Opinions
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The Burgos summer adventure |
by Dale Burgos
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Dale on the Pipe Mountain Coaster in Revelstoke B.C. |
Ninong Dale with his inaanak Dahlia and kumpare, Dennis de Jesus Jr., in Calgary |
Dale with Johnny of Johnny’s Maples Pizza in Winnipeg |
Summer vacation is sadly over for the Burgos’. Back to work, school, and reality (insert sad face emoji here). As crummy as it is, I am very thankful we were able to have the opportunity to have a summer vacation after two years of being apart from family and friends. I hope you were able to take the time to visit loved ones you couldn’t see since before the pandemic began.
As for our brood, we packed a lot into three weeks. We left Vancouver Island in mid-July and started to make our way east, eventually stopping in Winnipeg. In all, we made stops in four provinces for a total of almost 7,000 kilometres. It was an epic road trip full of family visits and fun.
Our first stop was in Revelstoke, B.C. to ride on the Pipe Mountain Coaster. Think of it as a solo ride on a roller coaster, except you have all the control while careening down the side of a mountain, while not wearing ANY safety gear. Needless to say, we survived and will gladly do it again.
Next stop was Calgary, home of the Stampede and most pick-up trucks per capita in Canada (this is not a confirmed fact, I am only guessing by using my eyes). Here we visited the majority of our extended family. Visited my inaanak, Dahlia, as she celebrated her baptism. You can call me Ninong.
We also took the time to do the only vacation-y thing, which was visit West Edmonton Mall’s indoor water and amusement parks. I still have the bruises from being thrown around some of the “funnest” waterslides known to exist. If you get the chance, this is a must-do experience. Alberta did not disappoint, even though we visited on their hottest days of the year up until that point.
Next stop for the Burgos Bus were gas stations in Saskatchewan. As you know, I have a love-hate relationship with that province. Not much to see on the highway, but oh my, it is an easy drive. Child #4 took the wheel for a bit and did great!
Upon arrival in Manitoba, we stopped at my sister’s acreage just outside of Brandon. There we reconnected with Ate/Tita Net, my brother-in-law, and nieces. We rode their little tractor, and I even had the chance to mow about two acres of land. This was particularly exciting for me as I don’t have a lawn in B.C. I’ve gotten my fix for another year until we can visit again.
The end of the road was Winnipeg and surrounding area. Our goal was to visit our granddaughter who turned two in August. We had only met her once before when she was just a week old. Visits with grandma, Lola, and Child #1 were also tops on our to-do list as we last visited as a family back in 2018. We got our fix of Lola’s yummy cooking and a BBQ with grandma. Life doesn’t get much better than that.
Since we’re on the topic of eating, we made sure to stop at one of my favourite restaurants in Winnipeg, Johnny’s Maples Pizza located in the Maples area. I desperately needed to have one of their Fatboy burgers. There is nothing like it anywhere else. I devoured that meal and enjoyed every second of it. Johnny himself stopped by for a chat and welcomed us back. If burgers aren’t your style, they have amazing chicken souvlaki or gyro pitas. And don’t get me started on their lemon rice soup…OMG!
The last leg of our trip was much more rushed as we just wanted to get home. After a quick stop in Calgary, we found ourselves back in B.C. in mid-August. Made it to the ferry with time to spare and in our own beds by nightfall.
This is the abbreviated version of our trip; there was obviously so much more that happened in between. In the end, we’ve made more memories and will hopefully have the chance to do it again next year.
Dale manages the communications department for a school district in B.C.