Wild apple trees are reaping tasty fruits. They are often situated at the edge of the highway and on the end of farmer's properties. Guess who's sampling these 'pommes' (apples)?
The walk is very much up and down or in other words, hilly terrain. Some of the Quebec farmers are left in wonder as they see robes of a unique kind flapping in the air. Most of the area is populated with francophones. A large Catholic church can be found in each small community like Ste. Matthias de Bonneterre.
Conley is an anglophone farmer who told Doug and I of the problems he encounters when going through the U.S. border. Most have increased security concerns since Sept. 11, 2001. So you have authorities at the U.S. border being cautious (overly perhaps). Fear is an interesting thing. Maybe we should fear temptations (or maya) more.
The few broken sentences, or my attempts at French, prove successful in my communicating with people. People in this area, like almost everywhere appreciate the notion of pilgrimage. In Lennoxville the night before, the owner of the health storetreatedour small temporary party of four with the food we took from the shelf. We were ready to pay at the till and she said, "It's on the house." There is a lot of kindness on the road. This travelling is addictive. Quebec is completed.
45 kms
B L O G S P O T
Wednesday, 29 August 2007
Friday, August 24, 2007 Lennoxville, Quebec
There's water. There's earth. Together thy create mud. Mud is what the feet have to trudge through sometimes. Today was one of those days. When it didn't rain, the humidity was very high. Sweating was insatiable.
A man in his early sixties pulled over. He introduced himself as Jacques and asked if Simon and I wanted to go back to 1863, the time of the American Civil War. Jacques operates the old Capelton Mine which is open for the tourists. In the war, copper was used for ammunition and so the mine, closed in 1907, is now reopened for the public.
The words 'Free of Charge' were enticing and 8 degree Celsius in the mine sounded even more interesting. Some facts: 14 year old boys started 12 hour shifts; the average life span of a miner was 35 years old; a miner would earn $1.10 per hour (that was good money in those days). Donkeys, used as beasts of burden, in the cool, dark and dusty mines, usually died inide the mine. Rats were the alarm system. They were left inside and kept fed. If they would make a dash for the mine opening it meant they felt a shake in the rock and a collapse was coming. The mines were not regarded as a place for women, so superstition had it that if a woman entered entered a mine, a major tragedy would happen. When tired, a miner would take a cat-nap on a plank about one foot wide.
This was all intriguing to me and inspirational as to the energy of labour put in. You could not be lazy or crazy in the mine in those days. The mine was rustic and historic. Well worth seeing this kind of thing.
I'm out here to learn about people as much as I like to teach about spirituality.
On highway 108, a reporter named Perry Beaton, from the Sherbrooke Record (an English newspaper), came to take photos.
Guillaime and Caroline were our gracious hosts for the night in Sherbrooke.
38 kms
A man in his early sixties pulled over. He introduced himself as Jacques and asked if Simon and I wanted to go back to 1863, the time of the American Civil War. Jacques operates the old Capelton Mine which is open for the tourists. In the war, copper was used for ammunition and so the mine, closed in 1907, is now reopened for the public.
The words 'Free of Charge' were enticing and 8 degree Celsius in the mine sounded even more interesting. Some facts: 14 year old boys started 12 hour shifts; the average life span of a miner was 35 years old; a miner would earn $1.10 per hour (that was good money in those days). Donkeys, used as beasts of burden, in the cool, dark and dusty mines, usually died inide the mine. Rats were the alarm system. They were left inside and kept fed. If they would make a dash for the mine opening it meant they felt a shake in the rock and a collapse was coming. The mines were not regarded as a place for women, so superstition had it that if a woman entered entered a mine, a major tragedy would happen. When tired, a miner would take a cat-nap on a plank about one foot wide.
This was all intriguing to me and inspirational as to the energy of labour put in. You could not be lazy or crazy in the mine in those days. The mine was rustic and historic. Well worth seeing this kind of thing.
I'm out here to learn about people as much as I like to teach about spirituality.
On highway 108, a reporter named Perry Beaton, from the Sherbrooke Record (an English newspaper), came to take photos.
Guillaime and Caroline were our gracious hosts for the night in Sherbrooke.
38 kms
Friday, 24 August 2007
Thursday, August 23, 2007 Eastman, Quebec
Raccoons, skunks and porcupines take a major beating these days. I see lots of these little crearures dead on the highway every day. Their aggressors are automobiles of course. Quebec is a spacious territory. The Appalachian Mountains are now in our midst. The vistas are great. Bike trails are plentiful. I would walk down a trail with trees on either side, eat some trail mix and once the munching was completed, I would chant the Maha-mantra. What more could you ask?
