A day in Vancouver!

John and I really enjoyed our day trip from Squamish to Vancouver over the summer holiday.  The weather was perfect and we had our great friends Will and Angela as tour guides!

If anyone has only 1 day in Vancouver like us, I'd recommend one site in particular which you can spend hours upon hours at:  Stanley Park!

Stanley Park is HUGE.  It is 1001 acres of land.  In 2014 TripAdvisor named it the top park in the WORLD.  There are tons of huge trees there and some lovely walking paths.  We had a picnic in the park and enjoyed a fun game of bocce ball.  There were lots of families there enjoying the beautiful summer day.  This place is a great spot that is not to be missed!

Stanley Park is also home to the famous Vancouver Seawall which is also HUGE.  The Seawall was built around Stanley Park to help prevent erosion, but is a popular place for bikers, joggers, roller bladers, and walkers.  The Seawall also passes by beaches, so it's easy to stop for a quick swim or to lay out on the sand and soak in the sun's rays.

The Seawall loop is around 9 km long.  The views are absolutely beautiful!  I was snapping photos around every corner.  While walking along the Seawall you get a great view of the Lions Gate Bridge and can even see Mount Washington in the distance.

Vancouver seems like a very active, clean city.  It was great to finally visit there.  I think it would be a fun place to live.  The only down side is the fact that Vancouver has the second most expensive housing market in the world after Hong Kong!  Ouch... I guess beauty comes with a price!

Gondolas galore!

British Columbia has no shortage of gondolas.  No, not the kind in Venice but the kind that takes you to the top of a mountain!  Over the summer holiday we went on two spectacular gondolas.  BC is really a beautiful place that every Canadian should visit at least once in their life.  Although it sometimes costs less to buy a ticket to Europe, BC is definitely worth the splurge.  We flew across the country, literally coast to coast (from PEI to BC), but were able to keep the cost within reason as part of our multi-city journey this summer.

The first gondola we went up this summer was in Squamish where Angela and Will live.  The Sea to Sky gondola is new and worth the cost of around $40.  At the top there is a suspension bridge you can cross, and there are some walking trails to follow so you can see some great viewpoints.

The second gondola we went on was the Peak 2 Peak Gondola in Whistler.  It links Whistler Mountain with Blackcomb Mountain and is around 4.4 km long.  Part of the ride is in an enclosed gondola cabin, and another part is on open-air chair lifts.  The cost was around $50.  The best part is the chair lift since you have an unobstructed view of the mountains around you.  Disclaimer:  if you are afraid of heights, this may not be the best attraction for you.  It's high.  Really, really high!  It really is amazing and one of the best tourist attractions I have ever been to.  At the top of the mountains are some hiking trails, but we did not have time to do them.  Sometimes you can see wildlife including bears while on the gondola, but all we saw at the top were some cute marmots.  Riding the Peak 2 Peak is a great activity for a clear summer day!

Road Trip: Cabot Trail

This summer John and I were lucky to go on a road trip with his family to Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia to see the famous Cabot Trail.  The cool and rainy weather didn't stop us from enjoying our time on the beautiful east coast.

When driving on the Cabot Trail, you can't help but pass through Cape Breton Highlands National Park, as 1/3 of the trail passes through it.  A must-do in the park is the scenic "Skyline Trail" which is a 7km looping trail that takes you through forests and bogs, with the famous viewpoint at a boardwalk overlooking the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the winding mountain road below.  We had heard of some hikers seeing a moose on the trail, but it seemed as though we just missed it.  Lucky for us, after getting back into the car and driving further into the park we saw a bunch of cars stopped on the road.  There in the trees, near a stream of water we saw a moose!  It was cool to see a moose in the wild.  The moose was aware of us but did not run away.  We were able to watch it for a several minutes and take some photos.

One of the best stops along the Cabot Trail was a place called White Point.  There is a very small town there, and after hiking out to the point, there are dramatic views of waves crashing onto the rocks.  Wild strawberries and blueberries were growing all over the ground.

