Watching the royals
26/09/16 05:23
I’ve never been much of a royal watcher. I understand that the monarchy is a big deal in England and the royal family is carefully watched in other countries of the British Commonwealth. I have close Australian friends and I agree with them that Queen Elizabeth II is a remarkable woman. Crowned just before my birth, she has shown amazing grace and dignity throughout many decades of changes throughout her reign. There are a dozen countries that have become independent nations curing her reign, and in most of them, she is still revered as queen. Still, I confess that I really don’t understand the monarchy and why any country needs a royal family. I’m very comfortable living in a country where we have a President and former presidents, where the head of state changers on a regular basis regardless of how much I complain about the process of campaigning.
It seemed that the wold world was caught up in the spectacle of the marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in the early ’80’s and their divorce in the mid 90’s. Diana’s death was a matter of international news and her funeral a huge media event. I sort of paid attention to some of the things, but never got into the scandal and rumors about others. It seemed to be a huge tragedy, but I didn’t feel enough association with them to cry.
I do, however, confess a wee bit of envy of the royals this week. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate and their two children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are having what seems to me to be a dream vacation. They are spending eight days in one of the most gorgeous places in the world, British Columbia. Saturday they flew into Victoria on Vancouver Island. After a night’s rest the royal couple boarded a Harbor Air Twin Otter floatplane for the hop over to Vancouver where they visited the Immigration Services Society of British Columbia for an event to celebrate young leaders in Canadian arts, music, sports, charity, business and film. Later yesterday they got to visit the Kitsliano coastguard station.
I’ve been to Victoria and Vancouver. They are beautiful cities. I’ve sat on the waterfront in Victoria watching the floatplanes come and go. I’ve never had the opportunity to fly on one of them, but I’d sure love to. William, being a rescue pilot himself, must have really enjoyed the trip on the iconic twin-engine floatplane. The view has got to be spectacular and he would have been allowed to discuss the flight with the pilots.
I’m very interested in the multicultural climate of Canada. Canada has resettled 25,000 Syrian refugees since November of 2015 and the royal couple got to meet a couple who just came to Canada in August of this year. They got to speak to the couple about their children and the struggles they left behind in Syria.
And I’m sure that William had a good time visiting the Coast Guard lifesaving station. Accompanied by Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Grégoire, they had the opportunity to meet with the crews and view all of the high tech equipment used by the crews who patrol some very rugged and isolated coastline.
Today they get to fly up to Bella Bella in the Great Bear Rainforest. I’ve never been that far up the coast. We were limited by the end of the highway at Powell River when we made our trip there a decade ago. A visit to the Heiltsuk First Nations community would be a fascinating way to learn about the tribes who have lived for centuries in one of the largest temperate rainforests of the world. The giant spruce, hemlock and Douglas fir trees and the wide variety of ferns and fronds on the forest floor fascinate me. The culture of those who have lived there is amazing.
Tomorrow it is off to Kelowna, a city we have enjoyed visiting and a tour of the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia, a site were we once attended a writers’ conference. They’ll tour Mission Hill Winery before flying up to Whitehorse to be greeted buy the Canadian Rangers. The next day they’ll visit the MacBride Museum and meet members of Whitehorse’s cultural community before traveling to Carcross as guests of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation people.
Back in Victoria at the end of the week, there will be a children’s party on the grounds of Government House. On Friday they will fly up to the coastal island of Haida Gwaii, home of the Haida Nation for the opening of a new hospital. They’ll also have a few hours of fishing on Hecate Strait.
As I said, I’m not much of a royal watcher, but this week I’m paying attention. Talk about a dream vacation. There are a few luxuries enjoyed by the royal couple that are beyond my means at this moment. I don’t spend much energy envying other people, but you’ve got to admit that this is a great trip!
So far the weather looks pretty good for them as well. The aspens and birch should be right yellow with a sprinkling of red maple leaves in the more southern locations. As they fly into Kelowna, they’ll see the brilliance of the Tamaracks beginning to change color. The gorgeous mountains of the coastal range will have snow on their tops and they’ll get a few glimpses at the glaciers as well.
Not only will they see some beautiful country, they will be seeing a lot of the diversity of Canada’s people. They’ve already met new refugees and First Nations people and dedicated public servants. They will be meeting with additional First Nations tribes, youth, people who have suffered mental illnesses and their families, victims of domestic violence and those who provide wilderness medical services.
