Brian Great blog. I have a question, which may sound rather silly, but my wife is urging me to ask. We are soon to be going with Gap to Puerto Maldonada for 2 nights (as you did) in January. I have heard it can be very wet, do they supply any type of Wellington boot, as we are travelling very light and have either trainers or sandles, When we did a similar trip in Borneo they supplied the wellington boots (and leach socks) otherwise it will have to be trainers. Now I have found your website can't wait to read further blogs Best wishes Brian

Issa Dear Cam and Nicole, I came across your website while looking at some pics for Jordan.. You guys should come to Jordan more often, it looks like you two loved it here.. Its always great to see how Jordan makes people happy.. Good luck and God bless A Jordanian Friend :)

Stephanie Oh I am just loving your shots of Germany and Europe! They are truly spectacular. I just loved the Christmas markets and the castles. I am going to show your album to Pat in the hope it might inspire him to want to travel and experience Europe this summer. I can hardly wait for you guys to get back and regale us with stories. Hopefully, you will be back for the Olympics? Thanks again for your wonderful travelogue!! (Guess I'd better stop dreaming and get back to work!!)

mom OMG! That video in Vietnam of the intersection is unbelievable!! When you said you took your life in your hands to cross the street - you weren't kidding!!

Court Loving the blogs guys! I finally got a chance to catch up on your recent weeks following my own cross-the-pond move. My fave picture by far is definitely the pick-pocketing kid at the Pyramids!!!! little brat! Cannot wait to see you both in a few weeks. I'll be in Cayman for a quickie visit between now and then, so let me know if you're craving anything and I'll bring it back! Court xx

Joyce Hi Guys --- Sure enjoying your updates and videos. Today at 6 pm they will be lighting the Olympic rings in Coal Harbour - this marks 100 days til the opening ceremonies on Feb 12/10. Darcy was one of the torch bearers and ran in Duncan on Sat. Oct 31/09. He was torch bearer #54. He brought the torch in on Monday and everyone got a chance to hold it. It is quite heavy but very beautifll. 12,000 torches are being made and the torch will traveal all across the North to the East Coast then come down south and then travel west, touching a lot of small towns along the way and arriving in Vancouver on Feb12/10 in time for the opening ceremonies. All the torches are made from recycled circuit boards - each torch took four installers and each torch is signed by one of the installers. If you get a chance log on to VANOC's website and see the medals and read the history - they are spectacular. Things are starting to ramp up about the Olympics. It hardly seems that a year has just about gone by since you guys started your tour. Enjoy the rest of your travels --- your blogs make me feel that I am right there with you. Take Care Joyce

Stephanie I am so enjoying your visit to Venice, I feel like I am there! It is a place that I have always wanted to visit. In fact it is on my list of 94 things to do before i die!! Again, lots of changes around the Board. Nemrita has moved to Toronto and we have 2 new AE's who are sitting next to me. Each of us are loud talkers, so it is a bit of a challenge. Robert, Rita and I are also working 1 day a week on renewals! Hey, did you hear the Pete and Kim are expecting another baby? I think that is great news - good people should replicate themselves! Pete has also lost a LOT of weight - I almost didn't recognize him at a DVBIA breakfast meeting recently. He says that he is just eating healthy and working out - jeez, if it was only that easy! Everyone is gearing up for the Olympics - we had a huge Furlong event last week with over 600 people attending. He was extremely inspirational and drove home the point that the Olympics are in fact happening now! Pretty cool, we still don't know how the Board staff will be able to participate -it is something that I hope we will resolve. Sue Paish is urging companies to second their people during the Games so I hope that it will also apply to the Board! The fall is spectacular here in Vancouver, cool, crisp, colorful but still mild - I'm loving it. Can hardly wait for your next update. Steph

