Ok so we’re back in Canada and unfortunately we’re in the last days of this trip before we head back to Australia. Both myself and Deb just finished 9 holes at the Hackers Haven par 3 golf course. We were greeted by deer and Woody the Woodpecker who was working feverishly banging away on the base of tree and Woody had no intention of being quiet while I lined up my shot! I’ve never seen a Woodpecker hard at work, it’s quite a thing! Bang, bang , bang with his beak.

On this trip, rather than leaning on our daughter and son-in-law to show us around, we decided to be a little more autonomous if not adventurous. They both lead busy lives and the last thing they need is the oldies hanging around.

Game Changer Number 1.

This time we flew with Air New Zealand departing from the Gold Coast and then via Auckland to Vancouver. For the long haul 13 hour flight to Vancouver, Air New Zealand offer an option called a Sky Couch. Basically we each purchased a full row of three seats in Economy (just behind Premium Economy which we usually use). The difference is that not only do you have a full row to yourself but the seats can transition to a small bed – what a great idea! At 6 feet tall, I had to keep my legs slightly bent but I actually got quite a few hours of horizontal sleep. It’s slightly cheaper than Premium Economy that has no option to lie down. It’s not Business Class but thousands of dollars cheaper. We thought we’d try the Sky Couch this trip and for me it was a game changer. We arrived feeling at least 3/4 human – Great stuff Air New Zealand!

Game Changer Number 2.

We hired a car through Turo – which if you don’t know is another service that’s sort of like an Air BnB for cars and works out much cheaper than the usual outlets like Hertz and Avis. We hired a lovely Audi Q5. I’m mastering the left hand drive and driving on the right hand side of the road – complete reversal to Australia. GPS navigation has taken us to such wonderful places such as Vancouver Island and the beautiful city of Victoria, putting the Audi on an incredibly efficient 1.5 hour ferry ride. The Audi has taken us to the beautiful but challenging Swaneset Golf Course – I love the signs “Be Bear Aware” – I’m not sure what I do once I’m aware of the bear or if the shoe is on the other foot, the bear is aware of me before I’m aware of him ! But hey I’m sure between the bear and me we’d figure it out ! It’s all part of the reason why you come to Canada. We’ve driven to the charming town of Fort Langley and the intriguing city of White Rock. I’ve driven our daughter to her swimming training sessions and knocked out a few laps myself. The experiences that we have had through being self reliant in our transport needs has been worth every penny. In fact we’re getting pretty good at it and gaining confidence each day. Thanks to Chris and his Audi Q5 and the Turo hire car model!

Game Changer Number 3.

We’re staying in an Air BnB one bedroom apartment in the basement of a house just around the corner from our daughter and her family. Again the plan was to be self reliant and experience a part of the local community. Even if we’re only pretend residents for a few weeks. It’s given us an affordable base which we set out from to explore and experience this great part of Canada but also the simple things like doing our shopping at the local supermarket with the locals – Charles working on the check out remembered us (or at least Deb) from our last trip with a warm “Welcome back”. Thanks to our Air BnB hosts and Charles from “Save On Supermarkets” for making us feel a part of the community.

Game Changer Number 4.

Part of the plan on this trip was to base ourselves in one place so we spend some time to do things we like to do in a settled way rather than having to be on the tour bus by a certain time for the next leg of the tour or visiting another museum or landmark that recognises some relevant point in history, like the first opening of a tin can – boring me to tears whilst most of the tour group drive me insane in their inability to understand what being on the bus at a given time actually means. As a good friend says “It’s like herding cats”.

Anyway, I’ve been getting back into my guitars over the last year/s. So I visited a local music store called Long & McQuaid where I hired (at an unbelievably great rate) a beautiful Taylor 6 string acoustic guitar for the duration of my stay. It’s really allowed me the time to just spend time in our own Canadian environment and enjoy this lovely musical instrument. Thanks to Long & McQuaid – what a great service for guitar players of all levels!

Let’s Wrap This Thing Up.

We’ve had an absolutely rewarding and great trip. The quality of time with our family and the enhanced way we did things that have allowed us to have an even better experience were in someways driven by the changing way in which we all now have so many options in how we go about things. Air New Zealands Sky Couch, Turo for hiring someone’s lovely car, Air BnB, Uber and although not mainstream, being able to hire a “top end” musical instrument and the list goes on. The world’s an exciting playground. Having the people that have the ability to think way outside of the box to bring these new service dimensions to us is only going to continue. For us, all of the above game changes have taken a lot of the angst and stress out of international travel. We can’t wait to come back to Canada or wherever we choose to have our next experience and we’re pretty relaxed about it. It’s getting more and more exciting and easier to do.

As always – Thanks for reading. RD

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