Canada

On my last visit home to Canada, I had the pleasure of flying Air Canada from Tokyo to Vancouver in Business Class.

The cabin, and the seats on this plane were great, full laydown seats, in a relativley new cabin, very similar to Cathay Pacific's business class product. The service is maybe not as good as Cathay Pacific, but I enjoyed the food more, perhaps because it is catered to a Canadian taste.

I can't recall what was exactly on the menu, but I do recall the food was nice, and there was lots of it. Plus since I am Air Canada Super Elite, I got my first choice of what was on the menu, a nice touch to reward there frequent flyers.

The entertainment system is also top notch, with a large touch screen, loaded with tons of movies, and of course some Canadian content, which is actually nice when you have been away from home for a long time.

You get a ncie little ammenity kit, with everything you need to make your flight comfortable, and the nice self serve bar is a nice touch

I would put Air Canada right in the top of my favorite business class product that I have tried, right next with Cathay Pacific.

Posted by Jason Willock

Hard to believe it has been nearly a month since I left Calgary.
It was a rather short visit of just 10 days, and the time flew by, saw some friends, and family, but didn't get a chance to see everyone I wanted too.

Calgary is still my home, and I feel comfortable there, however I don't know if I could live there again, at least not anytime soon. I do miss a few things about Calgary, but the long winters, and the atmosphere of the city has changed, or maybe I have changed, it just felt like I didn't fit in there any more.

The job hunt still continues, with out a University degree it is difficult to find work in Singapore, as everyone has a degree, and that seems to matter more than real world experience. So I have decided I will start studying and take some exams to get some certifications, I haven't fully decided which path to take though.

In the mean time I have got a strange part time job, I just finished the first shift yesterday, it was a 60hour shift, which has me fly to Kuala Lumpur, pick up a couple boxes, and deliver them to Toronto, sounds sketchy right? It's all on the straight and narrow, it is for a courier company that does rush deliveries, when things are needed faster than air delivery from companies like FedEx or UPS.
It doesn't pay a lot, but I get to rack up the Miles, and since I have to leave the country once a month anyways, it saves on me having to buy a ticket somewhere.

I also got to fly business class on the way to Toronto from Hong Kong, that certainly increases the comfort level a fair bit, and if I do a couple more long flights like that, I will have access to the airline lounges, which are also very comfy, so I can still do some website work, and try to get some studying done. And I do enjoy people watching in Airports, it's an interesting environment.

It was also good timing, as I was going to be all alone for 2 weeks anyways as Tan had to travel for work, and I was going to have to leave Singapore in a week anyways, and had no idea where to go.

Not sure how many of these jobs they need done, I really don't think I could do them more than once a week anyways.

Well thats all from me for now.

Posted by Jason Willock

Well, I am writing this on the plane to Tokyo. I had a nice visit in Calgary, it went by too quickly though, as I didn't get to see everyone I wanted to. Oh well the people I missed will just have to come visit me in Asia.

I cleared out my moms house off the remainder of my stuff, shipping a couple boxes of stuff to Singapore, and donating, selling the rest.

I couldn't have asked for nicer weather during my time in Calgary, nice and sunny and hot, just the way summer should be!

Leaving this time seemed different, more permanent I guess, which is a strange feeling, but I am excited to try living in a new country, and of course living with Tan will make that easier.

I am excited for Japan, not sure what to expect, I wonder if that getting by with out any Japanese will be difficult, perhaps the most difficult of any country I have been to, but the plane is filled with non japanese, not sure if they are staying here, or just stopping here to reach there final destination. Anyhow I am sure I will get by, and have fun, and see some interesting sights. I don't really have a set plan, just a sort of idea of what I want to see. Three weeks sounds like a long time, but I think that will just give me a taste of Japan, and hopefully one day me and Tan can come back here, as I know she really wants to see Japan as well.

Well only 3 hours left of my 13 hour flight from Toronto to Tokyo, it has been a long day starting at 3:30am in Calgary on Tuesday, and when I land in Tokyo it will be 3:30pm on Wednesday, but I slept pretty good on the plane, so hopefully jet lag will be minimal.

Posted by Jason Willock

Wow, can't believe how quickly time is going here in Canada. Been quite a while since I have done a post.

