Driving into Banff is like being transported into a snow globe. The gentle snow coming down and the grandness of the mountains around the small town of Banff will be engrained in my memory forever. Getting to Banff is a pretty easy exercise. Calgary is the closest main centre to the national park, only taking 1.5 hours to drive from the airport to the park perimeter itself. All you need is snacks, a great soundtrack…and GPS.
I never felt like a tourist during my time in Vancouver. The more I explored and discovered the city, the more it began to feel like I was back in Auckland. The downtown area marries up with the waterfront, in a scarily similar way to home. Dotted with cafes and restaurants, the ease at which you can navigate the city makes life so easy. I ended up extending my stay in Vancouver…I simply wasn’t ready to part with the city and all it had to offer.
I used to despise LA…with a passion. When I visited there for work, I would sleep, shop and eat (in that order). The feeling I walked away with was a negative one…passing this onto friends and family whenever they would ask how my trip was. To me the city felt cold, lifeless and grey. Until that is, I had my eyes opened in an unusual turn of events late last year.
I didn’t really know what to expect when heading to Sequoia. I had heard great things things about the park, but in my mind it didn’t share the same ‘wow element’ as Yosemite. It became clear that trying to compare these two parks was a mistake. They are very different and therefore beautifully unique. Where Yosemite has more of a grand ‘in your face’ beauty, Sequoia’s is quiet and subtle…it leads you on and draws you in. Showing itself to those who venture beyond the first glance.
Its difficult to explain Yosemite. My words don’t feel as though they fulfil their task accurately enough. Most of the time I spent there I was speechless. Surrounded the the sheer awesomeness of creation it served as a constant reminder as to how small I was, and in turn, how vast this beautiful world is in comparison.
Landing into Saskatoon is always one of my favourites…especially in winter. Everything is blanketed in snow and it feels so magical. I landed into Saskatoon via Toronto (after being in New York for a few days) and was meet by my cousin Tim. Thank goodness he is well aware of my ‘love of snow’…We exited the terminal after baggage claim and were met with a snowfall! Hello Canada, I love you. The moments that preceded this were very undignified on my part…jumping up and down and saying “Its snowing! Tim, it’s snowing”! Yep, i’m a classy one.
Hello again everyone! As of a few months ago, I have started a ‘travel dream list’. This simply consists of places or activities in the world that I would like to visit. The main point to this trip was to tick off one of these from my new list. Ice skating in central park. It has been in the back of my mind for a while now and due to having a few days available it seemed like it was meant to be. Now friends, if you haven’t been to New York City yet, do yourselves a favour. Get another cup of tea and work out your next available annual leave. You will not be disappointed! NYC will always be one of my favourite places, so much so that I have a tendency to visit it every year.
