Blogs from North America - page 19

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North America » Canada » Quebec October 20th 2023

I continued to visit places all around the region. A- Ferme Regis in Joliette: this was an old farm turned into a fruits and vegetables store. All around the store, that looks like a big barn, are history pieces like various old gardening tools and tractors. It's like shopping in a museum. B- Apple picking in St-Jean de Matha. With the start of fall season, comes the harvest season for most of apple varieties. Apart from being an industry in itself, many orchards allow visitors to pick their own apples. It's now a tradition and a family event in my country. C- Migrating birds. With fall season comes the migration of many birds. Some are small and cute and some are noisy and let their presence known. Check this group of Canada geese and ducks on ... read more
Old tractor at ferme Regis
Apple picking
Little frog in spinach leaves

North America » United States » Missouri » Springfield October 18th 2023

We are traveling to Hawaii soon!! Kamie will be turning 50 on our trip. He’s dubbed this trip his “Hawaii 5-O” How did Hawaii come about? About this time last year we started talking about trying to see all 50 states. In December, I got an email for a deal on Hawaii that included flights. I booked it without realizing it was a SIX hour flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu and we were stuck in economy seats (Lord Help Us). I kept the trip a secret from Kamie for over six months. This was supposed to be his surprise Birthday trip! He’s now calling this trip his Hawaii 5-O trip because he will turn the big 50 years old on this trip!! Anywho… we will fly from Springfield… to Los Angeles… spend the night in ... read more
Mr Grumpy

North America » United States October 18th 2023

We leave Florida today to meet our niece and her husband in Savannah. Without exception, everyone we have talked to about Savannah has given the city rave reviews. There really is no end to beautiful, historic, charming, quirky and just plain interesting things to experience. I plan to see huge crystals and regular sized ghosts. Maybe a day at the beach with a fresh seafood lunch. (For those of you who don't know, facing my fear of seafood is difficult, thank you tartar sauce, lemon and tabasco.) We have a week in an AirBnB in the city and it will be nice to stay in one place for more than a day or two. Not to mention that John and I will have two other people to talk to! This trip has been so good. We ... read more
Low profile night life
City Center
Northgate

North America » Canada » British Columbia » Vancouver October 18th 2023

Vancouver is a great city and very similar to San Francisco. There were lovely green spaces in every city we visited but Vancouver really has some terrific parks and gardens and some amazing mushrooms after the rain started. The VanDusen Botanical Garden was worth several hours of exploring, and the nearby Bloedel Conservatory within Queen Elizabeth Park had some great birds in a small space. If you have fewer than three days, though, you'll have to miss all that and focus on Gas Town, with its famous Steam Clock, and Chinatown, with delicious Chinese food and the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, and the Vancouver Art Gallery, with its rotating exhibits and Emily Carr paintings. You need to make time for Granville Island Public Market, at least... read more
Vancouver
Vancouver
Bald Eagle


Victoria is Canada's second most romantic city. If you have more than three days in Vancouver then Victoria is absolutely worth a visit, but getting there requires about four hours of travel each way; if you can stay overnight in Victoria it will result in a much more relaxed and fulfilling trip but if you only have one day it can still be done. While both Victoria and Vancouver both have harbors the ferry between them is far outside of town on both sides, so you'll find yourself on four long bus rides or expensive (and only slightly shorter) taxi rides, in addition to two lovely ferry crossings between Tsawwassen (Vancouver) and Swartz Bay (Victoria). Book your ferry tickets in advance, especially if you will be bringing a car, and hope for clear skies so that ... read more
Butchart Gardens
Butchart Gardens
Afternoon tea at the Butchart Gardens

North America » United States » Alaska » Sitka October 16th 2023

After sailing out of Vancouver we cruised up the Inside Passage. This is such a delight because it’s in protected waters and there is an abundance of sea life, bird life and beautiful scenery along the way. Happily for us the weather was dry and quite balmy the whole first week of our cruise. In Ketchikan, our first port, we escorted our group on a Distinctive Voyages land tour. We were fortunate with the timing because the salmon were running. We saw thousands and thousands of salmon making their way up rivers and creeks in order to spawn. It was mesmerizing to watch their determination to hop up the swim ladders and over the rocks and rapids to reach their final destination. We visited the Saxman Tlingit Native Village and learned about their history and the ... read more
CRUISING THE LOVELY INSIDE PASSAGE
DOCKSIDE IN KETCHIKAN
KNOW YOUR SALMON

North America » United States » Hawaii » Oahu » Honolulu October 16th 2023

NOTE – On 15 OCT 2023, we had made port in Nawiliwili, Kauai, Hawaii, but most of the tours on this rugged island involved hiking or snorkeling. Even the pier area looked industrial and uninviting for a casual stroll, so I stayed aboard ship. No photos from aboard ms Noordam. Tour Day 9, Cruise Day 9, Honolulu, Hawaii – Pearl Harbor, Honolulu & the Mighty Mo Tour (6.5 hours) – Re-live history with a visit to Pearl Harbor and view the battleship, USS Missouri. At the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center, view a 20-minute film depicting the events of the 1941 pearl harbor attack. Don't miss this chance to visit the battleship USS Missouri -- the grand ship also known as Mighty Mo. This is where the Japanese signed the surrender document that ended World War ii ... read more
USS Arizona Memorial
USS Arizona Memorial
USS Arizona Memorial

North America » United States October 15th 2023

We had originally made plans to travel south along 101 at the beginning of our trip, however the weather was not with us thwre were 35 feet waves crashing the shores and high winds, which is why we headed south and east. Imagine a 364 mile journey through one of Americas great wonderland, with wind sculptured coastlines, historic lighthouses and bridges, and world class recreational activities at nearly every mile post. This is the Oregon coastal road. The fact that we arrived at the same time as warmer weather and a long holiday weekend turned out to be a bonus. The coast experiences the wettest and windiest of the weather in Oregon, making for a dramatic coast line. As a result of all this weather the whole of the coastline is dotted with lighthouses dating back ... read more
Neptune state scenic view point
Thorns Well trail
Devil's Churn, Thors Well

North America » United States » Nebraska » Scottsbluff October 15th 2023

We traveled to the park a day early as a storm with high winds was forecast for our original departure date. Once settled in, we drove into Scottsbluff and Mike got a haircut and we both got flu vaccines. Gusts were in the mid 40's by afternoon, though. We stay settled in the RV until Friday afternoon. After the wind calmed down a little, we enjoyed walking a few laps around the RV park to get some exercise. We let it warm up on Saturday and then headed to Scottsbluff National Monument. First, we toured the museum and watched the short video. Then, we drove up to the parking lot at the top of the bluff. The 1.6 mile drive up is through 3 tunnels in the bluff. At the top of the plateau, we hiked ... read more
Robidoux RV Park
Scottsbluff National Monument
Scottsbluff National Monument

North America » Canada October 15th 2023

Our two week trip began in Quebec City and ended in Vancouver, and we traveled by train through Canada with additional stops in Montreal and Toronto. For our longest journey we caught the trans-continental Canadian, which links Toronto, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Jasper & Vancouver twice a week year-round over four nights using original stainless-steel coaches built for the Canadian Pacific Railway's Canadian in 1954-55. I showed up for our train ride to Vancouver expecting four days of relaxation and hoping for lots of beautiful autumn foliage. Yet I was kept occupied by the beautiful vistas continually passing by and by my attempts to capture photos of a portion of it, as well as by multiple Canadian murder mysteries. We started off along the Great Canadian Shield, where the best fall foliage was to be found, across the ... read more
VIA Rail Canada
VIA Rail Canada
VIA Rail Canada




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