I met up with Tan in Vancouver, and we checked out that city, it had been many years since I had been there, the center of Vancouver is still nice, a quiet place for the most part, I like it there. We then drove to the Okanagan, again it had been many years since I have seen that part of Canada. Very beautiful part of Canada indeed. It was so busy there because of the long weekend, the first night we had to sleep in the Ford Escape, as we couldn't find a place to sleep, but it wasn't that big of a deal. The weather was great there, the lakes were so nice and refreshing, maybe a little to cold for me, but Tan quite enjoyed it there. The fruit there is so fresh, we even picked some cherries, oh so tasty!

Then we made our way for the mountains, stopping over in Golden, we went to a little pub for a bite to eat, and a couple drinks, and it so happened there was a hip-hop show there, with a few Canadian acts from Ontario, so that was nice to see. We then saw Lake Louise and Banff, which Tan saw in the winter, so it was nice for her to see in the summer, it truly is a breathtaking place, and I was surprised to see how busy it was with tourists from all over the world.

Tan then just had a few days in Calgary, so I tried to fit in as much as I could, but there was still so much I wanted to show her here. We took a trip to Drumheller with Elena & Kevin, and then it was Elena's birthday, and we had a nice day out at Canada Olympic Park, and Bowness Park for a BBQ, it was a nice day. Then Tan had to head back to holland for work, I will meet up with her again in a month in Singapore. After I tour around Japan, it will be a long time away from her again, and will be tough, but I always wanted to go to Japan, and not sure if and when I would have the same opportunity.

For my next week here, I am busy trying to sell off some stuff, and to decide what to ship to Singapore, hard to believe that I will be living in another city, but we said we would try it for a year, and see how it goes.. So if your coming to that part of the world, be sure to let me know!

Posted by Jason Willock

A month back home flew by, hard to believe tomorrow I will be on a plane to Hong Kong again! Not really looking forward to the flight there, too long, I leave Saturday 11am Calgary Time, and get there Sunday 7PM Hong Kong Time!. I guess it might be ok, as I will probably be ready for sleep as soon as I get to the hostel, and that should throw me into a regular sleep pattern pretty quick.

A couple people have asked me what I missed most about home, and while I was walking the dog today, I thought a little about it.

Things I miss about Calgary:
Friends & Family, and just the comfortable feeling I have here.
Big Blue Sky
Clean Air
Mountains, even though I take them for granted
Wide open spaces, and nice parks.
Long Summer Nights
Alberta Beef!

Things I don't miss about Calgary:
Traffic - For a relatively small city, we have terrible traffic.
Cold Dry Weather. - My skin is craving humidity!
Short Winter Days and long winters
Huge food portions.
Lack of real nightlife.

But all in all Calgary is a pretty decent place to call home, and I am proud to be from here. I am sure I will thing of more things I miss when I am on the road again. But as of right now I am eager to get the Asian portion of my trip started. The Philippines seems like a great place, and I could see myself staying there for a while. This is another thing I am going to try to do, stay longer in one place, it was kind of hard to do in Europe, as there was just to much to see and accommodation was expensive, but I think I can take a slower pace in Asia.

Posted by Jason Willock

Well I pretended to be a tourist for a while. Tan came and visited for Christmas and New Years, and I put on my tourist hat, and got to see Calgary in the eyes of a tourist. Also went to Banff, and saw the sights there. It had been ages since I had been to Banff in the winter, it was really quite nice, it is amazing how much that area has grown, but at least there is so much natural beauty left.

It makes me want to travel and see more of Canada. I think because it is so close, and it will always be here, I never really bothered to see my own country. I will certainly have to try to make an effort to see it!

Hard to believe I have been here 3 weeks already, time has flown by, I take back off in 8 more days, I am excited to go back to new areas. I am really quite excited about the Philippines, everything I read about there is so positive!

I went out and bought a new backpack today. My old one was just a little to small to fit everything in, it was always a struggle to get everything back in, and there was hardly any room for me to buy new stuff. I again got one with wheels, as it is so much more handy to roll the bag along. New Bag Link

Other than that not much else to report, just going to enjoy my last week here with family and friends!

Posted by Jason Willock

Well just wanted to wish all the readers of my website a very Merry Christmas. It is nice to be home with family during this time, and fortunately the weather hasn't been too cold. Cold enough for me though!

I am looking forward to the next leg of the journey in Asia. I will be flying back to Hong Kong on Jan 12th, and will stay there for a few days before heading to the Philippines. It happens there is a big religious festival in a city called Cebu. It is called the Sinulog festival, and it is somewhat like Carnival or Mardi Gras. So I will take that in before exploring some of the 7101 islands in the Philippines. Looks like so many nice beaches! I may even attempt to get my SCUBA cert here as well.

