An Italian Adventure for a Special Birthday

My Aunty Ann had a very special birthday this year. She had originally planned to travel to Italy for her 50th birthday, but stupid cancer put a spanner in than plan. While I'm in no way glad she had to deal with that, I was glad we were in a position to join her when she decided to do the trip for a second time.

Sestri Levante

O'Hara was offered the opportunity to do his Project Management Professional course, so unfortunately had to make some changes to his itinerary last minute. This meant I was travelling by myself to meet my mum and Aunty in Sestri Levante, Italy. This trip was a family catch up by epic proportions. My mum and Aunty were obviously both there. My brother Callum came across, who I hadn't seen since leaving Australia the first time. My cousin Peta came for a few days, who we hadn't seen since visiting her in Europe in 2008. Clauds, who is a friend from college also was  there, so this was a fantastic week that I got to spend with family and friends.

Friends and family enjoying some beautiful days

Sestri Levante is a little village half way between Genoa and La Spezia on the Mediterranean Sea. This town is a tourist hot spot for Italians, and is slowly becoming more popular with the internationals. The day I arrived, it was the end of a long weekend and the place was buzzing. I failed a little at life when I first arrived, as I didn't have a working sim card and everything in Sestri closes between 12 and 3. I had to do some loitering outside a newsagent until they reopened so I could get a sim and text my mother. Obviously I have become completely useless without a phone, as I had no concept of pre-planning when and where to meet her. Once I was settled, I got down to important activities. Ordering cocktails and eating the free appetizers. This was easily the theme of my Italian adventure. Eating and drinking.

Our favourite things

We spent some days wandering the streets of Sestri, checking the shops, finding the best spritz cocktails, and generally relaxing. We spent a morning in La Spezia, being toured around a local farmers market. An afternoon getting soaking wet in the Cinque Terre. An evening learning how to prepare delicious Italian food. We travelled to Santa Margherita Ligure, for more shopping and eating and then travelling to Portofino for the afternoon to see how the other half (0.1%) live and more of the above. Drink. Eat. Repeat.

Cinque Terra

Farmers Markets at La Spezia

Portofino and Santa Margherita Ligure 

The fabulous trip was finished with a birthday lunch for Aunty Ann where we were able to celebrate with some lovely people in a beautiful part of the world. It would be impossible to plan a more perfect trip. Then I left my Fitbit on a table at a coffee shop on the last morning. Life fails for arrival and departure!

The wonderful company we had after Aunty Ann's Birthday lunch

I miss you all already.

Australian Invasion in Vegas

We're on our way to creating an annual Vegas trip tradition and on November Long we went on our third trip to Sin City. Activities were significantly organised by O'Hara which meant we managed to have a boy weighted weekend. Not a sad thing, as it meant we checked off a lot of bucket list items that we hadn't got around to on other trips. We also hired an 8 seater "car" for the adventures. There were 3 people in our group 6'3" and over. It was cosy.

I almost got everyone. These people wouldn't work with me!

Day 1: Shooting big guns and driving fast cars
Since we first went to Vegas, we've wanted to do this. There are a few different places you can go to shoot ridiculously unnecessary weapons, O'Hara chose the Pro Gun Club. This ended up being a really good choice. It was located about 40min away from the strip, at an outdoor range. The weather was perfect (around 24C) and it was a good morning in the sun. From memory we shot a hand gun (Glock for the girls, 50cal Desert Eagle for the boys), AK-47, grenade launcher, Uzi, sniper rifle, and a Saw.

It was bad arse, and it was fun. I learnt that I am a terrible shot, I suspect my right eye is not the dominant one even though I'm right handed. It was hard work just keeping my eye closed and the sight lined up. Epic fails. Lil was a legend at it. Jealous.

Guns and big bullet shells. Super bad arse.

After guns, O'Hara, Clint and Greg went to drive race cars. O'Hara wasn't too impressed with his skills. Apparently he spend half the time trying to change gears by turning high beam on. I don't think I need to worry about him quitting his day job. I spent the afternoon drinking margaritas by the pool with Joey. Super class and another check of my Vegas bucket list.

