Throwback Thursday-Toronto Boat Cruise!

Another throwback post to Toronto! Now, I don't know about you guys, but I LOVE Groupon for fun activities to do in new (or re-visited) cities. They can also be a lot of fun for locals who want to try something new and interesting, but don't want to invest too much into the activity.

For Toronto, we met up with a friend from Korea, who lived in Vancouver, and moved to Toronto (and is now back in Vancouver again) who we try to see regularly. She is always down for just about anything new, so we took a tall-mast boat tour of the Toronto harbor! 

The price was pretty decent ($15 or so per person), the tour lasted an hour, and they had music, fun activities, food and drinks available for purchase, and some great views of the Toronto skyline. There are sunset tours, and a dinner tour available as well, but this basic tour is the cheapest option available. 

I don't know if they have any more groupons offered, but the website for the company is http://www.tallshipcruisestoronto.com/  and its a great way to feel like a pirate for an hour!

Thar she blows! The beautiful ship in the Toronto harbor 

                                                                                                                                                                       

View of the CN Tower from the boat dock-or maybe the boat? I don't remember

How pretty is this boat?

Set sail!

View of the skyline, not far out

That's better, right? A nice view of the Toronto skyline, early afternoon

Don't forget that Toronto has an island! 

The weather got a little grey and windy away from the protected harbor

A little bit of fog, but no rain

A vanity shot of the CN tower. She looks so pretty!

Travel Announcement!

I know,  I know,  I just got through all the Hawaii posts, and I'm announcing a new travel destination already? What can I say, I like to travel. This trip is a bit of a departure from the usual though-it's a roadtrip! My first one!

The whole reason we are going on a trip at all is to go to the illustrious Dragon*Con, which is an annual sci-fi/fantasy convention in Atlanta, Georgia. I've always wanted to go-most of my favourite authors attend regularly, and ONLY attend this convention. Now, I won't be able to bring, like, anything to get signed, what with the packing light and all, but getting to see and chat with them will be rad as fuck. Once Dragon*Con was settled, we decided to meet up with a Texan friend, as well as one from California, and thus spawned a roadtrip.

The original plans have expanded, a lot more than I'd anticipated, so there will be lots of bulk food buying, and doing things on the cheap (or, trying not to go into debt) but I think it will be hella fun, and I am so excited to go! Where are we going? Glad you asked! Here is a breakdown of where we are going!

Bus to Seattle, WA
Fly from Seattle to Dallas, TX
Dallas to San Antonio TX
San Antonia to Galveston TX
Galveston to Houston TX (MOTHERFUCKING NASA YO)
Houston to New Orleans, LA (the Big Easy might kill me)
New Orleans to Atlanta, GA and Dragon*Con
Atlanta to Dallas, I think.
Dallas to Seattle, then bus home.

Just two weeks, but so many destinations! Got any suggestions for places to eat, or things I HAVE to see? Totally want some input from some locals, or lovers! There will be a TONNE of pics and videos, so be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and my Instagram if you haven't already! Links are ^

Hawaii beaches, sunsets and the pretty stuff

Hawaii is known as paradise on earth-along with Bali, Tahiti, and the other mythic South Pacific Islands. It is the only state in America that is in the tropical bands, and perennially warm. It has its own language, its own culture, and people that still exist today, and should be celebrated. Hawaii is a place to escape, nay, THE place to escape to. It offers a refuge from the dirt, pollution and bustle of normal city life, into a environment of beauty and colour. So, enjoy that beauty!

Waikiki Beach

Waikiki beach, Diamond Head Crater.

Waikiki

Magic Island

Magic Island

Magic Island

Magic Island, facing Waikiki and Diamond Head

Never ending sky

Waikiki

Honolulu aquarium

Given how sun burnt I was in Hawaii, I tried to do things in the shade, or indoors. Needless to say, there aren't a lot of options like that around. Not in Waikiki or Honolulu anyways. So, we went to the aquarium, in hopes to see some cool fish, and leave my poor white skin alone. 

Little baby sea turtles!

Octopus are my favourites.

Little stingray, all smily and stuff.

I like the vibrant colours.

You'll note that there isn't a lot of pictures. While my phone was having some issues, that wasn't the only reason. In truth, the Honolulu aquarium doesn't have a lot. Which I thought strange given the fact that the waters surrounding Hawaii are a marine reserve. I expected more education and more outreach, given how threatened aquatic ecosystems are. I mean, it was only $15 to get in, so it was okay, but, really, if you have the choice between the aquarium and almost anything else-go for the other thing.

Diamond Head Hawaii

When you go to Hawaii, you have to expect to spend a lot of time outdoors. There isn't much to do inside-not even shop, as many of the shops are outside. So, once that realization that outdoors is most of the time, you'll look to see what there is to do, and, one of the most popular-and fun-things to do is hike up Diamond head Crater. The crater is an almost perfect circle, and formed as part of the processes that make volcanic hot spots-of which Hawaii is one.

We walked from our hotel in Waikiki, but there are several buses that go to the base of the crater, which will cut the walk by an hour, if you want to do that. The hike took about an hour, not including the walk from Waikiki, but a lot of that was waiting for people as some of the walkways are quite narrow and do require some patience and care. It is not in the least dangerous, unless you are supremely drunk. There is a small fee to get in, but its only $2.00USD, which is hella cheap, considering the upkeep required. There is also a nice little shaved ice truck, and recommend the lime flavour!

