mattersofthemoment

My mother (Mary Ward Morgan Darling)’s maternal grandparents, (my great grandparents) are:

Elizabeth Bell Finnie (1868-1942) and William Walker Finnie (1864-1909) (oil worker on ships). They were married June 4, 1886 in the Parish of Uphall in Scotland just west of Edinburg.  (George McKenzie and Annie Bell witnesses). Siblings: George (oldest), Elizabeth, Alex (see separate posting to come), Mary (see separate posting to come) and Bill (youngest).  Elizabeth was married to Jim and attended Mary Ward’s wedding to Alfred in 1949.

Elizabeth Bell born Jan 4, 1868. Died July 1942.  Daughter of Alexander Bell, Retortman (operated a large oven in which coal was baked to produce coal gas) and Elizabeth Thomson at Hall Bathgate in the District of Bathgate, County Linlithgow, Scotland, just a little west of Uphall.  Owns Mount Royal Cemetery plot 55F since June 10, 1909. 

Here is a history of the MacMillan (Bell) Tartan someone wrote out with no date given:

William Walker Finnie born June 8, 1864 at Carnwath, Parish of Carnwath, County Lunwith Scotland, about 20 km south of Uphall.  Son of George Finnie, Carter (worked with horse and cart on farms or in towns) and Elizabeth Walker.

William came to Canada in 1905/06 by himself.  Mom said he got a job at Vickers (but Vickers did not come to Canada until 1911?) and sent money back to the family in Scotland.  When George and Alex arrived in Montreal, William was not there to meet them.  They had the day mixed up.  They took the streetcar to the west end of the line (wrong way) and William was not there.  Then they went to the east end of the line.  There William was at 2 pm sound asleep on a bench.  George and Alex found work for $1/day but had to pay car fair of 10 cents.  The three of them saved so that Elizabeth and the three remaining children could come over.  When they did, they all moved to Verdun. Sadly, William died one year later of typhoid fever in 1909.  The church gave them half a ton of coal to get through that first winter.

On file is Certificate no. 4901 from Mount Royal Cemetery Company issued to Elizabeth Finnie nee Bell, stating she had purchased grave No. 55f in Section N.  The date is June 10, 1909 and the fee was $17.50.  She paid $4.00 as a digging fee for William’s burial.  On July 10, 1942, daughter Mary Ward paid $25.00 in burial fees in plot 55-f for her mother Elizabeth.

George Finnie apparently married a Roman Catholic woman according to Aunt Joan Ward.  One day the Priest came over for a visit and George kicked him down the stairs! He became a builder (we think) and lived out on the lakeshore west of Montreal. The Finnies were a little mysterious and we only saw them rarely according to Aunt Joan Ward.  In a 1974 letter I found to mom from Uncle Alex Finnie, he mentions a Willie Finnie that lived in St. Lambert, QC.  This must be a son of George unless another Finnie man also emigrated from Scotland.  Willie and his unnamed wife had a son named Gary who in turn had a son born May 2, 1974.  Gary was manager of Xerox in Montreal according to Uncle Alex.

Nana’s address book has a W. J. Finnie (Bill?) living at 8 Roanoke Road, Don Mills, ON, and at 4 Wonderland Dr, Scarborough, ON (crossed out); A. B Finnie (Alex) living at first 72 Seymour, Halifax (crossed out) and then 636 Dallas Rd. Victoria, B.C.; Bill Finnie living at 5343 Vincent Ave, then 5433 Mt Helena Ave, LA, CA and finally 711 Elwyn Street, Nelson, B.C.; and a Jean Finnie at 18 Bell St, Renfrew, Scotland (crossed out).  Strange that there is no mention of George.  I wonder if they had a falling out??

I don’t have many pics yet but here are some:

I believe this is Elizabeth Bell Finnie (Granda Finnie) circa 1900, she would have been 32 then Else it could be Aunt Lizzie the lady below around 1920 when she was 25??

