Yoho National Park, BC (During a Forest Fire!)

Continued from Calgary During a Forest Fire

It was surreal.

No matter how many times I say it, or look at the pictures, it was surreal.

It felt like a bad movie. The world on flames and the sky an orange hue. That was what greeted us on Monday morning, as we woke up early and left Calgary around 7 am.

Our plan had been Banff for that day, but that was all now going to change due to the forest fire in Canmore. Banff had really bad air quality, so we decided to go to Yoho National Park in British Columbia. From weather reports it wasn't as bad as Banff. 

Or Calgary.

The drive on Highway 1 to Banff and beyond is one of the world's best drives as the mountains come into view. This time we didn't even see the mountains.

It was a hot day. It should have been sunny, blue skies with some clouds on the horizon, and mountains everywhere. Rather, it was dark, orange (and sometimes grey), and gloomy. You could hardly see the mountains! Compare with the pictures the first time we drove on this road!

You would, of course, see a mountain when it was right beside you. But those were usually small hillocks. Later in the week, when we would be on this same road, we would gasp at the huge mighty mountains that had all been rendered invisible by all this smoke. As we drove right through Canmore, the heat and stench was disgusting. We were glad when we finally made it to the British Columbia border.

Spiral Tunnels

The first stop on our trip was the Spiral Tunnels. This is also where you can see the Kicking Horse Pass. We could see the trains spiral their way up the hill, but the smog made taking pictures tough. After staying for sometime, we decided to proceed on towards Emerald Lake.

Emerald Lake

Emerald Lake is still as pretty as ever. Even though there was some slight fog (along with the smoke), it still painted a pretty picture. The air was crisp and clear, and the beautiful colour of the water of the lake made every thing else look shimmering and beautiful.

The lake was as busy as ever. In 2019 we had clear skies and crystal clear reflection. This time, the slight fog made for a little different look to the pictures.

We went hiking around the lake, all the way through the lodge and guesthouses that dotted the edge of the lake.

The people staying in the lodges had some amazing  views to wake up to. Really, Emerald Lake doesn't get the hype of Lake Louise or Moraine Lake, but it is equally pretty in its own way.

On our hike, there was a huge hilly area, and a cottage at the very top, with these chairs arranged for the guests.

The last time we had visited this place, it was after 6 pm and the boat rental place had shut down. This time, it was bright and early, and there were lots of canoes and boats on the lake.

It was tough to say goodbye to Emerald Lake, but we had to. There were a few other things at Yoho National Park that we wanted to see. But our final view was one of the best.

Till next time!

Natural Bridge

On the way back to Highway 1 from Emerald Lake we stopped at Natural Bridge - an impressive rock formation.

Sculpted by the erosive forces of rushing water over what had once been a waterfall, the Natural Bridge is a powerful reminder of how much influence water has in shaping the landscape. 

The Natural Bridge spans the flow of the Kicking Horse River west of Field, where the slower-moving waters from the Field valley flats begin their descent through a canyon to be joined by the Amiskwi River.

On the way to Takakkaw Falls, we saw another interesting viewpoint.

Meeting of the Waters

This is where the Amiskwi River and Emerald River merge with the Kicking Horse River.

It's not clear from the pictures, but the three bodies of water were really of three different colours. It was something you had to see for yourself. 

Finally, on to the last, but not the least, attraction of Yoho National Park.

Takakkaw Falls

The height of Takakkaw Falls in Yoho is 373 metres (1,224 ft), making Takakkaw Falls the second tallest waterfall in Canada. As a comparison, the height of Niagara Falls is 51m only.

As we walked from the parking lot towards the Falls, we saw it for the first time behind the treeline. Remember, this is almost as tall as the Empire State Building (381m)!

The trail to the base of the Falls is beautiful in itself. Lots of nice trees, clear pathways and the river itself.

Even at this distance, you can hear the roar of the water!

This final bridge takes you to a trail that you can use to get at the very base of the Falls.

What an experience! To stand at the very place as the water comes rushing down the mountain, full of fury! 

Make sure you are dressed in warm (and waterproof) clothing. Even though it was a hot day, the temperature around this place was considerably lower than the surrounding area. Not to mention there was a huge mist in the air and you got properly soaked the closer you got to the base of the Falls.

Overall, this was a beautiful and eventful day in Yoho. Even though the weather (and the haze) wasn't the best, we did see what we wanted to see, and got some delightful pictures as souvenirs. 

That night, it would rain. And it would rain the whole of the next day. All that rain meant ALL forest fires were extinguished.

Done. 

No more fires. No more haze. No more smoke.

The weather would be gorgeous on Wednesday. But tomorrow, Tuesday, it would rain.

