My trip to the Baltic started with Stockholm, late at night. I checked in at Hellsten around 2 am. When you are tired and it’s late and you just want to rest and avoid thinking until the following day, you need to find yourself in a nice place. Well, Hellsten was not nice: it was flabbergasting.

I was given the room key and when I opened the door of my room I literally gasped.

When I opened the door of my room at Hellsten…

It’s safe to say it was love at first sight. It was a bit of a pity to be staying in such an incredibly beautiful room on my own, but hey, I am not complaining.

Me in my Junior Suite at the Hellsten – I was there! For realz!

My first day in Stockholm didn’t even begin yet, and I was already happy with it. This is the power of great hotels. Don’t ever underestimate it.

And so I dove into the most beautiful bed ever and fell asleep feeling like a happy princess.

A closer look at my bed at Hellsten

Now, to the details.

Other than the impact of the extravagant furniture, which is definitely the protagonist of the hotel, there are some details that make Hotel Hellsten a special place, a place with a heart.

As Izabelle, the beautiful (of course!) PR Manager explained:

“Our rooms do not have mini-bars because of Per Hellsten’s (the Owner) vision to connect all our Guest’s in the bar and lobby.

Therefore we serve free coffee and tea in the lobby – to make this the “living room” of the hotel and for all our guests.

We also have 24 hour room service for anyone who wants to stay in their room.

Regarding safety boxes we have this service at the reception. If there is anything which our guests want to keep safe, they can leave it at the front desk. Then they get a receipt of their deposited items which they can collect at any time.”

The lobby at Hellsten

In the lobby, you get free coffee and tea, you can borrow glasses to read, and a Lonely Planet guide of Stockholm (together with more touristic information) sits around for anyone who wants to read it. I felt like I was in a hostel. In a good way. And as a solo traveler, I loved it!

The beautiful Earth Bar at Hellsten

Masks from Mr Hellsten’s travels around the world

Should you be one of the Guests that wants to stay in their room, no problem – it was so silent and comfortable. I never wanted to leave my room. Except for breakfast. Breakfast was good, not overwhelming, but what I really liked was the breakfast room and the fact that they served walnuts! I am a fan of walnuts.

The breakfast room at Hellsten

I was so lucky to have a tour of the Hotel Hellsten and see other rooms, and found that they are all different. Ah, I need to go back and sleep in each one of them! Which one would you pick? Check these out:

Another Junior Suite at Hotel Hellsten

This was similar to mine, still a bit different

This room used to be a brothel. Really! “The Red Room” is now the setting of many movies and TV series in Sweden. So cool!

A double room at Hellsten, with special furniture!

And another one. I love the green.

Duplex Junior Suite

Some bathrooms also have a sauna!

The Location.

This was my first visit to Stockholm so location was really important for me. I found Hotel Hellsten to be in the best possible position for a newcomer:

• a pleasant 20 mins walk to Gamla Stan, through the shopping districts and city center (that you want to see anyway!).
• in a central, yet very quiet and silent location.
• literally around the corner from the next metro station.
• surrounded by restaurants, pubs, supermarkets, cafes, etc.
• not in a “touristy area”.
• easy to find – just look for the Hellsten flag!

The Hellsten Flag

What more can you ask for? I honestly found the location perfect.

Last but not least: the price range.

I know what you are thinking – this must be so not affordable. Well that is far from truth, since you can have one of these amazing rooms for just 1.290 SEK (about 140 Eur) and up.

My advice? Go for it!

I am really glad to say I was wrong. Stockholm rocked my socks in multiple ways, surprised me more than once, made me feel comfortable all the time.

A few days are not enough to really appreciate everything but the first impressions will always remain with me and this is the good thing.

Me and my tree friend in Gamla Stan, Stockholm

If you’re planning to visit Stockholm too, be ready to be surprised by its beauty and unique atmosphere. Here’s what rocked my socks during my stay, and I hope will rock yours too!

1 – Wifi is everywhere, for real.
For me this makes everything so much easier. Riding a bus? Wifi is available on board! Drinking a coffee? Wifi is available at the cafe! Shopping at H&M? Wifi is available in store!

2 – The (hard) rock scene.
As you may know I wanted to be a rockstar but I became a travel blogger. Not complaining! Still, I particularly enjoy rock, hard rock and metal, and Stockholm (Sweden and Northern Europe in general) has a prominent hard rock scene.
So I was like a child in the candy store when I found the “Shock” store (and bought studs and stuff), the “Pub Anchor” (where live music is played every night, and “Bieber blood” shots are served!), and spent hours searching through dusty record stores to finally find some really cool records.

