North America – The Kinetic Canuck

Southern Manitoba: Part 2 – Food!

I have travelled to many countries and eaten many meals. I can’t say I’m a terribly fussy eater, and I’ll try most things once! From scorpion in Thailand, to pig tongue in Korea, I’ve tried some interesting stuff!

Dave and I trying Scorpion in Thailand, back in 2014. It wasn’t very good, and I can’t say I’d try it again, but I am glad we at least gave it a shot! (the silk worms were quite good though!!)

When you think of Winnipeg, you might not actually think there’s much for food. You can find great barbecue, and burgers are everywhere, but there is certainly more than Poutine to eat in Canada! People have immigrated to this lovely country from all over the world, and lucky for us…they bring along their food with them!

Of course, I’m not dissing “Canadian” food…if My uncle and Dad opened their own restaurant selling pulled pork and beef brisket, I’d be writing about them too! Unfortunately for you.. they only provide food at family barbecues.

Chinese food isn’t hard to find in Peg City. Chinatown is an obvious place to find it, but if you travel down to the University of Manitoba, on Pembina Highway, you’ll find lots of great stuff too! Our favourite down that way is called Sun Fortune restaurant. You’ll hear more Mandarin than English when you’re there, so you know it’s authentic! If you want to order the Peking Duck though, make sure to call ahead! It’s very popular, and sells out fast!

We didn’t make it down there this year, so I snagged a photo from their website. Peking Duck, if you’ve never tried it, is a culinary masterpiece that every Foodie should try!

Corydon Avenue is also a great place for Foodies in Winnipeg. Colosseo is a top notch Italian restaurant, located at the corner of Corydon and Hugo. Whether you love pizza, pasta or tiramisu, you’ll go home with a full belly!

This year, I tried Misto di Pesce di Mare. Scallops, Halibut and shrimp, in a Sambuca sauce. The portions were enormous, and Dave informed me that my left overs were still very good the next day.

Today I want to talk about a couple of my favourite ‘hole in the wall’ restaurants in Winnipeg. Dave and I rarely eat at chain restaurants, and instead tend to find ourselves at little places, that are always full, but don’t have many tables. Here are a few of my faves!

Feast

I’m going to begin with something local and unique. Feast is a great little restaurant on Ellice Avenue. They make traditional Indigenous cuisine, and as far as I’m concerned, it’s the perfect place to go if you want a taste of Manitoba!

Bison Chili, Pickerel Sliders and saskatoon pie…what more could you want from life? They use local ingredients and everything we’ve tried there has been fantastic. I am usually WAY too full for dessert, but this year, I ordered some to go. It turns out that I like bannock donuts better than regular donuts, and it’s easy to see why! They taste as good as they look!

The atmosphere in the restaurant is great too! Service is good, and the restaurant is filled with Indigenous art. It’s the perfect place to stop for breakfast, lunch or dinner. We’ve never been there for breakfast, but since I learned that they do Eggs Banny (using bannock instead of English muffins), I know I’ll be swinging by there to start the day on my next trip home!

Vientiane

Dave and I have always been very fond of Thai food, even before moving to Asia, and our love for this cuisine only deepened once we visited. Bangkok Thai (on Osbourne) is always a favourite, but the one restaurant we simply CANNOT miss when we’re home is a little hole in the wall restaurant on Marion Ave, called Vientiane.

It doesn’t look like much, but don’t let appearances fool you!

Their food is unreal! If you like spicy, this is the place for you! They say that ‘medium’ is 3/10…and they mean it. We order a 5 or 6, and it’s a bit of heat. If you order a 10, prepare for your eyes to water, because it’s an ASIAN 10!

The massaman was glorious! Many places only let you order this dish with beef, but you can get it with chicken here

I LOVE their fish green curry, and their Crab Rangoon is OUT OF THIS WORLD! The Massaman is also always a hit. They also feature Laotian dishes at Vientiane (the restaurant is named after the capital of Laos, actually), and there’s a great variety of food to try.

Filled with crab & cream cheese, dipped in a perfect sauce. They come out hot and delicious!

They have stacks of coconut milk in the back. Most South East Asian curries use plenty of this

The restaurant may be small, but the food is great, and the staff have always been wonderful to us! The food also comes out quick, because curries are often prepared in big batches. It’s the perfect place to stop for a quick bite!

Gojo

We were away for 3 years, unable to visit Canada due to China’s strict travel policies, and I can honestly say, the food I missed most was definitely Ethiopian cuisine. It isn’t available anywhere we’ve travelled in China (trust me…we’ve checked!), but of any food on earth, I think Ethiopian is my favourite!

We try and eat Ethiopian food every week when we’re in Canada. We’ve also found it as we’ve travelled in other countries, like in Madrid! My favourite places have all been in Winnipeg, although, I still haven’t actually been to Ethiopia, and when I do make it, my opinions might change!

Winnipeg actually has quite a few Ethiopian Restaurants. There are about 2500 people of Ethiopian descent living in Winnipeg, and are quite a few little restaurants that serve their cuisine around the city. This is great, because Ethiopian food is actually quite difficult to make, and unless you’re willing to spend HOURS in the kitchen, getting the injera and wats ready, restaurants are going to be your best bet.

Ethiopian food is meant for sharing! You eat it with your hands, by pinching bits of stew in pieces of Injera (a type of sour dough pancake). We got good at making the stews, but Injera is difficult to make if you don’t have the right tools. We used to buy ours at a local grocery store in Winnipeg, when we wanted to spend some time in the kitchen. Usually, we just went out, because it’s just so much better when it’s cooked by people who REALLY know what they’re doing!

