On the locals' side...

Hello! Still enjoying beautiful Pinticton and Kalowna :o) I can't believe how fast these last few days have flown by. Lots of practicing and hurry-up-and-wait going on, leading up to last night. Friday night, following the athletes' dinner, the actual FESTIVITIES started up.

The city of Pinticton closed down three blocks of Main Street just for the Ironman celebration. There were street vendors, San Francisco style street performers, belly dancers, and local shops open for extended hours. I was so excited to find a little station equipped with sidewalk chalk, so that I could write a message to Corey on the run :o) We were even more excited to get our son a new "Irondog Canada" collar. Its got the I-dot instead of the M-dot. I'll have to post a picture later :o)

This morning was a very informative morning :o) During my jog, I came across a man who lived in the area. He was fishing :o) And later, Jeanette and I talked to a couple who have lived in the Pinticton area their whole lives! So, here's what we've learned:

Pinticton lies at the northern-most tip of the Sonoran desert --the same desert that Bakersfield is in!

Although we flew over glaciers to get here, Pinticton's winters rarely get below freezing, and their summers are in the low 90's

Pinticton is a retirement city

A deluxe waterfront condo costs a little over half a million dollars

This valley is famous for its peaches and wineries

Pinticton has two very different beaches within 1.5 miles of each other. The beach of Okanagan Lake has fine sand, like our SoCal beaches, and the sand is relatively cool, since there are a lot of trees along the path. Skaha Lake, however, has red coarse sand, and in the afternoon, it's too hot to walk on. I guess you have to wear sneakers???? Umbrellas are mandatory. And the demographics are as different as the sands! All the body builders and fake boobs hang out on the red beach. The family types hang out on the white beach. Weird, hunh? I was happy to be on the Okanagan beach. The "beautiful people" are beyond me.

The area is well protected. There are only two roads into the valley. It helps keep the riff raff out

Pinticton has good cops keeping the gangers out and the drugs to a minimum

Due to its small population, healthcare actually isn't bad in this valley

Pinticton is known as the Hawaii of Canada!

I learned where the fish are breeding and when they are biting :o)

...and that's all I know about the area. Of course, the most important thing to know is that we definitely would like to come back!