Down the Wrabbit Hole - The Travel Bucket List

Vienna's National Library: The Hidden Gem of Austria

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 01 Dec 2019 17:58:00 +0000

If you are ever in Vienna, wandering the cobblestoned streets surrounding the elegant Hofburg Palace, you'll probably have noticed some of the more popular sights: the noble Lipizzaner Horses, the mouth-watering delicacies of Austrian coffee houses (like Cafe Demel, which you can read about here), or the Sisi Museum located inside the palace, showcasing one of the most enchanting royal figures in Austrian history.

But there is one underrated feature of the immediate area that not many people know about, which boggles my mind because it is one of the most beautiful rooms I've ever stepped foot in. I'm talking about Vienna's National Library, and in particular, the State Hall.

The scale of Vienna's National Library State Hall is massive.

It is easy to locate, as it is a part of the Hofburg Palace and neatly labeled, but it is also surprisingly nondescript and tucked away for something that stuns you with its beauty once you step inside. If you walk down Josefsplatz away from the Palace's main entrance, towards the Augustinerkirche, you'll find a small courtyard, and a set of double doors leading to the library (there is a sign, you just have to look for it). Admission to the State Hall is 8 Euro per person, but well worth the cost.

Originally part of the royal Court Library, the State Hall, or Prunksaal, was built in the 18th century in the most lush of baroque styles. When I say lush, I mean LUSH. I felt like I should be wearing a corset and crinolines in order to wander the hall properly.

Yes, this room is a library hall. But this is not like a library hall at your local university. This is a library hall fit for the grand empire that was the Hapsburg dynasty. For starters, the State Hall is massive at 80 meters long and 20 meters high. There is a giant dome in the centre, covered in frescoes and paintings fit to rival the Sistine Chapel.

Lots of marble columns, rich woods, and gold filigree make the State Hall ooze elegance.

In the centre of the State Hall, directly beneath the behemoth dome, stands a statue of Charles VI, the Hapsburg emperor who decided that he needed something a little more extraordinary for his book collection. Not wanting just anyone to make his dreams come to life, Charles VI hired Fischer von Erlach, the same architect who designed the impressive Sch⍥nbrunn Palace. And von Erlach outdid himself.

Charles VI was the emperor who commissioned the construction of the State Hall.

Where to start? Let's start with the obvious - the books and their shelving. The heavy, wooden shelves span upwards from the floor to the lip of the dome. Gliding, metal ladders allow the historians and librarians to gain access to the over 200,000 tomes that rest upon the shelves.

Bookcases filled with rare and valuable manuscripts line the State Hall.

And these aren't just any books. There are ancient volumes written in dead languages, letters from celebrities and great thinkers such a Sigmund Freud, old maps from early expeditions around the globe, and so much more. Many of the more rare documents are displayed in airtight showcases which line the main hall.

You can look, but please don't touch the priceless tomes!

Speaking of globes, there are also large globes that double as art pieces to be found inside the State Hall - globes big enough to allow a full-grown adult to sit atop them, if that were acceptable, which it is not so please don't try it. These globes are very lovely, designed by a Franciscan friar named Vincenzo Coronelli.

Beautiful globes the size of a full grown adult can be found in Vienna's State Hall.

The dome and all of its amazing frescoes are supported by thick, wooden and marble columns, decorated with beautiful carved details at the top. There is something very Roman about the hall, despite it being located in the middle of Austria.

Vienna's National Library State Hall is the most luxurious library I have ever set foot in.

Video and photography is allowed inside the State Hall, with NO flash please, as you can tell from the video that I made. The guard at the front will check your ticket, remind you of the no-flash policy, and ask that you keep your voices low to respect the other visitors to the library. Easy peasy - my mouth was hanging open in awe as I strolled through the hall, so there was no chance of me talking.

The beautiful fresco inside the 20-meter high dome in the State Hall.

Beyond gaping at the incredible art and architectural features of the State Hall, there isn't too much more to do there. You can't touch the books, you can't climb the ladders, and like I said, you can't ride the globes. So give yourself about an hour to spend wandering the stacks and marvelling over what the State Hall has to offer before you decide you've seen enough and it's time to leave.

Perhaps if my library in my hometown looked a little more like Vienna's National State Hall, I might spend more time in it!

Supporting Local Economies: Amerii Handbags & Balinese Artisans

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 15:34:00 +0000

Recently I was contacted by a marketer from the up-and-coming handbag company Amerii, based out of Bali. She wanted to do a collaboration video on my YouTube channel in which I'd review one of their handbag products, and in exchange, of course, I'd get to select any of their products which would be shipped to me for free.

Before responding, I checked out Amerii's website to make sure it was a company that I'd want to attach my name to, and I was very happy with what I saw.

Amerii, as I stated before, is based out of Bali and strives to support the local Balinese artisan community, economy and environment. The company hires local artisans to create each bag by hand using products from the environment that have been harvested responsibly.

This is the backpack I chose to order from Amerii.com

For example, the bag I chose, a "Coco" backpack, was woven by hand by a Balinese artisan working hard to support his or her family, using locally harvested rattan grass. (If rattan isn't for you, ata grass is another popular medium that is used to create bags for Amerii, or you can choose to go with a leather bag.) I loved the look of the Coco bag - the rattan is smoked and smooth, and the jug shape of the bag struck me as something that looked very 'Balinese'.

After researching a bit about Amerii, I responded to the marketer with enthusiasm, and we made plans for a collaboration video. I'll post it here, but you can also find it on my YouTube channel - please subscribe if you haven't already because I post a lot of videos there that don't make it here onto the blog.

To order your own Amerii handbags or backpacks, click on this link and tell them that "Down the Wrabbit Hole Travel" sent you!

Cafe Demel: Cafe Culture in Vienna, Austria

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 15 Mar 2019 04:58:00 +0000

A pint in England. A glass of wine in Paris. Vodka in Russia. Some beverages are synonymous with certain locations. Coffee, I discovered recently, goes hand-in-hand with Vienna, Austria.

A visit to Vienna, Austria is not complete without an afternoon or morning spent lounging within one of the city's elegant and relaxed cafes, where time seems to slow down and every sip and morsel has meaning. Drinking coffee is an event, each moment designed to be treasured and experienced with delight.

I was lucky enough to spend a morning in one of the city's oldest and most notable cafes, Cafe Demel, an establishment frequented by past emperors and empresses in days when the Hofburg Palace was inhabited by the royal Hapsburg family.

Here's what you need to know about Vienna's cafe culture so that you can luxuriate in the moment yourself when the time comes.

The Coffee Culture

The moment you set foot into one of Vienna's cafes, you feel a change within you. You stand a little straighter, walk a little taller, and automatically begin to channel the grace and composure that these refined establishments seem to request of you in an unspoken agreement. In Vienna, coffee is an art form, and you, my friend, have become its newest patron.

Jess and I, excited for our cafe culture experience!

The cafes are classical, typically designed with chandeliers and wooden panelling on the walls, and you are served by waiters in black suits. Your coffee will arrive in a simple white mug, but on a silver platter with cubes of sugar, a silver spoon, and a glass of crystalline, cold water.

No one will rush you: a single purchase entitles you, dear patron, to spend the entire day at your table, enjoying the cultured atmosphere and feeling of refinement.

The historic interior of Cafe Demel. Image via commons.wikimedia.org

And what to order? This is part of the fun, knowing how Vienna classifies its coffee. Here are a few key blends that you might want to memorize:

Mokka - This is your typical espresso, a large mouthful of strong coffee ready to give you either a quick pick-me-up if you down it in one gulp, or a series of gut kicks if you choose to drink it sip by sip. Either way, when you want to order an espresso, ask for a Mokka.

Kurzer - Consider this a mini-Mokka. It's about half the size of the Mokka but with the same amount of caffeine. I never ordered one; honestly, it looked so thick I was pretty sure you could substitute it for syrup!

Verlangerter - On the opposite end of the spectrum from the Kurzer comes the Verlangerter, which is a watered-down espresso meant to fill a full-sized coffee mug. This would be pretty close to an Americano, I believe, or in my world, just a cup of plain coffee.

Melange - For those of you looking for the 'authentic' Viennese coffee house experience, I suggest you order a melange, which is a Vienna speciality. Similar to cappuccino but seemingly more sophisticated, this coffee mixture is made of one shot of espresso, a splash of hot water, and a generous helping of frothed milk to top it off. I ordered one of these and LOVED it!

Einspanner / Fiaker - I was never too clear on the difference between these two coffees. Both are coffee on the bottom, with a delicious and hefty dollop of whipped cream on top, and both are served in a glass rather than a coffee mug. Rumor has it, this creamy coffee concoction was served to the horse and carriage drivers back in the day - the glass kept their hands warmer than if it had been served in a mug, and the cream on the top kept the coffee from getting too cold too quickly. Rumor also has it, the cream prevented anyone from smelling out the third secret ingredient - rum!

Cafe Maria Theresia / Biedermeier - Speaking of coffee with rum, the Viennese do like spiking their cafe coffees. If you're not a rum fan, try your coffee with a blob of whipped cream and a shot of orange liquor like in the Cafe Maria Theresia, or coffee with cream and apricot brandy like in the Biedermeier. Either way, you might end up lounging in the cafe all day if you drink more than one!

Coffee truly is a passion in Vienna!

I could go on. The cafe menus are miles long with different styles of coffee variations, some with liquor, some with cream, some with milk, or a combination of all three. The creativity for something as simple as coffee was endless - I never realized one could be so adventurous with caffeine. And I enjoyed that most coffee concoctions had a historical anecdote attached to them as well.

Sachertorte: A Sweet Treat

Vienna's cafe culture isn't all about drinking espresso or frothing milk. There are many sweet treats to wash down with your coffee as well.

The most famous dessert associated with the cafe culture in Vienna, and Cafe Demel in particular, is the chocolate cake known as sachertorte. This delicious cake is a thinly layered chocolate cake, filled with apricot jam between the layers or around the edges, then covered in a sleek, velvety-smooth chocolate glaze. It is extremely rich and filling, but luckily, most cafes sell it in various sizes.

Sachertorte is a must-try in Vienna, Austria.

The morning we visited Cafe Demel, we had literally just eaten a buffet-style breakfast about 40 minutes before and were still feeling stuffed full. However, I couldn't pass up the chance to try some authentic sachertorte in ONE of the cafes where it was said to have been invented, so I ordered a tiny little individual cake, about the size of a tart. (If you are hungrier than I was you can order a regular-sized slice or even a whole sachertorte to take home.)

As I said, Cafe Demel is only ONE of the places that claim to have 'the original' sachertore. There's a bit of drama surrounding this little dessert. The sachertorte was created by pastry chef Franz Sacher in 1832 for Prince Clemens Lothar Wensel Metternich of Austria, who demanded a new dessert be made personally for him. The head chef at the Prince's palais was out sick that day, so little Franz Sacher, a 16-year-old apprentice cook, found himself creating a cake with just the resources at his disposal in the kitchen that day. And it turned out to be pretty popular.

So popular that two cafes went to court over the right to claim it. Franz's son, Eduard Sacher, opened the Hotel Sacher (now a very famous hotel in Vienna) where the sachertorte was made and sold in the cafe. But Eduard, for some unknown reason, SOLD the recipe for sachertorte to Cafe Demel, who then began producing it. Both cafes began to claim they were the home of the 'original' sachertorte, and this caused issues.

Hotel Sacher fought tooth and nail for the claim to the sachertorte. Image via commons.wikimedia.org

Cafe Demel claimed that because they had purchased the recipe fair and square, that Hotel Sacher had then also relinquished the title of original creators. Hotel Sacher's rebuttal was that they first served it, so they were rightful 'birthplace' of the cake - even though, let's be honest, the Prince's palais was well and truly the actual birthplace of the sachertorte.

Eventually the court acted like a frazzled mother, trying to appease everyone. Hotel Sacher won the right to claim they were the home of 'Original Sacher Torte', while Cafe Demel was allowed to state they sold the 'Original Eduard Sacher Torte'. And each place had to put their jam somewhere different. Yes, that's right. They had to spread their jam in different spots, legally, to avoid more fights. Hotel Sacher spreads the jam between the layers, and Cafe Demel puts their jam on the outside of the cake under the chocolate glaze. It's so ridiculous, but I guess that solved the problem.

But no matter. The point of this whole story is that the cake is delicious and you should order some.

Cafe Demel

But why was I so excited to visit Cafe Demel in particular? It was on my list of places to go before I even set foot in Austria. I was determined to not drink coffee in ANY cafe - it had to be Cafe Demel.

My pickiness isn't because the rest of the cafes in Vienna are subpar. As I said above, Hotel Sacher is world-famous and historic and probably very beautiful as well, and I'm sure there are hundreds of lovely cafes with just as much merit all over the city.

Cafe Demel is famous for many reasons, cake decorating being one of them.

But Cafe Demel has a lot going for it, and since I knew I'd probably only have time to sit and lounge in one cafe only during my time in Vienna, I wanted it to be memorable.

First off, Cafe Demel is half a block from the resplendent Hofburg Palace in the heart of Vienna. So not only is Cafe Demel in a fantastic tourist hot spot and close to several other amazing sights, it is also in the shadow of royalty, very literally. The moment you leave the cafes front doors, you can see the green-domed top of the Hofburg, perched at the end of the street.

Due to its proximity to the palace, Cafe Demel was a favourite getaway for the Hapsburg royals. The cafe was established in 1786, so it has seen its fair share of celebrity and nobility. My favourite Hapsburg, Empress Sisi, used to sit and chill with a cup of coffee inside Cafe Demel, and I wanted to do the same.

This car, made of cake and fondant, actually had moving wheels!

Not only does Cafe Demel have some of the best history regarding coffee and cake, but they've also kept up with modern aesthetics too. Their window displays are legendary, with cakes and confections that look like artwork, or machinery, or a bit of both, all made by hand. When we visited, they had a hollowed out wedding cake with a detailed and jaw-dropping fondant display inside the cake, and in a second window, a car made out of cake and fondant with moving cake wheels. It was insane, and I was amazed at how they could achieve such feats with flour and sugar.

Even inside Cafe Demel, there are cake displays found here and there, such as a cake with an intricate waterfall of fondant flowers, so real they look like they are alive.

The flower cake; not the best picture because the lighting was not great.

And if you don't believe your eyes, you have the opportunity to see the cakes and delicacies being made by hand yourself. The bakery and kitchen area has clear walls, so you can clearly observe how the pastry chefs (aka: magicians) make their wares. I watched as tiny flowers were painted onto a cake's surface, and was really excited to see how the pastry chefs made apple strudel. (Hint: Watch the video at the end of this post to see for yourself!)

It is really fascinating to see how Cafe Demel makes apple strudel!

Having clear walls for the kitchen is a brilliant idea. I honestly could have stood there and watched the pastry chefs do their thing all day. They were swift, efficient and extremely talented. I can barely make a circular chocolate chip cookie, so this was very interesting to me.

Of course, you can choose any cafe you want to visit in Vienna. My main point is that if you find yourself visiting this wonderful city, you do reserve a large portion of time within at least one day of your visit to spend soaking in the cafe culture. Order a melange and eat a slice of sachertorte for me!

San Marco Square in Venice, Italy: A Basilica, A Campanile and A Clock

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 17 Feb 2019 22:27:00 +0000

If you are a first-time visitor to Venice, Italy, and are wondering where to start when touring around this fascinating city, my recommendation is to begin in the iconic Piazza San Marco - also known as Saint Mark's Square - a wide, open-air plaza surrounded by many of Venice's key attractions. From the square, you can easily access the famous Basilica di San Marco, the towering Campanile, the unusual Astrological Clock, along with many museums, including the Doge's Palace.

In fact, you could easily spend a couple of days exploring what San Marco Square has to offer!

When we visited Venice, Italy in October of 2018, we only had three days to experience the entire city, and so we chose to spend just one day in San Marco Square. This post will focus on our tour of the Basilica, the ride up to the top of the Campanile, and the Astrological Clock. To read more on the Doge's Palace, you will need to read my future blog post about it.

St. Mark's Square (Piazza San Marco) is the perfect spot to begin your exploration of Venice, Italy.

As I prepared myself for our journey to Venice, I had watched many vlog videos about the Piazza and read several posts. Many, many disappointed tourists had commented on how cramped and crowded the square was, how vendors of mask and T-shirt stands cluttered the cobblestones, and scam artists and pickpockets threaded their way through the crowd searching for gullible targets.

But I was still excited to see it for myself.

Luckily, we traveled to Venice in October, which is technically 'off-season' for tourism in the city. I was surprised that it was still as busy as it was when we arrived, but it definitely didn't match the congested and claustrophobic description that previous tourists had lamented on. (Watch the video at the end of this post to see just how 'empty' the square was compared to summer months!)

The square was certainly not as crowded in October as it will become in the summer months.

We first stood in the middle of the piazza, marvelling at the size of everything: the openness of the square itself, the elegant spires of the Basilica, and the towering Campanile all seemed larger than life.

Restaurants and cafes along the edges of Piazza San Marco were filled with customers sipping coffee and eating breakfast. We stayed away, however, as research had informed us that these restaurants are notoriously expensive, especially if you sit to drink or eat. Coffee in a to-go cup is cheaper than sit down service in the piazza, but even then, it is just more affordable to wait and get your caffeine fix further away from the square.

The Campanile was our first official stop in Piazza San Marco.

It was mid-morning by the time we arrived in Piazza San Marco; we'd tried to get up and get going much earlier, but the trip was catching up to us and we slept in a little too late. Lines had already began to form for access to the Basilica di San Marco and the Campanile. We'd hoped to get there early enough to skip the lines altogether, but by mid-morning they weren't completely unreasonable.

Thinking that the line for the Campanile would grow faster over the course of the morning, we opted to tackle that first. Half an hour later, we were entering the Campanile foyer. We paid to access the elevator to the top, which was 8 Euros (and goes as low as 4 Euros per person if you are in a group of 20 or higher). In my opinion, the fee is worth every penny, so don't let that 8 Euro price deter you.

We jammed into the elevator like sardines, and were whisked away to the top of the Campanile.

The beautiful view of Venice, Italy from above!

Up top. the view of Venice was breath-taking. The city spread out before us like a terra-cotta tinted labyrinth, with the wide open space of St. Mark's Square directly below. You could see just how twisty and turny the streets of Venice truly were by looking at them from this bird's eye view.

My favourite part of the view from the Campanile was how you could see from one end of the main island of Venice to the other, with water all around. On the island of Guidecca, which was just across a small stretch of water from the Doge's Palace, massive domed buildings seemed to be floating on the sparkling water. It was so amazing to see from that perspective.

The twisted streets of Venice, Italy, as seen from above.

Another interesting part of visiting the top of the Campanile, was that you could see one of the five bells that used to hang on the original Campanile. Yes, you read that correctly - the Campanile of today is not the same Campanile that originally stood in Piazza San Marco. The first version of the Campanile took quite the beating: it was hit by lightning, set aflame, and badly damaged in 1388, 1417, 1489, 1548, 1565, 1658, 1745, 1761, and 1762. Finally, in 1776 someone took it upon themselves to add a lightning rod, and things settled down for a bit. The Campanile was restored and saved, until...

In 1902, the Campanile began to show a large crack on its north wall, which spread and weakened the base of the tower. It collapsed a few days later, crushing a part of the loggetta. Amazingly, no one was killed, except the poor caretaker's cat. Ten years later, the Campanile was rebuilt, and that's the one we had been standing on in October of 2018. One bell from the original tower had been saved, and we were able to see if for ourselves, a 650-year-old relic still hanging in the open air.

That view is sure nice... and the streets of Venice look pretty good too! Ha ha ha!

As waves of new sightseers joined us on the observation deck of the Campanile, it began to get a bit crowded, so we took our leave and went back down the elevator to Piazza San Marco. The line-up to enter Basilica di San Marco wasn't that crazy, since it had begun to sprinkle rain just a bit and many people had fled to seek shelter in nearby cafes. We took our place in line, braved the drizzle, and got into the Basilica after about a 20-minute wait, which wasn't much at all.

