hayley and mick

We were set for 4 days in Chiang Mai. We got an absolute bargain through Wotif.com on the Centara Duangtawan hotel. A very plush 4 star hotel for 50 bucks a night instead of $250. Fully equipped with everything that you need. However for most things such as food and internet, you would walk less than 100 metres and find it for 20% of the price. The location was perfect though, as the famous “Night Bazaar” was less than 200 metres away. The Night Bazaar is a nightly market where you can buy everything from food to designers clothes, sunglasses and watches (All genuine of course…..). This first night we just strolled around to get a feel for things. Our second day involved a tour into the outskirts of Chiang Mai where Hayley fulfilled a dream ... read more

After having a fantastic time in Boston, it was back to the Big Apple for the final couple of days of our trip. The first priority was to fulfill on of Hayley's dreams of a Horse and Carriage ride through Central Park. It didn't start particularly well with Hayley dropping her ice cream before boarding. However it was a lovely evening, with our friendly Irish driver. He pointed out many of the historical points within and around the park, but it was the sound of the horse clip clopping along, with us snuggled up in the back, that made for a relaxing night. The next day, we set off on foot to further explore Central Park. We were joined by thousands of other people that day, as central park is the finishing point for the NYC ... read more

After spending a night in Moncton, we headed off towards St John. Along the way, we returned to the Bay of Fundy and Hopewell Rocks to check out the height of the water on the rising tide. After hanging around for a couple of hours, we thought that looking a dirty water was not as spectacular as we would have hoped. Upon arrival to St John we were met by our host, Debbie who informed us of a monthly art gallery tour, that was being held that night. We went along and enjoyed complimentary beer and wine while we appreciating some of the art. We just hung out with Debbie for the rest of the night which was fantastic. In the morning Debbie took us for a quick tour around town. St John has a fantastic ... read more

Halifax is the home of Canada’s best beer, Alexander Keith’s and also home of man’s largest explosion prior to the atomic bomb. This occurred when two boats collided, one of the boats had a full cargo of ammunition. We had originally planned on staying with a friend from Jasper but when she was no longer available we put out an emergency host request on couchsurfing hoping that someone was feeling charitable. Luckily for us Wayne took us in. Undoubtedly Wayne was one of our most memorable hosts, very unique (but in a good way), very frank and highly comicable! One evening we paid a visit to the Maritime Musuem of the Atlantic which housed an excellent collection of real sailing boats and a good Titanic exhibit. We followed that by a tour of the Alexander Kieth’s ... read more

After a late start and a day of driving we arrived at dusk to Quebec City where we met our very energetic CS host George. He was a born joker and at the same time, so very intelligent. We had a night in with wonderful food, a bottle of red and some great conversation. After waking, we quick got ready and set off for the Old City. Quebec is one of the only cities in the world to still have its city wall still intact. Once you walk inside the walls, it doesn’t feel like you are in North America any more. The charming old buildings as well hearing the French language everywhere makes you fell as though you are across the Atlantic. Most of our day was spent wandering around, just absorbing the atmosphere. Atop ... read more