I was CRUSHED to learn that my favourite place, Massawa, shut down during the pandemic. We were loyal customers for years, visiting several times each summer, and more frequently when we lived in Canada. Alas, it caused us to try out some new restaurants, one of which is in the same location where Massawa was previously located.

The food was good, but not all the way warm. It was obviously cooked ahead of time (which I’m sure is normal because these stews usually sit for hours), but they weren’t as warm as we would have liked. The samosas (or sambuusas, as they’re called in Ethiopia) were as good as ever. We love the ones that are filled with Lentils

The restaurant that really impressed us this year, though, was Gojo, on Sargent. The place was small, but when we walked in, we were hit with all the gorgeous smells of Ethiopia!

I ordered the vegetarian combo. I love what Ethiopian cuisine does with lentils!

The staff were SO kind, and the food was fresh and fantastic! Their bathrooms were clean, and I could see into the kitchen (always a good sign) and everything was spotless in there too! I’m really looking forward to being able to go back to visit Gojo again, the next time we’re in Winnipeg!

Another restaurant that might not look like much, but is VERY MUCH worth trying!

Honourable Mention: Sushi Ya

I was lucky enough to live right behind this little gem of a restaurant when I was a poor student. I love this place, not only for their fantastic sweet chili sauce, but also for their prices. You can get a great lunch without breaking the bank! Many of their rolls are quite small, so you can stop in for a snack, or just try a wide variety of sushi! This has been one of my favourite restaurants in Winnipeg for about 15 years, so if you like Sushi, you should definitely give it a try!

My two favourite dishes: The Spider Roll and the spicy salmon roll!

Honourable Mention #2: Maggi’s

The last place I want to mention is a great little restaurant owned by a family of refugees. Located in Transcona, Maggi’s makes fantastic wraps, shawarma and other Syrian delicacies! Service was good, and it’s a great place to enjoy a quick bite in nice weather!

It’s a tiny restaurant, located near the Dairy Queen on Victoria. They have picnic tables outside where you can eat, and plenty of parking out front.

I ordered a falafel wrap, and Dave and my mom both ordered the chicken shawarma. The large ones are HUGE and great if you’re really hungry! If you want something a little lighter, go with the the smaller sized wraps.

So there you have it…some of my favourite restaurants in Winnipeg! I wrote this post while still stuck in quarantine, where the food is…less good. Now, I’m hungry and I only have myself to blame!

I love Chinese food… This is not real Chinese food… I’m so excited for Quarantine to be over!

My next post will be all about the 13 days of quarantine that we faced (and are still facing) upon our return to China! It’s been a bit of a wild ride, so stay tuned!

Southern Manitoba: Part 1 – Sites & Attractions

Having grown up in Manitoba, it’s very easy to take for granted what the province has to offer. Fields are common place, local attractions aren’t a big deal because you can go any time, and you have no idea what you have there unless you travel and see what other places lack. After 3 years stranded in China, without the opportunity to go home, I got to see Manitoba with new eyes. I’ve been planning this post for a long time, so I think it’s time I finally write about the place where I grew up.

Manitoba is located in Central Canada. I grew up about 3 hours from Fargo, North Dakota.

I used to pass the center point of Canada on my way to work every day. A few years ago, the government put a sign up where people can take photos. A school even donated a little library where people can leave and take books

Manitoba is known for harsh winters, mosquitoes and construction, but if you visit at the right time of year, there’s actually plenty to do! Here’s a list of some of my favourite things to do when visiting home!

Take a Drive

I’ll start with the simple beauty of the province. Located in the prairies of Canada, Manitoba is the perfect place to visit if you want to see huge skies, beautiful fields and stunning sunsets.

Pull over down a service road and just take in the beauty!

We bought an old 1981 Honda motorcycle years ago, and one of our favourite pastimes is cruising around and just enjoying the views. Taking the back roads and smaller highways can be a great way to take in lots of natural beauty, and this was honestly one of the things I missed the most in my years away.

The clouds always amaze me. They seem so much bigger when I’m home!

Sunsets are especially beautiful in Manitoba. The days are long in summer, and if you go out from 9:30 to 10pm, you’ll see the most beautiful sights. The whole sky becomes colourful, and the prairies make the skies look endless, with no buildings or mountains to hide the view.

Assiniboine Zoo

No trip to Winnipeg is complete without a trip to Winnipeg’s Zoo. I have seen zoos all over the world, and I’ve grown to be very weary of them because, too often, the animals are given cramped spaces that are very different from their natural habitats.

They even have a beautiful butterfly garden!

Assiniboine Zoo is wonderful. The animals are given plenty of space and the zoo is involved with helping many injured species of birds. The polar bear exhibit is stunning and if you’re lucky enough to be there when they’re swimming, you can even watch them swim by overhead, from an underground tunnel.

This year, one of the Bears was really showing off! We were there on a really hot day and he was having a blast playing in the water

You also need to stop by the bison enclosure…truely Manitoban!

The park around the zoo is the perfect place for a summer picnic as well. It’s a great place to bring kids and spent time with the family. Going to the zoo with my nieces and nephews is always a must-do for me when we are home. Some locals complain about the prices since the zoo was renovated a few years back, but maintaining these large enclosures and giving the animals a reasonable place to live costs money. For me, $20 for an adult tickets is peanuts when you consider these things, and all the fun to be had while you’re there.

There is lots for kids to enjoy, like a kangaroo exhibit, the butterfly garden, the dinosaur area and, of course, all the resident animals!

When you’re done, drive around the park and find a picnic table for lunch!

Winnipeg Forks

The Winnipeg Forks is an important place historically. The Red and Assiniboine rivers meet there, making it a perfect place for trade between indigenous tribes, and later on, fur traders. Now, it’s a cool little place to walk around and take in the sights.