The Basilica is free to enter, but as we later discovered, there are various points around the interior where you have to pay a small fee to see 'what's behind the curtain'. I was glad that I had a pouch full of Euro coins, otherwise I would have missed some of the key elements inside the Basilica.

Joey and I outside Basilica di San Marco in Venice, Italy.

To get inside the Basilica, you should also come dressed properly - this is a place of active worship and is a holy space so keep your shoulders and knees covered. No cut-off shorts, ripped jeans, belly shirts, muscle shirts, bikini tops or whatever shows extra skin - dress like you are going to Sunday school, people! The guards at the front doors have the right to turn you away if you don't meet their decency standards.

The moment we stepped inside, I was in awe of the Basilica. The ceilings were covered in gold-plated mosaic tiles, called gold glass tesserae, with colourful and vibrant murals adorning the four domed roofs. The Basilica is constructed in the shape of a cross, so there are three naves forming the top and sides of the cross, and each nave had its own gold-covered dome. The largest dome was located right where the three naves met, at the heart of the 'cross'.

Golden domes of the Basilica's front foyer.

As we walked deeper into the church, pillars towered above us, holding up the multiple domes and balconies of the church. We noticed that the floor was even decorated with tessellated geometric tile, showing patterns and animal designs in beautiful detail.

Tourists were funnelled like cattle along a one-way pathway, routing us past some of the more important aspects of the Basilica, such as the treasury (where you had to pay a small fee to enter, which we didn't) and the transepts. We did pay the fee to enter the presbytery, located in the eastern arm of the 'cross' design of the church.

The golden domes inside the Basilica di San Marco.

Inside the presbytery you can find the top portion of the underground crypt. The crypt is divided into two 'rooms' by an elevated alter screen, so guests are funnelled from one side of the alter screen to the other, and then back out, like walking around the block.

The back side of the alter screen is definitely worth the 1 Euro fee, because it is hiding the gorgeous Pala d'Oro, a giant alterpiece adorned with 1300 pearls, 300 sapphires, 300 emeralds, and 400 garnets, plus all that gold.

The beautiful Pala d'Oro above the Basilica's crypt.

It is stunning to see, especially since I didn't know it existed. One second I was walking around a corner in a space made of marble and stone, all grey and brown, and the next second I was dazzled by something so glittery and golden that it looked like a treasure hoard from a pirate movie. Definitely worth the small admission fee, in my mind!

The Pala d'Oro glittered with thousands of jewels!

A note about my photography from inside the Basilica - there are signs clearly displayed all around the church about 'no photography'. However, everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, that I saw was either taking photos or filming while inside the Basilica, and the guards weren't even batting an eye about it. I had tucked away my camera inside my purse, with the best intentions of obeying the posted signs, but when I saw all of the visitors doing the opposite and no one caring, I joined in. I didn't use flash, I didn't use a selfie stick, I just took quick photos and got out of everyone's way. There was no ceremony or worship occurring at the time that I would be disturbing, and I attempted to be as respectful as I could - as respectful as you can be while ignoring posted signs, that is. If this offends anyone, feel free to not look at the photos I'm posting here!

There are plenty of other places to explore in the Basilica - for another small fee you can go to the upper balconies and see the Basilica's interior from the second level. You can also stroll around the exterior upper floor balcony, where the famous Horses of Saint Mark-Lysippos overlook the Piazza. The original horses are actually preserved in the St. Mark's Museum inside the Basilica, so the ones outside on the balcony are just replicas. However, the originals date all the way back to the Hippodrome in Constantinople, and were actually stolen in 1204 and taken to Venice when Constantinople was sacked in the Fourth Crusade.

One of the detailed pillars in the Basilica di San Marco.

We exited the Basilica back into Piazza San Marco, just beyond the beautiful Astrological Clock, or the Torre dell'Orologio. This clock is unique, not only for its beauty, but for its multi-functionality. It displays the time, the phase of the moon, and the dominant sign of the zodiac. Built in 1496, it has run for over 500 years. Rumour has it that the clock was so stunning and unrivalled at the time that the ruling doge had the clockmaker blinded, so that he could never make another to compare.

The lovely Torre dell'Orologio in Piazza San Marco.

Our morning in the Piazza had been pretty successful - we'd explored the square itself, gone up to the top of the Campanile, seen the interior of the Basilica, and feasted our eyes upon the Torre dell'Orologio. We still had time to stroll through the Doge's Palace, but I'll cover that in a later post. For our first day in Venice, we had already seen some incredible and notable sights, all in one location. Piazza San Marco is a fabulous place to begin your sightseeing tour of the Floating City!

Please Nominate me for the Kerala Blog Express 2019

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 29 Jan 2019 19:37:00 +0000

Hello to all my lovely, loyal readers! I am coming at you today with a little, tiny, very simple request, and I sure hope you can find it in your hearts to help me out!

It was this time last year that I begged, plead, and grovelled for your votes in a press trip competition called the Kerala Blog Express. This press trip to Kerala, India is a two-week bloggers dream, taking writers, vloggers, and photographers from one end of Kerala to the other, visiting tea plantations, cultural sites, luxury hotels, beaches, and more. I'm so in love with the idea of blogging and vlogging my way across Kerala, but I can't get there alone.

The backwaters of Kerala. So stunning! Photo via.

In the past, this competition had been criticized for its circus-like voting method: previous winners were accused of buying votes, faking entries, you name it. Last year I was in the top 20 until the last week of voting, when suddenly several entrants came out of the woodwork and got 500 votes in an hour, which tipped me off to the incredibly unfair tactics being used. I vowed not to participate again, as my heart was broken.

But this year, the lovely folks at Kerala Tourism seem to have noticed the shenanigans that went on, and have changed the system. Instead of easy votes, the new system is to nominate your favourite influencer and fill out a brief form that explains why you have chosen that person to showcase India for you. (Of course, these can still be bought/faked, but it is a lot harder and more labour-intense now, so I'm hoping that does not happen.)

The beauty of Kerala. I'd love to be there! Photo via.

Because the nomination system seems a little more honest this time around, and because there are several other criteria that bloggers must meet, such as high quality writing, posting consistency, and social media reach, I have decided to participate again. (It just looks like such an amazing opportunity, I'd be silly to not even try!)

So please, please, PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE WITH A CHERRY ON TOP, would you mind sending in a nomination on my behalf? It takes about 3 to 5 minutes, depending on how much you'd like to say about me in the description box. I have created a step-by-step video displaying exactly how to fill out the form, but for the sake of time, I can also do a screenshot here and you can just copy exactly what I have written out for you - minus the part where you add your personal feelings, of course!

Nomination form link: http://keralablogexpress.com/nominate

The details you need to fill in the form, minus your written recommendation for me, and your personal info below.

To further aid my cause, you can also make sure my social media reach is of worthy proportions. Please feel free to follow me on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I just created a new Instagram account which is hyper-focused on travel content, so you don't have to see photos of my kids or what I made for dinner! The links are below.

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/thewrabbithole
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/down_the_wrabbit_hole/
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/wrabbit007
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DownTheWrabbitHoleBlog/

I know I am up against some truly heavy competition - big hitter influencers in their twenties, ladies with long, gorgeous hair or gentlemen with big muscles in surfer shorts, living nomadic, global lives. I know I'm just a middle-aged mother with big travel dreams and an even bigger pile of laundry sitting on the couch, but I'd be so honoured to be the one to show you around Kerala, India with my blog and videos.

Cruising the Canals: A Gondola Ride through Venice, Italy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 05:03:00 +0000

One of the most iconic activities to participate in when visiting beautiful Venice, Italy is undoubtedly floating through the narrow canals and waterways on a graceful gondola. Seeing Venice from the seat of a boat gives travellers a view of the city that can't be seen from just strolling the streets.

In October of 2018, I was lucky enough to find myself in historic Venezia, and of course, made sure that I had the chance to ride in a gondola at least once during our stay.

If you were ever wondering, "Is a gondola ride worth the cost?" or "Are gondola rides just cheesy tourist traps?", I beg you to take the time to read this post in order to help you answer those questions.

My husband and I were very excited for our Venetian gondola ride!

Venice in October, during our stay at least, offered up some wonderful weather. We set out on our second morning in the city in jeans and short-sleeved shirts, coupled with light jackets, which were only needed for small portions of the day. The sun was shining brightly, and the light glittered off the canals like jewels. A perfect day to go for a gondola cruise!

There are gondola stations all over the city, so it isn't difficult to find a gondola to hire. You will even walk past small pairs or groups of gondoliers as they lounge on random bridges, their boats tethered to posts just beyond the bridge stairs. You can secure a ride from there just as easily as going to a station.

However, the gondola station closest to our AirBnB apartment was right beside the Rialto Bridge. (And wow! What an apartment! I'll post the video about it below so you can check it out.) So off we strolled to Rialto, only getting lost a handful of times. Because getting lost is what Venice is all about!

Gondola Rental Basics

There are some pretty basic regulations when it comes to hiring gondolas. The prices are fixed throughout the city, to eliminate shady business operators and outrageous competition. A daylight gondola ride, which lasts about 30 minutes, will cost you 80 Euro. That 80 Euro is the price to hire a boat, regardless of there being one single passenger, two passengers, or six passengers. If you have 6 people in a boat, you 6 can split the cost of the 80 Euro between you. (So the more riders the better the price, but the less romantic the feel of the adventure.) The limit is 6 passengers per gondola, so if you have any more than that in your group, you will have to rent out two boats.

A quick guide on Venice gondola hire rates.

If you are looking to see Venice from the waterways at night (which is amazing, I'm guessing, just from seeing Venice at night on foot) the price to rent a gondola for 35 minutes is 100 Euro. The hours for a night tour begin at 7:00 p.m. and end at 8:00 a.m.

While 30 minutes may seem really short to you for the price, I can tell you from experience that it was a perfect amount of time for me. The views are gorgeous, the ride is peaceful, and it is fun to people-watch tourists from lagoon-level, but after 30 minutes I was ready to move on and explore the city some more. This may not be the opinion of everyone, but I thought the timing was just fine. (We also split the cost with another couple, so it wasn't quite as expensive for us to hire the gondola.)

The Gondola Route

Our gondola tour took us up the Grand Canal for a bit, where we were able to see some of the grander buildings, water-side restaurants and cafes, and have the opportunity to feel small and delicate in the middle of such a busy, wide waterway. But it was a busy waterway, and after being rocked a bit by vaporettos (water taxis) and cargo boats, I was ready to slide seamlessly into the smaller, calmer canals of interior Venice.

The Grand Canal from aboard a gondola.

The smaller canals were far and away my favourite place to explore via gondola. They were quieter, with a bit of echo due to the narrow buildings, where loud sounds were muted and softer sounds were emphasized. Distant conversations and shouts of passing people blended together softly, while the dip of the gondolier's oar into the water was crisp and clear. The hollow bumping of a moored gondola drifting against the side of a building clunked rhythmically, lulling you into a dream-like state.

The smaller canals were like magic to me.

Some of the canals were so narrow I couldn't even picture a gondola going down them!

I don't even know how many 'lanes' we explored, our gondolier sliding the craft smoothly from one group of buildings to the next. We glided under bridges, where our navigator had to duck to keep his head from getting whacked by hundred-year-old brickwork. He would then turn us sharply around corners, effortlessly it seemed, and we'd begin the whole process again, weaving our way through yet another neighbourhood.

Some beautiful buildings along our route.

And then our route led us back out onto the Grand Canal, where we emerged just beyond the looming Rialto Bridge. We cut through the choppier water back towards the Rialto gondola station, our tour ending just around the 35 minute mark.

The Sights

There was nothing historically or architecturally significant that we passed by on our little tour, at least not according to our gondolier. He would point out various signs that were hung on the sides of buildings, marking their construction date or sometimes what the building was before it became a residential block, but nothing was truly notable unless you were a hard-core history buff.

What we did see what simply stunning, however. There is something so unique about the look of Venice, due to its age and location.

One of the wider interior canals that we explored.

Venice is in a state of 'elegant decay'. I'm not sure where I heard the term, but it is an incredibly suitable description of the buildings in beautiful Venezia. The ravages of constantly flowing water, dampness, storms coming in from the sea, and other natural elements mean that it is a losing battle for Venetian citizens to maintain the exteriors of their homes and businesses and keep them looking new.

So the residents of Venice have accepted this look - crumbling walls, faded paint, peeling shutters, chipped facades - all of which sounds depressing and unsightly. However, somehow, Venice makes it stylish. The disheveled state of the building exteriors makes the city look noble, ancient, and... elegant. It truly is a state of 'elegant decay'.

An example of the 'elegant decay' of Venice's building exteriors.

Of course, the interiors of the buildings are treated with modern upkeep. Structural supports are replaced and maintained as needed, and renovations and remodels are constantly underway on the interiors of homes and shops to keep them looking new and upscale. Our AirBnB had recently been renovated and had all new walls and flooring - the only thing that remained that was original on the inside were the 600-year-old ceiling beams!

As we floated through the network of canals around Venice, this state of elegant decay was definitely noticeable, and I loved the whole atmosphere it created.

Side Notes

A row of gondolas await you!

Be careful when embarking and disembarking the gondola! They can be very wobbly, and although I proudly told the gondolier I didn't need a hand getting in, I ended up grabbing it in a panic anyway! If the gondolier extends his hand to you, use it! I didn't feel balanced on the boat until I was sitting down, so use caution and move slowly.

Tips are considered a faux pas, according to our AirBnB hostess who was born and raised in Venice. I can't quite remember her reason for stating that, but she repeated it about three times to us, so that's what stuck in my head. I did read somewhere that if you want your gondolier to sing to you, you might need to pay him or her extra, but that's only if they reveal to you they know and/or want to sing. So there's no guarantee you will be serenaded either way.

We had a wonderful time seeing Venice from the seat of a gondola, and I highly recommend that if you are ever in Venice, you splurge at least once and go for a ride.

Riding the Rails: Train Ride from Vienna to Venice

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 02:10:00 +0000

I am a proud Canadian, loyal to my country, in love with its beauty, aware of its size and the variety of landscapes it boasts from coast to coast. Because Canada is so big, travelling from one province to the other, or from Canada to its neighbouring nation of the United States, either requires a multi-day road trip or more commonly, a few hours flying time.

Hopping from place to place via train is not something you do in Canada.

Which is why, when we visited Austria in October of 2018, I was more than ready to ditch airports and car rental shops in favour of cruising to Venice, Italy on a smooth and sleek Eurorail high-speed train.

If you've never travelled around Europe by train, then I highly suggest (next time you find yourself hopping from one European country to the next) that you give it a try.

Our group was very excited to travel across Europe via train!

When planning our itinerary for our whirlwind European getaway, we knew the journey between Vienna and Venice had to be made, but it was up for debate on how that would be accomplished. We were planning the trip with two other friends who were in the process of house-hunting, and it was imperative that we were as cost-efficient as possible.

Flying to Venice from Vienna was indeed quicker, and would allow us more time for sightseeing in the "floating city", but the price was somewhat higher than everyone was willing to pay. (Not unreasonable at around $220 per person at the time we were looking.) We checked out prices from Rail Europe, and found that the cost was approximately $75 CAD for an adult, which was more in the price range we were looking for.

Not only did the price seem appealing, but we all kind of enjoyed the idea of seeing Europe through the windows as the landscape passed us by. The Austrian countryside was rumoured to be incredibly beautiful, and we were happy with the idea of seeing it more fully, but without the stress of making one of us drive in a foreign nation. Nobody in our party wanted to be responsible for renting and driving a car.

The beauty of the Italian countryside!

The only downside of opting for a rail journey over flying to Venice was the time factor. Flying to Venice was only about four hours, whereas the train trip was slated to be just over seven hours.

In the end, the idea of saving some money while seeing the countryside from a cozy Eurorail seat won over the efficiency of flying. We purchased our tickets (very early, as our planning session occurred in March for a trip scheduled all the way in October).

Flash alllllll the way forward to that October, and we were ready to hit the train station. From our hotel in downtown Vienna, we grabbed a city train to the main train station and searched for our departure platform. We were purposely about an hour early, as we'd wanted to eat lunch and double-check the tickets I'd printed out.

A quaint and pretty Austrian town, as seen from our train.

I do admit, I'm a bit of a fretful person on travel days. I have a thing with being early - just in case - and I always need our tickets double-checked - just in case. I like to reweigh my suitcases - just in case, and I'm always fiddling with either my passport, wallet, computer equipment, you name it, making sure everything is in its place - just in case. My husband rolls his eyes at me most of the time, but let me tell you, it is better than the alternative.

And that's exactly what happened at the Vienna train station. I took the tickets to the information center in the train station while the rest of my group was drinking coffee. I had a feeling in my gut that something would be wrong. The paper copy of the tickets I'd printed out hadn't properly printed the QR codes, forcing me to do a screenshot of the codes and print them separately on a piece of paper. They printed in quite a large size, and the train station's scanners couldn't process them. The lady at the information desk told me we'd need to print all new tickets, and I'd need proper ID in order to do that.

More sights from the window of our train as we speed from Vienna to Venice.

I had to run back to where everyone was relaxing, dodging suitcases and throngs of people, collect everyone's passports, sprint back to the information center, wait again in line, and then have the lady re-enter our info and re-print tickets. It was a good thing we'd gotten there early, and it was a good thing I'd listened to my instincts! Being slightly paranoid and double-checking everything isn't a bad thing, so don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

With proper tickets in hand, tummies full and blood caffeinated, we headed to our platform to board our 7 hour train to Venice.

Once on board, we piled our suitcases right where we could keep a watchful eye on them. There is no luggage security on Eurorail trains, and I know of two people personally who had their suitcases whisked away and off the train at random stops without the owners realizing it. So make sure you store your luggage within sight line of where you choose to sit, and watch it at every single stop. Better yet, stay within an arm's reach of it if possible, so if someone either purposely or mistakenly tries to exit with your bag in hand, you can politely tell them they've grabbed the wrong case.

Austria had such beautiful farms and fields!

We didn't really have to worry for about five hours of our trip - we had the entire compartment to ourselves. It was not a very busy voyage at all! Closer towards Venice more people began to board, but overall it was a quiet and relaxing trip.

We had packed a couple of drinks and snacks for us along the way, but there was a snack trolley that passed by us occasionally, so you don't have to bring your own goodies.

For the most part, we gazed serenely out of the window, watching the vibrant green fields of Austria pass us by. Beautiful churches, sprawling vineyards, quaint farmhouses... it was all a wonderful treat for our eyes. I tried to film and photograph as much as I could, but typically by the time I'd spotted something beautiful I wanted to capture, it was gone before I could turn my camera on and get it focused.

Every now and then you'd pass by some amazing and picturesque architecture!

There's not too much to say about the ride itself - I have made a video which is posted below that shows what it was like much better than I could ever describe. Everyone else in my group slept for a portion of the ride, but I was too enamoured with the landscape to sleep a wink. I did manage to edit a blog post and do a little vlog work while travelling, but mostly I tried to enjoy the moment. I mean, when else am I going to get to voyage between Vienna and Venice, surrounded by such natural beauty?

By the time we arrived in Venice, it was dark. We could see light glinting off the rippling waters of the lagoon surrounding the city, but the cloak of night prevented us from getting too much of a first impression.

Our first view of Venice was dim, but still very pretty.

We exited the train station and looked for the proper water taxi to take us up the Grand Canal to the Rialto Bridge stop, where our AirBnB owner Francesca had promised to meet us. On the way out of the train station, we were bombarded with 'helpful' porters offering to take our luggage down to the water taxis for us. Aware that they could be either thieves or scam artists who would then demand money for carrying our suitcases 3 meters, we declined all offers. I am perfectly capable of carrying my own suitcase, no matter how heavy! (And it was heavy - it had that stinkin' ball gown in it, and that thing wasn't light!)

We successfully made it to the right water taxi, to the right stop at Rialto, and found Francesca, who led us to the apartment where we'd be staying. We celebrated that evening on a successful travel day, a beautiful train ride, and on our first night of enjoying Venice.

