Algonquin

Dear Algonquin Park,

Although we enjoy your beauty, your gorgeous landscapes and breathtaking wildlife, we do not appreciate the fact that you rain on us while we camp every time we come to visit you. Could you please re-consider your watering pattern to suit us?

Thanks,

English on the Road
xoxo

Ohh.. Algonquin. Here at English on the Road, we have a love-hate relationship with you. I guess the love out-weighs the hate because we keep going back to visit the park. Again, we had a bear warning in our camp ground which made us be extra cautious with storing our food properly.

We had a nature walk with Kevin the Park Naturalist. We explored different species of plants, we learned how to track the population of moose in the park as well as the population of bears and turtles. During our trek we saw, turtles, rabbits, shrews, turkey vultures, ospreys, chipmunks, mice and toads. The wildlife of the park was truly captured when I discovered a squirrel in our van! To add to this, we also learned how to wash ourselves in the lake, and live without amenities!

Sonia and I caught a glimpse of Algonquin's outdoor theatre on our last night. We saw a play on the death and mystery surrounding the famous park artist, Tom Thompson.

All and all - we did have a wonderful time. We all found our love for nature and ......I SAW TWO MOOSE!!

Love,

The English on the Road Team

Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls was spectacular! Each time I get to see the falls from my student's new perspective, I get to re-live the beauty and experience the excitement all over again! This is one of the reasons I enjoy my job.

We only had one night in Niagara before leaving for Algonquin, so we made the most of it by taking a tour on the Maid of the Mist and exploring Clifton Hill at night. The students described Niagara Falls as "Baby Vegas" and suggested that we tone it down a bit and keep the town of Niagara Falls more natural to showcase the falls.

For some highlights of Niagara Falls - check out our Photos Tab here.

Welcome EOTR 2012!

Let the Trip Begin!

Day 1 of EOTR started on July 10. Fraser and I went to the airport  and picked up 7 students from Italy and Germany. The 6 students from Italy are: Chiara & Christina (siblings), Eduardo, Manfredi, Alessandro and Georgio. Last but not least, we have one student from Germany named Sonia.

While in Toronto we stayed at the HI Hostel and walked everywhere on foot. On Day 2 in Toronto we walked to China Town, got some bubble tea, and oddly, we were asked to participate in a Chinese Photoshoot for hair facinators! We then went to Kensington Market, browsed the shops, toured the financial district, and found a piano to play on the grounds of the Ontario College of Art and Design. Georgio graciously played some Bach for all of us to hear and we finally headed back to the hostel.

Day 3 in Toronto was for shopping! We headed to the Eaton Centre where the students fell in love with ROOTS Canadian Apparel and shopped until they dropped - or got hungry. After we breaked for lunch, we toured Queen Street. Among the student's favourite shops on Queen St. were a comic store, and Steve's Music Store. In Steve's Georgio played some more Bach on the piano while Sonia rocked out to AC/DC on an electric guitar. Outside the shop, Fraser and I spotted a custom bicycle unlike any we had ever seen before! The owner allowed us to take it for a ride down Queen St. I tried, and failed due to my short arms and Fraser suceeded at riding it for a short distance. We ate dinner out, and strutted to the harbourfront to have some ice cream and relax by the water.

On Day 4 the students started out by taking the elevator ride up the CN Tower. Everyone of them loved the glass floor and the spectacular view of Toronto. Lunch was served at the St. Lawrence Market and the afternoon was spent on the beach at Centre Island. We all had a game of frisbee where I saw moves I had never seen before. The students dove into the sand to catch the frisbee as well as perform handstands to catch the frisbee with their feet and some even caught the freebee using their heads! Our day was complete when we caught a glimpse of the Toronto Police riding their horses along the island beach.

Photo Highlights:

Tadoussac

We are now back from our three day camping adventure in Saguenay National Park. We camped in a rainstorm, it rained the last two days we were there, but we still managed to have a wonderful time. We stayed in beautiful Hutopia tents which were spacious and contained comfortable beds.

Our Rabaska Boat activity was cancelled because of the bad weather so we had a guided hiking tour instead where we learned the history of the landscape in the park. The last ice age moulded the park into the tall cliffs and fjords we see today. The cliffs were so steep that even the most professional mountain climbers take up to three days to climb the cliffs.

On our last day in Tadoussac, we went whale watching where we saw a humpback whale and three minky whales. We tried to see some beluga whales but they were busy hunting for food under the water.

We are now just about to leave Quebec City for Montreal, our final destination.

See you soon!

The EOTR Crew

Quebec City

Quebec City has been described as "the most beautiful city" by the students. Here we have been surrounded by many different art forms. Everywhere we turn we see galleries, sculptures, monuments and street performances.

Yesterday we took a tour of the city and ended up staying in the Holy Trinity Church to watch an English Change Ringing demonstration where we learned about the ringing of cathedral bells. It is a very hard form of ringing as the ringers have to work together to ring for sometimes longer than three hours.

In the afternoon we visited an art expo where there were hundreds of artisans from all over quebec selling their handcrafted creations. In the evening we caught a Cirque de Soleil acrobatic performance.

Last night we were awoken to a fire two buildings down from our hostel. Fire engines, fire fighters and police were outside our hostel as they hooked up their hoses to the fire hydrant in order to put out the fire. The streets surrounding our hostel was caution taped off as well. The fire was finally put out at 2am.

We all lived to tell the tale but there is never a dull moment here with English on the Road.

We will be camping for the next couple of days in Saguenay Provincial Park so there will be no updates for a while! See you when we return.

Katherine and the crew

Ottawa 2

I am happy to report that the students have thoroughly enjoyed Ottawa. On the second day we went white water rafting in Beachburg, Ontario where the students learned to work together in the rapids of the river. They also received a lesson on kayaking and practiced on their own in the water after their return from the river.

Yesterday was spent touring Ottawa. We started off our day by watching the changing of the guard on Parliment Hill and proceeded to take a tour of the Parliment buildings with a tour guide named Julie. We spent lunch in the Byward Market and saw the site of Obama's official visit to Ottawa and had some free time to shop around.

We then crossed the river on foot to Hull, Quebec to visit the Museum of Civilization where the students were amazed by the exhibit of the Horse. We visited Gatineau for a buffet dinner and came back for an evening of lights and sounds on Parliment Hill with the Mosaika lightshow.

We are now heading to Quebec City!

Katherine

Ottawa

Alas, there was a sunny day in Algonquin Park! Yesterday morning was spent on the beach where all the students engaged in swimming and tipping eachother off of the canoes in the lake. Some even went cliff jumping off of the rocks.

Now we have finally reached Ottawa! We are all glad to have a shower and wash our clothes. We are staying at the University of Ottawa Residence and so the boys marched into the showers merrily singing "rub a dub, dub, three men in a tub!". They could be heard singing throughout the entire floor.

Now the 8th floor smells like cologne and laundry soap, but the students say it's better than smelling like a campfire.

We plan on having pizza for dinner and possibly going to a drive in movie theatre tonight. The next days include Parliment Hill, A light show, Changing of the Guard, the Museum of Civilization and White Water Rafting.

See you back soon.

Katherine, Fraser and the Crew