Photo Impressions from Fredericton, New Brunswick

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Frederictonians must have been glad about the lack of snow this winter - not to have their town flooded again after the spring thaw...

Here are some impressions from an Easter weekend trip through New Brunswicks capital.

Springtime in Canada

HAPPY EASTER !!!

Maple Syrup Time in Eastern Canada!

Ancient maple forests will lead you to Canada's sweetest destinations for spring adventure: sugar-bush country in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, PEI and Nova Scotia comes to live again.

There is even a sugar-bush in downtown Ottawa!

As snow retreats from the country side and the day temperatures climb into the positive digits, maple juice flows freely into the buckets, attached to towering maple trees. The air is filled with music and aromas of sweetened pancakes and smoked ham. These yearly festivities are fun for the whole family.

Everone is excited when hot maple syrup is poured into crashed ice or snow, quickly turning into a sweet delicious treat. Huge ovens are filled with fresh maple juice, cooking it slowly down to syrup. Indulge in pan cakes, generously topped with maple syrup and take home some sweet presents or stock up for the rest of the year. Maple Syrup is a healthy sweetener (containing vitamines, manganese and zinc)and adds great flavour to ham or beans. Taste a drink that is called `Caribou`, a unique blend of red wine, whisky and maple sap.

Visiting a sugar shack is a great experience. In fact, there’s probably no better way to get acquainted with early Canadian country culture.

The first colonists of Eastern Canada may have been puzzled when they saw the Natives cutting notches in the maple trees with their tomahawks in order to collect a mysterious liquid. With the expertise born of 300 years of experience, Canadians, especially Quebecers take credit for more than three-quarters of the world’s maple syrup production. There is even a giant Maple Syrup Festival in Quebec.

Read more about Maple Syrup:
http://www.canadianmaplesyrup.com/maplehistory.html

http://www.ontariomaple.com/
http://www.citadelle-camp.coop/maple-syrup/index.aspx
http://maple.infor.ca/?lang=en
http://www.atlanticfarmfocus.ca/index.cfm?sid=333061&sc=593
http://www.novascotiamaplesyrup.com/

http://www.festivaldelerable.com/

Living Well on a Student Budget

What's free (or almost) in Ottawa.

Taking a crash course in financial reality – or so it seemed to Christina, a new student, living for the first time on her own. No more free meals, room and laundry service or car rides to school, sports and parties. She had to learn how to live on a small student budget. But a smart journalism student, she used her Internet search skills to find solutions for these financial challenges.

Save on Living
Christina had to furnish her apartment, so she typed in: http://www.craigslist.com, http://www.kijiji.ca, http://www.freecycle.org, http://www.usedOttawa.com and and added “free” + “Ottawa”.

She found a bed frame, book shelves, lamps, an antique desk, three wicker chairs, several indoor plants and a mirror. Christina declined an offer for a free mattress and went instead to IKEA for a new one and to check out prices on cushions. She was lucky: Every Wednesday IKEA offers huge savings on selected items and this time it was mattresses, exactly the needed size. Later she discovered the famous $1.00 IKEA breakfast.

Telephone, Banking, Transportation Savings
Christina opted for the free Skype phone system using her computer. This way she could talk with friends and family who live abroad. To manage her finances she chose free online banking. Christina spared her money for a car and saves it instead towards a long overseas vacation and uses OCTranspo. At an OCTranspo unclaimed-items sale she found a bicycle for $10, helping her with grocery trips. Ordering software saved her almost $100 student rebate.
For her income tax-return she used free help of a Revenue Canada volunteer.


Nutritional Food Savings
Christina, a coffee lover, is smart and doesn’t fall into the fast-food /cafeteria coffee-trap easily accumulating to $500.00 /year. She makes her own coffee and brings a thermos to school. As bottled water is a real scam, she never buys it.
She compares the grocery flyers to plan next week’s meals and find the best deals on produce, meat, fish or dairy products. If these specials are sold out, she asks for a "raincheck" to buy it later at the same favourable price. Nuts, cereals or peanut butter are purchased at Bulkbarn on Wednesdays (10% student-discount).
Volunteering at the City's free Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter Dinners earns not only free meals but lots of delicious take-home food.


Entertainment Savings
Renting books, magazines, movies and music from the library: a non-brainer. But who knew that many museums are free on Thursday afternoon, Saturday morning and generally on Canada Day?
Christina likes art and visiting gallery vernissages are often invitations for free wine & cheese. She also likes to attend concerts, ballet and theatre. Armed with a first-aid certificate, she got several volunteer jobs at theatres and concerts, enjoying lots of premieres for free.

What's more:
• Free Canada Day Concerts
• Confederation Park: NCC organizes a free show as part of the Jazz Festival.
• June: admission-free introductions to kayaking and canoeing.
• July/August: free evening Light & Sound shows at the Parliament.
• St.-Paul’s-University, Carlton-University and Ottawa-University offer free international movies.

Just as Christina, every student can learn strategies to spend less and still live well. Discover the best bargains and have fun saving for a nice vacation, new car or to keep education debt down!


