Museum review: Canadian Human Rights Museum / Musée pour les droits de la personne, Winnipeg
3 Nov 2023
I found myself in Winnipeg for 3 days in 2023 (to referee at the Manitoba Open, which was great) and the museum is now open, so I went for a visit after lunch at the Forks. Human rights is an abstract concept, so I was interested to see how the museum would represent that in the form of exhibits.
Mount Hopeless attempt, August 25-27, 2023
12 Oct 2023
We carried mountaineering gear 50km on a long weekend and had a nice walk in the fluffy snow, but no summit.
Book review: Wellington's Railways: Colonial Steam to Matangi, by David Parsons
8 Oct 2023
David Parsons. Wellington’s Railways: Colonial Steam to Matangi. 2010.
This book is certainly not lacking in detail. It covers the early development of Wellington region rail (different parts of New Zealand, and I guess many other countries, were quite isolated 150 years ago) until 1920; refinements from 1920 to 1970; and the changes from 1970 to 2010. Wellington rail did manage to mostly hang on through the global Reagan-Thatcher neoliberal era. It has relatively recently gotten through to Waikanae and perhaps will reach Levin.
Tourist guide to Wellington
7 Oct 2023
Here’s some tips for visiting Wellington. It is true that living in Wellington one doesn’t necessarily see all the tourist things (true of any place), but we did spend some time touristing when we first came. (Hence many pictures here are from 2020…)
In central Wellington, everything is within walking distance. Wētā Workshop and the Skyline track are a bit farther out and would benefit from transit, though a few hours’ walk would get you there.
How to leave Waterloo/how to get to YYZ
4 Oct 2023
Yes, my Waterloo travel page is about how to leave Waterloo.
I thought I should have this as a top-level page instead of a blog post. Mostly, only the numbers have gotten bigger, but also I’ve added flixbus (for now). Past entries:
Here are various options for carless transportation from Waterloo in 2023.
To Pearson Airport (YYZ)
- The taxi is the fastest option. Waterloo Taxi will drive you to the airport for $110 and from the airport at $130, both including HST, but not including tip. If I’m trying to stand by for an earlier flight to Toronto (Montreal-Toronto or an Air Canada Comfort fare), then I would call them once I’ve boarded the flight to Toronto, and that’s enough lead time for them. You go to the pre-arranged taxi desk at YYZ and they summon your taxi from the pen.
- The option I take most often on weekdays is GO to either Square One (bus)
or Weston or Bramalea (train) and then MiWay or UP Express or GO 94 to
YYZ. The all-GO or GO and Bramalea Transit options are probably the cheapest possible way of
getting to/from Pearson at $13. (That is surely cheapest in an absolute sense, including wear and tear on your car.) The
Presto Card will work unless you have a GRT connection. The GO bus has started running on weekends now too.
I usually budget about 2 hours. The 25C (express to Square One) is fast if you are going when it is going. I just asked and Google Maps reported a 2h15 trip from the University of Waterloo to Pearson Terminal 1 at 10:30pm on a weekday; the fastest trip I can find is 1h41 from the Kitchener GO station to T1. - I haven’t taken Airways Transit for a while. Their prices used to be finely tuned to be competitive with other options but now they are not.
- Flixbus runs between 0 and 3 daily trips from Toronto Union Station to Pearson to Kitchener to the University, priced at $13 and going up closer in with dynamic pricing. Good if they line up with your schedule. A bit tricky if you are flying into Pearson, since flights can be delayed.
Short-turn YYZ
Twice in 2019 I happened to be flying into YYZ on day N and flying back out on day N+1 or N+2. Renting a car can be a cheaper and faster option than public transit and taxis, especially if one has the quick-rental options at YYZ. Of course one still has to drive the car. I paid $36 and $60 all-in for the rental itself in October 2019, plus gas.
September: 'back to school' and yet more trips
1 Oct 2023
I’m starting to write this with 4 days of September left. This month has also flown by. Well, I did fly to Canada, which took a bunch of days. Have been back in Wellington for a week and a bit. Also two weekend trips in September: camping on Matiu/Somes Island and a trip that was meant to be mountaineering but diverted to Taupō due to the weather.
August: more trips
16 Sep 2023
Lots of trips, not much work. August is OK to be a quiet month. August outdoors activities in NZ need to be winter-ish, i.e. you have to be aware of avalanches (or someone does; we went to ski resorts).
Review: Flight of the Huia by Kerry-Jayne Wilson
4 Sep 2023
A review of a 2004 book about NZ ecology, ecosystems, and species endemic to NZ.
July: some small trips
13 Aug 2023
Another usual non-teaching term month, with trips to Auckland, Turoa, and Wye Creek (Queenstown). New activity: ice climbing (to be used in the mountains). Paper submission and jury duty.
No zombies here: motions to postpone indefinitely are silver bullets
17 Jul 2023
‘Postpone indefinitely’ is, as it turns out, a euphemism for ‘kill’.