Stephanie Hi you guys! Wow, the border affair - what an adventure! It makes me shudder to think how vulnerable Norh Americans can be when travelling in foreign countries - although you and Cam seem always to keep your wits about you. We had another AE leave the Board last week which is a tad disconcerting. She was really good - very vibrant, young and fun (guess that's why she left the Board - LOL!) I have been on holidays for 3 weeks and spent most of it at the cottage reading good books and hiking with my dog, Chance. On Monday, had an overnight party at the cottage with Candace, Stacy Townsend and Assunta - had a blast - no one stopped talking the entire time - had lots and lots of wine and we all ended up in the hot tub after hours. Still recovering. The Canada Line finally opened! I wasn't there for the grand opening but it is up and running and the public seem to love it. The Board had a reception there and invited a bunch of local luminaries to attend (Fiona invited Starbucks - yes, still working on that AC!). It's been a really beautiful summer, hot and even steamy for a few days. It's hard to believe that it's nearly over and that I have to go back to work on the 24th! As you can imagine, I am quite behind so will really have to work like a fiend for the next few months. Anyhow, just thought I would send you a quick note, I always read your blogs and enjoy them immensely! Take care - Steph

mom Hi Kids , just finished reading up on some blog entries, sometimes I hesitate to read them wonder why when i hear stories like the border stuff, I would be having a fit and scared to death. Sounds like Cam had a bad bug , maybe you need to lay low for some rest. I will attempt some more catching up soon, if my nerves can handle it . Luv Mom

Court p.s. The Tokyo photo album cracked me up - vending machines for everything, the cartoon wanring signs, the supermarkets and the unexpected lack of sushi places in Japan! All BIG reminders of my time there - I want to go back!!! Oh, and the cell phone in the bus/train thing: cell phones actually have a "Manner mode" (spelled out phnetically in Japanese characters) button - basically switches everything to vibrate or silent for you when on public transport. Man, I loved my Japanese phone!!! It would even light up and vibrate in time to the cell phone ring of your choice.. creepy. Ok, enough reminiscing for me!

Court Hey you two! I am once again caught up on blog-reading for the last few posts and am awaiting the next update!! I'm always so impressed by how much ground you've covered in what seems a very short time since your Cayman stop!! Life here is trucking along - no hurricanes this season - YET - so that's a good thing. I'm off to Edmonton next week for my cousin's wedding, so am looking forward to that time off the rock, not to mention near a mall. Recent weekend trips were Little Cayman (awesome!!), and Cuba (I got sooo sick!! Fainted in the airport from dehydration and lack of food... FUN! haha), so not the most enjoyable weekend.. haha In other news, I am looking into a move to the UK this fall. Likely either Edinburgh or London (although Edinburgh is by far my preference - especially the more I look into living in each city). So if things pan out, I might be over that way by the fall! *fingers crossed anyway! Take care, and keep the stories coming. Court xx

Stephanie Hi Nicole! I am so enjoying your blog and can't believe you are almost at the half way point in your years soujourn. Life is good here at YVR, Pat and I spend most weekends at the cottage in Cultus Lake and it is fantastic! Pat and I just got back from an Alaskan cruise and it was fabulous. We travelled with 15 of Pat's relatives - which was...interesting. One week on the ship and another week travelling. Took a bus up to the Yukon and was re-fascinated with the Klondike - what an unbelievable part of our recent history. The highlight for me though, was taking a dog sled ride with some of the actual Idatrod dogs!! So cool, our musher had placed 2nd in the Idatrod and 1st in the Alaskan Quest. He spent a couple of hours regaling us with stories of the race and the preparedness that goes into it. I loved the dogs but they look like junk yard mongrels - we always think of dog sled dogs as Siberian Huskies - but no, the real dogs are small, lean and of indiscrimate heritage! The common trait they share is that they have tremendous "heart" and absolutely LOVE what they do - it was so thrilling to see them in action - the energy was through the roof!! LIfe at the Board goes on with new account executives every day - at least thats what it seems like! I have two new people sitting beside me, Nemrita has moved back to the coffee room area and of course Kate has gone. Saw pictures of Tara's new baby- gorgeous little girl! Life goes on.... Looking forward to your next blog it is just excellent!! Take care - Stephanie

erap As for "a few large, westernized resorts", they cover 30% of the land on Boracay. The 2 tallest mountains were removed to accommodate them. Fairways and Bluewater, by itself, leveled an entire central island area and holds about 1/6th of total Boracay surface area, most of it a golf course. Really, I'm not trying to be a downer and am glad you're having a good time here. One thing about the flight cancellation... just some FYI: it wasn't canceled. All of the local carriers are selling tickets for fictitious flight scheduling and promoting "X" number of daily flights in/out of Boracay. They might plan 1 or 2 flights a day but sell tix for 6 or 7 and just pack those people in. Just keep that in mind if you're in need of a specific outbound time.