![Atrium of the North York Central Library, from the fourth floor (Monday) 20110404 1515](http://41.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lj56sgm0ZG1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Aircraft labelled as TCA Trans-Canada Airlines, hopefully for nostalgia and not a recommissioning of 1960s-era equipment (YVR Vancouver) 20110409 1445](http://36.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljengyHN0r1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Opening #ibmimpact playing Classical Gas, first guitar with string trio, then guitar rock band, then deejay scratching, finally with band playing on tablets. Venetian Resort, Las Vegas 20110411 0815](http://41.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljhvi6sONk1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Live demo on #ibmcloud responding to Twitter at #ibmimpact, so I got my tweet on the big screen. Las Vegas Venetian Resort 20110412 1200](http://41.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljjzc76gjV1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Trio playing at St. Mark’s Square at the Grand Canal at the Palazzo Resort. Lighting is all artificial, probably darker than outside right now (Las Vegas) 20110412 1845](http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljkieg3kJ91qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Last chance for gambling before leaving Nevada by air: slot machines at airport international terminal 2, attended by a cashier offering change. Presumably few people leave with bags of coins. (Las Vegas McCarran Airport) 20110416 1015](http://41.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ljr94ejbOC1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Heavy Weather, a group of heavyweight Toronto musicians coming together for fun to play Weather Report jazz (The Rex, Toronto) 20110421 2200](http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lk2f75ad031qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Sherbourne Commons, south of Queens Quay East, under construction in the spring on Flickr.Sherbourne Commons, south of Queens Quay East, is still under constructionin late April 2009. The ditch doesn’t have water flowing, and the sign for No Wading in the pool is superfluous (Toronto, Sunday) 20110424 1700](http://36.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkc7yogI8v1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
![Scarborough Beach boardwalk, April sunset (Toronto, Wednesday) on Flickr.Boardwalk at Scarborough Beach, unseasonably warm evening, eye between tworain alerts. Walkers and cyclists out, light at 8:15 pm (Toronto,Wednesday) 20110427 2015](http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkdxvmQCiB1qzaxf4o1_500.jpg)
Back towards the city centre, we returned to a favorite haunt from our past: Granville Island. We negotiated the usual traffic jams to park on the dock, facing the Burrard Bridge to the northwest. The place essentially hasn’t changed much in 25 years.
Looking to the east, it’s possible that all of the towers in the West End weren’t there in the 1980s.
Inside the Granville Island Public Market, the berries and fruit always look great.
We made a habitual stop to Seafood City for cold barbequed salmon. It’s local cuisine out west, and a treat for visiting Easterners. Continue reading “2009/07/22-27 Vancouver family stopover“
Stopping overnight in Armidale, we were rudely reminded that July is Australian winter, with an overnight temperature below freezing. From the middle of the Northern Tablelands, the second day of driving through mountain ranges, leading to gradual descent.
We were making good time on the second day. I calculated that if we aimed for one of the most northmost wineries in the Upper Hunter Valley, we could arrive in time for a 2 p.m. tour. A brief stop at the Muswellbrook Visitor Information Centre clarified directions to Cruickshank Callatoota Estates, since they had moved within the previous year. Off the main roads onto side roads, we navigated up a long drive to find a modest operation, with a small tasting building.
We were welcomed by one of the partners of the estate, who said that the scheduled time was just for publication, and tours can be given on request. He explained that the business is essentially run by two partners year-round, with itinerant help to work the land, and bring in the grapes at harvest time. The winemaking process begins with grape vines run through a destemmer.
When the harvest is brought into the main processing building, the grapes are put into a press where the juice is separated from the skins. Continue reading “2009/07/18-19 New England Highway (Brisbane-Hunter Valley), Cruickshank Estates, Eastwood“