Checking out their official schedule, it would appear that they have access to some pretty first rate childcare during their trip as well. Not every activity such as wine tasting and ocean fishing are places for the children. Still, I’m thinking the kids will have a lifetime of wonderful memories from the trip.
I’ll probably never be able to replicate such an adventure. I am, however, hoping for a ride in a seaplane one of these years.
It seemed that the wold world was caught up in the spectacle of the marriage of Prince Charles and Princess Diana in the early ’80’s and their divorce in the mid 90’s. Diana’s death was a matter of international news and her funeral a huge media event. I sort of paid attention to some of the things, but never got into the scandal and rumors about others. It seemed to be a huge tragedy, but I didn’t feel enough association with them to cry.
I do, however, confess a wee bit of envy of the royals this week. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate and their two children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are having what seems to me to be a dream vacation. They are spending eight days in one of the most gorgeous places in the world, British Columbia. Saturday they flew into Victoria on Vancouver Island. After a night’s rest the royal couple boarded a Harbor Air Twin Otter floatplane for the hop over to Vancouver where they visited the Immigration Services Society of British Columbia for an event to celebrate young leaders in Canadian arts, music, sports, charity, business and film. Later yesterday they got to visit the Kitsliano coastguard station.
I’ve been to Victoria and Vancouver. They are beautiful cities. I’ve sat on the waterfront in Victoria watching the floatplanes come and go. I’ve never had the opportunity to fly on one of them, but I’d sure love to. William, being a rescue pilot himself, must have really enjoyed the trip on the iconic twin-engine floatplane. The view has got to be spectacular and he would have been allowed to discuss the flight with the pilots.
I’m very interested in the multicultural climate of Canada. Canada has resettled 25,000 Syrian refugees since November of 2015 and the royal couple got to meet a couple who just came to Canada in August of this year. They got to speak to the couple about their children and the struggles they left behind in Syria.
And I’m sure that William had a good time visiting the Coast Guard lifesaving station. Accompanied by Justin Trudeau and his wife, Sophie Grégoire, they had the opportunity to meet with the crews and view all of the high tech equipment used by the crews who patrol some very rugged and isolated coastline.
Today they get to fly up to Bella Bella in the Great Bear Rainforest. I’ve never been that far up the coast. We were limited by the end of the highway at Powell River when we made our trip there a decade ago. A visit to the Heiltsuk First Nations community would be a fascinating way to learn about the tribes who have lived for centuries in one of the largest temperate rainforests of the world. The giant spruce, hemlock and Douglas fir trees and the wide variety of ferns and fronds on the forest floor fascinate me. The culture of those who have lived there is amazing.
Tomorrow it is off to Kelowna, a city we have enjoyed visiting and a tour of the Okanagan campus of the University of British Columbia, a site were we once attended a writers’ conference. They’ll tour Mission Hill Winery before flying up to Whitehorse to be greeted buy the Canadian Rangers. The next day they’ll visit the MacBride Museum and meet members of Whitehorse’s cultural community before traveling to Carcross as guests of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation people.
Back in Victoria at the end of the week, there will be a children’s party on the grounds of Government House. On Friday they will fly up to the coastal island of Haida Gwaii, home of the Haida Nation for the opening of a new hospital. They’ll also have a few hours of fishing on Hecate Strait.
As I said, I’m not much of a royal watcher, but this week I’m paying attention. Talk about a dream vacation. There are a few luxuries enjoyed by the royal couple that are beyond my means at this moment. I don’t spend much energy envying other people, but you’ve got to admit that this is a great trip!
So far the weather looks pretty good for them as well. The aspens and birch should be right yellow with a sprinkling of red maple leaves in the more southern locations. As they fly into Kelowna, they’ll see the brilliance of the Tamaracks beginning to change color. The gorgeous mountains of the coastal range will have snow on their tops and they’ll get a few glimpses at the glaciers as well.
Not only will they see some beautiful country, they will be seeing a lot of the diversity of Canada’s people. They’ve already met new refugees and First Nations people and dedicated public servants. They will be meeting with additional First Nations tribes, youth, people who have suffered mental illnesses and their families, victims of domestic violence and those who provide wilderness medical services.
Checking out their official schedule, it would appear that they have access to some pretty first rate childcare during their trip as well. Not every activity such as wine tasting and ocean fishing are places for the children. Still, I’m thinking the kids will have a lifetime of wonderful memories from the trip.
I’ll probably never be able to replicate such an adventure. I am, however, hoping for a ride in a seaplane one of these years.