August 7, 2012 – Killarney Lodge, Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada, 8:00 AM

Spent my first night at this beautiful cabin last night.  Awoke at 6:30 AM and walked down to the visitors’ lounge for a cup of coffee.  I did not see another person on my walk there.  Everyone here must not be early risers.  The lake is calm and I can hear loons calling.  Idyllic is the descriptive word for these surroundings!

I left the big city yesterday after spending 3 nights with Doug and Randy Hembruff in Randy’s home in the Scarborough area of Toronto.  After a slightly stressful ordeal at the car rental facility (I left my car insurance cards at home.), luckily my credit card provides rental car insurance, I set out driving the 180+ miles to Algonquin Provincial Park.

On the way, I thought about how gracious the Hembruffs were to open their home to an “online” friend.  Doug and I have been FB friends for several years and we talked about how we portray our genuine selves on FB, rather than projecting a false persona.  We are who we are in real life or on FB, and it’s very refreshing to “know” someone well through an online friendship even though you’ve never met face-to-face.

Doug and I went into Toronto on Saturday to the CN Tower to have dinner at the 360 Restaurant.  We arrived early and were able to be seated at a table right by the massive windows, viewing the city and lake as the restaurant made its complete 360 degree revolutions.  We enjoyed a bottle of wine and a four course meal while comparing our lives in the USA and Canada, and getting to know each other better.  After the meal, we toured the outside viewing area and walked over the glass floor, where one can look down through the glass, giving the impression that there is nothing between yourself and falling!  I walked about on this glass, but it took my breath away and I could never escape a slight feeling of anxiety.

Doug and I enjoyed the CN Tower on Saturday and the Picasso exhibit at the Art Gallery of Ontario on Sunday.  The exhibit covered all the phases of Picasso’s life and we came away from it well informed about his work.  His female forms are truly confusing because I find them insulting to the beautiful women in his life.  Doug thinks Picasso must have been a fairly creepy individual, and he’s probably correct.  I believe he was a genius artist who pushed the envelope on what was considered acceptable in art, and for that I’m grateful.  Art should invoke emotion, and Picasso’s work always does.   After viewing the art, we had a relaxed meal at the Village Idiot Pub, a corner café right across the street.  We drank Canadian beer there and had a long conversation.  Doug is easy to talk with, and I appreciate his insights and thoughtfulness.  The entire visit, he was extremely thoughtful about my comfort and my preparedness for the rest of my travels.

I stopped a couple of times on the drive to Killarney Lodge. once for lunch and internet access near Barrie, Ontario, and then again in Huntsville to purchase suntan lotion and a couple of bottles of wine to have with my dinner here at the lodge.  They do not have a license to sell alcohol,, so guests bring their own and the lodge keeps it for you and serves it upon request.

I met the couple in the cabin next to me who are from Oakville, Ontario – Ann and Georg.  Ann has a home childcare business and George works as a mechanical engineer in a manufacturing firm.  They are really friendly and nice, so we all had dinner together last evening. 

After dinner, I explored the guest lounge where there are games, books, newspapers, magazines, tea, and coffee available 24 hours a day.  They have several books on the “Group of Seven” – a group of Canadian artists who are famous for Canadian landscape paintings.  I borrowed a book on them and have been reading it today.  Tom Thomson was an “unofficial” member, but he was the main inspiration for the group.  He died in Algonquin Park while swimming in Canoe Lake – apparently his death is surrounded by mystery, and I’ll have to research all of thr story eventually.  Doug and I had viewed the Group of Seven landscape paintings at the AGO on Sunday, and I feel in love with Tom Thomson’s work, as well as A.G. MacDonald’s. 

It’s around 3 PM now on my 2^nd day here.  I’ve had 3 massive meals at this place.  I just returned from lunch of cauliflower soup, beef medallions with pasta and vegetables, green salad, and maplenut ice cream.  I’m stuffed!  I was thinking of going on a hike this afternoon, but I’m going to take a luxurious nap instead.  I still have Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to explore the beautiful park!