We are in the midst of an experiment. D is still going to be working for another couple of years and because this is a new company for him, he only gets 3 weeks holiday when previously we had gotten used to many more weeks than that. He spends one week doing humanitarian work in a northern community and his remaining two weeks with me in Isla Mujeres. So come the fall, he has not been on vacation for nine months and he is itching for a break.

In the mean time, the city of Winnipeg has recently changed the bi-laws surrounding Air BnBs and we have hit the maximum number of weeks that we can rent out our home and still have it be our principal residence. So, since we enjoy residing at the lake so much and our city house would sit empty, D has us participating in a Home Exchange program. This summer, two families from BC have stayed at our home in the Winnipeg and we are now in BC to stay in theirs. In addition, my friend Nancy who I have known for decades once asked me to visit her at her ocean side home at Pernder on the Sunshine Coast. Since D can work from anywhere in Canada, he is currently at work in a second house on this breathtaking property.

D has had this time booked since Mother’s Day when he acted on a West Jet ticket sale. We flew to Vancouver on a Thursday evening. Even with the gain in time of a couple of hours, it was late when we arrived at our Richmond Air BnB that night. The next morning D was at work by 8:30 Winnipeg time which was 6:30 Pacific Time. He had to work until 2 Winnipeg time that day and that is when Nancy came to fetch us to accompany us up to the Sunshine Coast.

We had been to Vancouver on numerous occasions as it was Head Office for both the businesses that D and I worked for. But we could not believe the change in the downtown skyline. Chock full of high rises with cranes everywhere indicating even more building.

Once we had crossed the iconic Lion’s Gate Bridge, we toured West Vancouver where Nancy grew up, stopping for a moment under the bridge. I found out as a result of posting a picture of the bridge on Facebook, that one of my grandfather’s had worked on the bridge. Small world.

The vistas of West Vancouver were familiar to me and I realized that I had participated in an Aids Walk in the neighborhood many years previous. In fact, Daughter #1 now almost 40 years old, had been with me as a 6 or 7 year old.

Nancy, who makes the trip to the Sunshine Coast often, was clever enough to make a ferry reservation for us. Being the Friday before a long weekend the ferry and harbour were very busy. What a lovely way to travel though.

Landing in Gibson’s Harbour, that too was familiar to us. We had just started watching a weekly TV show called “Murder in a Small Town” that had been filmed in the area (in fact we will watch it again this evening).

We stopped in Seschelt for groceries and libations and continued on our way. Once we drove onto Nancy’s property I was blown away by the natural beauty of the forest.

We stopped for a couple of minutes at the first house that had been built on the property.

There was a sheer drop from the trees to the ocean.

The view from inside or outside of the “Small” house was sublime

As we approached the “Big” House, I understood the luxuriousness of our anticipated stay.

This was the beautiful room that Nancy assigned to us

with this amazing view.

The weather was glorious on our arrival day, so we enjoyed the wrap around deck and the views (and in my case), a chilled glass of Prosecco!

The trees against the pastel sky were a perfect way to cap off our day.

We knew that these water formations were an indication of some kid of activity. We didn’t specifically know what had made them though.

The table was set for a delicious feed of shrimp and capers with ziti, washed down beautifully with the prosecco. What an amazing and wonderful day!

Kath’s quote: “A holiday is an opportunity to journey within“.-Probhas

Love never fails.

D had to work that day and it rained in the morning, so the day had a very lazy feel for Nancy and I.

While I made supper, the evening clouds were spectacular so I ran back and forth to deck to try to capture their splendour.

The next day started in Pender. It was hard to say good bye to such a serene, majestic place. Nancy was an amazing host.

We stopped en route to the ferry at Persefone Brewing. D was thrilled to finally check out their offerings.

The weather was so warm that we basked in the sun while waiting for the ferry.

We had a choice spot on the ferry and I really enjoyed the crossing. Upon docking, we travelled through the city from north to south and checked into a brand new Air BnB at Crescent Beach.

It is customary for an Air BnB host to leave a little treat for the guests. This was waiting for us. (At home in Winnipeg we leave a beer selection from Little Brown Jug). It is fun to tell our guests that our son brewed the beer!

Our studio was in a converted garage, called a coach house. It was brand new. Only 2 sets of guests had stayed there before us. Everything was freshly appointed (but there were a couple of glitches that needed to be tweaked). We know from our years as Air BnB hosts that a white couch, white towels, white bedding and white carpets are beautiful but not practical. As well, and I admit that I am vertically challenged but the shelves in the kitchen were too high, mirrors were hung too high and I could reach the shower hose. But we loved the location and our host was very gracious.

We were too late for sunset but we enjoyed a relaxing stroll along the shore of Crescent Beach. I had visited Nancy on previous occasions at her cottage/house at the beach. Many years ago the beach was an opportunity for cottagers to escape from the city with just a short drive. Now a days there are many permanent residences in quaint (and in some cases-spectacular homes) in the neighbourhood hugging the shore. The delightful community and beach is now a popular day tripping spot.

Kath’s quote: “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey” is a quote famously attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson. This so true when traveling around the BC’s lower mainland. D pointed out that the saying doesn’t necessarily hold true driving from Winnipeg to Brandon.

Love never fails.

I love to look at recipes, but mostly I read them for inspiration. Very rarely do I follow one to a tee. I really enjoy intuitive cooking and find that some of my favourite dishes have been created this way.

Earlier this summer I was having company over for lunch and I had a big craving for shrimp. So after looking at a few recipes I decided to create my own version, based on what I had on hand and what flavours I enjoy. I was very please with the final product so decided to jot down a recipe so I can remember how I made it when I am craving it again. And also so that I could share it with you.