O'Hara et moi

Day 2: Valley of Fires
The first time we went to Vegas we did a trip out to the Grand Canyon and since then we've wanted to explore more of the outer areas. There really is so much to see in that area and surrounds. We tossed up between Death Valley and the Valley of Fires. In the end VoF won out as it was only a 45min drive away. We couldn't guarantee not being hungover and sleeping in, so chose the one that was easiest to get to. It was beautiful. If you're lucky I'll put some of Lil's (much nice) photos up, so you can get a better feel!

This is our crew. We are amazing.

This was a good choice. VoF is a spectacular place, with the beautiful red rocks keeping us entertained into to the late afternoon. We didn't even end up seeing Lake Mead which we were planning on going to for a picnic. We did see 4,000 year old petroglyphs that were very cool. It makes me angry at society that some were vandalised, but it's amazing how these have lasted. We also managed to get two takes of "What Does the Moose Say?" in. That was special. We left at 11, so if you want to spend a full day there I'd recommend going a bit earlier. Picnic or not, we had a lovely day and didn't allow blood sugars to get too low. It was a little touch and go towards the end there.

The ones who didn't have to climb to the highest point, and 4000 year old petroglyphs.

Eatings:
We ate some delicious meals out with one dinner being at the Tapas restaurant in the Cosmopolitan and another Fleur at Mandalay Bay. I managed to eat myself into a literal food coma on the last night. It wasn't pretty. It's nice eating out at good restaurants though, as we don't get that opportunity in Kamloops.

Gamings:
Our first night we made a trip out to Fremont St to give the newbies an idea of old Vegas. As always it didn't fail to disappoint. That place is not G Rated. There were flashing nuns, a creepy guy with a lady on a leash, a "firewoman" and an old guy dressed as a slutty angel just to name a few. It was dirty, cheap and amazing. We still didn't win big.

Steph did a good job as shooter. Probs got us up 5 bucks. Jackpot!

We sucked at Craps. We continue to not follow our plan of only playing at tables that look like they're having a good time. We'd get bored and just choose a table at the casino we are at. We had a couple of low wins, but mostly just losses. Clint was convinced Joey was bad luck... then she won $300 in the pokies (slots). Jel.

A beautiful moment, and a beautiful view.

We stayed at the Cosmopolitan, which is a really good time. It's nice staying in a fancy hotel even if you don't spend a lot of time in your room. When you're wandering back to your room, it's a good opportunity to explore. I swear I didn't take the same route more than twice.

Yuma and LA is Work and Fun

I got lucky and got to go on a work trip to Yuma, Arizona last week. We had an Environmental Managers Meeting with all the different mines and I did an ISO14001 presentation. It was really fun times, and a great experience for me. It was also incredible to catch up with my old boss from Cobar, and another friend from there who moved to Yuma.

In Yuma we went for dinner at this place called Burgers and Beer. It was about as delicious as you would expect. I had a burger with mushrooms and beer battered chips. WOW. Apparently it's a locally owned "chain" with only a few restaurants around Arizona. The guy has been approached multiple times with offers to franchise but he's kept it local. Respect to that man! I also managed to embarrass myself by crying in front of EVERYONE. The Director of Environment is retiring, and Dennis made a small speech and got everyone around the table to do the same.... I opened my mouth, and that somehow opened the flood gates. I have no control! I owe that man A LOT. He's someone that is super personal, even as a Director. I first met him as a grad, and even though I was a minion he was always willing to listen to my ideas. He also was a major player in getting me to Canada so I'm forever grateful!

Having a cheeky rest by the pool and late night In 'n' Out

Tears aside (4 times on a work trip, too much??), Yuma "The Sunniest Place in the World", Arizona was a pretty cool place to visit. We got to swim in the pool between meetings and in the afternoon and it was awesome to be able to site outside at night for the first time in about 7 months!

After Yuma, Higgo (one of my Australian friends) and I went to LA where I got to catch up with Rachel and Andy. Times like these I am so thankful to be living in North America. I love that I get to see my American friends more regularly!

Santa Monica

Higgo and I did a bike ride along the beach from Santa Monica to just after Venice. I'd never made it that far along as we'd previously left from Manhattan Beach. I miss beachside living when I'm in California. A lot! After the bike we stopped for sparkling and oysters at a rooftop wine bar. It couldn't have been nicer.

Such a good day and night!

