My first vacation in a cabin: Haliburton , Ontario September 8-10, 2020

I have camped since the last several years at different camp sites by lakes in Ontario. However I had never stayed at a cabin and this year, I finally got to stay at the cabin of a dear friend. The cabin is by Drag river in Haliburton and this is literally the first time, I have lived in a place with no human or human created sounds...no people, no vehicles sounds, no music, nothing. The only  continuous sound was of the river flowing by the cabin. I loved it. Actually I did not hear either birds or animals too. (except for a baby chickadee which came by our table as we had our dinner. It was probably living in the nest in the cabin.) Another sound was that of rain on the roof or the raindrops falling of the leaves when it was windy. This sound actually was there for a substantial amount of time as there was a bit of rain when we were there. This rain on the metal roof takes some getting used to.

Above a baby bird, too young to fear humans, was talking non-stop to us and we did not know what it wanted! I wonder if it's from the nest above in the cabin's woodwork or from some place else...it could not fly far, without stopping. I wonder if it's a baby chickadee. Checking on google, it did not make the chickadee sounds...it did not have a white collar feathers...so I do not know

I had a nice time here. My concentration was at it's best that it has been in the last year! I managed to read an entire chapter related to my work (neuropsychology) and also complete two novels! I would have taken days to complete reading these novels, were I in Toronto, even  during vacation. The attractive distractions in my Toronto home are too many to ignore! TV, netflix, phone, emails, whatsup, several novels, news, surfing the net, housework, cat, people, etc. 

I loved the cosy bed in the loft with a window from which I can see the river and trees. I was up there most of the time, reading my novels.

 I read my novel by the river on a hammock and loved it there too!

and on this sofa...while my husband cooked breakfast, lunch and dinner!

We also went on walks and discovered at least ten types of beautiful and colorful mushrooms. We saw 2 deer and a frog. I expected to see a lot more wild life but this was it. I am so thrilled and grateful to have seen the fearless baby chickadee(?) which was hopping on our table as we ate. I know it was trying to communicate but I dont know what it wanted!

My creative friend (who loaned us the cabin) has made this cushion for the chair with milk bags! It was soft, it's an excellent way of recycling and can remain outdoors as it's plastic/water-proof and even aesthetically appealing.  One can look out at the river while on this chair. 

Above and below: the lovely wood burning stove which kept us warm and added a cosy red glow to the cabin. 

Above delicious noodles for breakfast and below green gram and ridge gourd  'tovve' for lunch. Husband did all the cooking for once, as we had to cook on a propane stove . He frets too much when I am learning something new (New is the propane stove). 

My husband spent his time cooking and whittling wood by the river...which he really loves!

I had a peaceful time. I had lofty plans such as doing a lot of contemplation, reading psychology articles, etc  when I went to this cabin. I ended up spending time reading my two novels, eating and sleeping, photographing and walking. I did not miss netflix, TV, phone, news, my cat, surfing on the net, shopping, chatting with friends, at all. In fact, I don't think I even thought of these things...except when I saw something nice, I thought of friends and family with whom I could have shared.