Well, here I am in Dublin!

The flight over was VERY easy. No stress ... and the plane itself was rather empty. I had a wonderful moment when I went through passport control. For the past 8 years, I have had my passport swiped by ever Immigration Officer .... EVERYWHERE! Even places that don't even have a machine, the officer has taken my passport away to "swipe" ... just to check that I am not wanted for jelly-bean smuggling in Uruguay. Anyway, at Dublin Airport the officer looked at the passport and then me and said "you'll be OK then" ... no swipe, no check ... just "you'll be OK then" .. THAT has made my day.

Anyway, got horrendously lost on the way to my "home" in Dublin, The Merrion. The very most wonderful brilliant and funny (haha .. rather than look at) Peter MacCann was waiting for me to welcome me back to the hotel. The Merrion holds all kinds of wonderful memories for me ... I am so pleased to be back.

Katie - Guest Relations - showed me to my very special suite on the 4th floor - complete with very special elevator key. I feel ... special!

Early start tomorrow for filming ...

I am pleased that the day ended on a high as a very dear buddy Chris turned up to see me. He's busy doing something with the Irish economy that - it seems - is in ... trouble. So for him to make the time was very welcome indeed!

Song of the Day: Labour of Love - Hue & Cry

Quote of the Day: There's "hope" in "hopeless"

Weather: Not for a convertible ...



where am i?
sweet! me (with a whisky bottle) and the baby moo .. brilliant!
with dear friend chris

Long flight
Bad bad bad
Very tired
Sleep ... now ...

Song of the Day: Imagine - John Lennon

Weather: unsure

Maisy ...

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY ... must come back!

Right, I am off home ... for just a day though.

It is time to say goodbye to Canada for now. I have had a simply magnificent time ... quite unexpected actually. I was hoping for a good show - I think we have a magnificent show ... possibly the most diverse and visually appealing since South Africa from 2003. I think Ireland on Thursday has a HUGE amount to live up to!

SO - the highlights of BC.

1) The people - Jill, Stephen, Audrey, Christopher, Anna, Tom, Marina, Katie, Ben, Tojo, Sean, Karli, Jo, Wendy, Brittany, Jeff, Aaron, Daniel, Wayne, Kurtis, Brooke, Chelsea, James, Nick, Casey, Ian ... and basically everyone at The Shangri-La & The Sonora Resort.
2) The properties - The Shangri-La - the finest hotel in Vancouver .... The Sonora Resort - the finest resort in the Americas ... top 3 in the world ...
3) The features: fishing, bear watching, cuddling beluga whales, golf, tennis, picnic on the glacier ..
4) The beautiful ones: Shadow, Lucky, Qila, the otter, Winnie the Bear, the eagles, the porpoises, the seals, the sea-lions and yes - the crows
5) The scenery - AWESOME

I don't "do" holidays ... but if I were to take one ... I would be back here in a shot.

On Thursday, I am in Ireland for a "driving trip" ... I am very sad to say that the love of my life "Gemima the pooch" will not be coming with me. I found out today that she has cataracts and may get glaucoma. This would be very painful for her ... her eye-sight is 10% as it is anyway. She would not fare well driving around Ireland.
Poor baby-girl.

At the airport now ... eating pizza and well ... feeling sad.

Song of The Day: Moonlight Sonata - Beethoven

Weather: who cares





AM SO MISSING THIS ALREADY ....

OK - so serious issues with technology! I am hoping that this will come through. Will precis.

Another amazing day! Not sure I can cope.

Saw black bears, porpoises, eagles ... and the odd black crow!

Aaron the Guide - simply amazing!

Cooking feature with resident chef - Matt Stowe. Crab salad yum!

Wine feature with Daniel - Ice Wine ... yum!

Spa - excellent.

Farewell "party" - just so lovely.

Evening - erm - filled with Pinot Noir and happy memories with Tim ....

I am just so unhappy that I am leaving the Sonora Resort ...

Song of The Day: One Tree Hill - U2

Weather: Sonora-tastic

a party for me??????

my baby girls (i wish)

winnie the black bear

cold feet (with hot whisky flask)

with Aaron

it's a bundle of fur

don't fall in

sean, jo, karli & kurtis

One of the best days ever!

In 8 years of the show, I have never caught a fish. Today with Jeff, Wendy, Tim & James, I went out to the Bute Inlet and caught an 18 pound salmon. I think I am still in shock ... I think I was the only person who caught a fish today. I am getting it smoked and sent back home. This capture looked BRILLIANT on film ...