After sufficient morning sun, I had a nap on the beach before Rachel and Andy's BBQ. I got to catch up with some of their friends who we've gotten to know over the last few years which was lovely. Also Rachel makes delicious cocktails! They were deadly but amazing and I'm inspired for summer drinks. I'm looking forward to our next visit!!

Camping at Clearwater - May Long

First, I am writing this from Kamloops airport because Air Canada is the worst airline ever. My first flight of three was delayed, which means significant airport waiting and missing out on delish dinner plans. I would be less sad about the whole situation if they had some level of customer service, they could have done any number of things, an upgrade, access to the lounge, food and drink vouchers, any voucher?! But no, it's just a "sorry for the mix up". Of course if I was a man and didn't have stupid girl emotions, I would be able to chuck the shits. Instead I cry. Air Canada, I really hate you. If Canada wasn't so stupidly protectionist and had competition I would NEVER fly you.

Anyway! Luckily I have just returned from a relaxing long weekend, camping at Wells Gray National Park. Wells Gray is about 2 hours north of Kamloops. I love Canadians views on the weather, I think I was told at least 10 times that it was going to be freezing (going 2 hours NORTH and all). Apparently May Long Weekend you're supposed to go south, to find that warm weather?! It's not like we just came out of 3-4 months of minus temperatures or anything. So, it wasn't cold at all. I think it was in the 20s during the day, and I slept in a tent no problems at night. I bought all my thermals but didn't ever need them.

We had two short sun showers. No big deal!

This was my first tent experience in Canada, and probably the first since a Falls Festival however many years ago. I'm not going to lie, I was a little scared I was going to get eaten by bears. Wells Gray is supposed to be home of the bears, including Grizzlies! I made sure I didn't keep anything that could be construed as a bear snack in my tent. I needn't have worried, I only saw one bear the entire trip and only because I got up to go to the toilet around 6am and the lady who ran the site saw me and took me for a spin on her golf cart to see one. No babies though.

Skipping rocks across the river and stick races

We went for a mini walk along a cliff to see a fantastic view of Helmcken Falls. There's a lookout on one side, and also a short hike on the other. We did both, but the hike definitely had the view. The sun was right behind us so we had some fantastic waterfall rainbows.

On the left from the safe lookout, the right.. that dodgy cliff you can see in the first photo!

Prom pose and the ladies perched on the edge!

Steph had a fantastic set-up for dinner. We ate so well! It makes me like camping much more. Sadly O'Hara had to work so he wasn't there to test out his chef skills at the camp ground. I also tried s'mores for the first time. You know what? They are freaking disgusting! I don't like graham crackers for one, and Hershey's chocolate is revolting. It's so overly sweet it was just gross. Perhaps I would have developed the taste if I started eating them at a young age? I was so disappointed. It was something I'd been looking forward to!

Lil risking her life on the dodgy jetty and my perfect s'more that tasted shit

You can see Lil's jetty skills HERE. It's hilarious.

I think it's possible we've had the last of the nice weather before rainy June gets here. I'm concerned my flight may be further delayed as there is a severe thunderstorm warning in Kamloops today. Hurrah! I hope my office window is fixed, I did a HUGE happy dance when it was installed last week until two hours later when I had a significant water feature in my office. It was almost as premature as the happy dance I did when I totally made it to first base in softball... only to be called out (a few times as I was clearly not listening). The shame!

Canada Further East: Niagara Falls, Toronto and Fredericton

Finally finishing up the rest of our trip over East! We took the 10 hour trip from New York to Niagara, nice enough scenery but probably would have been better flying to Toronto. Trains make me so, SO sleepy. A 10 hour trip during the day had me sleeping around 70% of the time. Of course by the time we made it to Niagara I was EXHAUSTED!!

Niagara Falls, Ontario
The time of year that we visited was nice because it wasn't crowded at all, and also wasn't too cold. However, because Niagara Falls is actually a huge hydro electric dam they turn the flow down during the winter months. The Niagara Falls Power Company is required to maintain a minimum flow going over the falls, during summer days it's around 2,800m3 and during winter and at night time it's 1,400m3. So this meant we technically only saw the falls at half speed, but that's still a lot of water!

Beautiful Falls at night

They're thiiiiiissssss big!