I believe this is Elizabeth Finnie (Aunt Lizzie, Grandma Finnie’s daughter, Nana’s sister) about 1950 judging by the late 1940s style of the cars.  She would have been about 55 then.

Bill Finnie with Douglas, Helen and Edwin

Looks like Alex, George, Bill Finnie and ? (1935 marked on back)

Bill and Edna Finnie

Helen Finnie 1947

If you have additional photos or can fill in some of the information gaps, let me know.

Here is a mystery photo of a school boy that is old.  He looks more Finnie than Ward.  Hence I am thinking it could be George, Alex or Bill as a boy.  Or, it could be William Finnie as a boy?

No inscription but a very old photograph with a pin hole at top, so someone had it on the wall.  Could it be Charles (C.K.) Ward with his school scroll circa 1928-29?

Finally we have an image of the beautiful Clan MacMillan Tartan that Claudia was able to find.  Thanks Claudia.

Here is our trip by the numbers;
– 32 nights (3 land, 2 air, 27 ship)
– 28,000 km (12,500 sea, 15,500 air)
– 4 continents (NA, EU, AF, SA)
– 8 countries (P, S, M, CV, BR, UR, AR, CH)
– 15 ports of call (did not get into Porto Bello)
– 3 cabins (Inside F cat., B1 veranda, B3 veranda)
– 20 bottles of wine brought on board
– 2 bottles of liquor brought on board
– 3 bottles of wine drunk during 4 open bar events
– gained 5-6 pounds
– 20 lobster tails, 10 lbs of prawns, 10 lbs of fish, 6 steaks eaten
– 8 bowls of ice cream, 5 smoothies, 20 cookies
– 200 laps swum in ship’s pool
– 20 km walked on board ship
– 50 people met
– 200 hrs slept on board
– 23 deg C ave temp whole trip
– 4 rainy days
– 2 equator crossings (1 ship, 1 air)
– 1092 photos
– 2 very satisfied people

We arrived on a very wet and windy Sunday in BA. Temp was 16 deg, not a nice day. Took the free shuttle to the Plaza Hotel. From there we took a cab for our private tango lesson in Avenida Cordoba.

Well, private instructor Nora greeted us in her dance studio apartment. There was another couple there to help demonstrate and teach. We learned to caress the floor with our feet and to do the basic tango steps. However, Dave was clutsy and Marie couldn’t follow him. After 90 minutes we were sweating and happy to finish. Nora conceded that the Tango is difficult to learn and it takes several lessons. We thanked them and promised to continue lessons once we got back home.

Web went back to Florida Ave and tried to do some shopping but it was to cool and windy. After hanging out in an upscale mall, we headed back for our last evening on board. We enjoyed a flamengo guitar concert. Eating in the main dining room, we said our goodbyes to Ravi and Gilbert. Also gave tips to Guandoly and Ernie. Could not find Sageer sadly enough.

Hanging out in Horizons before disembarking, a Tim walked up and asked if we would like to join them for a half day tour with airport drop. Well this was greatly appreciated.

We toured the city in a minie bus with two other couples (Niagara on the Lake, Oregon). Jorge was our excellent driver. We saw the La Recoleta Cemetery where Eva Peron is buried. Drove down the broad streets past the pink palace. Stopped for some shopping in La Boca. Saw many other neighborhoods and buildings driving by.

Went to a Chinese restaurant for lunch. Very reasonable price, good food and service. Back on the mini bus to Ezeira airport we arrived right on time. Check in with Air Canada went smoothly and now we await departure: Santiago Chile, Toronto and then on to Ottawa.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Lord for a fabulous holiday!!!

We are currently cruising into the pier at Buenos Aires. Many people we have met told us this is the most interesting and fun port of the whole cruise.

Yesterday in Montevideo, it was 31 deg C and sunny. We walked up the pedestrian streets all the way to Independence Square. There were shops and lots of artisans stalls. It was clean and felt safe.