There are plenty of pretty paths to walk, and beautiful art is found throughout the site.

You can go antique shopping, grab some craft beer, get some food and shop for local specialties. My favorite thing to do at The Forks though, is to walk the river path. There are always geese, ducks, chipmunks and squirrels to see, and if you’re lucky you might even see a raccoon!

If you’ve got time, you can also visit the Human Rights Museum, where you can learn about all sorts of social issues, both past and present. It’s a huge museum, and you can easily spend a few hours, learning about everything from Indigenous Rights, to Refugee crices. It’s been a few years since we were there, but we were really impressed when we visited!

The tall building in the back is the museum. It is quite an iconic building, and most people either love it or hate it. Since my husband pointed out that it looks like sky and wheat fields in architecture form, I’ve definitely grown to appreciate it more!

Finally, if you find yourself at The Forks in winter, rent some ice skates and skate down the longest ice rink in the world! There are little shacks along the way, where you can rest and warm up. It’s a great way to spend some time during the winter!

I haven’t been to Winnipeg in winter for nearly 10 years now, so I had to borrow this photo from the Winnipeg Fork’s website

Visit a Lake

Manitoba is home to over 100,000 lakes. In fact, 16% of this massive province is covered in fresh water. Lake Winnipeg is our biggest, and the southern tip is less than an hour away from the province’s capital.

Many of the province’s lakes exist due to massive Lake Agassiz, which covered most of the area during the last ice age. We also have a crater lake, Westhawk, which was caused by a meteor. It’s quite deep and even a popular place for scuba diving!

Historical lake Aggasiz, covering most of Manitoba during the last ice age.

West Hawk Lake is near the Ontario boarder.

It’s no surprise that plenty of people have boats and cabins in Manitoba, and this year we were lucky enough to spend time cruising around these beautiful lakes with family and friends. Most of our time was spent on beautiful Falcon Lake, named after a Metis poet. It only takes about an hour and a half to get there from Winnipeg, and it’s located in a beautiful provincial park. Campsites book up quickly, and it’s easy to see why!

We saw loons, deer and ducks, and my uncle even recently saw a bear! If you’re lucky enough to know someone with a boat, it’s a gorgeous way to spend a sunny afternoon in July!

Winnipeg Festivals

I can’t end this post without at least mentioning some of Winnipeg’s many summer festivals. The Pride festival takes place at the end of May or beginning of June every year, and is celebrated in Downtown and The Forks. Canada Day is another big one, with celebrations moving around the city. We have celebrated our country’s birthday in Osbourne village, The Forks and this past year it was at Assiniboina Downs.

My two favourite festivals are Fringe Fest & Folklorama. Winnipeg’s Fringe is always HUGE, with performers travelling from all over the continent to take part. We made it to one Fringe show this year, performed by a group that had travelled all the way from Portland, in the USA!

Folklorama began after we left this year, so sadly we didn’t make it, but we go any time we can! Winnipeg is an extremely diverse place culturally, and Folklorama gives people a chance to learn about all the different cultures represented in our great city. You can try different food and drinks, enjoy a dance or music show and generally just sit back and have a good time, learning while you do it!

Ellie and I enjoying ourselves at the Slovanian pavilion a few years ago

So there you have it: my favourite things to do in and around Winnipeg! You might be tempted to drive through on your way to Alberta or Ontario, but don’t be shy about spending a few days in this beautiful province on your way through! I’m proud to call it home.

As always, feel free to leave your comments below! I’ll be back soon with Part 2 if my Manitoba posts! That one will include some of my favourite places to eat!!

Roaming America’s South West

Road tripping is my absolute favourite way to travel. When you take a tour, you are stuck following around a tour guide. Similarly, when you take a train or a bus, you can’t choose when you stop and every moment is planned. Road trips allow freedom and independence. Road trips in North America are ESPECIALLY fantastic, because language barriers aren’t an issue and you generally know what to expect. Someday, I plan to write all about the 2 weeks road trip Dave and I took right before we left for Guiyang, but today, I’m going to write about the 4 days we spent travelling the South-western United States!

Spoiler: It was one VERY beautiful roadtrip!!!

Leaving Nevada

We began our trip in Nevada, a couple of days after Jeff and Liz’s wedding. We rented a car from Budget, which we actually regret. We got on the road 2 hours late because they didn’t have a car ready for us when we arrived (we pre-booked, in case you’re wondering). After we started to make a bit of a stink, they actually called a car over from the airport location so that we could go on our way. The real kicker is that they charged us EXTRA when we returned the car back at the airport location because it wasn’t the original place where we booked it…

I’d recommend Fox Renta Car instead, which is who my brother and sister in law rent from when they’re down in the Nevada area. I wish I’d known about them ahead of time. They seem to be a lot more customer service oriented. Either way… we DID get on the road eventually…
Zion National Park

Although it took a while to get going, we arrived at Zion National Park with enough time to enjoy some views.

Just outside of the park, there is a small town called Springdale. Utah does National Parks right…instead of driving into the park and trying to find parking (which is limited), you can take a shuttle directly from Springdale! We didn’t actually realize this, so we drove into the park ourselves, but we definitely made use of the free shuttle buses to get around within the park.

One of many shuttle stops

It was cloudy and raining when we arrived, but we didn’t let it dampen our spirits!

We were amazed at how much cooler it was in the canyon than it had been in Vegas. Personally, I was relieved!

While on the shuttle, we learned about the park and saw some gorgeous sights. We were especially happy to have the shuttle service because we only had about 2 hours to see the park, which is not nearly enough time to really appreciate the magnificent landscapes of Zion Canyon. By using the shuttle service, we were able to hop on and off to see specific areas of the park.

