Where's My Leica

A man selling flags at The Famous Square.

Next up is a common mode of transport. The ubiquitous scooter.

Third are guards at the Square

Finally, my main mode of transport while I look for a decent bike.

Here I am back in China. This is a slice of daily life for me now. The subway here is nuts. In the year and a half since I was here last, the lines have expanded like crazy. They still don’t go out to 798 though… (It is a famous art district)

So after 19.5 hours of airplanes and airports, I am in China. Beijing to be precise. I’ll keep this one short as I am tired and want to get a better picture that shows I AM in China, not an airport.

Going to the lake is one thing that I miss when I travel. It also seems to be a very Saskatchewan thing to do.

After driving back from Elfros, I stayed in the car again and made the 2.5 hour drive to surprise some friends at the lake. For Saskatchewan people, spending hours upon hours in a car to get away from the city is no big deal. Everything is far away. Taking a weekend road trip is a rite of passage here. One that I’ve made thousands of times over.

Welcome to Elfros Saskatchewan. Population – 110 as of 2006. The actual number today is probably less. It is just one of Saskatchewan’s small farming villages that is going the way of the dodo bird.

This is also the town where my mom was born and where much of my family lives or has lived. It is also where I spent many of my summers growing up.

Birch creek is where my cousins and I would hang out, under the bridge, causing trouble like kids do.

It is also where my grandpa taught me to shoot rifles and muzzleloaders.

I went there this weekend. It was my grandma’s 70th birthday. When I drove into town, a flood of old memories came back. When I was young, I’d complain about going to spend weeks with my grandparents. Now, I cherish it.

To all the grandparents in the world. You rock. Especially Charles and Elsie.

Clay, his son Andrew and I went out to Blackstrap to get the boat on the water before the snow makes it’s way here. Good day to be on the lake, and one of the things that I’ll miss when in China.

The sign is right. You don’t have to love this town, but you will. Saskatoon will always be home for me. I was born, raised and lived here for most of my life. Sure I took off for school. But I came back. Then I took off for China. AND came back. In little less than 3 weeks, I leave once more for China. Will I come back?

Probably. Will I stay forever? Unlikely. However, like I said earlier, Saskatoon will always be my home. Full of family, full of friends and full of memories. Good, bad and unforgettable.

Mix 24 people, 24 hours in travel time, three provinces and a 4000 sq ft boat and this is what you get. I have one more roll to develop and may have a few more pictures to put up, but here is a start.

This was the last big trip for me before I move out to Beijing. It was good to see everyone and meet a few new people. Rocking times were had as well as more than a few beers.

So what happens when someone you know has cancer and has to drop major cash to travel for treatment? Well if you are Bernie McAvoy, master bike builder and owner of Bernie’s Machine Works, You help that person out by cutting off your own hair.

Long story short, Dree is going through chemo, Bernie is a stand-up guy with good friends who like to party and drop cash for a good cause. Add beer, food, clippers and people.  I am not sure what the final total was but I think it was edging close to $3000.

Shoot, shoot, rain, sun, shoot, rain more rain. That seems to be all that is going on in Saskatoon right now. August 11th is fast approaching. Weeeee…..

I grab a longboard, my camera, a magic arm and pocket wizards. Still working on the technique but the mosquitoes were getting too bad.

House boat is fast coming. That means one last trip with the crew for a while. It also means that time is winding down with WAY too much to do before I leave.