beachcombing

Last week we took a family trip up to Tofino, BC's surf town. No surfing for us (alas, we will have to wait until Jasper is a little older)... but we still had some good times with nice long beach walks, puddle splashing, wave watching, and lots of eating. (*note to go to the local taco truck, Tacofino, if you visit there... so good!). Here are some pics from our trip. :)

ferry go round

Over the weekend, we ventured on the ferry over to Mayne Island for a friend's wedding (congrats Heather and Stefan!). I love taking the ferry on a sunny summer day... there is something very serene about the open air and calm waters. Even though it was only a 2 hour ride, for a few brief moments it felt like we were on a mini cruise (well, minus the buffets, entertainment, spas and shuffle board). Hmmm... I think the warm sea air really got to my head there.

whistler weekend

Some trip photos to share today! Roger surprised me with a fun trip to Whistler for the weekend to celebrate our 4th year wedding anniversary! We packed up the wee one (yes, we took him along too... his first Whistler trip!). Instead of posting pics of the village and us wining, dining and shopping, here are some pics of the Olympic sites (minus the snow, of course) that we thought was kind of neat to see. The ski jumps in the last photo seriously made me want to pee my pants!

to toronto and back

Last Thursday, we flew half way across the country to Hamilton and Toronto, Ontario... my sister was getting her masters degree in physiotherapy, so we made the trek to watch her take her walk during the ceremonies. Anyhoo, some pics to share... although not many, since sadly our little camera experienced a bit of a tumble off of the tripod on our first night there. Managed to get a similar camera, once in Toronto, so there are a few pics...

Here is the shot of the CN Tower... we didn't get a chance to make it up this time, so that will have to wait until another trip.
We stayed in the Queen Street West neighborhood, which is the art and design area of the city... lots of cool little shops, restaurants and bars. While I was in the hotel room one night, Roger went to the corner store down the street to grab a snack. He came back to tell me saw George Stroumboulopoulos (from CBC's The Hour... one of my fave shows) standing in line in front of a bar.. and by the time he passed by on the way back, George was gone. Argh! I missed him! (I will meet you one day, George!)
This is a shot of downtown near the corner of Yonge and Dundas... lots of people, hustle and bustle, and bright lights. Oooooh... Ahhhhh....
Again, same corner, but thought I would throw this in to add some holiday spirit.
We stayed at the Gladstone Hotel, which was super cute... each room has a different artist-designed room. Ours was called E-Le-Men-Tal... these pics are from their website, since they are better than the ones we took. Wish out trip wasn't so short, and I wish I had some more pics to share... but perhaps all the good reason to visit again!

nha trang pics

The final installment of our Vietnam holiday photos... this batch from our recent time in Nha Trang, a beach city with aqua water, sandy beaches and umbrella drinks.

The view from the plane flying into Nha Trang.
My lazy attempt at a photo, while relaxing and resting under an umbrella on my beach chair... sigh, I wish I were there now!
Preparing sugar cane on a side street. There are street vendors that have sugar cane presses that basically juice the canes and sell the yummy sugary drinks.
View of the city at night.
The band on our small boat tour, which also happened to be the crew, the guides and the cooks. The drums were made out of plastic containers and wood. My husband Roger got dragged up to the front for a karaoke version of "Yellow Submarine" with the band (unfortunately, I have been forbidden to share this video with anyone).
The "floating bar"... notice the bartender pouring glasses of wine in the middle. Our boat (which was generally full of 20 and 3o somethings) was joined by another boat, a seniors' tour from Denmark -- I have never seen a bunch of seniors party harder!
A giant tranquil Buddha on a lotus overlooking the city.

hoi an pics 2

Ok... so I guess we did take quite a few photos on our trip.... only two more small batches to post.. I promise! These are a few more from Hoi An and the surrounding areas.

This was the giant Buddha on our excursion to the Marble Mountains... basically a set of mountains made of natural marble with caves/caverns that contain several temples. I am still grateful I did not slip and fall and crack my skull in some of the tight spots we had to scurry through.
The Japanese Bridge in Hoi An, one of the main attractions in the old town.
Oh yes... it's SuperBono!... I guess his do-gooder persona spans the globe! This was in one of the local bars.
Rice workers in a field.
The local marketplace... if you can believe it... scooters try to drive through here too.
One of the temples at the Marble Mountains.
Champa ruins at My Son, which is in the jungles of Vietnam. There were swarms of people there... not an easy feat, but I managed to get a few people-free shots. :)

hoi an pics

Some more photos from our Vietnam trip... this time images from Hoi An, a small town near the centre of Vietnam. Designated a Unesco World Heritage Site, the old town was quite and serene.