Landscapes like this

and this…

My favourite tours are ones where I learn things about the surrounding area. Zion did this very well. While the bus is driving around the park, there is a recording that teaches you about the geological history of the area. We learned that Utah gets monsoons, that flash floods are responsible for the beautiful scenery. We also learned that different types of rock account for the various colours we saw within the park.

A perfect example of colour diversity at Zion Canyon

We eventually wound up at the base of the canyon, where we could see the river that formed this beautiful area. Although it doesn’t look like much, the Virgin River is responsible for wearing down the rocks that surrounded us.

At the bottom of the canyon, we found the Virgin River

We also saw an abundance of wildlife in the park. There are 75 mammals (including 13 species of bats) living in the park.

On our drive out, the sun finally began to shine, and that’s when I was able to capture the true beauty of Zion National Park.

Zion had one final gem to show us before we made our way to Cedar City for the night. The Checkerboard Mesa was quite a spectacular view, so we got out and took some final pictures of the area before moving on.

It’s called the Checkerboard Mesa because of the grooves that were carved into the entire formation throughout the centuries.

I couldn’t have planned this picture better. The clouds formed the most beautiful frame!!!

This mesa was nearby. I thought it was quite picturesque

Bryce Canyon

The following day, we continued onto Bryce Canyon; our second stop in Utah. Bryce is a lot like Zion, in that it has gorgeous rock formations and beautiful scenery. Somehow, though, I think it manages to be even MORE beautiful! The colours at Bryce Canyon are stunning and I couldn’t possibly take enough pictures.

Views from above the canyon

We decided to hike into the canyon because we had more time than we had at Zion. I ended up with some of the most beautiful pictures I’ve ever taken.

It seemed like the further we went into the Canyon, the more colourful it became. The hoodoos (odd rock formations) really blew us away! When I started doing research on the canyon for this blog post, I learned that Bryce Canyon actually has the largest collection of Hoodoos in the entire world!

Unfortunately, we did eventually have to turn around. Although we’d planned a 5 mile hike, we only brought enough water for a 2 mile hike. We made it to the base of the canyon and then had to turn around. Still the views were gorgeous on the way back up (which is lucky because I needed something to distract me from how thirsty I was!!)!!

The loop we never actually got to take

Onto Arizona

The following morning, we left Panguitch for Arizona. On the way, we stopped at The Rock Stop, a little store we’d discovered on our way to Bryce Canyon. The owner is one of the only people in Southern Utah to sell coffee, so if you’re down that way, be sure to check him out!!! He makes a mean iced latte, and sells all sorts of rocks and fossils. We picked up gifts for our nephews, and my brother while we were there, and had a few great chats with the owner.

footer-unmerged — Pictured here: One of the only places to find coffee in Utah! Mormons typically don’t drink caffeine, so it’s tough to find your fix. This little shop is well worth the stop!!

The other cool little stop we made was a preview to the Hoover Dam. Glen Canyon Dam is much smaller, but beautiful. We took some time to check it out and stretch our legs during this rather long part of our road trip.

Finally, after about 6 hours of driving, we made it to the mother of all Canyons: The Grand Canyon.

The thing that we found most striking about the Grand Canyon is how big it is. It isn’t as colourful as Zion and it doesn’t have Bryce’s Hoodoos, but it’s so massive…it’s truly spectacular to see.

The Desert View Watchtower, a replica of a prehistoric Indian tower

To give you an idea of scale, here are some comparisons:

Zion Canyon: 15 miles long – 1/2 mile deep

Bryce Canyon: 12 miles long – 1/2 mile deep (in it’s largest area)

Grand Canyon: 277 miles long – 1 mile (and a bit) deep

That’s a lot of canyon!!! It really never seemed to end!

3078-004-9B8860F2 — Once more, this entire canyon was formed by water. Unfortunately, we didn’t really have the time to hike into the Canyon, so we didn’t personally get to see the River up close.

Although there are several places you can see the Canyon (some viewpoints are only a few hours away from Vegas), we chose to see the South Rim near Flagstaff, Arizona. The South Rim is known for spectacular views. We were on the eastern part of the South Rim, which is important to note. The area near Las Vegas is also the South Rim, but it’s hours from where we were.

Grand-Canyon-National-Park-map.mediumthumb — The blue star is where most people go see the Canyon (closest to Las Vegas and where you can see the glass bridge). We were where the red star is, in the Arizona portion of the Canyon

Unfortunately, we were both pretty tuckered out at this point (and overheating), so we didn’t do any hiking, but we’d love to go back some day and see more of The Grand Canyon. With 277 miles to explore, I don’t think I could see it all in a lifetime!!!

The Hoover Dam

Our final stop of the road trip was to see one of the greatest engineering accomplishments in American history: The Hoover Dam. The dam lays on the boarder between Arizona and Nevada and is now nearly 100 years old. It was built during the Great Depression as a way to control water flow into the area, with an added bonus of providing electricity to the surrounding area. This dam made it possible for people to make use of an otherwise useless portion of land, and it was quite the thing to see!

The North side of the dam

South side

While we were there, the temperature was hovering around 47 degrees Celsius, so we took cover in the visitor center, where we learned about the dam’s history and functions.

A ‘cooling station’ located just outside the visitor center

There were plenty of displays set up and you could learn something no matter what happens to interest you . Dave was fascinated with the engineering and wanted to learn more about how the dam works, but I focused on the history of the dam and what it meant for the country. (Read the captions on the following pictures for more info)

Working Conditions were dangerous and workers were often injured or killed during the 5 years it took to build the dam.

