Ok I can't help it, I'm back already. The took approximatley 21 minutes haha. I just had to write just one more blog before I fully begin my day.. this is too good not to share.. Mia famiglia italia has a cleaning lady that comes a few times a week. A very sweet, shy lady. She speaks literally zero words in English. We obviously see alot of each other though as I am here most of the time during the day. So over the course of the last few weeks we have shared a few smiles and I have made a few attemps in my little bit of Italian to say hi, how are you, and so on. A pretty simple gesture right? Well some how it really seems to put a giant smile on her ... read more

So 9:30 AM rolls around, and for the fourth day in a row my body has awoken, without any particular reason for doing so. Although today I actually remained in bed and felt the usual "I really don't want to get out of bed this morning.." feeling come over me, I realized that for once it wasn't brought on by a lazy or pessimistic attitude. I just genuinely wanted to savour those precious last moments of still-warm blankets nestled around me. And I almost laughed to myself thinking, why would this make me lazy anyways? I don't have anywhere else in the world I need to be at this very moment. So why would I ever rush of bed to be greeted by the chilly air and the (seemingly impossible) task of brewing a piping hot ... read more

Venice is beautiful, no doubt about it. It's a fact as true as human nature. There is a reason this city was once known as "La Serenissima" (the Most Serene One). Thousands of people have been flocking to this place for centuries, to behold the spectacle that was at one time of the most influential and powerful centers in the world. The thing is, so many of these people have arrived as toursits. Spent one or two days here, maybe a week. But then they take their souvenirs and photos and they return home with simply the memories of its' gorgeous scenery. For the last month I have felt much the same. Living outside of Venice itself on the mainland, I wake up each morning to the sound of cars honking and industrial smog floating across ... read more

For most people travelling to a top tourist destination for the first time, we are heading there with an already pre-conceived notion of what to expect. An idea of the landscape, the people, the culture or the food perhaps. Most often we base this on word-of-mouth knowledge; stories that our friends & family have provided as to what that place might be like. For me travelling to Amsterdam was no different. As I am sure for many of you as well, Amsterdam was a city that I had often heard stories about, both good & bad, from all sorts of people in all walks of life. But the most common opinion or ideal which I think many of us hold is that this place: is party central. It turns out that yes in a way this ... read more

Well, it looks like I have successfully "hopped the pond" to jolly ol' England! I had quite the flight over, 1 1/2 delays in Calgary thanks to de-icing and a sick passenger. 13 babies aboard the flight, no surprise 4 of them were directly in my vicinity. However the seat beside me stayed empty so I didn't even have to share my armrest! (a giant pet peeve of mine haha). For the first time in my life I also happened to experience some air-sickness, not particularly one of my finest moments, but what can you do? Europe and I seem to have a bit of a love/hate relationship when it comes to illness and food poisoning haha. The arrival to the airport in London here has already been a bit of an adventure. I realized that ... read more