Sunday, April 25, 2010

West Coast Spring

Those that know me well know that the winters here in Alberta drive me almost right round the bend by the time spring has sprung a province over in BC. The winters here are long, cold and brown (and did I mention frozen?).

Since I can't make spring come any faster here I find that I have to take myself to spring, which means a semi annual trip out to the coast to smell the flowers, sit on the green grass and enjoy the sunshine. Traditionally it means I hook up with my childhood best friend Dawn and we hang out near and around her home for a weekend while I get my fix.

This year however, since our kids are older, we decided to travel together. We spent two days in Vancouver and two days in Victoria. We had a tonne of fun and talked and ate things that were not even remotely on my diet!

We were meant to be in Victoria for the Royal Visit of Princess Alexandra to my unit (the C Scot R) but her trip was canceled due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland. That was a little bit disappointing but did not deter us from carving out a grand adventure in our own style. You can see pictures of Vancouver HERE and Victoria HERE.

Monday, April 05, 2010

Happy Easter Weekend!


For Easter long weekend Duncan and I went to Jasper for a mini vacation. It was the first time in a long while that the kids were gone for a weekend to visit their Dad in Calgary so we thought it was the perfect opportunity for a spring road trip!

Canada's National Parks are beautiful in all seasons and I love exploring them at every chance. April seems to be a wonderful time - everything remains frozen but it's not too cold to enjoy yourself. This year we actually have a Parks Pass so I am hoping to get in as many trips as possible to Jasper, Banff, Elk Island and perhaps even Waterton.

Here we are standing together on the frozen Maligne Lake in Jasper National Park, one of the most beautiful places in the world. A passer by was kind enough to take our picture for us.

You can see more pictures from the trip HERE.