5th time over the border this year but not complaining, good to be in Canada again.
After a fiasco with VRBO where I accidentally chose a basement suite instead of a house, wasnt able to change my booking and lost $1000 as a result, I managed to find a lovely cottage in Colchester, Ontario for 10 days just across the road from Lake Erie and the Colchester harbour which had its own little beach. Colchester sits on the 42nd parallel and is the same latitude as both Northern California, the French Riviera and Rome. Weather remained pretty nice during our stay and a lot better than a lot of other places in the country.
Colchester is known as the Walleye capital of the world. Many people outside of Ontario may have never heard of this fish, which the federal government work hard to protect to ensure local populations stay healthy for years to come. There is an ongoing debate as to whether a Walleye fish is actually a Pickeral or not. It seems the Americans call the fish Walleye and in Ontario they call it Pickeral. However, there are some differences. The Walleye is from the Perch family and found in deeper water. It has a pearlescent eye which helps it see at night. The Pickeral is smaller, from the Pike family and found in shallower water. Either way this/both are an incredible tasting fish.
We were fortunate to have Simon and Julie stay over for a couple of days. Julie had just had ankle surgery and was recuperating. It was a lot of fun having them here as we got on well having a lot of the same interests. I made some Thai soup with chicken the first night and we settled down to some card games – teaching each other some new games. The following morning we were treated to Simon’s Turkish breakfast and then took a drive into historic Amherstburg. Amherstburg is situated near the mouth of the Detroit River in Essex County and renowned for its beautiful shoreline. The region was primarily settled by French colonists which led to its unique architectural and cultural style. The growth of Amherstburg started with the establishment of Fort Malden in 1796, as a British military fort overlooking the river’s mouth at Lake Erie. Later when the fort was no longer needed for military purposes, it was the adapted for use as a provincial “lunatic asylum”. Its main building was later used as a Port of Entry, Money Order office, Post Office and Savings bank. Today it is designated as a National Historic Site.
We walked along the Amherstburg waterfront admiring the view and the statues in the garden and then enjoyed a nice coffee at Caffeine co. before driving back home. That evening Julie pulled out all the stops with her Moroccan chick pea filo pie and the battle of the cards began again. We played numerous rounds of cards including one from the house called “shit happens” which was a good laugh. Simon (no surprise there) emerged victorious. We were quite sad when they left but Julie needed to get back to have stitches taken out of her ankle.
That weekend we visited Windsor, Ontario which is located on the shore of the Detroit River across the Ambassador bridge from Detroit, Michigan. It is the southern most city in the whole of Canada and the birthplace of Shania Twain. Windsor has been known as the Automative Capital of Canada since 1904, which more than 90 auto and parts manufacturers including Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Ford Motor Company of Canada.
Hiram Walker and Sons Ltd, situated in Windsor, is North America’s largest distillery. The facility makes 48 million litres of alcohol every year including Polar Ice Vodka, McGuinness Liqueurs and Lamb’s Rum. Its most famous product is Canadian Club Whisky. We stopped in Walkerville just across from the Hirim Walker statue and had a coffee. It was such a beautiful day to walk along the riverfront. Detroit was so close we could see the buildings quite clearly.
The following day we took a trip into Kingsville which is situated along the north shore of Lake Erie and known for its favourable climate and productive soils. Kingsville is mostly an agricultural community and has the largest concentration of vegetable greenhouses in North America. We stopped in at a local brewery – Banded Goose Brewery, had a pint and shared a plate of chips on their back enclosed deck. Luckily it was dog friendly.
Back at the house I was trying to organize for a prescription to be renewed from BC but the Doc required lab work first. So the next day we went to a local walk in clinic and I was also able to both see a local Doctor and get labs done. My leg had been hurting quite a bit so the Doc organized both an ultra sound and xrays. As it turned out I had tendonitis of the muscles of the butt which manifests very much like sciatica. Not much I can do there apart from exercise and ice. I did manage to get a massage which was fabulous and Derek also managed a couple of chiro and massage visits.
Unfortunately my Doc in Victoria was not around for a call so I was unable to get my prescription filled before leaving Canada. This was such a pain as we had to move out of the house, drive to Detroit and then return to Canada the next day to get it. Border crossing 6 and 7!
