At the Maid of the Mist

Every person who gets on board of Maid of the Mist will get a blue plastic cape. I heard these used to be yellow before, in the late 80's. The boat will take people as close as possible to the Niagara Falls, passing at the same time the US falls as well, which I think is prettier and easier to admire and take photos of than the MAIN falls :) (check the third photo).

I think this is what you have to experience once in Canada. 

In Estonia, I think you should experience saun.

More about the Maid of the Mist HERE.

Niagara Falls

I was lucky to go on a little trip with another camp teacher and my good friend to Niagara Falls. So this is how it all looked like - huge casinos, massive crowds and powerful stream of water. The most exciting part is when you are going close to the water with The Maid of the Mist. Next post will reveal some of that excitement :)

Temporary job

Well, the camp was over and I could help out my friend with cleaning his household, which desperately needed help! Pictured is one room, but this and five times more and then you will get the space which had to be cleaned. I do not know where did I put all these things, but in the end it looked wonderful - everywhere.

Photography exhibition

My skills were put to a good use while I had a chance to teach some photography to children and youngsters. Here is a shot of the opening of the exhibition where the best works of each student is presented. It was pretty neat and fun. At least something :)

Farewell, the camp!

This was the last sort of light thank you event and look what we can do event called valguspidu. There few camp leaders, including me, heard that their assistance is no longer needed, they were given a lousy water bottle (which lid doesn't hold water) and basically we could f off! I had a little background, but no need to discuss that here, just I hope Doughty clan are happy and just know karma makes it go around :)

Estonian

The whole idea of Seedrioru camp is to bring young local Estonian-Canadian together and teach them some Estonian. Sometimes it got as good as this. But that's a start, right?

Rafting!

This was my first time going to white wash body rafting, which basically is you sitting on top of a tire and going down on rapid water. This was if to ask me, pretty dangerous and I got hurt quite a deal, but it was fun anyway. Here I am with two girls from my group BEFORE the ride.

Hot Estonian Boy!

This handsome man is fluent in Estonian,but is a Canadian with a remarkable Estonian background.

We do not have such nice and handsome boys in Estonia!!!

Up high

Sean and Karolin did it, I am next :P

Karolin

So the evening got wild, Karolin end up in the bushes on a shopping cart. We didn't hitchhike it, as it was already there ;)

Waterloo

We were able to visit Waterloo during our second week off-days. We were lucky to meet Sean, who showed us around and took us places we even wouldn't imagine going. There is more to share.

Water slide

This was the boss of the camp.

We got to experience the water slide, first time for me on a huge plastic covered with soap water. Yayyy!

Party

Parties in Seedriorg were one of the best summer parties ever!

Justin Bieber pinata

Yeah, Justin Bieber pinata's. Wow.

We have nothing like that in Estonia. No Justin Bieber's either.

Drivers

This kind couple dropped us off after a short ride with a cab driver from Russia, as he had to turn away to another way. We were really lucky to end up with these nice people. They drive a Saturn. While in Estonia I had no idea that there is a car brand called like that. Very exciting.

Hitch-hiking

Shortly after that we had to get home. We decided to hitch-hike, as Seedriorg wasn't so far and there are no buses going there. Let's live a little.

Barbecue

After chilling by the pool we went to a barbecue, we were the only girls. There were some great people, but not much to eat, I think we arrived too late, but we were able to experience Canadian lifestyle. The smiley guy in the center was our kind host :)

By the pool

Our host arranged for us to chill by the pool, which was a complete surprise, as we didn't have nothing like that in our mind, but since the summer was hot, it was great to dip in and chill. Not a common thing in Estonia, that the building management has a pool for the inhabitants.

Guelph - few days off!

We got a weekend off and I was lucky enough to get few days off with Karolin. Who seemed to be the most popular girl in the camp. We met our host for the night, if I remember correctly and he took us out in the evening to show some of his city.

We end up at his friends place, having few pancakes and Karolin played some guitar for them. 

Mennonite girl

I have forgotten her name, not even sure I heard, but here is a nice portrait of a Mennonite girl who is living not far away from our camp. Her family runs a chicken farm. We visited it and I must say for me personally that visit was a trauma...

Canteen

This is how the main hall at Seedrioru looks like. You can tell it is from the 50's, as the design and the decoration gives hints to that.

We are having our meals here, three times a day. Food is good and offers new experiences for me, such as Freezies, rice krispy squares etc.

Welcome to Seedriorg!

I will be working as a camp leader in Canadian-Estonian camp in the next month. Seedriorg is located on the banks of the Grand River in Southern Ontario. It has 62 acres for an overnight camp that host's a wide range of activities and programs for youth an teens of Estonian heritage.

For the opening event they  made a massive cake with Estonian flag colors and roasted the whole pig. Yuck, not a pleasant sight to see.

Mennonite girl

Here is a typical-looking Mennonite girl working at a market in Canada.

Mennonite market

The Mennonites are a Christian group. Over the years Mennonites have become known as one of the historic peace churches because of their commitment to pacifism. They are common in USA, Canada and many other countries. In Canada they are mostly on the southwestern part of Ontario. They are known as diligent and hard-workers. I visited the market run mostly by them. They are making the biggest cinnabons, I have seen, but didn't have luck to taste it. The markets of Mennonites are often a site of sights for tourists. 

Sunset at Killbear

Pretty isn't it?

Walk to the lighthouse

There was a nice evening evening walk to the lighthouse. Killbear at its best.

Canadian Shield

This is how most of the Killbear looks like. Canadian Shield here and there.

An eagle

I am not particularly sure if this is an immature Bald Eagle or a Golden Eagle.

Killbear Provincial Park

I think we stayed at Harold Point campgrounds, but I am not sure. Anyway, the park is large and interesting, offering lots to discover and experience. This is a shot taken on a high top on our nature track. More to come about this lovely park.

Variety

You can come across a true variety of different people at Wasaga Beach. Keep your camera close.

Wasaga Beach

On my holidays now, with a wonderful Estonian-Canadian family. Can't thank them enough for taking care of me and providing me things I could not even dream of.

This is Wasaga Beach a town, which is a very popular summer tourist destination, which already makes me a place not to hang out there. It is located along the longest freshwater beach in the world, at the southern end of Georgian Bay. Imagine 14 kilometers of sandy beach...and then think of all the people that are there as well. Interesting note is that Wasaga Beach Provincial Park is the first Provincial Park in Canada awarded the Blue Flag designation for its efforts to manage Wasaga's shoreline according to international environmental standards. Yay!

Read more about Wasaga Beach from Wiki.

In Estonia Wasaga Beach equals with Pärnu.

Quiet evening at Killbear

All the nights at Killbear were quiet and full of sun, an amazing place to be at.