Archive for March, 2011

Via Rail Ocean Moncton to Montreal by Train

I took the train from Moncton to Montreal and it was the one of the coolest trip I’ve ever taken! I had to go to Quebec for a week on some business and while I usually drive the 1000 km I decided to make other arrangements because driving that road in the middle of winter didn’t sound like the best idea. At first I was going to fly since it’s a short hop to Montreal from Moncton but all the flights out were booked so DD suggested to look at taking Via Rail. 

I checked for tickets and found it was actually pretty cheap, cheaper than I thought anyway. My ticket out was $230 and that was for a single cabin for one…although at the time I booked it I didn’t know what exactly that was…but when I got on the train, the 2nd to last wagon on the train with the other cabins I was blown away! The train is the greatest way to travel!! 

I took the train when I was a little pup with Mama J back when I was about 7 or 8 and that was a short trip and we sat in the regular coach seats. When I boarded the Ocean Line Train in Moncton for Montreal it was incredible! It was like a mix between a boat and submarine all with the most wonderful Art Deco styling! 

When I found my way though the car, which is like a long blue carpeted and stainless steel maze, and found my cabin I was so happy! My own little cabin, a little under 7 feet long by 4 feet wide but this was a marvel of engineering and had a sink, a toilet, a storage space, the fold-out bed, a nice comfy leather chair with arm rests, bottled water and running water, a fan, power plug, magazines, coat hangers! It was like my own private hotel room! A sliding door meant I could just kick back and look out the window and stretch out and listen to my music and eat snacks! Now that’s what I call comfort! 

I’ve taken the Greyhound bus across Canada many times, probably 10 times at least. Riding the Greyhound from Montreal to Yellowknife, or Edmonton to Vancouver, or Vancouver to Montreal is a cool experience once in a lifetime but after the third time it loses its appeal, cramped in a seat besides the poor folks and crazies! What an excruciating way to travel…noiw that I was in my little private cabin on The Ocean I was thinking back to those bad old days and smiled and said to to myself “You’ve come a long way baby!” 

The staff on the train was super friendly; Vernon explained to me how the bed worked and where the dining car and lounge were and the emergency exits. It was totally personal service and not like when the stewardess on an Air Canada flight explains the way to fasten a seatbelt over the intercom in a bored tone. 

So I placed my bags and went to check out the train as it started moving out from Moncton. I had to walk through 4 cars to get to the dining car and then two more to get to the 360 degree glass roofed observation car. 

Joey at the canteen served me a cold beer and I went upstairs to watch the sunset. Sitting there watching the snowy trees passing by with a nice reclining seat while sipping a cold beer was amazerful!! 

After two frosty beverages I decided to go back to my cabin and get ready for supper…I figured I would dine at about 8. Before I left I wondered if I should pack some food and just eat some Sobeys prepared foods but DD said to try the whole train experience and I’m glad I did! 

The dining car is so stylish, real tables with table cloths, real cutlery, the full package! The table de hote had three choices all for $12 tax included. I went for the ssteak with mushrooms and garlic mashed potatoes and vegetables…it was perfect! A glass of red wine in a real wine glass, with the click clack of the train wheels made me feel like some first class traveler in the 1950’s in some Hollywood movie! 

After dinner I went back to the cabin and listened to some music then it was time for bed. I pulled the bed down and there was two nice fluffy white pillows and a comfy duvet…I snuggled down and turned the lights off and was rocked to sleep…ahhh what a great start to the trip…I was wishing I could have more than just one night! 

I woke up at 7 and went to see Joey for my morning coffee. I was going to check out the observation car but there were people sleeping up there. Joey told me they had overbooked by about 30 tickets so people were basically sleeping in any chair they could find. 

I went for a stroll to check out the whole train…oh my…I’m sooooo glad I didn’t ride coach…it was like a sardine can up there! It reminded me of the bus, people all bent out of shape trying to sleep. 

I could tell by looking at people’s faces who was riding coach and who had thee berths and private cabins…we all looked fresh and happy but those who rode coach looked a little disheveled and grumpy…poor souls! If I ever take the train again, and I really want to now, I would only go if I can get a cabin. 

