Inca Highlights (and More)

Hola again! We did a day trip to Machu Picchu, a must if you're visiting Peru. Luckily the weather cooperated with us. It rained a lot the evening before. The views were stunning at every angle. This is Bernie and Dumbo from the Sun Gate.

We did a side trek to see the "secret entrance" to Machu Picchu. It is a very narrow Inca bridge, with a wood plank connecting the two sides of the path. Could you imagine crossing that bridge back in the day? Yikes!

We saw llamas, alcapas, and sheep on many of our hikes. These did not seem phased by all of the humans out and about.

On our fourth day, we did an 18 kilometre hike, which was super tiring but also very rewarding, since we saw everything - hills, lakes, valleys, canyons, waterfalls, Inca terraces, etc. Here, Bernie and Dumbo are enjoying a picnic lunch.

The hike ended at Huchuy Qosqo. It is not visited by many tourists. We didn't see any when we were there.

Explora knew B and I were celebrating a special occasion. Bernie and Dumbo helped us finish the chocolate covered strawberries.

On our final day, we hiked to Moray. We took a local path, which offered unique views of the famous archaeological site.

These ruins are still standing, despite being hundreds of years old.

Our stay at Explora was phenomenal! We would love to go back one day, perhaps with other friends so they can enjoy the experience as well.

Next stop, Lima!

Exploring the Sacred Valley

Hola! Bernie and Dumbo represented the friends on our most recent international adventure. We spent five glorious days at Explora in the Sacred Valley. Our room had a beautiful view of corn fields and mountains. 

It also had a very comfortable (and quite possibly the largest) bed. We had a great sleep every night we were there.

The meals at Explora were five stars. We loved ordering quinoa pancakes for breakfast.

On our first full day at Explora, we did two hikes. Here, the friends are taking a wee break mid-hike.

The first hike ended at Pumamarca, a hillside fortress that once guarded the entrance to the Sacred Valley.

In the afternoon, we visited the Salineras in Maras. Salt has been extracted from these 5,000 salt pools since Inca times.

On our second day, we did a hike to see five lagoons. This is Bernie and Dumbo at the highest point of our hike, at 14,295 feet above sea level.

More snaps to come!

Home for the Holidays

Mr. Ji and Buddy moved back home from Boston with B, just in time for the holidays.

Best wishes for a wonderful holiday and a very happy 2020!

Clem's New Bling

Clementine is not the biggest basketball fan but she is a fan of bling! B and I went to the Raptors home opener last night. We received replica championship rings to commemorate the 2018-19 season. The ring was too heavy for Clementine's hand. It fits her foot though. And she hasn't taken it off yet!

Snug!

B and I attended a wedding in Ottawa this past weekend. We were out and about during the day but Trev preferred to stay at the hotel and snug instead. How can I blame him? The bed was huge!

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!

Day Trippin'

Buddy, B, and I had a leisurely day trip to Provincetown (a.k.a. P-Town) last weekend. We took a ferry from Boston, hoping to see some whales along the way. We spent the morning in P-Town checking out the shops and art galleries along Commercial Street. Buddy enjoyed smelling the flowers wherever he could. Everyone's garden was in full bloom.

We had lunch at Canteen. It didn't quite live up to the hype. Buddy gave the meal a 7 out of 10. We shared a lobster roll and shrimp banh mi.

For the afternoon, we sunbathed at Race Point Beach, an easy $2 shuttle ride away from town. We contemplated renting bikes, but we wanted to take it easy. If you really want to take it easy, Uber is also an option.

We had an enjoyable dinner at Sal's, which is on a quieter stretch of Commercial Street and right on the water. After dinner, we grabbed froyo at Bliss. We ended up napping on the ferry ride home.

Thanks for a nice day, P-Town!

CHAMPIONS

Spencer, B, and I are so pleased that the Raptors are the NBA champs!!!

Spencer was calm, cool, and collected as he watched game six. I on the other hand was stress eating - polishing off a whole sleeve of arrowroot cookies in the final quarter.

We the North! We the North!