3 – Stockholm is so photogenic.
Even if I feel intimidated by cities when it comes to photographing them, I found Stockholm gently inviting. She was always gladly posing for me and looking good in every shot.
What an elegant, superb city. Water, history, architecture, streets, people, modernity and traffic. All this in walking distance. Click, click, and click again.

4 – Ice and reflections.
This may belong to the “photogenic” paragraph but it’s slightly different. Imagine walking in the streets of Stockholm. Now imagine the sound of your feet on the gravel that prevents pedestrians from slipping on ice. Now while you imagine the sound, think of the golden light of the north, its reflections and shadows on the layer of ice that covers everything. Welcome to Stockholm in the winter.

5 – Exploring the city by boat.
Let’s be honest, water makes cities so much more beautiful. Stockholm is basically a group of islands, surrounded by more islands. On my second day in the city I decided to get on a sightseeing tour that was part by bus and part by boat and I would recommend this to everyone. This way you can get to see both the center of the city and other areas you would never reach by walking, and especially if you have little time like I did, it will help you orientating yourself. Just make sure you have appropriate clothing or you will freeze like I did! (in the name of photography!)

6 – My Stockholm Card!
I never bought one of these “X City Cards” before and I was always a bit skeptical or maybe too lazy to look into it. But I have to say my Stockholm Card made everything so much easier, especially when I realized I could ride all kinds of public transportation with it. This took me so much further than I thought, quicker than I planned, and in the most relaxed possible way!
Also, Stockholm has countless incredible museums which are all included in the Stockholm Card. My personal favorite was the Fotografiska – I still feel like a privileged person for having had the chance of visiting it.
So especially if you have just a few days or a weekend in Stockholm, I recommend the Stockholm Card, to enjoy your stay to the max!

Fotografiska-Stockholm #BalticTR

I know you’ve been to Stockholm too! What rocked your socks? Tell me tell me.

As I’m very much behind with updates, I am going to list everything that happened on my days on the Baltic, hopefully inspiring you to do the same or something similar. And then I will elaborate more, in the upcoming posts. So bear with me.

Day 1 – Italy (home) to Stockholm, Sweden

Well, I arrived to the incredible Hotel Hellsten in Stockholm around 2am so all I can say is that walking through my room door and finding such a beautiful Suite was the best welcome I could possibly think of!

My incredible Junior Suite at Hotel Hellsten, Stockholm, Sweden – #BalticTR

Day 2 – Stockholm

This day started a bit late as I failed to meet the Tourism Board representative on time, but it’s ok. I don’t like running anyway. So in the afternoon I walked to Gamla Stan, the “old town” of Stockholm, and wandered around and well, loved it. I (intentionally) got a bit lost on and off the island, and enjoyed every minute of it.

Gamla Stan! The Old City of Stockholm, and some life in the city. #BalticTR

Then, when the sky started darkening (around 4 pm or so), and I started freezing (ahem), I took shelter at the Fotografiska photography museum. Spectacular and a total must.

Fotografiska-Stockholm #BalticTR

 Day 3 – More Stockholm

Since I was a bit late with the exploration I woke up early-ish and hopped on a sightseeing bus and had a very nice and extensive tour of the city – the weather was great so I was really lucky and the tour also included a boat trip around the islands of Stockholm, so I was even luckier. Freezing, but worth it! And it made a great excuse to sit in a cafe and enjoy some cake after the tour. YUM.

Me, freezing my beep off on the Stockholm boat tour, and a reindeer fur in the background. To avoid freezing your beep off! #BalticTR

After the tour and the latte with cake I decided to go back to Gamla Stan and see some more of it, with no rush, and so I did and it was great. The old city of Stockholm really has some special spots. Check this out:

Small me and big tree in Gamla Stan, Stockholm. We make a nice couple! #BalticTR

Day 4 – Shopping in Stockholm and ferry to Riga

On my last day in Stockholm I sadly checked out from Hotel Hellsten and got advantage of my Stockholm Card and rode the metro up and down the city to do some shopping: mainly studs and hard rock music from some really cool record stores – yes, I love that kind of stuff and Sweden is the right place for it!

Early in the afternoon it was time to get on board of M/S Isabelle and spent the night in the middle of the Baltic Sea, to wake up in Riga, Latvia! What-a-ride. Rough sea and all. FANTASTIC. More on this soon!

M/S Isabelle took me from Stockholm to Riga #BalticTR

Day 5 – Riga, Latvia

I loved Riga at first sight. Reaching a city by sea is definitely much more fascinating than anything else, and approaching the harbor while the sun rises, with ice floating on the water and seagulls flying all around was even more special. I will never forget that moment. I was slowly arriving to Riga and being on the cruise ship gave me the time to savor the feeling. I know, I am so romantic…

Ok now listen to me. Riga is fan-tas-tic and you must see it. This is basically all I have to say for now.