Niagara Falls is a little bit like a small Vegas - casinos and tourist shops. We only spent one night there, but I think if you go for a few days it's worth while getting out of town and visiting the lakes and vineyard areas.

A prime example of the discrepancy between Canada and the USA. On the US side 1/4 price to use the binoculars!

Toronto, Ontario
O'Hara is in LOVE with Toronto. I think it's because we went all out with respect to food for the short time we were there. Toronto doesn't seem as hectic as other big cities nearby, but it has an awesome amount of diversity which means the variety of food is amazing. We also saw some fabulous design stores, which made us pretty happy. I can't wait to find a house we plan to live in for a long time and stock it with cool stuff. We'll have to go back to Toronto.

We checked out the Hockey Hall of Fame while there, and got to touch the Stanley Cup (NHL winners cup)!! Pretty cool, O'Hara is really disappointed with himself that he didn't lick it though. The Hockey Hall of Fame room was designed to be a bank. Canada decided that as hockey was going to be an integral part of it's culture, they would instead turn the building into a memorial hall of cups and best players. Only in Canada!

Emily with the Stanley Cup and the hectic vault used to store the old one

Australian Kangaroo (where else?) and a pretty church

Fredericton, New Brunswick
My little brother has just moved to Fredericton to do a semester of uni and be with his girlfriend (also Emily, great name). Fredericton is the capital of New Brunswick but it's a reasonably small town with about 30,000 people. Fredericton has a lot of French and English heritage which has lead to some beautiful downtown areas and architecture. The day we arrived there was a huge snowstorm which meant we had to circle the plane for an hour before landing, and also meant it was picture perfect when we got there.

On our first night O'Hara was convinced he should eat the Epic Burger at a local pub. This consisted of 2 pounds of beef, cheese curds, bacon, bacon, bacon and gravy. He ate it ALL! Epic effort alright. He didn't feel 100% that night, but lived through the ordeal without having a heart attack. The next day we went for a road trip out to the worlds longest covered bridge! Yep, it's a real thing in Hartland, New Brunswick.

Epic burger. Now you see it, now you don't!

Longest covered bridge. O'Hara's excited

GF Emily's family were kind enough to include us in decorating the Christmas Tree, which was a nice feeling as we didn't have a chance to get one in Kamloops. The day after, we spent with Jonathan exploring the scenic areas of Fredericton on foot. I finally found someone who slips on the ice more than me! Finally, and it's a good feeling.

Lovely duets and Christmas Tree

Of course all Australians want to do is find huge ice blocks and throw them off the bridge

Walking the the park with all the snow. So beautiful!

On our last day we went to the Farmers markets (they run all through winter which is awesome). There was a lot of local arts and crafts as well as food which was cool. I'm sad I didn't buy a pair of moose leather moccasins. I think I'll get Jonathan to pick me up a pair!

For dinner we went to Kings Landing, which is a historic settlement just out of Fredericton. The government was building a dam back in the day that would have flooded all the houses, so they picked them up and moved them! It's now an outdoor living museum. We had a traditional Christmas dinner that was wonderful and delicious. People came and sung us carols and made Jonathan (the only one not drinking) dance. Awesome!

Breakfast lobster roll at the markets, and Kings Landing dinner!

New York City. Best

New York City was on my Bucket List, just like I'm sure it is for so many people. My Aunty Ann told me before I left, that it was one of her favourite cities in the word. She's been travelling the world my whole life, so to say this made it a big deal. It took about 4 hours from getting off the plane, for me to fall in love. Finally I could understand the t-shirts and handbags. I honestly do love New York.

We stayed in the Financial District at Holiday Inn Wall St for 5 nights. We got a sweet deal on Hotwire with a secret room, I would definitely recommend that. My little brother was staying with us, so it was cosy but awesome value.

We caught the subway and walked a lot. Every night around 5pm we were exhausted and found ourselves in a random drinking establishment, resting our feet until a beer or two boosted our second wind. It was early December which turned out to be a perfect time to visit. The weather was mild, the crowds were virtually non-existent and the holiday season was well and truly there. O'Hara's Mum sent us a New York Pass for 3 days, which meant we could pretty much do everything pre-paid! Thanks Mumma and Pappa O'Hara!

