Feel the Rhythm

We had plans to travel internationally but given the COVID situation leading up to our trip, we decided to do something within Canada. We ended up going to Whistler last weekend. The Mins was excited to return to Van. He met up with New Colin, who officially moved to the west coast awhile back. It was nice for the two to reconnect over brunch at Medina.

We had a great time skiing on Blackcomb. We didn't have much time so we'll return to ski Whistler another time. Whistler Village had lots of places to eat and shop. Some good photo ops too, including the Olympic rings.

While the Mins didn't ski with us (he opted to watch the Olympics from our big comfy hotel bed), he did go bobsledding (yes, you read that right) at the Whistler Sliding Centre.

The Sliding Centre has the fastest bobsledding track in the world. You can even try skeleton there. The Mins said safety first!

We didn't do the full track since one of the turns early on drops four storeys. We ended up with the second fastest time out of all the passenger bobsleds that week. The Mins was happy with our silver medal!

New Digs

Why hello out there! We are happy to share a photo of the Mins in our new kitchen (he is prepping for tonight's dinner). We recently moved to a larger condo that we renovated. It took longer than expected given supply chain delays as a result of COVID-19. We are thankful to have more space, especially when the city has been in lockdown. Have a great sunny Sunday, everyone!

Oahu: Taste of Island Life

While in Oahu, we ate delicious food! Loco moco is a local staple. It is a hamburger patty over rice, with gravy and a fried egg. The Mins really liked the one we had at the Fish Hook Cafe.

And though not from Hawaii, we tried the famous Lady M crepe cake for the first time.

While driving around the island with our rental car, we made sure to go to Giovanni's. So many people told us it was a "must do", so we had to check it out.

The garlic scampi did not disappoint! Luckily we went for a very late lunch so the line was not as long as we anticipated.

We tried shaved ice at a few places, but Matsumoto was the best, hands down. The Mins had the tropical combo - lilikoi, guava, and pineapple.

There is a lot of Japanese tourists so the Japanese food in Waikiki was plentiful. If you're craving udon, we recommend Marukame Udon.

Other places we enjoyed were Zippy's (a Hawaiian fast food chain), Aloha Kitchen (for Japanese souffle pancakes), Momosan (Morimoto's ramen joint), bills (from Australia), Duke's (we were able to watch the sunset over dinner), and Goofy Cafe and Dine (fresh and organic local dishes). Yum!

Oahu: The Gathering Place

After spending five lovely days in Maui, we hopped on a short flight and arrived in Oahu. We spent our first day exploring the area close to our hotel, and met up with relatives for dinner. The Mins enjoyed our very large lanai (a.k.a. balcony) attached to our hotel room. We read there every morning while the rest of the fam was sleeping.

We spent our second day strolling along the beach in Waikiki. We would walk a few blocks, then sit...walk a few more blocks...then grab a bit to eat...walk more, then shop. It was a very leisurely day.

This is the Mins looking out to Diamond Head. He said he returns, he wants to hike it.

On my mum's birthday, we did a tour around the island with our relatives who were also vacationing in Oahu. One stop on the tour was the lookout at Hanauma Bay. It's known as a great place for snorkeling.

We also stopped at the Dole Plantation where I bought some souvenirs and ate Dole whip (soft serve pineapple ice cream). The Mins made a few pineapple friends! His pineapple friends have never met a sasquatch before.

After our tour, we went to the Polynesian Cultural Center for a luau. We saw a show in the evening that featured a lot of fire dancing.

We rented a car to drive around the island to check out other stops that were not on our tour. The windward coast of Oahu was really beautiful.

The mountains looked like they were straight out of Jurassic Park!

Despite the Mins' furry exterior, he did enjoy a decent amount of beach time. Some mornings, the Mins and I did yoga on the beach.

I can see why people like Hawaii so much. So much to see and do!

Aloha from Maui!

My parents, G, the Mins, and I recently returned from a fantastic family vacation in Hawaii. We went to celebrate my mum's 70th birthday. She went to the University of Hawaii over 50 years ago and wanted to check some things off her bucket list.