Vienna's Schönbrunn Palace: Imperial Splendour

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 00:56:00 +0000

Our first morning in Vienna, Austria, my husband and I were booked by his company to tour the majestic Schönbrunn Palace. The tour promised to expose us to the "Imperial Splendour" that Austria, and Vienna in particular, is famous for.

(The day's agenda was literally titled "Imperial Splendour" so that there would be no mistaking what we were about the experience that morning!)

The incredible Schönbrunn Palace is well-worth a visit if you are ever in Vienna. It is so impressive that it has made it onto the UNESCO World Heritage Site list of attractions, and sees up to 8 million visitors a year - so don't expect to be puttering around the grounds alone! However, just because Schönbrunn Palace is busy does not mean you should skip seeing it.

Viennese apartment complexes just beyond the Schönbrunn walls.

Today, the palace is within city limits, although not exactly in the historic downtown region. When you arrive at the Schönbrunn, you will see that it is surrounded by apartment complexes and commercial buildings. But it was not always this way.

From humble hunting lodge roots, the Schönbrunn has grown into a giant palace complex.

Schönbrunn Palace actually began as a humble hunting lodge, which happened to have on its grounds a very handy fresh-water spring that procured delicious drinking water. From the name Schöner Brunnen, German for "fair spring", the name Schönbrunn was derived. In 1569, the lodge came into the possession of Maximilian II of the Hapsburg royal dynasty, and from that point on became destined for greatness.

Originally the lodge was just an estate house with a stable and a watermill, and remained that way for generations as the Hapsburg family mainly used the grounds for hunting. It wasn't until 1743, when Empress Maria Theresa gained ownership of the lodge and made it her summer palace, that its true transformation into one of Europe's most impressive Baroque palaces began.

Joey and I in the courtyard at the front entrance to the palace.

Maria Theresa lived at the Schönbrunn all summer, so naturally the court gravitated there, and the palace went from a lonely, remote lodge to the centre of court and political life. Today, Maria Theresa's influence can be found all over the palace, as it was her pride and joy.

Flash forward to the day we visited. The Schönbrunn Palace is a gigantic complex with 1,141 rooms, but tourists and guests are only able to see 40 on the Grand Tour. The complex also includes an impressive garden with a 'Gloriette' (more on that later), a zoo, a hedge maze, greenhouses, a Palm House, several restaurants, a carriage museum (which I'll share in a later post), a theatre and more.

The golden tone of Schönbrunn Palace is actually quite famous, known as Schönbrunn yellow!

Our "Imperial Splendour" tour provided us access to the carriage museum, a walk through the State rooms, a stroll through the gardens, and lunch at one of the restaurants. We were scheduled to spend the entire morning and the early part of our afternoon just navigating this massive complex. If you are planning on going to the Schönbrunn Palace yourself, please remember to give yourself LOTS of time to explore! We didn't even get to the Gloriette, greenhouses, hedge maze, Palm House, or zoo after spending hours there. I'd love to go back to see all of the things we had to miss out on!

The Palm House, which we didn't get to see. Photo from Pexels.

Visitors must buy their ticket at the Visitors Centre near the front gate, and tours are grouped by time slot to prevent the State rooms from getting too crowded and claustrophobic. Our interior tour was slated for later in the morning, so our guide took us first to the carriage museum to have a history lesson on the Hapsburgs and their royal way of life. (To be continued in a later post!)

In one of the beautiful garden tunnels in the Schönbrunn gardens

The carriage museum was very interesting, and gave us a taste of the opulence we might experience within the actual palace walls. When we completed our museum tour, we took a stroll through the lower part of the Schönbrunn gardens. These are free to visit, if you'd like to just tour the grounds instead of going inside, but that seems a little silly to me. If you are there, you may as well see as much as you can!

Divided into separate gardens, the garden grounds span over 2 square kilometers. The main garden is called the Crown Prince Garden, divided into eight beautifully manicured pieces with a wide walkway down the middle, called the Great Parterre. With the beautiful Schönbrunn Palace at one end, and the impressive Gloriette and Neptune Fountain at the other, the Crown Prince Garden is an impressive sight.

The Crown Prince Garden with the beautiful Gloriette at the end

We enjoyed strolling through the Crown Prince Garden and taking photos down the length of the Great Parterre, but sadly did not have enough time in our schedule to go all the way down to the Neptune Fountain or the Gloriette. This is where all of the iconic photos of the Schönbrunn Palace and its gardens are usually taken, so I was a little sad to miss out.

There were hundreds of statues in the gardens to enjoy

After our truncated tour of the gardens, we headed inside for our scheduled stroll through the State Rooms. There were no photos or videos allowed inside the palace, which nearly destroyed me. I tried to take it all in mentally, but really felt like I was suffocating by not being able to share my experience with the world!

You begin the tour at the Blue Staircase, which is where all cameras and phones must be tucked away. Following a pathway of ropes and carpets, visitors are led through the 40 available rooms, learning the history of the Hapsburg dynasty as they are shuttled along. Our tour guide was cheeky and extremely knowledgeable, a good combination. Her stories were smoothly told, with lots of little quips and jokes thrown in to make us chuckle and stay attentive.

One of the State rooms, elegantly decorated. Photo by João Gustavo Rezende from Pexels

One of the most impressive things about the State rooms was the fact that the rooms were all decorated individually, with 'themes' that were very detailed and thorough. Each theme was done to the max, no holds barred.

My favourite State room was the shiny and black Vieux Laque Room, created as a memorial room to Franz Stephen by his wife Maria Theresa. Its shiny, dark laquered panels made the room extremely dramatic.

Within these 40 State rooms, many treasures and beauties lie - you just have to go there yourself to see them!

My second favourite room was the Porcelain room. Since porcelain was all the rage during Maria Theresa's reign, and very expensive, it would have been quite prestigious to have a room all decorated with porcelain. There are 'porcelain' frames, adornments, and details all over the room, but the tour guide let us in on a little secret: most of the pieces in the room were wooden and just painted to look like porcelain! If you want to see for yourself, you can take a virtual tour of the State rooms at the Schönbrunn Palace website, since I wasn't able to take my own photos.

The Schönbrunn Palace reminded me a LOT of the palace of Versailles in Paris in so many ways: the way each room was basically connected by a giant hallway, with visitors just moving from one part to the next; the luxurious manner in which the rooms were decorated, right down to the themes, artwork, and frescoes; even the style of art and furniture was reminiscent of Versailles. While I do have to admit that Versailles was more impressive and refined, Schönbrunn Palace definitely had its own brand of splendour.

The palace is full of imperial splendour, so our tour title was very accurate!

Our tour lasted for about an hour, and then we were shuffled through the gift shop (of course) and out the doors we had entered through. I had to pick up my purse at the coat check as large bags and backpacks are not permitted inside the palace, but luckily coat check is free. (Quite frankly, I was happy to have left my heavy purse behind for the duration of the tour.)

We had a few moments to enjoy the front facade of the Schönbrunn Palace before leaving for lunch. I particularly enjoyed the front staircase, leading up to a beautiful balcony. My poor husband was forced to pose for many photographs with me!

The beautiful staircase at the front of the Schönbrunn Palace

Lunch was also on the grounds of Schönbrunn Palace, down past the greenhouses and Orangery. We enjoyed some traditional Austrian cuisine, along with a nice glass of wine and a strong European coffee.

Our morning at the Schönbrunn Palace and grounds was lovely. I could have honestly used a couple more hours to fully explore everything - I had really wanted to see the Palm House and the Gloriette. If I ever find myself back in Vienna, I will make a point to revisit the Schönbrunn Palace and do the full tour!

Attending a Ball at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 08 Nov 2018 02:12:00 +0000

As a little girl growing up under the influence of Disney princesses and romantic musicals, I always pretended to be a lady of culture attending a fairytale ball. I'd put on my best dress or costume gown, slide into my mother's high heels, and waltz around the kitchen while my parents did their best not to trip over me while they made dinner.

As I aged, I realized that in our modern society, princes inviting all maidens in the land far and wide to cha-cha though his castle is not exactly a common occurrence. In fact, dances of any kind can be a bit difficult to find. In my community, there are lots of charity auctions, gala dinners, and special events, but very rarely do these occasions include a dance of any sort, let alone a ball that matched my vision as a wee girl.

"Do balls even exist anymore?" I wondered, and I truly believed the answer was NO.

But then I went to Vienna, and I attended what felt like a royal ball inside a true-blue palace, where I wore a legitimate ball gown, and for the first time in my life, I actually felt like a Disney princess come to life.

Joey and I attended a ball in the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, and it was surreal.

I don't mean to give the impression that the ball in Vienna was just sprung upon me when I arrived in Austria, and I had to find a fairy godmother to whip me up a gown. I did know that we'd be attending a ball in advance to our trip; I just hadn't pictured it being as elegant as it was.

The ball was set to be held on the final night of my husband's work conference to Vienna, a send-off in true Viennese style. I was extremely excited for this event, and bought my gown about a month in advance to our flight out from Calgary. I was actually wedding dress shopping with my sisters, cousin, and mother, but managed to slip away for a moment to search for the perfect 'princess gown'.

I had wavered a bit on how extravagant I should go: just a fancy, sparkly cocktail dress? A floor-length evening gown? Or a giant, puffy ball gown like the ones I'd envisioned as a child?

Joey and I all dressed up and ready to go!

It was a definite no on the cocktail dress. I wear those on a regular occurrence to my husband's company dinners and events. A floor-length evening gown seemed more appropriate and elegant, and easy to pack... but my heart wasn't happy with any I saw.

This was a BALL. In a PALACE. A royal palace in VIENNA. I would probably never have a similar occasion in which to wear a giant, puffy, ridiculously extravagant ball gown. So that's what I went with.

Packing it was not fun. I've made a video on that, which you can watch below. I won't go into that too much because the video really says it all. But I did manage to get the gown to Austria with minimal wrinkles and zero damage, so I was quite happy about that.

The night of the ball, my husband and I got all dressed up and went down to the lobby to await our bus, which would take us to the Hofburg Palace. (I will go into more detail about the history of the Hofburg Palace and what it is like to visit in a later post.) Immediately upon entering the bustling lobby, where many other employees from Joey's company awaited the bus, I noticed something glaring.

I was the only one in a ball gown.

Be yourself, be happy, and enjoy your life!

All of the other ladies were either in classy yet fun cocktail frocks, or graceful and elegant floor-length dresses. I stood out like a sore thumb (a really fancy sore thumb, but a sore thumb nonetheless). I felt quite embarrassed at first, but made the choice to own my fashion selection and just enjoy the night.

To my luck, no one considered my dress a fashion faux-pas (or if they did, they politely kept it to themselves, so thank you!). I got several compliments on the dress which helped to elevate my confidence a bit more. That confidence got knocked back down when we went to board our bus and the driver removed me from the line-up I was in, and asked me to wait for the next bus so I could board first and sit in the front due to the size of my dress.

This dress needed its own seat on the bus!

The darn dress was so puffy that I had to sit by myself in a front row seat, while the bulk of my dress basically sat in its own seat! Joey had to sit alone across the aisle from me as we drove to the dinner palace.

Yes, we actually attended two different palaces that evening. We first dined at a private palace before going to the Hofburg Palace for the ball. Apparently in Vienna, smaller palaces, which were homes of aristocrats and nobility during the monarchy, were called a 'palais'. The palais where we were dining was called Palais Pallavicini. This privately owned 'mini palace' is nestled in the heart of Vienna, right next to the Hofburg Palace and the Spanish Riding School. The Palais Pallavicini was built in 1784 and purchased by the Pallavicini family in 1842, and has been in their possession ever since, for over 150 years!

The Palais Pallavicini was stunning and luxurious.

We were awed by this gorgeous and resplendent palais. Crystal and gold chandeliers dripped from every ceiling, and red carpets rolled out everywhere to make you feel like a star. Precious frescoes and tapestries hung from the walls, and gold foil designs decorated the ceilings and walls.

The impressive staircase at the Palais Pallavicini.

The grand staircase had an intricate stair rail, dramatically painted black, and I felt like I was in a movie as we made our way up to the ballrooms and dining area. The people who worked at the palais loved my dress, and in every room that we entered, they offered to take a photo of us. (And then kicked Joey out of the photo and wanted to take just a photo of me. It was a little funny!)

The lady in charge of organizing our dinner at the palais insisted I have a photo alone in this room!

Our meal was served by individual waiters, who synchronized their every movement. Each dish was placed carefully on the table all at the same time, and whisked away just as methodically. The room did get stifling hot with all of the people and their fancy clothes, but when the staff opened the windows it cooled down enough to be able to eat.

One of the dining rooms at Palais Pallavicini.

We did not linger too long at the palais - just enough to mingle and enjoy a few drinks before our meal, and after we ate, it was already time to leave for the ball. Located at Number 5 Josefsplatz, the palais was literally right across the street from the Hofburg Palace, so the entire dinner party walked across the square towards the palace as a group. I hiked up my dress, and with considerable concentration, walked the cobblestoned streets in my high heels.

The Hofburg Palace, all lit up at night.

If we thought the palais was impressive, we weren't even prepared for what the Hofburg had to offer. The palace is lit up at night with golden light, and it looks like a magical castle from a musical. Inside, another luxurious red carpet guided us through the palace entry way and up a wide flight of marble stairs towards the ballrooms.

They made me sit on the steps for the photo, with about 60 people watching. So embarrassing!

There were 9 rooms prepared for our evening event: the Festsaal, the Wintergarten, the Zeremoniensaal, the Mamorsaal, the Antekammer, the Rittersaal, the Trabantenstube, the Hofburg Galerie, and the Hofburg Lounge. All were connected by a massive hallway called the Seitengalerie. Each room had a different theme and activity associated with it, all to keep our giant group of people flowing from one to the next and never get bored.

The main ballroom in the Hofburg Palace. Just stunning!

The Festsaal was the main room for the evening's event, the 'grand ballroom' so to speak. The room itself was stunning in its immense size, its decorations and details, and the amazing lighting from the chandeliers to the evening's atmospheric glow. This room took my breath away. It was in this room that a live classical band was playing (although, to be honest, they played just about any music) and in this room we also had the chance to see many dance routines.

Acrobatic modern dance at the Hofburg Palace.

We witnessed some beautiful waltzing by the 24 Debutantes of Elmayer Dance School, and an exotic modern dance and acrobatic routine from Nikolay Spira and Viktorya Khil. Also in the main ballroom, we learned how to waltz ourselves from the Midnight Quadrille, where I failed miserably.

Watching the waltz before we try to learn it ourselves.

In the Wintergarten, the Hofburg staff kept us content with many desserts, snacks, and beverages. This room had plush couches and chairs where people could sit, eat, relax, and mingle.

The Zeremoniensaal had a swing band called the Divertimento Viennese performing songs from the 20s, 30s, and 40s, who alternated with a second band called the Wolfsband who performed more modern songs. The mix of bands kept everyone moving and dancing. This room was stunning because of its dozens of chandeliers; when you looked at the ceiling it was like staring into a crystal kaleidoscope.

The beautiful chandelier room, as I called it.

The Mamorsaal had gaming tables set up all around its perimeter, with Vegas style gambling games at the ready for guests. Each game focused on wine tasting, wine knowledge, and all things wine, since the theme of the room was a "Wine Casino". The ultimate goal: fill your stamp sheet up with 8 stamps and enter to win a wine basket.

Losing badly at the "Wines Around the World" game

The Antekammer had a photo 'booth' set up with a red-carpet style backdrop and more wine-tasting. The line up for the photo booth was a bit too much for me, so Joey and I opted to pass it up in favour of exploring the remaining rooms.

The Rittersaal allowed people the opportunity to learn to waltz, and had waltzing lessons every half hour. Dance instructors were at the ready to teach people the basic moves of the waltz, which I found extremely difficult. I also wasn't quite in the frame of mind to spend half an hour taking a lesson, so that may have also factored into my difficulties learning the dance. I just wanted to see everything - no time to waste!

Joey and I danced for a few moments, but we are both AWFUL dancers!

The Trabantenstube was a "Neon Baroque" bar that was serving two specialty cocktails, each named after a former Austrian emperor. The room was packed to the brim, so we didn't even have a chance to go in. The same went for the Hofburg Lounge, yet another narrow 'bar' in the palace that was full and rather uneventful unless you just wanted to sit and drink.

The Hofburg Galerie was the room we ended up spending the most time in, especially towards the end of the evening, as it had a really fun DJ who was playing music from the 90s and today. He took requests, which we delighted in. My most epic moment from our time at the Hofburg Ball was dancing to Aqua's "Barbie Girl" in my giant ball gown with my group of girls. Too fun!

The Hofburg Galerie was where we had the most dancing fun!

We had such an amazing time at the ball. We stayed until the very last buses were due to take us back to our hotel - I was whisked away by friends onto the second last bus, as they were all terrified we'd miss our ride and I'd have to walk all the way back across Vienna in my giant ballgown. No one wanted to be escorting me if that happened! Joey missed out because he was busy being a chatterbox with everyone, and literally got the LAST bus home.

Second-to-last bus home - what an amazing, magical night!

The ball in the Hofburg Palace was easily the most magical night of my life. I cannot thank Joey's company enough for such an indescribable evening; we are so spoiled and so lucky!

Wandering Old Wardour Castle in Tisbury, England

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 31 Oct 2018 16:23:00 +0000

Recently we were visiting friends who live in Shaftesbury, Dorset in England. Due to a hectic travel schedule involving both Vienna and Venice in under two weeks, my husband and I were only able to stay in England for a few days. The bulk of that time was reserved for catching up with Joey's high school bestie Jason and his wife and kids, as well as a day trip out to Stonehenge, which is about 40 minutes away from Shaftesbury. Needless to say, there wasn't a huge chunk of time left over for travel blog exploration.

But Jason's lovely wife, Emily, was immensely supportive of my travel blog and YouTube channel endeavours, and was excited to show me around the area so that I could make a couple videos and articles during my stay. A BIG shout-out to the beautiful and enthusiastic Emily; we loved staying with them and will hopefully repeat our stay in the near future!

One of the highlights of the Shaftesbury area is the Old Wardour Castle, a lakeside medieval stone ruin that is amazingly picturesque and surprisingly intact despite being partially destroyed during the English Civil War. Emily and I ditched the boys and headed out on a morning girls' trip to the castle to see what we could find.

The amazing view from Old Wardour Castle.

I'm not entirely clear on the boundary system in England, so I wasn't sure exactly where to say Old Wardour Castle is located. Although we were staying in Shaftesbury, which is located in Dorset, and the castle was just a short drive away, I did notice my GPS ping for the ruin stated we were in Tisbury. And according to Wikipedia, the castle is actually on the boundary between Tisbury and Donhead St Andrew in the county of Wiltshire, and no mention of Shaftesbury or Dorset is even made. So the best I can do is give you exact GPS coordinates (51.0365*N, 2.0888*W), and let you find your own path!

Luckily for me, Emily was driving, which let me relax and just stare out the window as the lovely British countryside rolled by. Coming from a snow-covered Alberta where we had been suffering from an oddly early winter, I was grateful for green-leaved trees and lush grass.

The castle walls and floors are green with moss and lichens.

The narrow, winding road to Old Wardour Castle took a sharp turn to the left, and suddenly we were there. The tiny gravel parking lot only had one other car present, so it seemed like we'd have the entire castle and grounds to ourselves. Peeking over the tall, stone-stacked wall was the top half of Old Wardour Castle, looking impressive indeed.

Our first glimpse of Old Wardour Castle from the parking lot.

A quick history lesson on Old Wardour Castle: The castle was built in the 1390s in a joint effort between the St Martin family and the Lovell family. After the Lovell family chose the wrong side in the War of the Roses in 1461, they lost possession of the castle and it passed through several hands until Sir Thomas Arundell snagged it in 1544. The castle passed from father to son in a convoluted manner - Sir Thomas was executed in 1552 for treason and the castle confiscated, but his son Matthew bought the castle back.