The regular economy coach ticket was $105 one way Moncton to Montreal and my discounted single cabin fare was only $201.71…I mean that is double the price but I sure thought it was worth it to have the privacy and a bed I could get some real sleep in! 

What a great trip!!

Free U2 Tickets Moncton

July 29th, 2011: I will trade my two grandstand tickets for the U2 Moncton show for a musical instrument or any other interesting trade. Free tickets to U2 http://moncton.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-tickets-Free-U2-Arcade-Fire-Tickets-Moncton-W0QQAdIdZ291144832 Details on the tickets are below. The show is coming so act fast!

My tickets for U2 and Arcade Fire in Moncton 2011…should I stay or should I go now?

Am I crazy to buy two tickets to U2 and Arcade Fire in Moncton? Maybe…but when they came on sale last winter I figured it is better to have two tickets instead of not have two tickets…and besides, Arcade Fire is super hot right now and U2 basically wrote much of the soundtrack of my ill-spent youth!

Trade anything for Free U2 Tickets http://moncton.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-tickets-Free-U2-Arcade-Fire-Tickets-Moncton-W0QQAdIdZ291144832 ….you know you waaaaant them!

email me directly to buy the tickets at info@tripsister.com , I have the tickets here in Riverview New Brunswick  I can deliver them in the Moncton area!

So the U2 360 concert tour was cancelled last year because of grandpa bono falling off the stage…no problem…the group is back and will be touring with Arcade Fire the darlings of the indie pop scene in 2010 and who would have believed it if they were told that U2 and Arcade Fire would be playing in Moncton, New Brunswick on the Magnetic Hill grounds?!

I wouldn’t believe it! In fact when we moved out of the hustle and bustle of Quebec we thought we had left the metropolitan insanity of concerts in Montreal but no sooner had we arrived that we see that U2 was coming and no sooner had we un-packed our boxes that we realized that maybe Moncton, New Brunswick was actually the pop-culture center of the Maritimes? Arcade Fire? U2? Are you kidding me???

The first thing I did was run street to street and collect as many 10 cent deposit bottles and returnable pepsi cans until I had the $500 dollars for a pair of tickets from TicketMaster for some good stadium seats at the concert.

I mean, if I am going to watch The Edge and Bono rip out some hits like Beautiful Day, Sunday Bloody Sunday, and I Still Haven’t Found What I’m looking For then I want to not be just general seating on a mud soaked grassless pit rented by Donald K Donald or whoever is promoting this glam fest…oh no…I want to sit in the stands where I can enjoy my THC buzz in the (please please please) sunshine of a July concert on Magnetic Hill.

Free U2 Tickets Moncton Show:  I will trade my two grandstand tickets for the U2 Moncton show for a musical instrument or any other interesting trade. Free U2 Tickets http://moncton.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-sell-tickets-Free-U2-Arcade-Fire-Tickets-Moncton-W0QQAdIdZ291144832 Details on the tickets are below. The show is coming so act fast!

I haven’t paid for a pair of concert tickets in a long long time…last time was Chris Cornell live in Montreal…or hold on…no maybe it was The Tragically Hip…nope I didn’t pay for those tickets…

Having worked in some rep-house theatres like the Rialto in Montreal I saw some crazy acts like Janes Addiction, The Pixies, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. Don’t get m,e wrong…living in the big MTL was great with so many concerts…so many great acts over the years and now to finally have a pair of tickets to the U2 Arcade Fire show in Moncton was getting my rock and roll blood boiling into a frothy disease like the good old days of weeks gone by!!

But do I really want to go to the show? The concert is going to be at 3pm which is great but we’re talking an outdoor show at Magnetic Hill concert grounds and it might be pouring down clumps of horrid rain which would slightly suck…I mean if you are looking for a Woodstock type of outdoor event where mud soaked adolescents are sliding through ponds full of muck while foggy decibels of “Beautiful Day” wash over us like a tidal bore then it might be ok.

