Thank You John

Brianne and John Arpin
Midland Music Festival Fundraising Concert - 2006

Kiel Canal and Warnumende Germany

A few drops of rain could not dampen our spirits in the Kiel Canal and Warnemunde. Rick and I haven't seen rain for months so we didn't mind a bit!

Schwerin Castle was marvelous. I had pre-arranged a rental car but the best laid plans....! Upon arriving at the rental agency, we discovered that the car had not been delivered. After a brief 15 minute wait, they showed up with the van...but only 5 seats in a 7 passenger van. We drove the van, following the driver of another vehicle to a volkswagen dealership. They left us there for almost an hour - in a place where no one spoke English and no information as to how long we would have to wait. Finally, our driver showed up with a 7 seater van! We drove through the countryside which reminded us alot of home. All that green! As we neared Schwerin, we stopped at a petrol station for directions. I showed the attendant a map and a brochure. She pointed in several directions, whistled twice and gave one "zip." I relayed the message when I returned to the van but no one seemed to understand. Surprisingly enough, we found the town of Schwerin. Again, we asked directions of a passerby on the street. He asked where we were from...our answer Canada....his reply.....follow me! We would never have found the place so were grateful for the guide. As we entered the palace, I decided to proceed through the gates and in the main door. I was greeted by a security guard who quickly informed me that I had entered the parliamentary building and was not allowed to be there. Thankfully she directed us to the proper entrance and we were able to tour the palace. It had been an comical journey to that point.

After touring the castle, we returned via Bad Doberan so we can visit the monastery. So much history and so little time! We managed to get the car returned and get back to the ship in time. We were pleased with oursevles for not getting lost and getting everyone back safe and sound.

Cheers to a great cruise!

Flipping the Funnel to fit under the bridges

Brass band and tourists at the Kiel Canal


Funky house along the canal

Schwerin Castle - Germany

Beautiful Gardens at the Castle

700 yr old monastery at Bad Doberan

Bad Doberan Monastery

Thatched roof homes along the way

Two week vacation - First two days in Dover

Dickens Corner - Dover

Wartime tunnels from the face of the cliff

Church of St. Mary-in-Castro c. 1000

Church of St. Marty-in-Castro c.1000

Lighthouse beside c.450

Dover Castle

Dover Castle & Rick!

White Cliffs of Dover - 8km hike

Rick and I have just returned from two weeks off...away from the sand and heat! We had planned a 12-day Baltic Sea cruise with our friends Dave and Paula from Canada. The cruise departed Dover England on July 28th. We went a couple of days early and stayed in Dover. We hiked the White Cliffs trail and then visited the Dover Castle, Dover museum and enjoyed the green grass, flowers and all the colour! The intinerary included, Warnemunde Germany / Tallin Estonia / St. Petersburg Russia / Helsinki Finland / Stockholm Sweden and Copenhagen Denmark. We had two full days in St. Petersburg and enjoyed several excursions. The cruise was magnificent. We can understand how people get hooked. Following the cruise, Rick and I went by ferry to Calais France. We rented a car and drove to Normandy, stopping at the Juno Beach Canadian War Museum and then back to Dieppe. We stopped at three Canadian war cementeries. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time to get to Vimy - next time.

We're back in the heat and humidity and pretty much locked indoors when possible. Only a few more weeks of this and we will be back to reasonable temperatures - low 40's.

Latest News

We are still in Doha where tempartures are starting to hit the 40's. It has come early this year and boy is it hot!

In the last month, I have made two trips to Dubai. Kevin was playing hockey at a tournament so Rick and I decided to join him. We watched lots of hockey with Kevin's team getting put out in the semi-finals with less than a minute left in OT.

Last week I was back in Dubai at a beautiful resort, Madinat Jumeriah for a three day conference - Compensation and Benefits for Interational HR Directors. It was an extremely informative conference with almost 60 HR directors. We did a historical tour of Dubai, visited a museum and went to the gold souq. Dubai was nothing but desert less than 40 years ago. It is hard to believe it has become the city it is. Everything about Dubai is being the biggest, the fastest, the brightest, the tallest, etc. etc.