The castle almost seems cursed, because soon after Matthew gained possession of the grounds, he became involved in the English Civil War on the Royalists side (hint hint: he may have chosen the wrong side). While he was away on King's business, the castle was besieged by the Parliamentarian Army and nearly destroyed. Matthew Arundell ended up dying in battle while away, and his son, Henry, decided to blow up his own castle rather than let the Parliamentarian Army have it. Poor Wardour Castle was nearly pummelled into extinction during this time.

The ruins of Old Wardour Castle.

Eventually, the family regained power and finances, and were able to rebuild their castle, but a little further away. Hence, there is an official Wardour New Castle and then there is Old Wardour Castle, which is where we had visited that day.

Despite the tumultuous history that the castle had endured, there were still four stories standing high into the sky. Half of the castle was obliterated and open to the elements, but it was still possible to climb all four stories, walk among the rooms, stand near intact fireplaces, check out cubbyholes and water closets, and see part of the castle as it may have looked 600 years ago.

The Great Dining Hall, missing part of the wall and all of the roof.

You enter the castle through a courtyard, and have access to the kitchens and storage rooms that were found at ground level. Missing from the ground level was access to the destroyed west wing, which would have featured guest accommodations and the private rooms of the castle's lord. A grand staircase leads guests up to the dining hall and accommodations for the Lord and his family.

On the Grand Staircase leading up to the Great Dining Hall.

The dining hall was very impressive, with a two-story vaulted ceiling and high Gothic windows. Today, the vaulted roof is gone, but you can still get the impression of what the room may have looked like. The far wall is gone, which allows modern-day visitors a great view out onto the sprawling castle grounds and the lake beyond.

Emily models one of the Gothic doorways.

Past the dining hall, a twisting, narrow stone staircase leads up to the remaining two upper stories. As I stated before, there are still completely intact rooms to be found in the upper levels, but only on one half of the castle.

What really irked me was finding people's names scratched deeply into the walls of the castle, particularly along the stone staircase where security guards and other visitors are more unlikely to catch vandals. Why must people deface beautiful pieces of history like that? Drives me nuts. Want to write your name? Get a piece of paper and pencil like a normal human being. Leave a business card in a crack between the stones. But don't ruin the castle itself, for goodness sake.

One of the intact rooms on the third floor.

After I had satisfied my curiosity by exploring every available nook and cranny of Old Wardour Castle, Emily and I crossed the green lawn to what I thought might be a boat house. Turned out, it was the old gatehouse which had been renovated into a banqueting suite for fancy garden parties. Today, the little building is a picture-perfect wedding site. We left the little exhibition building with Emily plotting a second wedding ceremony unbeknownst to Jason.

The banquet house across the lawn from the castle.

We'd arrived in England on a very rainy and damp weekend, and as Emily and I exited the banqueting hall, the clouds opened and a deluge began. We scurried to the little admissions / gift shop booth to poke around a bit while the rain settled down. A surprising array of swords, axes, and replica maces were for sale, which astonished me considering the tiny size of the gift shop.

Be careful where you walk!

One section of the castle grounds we didn't get to explore was the mysterious stone grotto - commissioned in 1783 after the death of one of the castle's owners. Made of brick and stone, this rugged-looking grotto is built right into a rock wall near the castle. However, its purpose was never fully disclosed, and it was raining too much for Emily and I to go check it out fully.

I would have loved to fly my drone around the castle ruins, but because of the castle's designation as a Grade 1 Listed Building with English Heritage, drones are sadly prohibited. It was still definitely a fun place to visit and a beautiful location in the English countryside.

Visiting Stonehenge: What to Expect from the Stones

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 22:57:00 +0000

Recently I was able to check off a big item from my bucket list: #24, See Stonehenge.

I have wanted to personally stand near the towering rocks at Stonehenge since I was a kid. My parents used to own a big coffee table book about the "unsolved mysteries" of our planet. Stonehenge was one of the chapters in that book, and the stones were presented with huge, brightly coloured photographs that featured the sun peeking through during solstice. It all looked so magical and beautiful, and that particular destination became a goal of mine.

Flash forward to today, and my husband and I found ourselves in England visiting our friends Jason and Emily in the town of Shaftesbury. Luckily for me, Shaftesbury is about 40 minutes away from the Stonehenge Historical site. So on a Saturday afternoon, we headed out on a bit of a road trip to fulfill #24 on my bucket list.

I was very lucky to see Stonehenge on my short visit to England this year!

The morning had been gloomy and grey, with rain that seemed to pour sideways smacking into the windows of Jason and Emily's house. By the time we'd finished eating lunch, however, it had cleared up and the sun was peeking through the clouds in sporadic, bright beams. It was perfect, mysterious-looking weather to explore some mysterious-looking stones.

We pulled into the parking lot of Stonehenge and Jason dropped us off at the sidewalk leading into the interpretive center. We hadn't purchased tickets in advance, which is typically recommended, but because of the rainy day I'd hesitated on purchasing before we actually knew if we'd be able to make the visit or not. Luckily, we were able to get some, but probably only because it was a rainy day in October, which is tourist shoulder season, and the crowds weren't large. If you are visiting in the summer months, I'd definitely buy an advance pass to see the stones!

The Interpretive Centre at Stonehenge is an interesting structure!

There are three sections to the interpretive center you should know about. The first is the cafe, off to the left of the ticket booth, where you can stop and grab a snack or a drink before or after heading out to the stones. No ticket is needed to visit the cafe. There is also a souvenir shop on the left, just beside the cafe; also no ticket needed.

We opted to hop right into the exhibition section of the interpretive center, located on the right side of the ticket booth. They do check your tickets at the entrance to the exhibition, so make sure you have them on you!

The beginning of the exhibition was my favorite part of the entire museum portion: it was a 360 degree screen displaying Stonehenge, making it seem as if you were standing in the middle of the rocks. The screen time-lapsed from day to night, through season after season. As we watched in admiration, we were able to virtually experience full moons in winter, the first rays of summer solstice, and all of the days in between. It was really quite beautiful, and in my opinion, stole the show from the rest of the exhibition.

A really great 360 degree 'movie' of Stonehenge greets you when you enter the exhibition centre.

Beyond the circular foyer, there are two more sections to the museum. There is a large main hall with lovely quotes and facts about Stonehenge etched into roof-high rectangular columns, and a TV screen off-set to the right with a short documentary about the history of Stonehenge set to loop through the day.

On the left side of the main hall, you can find a smaller section with objects on display that have been excavated from burial mounds in the surrounding area. Included are animal and human bones from nearby settlements, tools and other implements used by residents of the area throughout the ages, and lots of reading material about the people who were thought to have created the mysterious stone monument.

A third, smaller room folds back behind the 360 degree screen room, featuring more museum displays and random archaeological artifacts relating to the history of Stonehenge. I must admit, I didn't spend much time in this particular room as it was a little chilly, a lot of reading for just a few artifacts, and I was at this point getting really antsy to go out and actually look at Stonehenge itself.

Joey models the fibreglass replica stone.

We meandered outside to see the outdoor portion of the exhibit. Right away, you see an example 'stone' which represents the taller of the standing stones. This exemplar is actually made of fibreglass, but it accurately depicts the height and girth of one of the actual Stonehenge rocks. You also have an opportunity to touch two smaller, real stones; one made of bluestone, and the other made of sarsen stone.

Here's how you can tell the difference between a bluestone and a sarsen stone - the sarsen stones are larger and were more difficult to carve but were made of a harder silicified sandstone, so were used as the large 'doorway' looking standing stones. These massive stones, while a common geological feature of the Stonehenge area, were still carted an impressive 20 mile distance to Stonehenge itself. It is mind-boggling to think how ancient peoples were able to drag these massive stones that incredible distance.

A magical kiss outside the magical stones!

The bluestones, on the other hand, were smaller and easier to carve, and when freshly carved or wet have a slightly blue tinge. These smaller bluestones are the stones found within the sarsen stone circle - a circle within a circle. The big mystery of the bluestones is that they are not local to the Stonehenge area, and actually originate from the Preseli Hills in Wales. How they made their way to Stonehenge is perplexing.

Past the example stones, you find a replica village, much like the one that could have been found in the Stonehenge region in about 2500 B.C. You can go inside a couple of the recreated huts and feel what life might have been like back when Stonehenge was a place for gathering and worship.

I model the replica huts.

By this time, we were just itching to see the REAL Stonehenge, so we wandered over to the bus line and shuffled our way into a shuttle. You can walk the road on foot to Stonehenge if you feel like making a true-blue pilgrimage, but we were pressed for time so the shuttle was the best option for us. A quick five-minute bus ride had us stepping back into time.

A close-up view of the stones - this is about as close as you get due to the protective ropes.

From the bus drop-off, it is a quick walk to the actual monument. It is so impressive to see the stones growing in size as you take each step closer. Of course, you cannot go right up to the stones - they are roped off for their own protection. In the past, inconsiderate visitors would carve initials into the rocks, chip pieces off of the stones as souvenirs, or even lean on them and accelerate the process of the stones falling over. Many people I talked to were disappointed and upset that access to the stones is not possible, but I totally see why and actually applaud it. Looking at the amount of people who visit the stones EVERY FIVE MINUTES I can see why it has to be done.

I was so excited to be standing so close to Stonehenge, finally!

There is a section of the visitor path that gets you quite close to the stones - not touching distance or anything crazy like that, but close enough to get a very nice view of the the monument and some fabulous photographs. After that, the path rounds away again from the stones and past the circular ditch that ensconces the entire structure. From there, you can stroll the circumference of the ditch, admiring Stonehenge from every angle imaginable.

Joey captures the perfect photo of Stonehenge.

And you really need to walk that circle. Every few feet, a new perspective astounds you, and you simply MUST stop and take another photograph. We had a great time taking photos for other visitors, and they for us. Everyone was in a great mood and just in awe of what they were seeing. The whole atmosphere around the stones is really positive and fun.

The weather cooperated with us very well on our visit to Stonehenge!

Once you've completed the circle around Stonehenge, you can choose to take the shuttle bus back to the interpretive center, or walk across the surrounding fields to return to the exhibit hall. If you choose to walk the fields, you will have the opportunity to see the various burial mounds that surround the area. These mounds have already been excavated and are now just piles of grass-covered dirt, so we were told it is okay to climb them and take photographs on them.

One of the many burial mounds that surround Stonehenge.

Unfortunately, we didn't have time to walk the fields, as our friend Jason was picking us up and had his kids in the car, so we boarded the shuttle bus and zipped back to the interpretive center. After a quick stop in the crowded and busy gift shop to buy a magnet (that's our cheesy thing we buy when we travel), it was back up the path to the parking lot and home again.

Despite the tourist-laden trappings of Stonehenge, the large crowds, the hustle and bustle, and the inability to step INTO the stone circle, we still loved our visit to Stonehenge. It is an architectural marvel, a magical creation, and an important part of history, and definitely worth a visit once in your life. I have seen the stones, and I have no regrets!

3 Reasons Why Bucket Lists AREN'T Morbid

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 31 Aug 2018 03:08:00 +0000

As the owner, writer, and editor of a Travel Bucket List blog for nearly a decade, recently branching out into the exciting and dually frustrating world of running a YouTube channel, I have had many conversations about the nature of bucket lists.

Many people are excited that I have a travel bucket list and typically ask me questions such as, "What's on it?" or "How long is it?"

But there have been a handful of people that I've encountered personally, let alone seen comment online, who disagree with the notion of a bucket list. Some are even quite passionate that bucket lists are simply WRONG and the people who write them are pathetic. Yes, that's a comment that once was thrown casually in my direction.

Naturally, everyone is entitled to their opinion. And if you are someone who thinks bucket lists are a waste of time, that's completely fine with me. No one is forcing you to write one. But I love my bucket list - I actually have TWO; the one for travel that you see on this blog, and one for everyday life goals such as paying off my house mortgage.

Allow me the luxury of defending myself against some of the arguments that have been put forth against bucket lists and their use in people's lives.

I adore my bucket list and refer back to it all the time. Image via.

#1. Bucket Lists are Morbid

This is a common complaint that I have heard about those who choose to write out and follow a bucket list. And yes, I won't disagree that the term 'bucket list' itself IS a morbid moniker. For those of you unaware, a 'bucket list' is a list of things to see, do, learn or experience before one 'kicks the bucket' and passes away.

To pre-plan a list of activities that one would like to accomplish before one's death does sound a bit depressing. There are some people who don't even put pen to paper until death is staring them imminently in the face: a terminal diagnosis or a severe health scare might be the nudge some people need to start thinking about what they'd like to do with their remaining time on this Earth. And yes, that is somewhat dark and dismal.

But not all people wait until a major life event occurs to begin writing a bucket list. I had mine mapped out years ago. In my first year of teaching junior high English class, the kids and I spent an afternoon reading about a man with an incredible bucket list; milking a snake was one of the items, and he'd managed to check it off. Inspired by his list, the kids and I began to create ones for ourselves. (It was thyroid cancer that encouraged me to begin this blog and actually publicly publish my list in the hopes I'd be inspired to try and complete it).

I disagree that bucket lists themselves are morbid. Yes, maybe they could have a better name. But the idea that you have thought deeply about what you are passionate about, what you want to achieve with your time, and what you want to learn or do to better yourself and enrich your life - that's not morbid. I find that truly inspiring! There is nothing wrong with having multiple goals and milestones that you want to experience.

Don't be afraid to write down your goals. A bucket list can inspire you! Image via.

#2. Bucket Lists are just Empty Dreams

Someone once groused to me, "Great. A list that just maps out all of the things in life I'll never do." I didn't even have a reply for that person.

What a horribly depressing way to approach life!

My bucket list is ridiculously long. I'm well aware of that. I think the only way I'll ever get to check off everything on my list is if I win three lotteries in a row and live to age 137. But that's okay. I don't look at my list and get mopey and sad thinking about how impossible it will be to achieve everything I've jotted down. I don't look at my list as a reminder of my piddly little bank account and the fact that I'm already somehow pushing 40. (Writing this blog post is what reminded me of that. Sigh.)

When I see my bucket list, I instead get excited. It is a list of possibilities. Nothing in this life is certain or guaranteed so I can't say for certain which items I'll get to tick off in the future, and which ones I'll end up missing out on. But my list gets me excited for life, and prompts me to go out and research and learn about this wide, wonderful world of ours.

My husband and I watched a documentary on Iceland back in 2002. It showed a foreign, exotic and alien landscape, a tiny dot in the ocean where, back then, not many people travelled to. I added it to my bucket list because it was such a cool destination, not really expecting to ever check item off. Fast forward to 2013 and there we were, camping and hiking and road tripping our way through Iceland on an epic journey.

Add whatever you want to your bucket list. Who cares if it happens for certain or not? We don't get everything we want in life - life lesson there for you - but are allowed to dream and hope and maybe, just maybe, we'll have some of those dreams realized. You shouldn't have to limit yourself, though.

Where do you want to go? Write it down and learn about it, even if you don't go there. Image via.

#3. Bucket Lists are Too Braggy

Switching gears a bit from the idea that bucket lists are showcases for unfinished business, I've also heard the complaint that people who have bucket lists use them to flash about their accomplishments. So... you can't win either way?

I guess I could just erase / delete each bucket item from my list as I check them off. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower? Delete. Delete. Delete. Then no one will think I'm bragging about it. Wouldn't want to upset someone who has not yet had the chance to be there.

But please. That is a ludicrous idea. People have got to stop taking themselves so seriously. If everyone had to downplay their accomplishments to the point where we pretend they never even happened, this world would be so dreary. Instead of being jealous of others' successes, trips, and achievements, let's celebrate them! Ask questions and learn from them! Be inspired by them!

A completed bucket list would be a truly amazing thing to see, in my humble opinion. If I saw someone who had led such a full and wonderful life as to tick off each and every item from their list, I'd be amazing and inspired. I certainly wouldn't accuse that person of being a show-off and using their life story to make me feel like I was less-than-worthy.

Hopefully I have defended my beloved bucket list adequately. Ideally, I have inspired you write one of your own! It doesn't have to be gung-ho crazy like mine with over 160 items (I'm at 163 at this moment, probably with more on the way). You can start with 10 things you'd like to do, see, or learn. Build from there. Be proud of your journey and look back at your completed items with fond memories. Be excited for the journey to come.

After all, everyone must kick the bucket. Make sure your bucket was full of good things.

Who else has a bucket list? I've started a collaboration project on YouTube with other like-minded, goal-oriented people to see what they've got waiting on their bucket lists. Watch the video below for the first instalment.

The Bowden Sun Maze: Happiness at Eagle Creek Farms

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:07:00 +0000

If you've ever dreamed of strolling through a sea of smiling sunflowers, awash in the golden glow of their sunny blooms, then it is my honour to inform you that making this dream come true is possible. Journey to the Bowden Sun Maze, located on the grounds of Eagle Creek Farms outside the town of Bowden in central Alberta.

The sunflower maze is only a small part of what Eagle Creek Farms has to offer its visitors, but indeed it is the most famous part of the attraction.

Read on to find out what you can discover while exploring the Bowden Sun Maze!

The Bowden Sun Maze is a great place to spend the day!

Let's get the details out of the way. The Bowden Sun Maze is located less than 10 minutes out of Bowden, near the city of Red Deer, Alberta. Finding the sun maze is incredibly easy - I used my phone's GPS combined with the map directions found right on the sun maze's website to locate the farm. Even if I didn't have the GPS and Maps right at my disposal, there are wooden signs directing you to the farm all along the route. You shouldn't miss it, if you keep your eyes peeled.

Admission to the Bowden Sun Maze is very affordable. The cost for one adult is $9.00, while students aged 5-17 are $6.50, and kids 4 and under are free. I found the prices to be extremely reasonable, and should leave guests with a little extra moolah to buy some fresh veggies, delicious canned food, and even a bouquet of sunflowers!

The sunflowers were often as big as your head!

There are rules, which aren't even rules but mainly common sense, when it comes to enjoying the Sun Maze. The owners beg you to not litter, not curse, not pick the flowers, and avoid trampling the plants or using short-cuts which would lead to the trampling of said plants. Basically, just use your head and be respectful, because sunflowers are quite sensitive and delicate plants. Be good to them so you can continue to enjoy use of the Sun Maze in the future!

The sunflower stalks were tall enough to engulf my kiddos!

The Bowden Sun Maze is also more than just a sunflower maze. There is also a corn maze, a tree maze, a petting zoo (of sorts), a courtyard with wooden maze and walking maze games. I'll get into those activities more in a moment.

We began first thing by entering the Sun Maze - I had made an arrangement with one of the owners, Jon, to fly my drone early in the morning before any members of the paying public arrived. He graciously let me arrive 30 minutes before opening so I could soar my drone over the fields and capture some beautiful images of the blooming sunflowers. (Thank you, Jon! I hope you like the video footage!)

Part of the maze pathways forms the image of a honey bee! So cute!

After I drained my drone's batteries, we began to explore the maze's pathways and trails. I kept getting distracted by the stunning sunflowers, their vibrant yellow tops nearly as big as my head. The kids would run ahead, find me missing, and double back to drag me along with them. You really don't mind getting lost, being surrounded by all those beautiful blooms!

There were a lot of bees and wasps (naturally, considering one is standing amid a field of flowers) so I recommend you bring some bug spray if possible. If you are allergic, this is something to take into consideration.

Running through the beautiful sunflower maze. The kids were so excited!

As we wove through the fields, I noted that one half of the sunflower maze was fully blooming, while the second half was still green with nary a yellow petal to be seen. Jon explained to me that they had purposely planted their field in 'shifts', staggering the blooming periods so that the maze would have golden yellow flowers from early August into the fall, hopefully all the way until the end of September. Smart thinking, I told him.

As the kids and I progressed, we met the edge of the sunflower maze which then blended into the next section: a corn maze. While the sun maze had been beautiful, it wasn't very tall and I never at any point felt 'lost'. But the corn maze was considerably higher, so the challenge became a touch tougher once we entered the tall, green stalks.

Where the sunflower maze meets the corn maze

The one maze we didn't get to was the tree maze, labeled on the map we'd been given at the admission desk. According to the map, there is a 'future tree maze' in the works, so this gives me something to look forward to in the future on another visit.

We got a little bit lost in the tall corn stalks...