But actually it could be an incredible moment, I mean seeing Arcade Fire on stage in a fairly small rural setting might be cool. Moncton is pretty cool and we live over the Peticodiac in Riverview so it is only a short ride to the show. And for the legends like U2 this is probably the last tour we can expect from these rockers. I remember when the War album came out I was a teenage wannabe living in Yellowknife and their music totally rocked my small town rhino world! Now a few years later having the tickets and the chance to see my past and present and watch the future over top of me is incredible! How could I say no to the chance!

Of course there are other big shows in the Maritimes and PEI has Meatloaf and Haywire at their Prince Edward Island Summerfest…OUCH! I think I would prefer Arcade Fire and U2 instead!! But when I hear songs like The Suburbs by Arcade Fire I wonder if I even want to see that…sitting in some Magnetic Hill outdoor park? Sorry but that song doesn’t do it for me! I think the producer could have ripped that song into something completely cool but it doesn’t sound like they had any will to polish it up. Oh well!

That being said, I might have to work that day so if anyone wants to buy my U2 Arcade Fire tickets for the Moncton show email me or get them on the Kijiji website here.

TOP U2 SONGS:

In no particular order, just some good stuff from US throughout the decades. To be hearing these on Magnetic Hill in Moncton will be mind blowing!

20. “Miss Sarajevo” (Original Soundtracks)
19. “Vertigo” (How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb)
18. “The Unforgettable Fire” (The Unforgettable Fire)
17. “Angel of Harlem” (Rattle and Hum)
16. “I Will Follow” (Boy)
15. “Bullet the Blue Sky” (Joshua Tree)
14. “40″ (War)
13. “Acrobat” (Achtung Baby)
12. “Stay (Faraway, So Close)” (Zooropa)
11. “All I Want Is You” (Rattle and Hum)
10. “New Year’s Day” (War)
9. “Running To Stand Still” (Joshua Tree)
8. “Beautiful Day” (All That You Can’t Leave Behind)
7. “Bad” (The Unforgettable Fire)
6. “With Or Without You” (Joshua Tree)
5. “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (Joshua Tree)
4. “One” (Achtung Baby)
3. “Sunday Bloody Sunday” (War)
2. “Where the Streets Have No Name” (Joshua Tree)
1. “Pride (In The Name Of Love)” (The Unforgettable Fire)

ARCADE FIRE SONGS:
Just another list of some you probably know, I ;listen to them all on Live365.com on the indie stations and they always sound good. Arcade Fire in Moncton…WTF is that cool or what…or as William Shatner might say…Weird or What!!

Power Out
Tunnels
Wake Up
Haiti
Neon Bible
Intervention
No Cars Go
My Body is a Cage
Ready To start
The Suburbs
Modern Man

Ok…so maybe I will go, sheesh I have the tickets already and it could be the epiphany concert moment of my life! U2 and Arcade Fire in Moncton T-Shirts should be pretty cool too!!!

Email me directly to buy the tickets at info@tripsister.com , I can deliver them in the Moncton area!

2011 Federal Election Results : Where is Riverview New Brunswick?

We just got back from voting in the 2011 Federal Election in our new home of Riverview, New Brunswick. There was quite a crowd at the Riverview Boys and Girls Club at 50 Runnymeade where the voting was taking place, not a line-up but apparently when I asked it was steady and that would make sense since they said last week that for the anticipation-vote there was like 35 percent more voters than usual so whenwe got there and saw all the cars it felt like the 2011 Election was going to bring more people out than ever! 

So after watching all the local debates on Rogers Community Television and passing the billboards on Whitepine as we drove to Tim Hortons, we had arrived to vote expecting to choose between: 

Shawna Gagné for the NDP
Robert Goguen for the Conservatives
Brian Murphy for the Liberals
Steven Steves for the Green Party 

Everywhere we go in Riverview we see their posters and big letters that these candidates are running in Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe so we were kind of working under the assumption that we would be choosing between these four candidates. 