We headed to Banff, knowing we had one rainy day ahead of us. 

Calgary During a Forest Fire

 It was supposed to be a relaxed Canadian Rockies trip for two guys. My brother and I decided to go hiking and travelling in Banff, Yoho and Jasper during the third week of August. The weather was supposed to be sunny and hot, and we were looking for a good time in the mountains. The last time I had visited was in 2019, and I was looking forward to doing a few things I had missed out then.

Suddenly, a day before I was to fly to Calgary, forest fires erupted everywhere. There were already fires in British Columbia, but the day before I was to fly, a new forest fire erupted in Canmore (only 20 minutes away from Banff).

I landed in Calgary to apocalyptic scenes. It was something out of a Batman nightmare movie, with the world burning and a strange orange haze everywhere.

The temperature was 38 degrees, and it was HOT! Not to mention, a brown haze and smoke filled the air everywhere. I had never seen Calgary like this.

My brother and I drove to the Peace Bridge. You can see pictures from my time there in 2016 (5 years ago!) by clicking here. Note how clean it is and how brilliant it looks in sunny weather and blue skies. And what a contrast it was to these pictures right here!

The weather almost reminded me of UAE. Hot, dusty, haze and smoke and sand everywhere. When I looked at the setting sun, disappearing in a bunch of smog, it reminded me of Dhaka. 

Hopefully for the people of the area, rain was in the forecast. When I had seen the weather previously, I had groaned at the rain. Yet, sometimes what we hate is good for us. The rain would clear away all the smoke and fire.

For now, we had a change in plans. Tomorrow we were supposed to be in Lake Louise, hiking. The smog and fires changed all of that. Instead, we were to go to Yoho where the air was supposedly much cleaner.

On to Yoho ...

Examining the claim "Canadian South Asians love education more than the Black community"

 Have you heard these comments before?

1. South Asians are the model group. Look how many of us get into university! We value education!
2. If only Blacks got educated more! There's hardly any black students on university campus!

Recently, out of interest, I started to look into these claims. I found out two things.

1. Black Canadians only make up 3.5% of Canada's population (2016 census), so obviously you will see a low percentage of university students being black - this is reflective of their population percentage.
2. TDSB is the only board that tracks race based data on students and their university / college progress. One board out of ALL the education boards in this country. When they published their data, I took a look (I will link to the article below).

THE CONCLUSION FROM TDSB DATA IS PRETTY STARK:

1. We South Asians (desis) are starting to go less and less into universities and more into colleges. Yes, a lot of South Asian kids still go to university, but the percentage is decreasing every year. That means since this is now our 3rd or 4th generation's data, we are no longer driven by high achievers (usually immigrants or children of immigrants), and we are more approaching the general norm where college is seen as a viable option (and not bringing bad reputation to the "khandan"). It's a significant drop - almost 10%.
2. More and more black students are going into university, despite many challenges. These challenges include poor families (economic disadvantages), poor schools in poor neighborhoods, single parent families, low averages coming into high school, racial discrimination from education staff, etc. Even despite getting into university, many black students face significant racism and other challenges. And yet, most graduate and finish the degree.

I love data, so I am going to link to some data. These data show that it's incorrect to say we South Asians love our education (as an overall statement) and black community does not value education (in Canada). What is likely is that South Asian community here is the descendent of smart and hard working immigrants who did not face the hard poverty and racism to the same degree as black Canadians.

Data and sources:

1. TDSB report: https://brighterworld.mcmaster.ca/articles/black-students-still-face-major-hurdles-getting-into-university/
   
   It should be noted that TDSB itself isn't really the best example as despite blacks and visible minority making a significant higher amount of Toronto's population (51%), TDSB staff is still 70% white.
2. Being black on campus: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/anti-black-racism-campus-university-1.5924548
3. StatCan: Canada's Black Population - Education, Labour and Resilience: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-657-x/89-657-x2020002-eng.htm

Port Union Waterfront Park

 Toronto is an amazing city. Every time you can find something new, despite decades of living here. Last week, while having a small (socially distanced) picnic lunch at Colonel Danforth Park in East Scarborough, we discovered the Port Union Waterfront Trail.

Now the Port Union Waterfront Park can be accessed by car easily, but it's a little bit of a hike from Colonel Danforth Park. Nevertheless, it's a good exercise.

When you finally reach the end of the trail (or should I say the bottom of the trail), you are rewarded with some great views of the beach and Lake Ontario.

If needed, you can go down to the beach and the water, although the Pickering Nuclear Plant is not that far away (just saying).

On a clear sunny day, it's a beautiful hike, and you can get to see a lot of interesting birds.

The hike back is not bad, and as always, feels shorter than the way there.