After an hour and a half, the kids were done with wandering through the trails, and we left the mazes behind us. We crossed a type of courtyard as we strolled back towards the admission desk and general entrance, and in the courtyard we ended up staying. There was a lot more inside that courtyard than the picnic tables and public washrooms!

First of all, there is a mini petting zoo, with a variety of animals including chickens, a goat, a pony, and the fuzziest rabbit I've ever seen. The kids said hello to all of them, fed the pony some hay, and made friends with a very friendly black and white farm cat.

The fuzziest bunny I have ever seen!

Once we'd made the rounds of the farm animals, the kids turned their attention to the plethora of activities offered in the courtyard. There were wooden mazes on poles, where the kids could 'drive' their finger along the grooves of the maze to reach the end. There were also walking mazes and maze games, which required participants to walk their feet through the space and make choices based on arrows, math games, or riddles. Quite fun!

We also had some fun with the wooden photo cut-outs, sticking our heads through the face holes and making silly expressions for the camera. I never get sick of those tourist traps!

The kids enjoying one of the photo cut-outs

Before we left, we stopped in the entrance area - I think it was the front portion of a large barn - and checked out what Eagle Creek Farms had for sale. The farm does offer a U-Pick program, where visitors can go out into the fields and greenhouses and harvest their own produce. Stock includes potatoes, corn, beans, peas, strawberries, beets and much more - that's just what I can remember off the top of my head!

If you aren't into picking fruits and vegetables yourself, the entrance / gift shop area also had a cooler piled full with fresh, bagged vegetables and fruits. AND if you aren't into preparing fruits and vegetables yourself, you could also buy canned jams, jellies, salsas, pickled vegetables and whatever your heart desires. On top of all of that, you could also purchase beautiful bouquets of sunflowers and mixed flowers. It was one of the most stomach-rumbling-inducing gift shops I've ever been in.

I would definitely go back to the Bowden Sun Maze - maybe a sunset trip next time?

We loved our experience out at the Bowden Sun Maze. I'd definitely go again, and I'm not talking about next year. I'd love to go back in a week or so, when both sides of the field are blooming. I'm also interested in their evening admission, where you can photograph the sunflower fields at sunset. How stunning would that be? Who wants to come with me?

Miniature World Museum in Victoria, B.C.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Jul 2018 14:54:00 +0000

Walking down the busy but well-kept streets of Victoria, British Columbia on Vancouver Island, my family and I had a destination in mind. Our goal: to find the harbour, rent a sea shuttle, and find a delicious seafood restaurant overlooking the ocean.

Then it began to pour.

Surprised by the deluge, my husband and I tried to find a place to shelter our shivering two-year-old and four-year-old children. As luck would have it, we ducked under a black awning and found ourselves reading the gilded writing splashed across the door.

"Miniature World. The Greatest Little Show on Earth," my husband read. "Wanna go in?" I nodded happily - we would be dry, warm, and entertained. Does escaping a surprise spring shower get any better than that?

And so we entered Miniature World, the land of all things teeny tiny.

Miniature Worlds claimed to be "The Greatest Little Show on Earth"

If you'd like to go to Miniature World yourself, you need to head to 649 Humboldt Street in Victoria's downtown area. It is easy to miss - beyond the black awning with the golden lettering, there's not much else to announce its presence. But it is a great little attraction (pardon the pun) and a fantastic way to spend an hour of whimsy.

Joey and I each paid $16.00 to enter, while the kids were free. (For more costs, visit their website here.) The enthusiastic ladies at the front desk informed me that I was free to take any number of photos and videos that I wanted, but begged us to try to not touch or lean on the glass. I nodded wisely, noting that they wouldn't want anything to get broken.

"No, we just hate Windexing the displays 100 times a day," the one girl laughed. And that made more sense to me than someone touching it with their hand and having the glass box shatter inexplicably.

The Great Canadian Railway went all the way down this hall, around the corner, and back down the hall again!

We entered the museum and found ourselves being moved through the 85 displays very systematically, with arrows and train tracks on the carpet to help guide us if we got lost. (You couldn't get lost; you were encased by glass exhibits on either side the whole time. But the train tracks on the ground was a cute touch.)

The museum is divided into sections, with dioramas grouped together by theme. The first section was very historical, going over various wars and battles.

Various airplanes from all of the major world wars were strung up in this display.

There was a section for the Great Canadian Railway, which had a moving train that chugged its way through a gigantic diorama that stretched from west coast to east coast. It even had timed lighting that faded into sunsets and sunrises, giving the impression that it was taking the train several day to travel across the nation.

There was a section for fairy tales, such as Jack and the Beanstalk, and for fantasy, such as Gulliver's Travels. My children loved the fairy castle that blended fairy tale characters such as Cinderella with characters from classic literature, such as the cast of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer's Night Dream".

The giant fairytale castle, complete with actual 'flying' moving fairies!

Other sections included Frontierland, London, Castles of the World, Camelot, Circus World, and many more.

What got me very interested in the museum was the extreme and careful attention to detail each diorama had. In one war display, little 'fires' flickered within the bombed out buildings, while soldiers with tiny buckets of water ran to the scene - but that would be only a fraction of what that single diorama displayed. Each exhibit was dizzyingly full of different stories, if only you shifted to a slightly different angle or point of view.

The Castles of the World had moving trains that wove in and out of the dramatic cliffs.

Some scenes, like the castle Camelot or the wonderfully detailed Car Rally, had buttons you could push, which would set a piece of the diorama into motion. Sometimes you had no idea what part of the scene had started moving or changing, and you really had to explore with your eyes until you caught it. My kids had a great time pushing buttons, trying to see which detail in the scene was new.

Several sections of the museum were narrated, and the storyline explained what historical moment in time was being portrayed, or which piece of literature was represented. We perhaps moved a little too fast through the museum to give the narration justice, but the kids were too excited to see what was around the next corner to wait and listen to the speakers. If you go without children, I'm sure you'll learn a LOT more than I had the chance to!

The Camelot Castle had tons of little buttons to push - they raised drawbridges, moved wagons, and more!

We spent about one hour in the museum, peering into glass cases, pushing little buttons, playing 'Where's Waldo' type games with the kids trying to get them to spot a certain detail in the diorama. But one hour was enough for a four-year-old and three-year-old. I am sure with older children or no children at all, you could spend considerably longer inside, taking your time with each exhibit.

By the time we exited the museum, the rain had actually increased. Despairing over our lost water taxi ride and stroll around the harbour, we headed back to eat dinner at our hotel. We were staying at Hotel Zed, which was really cool - you should watch the video here. We did NOT despair, however, at our chance encounter stumbling into Miniature World. Without the rain, we never would have found it!

The Ellis Bird Farm in Lacombe, Alberta

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 23 Jul 2018 16:27:00 +0000

Imagine it is a warm summer day. The sky is blue, the breeze is light. You want something relaxing but fun to do outdoors, without the hassle of having to pack for the beach, or launder wet swimsuits from the pool or splash park. You just want to hop in the car and go, be entertained, and come home satisfied without a bunch of packing or cleaning to do as a result of your day out.

Enter the Ellis Bird Farm, located just southeast of Lacombe, Alberta. Free to visit (but they sure do appreciate donations, so I encourage you to bring a bit of cash) the Ellis Bird Farm offers a lot for individuals and families to do. Activities include bird watching, TWO interpretive centers, pond dipping, strolling through the amazing gardens, a tea house with fresh ice cream, and a petting zoo of sorts.

My kids loved visiting the Ellis Bird Farm, so allow me to share our day there with you to help you plan your adventure!

The Ellis Bird Farm is located just outside of Lacombe, Alberta

We met with some friends one sunny summer day to explore the farm. Located across the road from the Joffre petrochemical plant, a useful landmark when trying to find the farm. However, the Joffre plant (technically run by MEGlobal Canada) is not just a GPS marker for the farm: they actually run the non-profit charitable company that keeps the Ellis Bird Farm running. I won't go into the full history of the farm here, although it is very interesting so I suggest reading this link, but the long and short of it is falls on the shoulders of Charlie Ellis.

Charlie Ellis grew up on the land where the bird farm stands today. He began birding as a hobby, starting with a nest box he'd seen in a magazine, and over the course of his life entered into a crusade to rebuild the bluebird and tree swallow population in Alberta, earning the nickname Mr. Bluebird. As his health failed in his golden years, Charlie worried about what might happen to his beloved birds and their successful population.

The MEGlobal petrochemical plant, right across the road from the Ellis Bird Farm

As luck would have it, the company Union Carbide - which would eventually, over the course of several transactions, become MEGlobal Canada - was looking for land to build their ethylene glycol plant. They wanted Charlie Ellis' land, so in a brilliant negotiation, Charlie managed to convince Carbide to legally protect the bird farm as part of the land sale agreement. Due to this, MEGlobal Canada owns and protects Ellis Bird Farm, the land it sits on, and the birds who call it home.

And what a home it is! Once we parked in the parking lot and exited our vehicles, we were immediately greeted with about 25 birdhouses attached to the wooden fence that bordered the parking lot, birds flitting in and out happily. My kids were instantly excited by how close they could get to the birds.

The path from the parking lot takes you directly to the new interpretive centre, a vibrant red building reminiscent of a Disney-esque barn. Inside, you are greeting by an employee who gives you the run-down of things to see and do at the farm. The day we visited, there were a couple of school groups touring the farm for their year-end field trip, so our greeter was a bit run off her feet! We dropped our donations in the box - please donate to help keep the farm running - and off we went!

The kids had so many interactive ways to learn about birds at the bird farm

Inside the interpretive centre we read a little history about good ol' Charlie Ellis, got an introduction to some of the bird species that called the farm home, and the kids had a great time saying hello to the resident garter snake that lives in an aquarium there.

There is a second interpretive building that I encourage you to visit as well - it is the older, original interpretive centre before the red building was constructed. This building serves as a more hands-on experience for younger children, where you can pet an owl wing, hold dried-out shed snakeskin, watch a living bee hive through a Plexiglass case, and guess which poop pebble belongs to which animal. This was MY favourite place in the Ellis Bird Farm.

As we strolled through lush and beautiful gardens designed to attract hummingbirds and butterflies, we discovered other attractions as well. An algae-covered lake, perfect for nesting waterfowl like ducks and loons, features a wide dock jutting out onto the water. In the centre of the dock was a large tub of water teeming with water bugs, larvae, snails, and even a leech or two. Brightly coloured nets dangled from a bucket, inviting the kids to try their hands at pond-dipping.

A beautiful gazebo overlooks the pond-dipping lake at the bird farm

The children got right into the pond-dipping, discovering all sorts of water life that we were able to identify thanks to a large placard placed at the edge of the dock. We found water boatmen, dragonfly nymphs, leeches, and plenty of snails. After about 45 minutes we literally had to drag the kids away from the pond-dipping station so we could continue exploring the farm.

My son really enjoyed the barn yard, and tried to befriend the goats and chickens

Besides the pond dipping experience, the second-most favourite activity my kids enjoyed at the Ellis Bird Farm was the the pseudo petting zoo. Populated of just goats and chickens, this little farm yard enthralled the kids, who desperately wanted to pick up and cuddle a chicken (they were having none of it) and feed the goats. The goats were more than happy to comply! I was a little nervous about bitten fingers, but the goats seemed very used to people and were extremely gentle with the kids.

When we got really hot and sweaty from strolling through the bird farm, we moseyed over to the tea house located on the grounds. There the kids all had dishes of ice cream, and my friend and I enjoyed a nice cool iced tea, as well as ice-cold infused waters for everyone. The prices were quite reasonable, as well.

Enjoying a cool break at the Ellis Bird Farm tea house

We spent a really fun and cheap afternoon enjoying all that the Ellis Bird Farm had to offer. My kids ask to go back all of the time, so for anyone in the central Alberta area looking to occupy and educate their children for a day, be sure to try out the Ellis Bird Farm!

Exploring Rat's Nest Cave with Canmore Cave Tours

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 17:42:00 +0000

What do you get the father / husband who has everything? That's the question I have every Father's Day when trying to decide what to gift my husband.

This year, I went with my usual go-to: the gift of a new experience. This is something I love to give to my husband, because he usually buys what he needs for himself and I also really am horrible at thinking of physical presents. But I can always give him a new experience! In the past, I've gifted Joey with dog-sled rides, helicopter rides over the mountains, hiking through frozen ice canyons, and soaking in grotto-style hot tubs. (Plus, I always get to tag along, so we both benefit from this! See what I did there?)

So for Father's Day 2018, the kids and I gave my husband a fantastic Father's Day gift of exploring Canmore, Alberta's 'Rat's Nest Cave' (with me) and then a day of fun and sun at Calaway Park (with the kids). You can watch the Calaway Park video here, but to hear about our amazing time spelunking in Rat's Nest Cave, read on!

Since children aged 10 and up are only allowed to tour the caves, we had to leave our littles in the hands of their cousins in Calgary, which absolutely made their entire day. They weren't even sad to see us leave! We drove from Calgary to Canmore in high spirits, knowing our kiddos were going to have a fabulous day. Thanks to Uncle Chris and Auntie Lindsay for helping us out!

Once in Canmore, we went straight to the Canmore Cave Tours office to make our 11:00 a.m. tour. We met our experienced and hilarious guide, Brent, and the other six members of our tour group. Everyone was friendly and we were all joking with each other quite quickly. We all had that same level of nervousness mixed with excitement, and were ready to get going!

Although the Rat's Nest Cave system is huge, we explored just the part inside the box.

Before we could leave for the caves, however, Brent spent about half an hour giving us some excellent and necessary information. He highlighted the geography of the area, and in particular the interior of the Rat's Nest Cave system, which is over 4 kilometres long, gave us some history of the area including the mining business that is still currently happening in the area, and some critical safety instructions.

Once we had all the information we needed at that point, Brent got us fitted for our overalls, gloves, and helmets, handed us out gear bags which contained our harnesses and carabiners, and provided us with an energy bar and bottle of water.

Getting fitted in our super flattering coveralls!

Stressing how important it was for us to all have extremely empty bowels, Brent ensured we all went to the washroom at least twice during our time at the head office. No one wants to be 200 meters underground, strapped to a harness inside bulky coveralls, needing to pee into an empty water bottle, which you then must carry with you out of the cave. No thank you!!! I made sure to hit the toilette several times before we left!!

Then it was off to the caves themselves. We drove as a convoy to the trailhead's parking lot, grabbed our gear bags, and started hiking up the hill. The cave entrance is located 1500 meters above sea level, up a fairly steep incline on a trail occasionally covered in scree, so this tour really is for people who are moderately active and physically fit. (This is not to say I'm in incredible shape, so you also don't have to be a bodybuilder to enjoy this tour!)

The view from our hike was stunning!

After hiking for 25 minutes, Brent had us don our helmets, as we were entering property owned by the mining company and we were required to take precautions. The entrance to Rat's Nest Cave is also on mining property, and the company does not stop operations simply because there are people exploring the cave system. For this reason, we'd had to sign a fairly lengthy waiver before embarking on our tour. (If you are nervous about this, I will say that our tour was extremely safe and uneventful. In case the idea of a waiver makes you anxious.)

Wearing our helmets through the mining area.

Within another 5 minutes, we were at the 'base camp' which was simply a tarped tent set up outside the gated entrance to the cave, 1500 meters above sea level. We put on the rest of our gear, with Brent giving us a safety lesson in harnesses, then hung our bags inside the tent.

Since we'd be squeezing through tunnels and doing a lot of climbing and sliding, Brent warned us to only bring the essentials with us into the cave. I left behind my snacks and water bottle, and chose to only bring my iPhone, which has a Lifeproof case on it making it virtually indestructible, and my GoPro, which I had strapped to my chest.

In our cave suits, with harnesses under the coveralls.

We took turns climbing the rope to access the front gate of Rat's Nest Cave. Once inside, we all clipped our carabiners to the safety rope, and Brent had us peek over the edge of the first drop in what is known as the Bonebed.

The stench inside the cave entrance is a little strong: it smells like acrid skunk. In fact, I was worried we were going to be sprayed by a lurking skunk, that's how strong the smell was. Brent explained to us that it was merely the smell of dried pack rat urine, and pointed out the bushy nests that lined the roof of the cave.

An actual rat's nest in Rat's Nest Cave.

The pack rats are what gave the cave the name 'Rat's Nest Cave'. They spray their nests with urine for a couple of reasons. The first is to help them scent their way home after leaving the nest to hunt for food and nest materials, but the second reason is more interesting. Their urine actually dries to form a thick shell on the nest, protecting the interior. The more the pack rats spray their nest, the thicker the shell becomes. Some nests are so effectively coated that they can last for tens of thousands of years!

So, long story short, the cave kind of smelled. But that was okay, because the nests were only in the front porch of the cave so to speak. After that, we did a combination of climbing on our butts and sliding down a 15 meter drop to access the first 'room' of our tour: the Bonebed.

Bones can be found everywhere in the Bonebed room.

Because the first room is such a drop down from the entrance, it isn't only humans that could fall over that 15 meter drop. Many animals over time have plunged down into the first room, become injured and died inside the cave. Some bones are left there by the pack rats and other animals that may have lived in the cave. And some bones are even remnants of First Nations groups who either made sacrifices or disposed of bones using the drop into the Bonebed room like a garbage chute.

Brent showed us a collection of bones that were deposited down in the Bonebed. Some displayed gnawed chew marks: bones left by the pack rats. Some were broken in a jagged fracture along the centre of the bone: animals who had fallen into the Bonebed and broken legs. Some bones were broken in a "U" shaped pattern and the bone marrow had obviously been scraped out until the bone was hollow: evidence of First Nations use. It was very cool how the bones told the story of their origin.

The hole in the floor leading to the next room, known as "The Box".

Sunk into the floor of the Bonebed room was a hexagonal-shaped hole. This was the access point into the next room of Rat's Nest Cave, and Brent informed us that the narrow passageway was dubbed "The Box". It was a man-made hole created by one of the first avid explorers of the cave, who had actually dug the Box out from below with a friend. They took turns digging each other out of the rubble that would sporadically bury them alive while creating the Box. Now that's hardcore caving!

The Box was indeed narrow and a little claustrophobic, with a wooden ladder built into the rock leading into the darkness below. At the bottom was a nearly 90 degree turn that you had to manoeuvre your body into, and the rest of the way out of the passage was navigated by scooting along on your bum.

I was the first of our tour group to enter and exit the Box. Emerging from the Box's tunnel, I was met with sheer darkness except for the beam from my headlamp. It was pitch-black down below in Rat's Nest Cave, but everywhere your headlamp beam shone, something beautiful and interesting was revealed.

Sitting in the dark, looking at the sights of Rat's Nest Cave

We saw a lot of moonmilk, a white, sparkling substance left on the rocks by small bacteria eating the minerals that are part of the limestone cave walls and leaving the milky deposit behind.

We saw soda straws, which are tiny stalactites hanging from the cave roof. They take 100 years to form 1 centimetre. It was amazing how old some of those teeny tiny soda straws would have been.

We saw what Brent dubbed as 'nubs'. They were fat, relatively flat, very smooth stalagmites on the cave floor consisting of solid calcium carbonate. (Their official term is calthemite stalagmites.) They look like they are made of ice, and you'd expect them to begin melting under your touch, but they are hard and rocklike instead. They are really cool!

Soda straws hanging from the ceiling of Rat's Nest Cave.

After checking out the first of our cave formations, Brent introduced us to the "Squeeze". It is what it sounds like: a narrow portion of the cave passageway where you must squeeze your body through.

This first squeeze was not tight at all, but it was a small space and a perfect place to practice squeezing for the first time. You basically had to dive-bomb downwards into the space, either head first (Bren't preferred method) or feet first (my preferred method because I was pretty nervous to perform a squeeze). Once inside the small space, you had to angle your body upwards and crawl out another hole that enabled you to exit the squeeze.

I did the first squeeze no problem. It really helped to squelch the anxiety I had been feeling about crawling through the cave's tight spaces.

I hope Joey liked his Father's Day present!

