Tag: Travel

12 Things to See and Do in Venice, Italy

The Grand Canal
The Grand Canal

So it’s time to head to La Spezia to wander the five towns of Cinque Terra. I’m currently speeding along the Tuscan country side on Italy’s fast train, reflecting on the last few days. Venice was an incredible whirlwind that imbued my senses with the curiosity and awe often found with traveling to new destinations. Although I have felt jet lagged the entire time, adrenaline has kept me going to see and experience some of the amazing things Venice has to offer. Only have 2 days? Here are 12 things to do.

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2016: The Year of Action

Each year, I declare a theme for myself to help focus my decisions. I was walking through Homesense the other day looking for wine glasses and came across a great canvas. SHOULD, WOULD and COULD were all written down, but all were crossed out. The remaining word was DID. I knew then that 2016 is the year of action for me.

I heart travel
I heart travel. I flew 43,018 km in 2015, more than the circumference of the Earth. I plan to surpass that metric.

Each year, I declare a theme for myself to help focus my decisions. I was walking through Homesense the other day looking for wine glasses and came across a great canvas. I snapped a photo of it because the message was succinct and expressed what I had been struggling to put into words. SHOULD, WOULD and COULD were all written down, but all were crossed out. The remaining word was DID.

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Akumal Bay Beach and Wellness Resort

Mexico-4For the last few years, I’ve been on some great adventures for which I am grateful: hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, road-tripping through Denmark, and being helicoptered out of Everest Base Camp. In fact, I would say I’m drawn to worldwide adventures! So when someone would mention an all-inclusive vacation, I would often say “I don’t think it’s really my thing these days”. Granted, I’ve been to Cuba and the Dominican Republic for one week stints of pure relaxation, and I loved those vacations! But with so many treks and hikes around the world that remain on my to-do list, should I choose to use precious vacation days to lounge on a beach? I’m not exactly great at sitting still. Well, after spending a week at Akumal Bay Beach and Wellness Resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico, I have concluded that sometimes an all-inclusive vacation is exactly what I need.

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Thoughts on the Tortuga Travel Backpack

So you’ve decided to take a big trip, but alas, you need a new backpack! And goodness forbid you pay checked baggage fees. After searching online for the perfect carry-on backpack, you’ve come across the Tortuga Travel Backpack. What should you consider? Will it really fit everything you’ll need for your adventure? This is no ordinary pack. In my attempts to find a minimalist carry-on-sized travel backpack, none stood out quite like the Tortuga. Here’s my review…

The Tortuga Travel Backpack: Packed and ready to go!
The Tortuga Travel Backpack: Packed and ready to go!

“Can I come see it right now??” That’s the text I received from a friend when she found out I had brought my packed Tortuga Travel Backpack to work. I had just arrived at my office, from where I would be leaving several hours later for the airport en route to Toronto. I would be using my Tortuga for the first time, and she wanted to know the details: how did it look when it was packed? What did I bring? How heavy is it? Do I love it??

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