by meeting Miguel
Yesterday evening right here in Vancouver, my husband and I were very pleased and excited to meet Miguel Arboleda, author and photographer of the sublimely beautiful blog Laughing Knees. Miguel had arrived here from Japan a few days ago for a three week vacation in this area.
How amazing it was to meet and how quickly we fell into easy conversation. We found so very much to talk about: this area, our lives, the multiculturalism, politics, history in Japan, British Columbia, Germany, and elsewhere and of course blogging and some of our mutual blog friends. It was a most heart-warming evening over a casual dinner at a longtime Horseshoe Bay restaurant, so famous for it’s fish and chips that even Miguel had heard of it and wanted to try it.
The photo is taken against the restaurant’s wall of caricatures of many of the owner’s famous friends. Why the photo of Miguel’s feet? Miguel mentioned that in early days bloggers used to post photos of their feet instead of faces for privacy reasons. So, in a moment of hilarity, husband snapped this.
Today Miguel is on his way to Victoria to meet friends there and go on the Juan de Fuca trail on the southwest side of Vancouver Island. I hope our currently rainy weather doesn’t affect his plans. Those who know him, know of his love for long wilderness and mountain walks. When he comes back to Vancouver, Miguel plans to do the Baden Powell Trail across our North Shore mountains. I’m sure he’ll be blogging about his adventures later. We are eagerly looking forward to meeting again when his partner joins him for the last week.
This certainly IS my year for meeting many blog friends. Making friends through blogs, emails and other web media is surely the late 20th and early 21st Century version of exchanging letters with pen pals. I remember fascinating stories of some of them meeting for the first time decades later in their old age. We’re fortunate that it’s a little easier today! In case you’ve missed them and it’s of interest, here are my posts about other meetings this year, of which all except one took place in England:
the Bondens and Hattie
the Hyams
Anna
Natalie and a group in London
August 10, 2009 in Blogging, Canada and BC by Marja-Leena
Excellent! I’m glad you & Miguel (one of my long-time blog-reads) got to meet. And the picture of the two of you is wonderful!
Great to see the two of you together!
That’s great! Sounds like an epic talk-fest. Wish I’d been there.
I’m so happy that you had a great meeting with Miguel! And what a wonderful photo!
I hope he has a wonderful time hiking.
BTW: How’s your roof?
Lorianne, thanks, it was wonderful meeting him, one of my long-time reads too!
Maria, yes, it was very special.
Dave, it would truly have been an epic talk-fest if you’d been there too! You were mentioned…
Hattie, do you know Miguel’s blog? Our roof was completed last Thursday and looks great and has not leaked in today’s heavy rains, yay! Funny, they arrived when you were visiting here….
So good you were able to spend time together. I’ve taken a look at some of Miguel’s photographs of Japan and will definitely be back when I have more time for a relaxed tour. Thank you for pointing us to “Laughing Knees” Marja-Leena!
Rouchswalwe, I think you will like his writing and photos very much, especially with your own Japanese connection. He’s been blogging a very long time, I’ve been a reader for about five years.
Oh, what a joy to see the picture of you two! You are certainly making up for lost time in meeting your blog neighbors in person. Sounds like you had a wonderful time.
Leslee, yes, it was great to meet! When are you coming to Vancouver?
Wow – it makes me so happy to see the two of you together! Miguel looks great and I hope he has a wonderful time in the NW, so glad you could welcome him to Vancouver and spend time over good food and conversation!
Beth, thanks! You were mentioned too in our conversation about favourite blogs…