secluded beach, and feasted on freshly caught lobster tails and shrimp on the bow - a meal to die for!!



Our drinks of choice were the minty, refreshing mojitos and the fantastic Cuban coffee and espresso - the hotel lobby was the best place to people-watch with a drink in hand.

We had a fantastic time in Cuba - enjoyed the beach, the heat (30+ degrees), and the friendly and passionate Cubans!

Hope to post pictures of our day trip to Havana, ASAP. (And then there's our whirlwind trip to Las Vegas to tell you about, too!)

Sandpoint, Idaho

Another amazing summer in Idaho, this time complemented with a 2000 mile road trip down to Seattle to get some work done on the DMC-12! We never seem to be able to hit all the 'key idaho attractions', which almost makes them more attractive only seeing them every couple years.

We did make it to the Sandpoint festival with most of Sunhaven Rd, which was a blast, and to Spuds with my Uncle Colin and Cooper which gets better every year. We had an amazing array of visitors and I loved seeing all of our family friends enjoying the lake and sandpoint like we've done for so many years.





A brief trip to Seattle, walking around in an actual Delorean dealership and ending a hot drive with a fast jetski were the new highlights this year!

Gabarone, Botswana

"We're taking you to Africa."

Nearly insensible after a 38 hour journey, we collapsed gratefully into the piecemeal capital of Botswana, and began to anticipate the next two weeks. At this point, we had absolutely NO idea from my parents where we were going, and apart from my mother's constant cheshire cat smile, received no clue.

A vehicle picked us up the next day, and drove off into the desert. Talk about adventure!

Thakadu, Madikwe Reserve, South Africa

With jaws agape, we were welcomed to Thakadu river lodge with cold towels and strong drinks. Thakadu rooms are 'tents' in the way that Buckingham Palace is a house. Victorian style claw foot tubs, double sinks, a king size bed and a view of a river home to a group of elephants.




Our guide was exceptional, and managed to track down rhino, zebra, jackals, hyenas, impala, stimbok, warthog, a pride of lions and a slew of smalls animals and rare birds. It's all quite civilized with gin and tonic stops in the middle of the bush during our outings, and more meals than you can shake a stick at before and after.

Motswiri, Madikwe Reserve, South Africa

Making our tent look shabby was the incredible Mostswiri Lodge, which I can only describe as 'African Palatial'. The big upswing of our stay here was finding a pride of lions with our tracker. I was scanning the horizon looking for one when we rumbled up to a stop just 2 meters away from them. They're incredible animals, and being that close for such a long period has been seared into my conciousness.



Standing in our outdoor stone shower, I took a picture of the jacuzzi and fireplace in our 'room'. All of this overlooked the savannah and a watering hole (warthogs showed up and rolled in the mud for a bit). The 20 foot ceilings, dual fireplaces and infiniti pool once again, had our jaws on the floor.

Victoria Falls, Zambia

After receiving our kidnap insurance, we entered into Zambia. For some reason, we all gave the border guard 55 american dollars, and judging by what could only possibly be described as a 'mound' of money beside him, so had all the others before us.

One of the wonders of the world awaited us, a waterfall so large it would lend gravitas to the disc world theory. Hiking up the ravine side across from the falls, spray fell in such incredible volumes that even our yellow rain slickers ended up being nothing more than a good way to keep track of each other through it all. A brilliant helicopter ride and a resort overrun by baboons and zebras, made for an exceptional few days.

Cape Town, South Africa

If Vancouver, Seattle and San Francisco had a baby, it would be Cape Town. It was a mind bender to be 16,000k away from those places, and feel you could get yourself from A to B like a local. It's a beautiful city backed by mountains, perched along a bay and we were lucky enough to be staying a minutes walk away from the waterfront working harbour.




The effects of apartied still lives on in the 1.2 million person township/slum ringing capetown. These people were forcible removed from the city, but kept close enough to provide casual labour. I thought our tour through the township would be depressing, but we met some amazing people and saw how clean they all kept even the shakiest lean-to. I wasn't asked for money, and felt extremely safe. The government is helping people tear down their lean-to's and providing building supplies for basic, but decent, houses in the same spot. They have a long way to go, but the spirit of forgiveness and hard work are strong here.

Above is Nelson Mandela's cell, and one of the many 'guard towers' the aparteid government placed in the townships to monitor the population. Check out 'The long walk to freedom' chronicling his 60 years of struggle.