Nearly 100 people died during the 5 years it took to build the Hoover Dam

The project cost money and lives, but ultimately, it changed America. The Hoover Dam supplies nearly 8 million Americans power each year, and it makes the land in the surrounding area usable and inhabitable

Eventually, it was time to drop off our rental car and head to McCarran airport for our 8pm flight. We arrived in Winnipeg sunburned and pretty sore from our travels, but it was a worthwhile experience, to say the least!

9fb2eb462d3bea74e7b549e58c30afab--cityscapes-nice-city (1) — Winnipeg’s Skyline

***A Note to My Fellow Nomads***

If you’re thinking of taking a trip like ours, I had Dave make a map of our journey. We spent 2 full days on the road plus 2 half days. If it had been possible, I would have added an extra 2 days so we could have hiked in Zion and the Grand Canyon as well. I’d also have brought a hat on our hike in Bryce as well as additional water. Our drive looked like this:

Day 1: Vegas to Zion – Roughly 2.5 hours. Stayed in Cedar City – 1.5 hours from Zion. (You can stay closer to Zion, but prices drop significantly if you drive a bit towards Bryce)

Day 2: Cedar City to Bryce – 1.5 hours. We stayed in Penguitch (about a half hour away)

Day 3: Penguitch to The South Rim of the Grand Canyon – 5 hours. We then drove to Flagstaff for the night – 1.5 hours)

Day 4: Flagstaff to Vegas (with a pit stop at the Hoover Dam). Flagstaff to Dam – 3.5 hours. Dam to Vegas – Less than an hour

Total Driving: Around 16 hours in 4 days. Doable, with PLENTY to see along the way!

I’ll be back soon with stories about our stay in Canada!

Viva Las Vegas

Las Vegas…the home of gambling, nightlife and buffets. Before heading to Manitoba for our annual visit, Dave and I had a 10 day detour planned that involved seeing two of our good friends get married in Sin City. Vegas was quite a change from the usual travelling we do (everyone speaks English there, for one…), so I thought it would be fun to write about our experiences.

The SFLS crew!!

The little chapel where Liz and Jeff tied the knot!

A fun wedding picture with all the Vegas guests

We were a pretty eclectic group of people! There were people from Canada who Liz met in Vietnam…people from Ireland who Jeff met in China…who are now headed to Saudi Arabia….we were quite the group!!

Dave and I arrived in Vegas on a hot summer afternoon. I suppose that is a little repetitive, because “Vegas” and “hot” are fairly synonymous! The temperature was averaging around 40-45 degrees Celsius while we were there, with 5-10% humidity! My hair wouldn’t curl, my lips were so chapped they were bleeding and I was pounding back water like it was going out of style. Vegas took some getting used to…

FB_IMG_1501617194184 — We were all DYING in this picture! We were directly in the sun. Notice the squinting!!!

Luckily for me, Dave had a lot of work to do so we were able to stay inside (with the AC on!) until about 5pm every day. I don’t handle heat well, so I was more than happy to spend the time indoors, prepping for next semester. As the afternoon came to a close, we’d leave our apartment and head out to see the sights…and the lights!
Las Vegas….home of Heat, Sights and Lights!

Neither Dave or I are really into gambling (I hate seeing my money disappear without at least making an awesome memory…), but we still spent our fair share of time in the casinos. They are far more spectacular than I expected them to be, and I have to admit, I enjoyed them much more than I thought I would. The architecture at Caesar’s Palace was out of this world, and the canals along the Venetian were gorgeous.

Caesar’s Palace

I love that their pool is set up like an Ancient Roman Bath!!

And of course, no trip to Vegas is complete without a stop by the Belagio (and its fountains!). We stopped by the fountains a few times. They’re just so beautiful! The hotel is also quite nice, although we didn’t spend a tonne of time going through it.

We did spend a bit of time in New York New York (yes…twice), but not so much for the casino as for for the show we saw there…
Las Vegas: home of Show girls, Show-offs and Shows!

With so many different shows to see in Vegas, it’s nearly impossible to choose just one! Celine Dion, Brittany Spears and Donny and Marie Osmond all have permanent residencies there, and there are countless other musical performances coming and going out of Vegas in any given month. While we were there we saw ads for everyone from the Backstreet Boys, to Elton John, to Mariah Carey.

And if music isn’t what you’re into, you can see comedians, magicians, dancers and so much more! Blue Man Group is a popular show, and David Copperfield tickets sell for big bucks! There are also exhibits to see, such as Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, The Bodies Exhibit and a sort of museum full of artifacts from the Titanic.

Of course, you can’t talk about Vegas without bringing up one particular group of performers that defy gravity and wow audiences all over the world. Cirque de Soleil has 6 shows that run in Vegas daily. Dave and I always loved going to see Cirque when they came through Winnipeg when we lived in Manitoba, so I got smart and bought him tickets to a show for his birthday! There were so many to choose from, but ultimately, I chose Zumanity, because it was the most ‘Vegasy’ of the shows we could have seen. Cirque did not let us down. We loved the show and wished we’d had the time (and money!) to have seen Ka or O as well. Maybe the opportunity will arise some time in the future. I sure hope so!

Freemont is also a great stop if you want a fun time. There are free concerts there all the time. The night we arrived, Anne Wilson was performing, but we missed it because Jet Lag sucks. The night we were down on Freemont, Good Charlotte was playing. There are plenty of other things to do on Freemont as well. You can stop and take photos with buskers, see contortionists and even zipline above the historic road!

