North America Posts

In just three days, I’ll be heading to the airport again on what will undoubtedly be a great tour of North America. I’m meeting Luciana in Toronto, and her and I will slowly make our way via train to Québec City. From there we are going to head back to Ottawa for a weekend, then off to Banff, Lake Louise and hopefully Jasper. After a brief stop in Vancouver, we’re going to head down to San Francisco for some San Francisco Giants baseball action, and hopefully a few winery tours. Many of the places we are heading to are places I haven’t spent much time in. While I’ve driven through Québec City before, I have never spent any time there and am looking forward to wandering the streets with Luciana (plus I need to get my yearly poutine fix in Québec). I also have never been to Napa Valley before, […]

I recently returned from a one week impromptu trip to Oahu, Hawaii, and wanted to share my final thoughts. The flight time from Vancouver was around six hours, so it was still a relatively short jaunt. Not as short as flying to the west coast of Mexico mind you, but about the same amount of time as flying to Cancun or the Dominican Republic. The Island During the Lost Legends tour we drove over the entire island in the course of a day. I’d say it takes less than an hour to criss cross the island in any direction, so Oahu is fairly tiny. The eastern side is called the Windward side of the island, and it’s characterized by cliffs and green vegetation. The western side, also called the Leeward side of the island, is a bit dryer and more flat. I had originally planned on renting a car and […]

I’ve always been fascinated with baseball. Back when I was a kid, my dad and step-mom took me to a few Mariners games in Seattle. While prices have changed, back then you could get VIP tickets for around $30. While it’s not as popular in Canada, I do appreciate the game, the stadiums, the hot dogs, the peanuts and the entire atmosphere that goes around with watching a live baseball game. James Earl Jones’ speech in Field Of Dreams regarding baseball is a great one. Throughout all the turmoil in the states, the Great Depression, the multiple recessions, the shanty towns, there was one constant – baseball. It was the game that united people, that gave people hope in bad times, and allowed families to bond in the stadiums and back home during a leisurely game of catch. On a whim, I decided to check when this year’s baseball season […]

I’ve been blogging a fair deal about my upcoming trip to New York City, and how one of the highlights for me is undoubtedly going to be visiting B&H Photo in New York City. B&H is an extremely well known photography store, and it’s been on my list of places to visit for many years now. Thanks to the power of the Internet, Hershel Waldner, Supervisor of the Online Marketing Department for B&H Photo, contacted me and asked if I’d like a private tour of the facilities while I’m there. Obviously, I said yes! So, I’ll be visiting B&H Photo while I’m in town and also getting a full tour of the behind the scenes action at B&H. I’ll be taking some photos and hopefully some video, and I’ll happily post about my experience when it’s all done. As I’ve pointed out before, I’m also going to be picking up […]

I posted a blog entry on my personal site detailing how I was feeling last night. Since that time I’ve migrated to Vancouver and have checked into a nice suite at the Coast Plaza and Suite Hotels in Vancouver. Coast Hotels has supported various trips I’ve made over the years, and I’m definitely thankful to them for helping put me up from time to time. I’m actually in a suite on their top floor right now, with an absolutely amazing view of the Pacific Ocean from my window. If you’re looking for a great Vancouver hotel, then make sure you check out the Coast Hotels in Vancouver. I’m about 36 hours away from starting the adventure, and I’m definitely getting excited now. I just ordered a six pack of beer via room service, and will spend the remainder of the night doing a bit of research and thinking about the […]

I’m not officially starting my big travel adventure until after Christmas, but decided to go on a little vacation in the meantime. On Friday I’ll be boarding a plane and meeting a friend down in the Mayan Riviera on the east coast of Mexico. I went on a similar trip a year ago and it was a great time. The resort we’ll be staying at is called the Bahai Principe Tulum, and it’s currently the #2 rated sort in the Akumal region. There are actually three different resorts on the same property, Coba, Akumal and Tulum. Last time we stayed in Akumal, but ended up really liking the pools and the look of the Tulum property. So this time we decided to try the Tulum facility out. One of the best parts about going back to Mexico is the availability of fresh guacamole. It’s everywhere. At lunch, dinner, breakfast, even […]

I’m originally from a small little town about 150 kilometres east of Vancouver called Chilliwack. It’s a picturesque farming town nestled between a few mountain ranges, and far enough away from Vancouver to have a little peace and quiet. And while Chilliwack is my birthplace and where my most of my family lives, I’ve spent nearly a third of my life living in Vancouver, either out at UBC where I did nine years of post secondary education, or in the downtown core, where I’ve worked the majority of my career. When I set out on my upcoming travel adventure, it’ll be from a familiar place: Vancouver International Airport. While I don’t do as much traveling as I used to, there was a period of time when it felt like I was in the airport all the time, often making quick trips down to the San Francisco Bay area to assist […]

A few days ago I pulled the trigger on a trip to the Mayan Riviera in Mexico. I’ll actually be heading down there with Dale, mostly so we can drink a few beers and also strategize a bit about the next year before I head off on my little adventure. While we sometimes meet in Hamilton or Chilliwack, it’s obviously much nicer to be able to have those kind of meetings around a pool in Mexico with some nachos and beers. And truthfully, it’s really not much more money to meet down there: a typical trip to Hamilton during high season probably runs $700-$800 for the flight, plus all the expenses we incur while there. You can pretty much get a week long all inclusive for the same amount, which is basically what we prefer to do. So, at the start of November I’ll be heading to the Bahia Principe […]

Vancouver’s known for a lot of things — fun patios where you can drink beer outdoors isn’t one of them. If you know of any patios in Vancouver, drop a comment. My favourite patio is the Kingston pub on Richards I believe. They also make pretty darn good nachos. So, what’s your favourite patio in the city, and why do you like it?

My birthday is fast approaching, and the only real event I’m looking forward to is having a plate of nachos somewhere in the city with a friend or two. So, my question to all of you is: where are the best nachos in this city? My favourites so far are probably the ones down at Smiley O’Neils on Pender, but I’m open to suggestions. Drop a comment if you’ve had nachos somewhere in the city and let everyone know how they were (if they sucked, say so). I had nachos last night down at the Atlantic Trap and Gill, and the beef on them was actually a cut-up hamburger patty — not cool people. Not cool.