We bought a few souvenirs including some matte (matay) which all the locals drink out of a special cup with a silver spoon/straw. It is a loose tea that you pour hot water into from a thermos. It foams up and you slurp away.

We wisely had decided to have lunch on shore as we heard Uruguayan beef is very good. Well we found this huge grill building. People were eating inside on two levels and outside. There must have been a thousand diners. There were numerous wood/charcoal stoked grills with cooks working hard to keep up. We saw acres of beef, lamb, chicken and pork being cooked to perfection.

Most people ordered a platter of different meats that they all shared. We had some cheese stuffed filet and skewered beef that melted in your mouth. Yum! A bottle of superb local rose topped things off nicely. This place was as big as a small Costco store. The washrooms were way in the back, just like Costco! What a great lunch we had over a 90 minute period.

Back on board we had Polo Grill booked for a late feed of even more beef. Marie enjoyed the excellent Norwiegan salmon.

Well, clocks back an hour before bed so we are now only 2 hrs ahead of Ottawa time.

We feel so relaxed, wined and dined and happy to be coming home soon to see our friends and family. We give thanks to God for all his gifts.

Adios para agora.

                                                                Nora’s tango lessons.

We had a very relaxing stop in this relatively prosperous yet modest city. The port is medium sized dotted with cement plants and an oil refinery. But the air is clean and humidity lower here. There are some large farms inland and a lot of gauchos (gowchos) cowboys. However we saw no evidence of this.

We were greeted by local dancers and then bussed in to the town centre. A labour demonstration was underway in the central park. But there were very few police in sight. Everything was respectful, passing cars honked their horns in support of the workers.

We found a pedestrian only street full of shops. A nice church and a gothic like cathedral. Dave found a nice Our Lady of Aparecida icon for a bargain. She, a black madonna, is the patron saint of Brazil.

We found a Hotel de Paris with free weefee and caught up our emails. We had our lunch on a nice shady bench. Marie continued browsing the shops while Dave strolled through a large park with some monkeys in cages and large eucalyptus trees.

People here are less coloured than up north. There was apparently a lot of German settlers. No one payed any attention to us tourists. People seemed very calm and happy. We bought some local wine and then headed back to the ship after a relaxing time.

This cruise is much more relaxed. We are no longer doing excursions other than getting off and walking around. The average age must be closer to 50 instead of 70. A lot fewer Americans, and more South Americans (Argentinians I think). Even the staff seem more relaxed as there are fewer on board than the previous cruise.

We have become quite close to Ravi, a waiter supervisor (main dining room and tea time) from India. He tips us off about the best foods and teas to choose. Very helpful, professional and friendly.

Looking forward to Uruguay but apparently there will be a 2 hour time change back tonight. Weather is superb, sun, sun, sun.

Marie says this is the best trip ever.

In the evening after our Rio Grande visit, the Captain’s Party was held in Horizons for previous O cruisers.

Well we sat at the bar this time. After a couple of caiparinhas and good conversation with Guendoly from Guetamala, Captain Strescovic came out. He gave a short speech thanking clients for their support. Some O pins were given out for gold and platinum clients (more than 10 and 20 previous O cruises respectively.)

Afterwards, they drifted over to the bar. I chatted with the Captain who confided it was tricky getting out of Parati after the Pulmantor Princess parked behind us. He said he really had to watch the harbour depth as we pulled around and out (remember he missed the opening party because he was busy). After wards he posed with Marie for a picture.

Didn’t they all come over. We chatted with the General Manager from France. Also with Claudia the social hostess from Rio. And finally briefly with Terry Bishop who had given a great talk on the Falklands War of the early 80s. Got some pics to prove it!

Next day we finally left Brazil and put into Punta (Poonta) del Este. This is where rich South Americans come to play. Endless expanses of beaches, swank condo highrises and up scale shopping. We walk around for several hours finally finding an ATM that would work for us. Strangely enough, even the Scotiabank ATM would not work for either our Scotibank debit card or Visa!

