Merry Christmas

and all the best of health and happiness in 2009.

Cheers,
Anne

Firefox not IE, Please!

This article says it all. Down with IE and up with Firefox.

I apologize in advance for the article ... it is a little more technical than the usual posts on this blog AND it is well worth reading.

Get Firefox. Do it now. Please. It is free!



Firefox for Mac
Firefox for Windows
Firefox for Linux

Oh Canada

This comment from a Globe & Mail reader in response to this article about the machinations of our Conservative government pretty much captures the feelings of many voters.

Read the article here. High Risk Mortgages Crept North.

The Angry Left from Canada writes: The Harper Conservatives aren't 'the best of a bad bunch', as they would like you to believe. The Conservatives, like the Republicans down south, like the Harris PCs in Ontario from which Harper draws much of his cabinet 'talent' thrives by sowing dysfunction, breeding cynicism and spreading lies. Their main strategy consists of discrediting government by governing irresponsibly.

When Harris was in power here (in Ontario), his strategy to 'fix' education was to engineer a crisis in order to come in as saviour and force their own agenda down everyone's throats. The strategy is simple. Antagonize your opposition, when they react, belittle them, infantalize them, paint them as 'irresponsible' and 'greedy'. Negotiate in bad faith. Paint anyone who takes sides with the opposition as crazy and unreasonable. Push the entire system past the tipping point and break it, presenting your own agenda as the only 'reasonable' solution. This is their approach to healthcare, education, nuclear safety, the civil service, Parliament. Why should it come as any surprise that this is their approach to the economy?

The Conservatives aren't the best of a bad bunch, they are the bad apple that spoils the entire bushel. If Canadians are stupid enough to mistake them as the best of a bad bunch and hand them a majority, Canadians will pay dearly. I still believe the coalition will go ahead sooner or later. I think the three opposition parties will be able to govern more effectively than this gang of buffoons. The Conservatives are buffoons. They govern by sowing division, stoking crisis, breeding cynisism and destroying trust. That's all they know and they will never change. They are hard-wired this way.

Arrecife, Canary Islands

Our day in Arrecife was very relaxed. It was bit overcast, but the weather was great for just wandering around and enjoying this beautiful little town.

We wandered a bit, stopped to have our picture (out of focus) taken by a friendly tourist then enjoyed a drink in a sidewalk cafe and watched the world go by.

One bit of interesting trivia, the Canary Islands are not named after little yellow birds. "Canary" derives from the Latin word canis, "dog", and the name Canaria was given to one of these islands because of its population of fearsomely huge canines.

One more bit of interesting trivia ... the Greeks believed that the gods sent virtuous souls and particularly blessed mortals to these Isles as a sort of super retirement home.

After Casablanca? Agadir, Of Course.

The original city of Agadir was destroyed by earthquake in 1960 killing an estimated 15,000 people. The new city has been built 2 km south of the destroyed Kasbah. The market here was the high point for me. To see the spices and olives in such abundance was amazing.

We were treated to a visit to a tourist centre and offered camel rides and an opportunity to play with ... of all things ... snakes. Thanks, but no thanks.

Casablanca, Morocco

For me, the most memorable part of our short visit to Casablanca is the Hassan II Mosque. I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

Malaga, Spain

A very quick tour of some highlights from Malaga, Spain.

La Alcazaba is an 11th century fortress originally built by the Moors on top of an old Roman fortress.

Gibralfaro, another fortress and right beside La Alcazaba, this one from the 14th century.

And, of course, a cathedral, built in the 16th century.

Travel Trivia Warning: The cathedral is called La Manquita or "one-armed woman", because it was originally designed to have two towers. As often happens, the project went over budget and they ended up building only one tower.

Fortunately things like this don't happen today! Ha ha.

Vacation Images - Barcelona

Ready for some vacation pictures?

We've been gone for two weeks, visiting Spain, Morocco, Portugal and Gibraltar. Since I came back with over 1,200 images, I thought it might be a good idea to select just a few.

Here are some shots from our first day in Barcelona, Spain. We were fortunate to have beautiful day to explore the old town, Las Rambles and the waterfront - with locals relaxing & enjoying - and the statue of Christopher Columbus pointing to North America.

More to come tomorrow ...