LIST OF USEFUL WEB PAGES:

Free Rental Books, DVD’s, Magazines – plus many free seminars
http://www.biblioottawalibrary.ca/

Free Educational Material
http://www.textbookrevolution.org/

Free Canoe/Kayak Introduction
http://www.trailhead.ca

Ottawa free events
http://www.ottawaevents.org

Grocery Flyers
http://ottawa.flyerland.ca

Coupons & Tips
http://www.redflagdeals.com

Smart Students
http://www.debtfreegrad.com

Free Giveaways
http://www.ottawa.ca/residents/recycling_garbage/giveaway/index_en.html
http://www.freecycle.org
http://www.craigslist.com
http://www.kijiji.ca
http://www.usedottawa.com

Unclaimed Lost & Found Sale
http://heartwoodhouse.ca/content/view/56/82/

Free Cinema
http://www.cinemapolitica.org/carleton
http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~jesleben/
http://www.goethe.de/ins/ca/ott/ver/en4628782v.htm
http://www.ecologyottawa.ca/calendar

Nova Scotia Ice Wine Festival February 4 - 14, 2010

I am working on a book about travelling Nova Scotia's vineyards and just received an invitation to this years Ice Wine Festival:

"The countdown is on - only 10 more days until the third annual Nova Scotia Winter Icewine Festival begins. Running from February 4-14, this year's festival features over 40 wine and food related activities, winery events and accommodation packages.
To kick off the festival celebrations, we are giving away an Icewine gift basket from Benjamin Bridge*.
In the basket you will find a bottle of their delicious Borealis Icewine (yum!) and two Icewine glasses. All you have to do to enter, is make a comment on our brand new website, www.nsicewinefestival.ca ".

But you don't need an invitation to attend these events and have lots of winter fun and great wine and food:

Entice
Saturday, February 6, at 6pm in downtown Wolfville
Wolfville entices you to a variety of activities for the whole family - from wine makers dinners to an ice carving competition sponsored by local businesses to a fireworks display at Waterfront Park. Dress warmly.

Stars on Ice
Saturday/Sunday February 6 & 7

L'Acadie Vineyards, Gaspereau Valley
Join award winning winemaker Bruce Ewert in a geothermally heated winery for samples of Traditional Method sparkling wines and our unique rich dessert wine, Soleil, paired with chocolate and classic cheese fondue. 12-5pm. Cost: $10 (includes tastings and food pairings).

Festival Wine Dinners on February 4, 2010:
Taste of Nova Scotia Gold - Saege Bistro, Halifax
Winemaker's Dinner - Amherst Shore Country Inn, Amherst
Tempest-Muir Murray Wine Dinner - Tempest, Wolfville


Daily Festival Events, Feb 4-14, 2010
Icewine & Chocolate: Brooklyn Warehouse, Halifax, 2795 Windsor Street
Sweet & Delicious: Fox Hill Cheese House, Port Williams

*Benjamin Bridge is an innovative sparkling wine house on the south facing slopes of the Gaspereau Valley, where owners Gerry McConnell and Dara Gordon have been working with an international team of winemakers to produce Méthode Classique sparkling wines on the order of cuvées de prestige wines. They have released several limited editions, luxury whites and reds to date including NOVA 7, Borealis Icewine, NEXUS Rosé and TAURUS.
This winery is a working winery only and does not have a tasting room or retail store and is not open to the public.

New Security Regulations

The good news first:
When flying within Canada, e.g. from Montreal to Calgary, passengers can bring their carry-on suitcase. The new security regulations affect only flights into the United States. Within Canada you are still allowed two carry-on items.

And you can carry on liquids and gels (if you can smear it, it's considered a liquid) only if they're in containers of 100 mL (100 grams/3.4 ounces) or less and they all have to fit in a one-litre (one-quart) resealable clear plastic bag.

Avoid hussles at airport security

• Carry on as little as possible.
• Don't wear metal snaps, large jewelry or belt buckles
• Remove hidden metal body piercings
• Don't wear shoes with metal arches, buckles, shanks or steel-toes
• Wear shoes that are easy to slip on and off
  And, for heaven's sake, don't make jokes about bombs or weapons

The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority published the new rules for flights into the USA: Forbidden carry-on bags means items to which a passenger has access to during a flight, BUT DOES NOT INCLUDE: Personal items such as medication or medication devices, small purses or laptop computers (size: 43 cm by 16 cm by 33 cm), cameras, coats, items for care of infants, laptop computers, crutches, canes, walkers, containers carrying life sustaining items, a special needs item, musical instruments, or diplomatic or consular bags.

"Additional screening for U.S.-bound passengers will take more time, "passengers are encouraged to arrive early for their scheduled flights." That's even earlier than the usual two hours recommended for international flights. Expect always delays at the airport. It wouldn't hurt to get there even earlier.

Full-body scanners will be used only for passengers on U.S.-bound flights. A recent survey of 403 people by an online travel company based in Toronto, found that 73 per cent of respondents are in favour of the scanners and 95 per cent say they still plan to travel to the USA over the next year.

More Info or call this number: 1-888-294-2202

Four-legged travel companions

You don't need to hide your family pet in the car and sneak it into a motel room for the night...
I experienced it all: rightout refusals to allow dogs on the premises, 50% higher room prices or tiny cages that might fit a small poodle but not a German Shepherd.

Until I found several websites that provide information on Hotels, Bed & Breakfast, Daycare & Vets, Travel Tips, Fun Places and more

http://www.petswelcome.com/milkbone/canmap.html

http://www.dogfriendly.com/server/travel/guides/us/canada.shtml

http://www.travelpets.com/

Travel tips for you and your pet

• Call ahead to reconfirm the hotel is pet friendly.
• Try to get a ground floor room so your dog can get outside quickly.
• Bring it's bed or blankets from home to sleep on - and also it's favoured toys.
• Don't leave your dog alone in the hotel room.
• Check with the Vet before travelling.
• Keep your dog always on a leash in public areas.
• Pet your dog often to reasure it! Being in an unfamiliar area and out of his usual routine can be stressful for pets.

Thumbs up! Dog-friendly Toronto
Between 9:30 am and 15:30 pm dogs on a leash are allowed in Toronto's subway, busses and streetcars.