Our NEXT new car!

You may remember the blog entry from the end of January in which we introduced you to our new car (click here to read it).

Well, she has managed to keep chugging along despite her $600 purchase price and many unique characteristics... but only just! Along with the host of ideosyncrasies mentioned in that initial blog entry, she has developed a few more:

- An occasional refusal to respond to the accelerator (eg. whilst trying to take off at traffic lights);
- An occasional enthusiastic revving and lurch forward whilst brake is on (eg. whilst trying to remain stopped at traffic lights);
- And, in the last week, a loud and painful groaning noise emanating from under her bonnet (although this seemed to disappear after we fed her some medicine - i.e. oil).

SO...

Today we have invested in her replacement! This involved a lovely drive down to Abbotsford, which is about an hour from us and only 5 minutes from the border into the US. It was my first drive properly out of the city, and the view of the mountains down there is stunning!! On the US side is Mount Baker, which towers over the rest and is snow-covered all year round. Anyway, now that we have reliable (we hope) transport, we are looking forward to venturing outside of the city limits every now and then! :)

And here she is...

Make and model: Ford Focus
Year: 2002
Engine: 2L, 4-cylinder

Ben's guide on how to see our pictures better...

Ever noticed that when you click on one of our pictures, they're really huge, and you can't see them properly? Well, here is a guide on how to be able to view them perfectly:

(These steps show you how to install an add-on feature of Firefox that will make photos the size of your screen.)

1. If you're not already using Firefox as your web browser (instead of Internet Explorer), go to http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/, download and install it now (and set it as the default browser - it will ask you!).


2. Using your sparkly new browser (Firefox, that is), go to https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/139 and click on Add to Firefox, to install the Image Zoom add-on for Firefox.


3. Once it is finished installing, close and restart Firefox, and go to our blog.

4. Click on one of our pictures to see the super-sized version.

5. Right-click on the picture, and select Zoom Image -> Image Fit.

Voila! Now you can see our pictures properly (or zoom in to inspect my nostril hair).

Snowshoeing at Cypress

Yesterday we went snowshoeing - an awesome experience and something brand new for both of us! We were invited to go with Stuart and Rosanne, so at 2pm we headed up to nearby Cypress Mountain with them, in their little red Mini with its roof capsule full of hired snowshoes.

Snowshoes are flat and lightweight, and they work by distributing the wearer's weight over a larger area to prevent them from sinking too far into the snow. The part that our sneakers were strapped to was a pivoted platform (like a little seesaw) in the middle of the snowshoe, with a metal "claw" under our toes to dig into the snow and provide grip. Hopefully this description makes a bit of sense... see photo below!


At Cypress Mountain, we hiked through the woods on dedicated snowshoe trails, covering 7.77km in less than 3 hours! The fun part of showshoeing is that you can leave the beaten track and walk across pristine, untouched snow drifts, never sinking more than 30cm or so (without snowshoes it could be up to waist deep!). Walking down steep drifts often involves a bit of sliding as well! It was very very fun - and exhausting (for me)!! My legs are pretty sore today but it was worth it!

The woods were BEAUTIFUL! This was snow like I had never seen it before... pure, smooth, brilliantly white hills and valleys and holes and hollows formed by the wind and absolutely free of human footprints and snowboarders' or skiers' tracks... towering pine trees with snow-covered branches and big hollows around their bases where their branches had stopped the snow from piling up... snowflakes drifting down most of the day... The photos don't do it justice but it was AMAZING. Apparently we had some of the best conditions for snowshoeing, and despite that we didn't see a single other snowshoer all afternoon - only a couple of cross-country skiers!

Anyway, here are the photos!

Rosanne getting directions before we set off...

The start of the trails...

Figuring out which way to go...

Ben running through the snow...

Ben next to a "tree well"...

Looking back down a slope at our footprints (the actual trail is on the right)...

Rosanne, Stuart and I...

Approaching the "Warming Hut" (literally a very warm, unstaffed hut in the middle of the woods, with maps, cups and lots of water containers)...

Snow sliding its way down the roof of the Warming Hut...

On the road again...



Posing...


Off the beaten track...

A video of the boys getting down the hill in a hurry (Ben on the left, Stuart on the right)...

A tree well and snowshoe "sinkage" shot...

A sign we saw (we didn't see one of these birds in real life though) - how CUTE is it?!...

"As the three weary snowshoers prepared to enter the welcoming Hollyburn Lodge in anticipation of the hot chocolate awaiting them, they failed to notice the salivating wolf stalking them..."

A sign that will probably appall the Aussies (re water restrictions back home)...

A totally awesome snow-covered hut...

And the four of us at the end...

And that was our Saturday afternoon! :) The reason we know we walked 7.77km in snowshoes is because Stuart has a GPS watch that recorded our route and the distance travelled! Check out the map below - the black squiggle shows where we walked. You can see the start and finish points on the left near the words "Cypress Bowl Rd". Cool huh?!


That evening we had a big southern American take-out meal at Stuart and Rosanne's apartment, and lots of travel talk. What a great day!! :D

Murder, mayhem and munchies

On Friday night we went to a murder mystery dinner hosted by Darwin: "Assassination in Hollywood"! Yes, Tom Cruise had been murdered, and we, the guests at his post-funeral supper, were to figure out whodunnit - and we knew it was someone in our midst...

The guests - i.e. suspects - included Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, Nicole Kidman, Hilda the cleaning lady, Britney Spears, Dr Laura, Kelly Clarkson, Nigel the security guard (and chavvy wannabe DJ), Jim Carrey, Tom's Greek mother (karaoke singer of How Much Is That Doggie In The Window), Elvis, and Michael Jackson.

Here are some photos from this sombre and serious occasion...

The guests arrive. L-R: Elvis, Dr Laura, Tom's mum, Britney, Nigel...

Tom's Greek mum...

Nigel the security guard...

Michael Jackson...

Angelina makes an entrance...

Tom's mum and Elvis...

Having a laugh. L-R: Jim Carrey, Nigel, Hilda the cleaning lady, Dr Laura, Tom's mum, Britney...

L-R: Nigel, Hilda, Tom's mum, Britney, Jennifer Aniston, Kelly Clarkson...

Darwin (as director J. J. Abrams) hands out instructions (and that's Nicole Kidman on the couch in the blue dress)...


Brangelina enjoying dessert (btw, Brad turned out to be the killer)...

Telling jokes...

And playing Rock Band on the Xbox...



What a great night - thanks Darwin!

...And even MORE snow!

Okay, the last entry ("More snow!") was a little premature... THIS is what it looked like two hours later!!


And here is Ben sweeping soft powdery snow off our car with his gloved hands later tonight...