While going through some old photos I came across slides that my Grandpa took decades ago in Paris, probably in the 1970s. It made me think about my first trip to France about 10 years ago in 2011. I thought it would be fun to share some of my old photos from the amazing trip around France with my family. It was really a dream trip, 3 weeks around France. We started in Paris and then went north to Giverny, Honfleur and Mont Saint Michel. Then we traveled south to the Loire Valley to see chateaux then to the walled city of Carcassonne and to Provence. There were visited Arles, Nimes, Avignon the Pont du Gard and Orange and continued to Nice for some riviera sunshine. To finish off we head back north to Chartres before flying home from Paris again. It’s always fun looking back on old photos and memories from great travels. I’d love to return to France and see more of this beautiful country.
Travel
Prince Edward County Travel Guide – 2021 Update
Canada, Food, Ontario, Prince Edward County, TravelPrince Edward County is one of Canada’s best (and littlest) wine regions with so much to offer, and only 3 hours from Ottawa. We’ve visited the County 4 times and there is still so much to explore in this great area. Now that I’ve had the chance to try more wineries and breweries, some great restaurants, do some shopping and spend some time just exploring the region I’m ready to share my favourite spots in PEC! You can also check out my complete updated Prince Edward County Winery Guide!
Prince Edward County Winery Guide – 2021 Update
Canada, Ontario, Prince Edward County, TravelPrince Edward County has now become an annual trip with so much to do and so many lovely places to visit. The region has really exploded in the last 5 years and now there is just so much to do. One of the big draws is all the wineries, there are now over 40! Between my four trip I’ve visited a good number of wineries and vineyards. This guide has my favourites, some other solid places, ones we won’t be back to and ones I hope to go to on my next visit. I’ve also thrown in a cider house, distillery and brewery that are too good to miss. Be sure to check out my complete PEC travel guide too!
Unity
Art, Canada, Ontario, Ottawa, Personal, TravelSince I’ve been unable to travel for over a year I’ve enjoyed exploring my own city. Even though I’ve lived in Ottawa my whole life there are areas of the city I’ve never explored and new things that I’ve discovered. One of the fun things I’ve been doing is seeking out public art around the city. Unity by Yasaman Mehrsa is a recent installation on the steps down to the Rideau Canal in between the National Arts Centre and the new Senate of Canada building. This beautiful artwork has a lovely message too. The houses represent humans and the pathways represent nature, but together they symbolize unity. Ottawa has so much to offer and there is so much to explore in this wonderful city, especially at times like these. Now that the weather is getting warmer I can’t wait to get back out exploring.
The Skyward Cabin in Prince Edward County
Canada, Ontario, Prince Edward County, TravelWhen we visited Prince Edward County last summer we decided to stay at the new Skyward Cabin at The Edward B&B. When we visited PEC in 2019 we had the most amazing stay at The Edward but with the pandemic, accommodation options become a bit more limited since they were now renting the entire B&B instead of individual rooms to limit contact between guests. Luckily The Edward recently opened a beautiful glass walled cabin in the woods on their property. This little cabin in the woods was the perfect getaway, especially a time when you want to be a bit more secluded and away from other people.
Saguaro Sunset
Photography, Shop, Travel, United StatesWell it’s winter and we’ve probably got at least another month and a half of snowy, cold weather here in Ottawa so I thought I’d look back on some of my travel photos from somewhere warm. While setting up my new photography shop on Darkroom I came across all my saguaro cactus photographs from a sunset hike in Arizona. So to launch my new Darkroom photography shop and to imagine I’m somewhere warm I’m sharing the photos here that you can now buy prints of! Please enjoy!
Frida Kahlo at the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec & Covid-19
Art, Québec, Québec City & Île d'OrléansOn our way home from a little weekend trip to northern Québec we decide to take a little detour to pass through Québec City to see the exhibition Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Mexican Modernism: The Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection at the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec. I had hoped to write a little review of this exhibition but instead I’m going to share my experience of visiting a blockbuster exhibition in the time of Covid-19.
Snapshots from Québec City
Canada, Québec, Québec City & Île d'Orléans, TravelOn our way home from a weekend in northern Québec we detoured to historic Québec City for a couple hours to wander the old city. Suffice to say, 3 hours is not enough time and we’ll be back soon to see more of this beautiful place. Until then, there are some snapshots for around beautiful Vieux-Québec.
A Day Trip to Prince Edward County
Canada, Ontario, Prince Edward County, TravelWith summer travel options being pretty limited in the time of Covid-19 we decided to do a little day trip to Prince Edward County to catch the lavender bloom in July. PEC is one of our favourite places to visit and although we already have a weekend booked for September we just couldn’t wait until then to return.
Ravenna, Italy Mini Travel Guide
Italy, TravelRavenna is a relatively small city in Northern Italy but it has a lot of history! I visited Ravenna back in 2014 when I was studying art history in Venice. Ravenna is home to important late Roman and Byzantine architecture and eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Ravenna is home to some of the most amazing mosaics in Europe and is definitely an under visited city! If you’re visiting the area and wondering what there is to do, here is little guide for you!