First of all, I checked in at beautiful SemaraH Hotel Metropole, where I took the longest and warmest shower ever.
Then, to start my experience in the beautiful capital of Latvia, the best thing was to have a look at it from above. St Peter’s Church is what you are looking for if you want to do the same. When I exited the elevator on the top of the tower, it wasn’t any later than 3pm but the sun was already very low on the horizon and that golden light was just beautiful. And BAM, the Travel Cupid’s arrow struck me!

Riga as seen from St Peter’s Church. BAM!

Shortly after, the sky got darker and darker, and I stumbled into the iconic House of Blackheads at the right time.

House of Blackheads at dusk. Riga, Latvia #BalticTR

Day 6 – More Riga

One of the most well known things in Riga is architecture. I always thought it wouldn’t be so special but then it left me speechless. The buildings of Riga are so jaw-dropping that they deserve a post of their own. So yeah, another post coming up!

Building with faces! In Riga, Latvia #BalticTR

Day 7 – To Tallinn, Estonia

I rode a fantastic bus from Riga to Tallinn and once there I went directly to the Old City. It took me a while to love it. I felt like Riga had spoiled me a bit. But then it finally got under my skin… especially when I started talking to some locals.

Tallinn Colors. #BalticTR

Day 8 – More Tallinn

More Tallinn. Up and down Tallinn. All around Tallinn. Loving Tallinn.

Me and Tallinn. Freezing my beep off again but in love with the city!

Day 9 – Pirita Beach in Tallinn and ferry back to Stockholm

I wanted to see something different than the Old Town so I decided to see the beach of Tallinn, aka Pirita, and the promenade on the Baltic Sea that takes you back to the city center. Well, it was nice at least because I had never seen a beach covered in snow before. But man was it cold!

Me on the snowy beach of Pirita. Brrr! #BalticTR

In the afternoon I took the ferry back to Stockholm, and this time was the bigger and more luxurious M/S Victoria I that safely took me back to the other side of the Baltic through an epic snow storm!

Boarding M/S Victoria I to Stockholm! #BalticTR

Day 10 – Back to Italy

While I was away, it snowed a lot in Stockholm and it was nice to see it completely different, covered in white. But I barely had the time to have a look around, as I had to reach the airport and go back to Italy.

What a trip! 10 intense days, 3 countries, 3 hotels, 2 cruise ships, 5 different beds, 2 airplanes, 1 bus and countless steps later.. here I am, back home, back to the office, and writing about an incredible life experience.

Disclaimer: this post is intended to be funny and is by no means a serious review of food! I have no idea what I am talking about ok? Ok.

Me drinking a smoothie in Montreal and I didn’t like it.

So here are my top 5 Canadian food experiences, from fun to hilarious:

1- Maple Syrup

AKA my precious. During my stay in Roatan I remember people from the US making fun of Canadians because they supposedly pt maple syrup on top of everything. I don’t know if that’s true, but I can say all the foods with maple syrup I tried were delicious. Just a coincidence? I doubt.

Me and the Maple Syrup I bought in Québec. My precious!

 2- Poutine

Of course! This was on top of my list of things to try in Canada. I had it twice and then decided I am not a fan. The first time was in Calgary and in order to make it a real Canadian experience I dressed up as a lumberjack then ordered the plain version of poutine.

After I had the whole portion I thought I was going to roll home instead of walk. But I somehow managed to stay awake and reach the car… (read: I found it too heavy for my taste!)

Lumberjack me and my first poutine in Calgary

But since I know what you are thinking – the best poutine is in Québec right? – I promised myself I would give it another try once in Montréal, and so I did.

Apparently the best place to eat poutine in Montréal is a restaurant called La Banquise, which is open 24 hours and still has a line of people waiting in front of it at all times. This time I went for something a bit different and ordered the guacamole poutine. I liked it. Still too heavy. I can live without. But I understand that this was a must and I couldn’t miss it!

Guacamole Poutine at La Banquise, Montreal

3- Beaver Tail

“What the hell?” Is what I thought when I first heard of “beaver tails”. I honestly thought people ate the actual tails of beavers and I thought it was disgusting – as you all know I am a vegetarian, plus I never saw a beaver before and I didn’t want to see a dead one as a start!

But then I realized I was wrong and beaver tails are basically just fried flat, sugary pastries or something like that. And you can put anything on top of them. Sweet! I had to try one! This happened in Mont Tremblant, Québec.

Me and my first (and only, so far) beaver tail

4- Maple Taffy

Ok, technically this goes into the “Maple Syrup” section but it deserves a paragraph of its own, because it’s awesome!