We settled on the beach and enjoyed the dry heat and warms waters. The town was not crowded as this is just the threshold of their summer season. There were maintenance repairs to buildings going on everwhere and a lot of painting. Nevertheless we saw the odd Porsche and plates from Argentina and Chile.

Another nice relaxing day was had by all.

After 3 overcast and rainy days, we cruised into the South Atlantic blue blue sky today. We consequently spent 5 hrs in and around the pool with everyone else. It was the second sea day in a row. We were in need of some sun therapy. We got it in spades. This felt like our best day yet on board. (Or, how soon we forget how nice the other days were.)
Three days ago we went to the delightful old colonial town of Parati, a few hours south of Rio. We marvelled at the dozens and dozens of party boats in the harbour lined up in rows. We marched into the cobblestone streets and glimpsed 300 year old architecture and culture. The streets without any cars were lined with beautiful little shops, restaurants and bars.
We did a lot of souvenir shopping. We paused at the local beach for a coke zero and weefee which worked well. Strolling back thru the streets we heard lots of bossa nova guitar music in different bars and restaurants. Of course they were all playing classical nylon stringed electric guitars which you can rarely find in Canada.
After yet more souvenir shopping we headed back to the pier for the short tender ride to the ship. Later it was Toscana’s for Italian food, Dave’s favourite. (Lasagana, calamari, parmesagn cheese..)
Monday we docked at Santos, which has to be one of the biggest ports in the world. We saw container ships by the dozens coming and going. This is the industrial heartland of Brazil. Sau Paulo, a city of 12 million +, is an hour away.
The transfer was inefficient. One bus took us from the pier to the terminal and a 2nd from the terminal to an upscale shopping centre. This took an hour.
Not interested in the shopping centre (we forgot to bring any money or credit cards…), we walked 4 blocks to the beach. A long expanse of sand greeted us with towering condo/apt buildings for as far as one could see. A man said to check out the leaning condo buildings and we did. Some unstable soil resulted in some buildings of 12 or more floors leaning on an angle! Needless to say they were all for sale, ha!
We headed back to catch the 1 PM shuttle bus. Well, there was a big crowd as the schedule said the next one would not be until 3 PM (lunch break). People shoved and pushed to get on the 1 PM bus. It was a tumultous time. We spent 1 hour in Santos and an additional 2 hrs on various busses to get the 1 hour. Not our favourite stop for sure. However the sun came out for a few hrs once we were back on board.
The next day we were to tender in to Porto Bello, a small fishing village with many beaches. It was not to be.b The swell was tossing the tenders around like bobbing corks. Safety first, the captain announced that they were cancelling this stop. So, we had an unplanned sea day and it rained all day. Played some bridge and enjoyed the French cuisine in Jacques (canvas back duckling a l’orange, coquille St Jacques and some delicious soupe Marseillaise.
(Marie’s favorite restaurant).

That brings us up to date. Amanha, Rio Grande do Sol – hey gauch!

A quintessential resort town 2 hrs north of Rio. We had a great day. We sat on the beach, had some caiparinhas and enjoyed the hot sunny weather. Marie sunned herself while Dave went for a swim.

Thousands of Brazilians holiday here every year. They were out in full force in flip flops and tangas enjoying a Saturday at the beach. We enjoyed watching them have a good time.

The shopping was great and not overly expensive. We enjoyed the walkability of the boardwalk and side streets full of shops, bars and restaurants. Overall it was our best day outing so far. Very relaxing and peacefull.

We tendered back to the ship and had a quick pool swim before the captain’s party. The Captain was detained on the bridge getting us out of the congested harbour (a Pullmantour cruise ship was in the way.) He missed his own party. But we toasted Oceania and enjoyed the 2 hour open bar.

After pizza and shrimp we had a restful night getting ready for Parati.

Bom noites!