Canada and U.S.A. in 2004

A member of Servas Turkey ( http://www.servas.org/turkey ), Ismail, his wife Ayfer and their 10-year-old daughter Damla have receintly visited Canada and U.S.A. for 2 weeks. They departed from Istanbul early in the morning on July 19, 2004. They flew from Istanbul to
Paris Orly by Turkish Airlines (Boeing 737). From Paris Orly Airport to Paris Charle De Gaulle (CDG) Airport, they used the bus service of Air France. From Paris CDG to Toronto, they flew by Air France (Airbus 340). From Toronto to Vancouver, they flew by Air Canada (Airbus 320). The same day, late in the evening, they were in Vancouver. At the airport of Vancouver, they rented a car for 2 weeks. Since it was just one hour before midnight, they drove to a
motel in downtown area and stayed there for one night. On July 20, they called the member of Servas “Denise” and fixed an appointment in order to meet them in the evening at their house in Richmond, Vancouver. On July 20, they visited the Vancouver Aquarium, Stanley
Park, Prospect Point, Lynn Canyon Park, Capilano Suspension Bridge.

On July 20, in the evening, they met Servas Hosts “Denise”, her husband “Larry” and their 32-year-old daughter “Karen” in their house in Richmond, Vancouver. Damla had a chance of speaking French with Karen who is a teacher of English, French and Spanish. Denise and
Karen were speaking in Spanish with each other. They were our first hosts of Servas. Dear Denise, Larry and Karen, thank you for your hospitality and friendship. On July 21, they visited the old fishing village of Steveston, Canada's largest commercial fishing port,
Gastown which is Vancouver's first community and a heritage zone, at the western end of Water St is the world's first steam clock; you can see its works through glass panels and hear it toot every 15 minutes, Chinatown which is one of the largest in North America, and is second
only to San Francisco's, Dr Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, the only full-scale Chinese garden found outside China, and Vancouver Maritime Museum. In the evening, they had dinner with their hosts.

On July 22, they visited the McMillan Space Center and Vancouver Museum. Then they took the 13:00 o'clock Ferry from Tsawwassen to Victoria (Swartz Bay) and 15:00 o'clock Ferry from Victoria (Swartz Bay) to Salt Spring Island (Fulford Harbour). On the 15:00 o'clock Ferry from
Swartz Bay to Fulford Harbour, they met their friend Bob who was on his way to his house in Salt Spring Island. After almost 14 years, Ismail recognized Bob and Damla spoke to Bob first in order to surprise him. In Salt Spring Island, they met Gary who is the step-son of Bob, Gary's wife Lynda and their 9-year-old daughter Lauren. Damla and Lynda spoke in French all the time. Lauren and Damla communicated in body language since Lauren did not speak French
and Damla was unable to communicate in English. Salt Spring Island has about 10,000 residents. They visited almost everywhere on this small island including Mt.Maxwell Provincial Park, Ruckle Provincial Park, Cusheon Lake, Weston Lake, Farmer's Market on Saturday, etc.
They stayed in Bob's beautiful house for 4 nights. Gary and his family invited them for a dinner at a dowtown restaurant. And next day, they invited Gary and his family for a dinner at another restaurant in downtown. And they had lunch at Gary's house. After visiting the Farmer's Market on Saturday, Damla joined Lauren for her horseback riding course. Since it was a very hot day, they did not ride the horses but brushed them and fed them in their stables. Dear Bob, Gary, Lynda and Lauren, thank you for your hospitality and friendship. On July 26, they took the 12:00 o'clock Ferry from Salt Spring Island (Fulford Harbour) to Victoria (Swartz Bay). In Victoria, they visited the BC Aviation Museum and Buchart Gardens. In
the evening, they met their hosts “Alan”, “Linda”, their 7-year-old daughter “Morgan” and their 4-year-old son “Chase”. Alan prepared fish for the dinner and Ayfer help him for the salad. On July 27, they visited the Butterfly Garden, Undersea Gardens, Royal London Was
Museum, Parliament Buildings, Empress Hotel and watched a film on the big screen of National Geographic Theatre (IMAX). They invited Alan and his family for a dinner at J.J.'s Chinese Restaurant. Damla and Morgan spoke in French with each other. Alan and Damla also spoke in
French with each other. Morgan, Chase and Damla played games in the backyard of the house. On July 28, they visited the Royal BC Museum and Miniature World. Dear Alan, Linda, Morgan and Chase, thank you for your hospitality and friendship. Then they took the 15:00 o'clock CohoFerry from Victoria to Port Angeles. From Port Angeles to Seattle, it took them more than 2 hours to drive. They found a motel to stay very close to University of Washington. They stayed there for 3 nights. On July 29, they visited the Boeing Aircraft Factory which is the largest building in the world by volume, located in the city of Everett that is 40 km North of Seattle. In the afternoon, they visited the Space Needle which has a 600ft (180m) rocket-styled observation station and restaurant. They also visited the Museum of
Flight which is located next to Boeing Field (King County International Airport). In that museum, they visited the interior of Air Force One which served the President of the U.S. between 1959 and 1962, and Concorde of British Airways which was retired last year.

On July 30, they visited the Pike Place Market, the Seattle Aquarium, took the Argosy Cruises Habor Tour and visited the Pacific Science Center. On July 31, they visited the Woodland Park Zoo and after that they drove from Seattle to Vancouver, stopped about half an hour at
the border of U.S.A. and Canada. In the same day, they visited the Horseshoe Bay in Vancouver. And again, they stayed with Servas Hosts “Denise”, “Larry” and “Karen” for 2 nights. At Denise's house, they met Servas Members “Glenys” and “James” who are from Perth, Australia. On August 1, they visited the Whistler which is 125 km North of Vancouver. The Whistler will host the Winter Olympic Games in 2010. The Whistler has a population of 10,000 people and 115 hotel and motels that have about 5,000 rooms in total. On August 1, there were snow at the summits of the mountains of Whistler. Dear Denise, Larry and Karen, thank you again for your hospitality and friendship. Early in the morning of August 2, they left Denise's house. They left the rental car at the airport of Vancouver. The car was driven 1750
km in 2 weeks. From Vancouver to Toronto, they flew by Air Canada (Airbus 320), from Toronto to Montreal by Air Canada (Airbus 320).

From Montreal to Paris CDG by Air France (Boeing 747) from Paris CDG to Paris Orly by taxi. From Paris Orly to Istanbul by Turkish Airlines (Boeing 737). On August 3, in the afternoon, they were at their home safely, very tired and satisfied. The time difference between Istanbul and Vancouver is 10 hours. Thanks to everybody who made this holiday possible, enjoyable, valuable, unforgettable. They highly recommend all travellers to see and visit these destinations when they have time and energy.

With their best wishes.

Thanks.

ismail+ayfer+damla