It's been a very fun & interesting day. I have spent much time with Shadow the pup ... as Lucky has been in the woods chasing bears! I have been joined with Wendy - the resort's PR who is also now my "human" friend and ensures that I behave on the features I film!

I had a wonderful massage from Chelsea which has chilled me out. I have played the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland at golf ... some shuffleboard and pool.

Eagle Rock - my suite - has 4 bedrooms. It also has a private jetty, private chef, 2 hot tubs, numerous bathrooms, First Nation artwork, private views of the Pacific and an office ... ALL very cool and very nice indeed!

I should say more about my most excellent day ... but I am exhausted and I have another early start!

Song of the Day: Blue Hotel - Chris Isaak

Weather: From here to Eternity

the gorgeous "shadow"


the gorgeous "lucky"

heaven! lthe gorgeous ones! lucky AND shadow!

a bald headed eagle (not so bald huh?)

erm - 18 pounds of salmon

well, i caught this with a LOT of help from Jeff

"in residence" with wendy

WENDY!

Another long, long day ... on just 4 hours sleep ... I had intentions of getting to bed at a reasonable hour this evening but it's 1045 and I have loads of things to do.

First up this morning - the Museum of Anthropology. The museum is dedicated to the First Nations. So what is the First Nations? Well, its the people of Canada pre-Europeanisation i.e. the indigenous or aboriginal people of Canada. There were 30 odd "tribes" that populated British Columbia. The Museum celebrates the art in the form of poles (totem-like) and other carved artefacts. It is a MUST see in Vancouver. After Europeans took over BC, the communities were broken-up but now they are being re-recognised. There are First Nations in the US ... for instance - a First Nations tribe would be the Navajo. A lovely lady called Jennifer Webb showed us around the exibits including art by Musqueam artists ... the tribe that own the land the Museum is located on.

It was a very, very sad farewell to Stephen and Jill at the Shangri-La. I have been VERY impressed by the service at the hotel ... all from the heart. Very few properties in the world have achieved the levels of service here. It was a very pleasant but very unexpected suprise. I will particularly miss Jill who has been mothering us all and made an excellent "tv wife"!

Also a sad farewell to Tom Ryan, our fixer/guide who has been a mine of knowledge AND a good guy ... one of - if not THE - best guides I have ever worked with.

Vancouver ... I love it!

We met our new hosts Wendy & Jo at the local airport, where we jumped on a helicopter to the Sonora Resort - 45 minutes from the city.

There to greet me on the helipad were 2 golden retrievers ... who will be my best friends for the next few days. They are just gorgeous ... Lucky & Shadow have made my day!!! I got ear licks and neck nuzzles ... lovely.

My cellphone does NOT work here which is excellent news.

I am staying in Eagle Rock - an enormous residence ... which I will describe in detail tomorrow.

I am totally loving Canada!

Song of the Day: Trooper - We're Here for a Good Time

Weather: Ice Cool


tired ... but happy
lucky me ... with "lucky" the pooch
the museum of anthropology
Tom - the BEST fixer ... ever!

Today has topped off 2 days of just incredible proportions!

The photos are not in order and don't tell a story - so here goes.

Early - early - meet at Vancouver City end of Howe Sound ... and get into a very fast boat (Zodiac)... it's so chilly that we wear these bright orange and VERY thick outfits ... that actually bearly keep out the chill!

On way to the Furry Creek golf course, we meet seals and sea-lions! Very cute indeed!

Arrive at Furry Creek where we play the 14th & 18th holes ... quite successfully mind you! The course is very well kept ... and the views from some of the holes are just sensational. The "sea to tee" experience is very good indeed!

Drive to Squamish ... and hook up with Glacier Air - the local helicopter service. There's a pup to greet me - Trouble - who is just lovely! The pilot is Ben Hawkins - who I met in 2000 when I filmed in Whistler! Small world...

We fly upto a glacier ... and have a picnic. We drink red ice-wine and eat lovely food prepared by the hotel! Then we fly back.

OK - so I am being a wee blase BUT I have to admit that the last 2 days have been amongst the most amazing of my life ... whales, seals, sea-otters, pups, golf ... and a glacier picnic! THANK YOU Jill, Tom, Tim & James! Awesome!

Song of the Day: Hysteria - Def Leppard

Weather: Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrfect!

a new method of transport
the 14th hole - Furry Creek

sitting on a rock ... on a glacier ....

cold...brrrrr

on a boat - brrrrr

oompah-loompahs

with the totally and utterly gorgeous "trouble"

ben, jill & me

happy me!

Well, today was simply & utterly wonderful and superb.

Awoke very, very early and hit the gym. I forgot that I had ordered a wake-up call ... and when I got back to my room, worried security was waiting for me! I felt rather idiotic.