A Maple Taffy is something super Canadian – basically you pour warm maple syrup in snow so that it hardens up a bit (this is the coolest part) and then you roll it on a stick to make a lollipop. Since there was no snow when I visited, I had to try the touristy version which is made in “fake snow” but I still think it’s a lot of fun! And it’s sooo sweet! And chewy! OMG. GIMME!

And don’t miss the video of me rolling up my first Maple Taffy.

Rolling up my first Maple Taffy! Tourist style!

5- Tim Hortons

Of course! Last but not least! Everybody seems to hate it but for some reason there are almost 5,000 Tim Hortons cafes in Canada. It’s like in Italy when nobody votes for Berlusconi (“me? nooo”) at elections but for some reason he’s still there. Makes sense?

And so yeah it probably sucks (the coffee I tried sucked big time, but then again, I’m Italian so I can be picky on coffee) but still, it’s another Canadian must! Plus it comes with wifi so it doesn’t really suck, hey. And anyway you’ll bump into one at some point, there’s no doubt about it.

Tim Hortons logo

Canadian food, eh? What would you add to the list?

Sunset at the camp in Wadi Gamal, Egypt – © Giulia Cimarosti

Volunteers and Bedouins – the dream team! © Giulia Cimarosti

The end of the experience finally arrived, and after saying goodbye to most of the fellow volunteers, the few of us that decided to stay for another night went back to our tents.  Just a few of us were left; just hours before we could count dozens of people sitting and walking everywhere.

The main tent and the visitors – © Giulia Cimarosti

We all decided we were not going to sleep in the tent tonight. We’d been waiting for this opportunity, and finally the night was all ours. Hazem, a volunteer who quickly became a friend, and I, took our sleeping bags, laid them against the side of the main tent, and played Arabic music on our radio, in a very low volume. Someone lit a fire and the dog named “Khawaga” (translated to “foreigner”) circled the sleeping bags before sitting. The shooting stars hunt began, and there were only winners. I was enchanted by the fantastic panorama—the campfire on one side and the deserted valley in front of me. The Egyptian tribes that had traveled from across the country to meet here were already on the way back to their villages and oases, some of them returning to remote places the middle of the desert.

Me and the Bedouins

The previous week had been intense and demanding – the weather was hot and there was a lot to do – but also rich in satisfaction.

I was a foreigner who had just arrived in Egypt, I didn’t understand a word of Arabic, and I was suddenly surrounded by hundreds of Egyptian people that were organizing an event. I was the first Italian ever to take part in the Characters of Egypt Festival. It was late 2010.

Not sure if it still happens, but back then  in different the Festival took place every year in different venues around Egypt. Here, Bedouins and tribes from different parts of the country gathered and camped together for three nights, sharing their culture, rituals and knowledge. Some of the tribes were completely unknown until the founder of the festival, Mr. Walid Ramadan, started traveling across Egypt attempting to discover lost and unknown populations. His effort was to persuade each tribe to participate in his grand project. Ramadan’s intentions were simple: to put a tribe with good skills in extracting water from the desert in contact with another tribe who lacked the skills; the tribes that were good at agriculture to shared their tips, and so on.

Egyptian tribes boy dancing – © Giulia Cimarosti

A Nubian woman’s hand – © Giulia Cimarosti

Egyptian tribe boy – © Giulia Cimarosti

Egypt tribes boy – © Giulia Cimarosti

Egypian tribesman – © Giulia Cimarosti

Egyptian tribes on poles – © Giulia Cimarosti

Egyptian boy playing the drum – © Giulia Cimarosti

My involvement in the process happened by chance as I was casually surfing Facebook I saw a video about the event. My imagination instantly took me to the venue. I decided I was going to attend the festival as a visitor, and I started to find out more information about transportation, not an easy task, as the camp of Wadi el Gamal is at about 150 km south from Marsa Alam. Around the same time I was trying to figure out how to do that, I met a woman named Rowan who I soon realized was associated with the Characters of Egypt Festival. Rowan told me I could volunteer with the organization in charge of organizing and assisting the event. That sounded just perfect! I had never volunteered, but for sure I dreamed about such an experience before, especially while abroad.

Egyptian tribesmen playing music – © Giulia Cimarosti

As a travel photographer and blogger I was assigned to the “press and documentation” committee. My task was to take photos of as many events as possible, and then at the end of each day I had to write a journal about what I saw, and of course share the images with the rest of the group. Other than this, my team and I had to take care of the needs of the press that came from across Egypt and many neighboring countries. Many of the professional photographers, video producers and journalists who came to the festival had no idea what Characters of Egypt was about – they were sent by their agencies to cover a basically unknown event that everyone ended up loving and will never forget.