This guy crammed himself into a tiny box

Some super heroes…just hanging around on Freemont. You have to pay to have your photo taken with them. I snapped this one all sneaky-like :p

Ziplining above the air conditioned road…

There you have it: Vegas: Home of bright lights, a surplus of shows and hellish heat. We had a great time during our week there, and our road trip was even better! Stay tuned for more on that!

Vancouver: My Favourite Place in Canada (Part 2)

With 60+ hour work weeks keeping me busy, it’s been rough keeping up a decent sleep pattern, but recently I’ve had some time free up, so here I am once more…back to the blog! Now that I finally have a spare moment, I thought it’s time that I finish blogging about our summer Holiday in Vancouver. I’ve saved my favourite 2 parts of our stay in BC for last.

But first, take a look at my latest work project:

My big project as of late: Getting portraits of every student in our department

I’m actually very proud of the results. I did my best to try and capture each student’s personality on camera

Some students, like Samuel, are so expressive that it was easy to get a good shot

Other students, I caught off guard.,.

Then there are students, like Roy, who planned out their pose ahead of time. Such a funny kid!!

Stanley Park

Canada in summer is a beautiful thing. People always ask me if it ever gets warm where I live, and I always have to laugh. It amazes me how many people abroad think that Canada is a bleak winter wonderland year-round. They don’t realize that we have 4 distinct seasons (some longer than others, I will admit) and that summer is actually quite lovely.

What I love about Canadian summers though, is that it’s just the right amount of heat. Summer in Suzhou (even in May and June) are oppressive, but Canada (especially Vancouver) has the perfect climate. We were lucky during our visit to the West Coast because it hardly rained. We had sunny skies and perfect weather most of the trip. I don’t feel like the weather was any more perfect than when we were at Stanley Park, though.

The sun was shining, there was a light breeze! Just a perfect day!!

Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada

Dave and I checking out the Totems

Even in Canada we can’t escape the Chinese and their need for ‘perfect’ pictures….You should have seen her climbing up there!!!

Everyone talks about how Stanley Park is a top destination in Vancouver, but I feel like it’s so much more than that. For me, Stanley Park was a refreshing step into nature and beauty and purity. We walked around the perimeter of the park, took detours down trails, hopped on the tram and sat by the sea side. It was such a gorgeous way to spend the day and I felt sort of like I did at Elephant Nature Park, where when it came time to go, I felt emotional about having to leave that amazing place.

Wild raspberries growing in Stanley Park

There were plenty of people out but it never felt crowded.

For a very reasonable fee, we were able to hop on and off of the tram that drives all around the park.

Lion’s Gate Bridge

When I die, I do NOT want a tomb stone…I want a bench. Where people can sit and enjoy a nice, shaded view of a lake or the ocean.

Maybe it’s been my time in one of the world’s most polluted countries, but my love for trees has deepened over the past few years. I’ve always loved a forest trail, but now, I feel like I could just get lost in them and stay there happily forever. To be honest, that’s how I felt about Vancouver in general, but Stanley Park definitely was a high point in an already awesome week.

Whale Watching

The other highlight of our week in Vancouver was our trip to see wild orcas off the west coast of British Columbia. As someone who is morally opposed to companies like SeaWorld (see Blackfish or The Cove if you’re interested in knowing why), I was thrilled at the opportunity to see orcas in the wild, in their element, doing what orcas do.

When we saw these massive animals come out of the water, we were totally floored!

There really aren’t any words that can describe how cool it was to watch the big male hunting for salmon right under our boat, or the juvenile spy-hopping with his aunt right near our boat. I couldn’t help but feel like these killer whales were putting on a show for us. At one point, after a successful hunt, they all started slapping their back fins on the water. Our ‘naturalist’ said that they don’t really know why whales do that, but they think it’s usually to do with celebration. How cool is that??

My only regret is how choppy the water was when we were out on our tour. We were all getting soaked in the boat, so it was impossible for me to get my good camera out and get any closeup shots. Luckily, we also own a waterproof camera, so we had that one out the whole time, but of course, choppy waters = a splashed lens, so the shots weren’t always as clear as I’d have liked.

Captivated by the wild orcas

Dave and I chilling out in the back of the boat with the sea-sick people. We started off back there because we’d made the mistake of sitting up front in Thailand. We knew better for this trip…

Our naturalist. I can’t for the life of me remember his name, but he knew his stuff and he was so passionate about the orcas. He was even able to tell us the names and histories of the ones we were seeing. It was so cool!

I promise though, that the memories we made that day will be imprinted in my memory forever…and those memories are sans salt water smudges 😉

Here’s a video….I tried to keep it short so that you don’t feel sea sick watching it! (I definitely felt nauseous a few times when editing it down haha!!)

Vancouver: My Favourite Canadian Destination – Part 1

About a year ago, I purchased a map off of this neat website that had all sorts of unique and beautiful products. Although I loved the look of the map, it wasn’t just the design that encouraged me select it among the many choices the website offered. This map is special, because you can scratch off areas of the world that you’ve visited.

About a month ago, Dave got around to making a proper mount for this beautiful map. He spent a few hours finding supplies on TaoBao, and a few hours making it, and I decided to take care of the fun stuff: scratching the places we’ve been! Being the travelers that we are, I figured that I’d spend hours scratching away. I was disappointed, however, to discover that so much of the world remains unseen by my eyes! So, tomorrow, we set out on our Golden Week Holiday to Xi’an, with our friend Kevin.