The second squeeze was an elevated squeeze. You had to enter a narrow space, find your footing, then belly flop your body onto a waist-high ledge with a very low roof. Once you had made it up on to the ledge with your belly, you had to remain flat because of the roof. The only way to exit was to slide your body so you were lying flat on the ledge, which boxed you in like a coffin, then James Bond roll your way out of the space.

Because I'm short, I had to really leap up onto that ledge - thank goodness for the helmet because I struck my head while doing that. But beyond that, the second squeeze was a lot of fun. I really liked the James Bond roll out to the other side.

We then entered the Grand Gallery, which was the largest room we visited during our tour. This room can fit three semi trucks from end to end inside its walls, and one semi can stand vertically before hitting the roof. It was hard to see the immensity of the room because nine headlamps can only provide so much light. The room, being huge, was darker than dark, and only if multiple people focused their headlamps in the same direction could we see anything significant.

At the far end of the Grand Gallery was the third and final squeeze of the day. I did not do this one, because it looked simply terrifying. Joey tried it though, much to my admiration. This tunnel was only big enough for your body, so you had to tuck your arms into your sides and army crawl on your belly and elbows to slide through. Sorry, but that's not for me!!

Joey inside the third, tight squeeze. No thank you!

Noting the tight squeeze and the possibility of being trapped, we began to discuss a current event that was happening at the time - the young Thai soccer team stranded in a monsoon-flooded cave in Thailand. Brent gave us some interesting tidbits about cave rescues.

Fact One: If you are trapped long enough inside a pitch-black cave, you begin to hallucinate because your eyes and brain need to feel they can see something. Many times, people will hallucinate that they are actually outside the cave, walking around in open air. Crazy what your brain will trick you into thinking!

Fact Two: For every hour that you enter a cave, you will require ten hours of rescue time if you get hurt or stuck. So always be aware of your surroundings, don't attempt feats that are beyond your abilities, don't get too cocky and try too difficult of a squeeze or go into unknown territory without safety measures, and never cave alone!

(Side note: All of the boys and their coach were eventually successfully rescued, although one very brave and noble Navy Seal passed away during the rescue efforts. RIP to the heroic Saman Gunan.)

We had such a wonderful time exploring Rat's Nest Cave.

Past the Grand Gallery was my favourite room on the tour: the Grotto, at a depth of 256 meters below ground. This room was very damp and led to a pool of water at the far end. Had we been more experienced and enthusiastic cavers, as well as certified scuba divers, we could have continued the cave tour to a whole other segment of Rat's Nest Cave, as long as we plunged into that pool of water and scuba dived through underwater tunnels. (Also, probably not for me!)

But because of the Grotto's dampness, there were other amazing things to see. The constant trickle of water was continually leaving behind mineral deposits, forming some beautiful flowstone, draperies, soda straws, and stalagmites. Everywhere you looked in the Grotto, there was an amazing formation to be seen.

There were some amazing flowstones and draperies in the Grotto.

At this point in the tour, in the lowest spot we could go beneath the surface of the Earth, we all turned off our headlamps and closed our mouths. The darkness was absolute, and the quiet was only interrupted by the drip, drip, drip of cave water. It was a magical moment.

Then the silence was broken by someone making an inappropriate joke, and we all erupted into laughter and clicked our headlamps back on. Before we knew it, it was time to turn around and return to the cave entrance along the same path we had taken to arrive.

Going back to the entrance was a bit more work as our route was predominantly uphill. At many points I found myself crawling on hands and knees to scrabble up the rocks. The worst part was going up the initial 15 meter drop we had scaled to enter the cave at the beginning. The rock there was steep, smooth as glass, and more slippery than oil.

We made it out! A fun couples adventure indeed!

I hauled my body up using mainly my arms, with my toes scrabbling for purchase on the slippery slope. At one point I launched myself up to a wee ledge, trying to get some balance, and smoked my head SUPER hard on the roof. Had I not been wearing that helmet I probably would have dented my skull!

We finally emerged into the sunlight, panting, but so excited by what we had just seen and experienced. During the hike back, we compared notes, chatted about the formations, and just marvelled at how amazing Rat's Nest Cave was.

I would highly, highly recommend Canmore Cave Tours if you want to try your hand at cave exploration. Brent was an energetic, knowledgeable and personable guide with a great sense of humour, but he was always making sure we were safe, and feeling stable both mentally and physically. Not once did I feel scared or panicked. So thank you Brent!

To really get a feel of what it is like to go spelunking in Rat's Nest Cave, watch the video!

That Time I Got to Fly an Airplane in College

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 04 Jul 2018 13:00:00 +0000

Long before I began this blog, or had a travel bucket list, or was even obsessed with travel itself, I was able to experience something that most people can only imagine themselves doing. One crazy Saturday in my second year of college, I got to fly an airplane.

Okay, in full disclosure, I can't actually say I was entirely responsible for flying the aircraft. I flew the plane for, at most, ten minutes before we hit a bump of turbulence and I freaked out and insisted the pilot take the wheel again. (Which was probably for the best, let's be honest.) But I still GOT TO FLY AN AIRPLANE and that was a pretty neat experience.

Let's do the trippy 'back in time' ripple effect so I can tell you my story...

It all began in my second year of college when my roommate was dating a pilot-in-training, Greg. He was a super nice guy and told us about his flying practice runs all of the time. It sounded so liberating being able to rev up an airplane and just sail it away into the sky: I loved hearing his stories.

Through Greg I met - let's call him Jonathan because it ended badly and I don't want his actual name on my blog - I met Jonathan, one of Greg's pilot acquaintances. Jonathan and I hit it off right away, and we ended up going on a couple of dates.

My pilot buddy from ages ago, Greg. He was the NICE pilot! ;)

Since Jonathan was trying to rack up his flying hours, he had to constantly be going up in one of the local airport's crafts and make destination-less flights through the air. It sounded fun to me, like going for a cruise through country roads in your car with the music blasting. But Jonathan was getting a little bored with the purposeless trips through the sky, and my enthusiasm for flying gave him an idea.

One Saturday morning, Jonathan showed up at my door looking smug and very self-satisfied. He told me he had an amazing day planned for us, and instructed me to grab what I'd need for a day out. Once I was ready, we hopped in his car and wound up at the local airport (a small airport with a single runway, nothing too crazy).

Jonathan filled out the required paperwork while I vibrated with excitement. I was really pumped to be taken for a private flight in a small aircraft, for free! The worst part was when Jonathan had to ask me for my weight so the plane could be appropriately balanced out - we weren't at that stage of our relationship yet! But I mumbled it out anyway.

My co-pilot "Jonathan" flying me through the skies!

Then before I knew it, we were seated in the airplane, strapped in and ready to go. Take-off in a small two seater airplane like that is thrilling - you feel every bump and dip. I was a little nervous, but Jonathan seemed extremely confident and capable, which helped to calm my anxiety.

We began by flying over the fields and homesteads surrounding the airport. Then we began creeping further and further away from the city, without any indication that we'd be turning around. Curious, I asked Jonathan where we were headed. With a smirk, he told me that since I had mentioned I was from a small town called Hanna (home of Nickelback, our pride and shame) that he had arranged for us to fly there for lunch. I was to call my family when we landed to see if they'd want to have lunch with us.

Flying over the fields and dugouts on the way to visit my parents.

It didn't take long to fly to my hometown - it was less than a two hour drive by car, so flying in an airplane shortened that travel time considerably. We landed in the tiny Hanna airport and I rang up my folks. They were shocked to find out I was waiting for them at the airport with a private airplane and driver, but they happily agreed to come pick us up and feed us.

Out of a very strange and unexpected day, the weirdest part was introducing my parents to a man I'd only been on a few dates with, who I wasn't really that serious about, but had just allowed to fly me through the sky to a unknown destination. My father was polite but I could tell he didn't really approve of anything except that he'd been given a surprise chance to see his daughter. My mother asked Jonathan a billion nosy questions about his life, trying to vet him secretly and failing miserably.

But it was great to see my family and spend a little time with them, eating lunch in the home where I'd grown up. We stayed for about an hour and then Jonathan informed us that we had to leave in order to reach our next destination in time, since he had to return the airplane to the airport by a certain hour.

The view from the cockpit - a pilot seat view! Too cool!

Back to the airport and up in the air we went. This time, Jonathan told me we were headed to Edmonton to have a date and dinner at West Edmonton Mall. I was thrilled. He had really outdone himself!

We landed in Edmonton and took a taxi to the mall after stowing the airplane away in a hangar. (This was 17 years ago, so I'm really trying to remember the details but this part was rushed so I don't recall exactly what we had to do to secure the airplane in Edmonton. At Hanna we literally just left it parked beside the runway, but that's a small town for you!)

We spent a couple of hours wandering the mall, stopping to have dinner at a restaurant in the mall's Bourbon Street. It was pretty incredible, especially for a young girl with not very much dating experience.

Then it was time to head back home so Jonathan could return the airplane in time. By this time, the sun was setting and we ended up flying home in the dusk. The light faded and the stars came out; they looked stunning from the airplane's vantage point.

The evening was calm and quiet, so Jonathan asked if I'd want to try my hand at flying the plane. I was nervous but up for the challenge. I remember the exhilaration and terror as I gripped the handles of the wheel, feeling the plane vibrate and shimmy beneath my hands. The wheel would tip to the left or right slightly, but I kept my hands clenched and my arms rigid, willing the plane to stay on track. (Jonathan did make fun of me for being so tense, as I don't think it really requires that much effort to keep an airplane flying straight.)

How many girls can say they got to fly a plane on their date? For that, I'm grateful! Image via.

At some point during my flying stint, I did begin to relax a little, so when the plane hit a small bump of turbulence, the wheel jerked in my hands. Terrified I'd send the aircraft into a nose dive, I shrieked and insisted that Jonathan take back control. He was laughing at me, so I knew we'd never even remotely been in danger, but I was more than happy to let the almost-professional return to flying the plane.

We landed safely back at our local airport, just in time to return the aircraft. It was a really amazing day, probably the best date a college girl could ever hope to have. (Unfortunately, Jonathan turned out to be a total sleaze and had a girlfriend back home in Ontario the whole time. He'd been telling her about his adventures on the town with a friend named Marty - not Marti - conveniently spun to make it sound like I was a dude. I can't even begin to tell you how satisfying it was to slam the door right in his face when I found that little tidbit out.)

Despite Jonathan being a lame excuse for a human being, he sure did enable me to have a magical day in a private aircraft, flying home to dine with my family, and he let me check off 'fly an airplane' from my bucket list. I guess everyone comes into your life for a reason, and I choose to remember the good over the bad!

Victoria's Butchart Gardens: Paradise on Vancouver Island

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 30 Jun 2018 20:49:00 +0000

As a child, I visited Vancouver Island with my parents on several occasions. One of my most vivid memories of exploring the island was strolling the grounds of the incredible Butchart Gardens. Sprawling across 55 acres of fertile land, the Butchart Gardens feature several themed gardens, fountains, a carousel, and so many flowers it will make your head spin.

We visited Vancouver Island last May with our own children, and I was excited to continue the family tradition of visiting Butchart Gardens into the next generation. My memory certainly didn't even do the gardens justice - they were even bigger, brighter and more beautiful than I remembered!

Allow me to take you on a virtual tour of the gardens, and don't forget to watch the video at the end to get the full experience!

Butchart Gardens is a little piece of paradise on Earth.

We began our trip to the Butchart Gardens from the city of Victoria, where we were staying at Hotel Zed (check out our hotel review video here!). It is approximately a 30-minute drive from the city, and the drive is fairly straight-forward. Naturally, we used GPS to guide us but there is signage along the way as well.

Upon approach to the gardens, you pass through a gatehouse where you purchase your day pass. At the time we attended, adults cost $30.80 for a full day pass, and the kids were free because they were under 5 years old. You can go check their website to find updated costs just in case!

There were so many amazing and unusual flowers in Butchart Gardens!

Once parked and settled, we headed towards the garden entrance. Just before you enter the official garden space, there is a plaza called the Waterwheel Square where you can find the gift shop, a cafeteria, a plant identification station and all of those amenities of a tourist establishment. Since we had arrived early in the morning to beat the crowds, we stopped in the Square for a quick coffee and breakfast. There were no hot breakfast items like eggs or pancakes or anything like that. Instead, we enjoyed some baked goods, which was good enough for us!

Fed and caffeinated (or juiced) we are ready to explore the gardens!

Then it was time to explore! When you arrive at Butchart Gardens, they hand you a very helpful and detailed map, which shows you the official 'loop' of the grounds. There are five main gardens that you can tour through, all following a sort of loop trail that prevents you from getting lost. You certainly don't have to follow that route, but we did so that we wouldn't miss anything.

A bountiful garden of tulips in Butchart Gardens.

We began in the Piazza where all of the restaurants and the Show Greenhouse were located. Inside the Piazza, there is a Florentine statue of a boar adorned with a placard promising that anyone who rubs his nose will be showered with luck. So we all took our turn rubbing Taca the Boar's nose, naturally! Beyond the warthog, there is a natural route visitors are expected to take, leading them through the garden on a rambling but ultimately circular route.

So many shades of purple! Butchart Gardens explodes with color!

We passed under a pergola festooned with creeping ivys and dripping with floral baskets of petunias. Beyond the pergola, we followed a wooded pathway which led us to a balcony with an incredible view.

Leaning over the balcony, you are treated to a panoramic view of the first 'official' garden in Butchart Gardens, the famous Sunken Garden. This is where the original limestone quarry was located, before the extremely creative Jenny Butchart had the mind to turn the worked-out wasteland into a luscious, vibrant garden. You can see the tall kiln stack of the cement plant in the distance beyond the Sunken Garden, all that remains to remind you that this piece of land used to look much, much different.

The iconic view of Butchart Garden's Sunken Garden.

To enter the Sunken Garden, you have to head down a few flights of switchback stairs, and then it is easy going from there. Beds of colourful flowers and blossoming trees line the pathway, which eventually leads you to the Ross Fountain, installed in the old Quarry Lake in 1964.

All of the pathways in Butchart Gardens are lined like this. Amazing!

I loved the Ross Fountain! It reminded me of a minuscule version of the fountains in Las Vegas' Bellagio - the pattern, height and motion of the Ross Fountain is forever changing, sometimes shooting straight up, sometimes waving in a hypnotic wave pattern, sometimes bubbling just above the surface. I could have stayed there all day watching it, but Parker lost interest a lot sooner than I, and we had to move on.

The Ross Fountain was more than a little hypnotic to watch.

Following the path, we moved up out of the bowl of the Sunken Garden and towards the Rose Carousel, which turned out to be my children's favourite place in the garden. The carousel is not free to ride, and cost us an extra $2 per person to ride. We decided to give it a try, and paid the fee. Sadly, as parents of young children, we were not allowed to ride our own horse: instead, we had to stand beside Avy and Parker and ensure they didn't fall. Fair enough, no one wants a crushed child. The kids loved every second.

The Rose Carousel was our family highlight of Butchart Gardens.

Past the carousel, we entered a large, open green space where concerts are held and fireworks are viewed every Saturday. The kids burned off some energy by running as far as they could, and I discovered a tree with sharp leaves reminding me of a cactus. Oh, the adventures!

Avy was in heaven riding the carousel - look at that excited face!

Once the kids were somewhat depleted, we continued on the trail. It led us to a beautiful Dragon Fountain where Parker attempted to take a swim. Wrangling him away from the water, we entered the Rose Garden.

The Rose Garden, but without any roses yet!

Unfortunately, there were no roses to be seen since we were visiting in early May. It was fun to walk through the garden and read all of the crazy and creative rose names, but I was a little disappointed not to see what they all looked like. We did take my favourite family picture from our whole trip while standing under the rose-vined arches in the Rose Garden.

My new favourite family photo in the Rose Garden.

Next up was the Japanese Garden, which was very zen-like and peaceful, with flowing streams and fountains, bridges, statues, and archways. My kids loved crossing the pond using the stone pathway, hopping from flat rock to flat rock. We are lucky no one fell in!

The Japanese Garden was lush and green - so beautiful!

Upon exiting the Japanese Garden, we strolled past the gigantic Star Pond, filled with exotic lilypads and nibbling ducks. A giant frog statue in the centre spewed water, keeping the pond from getting scummy.

At this point, the kids were tired and hot, and even I, an avid gardener, was starting to feel 'gardened out'. Luckily, the last stop was the Italian garden, with a gelateria selling cold, fresh ice cream. I have noticed a lot of our trips end with us eating ice cream, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with that!

Parker posing ever so casually in the Italian Garden.

We spent the entire morning touring around Butchart Gardens, and it was a lovely way to spend our time. Even the kids, who don't like gardening at home with me, were interested in all of the beautiful flowers, refreshing fountains, and especially the carousel. You don't have to be a garden enthusiast to enjoy what Butchart Gardens has to offer!

Tide-Pooling in Vancouver Island's Botany Bay

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 20 Jun 2018 23:00:00 +0000

One of my favourite things to do when I'm oceanside is hunt for tide pools. The abundance of flora and fauna that can be found within a tide pool gives you a little window into what the ocean floor might look like in that area.

What exactly is a 'tide pool'? Here is the official definition from Wikipedia: "Tide pools or rock pools are shallow pools of seawater that form on the rocky intertidal shore. Many of these pools exist as separate bodies of water only at low tide. Many tide pools are habitats of especially adaptable animals." The animals that typically enjoy tide pool environments are starfish, anemones, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, snails, crabs, and many more I'm sure!

When we visited Port Renfrew on Vancouver Island last month, I insisted on visiting the famous Botany Beach where tide pools dot the ocean's edge.

You can't miss the sign for Botanical Beach!

Botanical Beach is located in Botanical Beach Provincial Park, which is free to visit. It is easy to find from Port Renfrew, so I won't bother with directions. You don't even really need to use your GPS, since there is signage the whole way, and it is basically just a straight line out of town!

When we parked in the large parking lot, there were a few different 'trail heads' leading from the lot and away into the trees. We chose one at random, which eventually led us to NOT Botanical Beach but Botany Bay, a smaller, rockier version of Botanical Beach. By the time we reached Botany Bay, the kids were tired of walking and wanted to start playing in the sand.

The trees were literally clothed in green moss - so beautiful!

Once we got started exploring Botany Bay, we never did make it to Botanical Beach!

That's not to say the walk down to Botany Bay was hard or boring. It was a wide path with a steady decline down to the beach, interrupted occasionally by large, flat rocks or a few tree roots. The massive, moss-draped trees that lined the pathway were so beautiful; tall and completely green from their mossy cloaks. I flew my drone a little ways down the path to try and capture the beauty of it.

Avy loved running down the path to Botany Bay!

But Botany Bay was really the star of the show that day! The bay is just a small, crescent-shaped inlet made mostly of rock slabs and a little swatch of sand. In the middle of the bay is a tall, layered rock formation capped with a handful of pine trees. It is extremely picturesque.

The gorgeous vista of Botany Bay.

We arrived at the tail-end of low tide, so there were a lot of tide pools to explore, but they were beginning to fill in with higher levels of ocean water. We convinced the kids to leave the sand for a bit and come help us search for marine life among the tide pools.

Just a word of warning: the rocks are slippery, uneven, and covered in barnacles and kelp, so tread carefully! Don't slip and fall, or you could be seriously injured, and please remember this is animal habitat so mind where you place your foot, don't squish any animals, and take care not to disturb the homes of your new tide pool friends!

Finding some marine life in the tide pools!

While tide pooling, we discovered plenty of anenomes, barnacles, crabs, snails, and and chitons. Some of the rarer creatures to find included fish (we saw only two!) and starfish. We discovered one bright orange starfish for sure, and later the arm of a deep red starfish from afar. I'd read somewhere that a starfish wasting disease had decimated around 80-90% of the starfish population, which could account for the fact that we only saw one and one-fifth of a starfish that day!

Our first (and almost only) starfish sighting of the day!

These giant anemones gave us just a peek of their bright pink fronds.

The kids tired quickly of tide pooling, and Joey took them to the sandy part of the beach to build sculptures out of the flat rocks found there, while I continued to hunt for more evidence of marine life. The tide was coming in pretty quickly, however, so I abandoned my hunt and returned to my little family.