Shrimp Salad Sandwich

10 oz cooked shrimp, chopped

1 tbsp red onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp cucumber or celery, finely diced

2 tbsp mayonaise

1 tbsp lemon juice

Zest of half a lemon

1/2 tsp old bay seasoning

1/2 tbsp fresh dill weed, finely chopped

salt & pepper to taste

2 croissants

butter

leaf or butter lettuce

Mix together all salad ingredients. Half the croissants and butter each side. Top with lettuce leaves and shrimp salad and serve open faced.

Kath’s quote: “My perfect meal would be: shrimp cocktail, lasagna, steak, creamed spinach, salad with bleu cheese dressing, onion rings, garlic toast and a dessert of strawberry shortcake.” -Joan Rivers

Love never fails.

If I had to pick my all time favourite comfort food, it would have to be holubsti, aka cabbage rolls. The best time of year to make them is summer and early fall, when the cabbage is sweet and tender.

There are all kinds of cabbage rolls made in many Eastern and Eorpean countries. Growing up, my Mom made big hearty rolls stuffed with a mixture of ground beef, onion and rice. I always enjoyed them but my favourite holubtsi were made by my long time boyfriend Steves Baba Shafirka. Like many Ukranian Babas, she made her delicious version with a bacon and rice mixture with lots of cooked onions and smothered in tomato juice. Her’s were tiny compared to my Moms version. Baba didnt have a written recipe, but she showed me her tricks. I did my best to write out her recipe. That was more than 40 years ago and I have likely made them a hundred times since. So I hope you enjoy them. Smachnoho! Literal translation: “have a tasty meal!”

Baba’s Holubtsi

Ingredients:

1 cabbage

1 c long grain rice

375 grams side bacon

2 small cooking onions, finely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

19 oz can tomato juice

Directions:

With a large sharp knife, cut out the core from the cabbage. Place the cabbage is a deep pot of boiling water. After a few minutes, the outer leaves can be separated. They should come away easily, if they are tearing they are not ready to be separated.

Pull 4-5 leaves from the head but leave them submerged in the pot of boiling water until they are soft and pliable, about 5 minutes. Continue this process until all the leaves are separated. In a saucepan, place 1 c of rice. Rinse rice at least 3 times to remove excess starch. Cover with 2 c of water and a 1/2 t of salt. Bring to a boil. Give the mixture a stir. Reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cook, covered, for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile in a seperate saucepan, cook the bacon over medium heat until all the fat is drawn out. Drain the majority of the bacon fat. Add the onions, cook until lightly btowned.

Add to the cooked rice. Check the rice for salt level and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spray a roasting pan with nonstick spray. Set aside a few leaves of the outer leaves of cabbage. Using the smaller and medium leaves for the rolls.

Place a spoonful of the rice mixture onto each inner cabbage leaf, roll up, tucking in the ends and place in the pan. I like to trim down the centre rib of the leaf to make rolling easier.

Pour tomato juice over the cabbage leaves. Cover and bake in a 350 degree oven for 1-1/2 hours until tender.

Kath’s quote: “In grandma’s cooking, ‘a pinch’ is code for ‘as much as your heart desires.’”

Loved never fails.

It was our last full day and there was another gorgeous sunrise to get it going.

D made a sensational breakfast. He is a trained but uncertified chef. What he is particularly good at is repurposing leftovers in fresh and novel ways. Good thing, as we had a fridge full of food that we needed to use and distribute. He learned this when we owned a number of buffet restaurants back home.

I was glued to the suite. I wanted to soak everything in and bottle it up until our next travels. Plus, I only had a 1/4 left of my book and I wanted to finish it before we left.

During our twnty years visiting the island, I was always told to stay out of the ocean on the east side. I spotted someone enjoying the crashing waves that day. Joe had great water shoes to protect against the coral and enjoyed walking into the surf too.

We walked into Centro for our last sunset. I am so blessed that D and I love so many of the same pleasures in life. He is the reason we get to travel as often as we do. His hobby is finding affordable airfare, packages and offers and he has us listed on Home Exchange now, so we are trading our city and lake homes with other folks wanting to do the same. He is not yet retired, but can work anywhere in Canada, so we have a fabulous west coast adventure coming up this fall.

I always seem to take more photos closer to departure day. I guess it is my way of storing up these memories. I must have 1 Zillion sunset photos but it is never enough. I am always on the search for that “not to be missed” shot.

Many years ago, we made the mistake of not taking food with us to the airport. We paid a fortune for a ghastly pizza and so now we always plan ahead. We had declared Sonny’s was our favourite pizza on this this trip so we returned for dinner that evening.

We met my sister Sue for good byes and ice cream at Cafeteria Juanita la Bendicion , the blog link is attached.

We savoured our last glass of wine under the stars. Isla you give me so much. Each and every time.

Departure Day: I am never sad when I have to leave the island because I know that it will always be part of my life (in some way or another).

Our normal routine was followed that morning- D at tennis, me putskiing ( a made up word) and enjoying my last coffee while gazing at the turquoise sea.

After another yummy breakfast, we divided the spoils of our bar and kitchen and took 2 cabs in opposite directions.

Joe and Deb to join friends at Punta Sur and us to the ferry.

It was a rather uneventful way home.

What did I come back to? My D (husband for almost 40 years), my six wonderful kids (including 2 SILs and a DIL), my five amazing grandkids, my enormous family (50+), two homes (one in the city, one at the lake), my one church, two gardens to tend, satisfying work to do and hundreds of Isla pictures and thoughts and a thousand precious memories. There, I counted my blessings….

Kath’s quote: “Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”― Terry Pratchett

Love never fails.