On our last day on the island we also visited the Fortress of Louisbourg.  It was pretty huge and there were people dressed up in character, teaching visitors what times were like when people lived on the fortress in the 1700s.  Louisbourg was a French settlement that was attacked by the British and eventually destroyed in the 18th century.  The fortress was partially rebuilt so visitors can enjoy it today.  If you are a big fan of Canadian history, I would recommend a visit to this historic place.

The Cabot Trail is 580 km and can be done in a few days.  We stayed in the town of Baddeck and made day trips from there.  Cape Breton Island is definitely a beautiful spot not to be missed on an east coast trip!

Canadian Summer Snaps

This summer we got to spend some time in 4 provinces and visit some new places.  There are so many beautiful spots in this huge country of ours.  Here are a few pics from our time in Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and British Columbia.

Lazy Summer

Here are some photos from this summer, so far!!!  :)

Blueberry picking, visiting Pelee Island for the first time, Vanessa's grad party...

Back in Canada!

I arrived yesterday morning in Toronto after nearly 24 hours of travel.  It was a long day, but I'm happy to say that I'm back in Canada!  Right now I'm staying at Vanessa's place in Mississauga.

The plane ride from HCMC to Seoul was bumpy and I didn't sleep much (only half an hour maybe at the end).  The good news was that at the Seoul airport there were rooms where you could have free showers and use hair dryers.  Cool!  Seoul to Toronto was lonnggg.  Maybe 14 hours or so?  I don't really know and was confused about the time zones.  The ride was mostly smooth and I was able to sleep for a while on the plane.  It was my first long haul flight on Korean Air.  I think Cathay Pacific has better food (Haagen Dazs?!  YES!) but Korean Air served up some so-so meals and one great one (bibimguksu aka noodles and vegetables with chili paste).  Cathay Pacific also had better entertainment (more TV options!) ... but I think Korean Air had slightly better seats.  Anyway, when you're on a flight that long it's going to be sort of uncomfortable unless you're sitting in the exit rows or in first class!

After arriving at the airport, I took a cab to Vanessa's place which was about 15 minutes (maybe less) and cost $40.  The same cab ride in Vietnam would probably cost $10 or less.

I felt good after arriving, but then started to get sleepy in the afternoon.  I set my alarm for a one-hour nap that ended up being 4 hours (the alarm went off but I didn't hear it and Vanessa shut it off!) ... when I woke up it was 6:49pm.  I couldn't believe it!  I went to bed at around 11 but woke up at 3:45am... oops!

Today Vanessa had to do some assignments for her course and Adam was at work, so I walked to the mall nearby.  I felt a bit overwhelmed walking into the mall... I'd forgotten how much stuff costs here.  I saw Bubble Tea which cost $5... it costs 50 cents in Vietnam.  Did not buy.  I did buy some clothes for work which weren't too expensive by Canadian standards, but the amount I spent could have bought me tons of clothing in Vietnam at the market.  Oh well!  I did pay a visit to Tim Hortons and got a bagel with cream cheese and hot chocolate... my fave!  It was weird waiting in line for so long and seeing people of so many ethnic backgrounds.  Vietnam is pretty Vietnamese and people don't wait in lines.  They basically push their way to the front, whenever possible.

Also, I must note that it's pretty cold here. 21 degrees!!!  I'm used to it being over 30 degrees every day.  Crazyyy.

Anyway, that was my first full day back.  It's good to be back!!!!

Canada in 1 month!

In one month from today, I will be back in Canada!!!  I just got confirmation today that I'll be departing here on the evening of the 23rd and arriving in Toronto at 10:15am on June 24th!!!  It's exciting to know that I'll be home SOON!!!!!!!!!

With one month to go, I can say that it's been an interesting year both inside and outside of the classroom.  I've enjoyed having my own class but that does not come without challenges.  Honestly, Kingston last year seems like it was ages ago.  It really feels like (and is) a world away.  I can't believe last year I was supplying and this year I'm in Vietnam teaching grade 1.  Totally different experiences... crazy!  It's also been exciting to get the opportunity to travel again.

While this was a good year, I'm very excited to go home to see my family and friends.

So, my calendar is marked... June 24th!!!  See you soon... :)