Then dear Jill (hockey mom & gorgeous human being) arrived for 8 am ... and we cycled .. i.e. bicycled in the brrrr cold ... to Stanley Park ... which, although really only 7 minutes away, took around an hour. We stopped off to be filmed enjoying the amazing views of Vancouver city & the mountain and the Ocean .. and and ....The Park itself is full of colour ... and totem poles ... I will explain more about that on Friday.

From there we went to the Vancouver Aquarium ... for one of the most perfect hours of my life. With two adorable ladies - Katie & Marina - I got to play and cuddle and tickle 2 beluga whales ... when you watch the Vancouver show you will see what made me so happy. I also got to feed Milo the sea otter ... who is just gorgeous. Sometimes my job - although the best in the world - is kind of lonely BUT you know, an hour with "creatures" makes up for it in a HUGE way!

From there we went to Granville Island. A little boat ferried me across to one of Vancouver's most famous landmarks - where food & drink are the main attractions. Forget maple syrup, birch syrup is THE thing to have! The fruit & veg was so big, I am sure it MUST be radioactive.

From there it was a visit to Masa-San at The Artisan SakeMaker - the ONLY sake winery in Canada. The process using rice, water and yeast is VERY authentic ... and I had a superb time learning all about the way sake is made and of course sampling some of it!

From there it was off to Tojo - the "home" of the BC Roll. Tojo is a Japanese chef who created the California Roll and now the BC roll ... on the show you will see how it is made and the ingredients ... but I had a go too and I didn't poison any of Tojo's friends who turned up for a munch! We stayed on for an awesome sushi, sashimi and sake dinner! THANK YOU Tojo ...

The thread of the day is our fixer Tom Ryan - undoubtedly the best guide we have ever had on any of the shows! Bravo Tom!

The diary is short today ... I am off to bed ... I have a VERY VERY early start... will explain more tomorrow!

WHAT happy dreams I will have tonight!

Song of the Day: the sweetest girl - madness

Weather: hmm .. changeable ...



milo ...

tojo ... THE man

qila ...

marina (!)

gorgeous qila and lovely katie

me & qila

hockey mom & me - getting ready for a bike ride!

Awoke very early - in fact - awoke several times! Wierd, wierd dreams! BUT the hotel bed is unquestionably the comfiest that I have ever slept in ... which is just perfect.

The hotel opened in January this year. There are 119 rooms & suites ... set over 15 floors ... in the Living Shangri-La skyscraper which is 61 floors and is the tallest building in Vancouver!

There are 39 suites and I have The Orchid Suite - the largest. 1395 square feet - ENORMOUS lounge, kitchen, dining table, lovely bedroom, guest bathroom and main bathroom with Japanese toilet (no hands!), 10-jet showered shower and infinity bath ... with lights!

The hotel has a Chi Spa (I had a West Coast Wrap -- usually takes 4 hours - i had the "sprint"), the lobby lounge (yum club sandwich), business centre, outdoor pool, and Market - a Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant - he of 3 Michelin stars. I had lunch there .. yum .. and i am having dinner there too! yum yum!

It's the first Shangri-La in North America ...

Today we have reviwed the hotel ... including an interview with the very affable and fabulous Stephen Darling - GM extraordinaire!

It's been a great day - except for poor Tim who is definitely under the weather.

Song of the Day: Lullaby - The Cure (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uD17tNip1s)

Weather: Haha! BRILLIANT - but rather windy and a wee chilly



stephen darling - the general manager - shangri-la - vancouver

jill killeen - our "mom"

the infinity bath

erm - don't fall in!

coffee break

Ah ha! Well - here I am ... at The Shangri-La in Vancouver!

I have just had a lovely evening snacky meal and I am off to bed.

So, I left London at 1710 hrs ... arrived in Vancouver at 1830 hrs ... hmmm ... and flew for 9 hours in between. The flight was made all so better because of a VERY VERY special passenger - Skai - who was travelling ... see http://www.flyingdogclub.com/ ... I am now a HUGE fan! The pup was well-behaved and generally gorgeous ... if airlines (& hotels) allow children then they should allowe pets ... well ... only the lovely ones!

SO - I am in my Suite and someone wonderful has put a photo of Moo on my bedside! I love the hotel already.

As it's late - not much to say except Tom, our guide, seems like a wonderful guy - the week filming looks awesome and the staff in the hotel are delightful. I have a good feeling ...

Song of The Day: Wake me Up Before you Go Go - Wham!

Weather: - 58 at 35,000 feet

skai - the flying dog

guess where?

my baby girl