26th June 2010: A day with Roses, Batteries and Buses

The day for me started at around 6 AM on a day trip to Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) to capture some good pictures of the Roses at the two weekend long Rose Celebrations which just started that day. I started from home at 7 AM and reached RBG at around 11 AM. The travel map was something like Home -> Brampton transit bus -> Go transit bus -> Go Transit train -> Burlington Transit Bus -> RBG.
I had already been here twice during their Tulip festival, Iris and Peony Celebrations so I know the place well. Showing my membership card and getting my hand stamped with their logo I was inside in minutes. By then it started raining and I can not head directly to the Rose Garden. I decided to spend some time inside the main building which had a couple of indoor gardens/regions dedicated to some special collection and display. Was busy taking pictures as usual.

There were some cute stone statue placed between the plants which caught my cameras attention besides the flowers which it was busy clicking till then. After about an hour inside the main building the rain seemed to have stopped so I headed to the Rose Garden which was a 5 minutes walk.

But before I could reach there the rain started pouring again, but this time I was not ready to stop, I took my umbrella out of my backpack and started walking with umbrella in one hand and a camera in the other. So it started there and for the next 3 hours I was just taking pictures in rain. I don’t know how but I felt the umbrella in my hand only for the first couple of click but after that it was virtually out of my mind. The flowers especially the roses were having a shower it the rain and the droplets of water which stayed back on them were not just photogenic but was truly a special show which was running in the ‘Nature’plex that day and I was taken away, so did my camera. I was almost taking every possible angle shots of every flower. I was all alone that day and so I had no one and nothing to worry about; I was all free for my own. 

I also got a chance to see a few water lilies which were on bloom and some nice picutre of some other flowers as well.

At around 2:30 PM the Rose venture for the day was almost over. I had two batteries for my camera. One went down already. I had another one but I know it was not charged. I was so worried, you may wonder why; I had another mission for the day apart from the roses, it was to get a couple of pictures of a tree. I wanted to make a picture showing the 4 different seasons seen in Canada in a single picture collage. I had many other places and themes but this was the first ranked in my list as the picture which I took there spring was striking. I already had one picture of the tree in spring, so now I wanted a picture of it in summer. I will come back again during fall and winter hopefully to complete my collage. Though I was worried I went on taking a few more shots of roses and there it was, the 2nd battery too went down in a short while much before my prediction. Well now what, hmm, I don’t know what to do but from my past experiences with these batteries I knew that they will allow me to take at least another picture after the first shut down. So I still had hope that I would be able to take at least one picture of that tree.

I left the Rose Garden to catch the RBG’s shuttle bus to go to the other Garden where the tree is located. I was 5 minutes late for the shuttle and I had to wait another 20 minutes to take the next shuttle. I was not ready to wait there doing nothing so entered the main building again walking the indoor gardens. Well now I found another one in the series of that cute stone statue and I could not control my hand going towards the camera and I could not control my legs to go out of that place. Grrrr why did I not charge the 2nd battery, I was cursing myself. I was thinking was about a minute whether to switch my camera on or not. Well, I decided to follow my heart and it said to go ahead and do what u want and before I could convey the message to my hands it was already ready focusing the camera to the statue. As already said I might get maximum two no minimum null pictures one I switch on the camera now after the first shutdown. So I switched on the battery, captured the statue which I wanted and immediately switched it off. Well I guess before I switched it off. Well I was happy I was able to take the picture I wanted. But now am I going to get the picture of that tree. Hmmm the chance was only 50% before taking this picture, but now it is only 5%. I convinced myself saying that anyway the sun is not out and the picture is not going to come good for representing summer, so I was already preparing to come back again taking the long ride. Though it is just to take a single picture I might have to come back again.

It was almost 3 PM and the shuttle took me to the Garden where the tree was and I went directly to take the picture I wanted. I took my camera out and hoping it will switch on I switched it on focusing it towards the tree and in fraction of seconds I was about to click a few people were crossing between my camera and the tree, but I cant wait I just clicked. After I clicked, my camera was showing “Progressing” may be to store the picture to the card, but without showing the result it shutdown again. First of all I don’t know if those people came in between and secondly I was not sure if the picture was saved to the camera. I have done all my best and now I don’t care what happens. I just put my camera inside and took a couple a few more pictures with the tiny camera in my phone which I know is useless to use for the collage. The photo session was officially over for the day and my hands were free from then on.

I had some time to catch the shuttle back and I wandered over the Garden for sometime listening to the tunes of the birds and starring at their bright colors. The shuttle was there at 3:30 and on my way back to the main building I stopped at another garden to spend around half hour for a small walk. I was back in the main building by 5 to catch the transit back to home which would be RBG -> Burlington Transit -> Go Train -> Go Bus -> Brampton Transit -> Home

It was virtually the end of the day. I took the Burlington transit and reached go station on time to catch the go train. There were many people waiting there. A board displayed the platform for my train and I headed there, but soon before reaching the platform I decided to go to platform later and headed back to the station building. Only then I realized that all those people who are waiting there were waiting with a question mark on their faces reading a display which I did not see the first time. The display read “All go bus service has been stopped immediately for today on police advice and will resume shortly …… “. Well I was shocked. I have no other backup plan to reach my home from there; it is far away from there. I went to the ticket counter and was confirmed that there won’t be any more service for the day. On enquiring the reason I was told that it is due to G20 summit which I doubted and my day pass was reimbursed. I was filled with questions of what to do. It was 6 PM and I was thinking whether I should call my roommates to come and pick me up with the car or I should take a taxi back home.

After standing there for around 15 minutes and thinking what to do I could not make up my mind but started walking towards the bus stop where I can get Burlington transit. But I don’t know where I wanted to go from there. I was all looking at other people and seeing what they are doing and hear what they are talking about to see if any of them are going to Brampton but no luck. Some of them were just standing there not knowing what to do like me, some dispersed of with solutions which I don’t know, some called their friends who came to pick them up, etc etc…

A Burlington transit bus came and went to the driver and asked about how I can reach Brampton from there and he had no clue. Hearing my conversation with the driver one of the Chinese lady who was waiting there. She said there is a way and she started telling me. I was so happy to know I have a way out I was not hearing to the details which she was telling. She was with one of her friend and both of them found another guy who was going to the same destination where they wanted to go. They were three. She asked me to just follow her and I joined the gang of 3 to go back home making it 4. So out transit venture started there. Which went like Go Station -> Burlington transit Bus -> Another Burlington Transit Bus -> Yet another Bus -> Oakville. The other 3 reached their destination. She told me that I can go to Mississauga from there and told me the bus number. I was not sure if I can reach but I assured her that I will as she was concerned and thanked her. After waiting for another half hour the bus came. So the second leg of my journey back home went catching different transit and enquires. Oakville -> Oakville Transit Bus -> Missisauga Transit Bus -> Brampton Transit Bus -> Yet another Brampton transit Bus -> and finally Home.

Finally I reached home at around 11:30 PM. After having dinner I tried to charge my camera battery and switch on the camera to see if the last picture was stored and not spoilt by the persons blocking the view. I was too sleepy to wait till it gets charged, I went to sleep. Next morning the first thing I did was to turn on the camera to check the picture. Guess it, it’s a happy ending, the picture was stored. It was a cloudy day with no sun, but I can use it for representing summer in my yet to be made collage. The people too were found at one end of the frame but I can crop them, they did not block the tree view.

 I was overwhelmed, I need not take the long transit trip back again to RBG, but only till fall and wait " How are you going to reach there and come back alive in winter" asks my conscience!