The games at Characters of Egypt – © Giulia Cimarosti

Bedouin eyes – © Giulia Cimarosti

Professionally, the biggest satisfaction from the experience was having my photographs published in a very well known Egyptian magazine named Campus Mag. I couldn’t believe it when they called me to ask me for some of my shots. If everything else wasn’t enough, I also have a tangible memory of those days, like a trophy that I took home with me and another reason to be proud of taking part in such a project.

The Friday Prayer in the desert – © Giulia Cimarosti

Father and son – © Giulia Cimarosti

The main tent at night in Wadi Gamal, Egypt – © Giulia Cimarosti

Before this experience, when I thought about Egypt I imagined pyramids, camels and desert. Only a few people know about the existence of tribes or ever had a conversation with a Bedouin or know anything about their lifestyle. Thanks to Facebook (it reached the oases, too!) I am still in contact with some members of the tribesmen I met in Egypt. In only a few days I discovered the beauty of camping in the desert and developed a strong interest in eco-tourism. I realized how many opportunities volunteering can give me and everyone in our pursuit to understand other cultures. I had the chance to get involved in the heart of the culture, allowing me to meet locals inside their community: not as a tourist/local in a detached relationship, but rather as a team of people living side by side, eventually beginning new friendships. The people I met at the Characters of Egypt Festival are still some of my best friends in Egypt and were the ones that nine months later took me to the airport when I left.

An Egyptian kid with incredibly deep eyes – © Giulia Cimarosti

Have you ever volunteered abroad or in your country? What is the most amazing memory of that experience? Feel free to share it with me!

How do I enter?

Let’s keep this very short: you can enter your e-mail address in the box below in order to enter the contest and subscribe to my e-mail updates (no worries, I am not the spammy kind).
a Rafflecopter giveaway

What do I win?

Three things:

1. 2 x tickets for the Adventure Travel Show 2015 (London, 17-18 January)
2. 1 x mobile phone cover customized with one of my photos (you pick it)
3. 1 x travel-related surprise I will choose especially for you

The Adventure Travel Show 2015

Can I enter?

Sure, as long as you are 18+. All nationalities apply. Please bear in mind that the prize does not include the transportation to/from London and any visa/bureaucracy that can take you there.

The mobile phone cover can be for iPhone or Samsung Galaxy S3/S4/S5 (other kinds subject to availability).

For more information please ask away!

Good luck everyone :) and thanks again!

Good news: most of the following venues happen to be in the same place or very close to each other, so planning your visit will be super easy!

Keeping the geeky level high at the Science Center of Montreal

1: The Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium and its incredible shows

The Planetarium as seen from the outside (photo courtesy Espace Pour La Vie)

You will love this. Other than its permanent and temporary exhibits, the Planetarium is very well known for its interactive shows taking place inside the two huge domes.

Some state-of-the-art techniques are used for you to feel like you’re really floating in space while you’re actually just laying on the floor (don’t forget to take your shoes off). The shows last around 30 minutes each so it won’t be a long visit especially if you book in advance and show up 5 minutes before the start!

Inside the Planetarium Dome of Montreal – photo courtesy of Espace pour la Vie

 2: The Biodôme and its 4.500 animals

The Biodôme is just next to the Planetarium, and you can actually walk to and from each other through an indoors passage so again, make sure you visit both at the same time. It will take about 2 hours to see the Biodôme very well, not less than one hour anyway.

It’s so cool! This highly technological structure is divided into different ecosystems, each one hosting peculiar species of animals of all kinds – about 4.500 of them! From a section to the other of the Biodôme you literally go from freezing to sweating, while monkeys jump in front of your eyes or seagulls fly above your head.

Puffins, so fabulous!

Poisonous frogs

My first otter!

My first Canada Lynx!

Callimico monkey

My first beaver ever!

The infra-red cam inside the beaver’s dam!

 3: The Botanical Garden and the Insectarium

The Botanical Garden of Montreal is very famous, and it lives up to its name. It’s located in front of the Olympic Stadium (which is also where the Planetarium and the Biodôme are) but I honestly wouldn’t recommend visiting all of these things on the same day, unless you like running, like I had to!

The impressive structure of the Olympic Stadium of Montreal – NO, you can’t miss it!

Save a day for the Botanical Garden and Insectarium alone: it’s totally worth it. My advice is to visit the Insectarium and the garden houses first, since they’re very close to the entrance, and then all the different “gardens” – Chinese, Japanese, Alpine, etc. Finish your visit with some well deserved relax and meditation (slash nap) on the northern side of the park, because when you see it, you will want to do it, believe me!

