home sweet home

whirlwind. that's the word i would use to describe our trip to canada. 5 weeks seemed like a really long time when we booked flights and told our bosses "we're outta here". but alas, it seems that 5 weeks is a mere drop in the bucket when you live across the world from the people you care about.

we arrived in vancouver after a nervous evening of flying (mostly due to a passport "issue") and a ridiculous 14-hour flight on air canada. neither of us slept much. i was concerned that we would be jet lagged, but when you see your family for the first time and have little people running over to you to shower you with hugs and kisses, all of the fatigue kind of goes away. we sat around the hotel area for a few hours (less sitting, more standing. 14 hours on a plane, 24 hours of travel after all) before we hoped into a few mini-vans and took off for the north. the sunshine coast. the lull of the car assisted in my short nap whilst driving up to the resort.

we had fantastic weather in bc, largely due to the sun dances we'd all been performing for the past few weeks. sacrificial sunscreen bottles also helped. the wedding took place the next day. it was the most chilled out wedding possible. we all woke, did our own things on our own time. approx 2 hours before the ceremony, we told the boys to "piss off" and headed down to help christine prepare. which took all of 20 minutes. and then another 15 to open the champagne.

the ceremony was short and sweet, with some laughter and some tears. the groom looked dashing and the bride, beautiful! champagne followed. then we hoped on a small boat and were whisked across the lake to the restaurant for some speeches and dinner. following dinner, we headed back to the resort, changed into our jeans and sweats and enjoyed some delicious desserts: chocolate fountain, fruit, cupcakes (really really good cupcakes). Some of us relaxed

 in the hot tub, to the sound of the guitar.

the next morning was a great day for a hike, so we took the opportunity. mount daniel was calling. fantastic views! the rest of the time in bcwas spent kayaking, relaxing, reading and playing with kids. on our last day, the clouds came back. clearly, we had only sacrificed enough sunscreen for the 4.5 day vacation.

john and i made our way to the bustling metropolis of hamilton the following day. a short trip to catch up with old mates from school and reminisce about the good times we'd had then into toronto for 2 days of shopping and catching up with more friends. then we hoped a plane to montreal. john stayed in cornwall for 3 days before i shipped him off to the east coast, where he stayed for 2.5 weeks.

 i stayed in cornwall for the better part of my holiday. thanks to the weather, i was able to go for great runs, laze by the pool, play with babies, improve my tan, get a bit of reading done and see glass tiger (yes, i said it). i caught up with friends, and family. we had a weekend of excitement when we surprised my parents for their 40th (yes, 40th). sneaky little bergeron's we were. they had no idea! we were only missing john and rich (they'll be photoshopped in later). the next day, we made our way to the campsite- s'mores, songs, spider dogs. what more can you ask for?

my time in cornwall ended with a short stay in ottawa with my mom and monique. lots of shopping and an overnight stay later, i left for the east coast to meet john.

our last weekend in canada was in pei, where we attended another wedding. great weather, great location. so similar to the west, yet so entirely different at the same time. the wedding was wonderful and we were glad we made it. a few days of unwinding later, we jetted off vancouver to begin our return trip. much too soon.

2.5 more days in vancouver, serious shopping and sushi eating (not by me), hiking and running later, we had to leave. we got on our flight, 15 hours this time, and settled in for the ride. luckily, we slept. arriving in perth, we were surprised at how chilly it felt in comparison to our warm canadian summer, were shocked at how broke we now are, were sad to have said goodbye and were happy to have our own bed to sleep in again. we've jumped straight back into life: me, working full time. john, enjoying the last 2 weeks of his winter break, getting all sorts of random things done and working a bit before he heads back to school.

funny though. as i sat here thinking of a title for this post, i realized how strange it was to say "home sweet home". when john and i were preparing to leave for canada, we told everyone that "we're going home". and yet, when we were leaving canada to come back to australia, we also said "it'll be nice to get home". i know that home is where the heart is, but what if your heart, like mine, is in many places? guess i'll never be home, but always be home at the same time.

we miss you all already and can't wait for you to come visit us this time.

xo