Travelog for: Synapse

My name is Synapse, and I'm a travelling brain cell.



I am currently situated in a warehouse in Toronto, but soon I will be packaged up and sent to BC to meet my new owner, Abby.

As I am a brain cell, I would like to learn as much as possible, about different cultures and home-lives, and learn the history of everywhere I visit.

Please take care of me if I visit you.  I'm a little nervous; usually when I go anywhere it is with millions of my friends, but I have decided to be a brave little cell and see the world for myself.

I am currently in the general vicinity of my new owner's house, but I am locked up in a truck somewhere.  Hopefully I will be able to meet my new owner tomorrow.

Today I got to meet my new owner, Abby.  Dolly and Yum Yum were on hand to greet me...





And so was Abby's cat



And here I am!



Now that I'm here, I can't wait to begin my journey as the only travelling brain cell on ToyVoyagers :]

Tonight I went to the athletic banquet at Abby's school.  They were presenting awards to twenty-eight teams.



Abby was a little upset that she wasn't recognized for her cross country coaching, but her rugby team made up for it by giving her flowers; the entire team also received medals for doing so well this year.  I got to try it on.



And what pretty flowers!



There was also a barbeque, but there was so much going on that Abby forgot to take a picture of me enjoying my food.

Today was the last day of school before summer break at Abby's school.

Of course, there were grad pranks, pulled by the grade 12s who are graduating.

This smashed-up car was placed right outside the front doors.





This car was TP'd



There were balloons everywhere



And there was this in the office (we all know who did it, but we're not going to say who, only that AbbyB wasn't a part of it)







There was a party in one room to celebrate a group of people who completed a specific academic program.  Abby was a part of it, so we joined in.



There was lots of pizza



And cake! (IB are the initials for the program; the other two cakes said 'IB Finished' and 'IB Outta Here')



I got the 'I' from the pink cake



I learned all about Canadian grad traditions today!

Later in the day, we went to the hair salon, where Abby's best friend was cutting a bunch of her hair off to donate to an organization that makes wigs for cancer patients.  Look at how much she cut off!

Today I got to attend a very special event, Abby's commencement.

We went for dinner first, at the Old Spaghetti Factory, in Gastown.  The menu at each location is different, and has historical facts about the area on it.



These are all the locations.  Abby says that one day she'd like to visit all of them, but she's only been to five so far.



Then, we went to the Orpheum, where the ceremony was to take place.  The Orpheum was opened in 1927, and when it first opened, it was the largest theatre in Canada.  It was bought by teh city in 1974 and refurbished, and is now the permanent home to the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.  Abby forgot to tell anyone to take pictures of me in the theatre, but her sister was kind enough to do it.





Finally the ceremony started.  There Abby is, with the choir.  She's actually out front singing.  She doesn't want to toot her own horn, but she's very proud of herself, and you can watch the YouTube video here.



Here I am with her graduation certificate, composite photo and hat.

Today I learned about the sorts of things that grow in the Pacific Northwest.



Abby said that this year was a really good year for rhododendrons, and that they were everywhere a few weeks ago.  They also ahve some lilac-coloured ones, but they are not as pretty as they were.



Look at the size of these leaves!



Oh hello.  These gnomes are all over the front garden, and apparently every single one is named Smedvik.



Can you see me?



One solitary daisy



Poppies



Strawberry plants





I climbed lots of trees.  It was a little difficult, because I don't have limbs, only dendrites, but I managed.

A maple



A ginkgo



An apple



And a fig



Abby's family grows vegetables too, but it's a little early in the season for much.  This is their assorted lettuce patch.



Help!  I'm being eaten by a fish!



Haha, just kidding.

Tomorrow I am off to Montreal for a week with Abby's best friend.  Abby made me a little tag, just in case I get lost.  She tied it around my myelin sheath, but not too tightly, because she doesn't want to interfere with any impulses I might have.

PS: Neil, both Abby and I are liking how the new layout is looking.  Good job!

I'm back from Montreal!  It took a while to have all the pictures of me sent to Abby and to write up the posts for my travelog, but here they are.

After being unceremoniously dumped into a mailbox by Abby's dad, I was rescued by Beckie, who packed me in her carry on bag.

At the airport I borrowed her cell phone to say goodbye to Abby.



Here's my ticket



And off we went to Montreal.









At the hotel, I checked out some good places to shop and visit





The view from my hotel room

Now for sight seeing and shopping.



Riding the Métro



We ate here



And here





Beckie really likes Lush, so we had to visit.  I'm not a skin cell, so I don't care much for soap.



This boutique is off Rue St Laurent, which is known for its shopping



In true Vancouverite fashion, Beckie had to take a picture of me here



This is the health and social services building in the Latin Quarter



Then we walked along Rue St Dennis













And we arrived at the Basilique de Notre Dame de Montreal, named after the one in Paris, of course.



The original church here was built for the Roman Catholic Sulpician Order in 1672, but by 1824 the congregation had outgrown the church and Notre Dame was built in its place, in the Gothic Revival style.  At the time it was the largest church in North America.











The organ

















Then we went outside.

Then there was more sight seeing, but not before I helped Beckie eat a cupcake (Beckie and I agree that it wasn't as good as anything Abby would make).



Beckie isn't too sure about what these places are.





















At the end of the day, I tried to call Abby at home, but her phone was busy 

I went to a wedding!



At the reception.  Oddly enough there was no place setting for me.  Luckily Beckie could

make some extra room for me.





My vantage point in Beckie's dad's shirt pocket



I met the bride!



After a long day, it was time for a nap back at the hotel.

Next, we flew to Ottawa, the capital of Canada.

We visited the War Museum.  This car was parked outside.



Beckie later found out that she's not supposed to take pictures inside the museum, so shhhhh, don't tell anyone.  In our defence, we didn't know.

Part of the museum focused on eugenics.











Then we explored the rest of the museum.

This article is about Hitler.



And this is his car.



This is a cartoon about different war planes.





Medals







An article about Canada's navy at the end of WWII



Uniforms





Weapons





Vehicles



Posters









Rationing





A model of destruction





Army tank



And more weapons







This is a Dutch cartoon about the Canadians liberating the Dutch from the Germans



Parachuting





Abby says this is a typical Beckie photo.  Well, give me a hat and call me Che Guevera.



A model of part of the Berlin Wall



Uncle Sam on a magazine

Then, we moved onto the Museum of Civilization.  It's all about various aspects of Canadian

life throughout history.

This area is all about postal workers.









This area is about pioneer life.





I am sitting on hand-spun wool





Here is some of the stuff in Canada Hall





Mounties







Here I am posing with John Lennon, Yoko Ono and Pierre Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister

in 1969.



I feel sorry for this guy



Outside the museum, you could see the Parliament Hill.

We decided to get a closer look at Parliament Hill.





Rideau Canal.  It was built in 1832 and it is the oldest continuously operated canal in North America.  The Governor General of Canada, the Queen's representative, lives in Rideau Hall, which also overlooks the canal.





Inside the Parliament buildings.







Look at all those books











A tribute to Queen Elizabeth II



The House of Commons, where the Cabinet meets to vote on bills







Rideau Canal again



A view of Ottawa





This plaque states that there are fifteen Canadian flags visible from that area.



The tower in 'Centre Block'



And the view from there



The next day I came home.  Before I was returned to Abby I thanked Beckie for being such a good host.

Now I am off to South Africa to visit MrsC!