Going Snowshoeing

Spent a cold snowy day learning how to snowshoe. Was a fun time by all, even though I spent most of the time tieing on the kids snowshoes…

Frosty Morning

frosty morning

Originally uploaded by Rivard

Waking up to a very frosty winter’s morning. The frost patterns on my bedroom window has put this into perspective and awakened my creative spirit…

Emma’s First Piano Recital

My eldest daughter has been practicing the piano for about a year now and has recently taken to composition.

Here is a short video of her first recital…doing great!

A Day at Forbidden Fruit Winery

I am the consultant winemaker at Forbidden Fruit winery in Southern British Columbia. I am proud of the wines I make there and thought I’d this little movie I made of the place… Enjoy!

Drinking Some Banana Wine… :-{

A week or so into my trip to Tanzanian trip, I got to visit banana plantations and try the national drink: banana wine… not for everyone but the locals love it

Ramadan Singers in Arusha, Tanzania

My first night in Arusha, Tanzania was greeted by door-to-door Ramadan signers hoping for a donation. I am in bit of a culture shock, I think this place is great!

Check out the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cX-GD4XwGR8

High Hopes for Indian Wines

Been spending time visiting the wineries of parts of India, especially the ones around Nashik and Pune. The whole area is fascinating and hold incredible potential.

The quality of the wines is variable but the enthusiasm is high with high hopes and investment in the industry.

I am here to negotiate distribution and production/consultation deals with some key people here. So far, I like what I am seeing!

Honorary Welcome in Nashik, India

I visited a winery in Nashik and was greeted to a traditional Hindu welcome… was a very neat experience!

Will Start Posting By IPhone

Its been ages since my last entry…to make things easier from now on. The application I am using is “Blog Writer” available through the itunes store. So far, I like it!  I’ll try doing this by mobile from now on and see if I can update a bit more often…

War Memorial – Kanchanaburi, Thailand

A stop at the war memorial in Kanchanaburi was an eye opener. To see the thousands of graves of soldiers who fought against the Japanese forces or died in the labour camps of over-work, starvation or disease while building that famous “Death Railway” brought home the sacrifice they had to make.

It was good to see this and has put the freedom we now enjoy into perspective.