Other than that not too much to report, just been spending time with my mom, and enjoying some home cooked meals! Looking forward to X-Mas and the New Years Eve Bash!

Posted by Jason Willock

Well it seems like I have been back in Calgary for quite a while, I was
starting to go a little stir crazy. But the time has finally come again for
me to take off again!

I am excited to finally get to explore Europe, there is so much I want to
see, hopefully I can fit it all in. I am going to try to spend more time at
fewer places, as I think that is the best way to get a feel for the culture,
but there is just so much to see in Europe that it makes it hard to just
stay in one spot. But I will play it by ear. I think I will be in Europe for
about 6 months, so if your planning on heading to Europe during this time
let me know and we can try to meet up. I am meeting up with my friend Mike,
and his wife Denise in Turkey in the middle of May, that should be exciting.

I will be starting in the Canary Islands, my first island is Gran Canaria,
where I will be staying in the city of Las Palmas, from there I am not sure
where I will go, there is a tour in Morocco that starts April 29th, that I
would really like to do.

Time to finish up packing, which was much easier the second time around, as
I have a much better idea for what to bring. I have a pretty long travel
schedule tomorrow, so tonight will be early to bed! I leave Calgary at
6:30pm on Sunday, and arrive at the Canary Islands at 10:30pm on Monday. Not
too bad I guess considering there is a seven hour time difference.

Posted by Jason Willock

Well not a whole lot to report, but I thought I would just do an update to keep people interested in coming to the website.

Weather here in Calgary has been temperamental, nice one day, crappy the next. Today for example as I write this, there is a ton of snow falling, thankfully it's not super cold though.

I am eager to get on the road again, there is certainly less anxiety this time around, as I have an idea of what to expect, however I have a feeling things will be slightly different in Europe. But less than two weeks to lift off, so I am getting a bit excited!

I was looking at getting a Pocket Translator but for a $1000 for all the languages I would want, I decided against it, it was just too big to carry around in my pocket. But it is pretty cool you speak into it, and it translates to the language of your choice, then the person you are talking to speaks into it, and it shoots out English.. They have some software that works for the Pocket PC, but it's only slightly compatible with my IPAQ since it doesn't work very well with Square Screens.

I did manage to find some other software that works with the IPAQ, you select what you want to say, and it speaks it in the language you choose. Unfortunately there isn't a way for the person to use the device to reply back to you. But at least it will come in handy when there is a major communication barrier.. I am thinking Europe should be fine, it's more S.E. Asia, China, and Japan that I am concerned about. Who knows by the time I get there, they may have a better device.

Well that is enough rambling for now.

Posted by Jason Willock

Well I have booked my flights for part 2 of my trip. The itch to get
traveling again is getting stronger each day.

I have been helping my mom tie up the loose ends and she is getting better
at coping with the loss each day.

I will be leaving Calgary again on the evening of April 8th, and starting my
travels again in the Canary Islands, It was a tough decision not to restart
back in South America, as I definitely enjoyed it there, but I hope to see
everything there that I missed at the end of my trip.

From the Canary Islands I will make my way north, getting to Turkey in May
to meet up with my friends Mike & Denise for a bit, from there I am unsure
where I will go, probably make my way up to Northern Europe, and work my way
South following the nice weather, and trying to avoid the insane crowds, and
the overwhelming heat.

Thanks again to all the well wishers, it meant a lot to me and my family.

Posted by Jason Willock

Yesterday was the funeral, it certainly was the hardest day of my life,
so many emotions, it was quite exhausting. It was good to see lots of
family and friends I hadn't seen in many years, it's just unfortunate
gatherings like that are usually under unfortunate circumstances.

It has been a tough week, getting the news in the middle of a Brazilian rain
forest, and being so far away from family was tough. Thankfully there were
some really nice people around me who helped me get back home, which was
quite a trek; a hike, train ride, two busses, and two planes. I got the news
on Saturday afternoon, and was home Monday afternoon.

At least the hardest part is over now (I hope), and now my main focus is
with my mom, and making sure she pulls through this time, and help deal with
all the logistics.

I want to thank everyone who emailed me, and helped me deal with this, it
means a lot.

Posted by Jason Willock