Overall, if you want a picnic, and then a nice walk, the Port Union Waterfront Trail from Colonel Danforth Park is for you.

The One With The Friends Reunion

The Friends TV show ended its run on May 6, 2004.

The blog's first post was July 16, 2004.

I had been blogging for 17+ years. And yet, Friends is older than that.

Today, May 27, 2021 - 17 years to almost the day the show ended, HBO Max telecast a special Friends reunion show. Despite the hit-and-miss nature of the reunion show, with its mixed format of an interview, a behind the scenes look at the show, the actual eavesdropping of the casts' reunion, and the cast reading some of their favourite lines, this special reunion show is going to be widely watched. At close to 2 hours, it's definitely struggling to hold your interest. Yet, it's a good mixture of nostalgia and cheerfulness. This is Friends. It is THAT popular. Even now. Especially now.

Why is that?

Though I was slightly younger than 20 when Friends began, I soon caught up. The TV show Friends is supposed to be about that time of your life when your friends are your family i.e. your 20s. And I can say that I thoroughly, really, absolutely, enjoyed my 20s. I had a blast. And I was at that perfect stage of life where I could relate to the show - they were showing the good times with friends that I, a person in my 20s, was having. If I could go back in time to that time, I would tell my younger person one thing.

Savour every moment. Enjoy every moment. It's not going to come back. It'll never be like this again. 

(And oh, buy Apple and Google stock.)

The 20s are that stage in your life when you are unshackled from the responsibilities of education and college, and yet have to take the responsibility of an adult, while still remaining young and energetic to have fun, and you actually have some money to spend to enjoy that fun. The first crush, the first love, the first heart ache. All of that. It all seems to be so innocent a time. A simpler time. Yet, we know ... a lot was going on.

All that emotion, the feelings, the drama comes packaged into this show, and this is even before we get to how GOOD the show was.

The show was perfectly CAST. Every actor was their character and you cannot imagine any other person playing those roles. The writing was fantastic. It was funny, it was good physical comedy and never did the show become boring, even during the tenth season's Rachel-Joey segments. The chemistry amongst the cast was really there to be seen. People often compare Friends to How I Met Your Mother. While HIMYM had its good moments, it started to tank after season 6 or so. Friends however maintained that good writing and the standard throughout its run. And partly I think because of its competitors - Frasier and Everybody Loves Raymond - each brilliant shows in their own way.

So how was the Reunion episode?

Even if it was not that good, it was still good. But it did highlight one thing.

Aging.

Everyone ages. Some better than others. Some, not so good. And for others, there's always Botox.

This is something we don't like to admit to ourselves. We who watched Friends live in our 20s are now in our 40s. The TV may still show those characters as they were, but that's not who the actors are now. It was tough, for example, to see Matthew Perry. His struggle with substance abuse and addition are now well known. It's a reminder that whatever your youth may be, sometimes life takes you down a road that's different from others. Bad things happen. Suddenly the cheerful world of one's 20s is not so cheerful any more. Your responsibilities may start to weigh down. Things may not look so promising.

Welcome to your 40s. 

And that's why people tuned in to this show. It was a reminder of simpler times. Before social media, smart phones, and before a global pandemic. And yet, I felt at times, the reunion show dragged. The stars' conversations seemed forced. They harped on about their chemistry and the good times they had as if to remind us. Could they BE any more rehearsed? And what was the whole point of having Malala Yousafzai or David Beckham on the show. 

Yet, just like a Friends episode (or a pizza slice), even if it was bad, it was still good. The show was both scripted and unscripted. It was long and dragging, but still managed to entertain. It serves up a heavy dose of nostalgia to a time before the present, when all was good in the world, simply due to the brilliant and stellar cast who, after 17 years, still slips back so comfortably into their roles that you don't feel like they had taken a break. It is comfort food, and it is fine dining. 

After all, since March 2020, when we feel like we are stuck in second gear, when it hasn't been our day, our week, our month, or even our year ... this show reminds us of a time when our friends were there for us. 

Gays, Homosexuality and Islam

Let's talk about gays, homosexuality and Islam. 

One of the big, BIG, mistakes Muslims make is assuming our position is the SAME as that of fundamentalist (or Evangelical) Christians, or orthodox Jews. Similar to the debate on abortion, evolution - Islam has its own take. Some similarities, but also a LOT of differences.

First and foremost, Islam does not deny the existence of gays (unlike a former President of Iran).  Even during the time of Prophet Muhammad pbuh, there used to be people called Mukhannathun (effeminate men). Ladies did not even observe hijab from these men and many senior female Companions employed them as servants. These are mentioned in several hadith.

