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We’ve been busy at travelife.ca this week adding new stories to our front page for your enjoyment.

Four new stories have been posted – one on the delightful Caribbean island of Aruba; one of a family Christmas in Austria; one on the magical South Pacific island of Bora Bora; and one on a city in Taiwan where the local hero is a Canadian.

Regular contributor and dear friend Cynthia Dial shares her family’s last Christmas with readers – it was spent in fairytale Austria listening to Christmas concerts, sipping spiced liquids and sampling some local holiday cuisine in Vienna and Salzburg. Her account will make you want to book a ticket to Austria to spend Christmas this year.

Mark Dimitroff, a fine Canadian writer who now graces the pages of TraveLife magazine on a regular basis, takes us to Bora Bora, known as the Island of Gods and goes off the beaten track with a local legend where he got to see the island’s inner beauty.

It was a busy September for me – trips to Taiwan and Aruba resulted in two unique experiences, which I’m glad to share with you at travelife.ca.

While in Aruba, I met a delightful man who actually grows grapes and makes wine under the harsh Caribbean sun. Vino Vince may not be the best wine in the world but the man who makes it, Vincente Kock is a unique character and a great ambassador for the island which sits just a few kilometres off the coast of Venezuela.

In Taiwan, I ventured out of Taipei one day and found myself in Tamsui, a fishing town on the Dansui River where Canadian missionary George Lesley McKay is idolized for the good works he did there in the late 1800s. Museums, hospitals and schools bear his name and a statue of the great man dominates the city’s biggest park. Tamsui is an interesting place with an aboriginal history and has much to offer a visitor.

So go to www.travelife.ca and enjoy the stories we’ve chosen for your reading enjoyment this month.

Justice is served - jury duty is over!

Day IV of jury duty – Yea, it’s my last day!

A small medical procedure I must undergo means I’ve been excused from the fifth and final day of my jury commitment.

It’s been quite an experience.

My name was never picked as a perspective juror so I was never “challenged” in court by attorneys – the term “challenged” in legal parlance really means “we reject you” and is uttered by either the defence or prosecution lawyers when they don’t want someone to judge the accused.

I only got called to one case (a juicy one involving guns and gangs) but my name was not pulled from the drum used to pick jurors, so back to the waiting lounge I was sent with about 200 other unhappy citizens.

Observations: Jury selection has not kept up with the times – the antiquated system which has been around long before electricity, let alone computers, needs to be updated.

Yes, I agree with the principal of people doing their civic duty and that jury panels must be impartial – but at least give us free wi-fi so we can stay in touch with the outside world and  can stay connected with our jobs.

I will now be excused from jury duty for three years – maybe when my name is picked again, the system will be improved and brought into the 21^stcentury.

Marshals the victims of jury duty

Day III of jury duty – excitement fills the room as three jury panels –blue, purple and red - are called to court; but not ours – we’re green.

So we sit and wait – green with envy!

I feel sorry for the court marshals who police the room – very accommodating and friendly but under constant pressure from my fellow jurors who seem to hold them responsible for them being sent a summons to be here.

Some jurors are downright abusive – shouting at the marshals and demanding the system be changed; like the poor officials have the power to change the laws governing jury selection in Ontario.

Through it all, though, the court officials remain polite and never lose their temper.

“We’re used to it,” one of the officials tells me.

They are to be admired – not abused.

Jury duty hangs me out to dry

Day II of jury duty is over – still no trial to preside over for juror 1557.

Nerves are getting frayed. The grumbling is getting louder.

Biggest complaints: Why do we have to pay for coffee? Why is there no free Internet access?

There are 200 of us cramped in a jury lounge and in the last 24 hours we’ve been called to court just once -12 of our members were picked for a criminal trial from a pool of 50– the rest of us just sit and wait.

One perspective juror wonders why we are being kept from our jobs – “with so many people out of work maybe they should pick jurors from the unemployment roll instead of the tax list (which is what they do in Ontario).”

Some people are getting very cozy – I think one affair has started up in the back of the room.

There’s lots of sneezing and coughing – I’m sure I’ll be sick for weeks after this.

On my death bed, I hope I get credit for the days I’m spending here.

I’m finally getting my day in court

HELP! I’m being held hostage in the bowels of the provincial court house in Toronto.