Busy ants at the Insectarium of Monteal

One of the tarantulas at the Insectarium of Montreal

Part of the Chinese Garden at the Montreal Botanical Gardens

Relax in the Japanese Garden – Montreal Botanical Garden

Relax in the Japanese Garden – Montreal Botanical Garden

I know you want it! Montreal Botanical Garden

Can you spot the face on the tree? – Montreal Botanical Garden

4: The IMAX and Science Center of Montreal (Centre de Science de Montreal)

One word: location! The Science Center of Montreal and the IMAX are located in a building right at the Old Port of Montreal so you will have to go there at some point when you visit the city.

As long as the Science Center is concerned, I didn’t visit it as I’ve been told it’s mostly children oriented, but hey, it looks like a lot of fun for them!

As I never tried IMAX in my life, I really wanted to do so. The movies change from time to time but when I was there I was suggested the Galapagos one, and found it was a really great job! Movies are available both in English and French.

Galapagos 3d at IMAX Montreal

Here’s my tip though: since the movies tend to be very short (mine was like 50 minutes) I suggest to purchase the tickets online to get a discount (on Mondays and Tuesdays tickets are only $6).

 5: The Cosmodome of Laval

Last but absolutely not least, the Cosmodome of Laval (nearby Montreal) was a highlight of my stay!

To be honest, this was not in my plans and I didn’t even know about it. But you know why? Because it’s underrated!

On my first day in the Montreal area I had to find a camera store as I broke one of my lenses, and on the way, what do I see on the side of the road? THIS:

The rocket outside of the Cosmodome in Laval

I immediately knew I had to go and visit that place, whatever it was. So after some research I found out what it was about and got my ticket. From the Cosmodome website:

The Cosmodome is Canada’s only world-class museum devoted entirely to astronautics and space exploration.

(…)

At the new Cosmodome, visitors have the opportunity to experience one of three interactive and educational missions by virtually traveling in space. They can also discover our collection of artifacts from our permanent exhibition on space exploration and visit the Yuri Gagarin Information Centre. Last but not least, they can enroll in our Space Camp, a franchise of the U.S. Space Camp program.

For space exploration buffs like (you and) me, this is definitely a must.

Me being all nerdy at the Cosmodome in Laval

The Cosmodome is not too innovative, in the sense that the information you are given during the experience is not always new and unheard of, but it’s a really cool concept. I would consider a visit to the Cosmodome as “an interactive night at the movies”: you have to watch videos and play video-games, so it’s a good activity for children, but even for adults it’s still interesting and the games are challenging enough to that persons of all ages can be entertained without the “awkward factor”! The given information is simple but not simplistic.

Each “mission” lasts about one hour and you can choose among 3 different themes, which are right now: “The impossible dream” (about the exploration of the Moon), “Red planet” (about Mars) and “The outer limits of the cosmos” (about deep space).

I personally went for the Red Planet. When the mission starts you are given a magnetic wristband that will take you through the different rooms of the “spaceship” by scanning it on the side of the sliding doors – nerding out is allowed.

At the end of each mission, a permanent exhibit about the Solar System and the Canadian Space Agency complete the visit.

Also, the Cosmodome is located in Laval, in a commercial area full of stores and malls. If your wife is shopping you know what to do while you wait for her!

Thanks to the Cosmodome and Espace pour la Vie for offering me the visit.

“Machine Consciente” by Rafael Sottolichio

During my “street art hunt” I was even so lucky to meet an artist, Mr Luc Saucier, while he was painting the lettering of an incredibly beautiful mural:

Luc Saucier painting

It took me a while to introduce myself and ask for his permission to take a photo of him, because A) I am super shy and B) I didn’t want to disturb him in his great concentration. In the end, Luc not only agreed on having me taking photos, but even shook my hand and explained me something about the Montreal street art: many of these incredible murals are by MU. Just looking at their website makes me understand how many great pieces of art I missed! The website also features a map of the projects. I wish I knew this before. Oh man, I need to go back.

I strongly suggest you to have a look at the MU projects gallery as you can see the “before and afters” of those skillfully painted walls, together with the story behind each piece. I have put a link on the photos I took to the corresponding page, when available. How cool am I?

“Generations” by Gene Pendon, 2014

It took me a while to notice this. Thanks Luc to showing me this great piece!

A mural in the “Quartier Latin”, the Latin quarter of Montreal

“Le Quartier Latin, au coeur de la création culturelle” (he Latin Quarter, at the heart of cultural creation) by Hélène Fleury.

“Au fil de l’eau” by Phillip Adams

Just the sign of a club.

Justice for missing and murdered Indigenous women

There’s this story we don’t hear about on this side of the ocean, about Indigenous women disappearing and being killed in Canada since many years. As far as I understood on my trip, nothing is being done in order to investigate and prevent this kind of crime. Why? Go ask the politicians, not me!

