New York

I arrived in to New York on thursday evening. After spending the evening with a mouse in our room we set out for a busy day visiting the Gugenheim and walked through central park and then we went for a spot of shopping. On the second day we started off with a huge breakfast. Will had an entire packet of bacon on his plate. Following a nice healthy breakfast we went for dessert at the M&M' factory in Times Square. In the afternoon we visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art and then up to Union Square. Yesterday we were rushing around all day. First we went to Ground Zero- It was a little eery but the plans for the memorial look really nice. We did some shopping around that area- buying a little old lady out of I Love NY T-shirts. We then had a bite to eat on 5th Avenue and strolled up to MOMA- the Museum of Modern Art. We have to say we both think this was the highlight so far. We walked down 5th Avenue to the Empire State Building and climbed 87 floors to the viewing point. The view was incredible but it was extremely busy. We topped off the evening beautifully with a meal at a restaurant called 'Josie's'. It was delectible...

Today and tomorrow our plans are to chill out a little- we will be going on the statue of Liberty ferry today for the obligatory NY tourist pictures. Hoping to have a really good end to my trip. 48 hours...unbelievable.

Halifax- Toronto

I finished off my wonderful week in Halifax and flew in to Toronto where my Great Uncle Reg and Auntie Joyce live. I spent the first couple of days relaxing and catching up. Went for a spot of retail therapy with my cousin Allison and enjoyed some nice sushi and thai food. On tuesday i spent the day in downtown Toronto. I was taken to the Autoshow by Allison and had a great morning wishfully thinking about owning all of the cars I will not be able to afford for a very, very long time. After a beautiful lunch at a restaurant called Le Marche- Oysters, Muscles, Prawns and then some lovely pork dish with potato rosti and salads we headed back home. I spent the evening experiencing my first hockey game- even if i was 10 year-olds on the team... it was good fun. Tomorrow I'm heading downtown to explore the art gallery and have a good go at the city.

I fly home a week from now can you believe it?

Look forward to seeing everybody!

xxxx

Banf & Halifax

For my final day in the west of Canada I went up to Banf. It was gorgeous. The views were amazing and the town itself was really sweet. Went out for a lovely lunch, visited the hot springs, drove up the side of a mountain to this spot which had superb views. I flew out that evening for Halifax. I spent the weekend experiencing the nightlife of Halifax. For the first evening we went on a Keiths Brewery tour and the following day we went out for a friends birthday. Yeserday we visited Peggy's Cove which is a little village on the coast with a lighthouse and a lovely Fish and Chip restaurant. It was pretty blustery and we were almost blown away but it was really good fun.

Freezing in Canada

The past few days have been brilliant. Had a couple of days in Red Deer spent with Florence. After a hectic night out on the night of my arrival we spent sunday relaxing, watching films and eating sandwiches. The following day I went in to her college to watch the next show they have coming up called Hayfever. The play is set in England in the 1920's so it was good fun to listen to all the british accents- and I have to say I was impressed by the efforts!

I have spent the last two days having a wonderful time up in Edmonton. Liesel, a friend I had met whilst snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef invited me up to her house. I arrived and we made a visit to the biggest mall in the world ' West Edmonton Mall'. The place has an ice rink, theme park, swimming pool, sea-lion show and  much more to offer. We rode a couple of roller coasters and had a lovely lunch and then went back out in to the country in South Edmonton where she lived. In the evening we went out for a horse-ride in the snow. It was a brilliant experience and the views around sunset were incredible. We went out for chinese and then relaxed at home drinking cocktails, watching films and had a bit of a games night. It was really brilliant!

I am off to Banff for the day tomorrow which should be brilliant. Looking forward to seeing the mountains. 

Less than three weeks till I'm home! Can't wait to see everyone. xxxxx

Portland to Canada

After the mammoth 12 hour sleep on the day of arrival I spent a couple of days exploring. The first day went down to a small shopping area and took a bit of a driving tour around the city. Spent the evening getting excited about  sport, pretty new for me. I was educated in the game of Basketball but unfortunately Portland lost- so morale was a bit low...

Wednesday was spent in Eugene at the University of Oregon. We visited Zach and Paul and had a look around the campus. Finished off the day with a Dutch Brothers Kahlua Kick Coffee...hmmmmm.

On Thursday I visited the Oregon Museum of Art and explored down town Portland. It was a really good day despite the rain. Apparently it rains 300 days out of the year in Portland- so I felt quite at home. 

I finished my trip off with an evening out to Portland's Comdey Sports. The idea was that two teams of stand up comedians compete to win the game. The audience do the voting and have quite alot of participation so it was fab. Got home just in time to catch the end of the New York Vs Portland game and yay our team won so I left Portland with quite a feeling of content!!

I am now in Canada in Red Deer which is about an hour from Calgary. Planning a great few days up here...

See you all in 24 days!

xxx