At break time we went to Lac Libby, off of highway 112 close to Eastman, where I took a swim and ate some wraps.I also took a few moments to read a series of letters by Srila Prabhupada (my guru). This compilation was from 1972. One theme that comes across is the appeal by him to disciples to pay attention to details and always conduct excellent behaviour. One should never embarass one's teacher and bring ill repute. His warning was clear. It is something to hold dear.
Vedavyasa and Simon from Montreal joined us again today. The support is superb.
47 kms
Raccoons, skunks and porcupines take a major beating these days. I see lots of these little crearures dead on the highway every day. Their aggressors are automobiles of course. Quebec is a spacious territory. The Appalachian Mountains are now in our midst. The vistas are great. Bike trails are plentiful. I would walk down a trail with trees on either side, eat some trail mix and once the munching was completed, I would chant the Maha-mantra. What more could you ask?
At break time we went to Lac Libby, off of highway 112 close to Eastman, where I took a swim and ate some wraps.I also took a few moments to read a series of letters by Srila Prabhupada (my guru). This compilation was from 1972. One theme that comes across is the appeal by him to disciples to pay attention to details and always conduct excellent behaviour. One should never embarass one's teacher and bring ill repute. His warning was clear. It is something to hold dear.
Vedavyasa and Simon from Montreal joined us again today. The support is superb.
47 kms
Thursday, 23 August 2007
Wednesday, August 22, 2007 Granby, Quebec
Doug tells me a funny story."I contacted a local TV station this morning. As my french is very limited (bonjour & merci), I had difficulty
communicating with the first two people I spoke with. I told the third person I talked to that I was travelling
with a monk who was walking across Canada. She said she would get back to me. After a short while I recieved an
enthusiastic call asking when they could cover the story and by the way...."is it a monkey or a gorilla your
travelling with?""Excuse me?" I said."A monkey or a gorilla?""No, no--a monk...a holy person," I reiterated, at which point we both cracked up realizing there was a language
barrier.
Simon came out with Vedavyasa to join me on highway 112 at Granby. Eric Patenaude from L'Express came to the park
where we were picnicing to do an interview.
Our day was capped off with a home visit to Sylvain Oulette, who had stopped and talked to us on the highway the
previous day. He was familiar with us and our philosophy and had been to some of our festivals over the years. We
met his Chinese wife, May, and their one year old daughter, Satya. They asked us to conduct some chanting and we
happily did so.
45 kms
Doug tells me a funny story."I contacted a local TV station this morning. As my french is very limited (bonjour & merci), I had difficulty
communicating with the first two people I spoke with. I told the third person I talked to that I was travelling
with a monk who was walking across Canada. She said she would get back to me. After a short while I recieved an
enthusiastic call asking when they could cover the story and by the way...."is it a monkey or a gorilla your
travelling with?""Excuse me?" I said."A monkey or a gorilla?""No, no--a monk...a holy person," I reiterated, at which point we both cracked up realizing there was a language
barrier.
Simon came out with Vedavyasa to join me on highway 112 at Granby. Eric Patenaude from L'Express came to the park
where we were picnicing to do an interview.
Our day was capped off with a home visit to Sylvain Oulette, who had stopped and talked to us on the highway the
previous day. He was familiar with us and our philosophy and had been to some of our festivals over the years. We
met his Chinese wife, May, and their one year old daughter, Satya. They asked us to conduct some chanting and we
happily did so.
45 kms
Tuesday, August 21, 2007 Chambly, Quebec
Tuesday, August 20, 2007 Chambly, Quebec
I was always fascinated by bridges. For years I wanted to tackle the Jacques Cartier bridge because of its expansiveness over the St. Lawrence River. It certainly allowed me to see Montreal from a different perspective.
My walking companion today was Simon, a young musician who has played with bands on large ocean cruises. We spent considerable time chanting the Maha-mantra together to many melodies. Amongst the folks who stopped today nwas Sylvain Oulette of Marieville. He was thrilled to see us. I also met Nicholas Dubois of the 'Journal de Chambly,' a french newspaper. Yes, we are now in French Canada. One of today's milestones was Billie the parrot's introduction to french. Doug greeted some passerbys with a kind hello to which they responded "bonjour" at which point Billie replied "Bonjour.'
In the evening at the ISKCON Montreal centre we held a discussion about the soul's nature to be uniquely different from other souls, yet each soul shares similarities as well as individualities. Hence the philosophy of unity and diversity applies.
My day ended with a short walk chatting with two youth, Nanda and Manjari, and getting a good massage from two Bengali monks, Sachinandan and Antardwipa.