A spiky sea urchin caught our attention!

I practiced flying my drone low over the tide pool rocks, but because I still am relatively inexperienced at flying it, I almost lost it in the ocean! Panicked, I hit the 'Return to Home' button for the first time ever, and the drone shot up into the sky super high. I thought it was going to crash into the forest, but it certainly did 'return to home' and all was well. I really need to get out and practice my drone flying in a safer area than a rocky beach with the tide coming in!

Bye, bye, beautiful Botany Bay!

We really enjoyed our afternoon out at Botany Bay. I do wish we'd had the time to meander over to Botanical Beach, but with kids you really have to pick and choose your battles in order to have a successful day of traveling! Botany Bay was very beautiful and we did manage to see some interesting creatures in the tide pools, so I call that a win!

What's the neatest thing you've ever seen in a tide pool? I'd love to hear your story in the comments!

Avatar Grove: Forest of Giants in Port Renfrew, B.C.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 13 Jun 2018 16:54:00 +0000

Fairy tale forests are full of mystery and magic. Every child has dreamed of Hansel and Gretel's forest; winding pathways edged with ferns and mosses, sheltered by giant trees with a canopy that seems to touch the clouds. If you have ever pictured yourself lost in such a fairy tale forest, then might already have a mental image of what Vancouver Island's Avatar Grove looks like.

We visited Avatar Grove last month during our family road trip to Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Located close to the remote fishing village of Port Renfrew, Avatar Grove is protected by the Ancient Forest Alliance because of its incredible old-growth western red cedar and Douglas fir trees and the fact that it features 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree', a moniker that intrigued me so much we just had to go see what it was all about.

There is no fee to visit Avatar Grove, and the forest is as natural as could be, with very little commercialization. The only evidence of human interaction are the roads leading to the grove, a signpost announcing the trail head, and a boardwalk with stairs that lead up to the top of the hike (and the boardwalk is only sporadic - it doesn't even span the entire length of the hike). Perhaps this lack of tourist fare is due to the fact that Avatar Grove rests on Crown lands and the unceded territory of the Pacheedaht First Nation.

The forest was so calm and peaceful.

I liked the fact that Avatar Grove was so natural and wild. While I did appreciate the boardwalk and stairs for getting us through the muddier and steeper sections of the hike, my favourite parts were the ones where I felt like I had just been dropped into the middle of the woods to fend for myself.

The boardwalk and stairs in Avatar Grove were well maintained.

Before I get ahead of myself, lost in the memory of the forest, I will give you a little information on how to access Avatar Grove. The road to Avatar Grove is about 10 kilometres away from the town of Port Renfrew, B.C. on Vancouver Island. You can use your GPS if you need assistance, but we just asked at the local post office for directions, and the helpful lady gave us a little map and drew the route on it with her pen. Easy peasy! (Except we did still manage to get lost, but that's because I'm just awful with maps.)

The road to Avatar Grove was a little bumpy, so drive with caution!

The road is paved for about half of the drive, which then becomes a gravel road, and after a short period the gravel road becomes a wee bit treacherous, with potholes, giant rocks, and even washed out spots. We took our SUV, and did see some smaller cars traversing the road so it is possible to access Avatar Grove in nearly any vehicle if you just go slow and steady.

Keep an eye out for a medium sized signpost which points visitors in the directions of Upper Avatar Grove, Lower Avatar Grove and Canada's Gnarliest Tree. Beyond the signpost, there is no other evidence that a trailhead exists. There are no port-a-potties, no parking lots, no massive attraction signs. We just pulled up on the side of the road, got out, and started hiking.

The sign to the Avatar Grove trail head.

We chose to hike to the Upper Grove, since that's where 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree' was located. According to a website I searched, the Upper Grove is a 500 meter round trip with an 80 m elevation gain - not a difficult hike at all! There is a Lower Grove with a loop hike that is said to be gorgeous as well, but with two kids and a pretty rainy day, we opted to just stick to one hike for the day. The Lower Grove is a bit of a longer trail, clocking in at 650 meters for the whole loop, but with an easy 25 meter elevation gain.

Small girl in a big forest.

Since 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree' was our main focus, onwards we forged into the Upper Grove trail. You began climbing instantly, up a set of steps and onto the wooden boardwalk. Right away, giant trees edged the path, reaching up into the sky, covered with moss and skirted with lush, green ferns. Some trees were thinner, but there were plenty of massive trunks that would need three to five people, arms outstretched, to span their bases.

The trees in Avatar Grove were MASSIVE!

At first we were the only people in the forest. It was so peaceful, with the pitter-patter of rain slipping through the canopy and down to the forest floors. Determined birds chirped through the sprinkle. My children's excited voices echoed through the woods, potentially scaring off any bears that might have decided to visit the area. (There were no bear signs or warnings, so I'm not trying to freak people out. I just don't ever want to get caught in the woods with a bear!)

My little family and I beside a huge tree.

Other people did eventually join us on the trail, but it was definitely not busy that day. Granted, we were visiting during shoulder season and it was a pretty gloomy day, but I appreciated the lack of crowds.

Some brief history on the grove: it was "discovered" in 2009 by a member of the Ancient Forest Alliance and named 'Avatar Grove' after the James Cameron film because of its resemblance to one of the magical forests in the movie. I could not disagree with the nomenclature. The forest did feel a little alien, simply because of its sheer size and peaceful stillness. The growth has been protected and closed to logging - thank goodness - since 2012.

I can't say for certain how long the hike is to reach 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree' because we were climbing the hill with two small children, and I'm also pretty tortuous to hike with because I'm constantly filming and photographing. I'd say it took us 30-40 minutes to reach our destination at the end of the trail, but in reality you could probably reach it in 15-20 minutes.

We found Canada's Gnarliest Tree!

You could tell right away that you were gazing at 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree' before even reading the sign. The tree is a huge cedar, but unlike the other huge cedars in the forest, this one has a massive, bulbous lump growing on its lower trunk. The lump is not just one singular growth, but made of numerous lumps all piled upon one another. (It kind of looks like the tree has a cancerous growth, but that sounds so ominous.)

The gnarly tree has a massive growth on its trunk.

We hung out at the base of the gnarly tree for a little while, trying to answer questions from our kids, rather unsuccessfully. Then the rain began to pick up, and we decided to turn around and get back to the car before anyone got pneumonia.

Along the way back, we encountered more of B.C.'s infamous banana slugs. I love them; my kids do not.

Banana slug alert! They are slimy but pretty neat!

Once at the bottom, we peeked into the Lower Grove. A large platform has been built at the Lower Grove trail head, allowing you a panoramic view down into the loop trail. At this point, we were all drenched and chilly, so that was the only glimpse we got of the Lower Grove.

Despite the rain and gloom, I truly enjoyed our trip through Avatar Grove. I highly recommend you spend a morning or afternoon exploring this old-growth forest, and take an Instagram-worthy photo with 'Canada's Gnarliest Tree'. Watch the video to get a real feel for the forest and all it has to offer!

Vancouver Island's Englishman River Falls

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 01 Jun 2018 00:48:00 +0000

If you are staying in the Nanaimo / Parksville region of British Columbia's Vancouver Island, and are looking for an easy, family-friendly hike in a gorgeous natural area, this post is for you!

My family and I recently spent a couple of weeks exploring Vancouver Island, including the town of Parksville. While there, we drove out to Englishman River Falls Provincial Park to check out the double waterfalls and enjoy a morning of hiking through the forest. It was a fabulous way to spend some time together in peaceful and beautiful surroundings.

Read on to learn more about Englishman River Falls Provincial Park and what to expect while there!

How to get there

Englishman River Falls Provincial Park is a free, family-friendly nature area complete with day use gazebos, picnic tables, a hiking trail, camping grounds, and even swimming. Although the falls show up in "Things to do in Parksville", they are technically closer to the town of Errington, which is a very short drive west of Parksville.

Englishman River Falls Provincial Park is extremely beautiful!

If you are using GPS to navigate, plug in the address 2245 Errington Road which is the turn-off for the provincial park.

The drive is about 15 minutes from downtown Parksville, and very scenic. Lots of towering pines, forest floors carpeted with ferns, and even some bucolic grazing fields dotted with cattle are all sights you'll enjoy while cruising towards the park.

All sorts of discoveries were made during our hike in Englishman River Falls Provincial Park

Once you have turned into the Englishman River Falls Provincial Park, you'll drive down a road with several turn-offs to the left and right. Stay straight, unless you are searching for camping sites. At the end of the road there is a large parking lot, with some convenient outhouse facilities provided for you. This is the beginning of the Englishman River Falls hiking trail.

The hiking trail

A word of warning before you begin hiking towards the Upper or Lower Englishman River Falls. Although the path is very well maintained and easy to traverse, there are parts that are not that convenient for wheelchairs or strollers.

A gentle giant lays prone on the forest floor

When you begin, you have the choice to see the Upper or Lower Falls first. The path is circuitous and no matter which way you start, you will end up seeing it all. You definitely can't get lost! We chose to see the more impressive Upper Falls first. There are two pathways you can take to access the Upper Falls - one along the fence that is full of ups, downs, little hills, and tree root steps. This is NOT wheelchair or stroller friendly at all! (It is also the one we took, because my kids love that kind of stuff!)

Hiking down one of the steeper parts of the 'path'

There is a second pathway that guides you towards the Upper Falls, and this one is wide and flat but lacks the view of the gorge. We saw a lot of elderly people strolling along that path, so I am guessing it is an easier and more stable walk.

Beyond the Upper Falls, which I'll focus on in a second, you enter a pathway that ribbons along the edge of the river, high up in the trees. There are steps on this path, as the course naturally lowers down to the river and the bridge that crosses it. If you are using something with wheels, I suggest visiting the Upper and Lower falls from the parking lot side of the river, and not crossing over into the forest hike, or you'll get stuck at the steps.

Posing above some stone steps on the forest path

The entire loop is approximately 3 kilometers long, so this is an easily achievable walk for people of all ages. We stopped to look at pretty much everything and were still done in a couple of hours. That's with me being a total videography nerd, trying to film everything from ten different angles too!

The waterfalls

Regardless of how you access them, I have to say the Englishman River Falls are completely worth the visit - particularly the Upper Falls. As we approached the Upper Falls, you could hear the water thundering down into the basin below, and the air began to cool the closer we got, damp with spray from the powerful waterfall.

The majestic Upper Falls at Englishman River Falls

Then the trees thin and you can see the Upper Falls. The water rushes through a narrow hole, dropping deep into the canyon 75 to 100 feet below. (The exact height hasn't been calculated, because the gorge is so extraordinarily narrow, no one can traverse down to measure!) Because of the way the water is funnelled, these falls look incredibly powerful and create a rumble and spray to match. I found the Upper Falls to be quite impressive!

The view from the footbridge hovering above the Upper Falls

You can view the Upper Falls from all angles, as there are lookout points on either side of the falls, and a bridge that walks you right across the drop. I loved the bridge and its design - you felt really close to the power of the falls, but not enough that you were worried for your safety. If you look over the edge, you can see right down into the chasm 150 feet below, shrouded in mist. This is one high footbridge - no playing Pooh Sticks here!

Crossing the footbridge over the Upper Falls to the forest hike beyond

The Lower Falls are less impressive, and in fact can only be really enjoyed during certain times of the year, such as spring when the run-off creates high river levels.

The Lower Falls at Englishman River Falls

If you are more into swimming, then opt to visit the Lower Falls in the summer, when water levels are lower and you can swim in the deep pool just past the falls. (Don't swim during high river levels as the currents are stronger then! And there are no lifeguards on site, so you do so at your own risk!)

Enjoying the area

The loop hike is a really enjoyable one. My favourite part, by far, was viewing the Upper Falls from the sweeping height of the footbridge. I loved the power of the falls and the crazy height from which you are able to view them.

But hiking through the forest is also extremely charming. The trees are thick with old growth Douglas Firs, cedars, hemlocks, maple, and arbutus trees. (Don't ask me to identify an arbutus - I wasn't 100% clear on which ones those were!) Ferns, mosses, and other vegetation covered the forest floor in a lush, verdant green.

The old growth Douglas Fir forest

My kids were super excited / grossed out to encounter their first-ever British Columbia slug. This big guy was doing his best to cross the path before my kids reached him, but didn't quite make it. Instead, he found himself being towered over by two inquisitive kids who kinda-sorta wanted to touch him to see how slimy he was but were too icked-out to do so. In the end, we wished him luck on his journey and continued on ours.

A friendly neighbourhood slug trying to cross the path

My husband's favorite part of the hike was when we reached the bowl below the Lower Falls, where the river spread out into a wide pool and the current didn't seem so rushed. This is typically where people go swimming in the summertime, but because of the season and the high water levels, we opted to just dip our toes and skip some rocks across the water.

My kids enjoying some downtime skipping rocks on the river

We spent probably a half hour just relaxing on the riverbank, throwing stones into the water and enjoying the distant sound of the falls. I did my best to capture some industrious bees pollinating the local flowering bushes. It was a very peaceful way to end our adventure.

I definitely recommend spending a morning or afternoon strolling around the Englishman River Falls hiking trail. Bring a picnic and enjoy the day use area to really make a day of it! If you own a dog, feel free to bring your pet as long as you leave him or her on leash. Go enjoy some nature!

5 Family Friendly Activities in Parksville, British Columbia

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 23 May 2018 12:30:00 +0000

Are you planning to visit the picturesque town of Parksville on British Columbia's Vancouver Island? If you are there with kids, there is no end of fun adventures to be had. My family and I recently spent three days in the Parksville, B.C. area and ran out of time to explore of all the great things the town and surroundings had to offer.

To make planning your vacation to the region a little easier, I've made a handy-dandy list of exciting family outings to try during your stay. (And even if you don't have children with you, you should try these activities anyway!)

This isn't even a full list - I have additional activities posted on my blog and my YouTube channel as well. I will include links to all of these extra articles and videos at the bottom of this post to help you find what you need!

1. Rathtrevor Beach

This beach is located right beside Parksville on the way to Nanoose Bay and Nanaimo. It was the first beach we visited in Parksville, and we loved the wide swatch of soft sand that led out to the ocean. The parking lot was massive with lots of room for campers and trucks hauling trailers, if that is a concern for holidayers.

The sand at Rathtrevor Beach in Parksville was so soft!

You walk down to the beach via a wooden boardwalk, which takes you from the parking lot to the high tide line. Driftwood, dried seaweed, seashells, and other ocean debris clearly mark the high tide line, and then it is only a few steps down into the soft sand of the beach.

Everyone had a blast playing in the sand and building castles.

My kids spent an entire afternoon building sand castles, collecting shells, and playing in the little pools of standing ocean water left behind in low spots on the beach. They were so focused on the sand that we didn't even go into the ocean at this beach!

Rathtrevor Beach is also a provincial park where you can camp, with a reclaimed forest area dedicated to rejuvenating the natural vegetation. We did not look at the camp sites, so I can't comment on those. We mainly stuck around the relaxing beach area.

Of course, we had to sign our names!

I can attest that there are no dogs allowed at the beach - although I saw a few people who disregarded the posted signs running their dogs along the water - and there a two main day-use areas located just up the beach and down the wooden boardwalk, where you can find flush toilet facilities. There are no food stands or ice cream shacks or anything like that. It is a lovely beach but not commercialized much at all.

2. Parksville Community Beach and Park

A local recommended this beach to us while we were dining out for breakfast one day. Because locals know their area best, we heeded her advice and headed down to the Parksville Community Beach and Park for an afternoon, and were so happy we did!

The massive playground at the Parksville Community Park and Beach.

First of all, this place is designed to keep visitors and, in particular, families busy for the whole day. Therefore there are easily accessible modern washrooms (no pit in the floor here!), food trucks, a smooth and wide wooden boardwalk, a massive playground, and a splash park. The splash park was under construction but looked to be finished very soon, so I imagine by the summer of 2018 it will be up and running.

My kids spent about an hour playing on the giant playground, which was designed to be like 10 playgrounds all in one, with each playground set separated by stretches of sand where kids could ply and run. Joey and I even got into the spirit and enjoyed some of the playground equipment!

Getting into the spirit on things on the rope maze.

Then we went down to the beach, which was even wider than the one at Rathtrevor. The water seemed to be about a mile away! We strolled down to the Pacific Ocean to dip our toes in the water, and when I looked back, I couldn't even see the mound of bags and beach towels we had set up back on the sand. It was a massive, massive beach.

Enjoying the wide stretch of sand at the Parksville Community Beach.

Even better, this beach was a collector's heaven! I found hundreds of sand dollars deposited in the shallow puddles left behind from high tide, and might have snagged a few to take back home. My kids also found oyster and clam shells, along with a variety of other rocks and treasures.

3. Madrona Point

We decided to spend some time 'tide-pooling' on the rockier spots along the coast, as I have vibrant childhood memories of exploring tide pools with my parents on our family trips growing up. I wanted my children to have similar recollections.

The gorgeous view at Madrona Point in Nanoose Bay by Parksville.

According to Google, Madrona Point came up as #1 in places to go tide-pooling. So we plugged in the address into our GPS and off we went. Madrona Point turned out to be accessible through a residential neighborhood, where we had to park in an inconspicuous pull-out area and walk through a tiny trial in the bushes. (We accidentally hiked down someone's private driveway at first, before we found the nature trail.) It is a little hard to find, but trust the GPS!

Beautiful blues and greens of the Pacific Ocean.

Once out on Madrona Point, we encountered a beach comprised of small pebbles and sand, littered with beautiful pieces of driftwood. The beach was tiny, and then began the rocky sea wall. There were hundreds of little tide pools nestled within the dips and cracks of the sea wall, with a carpet of green and orange kelp draped across the rocks.

We showed the kids how to pop kelp, nature's bubble-wrap! Parker really enjoyed that activity, and preferred squatting and popping kelp to actually searching through the tide pools. What kid wouldn't?

Parker having a blast popping kelp.

Avy explored the tide pools with us, where we found lots of crabs scuttling to shelter, green anemone clusters waving their bright pink fronds in the currents, and snails slogging through the sand. However, that was about all of the wildlife we saw within the tide pools. There were no starfish to be seen, sadly. I did stumble across one urchin, but the seagulls had found the poor guy first so there wasn't much left of him.

We found TONS of colourful anemones at Madrona Point.

The view of the ocean from Madrona Point was exceptional, so even if you are a little disappointed in the tide pool results, you will most certainly enjoy the panorama of the Pacific Ocean while you are there!

4. Riptide Lagoon

Taking a break from the ocean, we decided to have a little family adventure doing some mini-golf. Riptide Lagoon was the perfect place for us. Located right beside the turn-off for Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park, Riptide Lagoon offers mini-golf, bumper cars, and ice cream! What more could we ask for?

Riptide Lagoon mini-golf was a fantastic way to spend an afternoon.

The kids were too young to do the bumper cars, but they were more than excited to try mini-golf. They'd never gone to an actual mini-golf course before; Parker has a set of plastic golf clubs for goofing around in the backyard, but neither child had ever held a real mini golf club. It was a very exciting day!

The kids loved their first time ever mini-golfing.

The Riptide Lagoon golf course was really pretty, too. There were tons of flowering bushes, garden pathways, and a fountain dyed the bluest of blues. Tall trees provided lots of shade right when you needed it. The theme of the golf course was, of course, of a long-lost lagoon combined with an oceanography quest. There were tons of great places to pose for fun photos.

For a mini-golf course, Riptide Lagoon was beautiful and relaxing!

I was by far the worst player in our little group of 4. I think even Avy and Parker golfed better than me! Luckily it is hard to be competitive against a 2 year old and a 4 year old! Ha ha!

When your 4-year-old takes better pictures than you!

5. Craig Bay

You might not find Craig Bay on a TripAdvisor list of things to see and do, but I'm adding it because we visited Craig Bay and had a crazy little adventure while there. Craig Bay was actually the bay where our hotel, Creekside Suites, was located. There is a wide beach there, but I'm not sure if it is a private beach because there were tons of houses built alongside it, and I didn't really see people out there sunbathing.