We started our trip in Maui. We stayed in a great condo right by a local beach in Kihei. The location was very convenient since a grocery store and restaurants were within walking distance. We went to McDonald's one morning to try their spam breakfast.

We spent a day visiting towns along the west coast. We shopped and had lunch in Lahaina, which was once a whaling village.

We then checked out the beaches in Ka'anapli and Kapalua (pictured above).

We spent another day doing the Road to Hana. We opted to do a tour with Valley Isle Excursions. This allowed us to drive around Haleakala (there's a very bumpy road for one stretch that is not covered by rental car insurance), as opposed to driving to Hana and turning back on the same road.

We had the opportunity to go for a quick dip by a waterfall. The water was clear and warm.

Here the Mins is at Wai'anapanapa State Park, which is famous for its black sand beach. Volcanic minerals and lava fragments make the sand black.

The Mins thought the banyan trees along the Road to Hana were pretty cool. Did you know banya trees are fig trees? Mind blown!

Ohe'o Gulch is a set of seven cascading waterfalls at Haleakala National Park. We went to different viewing points to see the falls. This is the Mins toward the bottom of the "Seven Sacred Pools".

We returned to Haleakala National Park to visit the summit on a separate day. The dormant volcano is +10,000 feet above sea level. It felt like we were among the clouds.

The views of the crater where phenomenal. The weather was also refreshing - a good 10 degrees cooler than other places on the island.

Next stop, Oahu!

The Mins' Amazing Wheel

Big shout out to LCH for this fun Ferris wheel. The Mins loves it! He put it together himself.

Japan: The Last Leg

Using our handy dandy JR pass, we hopped on the bullet train and headed west to Hiroshima. The A-Dome is what remains of the city's former Industrial Promotion Hall. It was the only structure left standing after the atomic bomb exploded on August 6, 1945.

We had Ichiran's famous ramen noodles. We even bought some to bring home.

On Miyajima Island, we visited the Itsukushima Shrine. We were able to walk right up to the torii gate since it was low tide. At high tide, the gate looks like it's floating.

Before heading back to Tokyo, we made a pit stop at Himeji Castle. It is probably the best preserved castle in Japan. It offered great views of the city, especially from the very top floor.

The castle is one of the country's original twelve castles. It has never been destroyed by war, earthquake, or fire.

We walked along the straight road right above the Mins' head. It's about one kilometre to the train station.

Back in Tokyo we went to a traditional tea ceremony at Happo-en. The grounds were beautiful! There were several wedding ceremonies and photo shoots in the garden.

The main pond was full of large colourful fish...

...and there were several bonsai trees on display. They were the perfect size for the Mins!

On our very last day we went to the Meiji Shrine. We were hoping to cross it off our list earlier on in the trip but the day we tried to go it was raining heavily. The shrine was under restoration so there wasn't too much to see. However, we did see more couples getting married in traditional dress, which was pretty neat.

Overall, the Mins and I had a great trip to Japan and would highly recommend it to anyone! If you're planning a trip and have any questions, feel free to drop us a line!

Day Trippin'

Kyoto was probably my favourite city in Japan. We used it as a home base to visit other places. The Fushimi Inari Shrine was a highlight of Kyoto. We didn't quite make it to the top of the hill, but we hiked a fair amount under thousands of gates with the Mins in tow.

Nara is a short train ride away from Kyoto. It used to be the capital of Japan way back in the day. This Buddhist temple (in a park with hundreds of deer) is the main attraction.

Back in Kyoto we visited the Golden Pavilion...

...as well as the Bamboo Forest. G photobombed the Mins' photo.

Gion is Kyoto's most famous geisha district. There were lots of shops to rent a traditional outfit to wear for the day.

Our second day trip was to Osaka. Here's the Mins in front of Osaka Castle. At night time we ate at several places in Dotonbori (a.k.a., Japan's Kitchen).

Our last day trip was to Kobe. We visited a few sake breweries...

...and had a great dinner. We sat at a counter while a chef cooked Kobe beef and veggies in front of us. Om nom nom!