I’ve been selected for jury duty.

I can’t win the $50 million lottery, but I get picked from the millions eligible for jury duty.

Isn’t democracy a beautiful thing?

I arrived at 8:30 a.m. Monday and after being processed along with about 200 others, I sit and wait to be called to a court room, where I may get a juicy criminal trial or civil case involving lots of money.

My fellow jurors come from all walks of life – there’s women carrying Gucci purses and men carrying lunch buckets. There are young and old and people of every colour and race. Isn’t Canada is a beautiful place?

Some of my fellow jurors look a bit suspicious – are they on the right side of the docket?

The video they show us extols the virtues of being a juror – “you are a privileged member of our society and you should be proud and happy to serve,” the voice on the video tells us.

But no one seems to be happy. Most grumble that they’d rather being doing other things and many have come up with lots of excuses not to be here – you can defer your appearance, but you’ll still have to serve as a juror at a later date, the court officials tell us.

So, I might as well get it over with.

I can’t even tell you what trial I will be selected for – that’s against the law!

So, I’ll just sit and wait to be called and hope my week as a juror goes by quickly. Maybe I’ll help take someone off our streets who is hurting people or help someone else get justice.

Whatever, I’m glad to be here – honest!

Toronto’s new Ritz passes my spa test

The Ritz-Carlton Toronto is modern but cozy.

Thank you Ritz-Carlton - for finally giving Toronto a world class spa.

We’ve been waiting a long time and putting up with inferior spas in this city that charge high prices but deliver low quality service and amenities.

No need to mention names – you “pretend” Toronto spas know who you are.

I don’t mean to be a snob, either, but after experiencing some of the best spas in the world, including the planet’s top-rated pleasure palace – Bangkok’s Mandarin Oriental – I think I’m qualified to speak on the subject.

So I put the new Ritz spa to the test this past weekend and it passed my rigged grading process with flying colours.

The staff was welcoming and accommodating; the facility so new you can still smell the wet paint; the amenities, like showers, steam rooms, saunas and lounges were state-of-the-art but comfy; the treatment rooms were cozy and the treatment beds were the best I’ve ever experienced at a Canadian spa.

The most important part of any spa treatment, though, is the therapist. Sarah, the young woman who rubbed away my aches and pains, is a student of the art – she actually studied in Thailand; the Mecca of spa learning.

Sarah’s technique was first class and her approach to the treatment – first asking my daily routine and then progressing to what my major aches were on that particular day – was totally professional.

I know what you’re thinking – what else would you expect from the ritzy Ritz-Carlton?

Trust me, I’ve been in other 5-star hotel spas who failed to impress.

The Ritz-Carlton Toronto didn’t disappoint, though – I rate this Canada’s No. 1 spa. But maybe I should say “for now” because the Ritz will be getting competition from the new Four Seasons and Shangri La properties that are still under construction in downtown Toronto and will be opening with their own world class spas next summer.

But the new properties will have to be pretty good to unseat the Ritz-Carlton on my “My Favourite Toronto Spa List” which currently has only one member.

It’s not cheap – treatments begin well north of $150 but Torontonians have been paying those prices for years and getting little satisfaction.

NOTE: The Ritz- Carlton is also home to a new favourite dining spot of mine – TOCA. The chic room - TOCA is the shortened form of Toronto-Canada – offers up a fish and chips which features lobster instead of regular fish. Simply delicious!

GAP rebranding earns a G grade

G whiz! I just heard that GAP Adventures has rebranded itself as G Adventures.

How clever! Not!

The change was ordered after a U.S. judge ruled that GAP Adventures' name conflicted with the mighty clothing brand - GAP clothing was the first to register the name so it gets title to it, the judge decided.

So the adventure travel company decided to drop the "A" and "P" and just go with "G".

Gee!

One wonders what other "G" names the company flirted with? G Spot Adventures maybe? Or maybe Golly G Adventures?

As part of the rebranding, G Adventures is offering a contest where the winner gets a free trip anywhere in the world - you have to bring your own tent, of course.

G, I wonder if I'm eligible for that prize?

Maybe "CAP Adventures" or "GO Adventures" would have been a better label to stick on this "new"company but G, what do I know?

I give this name change a G- grade!