Of course, now that I’m about to head out on another adventure, I realized that I should probably write about our last adventure: Vancouver. So here it is, the post all of my Canadian readers have been waiting for! Part 1 of our stay Kitsilano, Vancouver!
Kits Beach and Area

When first pricing out hotels in Vancouver, we were a little overwhelmed with the cost of accommodations. Vacationing in Canada is EXPENSIVE when you compare it to the places we’ve been in Asia, so I was a little worried we’d need to forgo some of the things we wanted to do because hotel prices were so high. I’m pretty sure we are the luckiest people in the world though, because as it turned out, a good friend of ours was going to in Manitoba while we were in Vancouver, leaving her apartment in Kitsilano free for us to rent for the week! We couldn’t have planned the timing better if we’d tried!!

I loved all the big trees in the area. I don’t feel like China really has big trees like these

We walked by this Totem Pole probably 10 times in our 7 days in Vancouver. Dave found a Geo Cache under it 🙂

Kits beach at sunset

Our first view of Kits Beach

We fell in love with Kits pretty quickly. The beach was gorgeous, Sophie’s Cosmic Cafe was an adorable place to stop for a good breakfast, and we were a short walk or bus ride away from pretty much every thing we wanted to see. We were originally thinking of staying downtown, but I am SO glad we spent our time in this little suburb of Vancouver.
Downtown, Gas Town and Canada Place

Two days of our trip to Vancouver were spent exploring downtown and Canada Place. When I first visited Vancouver 8 years ago, I was blown away by its gorgeous skyline. Of course, now that I’ve traveled to cities like Shanghai, Bangkok and Mumbai, Vancouver seemed a little less spectacular, but the little areas in the city’s center still impressed me.

Gas Town is probably my favourite area of down town. There are tonnes of little shops where you can find maple-flavoured everything and tonnes of little restaurants to try. Best of all, the architecture in Gas Town is pretty cool. I regret that I didn’t get many pictures of that particular area, because every time we visited it was after dark, and the area can be a bit shady. My camera is one of my most prized possessions, so it stayed tucked away in my bag.

img_20160814_181630 — Gas Town’s Famous Clock

Canada Place was quite impressive too. The last time I was in Vancouver, it was all under construction because of the upcoming Olympic games, so it was nice to see it all finished. Dave especially enjoyed this part of our time downtown as he was able to watch planes take off while I hunted Pokemon!!

Granville Island

Of all the places we visited in Vancouver, Granville island is where we spent the most time. We wound up on that sweet little island 4 or 5 times throughout our stay and this was mostly because we enjoyed walking down there so much! It took about 40 minutes to walk from Kits Beach to Granville island, but it was such a lovely walk through parks along the beach, that we tended to gravitate in that direction any time we went out.

Entering Granville Island

Some artistic Silos

The view along the walk to Granville

False Creek

Granville is the place to go if you want fresh sea food, craft beer, shopping or if you want to book a whale watching tour. There is also a lovely park on the island, where we walked around a few times…just to breath in the fresh air and admire the ducks and geese that hang out there.

I miss these birds when I’m in China!!

These ducks shall not be roasted in Peking!!!

Granville Island also has a huge green initiative. It really is a lovely place

Meeting New Friends

During our week in Vancouver, we met up with a couple of people that I’d never met before. Dave’s cousin, Michael, lives in the area so we met up with him and his girlfriend, Gabriella, during our stay in Kits. We hit it off, and I think we were all a little amazed at how much Dave and Michael are alike! This new friendship lead us to take a trip up to Mount Seymore for the Persius Meteor Shower, which was spectacular and unlike anything I had really experienced.

Perseus Spectators

A gorgeous Sunset atop the mountain

The area was just beautiful

The little town where we had a delicious Sushi supper with Michael and Gabriella

We also spent an evening down in New West Minister with an old friend of Dave’s. Sitting by the harbour, eating wings and poutine, was a fantastic way to spend a night in that lovely city. While enjoying our evening in New West, Kaitlin gave us lots of tips and ideas of places to go while in Vancouver. This led us to one of the most exciting parts of our stay in BC; the Vancouver observatory! While we were there, we were able to see a gorgeous view of Saturn (rings and everything!), a close up of the moon, and the Herculese star cluster, which happens to contain 300,000 stars and is 200 thousand light years away.

The Vancouver Museum of Anthropology

Although we very much wanted to climb Grouse Mountain, I realized that after 6 days of being on my injured leg, walking 10km+ per day, I needed to take it easy(er). I did a quick look online to find a more low-impact activity for our last day in Kits, and came across the Vancouver Museum of Anthropology. It was a lovely visit and we saw everything from traditional and modern Aboriginal art, to 4000 year old pots.

This artist’s work was interesting…he was very critical of the government’s treatment of the earth. Can you guess who he was representing in this painting?

More work from the same artist

Some traditional Aboriginal art

It was difficult to even understand the number of artifacts this museum contains and I know that we could have easily spent an entire day (and then some…) exploring every little thing the museum had to offer. The museum has little areas for countless cultures and in each area, there are pull-out drawers that contained hundreds of small artifacts to admire. Although it wasn’t the most glamorous thing we saw in Vancouver, I’m really glad we made the stop.

A Japanese display

Each of these drawers contained nearly 50 artifacts.

Modern art from New Guinea

New Guinea was a commonly discussed topic in the Anthropology class I took while in University

It was interesting seeing these ceremonial masks in person. They are hand carved, hand painted and no two masks are alike

That’s it for part 1 of my post. In part 2, I’ll be writing about my 2 favourite parts of our stay in Vancouver: Stanley Park and seeing Resident Killer Whales off the coast of British Columbia!

Stay tuned!!!

Update Time!

It’s hard to believe how quickly 6 weeks can fly by! After 5 weeks in Manitoba and then 1 week in Vancouver, it’s an understatement to say that I was happy to sleep in my own bed again! Our cats were well cared for over the holiday and are happy as clams to have us home, back in our little routine. Poe continues to act as my alarm clock and Hugo seems to be even more cuddly than ever! Life is good here back in Suzhou!

