Highlights:
All of our 4 days with the Franks were a highlight. They are such delightful people. We met them first in Brunei, and we became game-night buddies. Then we participated in a bible study group together and the Franks attended church with us regularly in our home. We have already visited them at their home in Bouzouls two times previously, and I have a good feeling there will more visits. 1. Mushroom hunting and nut foraging 2. Discovering the beautiful small medieval villages of Aveyron 3. Pech Merle cave paintings 4. An evening out with a michelin star chef 5. Game night with both families Lowlight: 1. French train strike threw our plans into disarray (click below-right to read more)
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Highlights:
1. Baux en Provence - medieval village and castle and Venice art exhibition 2. Avignon - bridge of Avignon and palace of the popes 3. Pont du Gard - ancient Roman acquaduct 4. Nimes - intact Roman ampitheatre 5. Narbonne - stunning cathedral and palace 6. Carcassone - quintessential medieval walled city Lowlights: 1. French labor strike at gas stations - dwindling petrol supplies (click below-right to read more) Highlights:
1. Calanques National Park hike 2. Gorges du Verdon drive 3. Charming villages of Ventabren and Moustiers-Sainte-Marie 4. Hospitality of our friends in their French villa 5. Overall European-ness of Europe Lowlights: 1. Missing our luggage (click below-right to read more) Highlights:
1. Iceberg Lake hike 2. Seeing Grizzly bears through binoculars and telescopes 3. Comfy cabin out of the rain and elements 4. General Conference in the car Lowlights: 1. Low visibility on Road to the Sun (Click below-right to read more) Highlights:
1. Lake Louise, Agnes Lake hike to the teahouse and Moraine Lake 2. E-bike rental for 55 km round-trip ride along Bow Valley parkway to Johnston Canyon and Inkpots 3. Original national park Sulphur Cave and environs 4. Canoeing and kayaking on Lake Minnewanka 5. Lussier Natural Hot Springs Lowlights: 1. Limited parking and expensive buses to the lake. Summer would be INSANE! 2. Johnston Canyon trail closure (click below-right to read more) Our three nights in Jasper National park were stunning. It is a truly beautiful place, and if I had my choice, I would rather return again to Jasper before returning to Banff. Less crowds, plenty more to see.
Highlights: 1. Wide open camping area with Elk roaming about 2. Walking on the Athabasca Glacier and rappelling into a crevasse, extra warm gear provided 3. Hiking Beauty Creek to Stanley Falls – unexpected wonderful hike and river crossing 4. Hiking in Maligne Canyon, and eating macaroni and cheese on the shores of Maligne Lake 5. Seeing Athabasca falls, Sunwapta falls and Peyto lake 6. Gorgeous weather, sunny skies, incredible lake colors 7. Evening dinner with Simina, Mustafa and Sabina Siddiqui Lowlights: 1. Elk-in-heat banshee screams all night-long 2. Cold and rainy morning on the glacier – got better in the afternoon 3. Shattering iphone screen at Beauty Creek, $25 screen protector 4. Colder than comfortable mornings and evening in the tent (click below-right to read more) Highlights:
1. Riding bikes in Stanley Park and walking through Gastown 2. Driving Sea-to-Sky highway 3. Brittania Mine Museum – underground train tour and BOOM! Exhibit 4. Beautiful hikes to Shannon Falls and Chief Stawamus Peak 5. Burst upon the Mount Robson view, utterly spectacular snow covered mountain peaks Lowlights: 1. Missing Gassy Jack 2. Grueling Super steep hike on Chief Stawamus 3. Hauling camping gear in wheelbarrows in Riverside camping area (Click below-right to read more) On Saturday, we left our car parked and boarded the Majestic Princess for a 10-day cruise to Alaska. It was a delightful cruise with stops in Ketchikan (Tera and my 1996 summer home after our wedding), Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait Point, and scenic cruising days in Glacier Bay and to the Hubbard Glacier. This was the first chance to really take advantage of my Inteletravel Travel Agent cruising discount (1/2 price cruise fares on Princess) and since we all shared a 4-person balcony cabin, the price and the experience was just right.
Highlights: 1. Large balcony room with space enough for four 2. Cool tech on Princess Cruises with medallion and app 3. Ketchikan – Creek Street walk with Salmon jumping, taxi ride to Totem Bight park and our old mobile home, and the church 4. Juneau – public bus to Mendenhall Glacier 5. Skagway – Rainy day in town, the Soapy Smith Show 6. Glacier Bay – Grand Pacific and Marjorie Glacier and Lampugh Glacier and something straight ahead 7. Icy Strait Point 8. Hubbard Glacier – Grand descending 7-mile wide tidewater glacier Lowlights: 1. Mendenhall Glacier tour cancellation 2. Somewhat tired Naturalist – “This is Alaska! This is why you’re here!” (click below-right to read more) Our first leg of the trip was to drove to Vancouver. Our departure date was delayed multiple times because our son Tyler was in the midst of getting a mission call (which he received to the Brazil Santa Maria mission) and then doing home MTC, and then being delayed in his visa receipt, which kept him at home with us for longer. We could finally delay our going no more, because we had a cruise to catch, so we sent Tyler over to his Aunt’s house to finish the home MTC and wait for his Brazilian Visa, while we drove north.
Highlights: 1. Biking the famous Idaho/Montana Hiawatha “rails to trails” site 2. Family camping for the first time in ages 3. Explore North Vancouver and Lynn Canyon Park Lowlights: 1. Saying goodbye to Tyler, leaving him with Krissy 2. Saying goodbye to our house for 4 months and leaving it with renters 3. Slightly wet and rainy day- muddy biking 4. Recognizing the things we forgot, and tossing some of our 25-yr old camping gear (Click below right for more) 3 ½ years ago, I wrote the last published post on our family travel blog. Today I pick up the pen again to write and journal our latest travel adventures. We have begun a 4-month travel trip with our two youngest children Megan and Jacob.
Our general plans will take us to Alaska and Canada in September. Southern France and Eastern Europe in October, Italy in early November, before jumping on an extended cruise which will take us to Croatia, Greece, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Mauritius, Seychelles and South Africa. Our final two weeks of December will be spent in South Africa, with a possible trip north to Victoria falls. After four months on the road, we’ll return to the US just in time our annual new year’s eve Polar plunge in freezing temperatures in our neighbors swimming pool, and then our son Nathan will be married on January 5th! Stay tuned for our weekly highs and lows and pictures and write-ups of our adventures. |
Fall Semester 2022Here we go again! Our 8 Suitcases have been whittled down to 4 suitcases as we take a four month world trip with our two youngest kids, Megan and Jacob. From Canada to Europe to islands in the Indian Ocean and finally to South Africa, from Sep to Dec 2022, here are our travels and experiences. Archives
December 2022
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