Kevin has just returned from a week in Stockholm with Brianne and Jonas. Brianne and Jonas have also returned to Doha this week for a month.

We expect to all be in Beijing within a month, just in time before the extreme heat hits Doha.

Will keep everyone posted!

Home for Holidays - Back in Doha

Bird's Eye View - 3rd level of Mall - Desert Cup '07

Kevin -3rd from right - MVP for Qatar Pioneers

Erin and Aunt Mare - One last hug!!

Brianne & Sean after his 8 goal game!!

Jonas, Papa, Brianne, Memaw

Uncle Rick with Sean and Erin / Trumpeter Swans at Wye Marsh

Niagara Falls - under the Falls in Winter


I have just returned from a fabulous 3 weeks at home in Canada. Of course, mom fed us until we could eat no more. Brianne was home for a couple of weeks and was joined by Jonas for a week. They are now vacationing in Sweden. Rick is still in Ontario for another couple of weeks doing some work there for the company. Our apartments aren't ready in Beijing so I will be staying in Doha until the end of April. Not a bad thing as the weather is beautiful right now. There is still one more thing I want to do in Doha....will keep you posted!

Last weekend Kevin had a hockey tournament at the City Center Mall. For all the details go to www.qiihl.com. Kev's team didn't have a great tournament but Kev played well and was voted MVP for his team. It was amazing how many people filled the three levels of the mall to watch.

Thanks to everyone who took time to see us during our trip home. It was great being with all our friends again.

Breathtaking Oman - Wadis & Jebels

Road to Wadi Bani Awf

Kevin - on top of the mountain

Jebel Shams

Wadi Shab

Village near Jebel Shams

Jebel Shams

Wadi Shab
Kevin with local boys at Wadi Ghul

Shangri-La Resorts - Musat
Outskirts of Muscat

The past three days in Oman have been nothing short of spectacular. Scenery that you only see in travel magazines and dream about seeing some day. A "wadi" is a valley or dried up river bed. A "jebel" is a mountain. We hired a guide on Thursday and toured Musat, Old Muscat and a new series of three hotels referred to as Shangri-La. Late in the day we rented a 4x4 in preparation for the next two days. On Friday, we drove up Jebel Shams, the highest mountain in Oman at 3,075m, went to Al Hooti Caves and visited the town of Nizwa. We left at 7:30 in the morning and returned at 9 pm at night. On Saturday we began the morning with a tour of the Grand Mosque. The carpet in the main hall took 600 women two years to make. The total weight of the carpet is 21 tonnes. The chandalier weighs 8 tonnes and is made of Swarovski cyrstals. The Grand Mosque was a gift to the people from Sultan Qaboos on his 30th anniversary. By 10 am we began a tour down the coast towards Tiwi, and visited what is referred to as one of the most beautiful sites in Oman - Wadi Shab. At approx. 50 km away from the Wadi, we found ourselves driving on a mountain trail marked with hand-painted signs - TIWI this way! Within a few kms. we saw herds of sheep, goats, wild donkeys and camels along the beach. The beaches along the Gulf of Oman are stunning....rockface cuts down to the water leading to stretches of white sandy beach. At Wadi Shab, we hiked for approximately one hour through the Wadi. Unfortunately, due to an early evening flight, we did not have time to go all the way back to the sink hole where one can swim through caves. Not so sure I would have tried that in any event! Kevin, Rick and I had an amazing weekend. It was a geography teacher's dream weekend!!

Industrial Area and Labour Camps

Waiting for Work

Local Tire Repair shop

Labour Camp
Notice the drivers sitting off to the left under the green tarp




Rick thought it would be a good idea to take some pics of the way people live in Doha, street shots, etc. I was able to take a few pictures today out in the Industrial Area, where our plant is. The rows of equipment are available for rent. The drivers sit around on the ground all day waiting for someone to come along and hire them and their truck, crane, etc. Quite a lifestyle.