Canada Trip Day 1: Uncle's Home & Garden

13th June 2010 - There was so much to talk about as my cousin brother greeted us at a passenger pick-up point with a 7-seater van, with two of the seats taken out for baggage. Metro Vancouver is beautiful as it is surrounded by snow-capped mountain ranges. I remember us crossing a bridge or two to get to Surrey from the airport. Most of the passing buildings I recalled seeing were residential, all nicely arranged in grids.

We pulled up at the front yard of a nice traditional but elegant Canadian house covered in insulated concrete form with an attached garage and a garden. My feet felt comfy to the thickness and softness of the carpeted floors. We were ushered to the living room where Leo was incessantly barking like any good watchdog would at strangers in its guarded abode. While his barks were menacing, he turns out to be a highly intelligent dog with an almost human-like, adorable and lovable character.

After we placed our bags in our room, I laid on the bed for a little while to rest. My aunt is super sweet. Summer is late this year and the weather was still chilly. She had nicely wrapped furry blankets over the sheets to better insulate heat in addition to the comfy duvets. She also readied a heater by the corner of the room in case we needed it.

Excited about the fruit garden that was so talked-about during my uncle and aunt's last return to Brunei in 2009, my mum asked of the garden. Soon, we were led on a tour to the fruit garden, which really is the backyard of the house. It was interesting to watch how temperate fruit trees grow and bear fruit. My uncle grows plums, pears, blueberries and wolfberries. He makes his own fertilisers using compost waste. He puts the food wastes into a lidded black bin and allows the wastes to decompose.

Leo, a mixed Pomeranian breed


Young plum fruits in bunches hanging from the tree


An eaten pear fruit hanging out of its tree


Tiny green wolfberries (goji berries)


Tiny purple flowers of the wolfberry tree


Young blueberries


My aunt showing my fruit-loving mum other fruit trees


A little excursion outside the house compound


Our cosy room in Surrey, nicely set up by my aunt


My cousin installing the chair back to fit all of us on a visit to the summer night market.


The gas dispenser machine accepts payment by credit card as well and is operated in a self-service fashion. Talk about convenience! Note the price of gas is about twice there compared to in Brunei. Their unit of measure is in gallons. One nice thing is there is always hardly a queue. I wish this happens here.