IMG_20160822_232944 — As you can see…she’s been VERY stressed…

Manitoba was a grand time. We were able to catch up with friends, spend time with family and I even got to meet my nephew, Zachary, for the first time. It’s funny because adults change so little from year to year, but the kids….WOW do they grow! I’m convinced that at least 1 of my nephews is going to be taller than me next year! My niece, Ellie, learned how to read over the past year and her little sister began talking…things change so much in their little lives while we’re away!

Addyson is growing up into such a goofy kid!! And Ellie continues to be all sweetness and intellect

My nephew Dmitri! He didn’t know I was taking a picture haha! We spent an evening help him build a wooden model we brought him home from China

Getting to know my little Zachary

Our 5 weeks in Winnipeg were spent well. We were able to see a Fringe Show, visit the Forks and even visit the Canadian Museum for Human Rights! Last year had been too rushed to stop by this architectural marvel, but I really enjoyed our afternoon there, learning new things and being reminded of things that shouldn’t be forgotten.

I really love this building

We visited the museum with one my favourite people in the world: Dianne!

Beautiful ramps going up the museum

Why is Fair Trade helpful? Because it allows people….

My views on reconcilliation

Loved in interior architecture!

I organized a Paint Night with some of my favourite gals and that turned out to be a tonne of fun! I’d recommend it as a fun night out to anyone who wishes they can paint or actually can paint! I have artistic skills in that way and mine still turned out pretty well! See!!!

A good portion of my summer was spent outside. I was able to play at the pool with my nieces and nephew, sit around bonfires and spend LOTS of time outside! The air is so fresh and clean in Canada and the temperature is perfect for being outside. Currently, it’s sitting at about 40 degrees Celsius in Suzhou, so I definitely miss the Prairie temperatures already!

Prairie Sunset

Sitting out on the deck with our dear neighbor Yvonne and her fabulous puppy, Brodey!

Playing with the girls at the park

Geese at the Forks

Farming Country!

Oddly enough, it was a game that took up most of our time in Manitoba! Pokemon Go was all the rage back home and Dave and I spent countless hours walking around Steinbach and The Winnipeg Forks trying to catch a Pikachu or hatch a Snorlax. I was never lucky on either of those counts, but my sister managed to catch 3 of the little yellow Pokemon! I will forever be jealous, because Pokeman Go is banned in China. It runs through Google Maps, which is blocked by the Great Fire Wall, so there is no Pokeman here for us to play.

Finding Weedles at Tim Hortons! Such a Canadian Picture!

My gorgeous sisters 🙂

We often paired up our Pokeman hunting with Geo caching! We were able to find a few in Steinbach!

We also had our yearly BBQ at St. Malo Provincial Park! It was such a blast last year that we planned it out again this year. We had loads of people come down and spent the day out in the sun with ys, playing in the water and enjoying WAYY Y too much food!

The yearly update picture. None of us felt like taking it seriously this year!

My dad takes any opportunity he can to spoil the grandkids!

My sister, keeping a sleeping Zach company (hahaha! Such a sport for coming out, even though she was ‘under the weather’!!!

My sister knits the cutest hats!!!!

I mentioned the food…

My oldest friend, Veronique, make her way down to the beach even though she only had 30 minutes to spare! My summer would not have been complete without her!!

It’s hard to point to a ‘favourite’ memory of our 2016 trip home, but the most inspiring event was definitely Steinbach’s 1st Pride Parade. Dave and I attended, expecting there to be a small crowd of maybe 100 or 200 people…little did we know that over 3500 people came in from all over the province for the event! There were actually people who flew in all the way from Orlando for Steinbach’s first pride. It was a pretty huge deal!

The number of attendees was inspiring in of itself, but Steinbach’s reaction to the event was also good. The Automobile City has caught a lot of flack over the last few years for their stance on LGBT rights and a variety of other subjects. There have been issues within the school division over these matters and protests regarding bullying bills aimed at protecting LGBT students. But instead of holding a protest or causing a fuss over the parade, Steinbach let it happen.

Some Mennonite Humour!!!

By standers brought signs too!

Although some companies in Steinbach refused to support the event, far more came with signs and showed their belief in equality! It was fantastic!

There were plenty of spectators there who were watching the parade and there was a tonne of support. Many people in Steinbach have softened their views on homosexuality as they’ve grown to know people in the LGBT community or have learned that people in their own families are gay. I saw many signs that said things like ‘proud parent’ or ‘supportive parent’. It was really beautiful to see such acceptance in a city that has previously been branded intolerant. It was a huge step for Steinbach and although I know not everyone in the city agreed with the event…that’s not the point! It’s ok not to agree with it…I’m just happy no one showed up with eggs or protest signs. That’s what tolerance is, after all…accepting that people might thing differently than you. You don’t have to agree with them, but you should give them the freedom to have their own beliefs.

It isn’t pride without some crazy costumes! These guys were my favourite!

Even the animals showed up!!!

People came from all around the province!

3500 people showed up!

Dave and I…happy to see so much acceptance in our city!

So that is a very brief summary of our stay in Manitoba! Our final week in Canada was spent in Vancouver, which I will be writing about soon! I have 1 or 2 posts planned before I can get to our time on the West Coast, but I’m still off work until September 1st, so I should be able to get a fair amount of blogging in between now and then!

So, stay tuned for entertaining posts such as:

Beginning a new Semester in China…things teachers should know
Tips for new Expats living in Suzhou
Vivacious Vancouver: From Kits Beach to Stanley Park
Whale Watching off the West Coast of Canada