New Zealand

From January-May of 2008, I was traveling Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia. This was one of the biggest things I had done for myself at the time, and so many incredible experiences and friendships came from it.

It would take way too long to go into any detail about everything, or even about just one of the places, so here is a very summarized summary of New Zealand and its highlights!

I landed in Auckland, NZ, and my friend Tim picked me up (I cannot say how nice it was to stay with a local for the first couple weeks)! He is a club dj, so I got to experience the NZ nightlife first hand (afterhours clubs stay open til 5pm). We went to sand dunes, vineyards, saw some of the oldest trees in the world (sounds lame but they were gigantic and rad!), and ate some good food (which I wasn't going to be able to afford for a long time after I set off).
I took off on to the Kiwi bus and the first day travelling I met the four people who I ended up traveling the entire time with! It's way too long to tell everything we did but I could list a few of the highlights of the North Island: Cathedral Cove (beautiful!); luge and haka in Rotorua; tubing in the glowworm caves at Waitomo; SKYDIVING, karaoke, and too many crazy nights in Lake Taupo; 18 km hike through Lord of the Rings scenery at the Tongariro Crossing; and my 20th birthday (not remembering a single thing of it) in Wellington.


On to the South Island: Abel Tasman National Park, driving on the other side of the road, and sunshine in Nelson; Climbing a glacier (and wrecking my knees) at Franz Josef; Canyon swing, boys with kilts, and 2 weeks of debauchery in Queenstown; and the farewell of everyone who ended up in our "family" in the very European Christchurch.
New Zealand is an incredible country with endless things to do and see. The people are very nice and similar to Canadians (as is some of the scenery). I would recommend a trip like this to anyone who likes to have fun! This is a trip that is very easy to do alone, so don't be afraid to do so!

Elyse :)

Driving to Vegas!

This summer me and one of my good friends are planning a two week trip to Vegas. The only thing is I don't really like to fly so we are going the scenic route...Driving! If we were to just drive straight there it would take about 24 hours. But we wont be driving straight there, there will be a few stops on the way.



One of the places we are going to stop at is Salt Lake City for 2 days to check things out there then go to Vegas for the rest of the trip. Then we will stop anywhere else we think will be fun. We are just kinda going to wing it and hope everything goes well. The only thing certain about the trip is that we are booking hotels in Vegas. When we get to Vegas I wanted to do the Nascar driving but after hearing Wade's story about the helicopter ride, I think that would be a way better choice. It should be a great two weeks of just the ladies.

Round-the-World tix!

Has everyone heard of these?

Round-the-World (or RTW) tickets are a great way to see the world for a fraction of the cost. The ticket is valid for up to a year and you can have anywhere from three to 20 stops along the way! There is a mileage limit for each level of the ticket (to prevent zig-zagging), and you may only travel in one direction (no back-tracking) ie. if you fly from Vancouver to Tokyo you could not fly backwards to Honolulu, you must continue traveling west. Many airlines have partnered together to give the traveller many options and opportunity to see as many places as possible! This ticket is a great way to see many of the less-travelled destinations that are difficult and expensive to get to (think Easter Island or Tahiti!) and also an economic option for the ambitious traveller.

Almost everyone I met traveling who were from Great Britain were travelling on the RTW ticket. All of them had just graduated high school and were taking a year off to travel before "uni." They were all doing the same route as well! London-->NYC-->LA-->New Zealand-->Australia-->Thailand/Bali/Cambodia/SE Asia-->Dubai-->London ... or something alone those lines! What a great experience!

I have always wanted to do this but never really had a travel buddy to do so with. I've been planning many different routes in my head ever since I found out about it, so after graduation it is definitely going to happen!

Links:

http://www.roundtheworldticket.com/
http://www.gapyearabroad.ca/03-%20Travel/Round%20The%20World%20Tickets.asp
http://www.canuckabroad.com/around-the-world-tickets/around-world-flights.html

Elyse :)

Oldest Pub In England

I went to this pub when I was an exchange student in England, when I was 18. I love to go to places with history and learn about them, and this was definitely a place with some history. It said to be the site of the original brew house from the Nottingham castle. The pubs name was originally named "Pilgrim" and the first dated record goes back to 1618. If you happen to be headed to Nottingham, England I would highly recommend stopping by the pub. Not only is it a great place to stop, grab a drink and relax, but the food is pretty good as well. While your there you can also take your chances with the "cursed ship" they have hanging from the ceiling. Supposedly if you touch it you will suffer an untimely death, I was tempted but couldn't muster up the courage to do it while I was there.

favorite place to get groceries in edmonton

what is your favorite place in Edmonton to get groceries and why? what is the best quality and best in price.

well i like sobeys for a quick stop of basic stuff

1. sobeys

i also like thje italian market in little italy i think haha but ya its got best prices of cheeses breads pastas and always fresh and lots of organic options

2. italian market

who doesnt like Costco honestly aside from the obserd lines the tasters (yum) and bulk is good in alot of household catagories. i like getting mouthwash in bulk, cheese, precut fresh vvegatables, all the houshold cleaning supplies, stuffed salmon (BEST EVER) and the list goes on cost is the shiznit

3. Costco

Favorite Edmonton Dinner out for 1 Person under $15... thoughts

Soi figured we coulod share thoughts about ur favorite place to eat for 1 or 2 persons about 15$ each before tip.

numb 1. Pho hoa gung in china town - 2 beef pho soup real big n yummy 7.50 each :)

2. Sushi place 63 ave 99st NE corner strip mall - best fresh sushi at reasonable price

order tuna maki, salmon maki and caliornia rolls 14.50 for all and made fresh and good portions

3. High volatage donair n Subs calgary trail gateway blvd inbetween by the dealerships owned by this greek family such good food and good quality ingrediants and the biggest sandwich u can eat the bigfoot High voltage size its $11 and a hole loaf of bread and meat and cheese about 3.5lbs... delicious

Middle East

At the very top of my list of places to go are certain countries in the Middle East. I've always been interested in going places most don't care for, and ever since reading the lonelyplanet book Bad Lands by Tony Wheeler, the interest was, as odd as it is, heightened. There's just something about the ancient history and completely different culture that I have always been curious about. These are my top 3!

1) Turkey: perfect contrast of bustling metropolis, beautiful beaches, empire history, and most of all, the caves of Cappadocia.

2) Jordan: Petra! Who wouldn't want to ride camels through an ancient kingdom?

3) Israel: beautiful scenery, unreal nightlife, and amazing people! Not to mention all that "stuff" that went on in the past ;) I had two teachers in junior high who took six months traveling through Israel after university. They said it was the most frightening and amazing experience of their lives, and if any of us had any interest in it or ever had the chance to do the same, we should definitely do it! One day...



Tourism is developing more and more in these places. Not only are they seen as hot destinations for beaches and sun, but the public's general interest in visiting countries that were once "forbidden" is now growing. There is less fear than before, and more desire for doing something different. Decreased prices in flights and hotels are a result of more airlines flying to these destinations, resulting in more opportunity to visit these amazing places!

Elyse :)