Highlights of our trip included (this will be long.... it was basically everything we did);

• Black and White Picasso exhibition at the Guggenheim - I LOVE Picasso. O'Hara learns to love it after spending a while walking around. Ask him today though and he'll probably say he doesn't.
• Little Italy - Obsessed. The food, the decorations, the feel. We came here on our first night for dinner, ate at the original Vince's Restaurant. Had the best tomato pasta sauce ever (sorry Dad). We took Jonathan there on our last night for dessert. Win.
• Macy's flagship store at Herald Square - Christmas Magic
• Paella, sangria and churros con chocolate - We'd been on the hunt for churros con chocolate for months. Socarrat Paella Bar delivered.
• Jazz, wine and martinis - We went to the Village Vanguard for Monday night Jazz. We realised we were on a good thing when we met someone out the front who had been coming to the bar since he was 17. He is now 68. I love how Jazz has the ability to completely transport you to a different time. We felt like we were in the 50's drinking red wine and martinis and listening to Jazz in a club underground. It was wonderful.
• Central Park, Christmas markets and ice skating - Is Central Park the coolest place ever? Possibly. We seemed to end up walking through there at least once a day. The Christmas markets were on while we were there. Hot chocolate, truffles, hot apple cider, bratwurst, macarons and pretty things. Perfect.
• American Museum of Natural History - We saw the whale that Barney knocked down. This museum was huge!
• Times Square - at night, during the day, it doesn't even matter. 
• Catching up with Matt and Mim - Drinks with friends. Impossible to go wrong. It was fantastic to see these guys after so long. O'Hara and Jonathan hit the 10% beers, which ended about as well as you'd expect.
• 5th Avenue - Jonathan and O'Hara were hugely hungover, guess from when? They managed a quick wander through Tiffany and Co and found the lovely granite drinking fountain. Classy.
• Water Taxi - it was slightly chilly, but not too much that we couldn't sit up and watch the Statue of Liberty. She's beautiful. Unfortunately you couldn't go up inside her head because of Sandy, her island needed some repair. We also caught the ferry across to Brooklyn and had delicious pizza. It may have been a tourist trap, but it didn't matter because the pizza was worth it.
• Wall Street - We wanted to go inside the NYSE but didn't work that out. O'Hara and Jonathan got up close and personal with the bull. It was packed with people wanting to rub it's balls. A bit like the big marino I think. Strange!
• Brooklyn Bridge - crossed this bad boy a couple of times. Got in other peoples way doing jump photos. Took a thousand of our own. I think it's impossible to take a bad photo in New York. It's all just too pretty
• Ground Zero and Freedom Tower - Ground Zero was emotional, Freedom Tower is impressive. It's so sad looking at the Manhattan skyline, never having seen the Twin Towers. The Freedom Tower is an impressive skyscraper. It'll be amazing when completed.
• Empire State Building - We only splashed around the lobby, and instead went up the Rock. It meant we could see the Empire State Building from the sky. Awesome!
• All the pubs - We went to some cute little drinking establishments. It made me miss living in a bigger city.

Our only major fail was catching the train back to New York after Boston, rather than just flying straight to Toronto. I think we got confused when deciding where we were going and how to get to Fredericton. However it happened, it cost us an extra day and a half and around $300.... oops. At least we got a nice scenic train ride. Can I please move to the New England coast. So beautiful!

We really had the best time there. A holiday where major highlights are eating and drinking is always going to be brilliant, New York seemed to bring everything we needed in a city. Take me back!

O'Hara and Jonathan enjoying brews at some favourite pubs

Sweet treats! The macarons are the same brand (Vendome) they use for the Clinique ads

Maybe causing our own trouble at the museum. The blue whale stayed attached

Old wooden escalator at Macy's and Times Square

Beautiful buildings and bridges everywhere

Pizza in Brooklyn and the Statue of Liberty. All in a few hours

Manhattan at night and Jonathan being a ham

Hungover boys do not like been dragged around the town

Boston, Massachusetts

This is an out of order post but writing about New York will take me way too long. O'Hara and I are currently using up our annual leave on a two week trip to the East Coast of the US and Canada. If anyone is wondering it's a fantastic time to visit. There are minimum crowds as we're just before the winter school/uni break, the weather is still quite mild (though potentially unseasonably so), and everything is decorated for Christmas.