Second, scholars also note an important distinction on the curse applied to Mukhannathun (and those who cannot be employed by women). This only refers to those mukhanathun who are pretending and not actually lacking desire for women. As for those who are not pretending, they are allowed to enter upon women. Similarly, Islamic scholars like Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani stated that all mukhannathun must make an effort to cease their feminine behavior, but if this proved impossible, they were not worthy of punishment. Those who made no effort to become less "effeminate", or seemed to "take pleasure in (his effeminacy)", were worthy of blame.

So you can already see that there is an acknowledgement of gays (and by extension lesbians) in early Islamic history, as well as rulings on acceptable behaviour. Punishments of gay behaviour used to be for public displays of lewdness, but not private sins (unless publicly admitted), and used to differ from Caliph to Caliph. There was also an attempt made to distinguish between nature (what you naturally are) and nurture (what you attempt to become). The later Umayyads persecuted these people (but to be honest, the later Umayyads persecuted everyone). There is rich history of them mentioned in Arabic literature, particularly during the Abbasid era.

Now to the most important ruling - what is Islam's stance on homosexuality? 

It is evidently clear and precise. The homosexual act is to be condemned; it's a sin and an abomination, as evident from the Quran. There is no ambiguity in it. The story of the Prophet Lut (Lot) is mentioned in the Quran, and although it differs from the Bible in crucial details, it has the same moral message. 

Here is another difference. The ACT itself is haram. It is a sin. 

So if you are gay, and you are inclined to the act, that itself is not a sin, but if you act on your desires, you are committing a sin. If the sin is committed privately and you repent, it is forgiven. As long as you repent genuinely and try to avoid the sin, you are forgiven, EVEN if you fall into the sin from time to time.

The big sin is in public display. So if you are a believing Muslim who has gay inclinations, you are not to announce your sin publicly (to be honest you should not announce ANY sin publicly). You cannot promote the lifestyle, nor can you say it is normal and OK (as that would be disbelief in the Quran and take you out of Islam). It is considered a big test and everyone is tested differently.

Note this does not cover trans people or intergender people, whose cases are different. Again, that's a separate topic, but it IS covered in Islam. One madhab, for example, allows a trans person to choose his or her gender differently to what they normally express as during times of inheritance. 

If you are a modern, secular person, obviously you will have a lot of disagreement with the various parts of this writing, as you do not believe homosexuality to be a sin. That is fine. To you is your religion.

If I have made any mistakes in this writing, it is mine. Please do your own research.

Sources:

1. Effeminates of Early Medina
2. Islamweb fatwa on who the curse applied to
3. an-Nawawi. "Al-Minhaj bi Sharh Sahih Muslim". Shamela. Archived from the original on 17 August 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2018

Port Perry - A Good Day Trip Option from Toronto

About 85 km north east of downtown Toronto, or about 40 km away from Scarborough, lies a small community in Scugog, Ontario called Port Perry. Port Perry serves as a hub for many small communities in the Scugog area. Located at the basin of the Trent-Severn Waterways is Lake Scugog, one of Ontario's largest man-made lakes. Port Perry was used briefly as a small town in New Hampshire during the sixth season of The West Wing.

On a warm, nice, sunny day, the marina and waterfront of Port Perry can be a nice spot to walk or have a small picnic lunch. Port Perry's Victorian-era downtown is a tourist destination, with clothing stores, restaurants, cafés, bookstores, galleries and antique shops.

The Lake Scugog shoreline offers two popular lakeside parks, Palmer and Birdseye. We visited Palmer park recently. The big red structure in the photograph below is The Port Perry mill and grain elevator, circa 1930. Originally built in 1873, the building remains a major landmark to this day. The original line of the PW&PP Railway can be seen in the foreground.

Lake Scugog is also known for fishing. There are active fishing seasons, both winter and summer. In the winter months, Lake Scugog is dotted with ice-fishing huts and is a destination for ice fishermen and snowmobilers. However, in recent times, you cannot fish for Walleye anymore. As you can see in the sign below, the levels of this magnificent fish has fallen so low, that fishing for Walleye is no longer permitted.

Of course, as these are COVID-19 times, sadly, there are gathering and meeting limits everywhere. Even though most people did not wear marks while outside (and maintaining social distance), masks are currently mandatory when you are inside any business establishment.

In the summer, this is also a favourites place to launch boats from. The Trent waterway system is the gateway to many lakes and small rivers.

All in all, on a nice, sunny, warm day, Port Perry waterfront offers a great place to have a small picnic, a day trip from Toronto, and a small vacation without much hassle. 

You can bring your own lunch, or grab some fish and chips from one of the few places nearby, and watch the activities on the pier. Here's hoping we can soon fight covid-19 off and can enjoy these places properly, as they are meant to be.