A cool looking parking

Colors! Trippy!

Another cool looking parking. Wouldn’t mind leaving my car there every day (well, if I had a car, of course)

I love this piece so full of meaning.

I am quoting myself here:

Pictures have the power to convey a whole feeling, a whole story, in a universal language that doesn’t need any translation or explanation.

Isn’t this everywhere?

Trippier than trippy!

Workers and graffiti

One of my personal favorites.

Incredible artistic skills.

Not sure I fully understood the message behind this one, but I like looking at it

Sometimes amazing pieces are a bit hidden away

This looks so much better than a blank wall. It’s a beautiful, relaxing place.

Coolest granny ever!

Grandpa?

This was weird. More about this below.

So basically I was walking and at some point I found myself in a Jewish tombstone factory (which is a bit unusual for me already) and on top of that the factory was decorated with graffiti. Okay.

Same tombstone factory, different wall.

Hey guys!

An average looking building turned into a special one.

Masterpiece!

I am sure there are more BIG names among the graffiti I posted above. Should you be able to help me identifying them, please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email, so I can update the post with more information. Thanks!

Also, I found out that in June the city of Montreal hosts the “MURAL Festival”. Check out their gallery for more incredible street art. WOW, WOW, WOW.

And so yes, this is how I spent one of my days in Montreal!

So why are we so suspicious of “strangers”, especially when traveling? I have no clue. Strangers are awesome!

One of my favorite aspects of travel is finding myself talking and hanging out with people I didn’t even know existed before (and vice versa for them) and this leaves me thrilled every single time.

But today I am going to talk about a previous stranger in particular – now more than a friend. She’s my “cosmic sister” (more about this later): Crystal.

Me and the previous stranger Crystal. :)

I met Crystal in Roatan, and back then, well I guess I have to share this, I was badly depressed and I had eating disorders. Nobody ever noticed – except her. She’s Canadian from Calgary, and we met while she was visiting a friend for a few weeks.
Even if we didn’t have much time to spend together (I was working all day), she was one of the few people that stayed in my heart and that really helped me keeping going during those hard, hard times.

Turned out she’s a yoga teacher and a nutritionist. That alone was already enough for me to feel comfortable with her – but she understood me and how I felt, and that was the special part. She even hugged me. Sometimes a hug is all you need, right?

She left the island, but we knew we would meet again. It happened. And it was awesome.

Me and Crystal in Calgary – yay! This was at the Olympic Park even we are hiding it with our awesome hair :D

On my recent trip to Canada I spent a week at Crystal’s place in Calgary. I knew it was going to be life-changing even if I didn’t know why. I planned nothing really, I just showed up.

OHMYGODSHESPENTAWEEKATASTRANGER’SHOUSE! I did, and I am still alive – and happier than before.

So how did she impact my life? You wonder.

First of all, what she told me and did for me in Roatan was something that I kept reminding myself and helped me going through the hardest times. And this is already a lot.

Then, as I said, I had eating disorders. I wouldn’t eat anything because food made me really nervous. I don’t know why, it just was like that. Moreover, I recently became a vegetarian so the variety in my food was awfully limited (maybe 4 or 5 foods) and that was not ok. I was lacking all the nutrients, and as usual, pretending I was fine.

I was interested in nutrition, you know, all those values – proteins, vitamins, fats, sugar – but it just looked like too much data and information for me to learn, so I felt overwhelmed and kept postponing my “doing something about it”.

Then I entered Crystal’s home, and it all made sense. She didn’t even need to explain too much. She made it look so easy and… fun! No more feeling bad about what I eat. Thanks to her, I am now enjoying my food without having bad thoughts or guilty feelings about it. And I don’t know about you, but for me this is a first.

Also, I was never able to cook. Not even a basic recipe, so I stopped trying. She made me understand that a recipe is not really needed, as long as you eat fresh and good ingredients the food will be good. And it’s true.

Of course when I left Crystal’s place (with another hug) something was deeply changed inside of me. It’s not only what I eat, but the pleasure I am having while doing so, and the sense of well-being, both physical and mental, I get from it.

I feel loved. I feel loved by myself! How awesome is that?

I now have all the nutrients I need because Crystal was patient and passionate enough to show me new foods, many of which I never tried before, and with the ones I liked she showed me what I could do. Now I suddenly feel like I can cook!

Isn’t this life-changing?

So now I am eating so many new things, such as:

Yogurt, berries, puffed quinoa, walnuts, organic honey

Yogurt with dried berries (I used to hate them before, but no, they’re not so bad!), puffed quinoa (I didn’t know it even existed, but now I eat it all the time! Great proteins!), walnuts (food for brain – I also hated them before and now I eat them all the time), organic honey instead of sugar.