My weekend visit to the Georgetown, Guyana's first ever Festival of the Chariots was quite enjoyable. While there I met Georgetown's mayor, Guyana's Minister of Agriculture, and a prominent Muslim leader.
37 kms
I was always fascinated by bridges. For years I wanted to tackle the Jacques Cartier bridge because of its expansiveness over the St. Lawrence River. It certainly allowed me to see Montreal from a different perspective.
My walking companion today was Simon, a young musician who has played with bands on large ocean cruises. We spent considerable time chanting the Maha-mantra together to many melodies. Amongst the folks who stopped today nwas Sylvain Oulette of Marieville. He was thrilled to see us. I also met Nicholas Dubois of the 'Journal de Chambly,' a french newspaper. Yes, we are now in French Canada. One of today's milestones was Billie the parrot's introduction to french. Doug greeted some passerbys with a kind hello to which they responded "bonjour" at which point Billie replied "Bonjour.'
In the evening at the ISKCON Montreal centre we held a discussion about the soul's nature to be uniquely different from other souls, yet each soul shares similarities as well as individualities. Hence the philosophy of unity and diversity applies.
My day ended with a short walk chatting with two youth, Nanda and Manjari, and getting a good massage from two Bengali monks, Sachinandan and Antardwipa.
My weekend visit to the Georgetown, Guyana's first ever Festival of the Chariots was quite enjoyable. While there I met Georgetown's mayor, Guyana's Minister of Agriculture, and a prominent Muslim leader.
37 kms
Monday, 20 August 2007
Tuesday, August 14, 2007 Dorion, Quebec
Just beyond the bushes I heard tires screech, followed by a crash and then human voices boisterously confrontational. This is a common enough occurrence on the road and the sight of it seconds after the impact convinced me once again of the merit behind walking as the safest mode of travel. There appeared to be no human injury, only a volley of words between the motorists involved.
The scene of the accident (at rush hour when no one is able to rush) was Ile de Perrot just next to Ile de Montreal. Yes I'm now in Quebec finally with one day's reminder of backtracking in Ontario. The reason for the shuffle was that Doug's van needed mechanical attention (the starter failed). A visitor to the Montreal temple, Jean Andre Gallant, was my assistant for the day. Jean was a former Rainbow Gathering participant, meaning that he was one of those carefree-spirited tribal culturalists and now the Bhagavad Gita's read had adjusted his ways so that chanting, eating blessed vegetarian food and monk association are now his ministry.
One fellow, Carey, saw saffron flash in the air after crossing one of the bridges on Highway 20. He turned his car around, caught up to me and inquired as to why I was where I was. He had been to the temple on an ongoing basis but disagreement with administration deterred him from coming. I encouraged him to keep up the activity of chanting and to let bygones be bygones. "Visit the temple when possible and take a break from mundane consciousness."
I had experienced a good day starting from the Quebec border trekking through towns surrounded by cornfields and ending at passionate passageways.
My visit to Vancouver over the weekend proved to be enriching for me and I'm now back en route while so many people find themselves in the car rut.
When you're in a rut you can rot.
50 kms
Just beyond the bushes I heard tires screech, followed by a crash and then human voices boisterously confrontational. This is a common enough occurrence on the road and the sight of it seconds after the impact convinced me once again of the merit behind walking as the safest mode of travel. There appeared to be no human injury, only a volley of words between the motorists involved.
The scene of the accident (at rush hour when no one is able to rush) was Ile de Perrot just next to Ile de Montreal. Yes I'm now in Quebec finally with one day's reminder of backtracking in Ontario. The reason for the shuffle was that Doug's van needed mechanical attention (the starter failed). A visitor to the Montreal temple, Jean Andre Gallant, was my assistant for the day. Jean was a former Rainbow Gathering participant, meaning that he was one of those carefree-spirited tribal culturalists and now the Bhagavad Gita's read had adjusted his ways so that chanting, eating blessed vegetarian food and monk association are now his ministry.
One fellow, Carey, saw saffron flash in the air after crossing one of the bridges on Highway 20. He turned his car around, caught up to me and inquired as to why I was where I was. He had been to the temple on an ongoing basis but disagreement with administration deterred him from coming. I encouraged him to keep up the activity of chanting and to let bygones be bygones. "Visit the temple when possible and take a break from mundane consciousness."
I had experienced a good day starting from the Quebec border trekking through towns surrounded by cornfields and ending at passionate passageways.
My visit to Vancouver over the weekend proved to be enriching for me and I'm now back en route while so many people find themselves in the car rut.
When you're in a rut you can rot.
50 kms
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