I HIGHLY suggest going bright and early, before too many people get there and either a. get in your way or b. ruin your awesome pictures!

This is the base of the mountain and, if you're driving, the way to the parking lot.

It seems like a state park thing to have rules, doesn't it?

This is the entrance into the crater, where you will walk along the road (its safe!) to go into the crater proper.

Our little bear had to get a photo-yes, he came with us!

Part way up the mountain!

Looking back into the crater-looks like a grassland desert, right?

This is the view from the top, looking towards Waikiki, with Honolulu proper in the background. 

The beach and the ocean! It was so pretty, the pictures don't do it justice! 

Seriously guys, if you do go, Diamond head is a for sure thing to add to your to do list in Hawaii! It can be done by everyone-unless you are in crutches or a wheelchair. But, old, young, out of shape-it might take a little longer, but it is totally doable!

Throw back post! Cuba!

Once upon a time, I went to Cuba for a pre-wedding honeymoon. Or something. Okay, not at all. It just happened to fall a few months before our wedding, so we called it a honeymoon, as we didn't have one.

The actual story is that the man and I decided we wanted nothing to do with the Vancouver Olympics, and so we rented out our downtown apartment in exchange for our rent payed, flights to Ontario, and a vacay to Cuba, which was all inclusive. Not bad for vacating my apartment for 3 weeks, right?

We went to Varadaro, which isn't too far from Havana, and is the area where you can see both sides of the ocean from the same spot. It was a really nice location, and the resort-the name of which escapes me at the moment-was pretty good. The majority of the other tourists were all Canadian, what with the anti-American sentiment in Cuba that is well reciprocated in the US.

I actually got really bad food poisoning before we went, and I had to stop on the way to the airport to puke a few times. It was gross, and I didn't want to go anymore. The husband made me go, and I am so happy he did. I had a great time there! I have never seen water so blue as I did there. Seriously. And I've been a few places in the Caribbean and Tropics. Nothing bluer.

Storm making its way to shore

Super burnt little feet

Golf course over looking the ocean that we were thrown out of

The golf course

These little guys were EVERYWHERE!

Carved relief wall at the resort we stayed at

This is one of the few vacations where we did almost nothing. There was some family drama that made things a little tense, and we didn't have a lot of money. We stayed mostly at the beach, and did a lot of swimming, eating, hot tubbing, sun bathing, sand castle building (seriously) and walking around. It was super great and relaxing. Next time we go there, I hope to go in the more warm weather-don't get me wrong, it was nice, but it wasn't THAT nice, you know? It was still February, and there were a few cooler days.

More Nature!

I've shown you guys some of the trails and stuff around my apartment/campus before. This time, I actually walked down the mountain, to the inlet and beach that is at the bottom. It was a super cool hike, not too strenuous, but a lot of fun. I even made a video!

I know, I post  a lot of nature things, and that wasn't what I had in mind with this blog, really, but it seems that now, and for the foreseeable future, I'm going to be living in a place with spectacular nature. So, please, bear with me for a while on this.
I think that spending time outdoors is really important, not just for the body, but for the mind and soul. It has been proven in multiple studies that spending time outside daily relieves stress and stimulates different areas of the brain that being inside does not. Furthermore, we need to remember that we are a PART of nature, and not separate from it.
I think if more of the stuffed shirts in politics spent more time outside, there wouldn't BE a climate change debate-it would be accepted for the fact it is.
A little ranty, but, whatever.

I challenge everyone who reads this to spend 30 minutes a day outside around trees, or flowers, or mountains, or the water, or anything less concrete for one week. Throw some chill tunes on your ipod and just walk. Look around you. Experience all that this earth provides for us, and just BE.
If you do do this challenge (which I hope you do), please share your experiences or insights with me! I'd love to hear about them!

Anteela and the Chocolate Factory (and a boat cruise)

On the second day, we tried to go the Exploratorium, but it is apparently closed on Mondays (we did make it to the Exploratorium, just on a different day)

While we were at the Port 15 area, we decided to look around, to see what was there. It turned out that, right beside the Exploratorium was a chocolate factory! Now, I know that Ghiradelli chocolate is the main chocolate of San Francisco, but the place we found was called TCHO.

We went for a guided tour of the factory, which was super cool. We learned about how cacao beans were produced, and where they were produced. We also learned about the different "flavours" of chocolate, and then all about how it was produced. It was really informative! Afterwards we had a wonderful taste test of all the TCHO chocolates, and got to experience how to properly eat chocolate. Also, we got to see how the area in which the beans grow affects the way that the chocolate tastes.

Eating a chocolate with no added flavour, and having it taste like lemons was a super neat experience!

I bought more chocolate then I should have-it was just so damn good! You can order sample packages on their website, or you can go for your own tour, and get the taste testing yourself! I highly recommend the tour-fun, and informative.

After the chocolate factory, we wandered towards the famous Pier 39. We wanted to take a tour of Alcatraz, but, the tours were all sold out, weeks in advance, so we weren't able to go on the island. We were, however, able to take a boat cruise around the bay, and got to see the Rock that way! It was a super cheap tour-I think 10.00USD-and we were on the boat for nearly 40 minutes. It was great fun!

Also, if you're going to San Francisco and plan to spend any time outside, be sure to wear lots of layers! It can get really cold there, even in the summer, and having an extra cardigan can really help!