Same yogurt + black chocolate drops, grapefruit juice, kiwi and dried plums

The usual yogurt + squeezed grapefruit, dark chocolate drops (healthy and yummy!), kiwi (fibers!) and dried plums (same amount of flavonoids as berries, but I like them better).

Guacamole! Made by me! Wohooo

Guacamole is such a discovery. Super healthy brain food. And tasty. In a word, perfect.

The “iron bomb”: quinoa and spinach pie.

The “iron bomb” is a pie of spinach and quinoa. Tell me again how much iron and protein I am missing, eh? On the side: raw peppers, potatoes and goat cheese. Hmmm.

Best guacamole ever: made by me and Crystal in Calgary

This was the first time Crystal helped me cooking – I did the salsa and she did the dip. Best-guacamole-ever.

It was not only about the food.

We also did other awesome things together, of course.

Our road trip to Banff

We went on a road trip to the Banff National Park.

Double rainbows and unicorns, Banff

We stopped in the middle of the street to take photos of double rainbows and unicorns.

Lake Louise selfie

We went to Lake Louise and took gazillions of selfies. So what.

Crystal doing yoga at Lake Louise

And Crystal amazed everyone with her yoga skills… Look at this photo!

We are cosmic sisters.

If you are wondering what this means, well it’s just a word we came up with. Everyone keeps saying we look so similar that we could be sisters. So yeah, maybe we were not born from the same parents but why can’t we be sisters anyway? So we are. Cosmic sisters of the same universe, who met on a small island of a big world. Looking similar. Sharing a lot. Impacting each other’s life. Not strangers anymore.

The Universe is good. There’s no such thing as strangers.

So I had the smartest idea EVER: riding a bus from Vancouver to Calgary.

This way, I thought, I could still get to see something and get an idea of how these mountains look like, and buying the ticket online I only paid 49CAD for this 18 hours bus ride. Sounds like a great deal to me!

The Banff National Park on the road

There are a couple of different trains available too, but much more expensive and requiring more time, so I didn’t have much choice. Turns out this trip was much more than just a transfer from A to B. It allowed me to see so much more than I thought, and for so cheap!

If you plan to do the same, just go on the Greyhound website (here) and you can pick many different routes and times. The bus I went for left Vancouver BC around midnight, and reached Calgary around 7pm on the following day. I thought this was the best option so I could sleep at the beginning of the trip, and then see the landscapes in the daytime. I am so happy I picked that bus because it was perfect.

Before the pics, here are two very important tips for you:

• Sit on the right side of the bus. That’s where you get the best views. Yes this is a golden tip, and I got it from my host in Vancouver… see, meeting the locals is just priceless!
• Make sure you buy the ticket online and in advance. The regular fare was like 120CAD but I only paid 49CAD!
• The bus does stop in each town – of course you can also stop in a place for a few days and then keep going, stop again and keep going, etc. – I just didn’t have the time so I did it in one shot.

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And now, to the photos. I took all of the following photos from the bus window. You will see some reflections and some camera shake, but I hope you also see the beauty. Just try and imagine: I woke up and found myself in the middle of one of those landscapes I dreamed about for so long before visiting Canada – the sunrise over a lake in Kelowna, with beautiful reflections of the clouds and a red sky… and I thought WOW! I AM HERE!

The water has a special color in this corner of the world…

Oh hey! Wildlife!

For unicorns, keep scrolling down.

More epicness…

There’s no lack of reflections.

For unicorns, keep scrolling down.

Looks like a painting…

…but it’s not! It’s the Banff National Park.

For unicorns, keep scrolling down.

Ok ok last one.

Just kidding.

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Now for the rainbows and unicorns – we were literally surrounded by them!

A rainbow in the Rocky Mountains

And another rainbow!

Yet another one. Wow

You probably can’t see the unicorns but I SWEAR they were there. They just don’t show in the photos because they’re magic. But you should go to the Canadian Rockies and see them for yourself…

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Another thing I loved about this trip is passing through all the legendary places I only heard about before:

Lake Louise

Golden BC

Me in Banff at the bus stop (and train station)

I love riding buses. It allows you to see so much. This was definitely my favorite bus ride ever.

By the way, if you plan to get to Calgary, Alberta and stay there for a while, that’s a great base to explore the Banff National Park on your own if you have a car. I did so and got to see more of the lakes etc – with the bus ride only I was missing out a lot, that’s for sure. But it was great nevertheless, also because on the bus itself I met some really cool Canadian characters and that made my trip even more memorable.

I would also like to point out that this post was NOT sponsored in any way by Greyhound. I just really loved this trip and I recommend it to everyone!