The fantastic view at Craig Bay.

However, we really liked exploring the rocky point located on the Creekside Suites side. It wasn't big for tide pools, but we still found some great shells and lots of little crabs and anemones.

My favourite part of Craig Bay, however, was a little weird and unusual. Some might even say disgusting. But you have to agree it is interesting, if anything!

We went down to the Craig Bay beach by the tide pool rocks one morning to do a little exploring while my husband finished up some work in the hotel room. As we walked down the beach, we noticed some odd debris littering the beach near the high tide line. Upon closer inspection, the debris turned out to be GIANT marine worms!

Giant marine annelids at Craig Bay - so disgusting but fascinating!

The worms looked like they had either been washed up in the tide, or had risen from the sand like earthworms during a rain storm. I quickly Googled them in sheer curiosity, and found photos labeling the worms as Marine Annelids, or basically ocean earthworms. But these were not typical earthworms - they were huge, thick, and had hundreds of either legs or cilia. As my daughter commented, they looked 'juicy'. Ew!

The worms were everywhere, so bring some water shoes with you!

At first the kids freaked out, but as they got used to the worms (because they were literally everywhere) they began to just step over them. We searched for any that were still alive and only found one. The rest were dead, dried up in the mid-morning sun. But it was a very interesting experience.

More to do in Parksville

Of course, there are more than just five activities for families and travellers in the Parksville area. Check out these other posts and videos to add more ideas to your itinerary!

Creekside Suites at Pacific Shores Resort - This is the hotel where we stayed while in the Parksville area. It offers a pool, three sets of hot tubs (two outside, and one of those on the edge of the ocean - it is amazing), as well as a restaurant, spa, and affordable yet comfortable suites. Click the title of this paragraph to watch the video and see what it is all about!

Englishman Falls - This double-waterfall hike is very easy for families to do. The pathway loops through the forest, bringing you back to the parking lot so it is impossible to get lost. As you stroll through the woods, you will pass the Upper and Lower Englishman River Falls and experience all the beauty the woods has to offer. POST AND VIDEO COMING SOON!

British Bobby's Restaurant - If you want a tasty family-friendly restaurant that offers a super fun and unique atmosphere, British Bobby's is the way to go! You feel like you left Canada and entered the UK as you walk inside the restaurant, and there's lots of famous movie memorabilia to boot!

The Kinsol Trestle in Duncan, British Columbia

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 11 May 2018 03:49:00 +0000

While journeying across the stunningly beautiful Vancouver Island on our May 2018 Fun Family Road Trip, we attempted to see and do as many things as we physically could, considering we had a four-year-old and a two-year-old in the car with us. This meant many items on my Vancouver Island bucket list could not be achieved (Gabriola Island and Mystic Beach come to mind) because of the length of the drive or hike.

However, one place that was easy accessible for young children was the gorgeous Kinsol Trestle Bridge near the town of Duncan, British Columbia.

We began our drive to Duncan from our resort in Nanoose Bay. The map led us along the coast, cruising through Nanaimo and through Duncan itself on the Trans Canada 1. Once past Duncan, we had to divert off of the Trans Canada for about 25 minutes down Cobble Hill Road and past Shawnigan Lake until we reached the Kinsol Trestle parking lot. (Definitely use your GPS to find this, as the road is a little winding and you don't want to get lost!)

The beautiful and peaceful path to the Kinsol Trestle bridge.

There is no fee to visit the Kinsol Trestle, which makes it a nice little day trip for families. There are port-a-potty facilities beside the parking lot too, which is always handy when traveling with little ones! Make sure you are prepared for your adventure, because it is a 1.2 kilometre hike from the parking to the actual train bridge. Use the facilities, make sure you have comfy shoes, and take a bottle of water if it's a hot day.

Here's a little background history on the Kinsol Trestle, just so you know why it caught my attention and why I slated it into our road trip itinerary. The Kinsol Trestle (also known as the Koksilah River Trestle because it is built overtop of the Koksilah River) was first built in 1911, and completed in 1920 after the first builders went bankrupt and the CN rail company took over. By the time it was completed, the rail line had been downgraded to a logging train line and was used until 1979. The name "Kinsol" is derived from the King Soloman mine which was located nearby.

A view of the Kinsol Trestle bridge as we head to the bottom.

What is unique about this bridge is its design. It is made of specially carved wooden beams called 'bents' which were carved one by one, all slightly different and slated for a specific spot in the bridge's blueprint. Because the bridge curves in an arc as it crosses the river, each wooden bent had to be designed and placed in very specific positions. The carpenter numbered each bent and the construction workers were responsible for placing that particular bent in its correct spot within the bridge, much like building a puzzle.

The Kinsol Trestle bridge is an amazing feat of architecture.

Over time many of the original bents have been replaced, and some places are reinforced with metal, but overall, the bridge is still mainly constructed of these wooden beams in the unique arc formation. Not only does it have a unique composition, the bridge is also massive, standing 144 feet high and 617 feet long.

Today, the bridge is no longer used for trains, and the tracks have been replaced by a wide footpath made of solid wood. Visitors are able to walk across the bridge and then down to the river's edge to marvel at the trestle from below.

The wide and smooth footbridge across the Kinsol Trestle.

We began our trek to the trestle from the parking lot and enjoyed the walk out immensely. The trees were a vibrant green, the woods filled with birdsong and the path was very level and well-maintained. The kids made it the whole way without being carried, although our son tried very hard to convince Daddy to pick him up!

Once at the trestle, we ventured across. There are little outcroppings where you can walk out and look over the edge to study the trestle design below your feet. It gave me a little bit of vertigo, leaning over the edge like that! Even more so when my husband would hoist my kids up to the ledge so they could take their turn seeing over the side! If you get dizzy easily, may I recommend you stick to the main bridge and avoid the outcroppings!

Checking out the view on one of the many outcroppings.

At the far end of the bridge to the right is a little covered plaza perfect for resting in the shade and maybe having a snack or two. There are also more port-a-potties on that end, too.

To the left of the bridge and a little down are two flattened areas featuring picnic tables, so you can hike under the trestle and set up a little lunch if you desire. We wandered down to the first picnic area and I practiced flying my drone around the trestle and across the river. Another gentleman was flying his drone too (he was SO MUCH better than I could ever hope to be) and he was flying in between the actual trestles super fast and with flair. I'd love to see his footage!! I didn't crash my drone into the river, so I considered that a successful flight.

The trestle bridge from underneath.

Once the kids got tired of looking at the trestle from below, we hiked back up the rather steep incline to the top and returned across the trestle footbridge. By this time, my son was really done with walking, so my poor husband had to cart him back in his arms for most of the 1.2 kilometre hike.

All in all, we probably spent an hour and a half to two hours exploring the Kinsol Trestle. I'm sure if you did not have a two-year-old and a four-year-old with you, you could do it much quicker as the hike to and from the bridge took us the most time.

I definitely recommend a visit to the Kinsol Trestle bridge on Vancouver Island!

What I will say is that a visit out to the Kinsol Trestle is very much worth the drive and the accompanying hike! The trestle is a marvel, and the natural area around it is breathtakingly beautiful too. Watch the video to see what I mean, and don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel while you are there!

How to Plan a Road Trip with Toddlers

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 03 May 2018 00:05:00 +0000

Happy May everyone! The month of May is a really big deal around my home, as it marks the end of tax season for my husband, and the end of him working 10-11 hours a day almost seven days a week. He began 'tax season' at the start of February and went straight through until April 30, only taking two full days off that entire time.

For him, of course it is exhausting. For me, it is equally as tiring, since I'm basically a single mom of two trying to raise the kids, clean the house, do the laundry, buy the groceries, cook the meals, clean the yard (because finally it is spring!) AND work part-time as a substitute teacher. For the kids, they miss their dad fiercely, and my son even began to tell strangers that his father 'lived at work'. He honestly thought Joey slept at work and that was where his home was. Oh dear.

So we are celebrating May this year by taking a much-needed family vacation to reconnect, relax, and make some valuable memories together.

We chose to drive to Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada as that is a place where I used to go as a kid with my family, and I want to recreate some of those amazing adventures with my little ones. Joey has also never been to the island, so this should be a very exciting trip for him as well.

Going on an extended road trip with kids can be challenging but certainly not impossible.

However, driving to and from Vancouver Island from central Alberta is quite the undertaking. It will take us two days of driving to reach the island from our hometown, with us driving approximately 8 hours each day. That is A LOT of driving when you have two young children strapped into car seats with you!

If you are planning on doing a crazy-long road trip like us with young children, here are some strategies you can use to make the drive bearable - and dare we even say it, enjoyable!!

Clean Out Your Vehicle

The best way to start a road trip, in my mind, is to have a clean vehicle for a fresh start to your trip. I realize with two kids in the car, by the end of the trip the interior will be covered in mud, dirt, shrivelled French fries, broken sea shells, dirty stickers, and whatever else the kids will drag in and drop on the floor and seats.

Our car is nice and clean (for now)!

I just really enjoy the first part of the trip when the dashboard is sparkling in the sun (instead of being dusty), the carpets on the floor are free of debris, and the vehicle just smells fresh and clean. I always try to detail my car the day before we leave for maximum freshness!

Take Lots of Toys

To survive this 20+ hour drive, I packed a tote bag bursting with favourite toys and books. My son chose to bring his massive Buzz Lightyear toy, his favourite stuffy, a Paw Patrol book with a steering wheel so he could drive with us, his 'iPad' which is a Mr. Pencil ABC learning toy, and a plethora of books. I guided him to pack the electronic books that read to him, so that I wouldn't have to jam myself in the backseat to read to him.

The kids packed some favourite toys and books to last them the duration of the trip.

My daughter brought two large Elsa barbies, three smaller Disney dolls, her favourite stuffy, her Leap Pad, and a bunch of the electronic books as well. She also chose a few games, like the Tetris Bop It game that I haven't figured out in five years of owning it, and a water shooting game.

Also packed in the tote bag are some Magic Coloring books, the kind where the marker only works on that particular paper. This will keep them busy and also eliminate the danger of having them color all over the car seat and upholstery!

Take Lots of Snacks

Nothing makes a kid happier than eating snacks. They could have just eaten a five-course meal till they felt they were about to explode, and if presented with a foil package of gummies, would still find room to gobble them down.

I don't know if the kids are more excited about the trip or the snacks!

That's why I went to town packing snacks for this road trip. We have bags of chips and popcorn, a carton of cookies, a full package of Goldfish crackers, apples, oranges, yogurts, cheese strings, and the list goes on. My plan is portion them out as we go in order to prevent any car sickness, but hand them out frequently enough to curb any hangry whining.

Prepare for Accidents

With that being said, there probably will be some puking. My kids tend to get car sick when they are feeling hot or tired, so somewhere along the line, I'll be dealing with vomit. (Sorry if this is TMI - this is my reality, people.)

Prepared for accidents and upsets in the back seat (hopefully not the front seat!)

To make sure I'm ready, I packed an extra package of baby wipes, a full container of Lysol wipes, a full roll of paper towel, and some actual towels to help mop up the mess. I also stuffed a few plastic grocery bags into the console for wrapping up soiled clothes and wipes. I EVEN have an extra air freshener in case we end up with an oder problem. This ain't my first rodeo, folks!

My daughter is toilet-trained and a real champ at it, but we will still encourage her to wear a Pull-Up for the long drive in case she has to emergency pee in the middle of nowhere, or while we are on the TransCanada and there's nowhere to pull over. She's not a fan of squatting in the ditch, either!

Take Lots of Breaks

To alleviate the chances of car sickness or potty-related accidents, I have worked several breaks into our road trip itinerary. I usually plan for an hour stop for meals, and at least every two hours I have us pulling into a roadside attraction to walk around and explore.

Take advantage of any road side stop or attraction you can find - add that time into your total!

On top of those planned trips, my husband and I tend to take advantage of pull-outs along the highway. We've been known to pull over to a pit stop area just to have the kids play on the playground for 10-15 minutes before moving on. Sometimes having that brief bout of fresh air can rejuvenate you for a couple more hours on the road.

Use Music and Variety

My kids love to sing, and although their voices might not be what you would call angelic, they have fun and it keeps them entertained for hours! My son has a little karaoke machine in his room, and both my children put on concerts singing their ABCs and Disney songs, using Parker's bed as a stage. They love to perform.

Therefore, before leaving on our trip, I'll make sure we have tons of Disney and kids' song downloaded onto my iPhone. They love tunes from "Moana" and "Frozen", and because their mother is a child of the 80s, they like Anne Murray's children's songs too. (Think "Animal Crackers in my Soup".)

However, they also like contemporary music, so we won't be stuck singing "Let It Go" the entire trip. They like indie music, the Tragically Hip, Imagine Dragons, and tons of pop songs, so we'll be set musically for the duration of the road trip.

Play Games

In the past, the kids have been too young to play games while we ventured on our long road trips. This year, though, they are into games like "I Spy" so we will be trying those. I thought about downloading a road trip BINGO game (there's so many cool ones on Pinterest) but that's a bit ahead of their time right now.

We are taking some games to play at our hotel, but I would love suggestions for in-car games!

I would love any suggestions from my readers on games we could play that would be age appropriate for kids under 5!

Cross Your Fingers They Nap!

My final strategy to get us through a 20+ hour road trip is to encourage the kids to sleep. They don't nap at home and left naps behind a long time ago. BUT they do tend to still fall asleep in the car, even if we are only driving for 15 or 20 minutes. My hope is that they will doze for large chunks of time during this voyage. Fingers crossed!

These kids are not napping - but hopefully they will on the way to the island!

We have done 5-6 hour road trips through the mountains before, and those were surprisingly a piece of cake. This upcoming journey is by far the longest amount of time we will spend in a vehicle with both of our children, and I'm not afraid to admit that I'm a little scared. But I'm hoping that with these strategies in place, we will all survive and remain - in my son's words - "a happy family"! I will keep you posted and let you know which strategies worked the best, which were useless, and if we came up with any others that succeeded!

Why I Believe in Traveling with my Kids

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 04 Apr 2018 16:56:00 +0000

Last Monday I had the opportunity to do a Live Stream on an awesome YouTube channel called Pusa Studios, where we chatted about my own YouTube travel channel, bucket lists, travel in general, and a variety of other topics. It was my first Live Stream and I was a little nervous, but Pusa Studios were great hosts and put me right at ease. If you want to check out the video, I'll post the link here bookmarked to my entrance (there is an hour of Live Stream before that, which you are welcome to watch as well!).

Part of our conversation focused on the topic of traveling with children, and how travel has affected my children thus far. We haven't taken Avy and Parker on a big international trip yet. (Although Avy did come with us to Costa Rica when she was 10 months old, but Parker had not quite joined our ranks yet. He was still a three-month-old fetus then!)

We have done several lengthy road trips with the kids, stayed at a cabin in British Columbia every summer since they were born, and I take them with me all the time on fun day-trip adventures. They are with me when I take notes on sights we see, and are usually a big part of my YouTube videos.

After I completed my chat with Pusa Studios, I took some time to really think about WHY traveling with my kids is so important to me.

I had a blast being a guest on Pusa Studio's live stream!

A lot of people think that traveling with children is a waste of money and effort. Excuses that come to mind are:

"They are too young to remember it."
"They aren't interested in any of the things we are seeing."
"It costs so much extra to pay for the kids to travel too."
"Kids really slow you down when you travel."

I'm sure you've either heard these reasons before, or have even said them. I know I have. I'm not delusional; these are all valid excuses and often true. Your kids probably won't remember the trip, they do cost extra money, and you can't fit in as much in a day while towing children along. But that doesn't mean it isn't worth it.

Playing in the ocean with 10-month-old Avy in Costa Rica.

My belief is that there is a time and a place. In October we are going to Vienna on a corporate-sponsored business trip. My husband will be in meetings all day long, and I am expected to attend functions as his wife. This is probably not a trip for our children, as they can't be with their parents for significant chunks of time. If we did bring them, we'd have to bring a nanny which is A LOT of additional cost. So for that trip, my children will be staying with their grandparents, having the time of their lives.

But that isn't to say I don't want my kids to benefit from traveling, because I fully believe travel helps children grow into inquisitive, caring, open-minded, and adaptable human beings. Even if they don't remember the details of the vacation.

I will use myself as an example. My family took huge vacations every summer - not on airplanes flying abroad, because we couldn't afford that when I was a child. But every summer we loaded up our mini-van to the roof with tents, tarps, suitcases, sleeping bags, camp cooking equipment (you name a camping tool, we probably had it) and headed off into the great unknown.

Cuddling a baby raccoon on one of my many family road trips growing up.

Usually the great unknown was British Columbia, one province over. We had friends in Kelowna that we'd stay with for a week who had lakeside property. I remember several summers where my friend Kerri-Ann and I would swim out to the floating dock with a float bag, and have 'picnics' out on the lake, singing songs at the top of our lungs because who could hear us? (Everyone, it turned out.)

Kerri-Ann and I singing "Itsy Bitsy Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" on the dock at top volume.

Other times we drove out to Vancouver Island and stay at Long Beach, my parents' favourite getaway. We would drive out to the island slowly, camping as we went along, then camp on the island, and then camp along the route on our way home. If my memory serves me correctly, it was always Dad and I who set up the tent and campsite, while Mom took my two younger sisters out for a stretch and a walk so they'd be out of our way. I remember being insanely proud that it was just Dad and I who knew how to set up camp.

My family (and my cousin in the black) on one of our trips to Vancouver Island.

Once we drove down to North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. I would have been pretty old by this time, maybe 12? And still I don't remember too much about the trip. Flashbacks include the massive crowd at Mount Rushmore and feeling squished and annoyed, or the time I threw up at Deadwood because all of the displays were soaked in formaldehyde and the smell made me sick. I remember we forgot my baby sister's stroller at Deadwood because we were in such a rush to leave due to my illness.

Me enjoying the beautiful view on our USA road trip.

I remember my sister cut her finger at Devil's Tower in Wyoming and my mom had to return to the ranger station to get a band-aid, and while she was doing that, we walked back to the car, so she ran all the way around Devil's Tower looking for us, and when she found us just lounging there at the car she was livid! But beyond those memories, I didn't seem to retain much from the trip.

But those four memories are priceless to me. Those four simple memories solidify my notion that our family had some amazing times, that we were a strong family unit, and that my parents cared about their children's well-being and experiences. So what if I don't remember every single detail, or the information from the placards at Deadwood, or even that my memory from Deadwood is that I hated it? I still remember my family taking me there and caring about me when I got sick. Isn't that what is important?

My experiences camping with my family, in helping my dad set up the tent and unpack (then pack back up) the van taught me to take pride in working hard, the value of knowledge, a work ethic to take care of others. It taught me responsibility. On those days that we had to set up or take down camp in the pouring rain, it taught me resilience and problem-solving. And I still remember loving to go travel, to go camping with my family, despite some of those chilly days. It taught me a passion for exploring the world.

The 'tent-setting-up' dream team of Dad and I.

My family didn't have money to take my sisters and I on big flights, to stay in all-inclusive resorts or on cruise liners. But that didn't mean we never traveled. There are ways to explore the world that don't require a lot of funding.

This summer we are going camping for the first time ever with our own children. My husband and I are perhaps the only ones in our group of friends who DON'T own a trailer; we prefer tenting. The kids will be 3 and 4 this summer, and we feel they are old enough to try sleeping in a tent. A whole new avenue of travel will be open to us if they enjoy camping as much as we do! (Or even if they don't. I don't care. They'll learn to like camping! LOL)

Exploring the slippery rocks on Vancouver Island.

I can't stress enough how important I think travel is for children. And it doesn't have to be extravagant. Kids need to see the world beyond their own community bubble. They should see how others live. They should try new foods. They should face the unknown and teach their brains how to process the strange and unusual and create a new version of reality. They should learn to problem-solve in new situations. They should make memories with their families that diverge from their every day life. Travel provides opportunities for all of that.

It's okay if you don't agree. To each their own, I say. I just know I am grateful for the experiences my parents gave me growing up, and my aim is to do the same for my offspring. And hopefully one day, my kids become my favourite travel partners!