Page 4 of Nevadagirlamber Travel Blog Posts


Africa » Morocco » Fès-Boulemane » Fes December 22nd 2018

After the Blue City we headed south to Fes on a local bus. Morocco has a pretty decent bus system and their CTM company is really the company I would recommend people use - book your seats at least 3 days beforehand online to ensure you get on the CTM bus and aren't on a local. Locals are broken, stinky and stop for all people along the side of the road, and aren't any cheaper than the upscale bus, so use them only when you have to. The upside to the looong bus trip was meeting some young Uni students who were from Singapore and studying in England who were there for holiday. They were fun to talk with and were similar to other travelers on the trip - I'm originally from (here), but I am ... read more
Typical breakfast at a hotel
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Africa » Morocco » Tangier-Tétouan » Chefchaouen December 22nd 2018

The Blue City of Morocco is truly one of the most interesting sites in Morocco. This is for several reasons. First of all, as the pictures will show you, the city is really Blue. The labyrinth that makes up the old city (created in the 1400s) is painted in blue. Apparently the color comes from the Jewish communities who settled there after being expelled from Spain. As for the meaning of the color several theories exist, including it's being a spiritual reminder of heaven and earth or keeping the mosquitoes away (there were no mosquitoes in sight). Second, the city is in the Northwest part of the country and as such is this incredibly mixture of Arabic, Spanish, French and Berber communities. Here my terrible Spanish was just as useful as my terrible French. This city ... read more
Caution: Mule working
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Africa » Morocco » Grand Casablanca » Casablanca December 17th 2018

Well hello to you Morocco! After over 24 hours in the airport en route, I finally arrived - but my luggage didn't. This is the first trip where I carried all of my medications with me (I usually only take 2-3 days worth) and my electronics as well, so besides being in stinky clothes for a day or two more, life wasn't that bad. I was incredibly fortunate and was met at the airport by the Moroccan family of a Magnolia friend. They were so generous as to pick me up, take me to lunch for a traditional dish of chicken cooked in a tagine (more on this later), and take me to my hotel - their kindness was so appreciated. Kim and I met up later that night at our hotel and had a celebratory ... read more
View from our hotel
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Central America Caribbean » Cuba » Oeste » La Habana December 21st 2017

Cuba! Oh Cuba how I love you. I had a fantastic time traveling throughout the western half of the island of Cuba with my friend Barb and 14 other travelers on a guided tour. Many of you may be confused as to why I would choose a guided tour and it really came down to concerns over changing diplomatic relations between Cuba and the US, my poor Spanish skills (I can buy a beer and find the bathroom, but not make reservations or take care of business), and just time pressures. We booked our tour with Cuba Adventures and we met our fellow travelers in Havana before heading out on the road. We completed a brief walking tour of old Havana, which included a look into the various squares, churches and the sweet ass Cadillacs so ... read more
Church building material; coral
Coral church
Fort around Habana (Havana)

North America » Canada » Manitoba » Churchill July 21st 2017

What a trip! The belugas were out in the hundreds and the polar bears came out twice to say hello. Overall, an excellent trip. On the final day we had a torrential downpour and we spent the day in town. The museum is small but packed with interesting artifacts, including the narwhal horn which you'll see in the pics. There is definitely a religious presence in town as evidenced by the Anglican church, with the beautiful stained glass windows you'll see in the pics.... read more
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North America » Canada » Manitoba » Churchill July 16th 2017

Today Canada celebrated 150 years (edited for accuracy! woops) and as such we went over the bay to visit the Prince of Wales Fort. This fort was originally built by the Hudson Bay Company as a means to protect their fur trade interests. Sometime around the late 1700s the French took possession of the fort, but with few resources to man the fort they quickly returned it back to the English. Not before trashing the place of course. Today there is quite a bit of reconstruction work going on as the building is crumbling in this harsh atmosphere. While on the island we tasted Inuit bread bannock (sp), which is basically an unleavened, flour-based, bread. It was very good. We also learned more about some of the research being done in the area - apparently the ... read more

North America » Canada » Manitoba » Churchill July 15th 2017

Hello, oh happy days! Much to report from today's adventure. Today we went out on to the river and saw the star of this entire show - the belugas. At first we saw just a spattering of them - a few here, a few there, but after awhile we came upon a large pod of a hundred or so and were right in the think of them. The males tend to run together, while females are more likely to be found with child in tow or in some sort of supportive role after they have stopped childrearing. Their colors vary depending on their sex, age and also their molting process. Yes, beluga whales molt. Perhaps it is because they come into the estuary, but there isn't a definitive answer as to why these mammals molt. As ... read more
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North America » Canada » Manitoba » Churchill July 13th 2017

Hello from Hudson Bay! Today I arrived at the Churchill Northern Science Center in Churchill, Manitoba, Canada and I wanted to check in briefly before we get on with our program tonight. I flew in this morning from Winnipeg and it was interesting to see the terrain change from heavily wooded to the tundra. At the airport we were all picked up and taken here to our dorm/classrooms/everything we will need for the next couple of days. On the way in we saw a sandhill crane (no pics sorry) as well as a lot of Canada geese - or as they say here - geese - and their babies. Had my first mosquito bite shortly after arrival, so all is going as expected. It is a spectacular facility surrounded with water, puny but pretty trees and ... read more

North America » United States » Ohio » Cincinnati January 12th 2017

We - mom and I - were able to explore the all important state - Ohio - and one of its big city during the holiday season. Before that we made the 30 hour trip from Nevada to Ohio, with a very cool stop at Starved Rock State Park in Illinois (no pictures, woops). The park visit was cold, but not as cold as the state that most resembles the insides of the devil's icy heart - Iowa. Iowa, what is wrong with you? Anyways, we made it back to southwest Ohio, and set out on a tour of the Ohio Caverns. You'll find plenty of pictures attached. We then spent a day on the Over the Rhine tour (Cincinnati area), exploring a local crypt and the history of the area. Much of the area was ... read more
Inside Ohio Caverns
Inside Ohio Caverns
Inside Ohio Caverns

North America » United States » Ohio » Cincinnati October 15th 2016

Oh the beauty of a book festival! So excited to spend Saturday morning among other book -lovers, reading books, smelling books, talking about books. All these good things. I even got to take a photo with Little Critter from my book, "All by myself" by Mercer Mayer. Then over to the Underground Railroad Museum. It was an intense experience - detailing the slave trade, the underground railroad as well as modern-day slavery. The entire exhibits were incredible beautiful and sad and had so much detail that the entire experience was almost overwhelming. There is just so much information and the visit is entirely worth it.... read more
Sing the Queen City...
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memories of Porkopolis!




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