We were so excited to catch up with some friends in Boston. Connor (who I used to work with in Sydney) lives with his wonderful fiancée Karen there. While we were on the East Coast we couldn't pass up an opportunity to visit them. They are getting married next year in Wisconsin. So. Excited.

Boston is a pretty nifty little city. I had no idea how much of the American Revolution stemmed from there. It was also lovely to be in a city built with red bricks after being on the Wood West Coast for the last 9 months. We only had one full day there, so decided to walk the Freedom Trail. We downloaded a free app, which had info on the major points along the way. You can do guided tour, with dressed up guides as well, that looked quite fun.

Some footage from the oldest park in the USA

Boston has the oldest Park in the USA, and the first public school in the US that Benjamin Franklin and 3 other signers of the Declaration of Independence went to. We followed the little red line for around 2 hours, ending up at the USS Constitution.

O'Hara and the USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned warship still afloat. Undefeated. Legend

Connor and Karen took us for a delicious seafood dinner at Legal Sea Foods near the water, oysters from the East Coast were amazing. O'Hara ordered Lobster Roll and Clam Chowder, not bad for a boy who didn't like seafood when I met him. I had fried clams which are also a New England thing. So much deliciousness.

Tragically while we were in Boston, the Sandy Hook massacre occurred. We didn't realise until the afternoon when catching a cab home and heard it on the radio. Unsurprisingly everyone is devastated. It breaks our hearts hearing about it, and we have tried to avoid watching the news. 2012 has been a year of ups and downs for us. Our wedding and moving to Canada we're great, but we've lost two wonderful people from our lives, had close friends deal with tragic loss and this was another event in 2012 that has changed how we view each day. I honestly believe the Mayans may have been onto something as this has been a tough year for me personally.

I'm looking forward to 2013!

Sleepless in Seattle

It wasn't necessarily sleepless for the reasons you may think. It was mostly because we were in a room with 4 people and 2 double beds. The room was huge, so it was completely unnecessary to have doubles but that's how it was.

Canada celebrates Remembrance Day with a public holiday, so we decided to head to Seattle for the long weekend. Kamloops can get a little stranded during the winter as the Coquihalla Highway is a death trap, so there won't be many more trips westward until next spring.

Poor Wheels (our bad arse car) bore the brunt of the trip even worse than our credit cards. Someone shredded a tyre before we came through and it was obviously still on the road. The person in front of us flicked it up and it smashed the front of Wheels! Luckily the car still ran fine and we didn't crash but it was scary and sad.

Seattle was so fun! We were busy little bees and packed our days with tourist activities. So what did we learn?

1. A brewery tour that only has three stops will be plenty to get you wasted.

The second stop...

Inappropriate

2. Seattle was able to build it's downtown streets up at the second level on prostitutes taxes.

We can be happy underground

Underneath and on top!

3. College football is ridiculously extravagant. The $80 for my nosebleed ticket paid for some pretty fancy marching band shapes. Watching this performance as an outsider was entertaining, does anyone know a country that is as patriotic as the US? North Korea perhaps? It was a little much for Canadians and Australians who rate patriotism alongside boganism.

Ameri-boner

Trying to stay warm and awake

4. The Tutankhamun exhibition will not let you walk in off the street at 10am, instead you need to buy tickets for 5pm. Even then it'll be chock a block with people. Ancient Egypt was cool.

5. $2.99 for bar snacks during happy hour isn't dodgy. Instead they will be delicious!

6. Don't give drunk people weapons and let them eat crab. Neighbouring tables may get more than they bargained for. It's also totally possible to over eat crab. Hammer Time!

Hammer Time!

7. I tire out from shopping way too fast. O'Hara makes me look good, but with girls I'm the first to need the man seat.

8. Driving the Coq at night time when it's snowing is the scariest thing I've ever done in my life. You know when they travel at light speed in Star Wars? It's exactly like that. You can't see that you're moving, in fact it looks like you're going backwards. You can't feel that you're moving and the car doesn't move right. Cue sobbing "I don't like this, I don't like this!!!!!"

America, thanks for showing us an awesome weekend. See you in a month!