Having arrived safely in Ailsa Craig after some 28 hours of travel time, I had Thursday to rest and relax and get acquainted with the village and my host family, George and Barb Shea and their two resident children, Nick and Erica. George works on a farm and Barb is a reporter for the local newspaper, The Middlesex Banner. The family live just off Main Street in Ailsa Craig, well within walking distance of Cotton-by-Post and just about everything else in town! With a population of about 900 souls, Ailsa Craig is a charming community where cars are hardly necessary, especially for those of us who do not have them!
On Friday, our hosts Garnet Smalley and Suzanne Agnew of Cotton-by-Post took us into nearby London, Canada to do a bit of sightseeing and shopping. Our first stop was at the Covent Garden Market, a huge indoor marketplace stocked full of wonderful foods, novelties, crafts and souvenirs. The featured item was maple syrup, of course!!
Covent Garden Market, London, Canada
There was an ulterior motive for taking us to Covent Garden. The Market is home for “A” Morning, a local morning news magazine television program. We were collectively interviewed by Jeremy John as part of a feature story on the 2nd Annual International Quilt Show. Once the brief interview was over, we were free to explore the market, and it was a treat to see the variety of foods and products sold there – things we never see in Kenya.
Kenya Quilt Guild members on tour in London, Ontario, Canada
From the Market, we crossed the street and were taken on a guided tour of the John LaBatt Centre. The facility was empty when we were there, but it was fascinating to hear about how the staff can so quickly convert an ice hockey stadium into a rock concert stage or monster truck arena. We also enjoyed seeing the upstairs hallways where there were wonderful photographs of all the “stars” who had played there, and we were given a sneak peak into one of the private boxes. Needless to say, we do not yet have ice hockey in Kenya, although it’s most likely someone will one day decide we too need such a sports arena!
John LaBatt Centre, London, Ontario, Canada
On the far side of the John LaBatt Centre was a real surprise – this full sized aluminum sculpture by Tom Benner of a rhino standing in front of Museum London (formerly the London Art and Historical Museum):
Tom Benner's aluminum sculpture of a rhinoceros
Having been this close to a real rhino, I found this one a little hard to believe, but I was most amused to find it here!
After a quick tour of the Museum, we were whisked away for a marvelous luncheon in a private home on the shore of Lake Erie. The stunning autumn leaf colors, sparkling waters and crisp cool air partnered well with excellent fresh food and good company. Soon we were all feeling relaxed and comfortable; almost too comfortable to carry on with our tour of a nearby village and bus ride back to Ailsa Craig.
We had a wonderful day out exploring London and its surrounds and we were most grateful to Garnet and Suzanne for having organized this pleasurable trip for all of us.
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The tour of London sounds wonderfull I wish I had come early to join you.