Surprise!  When we got to the polling station we suddenly have the choice between: 

Darryl Pitre for the NDP
Rob Moore for the Conservatives
Linda Wilhelm for the Liberals
Stephanie Coburn for the Green Party. 

Cue the cartoon music: Whaaa whaaa whaaaaaaaaa.
 

What happened to our candidates? I never saw a poster for any of these folks beside the Timmy Hortons!!! What a deception!!  It turns out that despite seeing posters for candidates in Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe we are actually in the Fundy Royal riding! Someone should have mentioned that to everyone campaigning as no-one in our family had even heard of these other four candidates…even Jasper who is one of the most informed voters in our household! 

So we belong tp the Fundy Royal riding? News to us and maybe should be news to the people putting up signs all over their lawns listing candidates from another place, another planet! So just to help residents, especially new ones who have only lived in New Brunswick for less than a year: Parts of Riverview are in Fundy Royal! Taa-Daa! 

According to the CBC Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe Riding,consists of the city of Moncton and the neighbouring towns of Riverview and Dieppe. Well some of Riverview…not all of it we just learned! The riding was established in 1966. In the redistributions of 1996 and 2004, about 10 per cent of the population was shifted to other ridings.I guess we are part of the 10%…woo hoo! Population: 89,334 

The electoral district of Fundy Royal encompasses more than 7,500 square kilometres, with a population of 69,471 people. The riding includes the towns of Quispamsis, Hampton and Sussex, with the boundaries including Mispec to the south, Salisbury to the north, Waterborough to the west and the entire Bay of Fundy shore from just outside Saint John up to and including parts of Riverview. In 2008, 33,334 people cast ballots in Fundy Royal. Elections Canada’s voters list shows 56,196 eligible voters in the riding for the May 2 election. 

Looking at the Electoral Maps of Fundy Royal and Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe it seems odd that our street makes us belong to a riding that includes St. John a few hours away. Anyway…since I am currently rocking the Fantasy NHL Hockey Pools and am a betting man I will make my predictions for the winners. And heck…I will do both of the ridings! 

Here are my 2011 Election Results for my two Sedin Brother Twins New Brunswick Ridings because I live on the border of both I get to choose: 

DAMI’S PICKS FOR THE 2011 ELECTION RESULTS FOR MONCTON-RIVERVIEW-DIEPPE
Out of 74,660 Eligible Votors 

Shawna Gagné for the NDP – 28% or 20,645 votes (compared to 7,859 or 17% of votes in 2008)
Robert Goguen for the Conservatives – 40% or 29,151 votes (compared to 16,260 or 36% of votes in 2008)
Brian Murphy for the Liberals – 24% or 18,001 votes (compared to 17, 492 or 39% of votes in 2008)
Steven Steves for the Green Party – 16% or 6,863 (compared to 4,037 or 9% of votes in 2008) 

Of course these assume that we have a 100% voter turnout….we won’t but we should have a good voter turnout so my predictions for the 2011 federal election results for Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe are: 

Conservatives 40%
NDP 28%
Liberals 24%
Green 10%

DAMI’S PICKS FOR THE 2011 ELECTION RESULTS FOR FUNDY ROYAL
Out of 56,196 Eligible Voters 

Darryl Pitre for the NDP – 18,337 votes (compared to 7,913 or 24% of voters in 2008)
Rob Moore for the Conservatives 27, 879 votes (compared to 17,220 or 52% of votes in 2008)
Linda Wilhelm for the Liberals 6,490 votes (compared to 5,776 or 17% of votes)
Stephanie Coburn for the Green Party. 3,490 votes (compared to 2,443 or 7% of votes in 2008) 

Of course these assume that we have a 100% voter turnout….we won’t so my predictions for the 2011 federal election results for Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe are: 

Conservatives 50%
NDP 33%
Liberals 12%
Green 7% 

So those are my predictions…I will see tomorrow how close I was; I have a bet with Jasper and as long as I am within 5% either way on my picks I will win and Jasper will owe me a Shish-Taouk!! I don’t mind if I am wrong…I also picked Tampa Bay to win the Stanley Cup!