walking on travels

Welcome to this month’s “Travel Essentials.” On the first Monday of every month I dive into an item that I almost always carry with me and why, whether it be an article of clothing, accessory or a camera lens. I’ll ask fellow travelers to weigh in from time to time so you don’t think I [...]

I was a little hesitant to book this property. I found it on VRBO.com. It was close to beaches and downtown, but quiet and away from any nighttime crowds. The price was right but the owners lived downstairs. This was the sticky point. It would either be fantastic or a huge disaster. We had a [...]

There are a lot, and I mean A LOT, of photo apps out there. I have bought some that are duds and others that I can’t imagine my life without. The term “iPhonography” is taking over and every programmer seems to be on board that train. As I hear of new apps that are “the [...]

We recently spent a blustery and wet weekend up in Vancouver in February. What better time to escape the USA than on Presidents Day weekend? The weather may not have been perfect but our stay at the Pan Pacific Vancouver took a little bit of the bite out of the cold weather. It was our [...]

I am not a frequent spa visitor, but I have been enough times to know what to expect from a spa experience. When I booked the 75-minute Exclusive Utopia Pedicure at Spa Utopia in Vancouver I could not have been more excited. I was due a little excessive pampering. I was really nervous about the [...]

Ever since we got back from Whistler Dek has been obsessed with snow. He keeps asking where the mountain is, what happened to his snowman and why can’t we go ice skating every day? I needed to find something to tide him over until his next glimpse of snow. I turned to our local library. [...]

Star Wars. Cinderella. Firefly. Sailor Moon. All are being likened to Marissa Meyer’s debut novel Cinder. As you read through this first book in the Lunar Chronicles you can see sparks of Meyer’s influences and interests come to life. But this is no copycat novel. Although a loose retelling of Cinderella with wicked stepmother, a [...]

With the New Year fast approaching you may think there is nothing left to look forward to. Normally I would agree with you. Unless we are off on another adventure, the winter months tend to be pretty depressing around here. I can’t even snowboard this year because I am pregnant! That is usually one of [...]

It all started with a woman named Tara and a Groupon deal. Tara was my surprisingly helpful reservation agent at the Hotel Grand Pacific in Victoria, BC. With her help, and a great hotel deal, our trip got started off on the right foot and we hadn’t even left yet. I’m finding that when you [...]