A view from the water. 
The view from our hotel balcony overlooked a rice paddy field... so every morning we would watch the local farmers tend to their crops.
One of Hoi An's specialty goods are their lanterns. At night there are rows of vendors along the streets all lit up with these colorful lanterns... it's quite mesmerizing in person, hard to capture in the picture.
There were a lot of merchants walking around town selling their wares... food and bottled drinks mostly. There were also a high ratio of tailor shops (you can see one in the background)... they would make anything you wanted custom fit... no joke - show them a picture of your fave designer dress in a magazine, and one day later you'll have it ready to go for a bargain.
There were an abundance of temples in the town too... at times, it almost felt like more temples than people.
Rows of spiral incense hanging from the ceiling of a local buddhist temple.
Rows and rows of cyclos lined up and ready to shuttle tourists around the town... only big tour groups seemed to ride them... we didn't end up riding one since everything was actually very close on foot ...they seemed more for novelty than practicality. Another batch of pics coming soon!

saigon pics 2

Some more pics from the Saigon portion of our trip... we love taking pictures of everyday things when we travel, since other people's ordinary is extraordinary to us.

An average utility pole in Saigon... they all looked like this. I would hate to be the utility person or electrician.
Merchants rolling racks of shoes down to the night market. They were rolling a bit too fast for me too browse though.
Assortment of tropical fruits at the Ben Thanh Market. I still haven't tried durian (the spiky one on the left)... it has a very very strong pungent odor, well more of a funk... but apparently it's supposed to be really tasty. It is banned in most all the hotels due to its funky nature.
A yummy gourmet Vietnamese sandwich (banh mi thit), soup, and coffee (not pictured)... all for $4.
Notre Dame Cathedral... yet another leftover from French colonial days.
A cute couple getting their wedding photos taken in front of the cathedral... and in true Vietnamese fashion, they are on a scooter!
More scooters!... people wear masks to protect themselves from pollution. A lot of women also wear masks, hats, long sleeves and gloves to protect themselves from the sun, since lighter skin is seen as more beautiful (I profess that I, in fact, did the opposite and tried to get a little tan). Will post more pics of other areas of our trip in a couple of days!

saigon pics

As promised, I am posting some photos of our recent trip to Vietnam. This batch is a selection from Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). My overall impressions of Saigon - a huge vibrant city with elements of east and west. There is a mix of traditional street market culture juxtaposed with high end western luxury stores. Streets are packed with an infinite amount of scooters and constant hustle and bustle. Everyone here is super friendly and always happy to see you... the overall population is energetic and young (a huge amount born after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975). The food is awesome with a great selection of Vietnamese, French and other international selections. Would I go back?... most definitely.

Vespa by the Ben Thanh Market, the central market downtown.
Everyone has a scooter in Vietnam... and it feels like they are all on the road at once. Not uncommon to see a family of four (baby included) all riding on one scooter with their dog and shopping bags tied to the back.... I have no idea how they balance it all, but they do. We stuck to walking, since it was safer!
Inside the Ben Thanh Market in the fabric section. The market is a massive space that sells everything under the sun - fresh produce, live seafood, toiletries, clothes, shoes, watches, DVDs, fabric, jewelry... the list is endless. I had my first crack at haggling here.
Yummy spring rolls... just one of the many Vietnamese dishes we gorged ourselves on. Our average bill for a nice restuarant dinner for two (including appetizers, entrees, and two beers) was about $7 - 10. Beer was only $1... so needless to say, there was a lot of beer flowing on our trip.
A lot of colonial architecture is still present, leftover from the French.
Statue of Ho Chi Minh (or Uncle Ho, as he is also known), who led the Vietnamese Independence movement and established the communist-governed Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Sunset on Saigon from our hotel rooftop. I'll post more photos soon!

trip planning

It is confirmed... we have bought our plane tickets for our next upcoming vacation! We'll be heading to Vietnam in February for two and a half weeks... I am so excited (and a tad nervous) I am dancing on the spot. I have never been there, but have heard nothing but great things. It is so cloudy and grey here in Vancouver now, the thought of awaiting tropical sunshine is bliss. Now comes the actual trip planning part... if anyone has any suggestions, let us know!