Confessions of a YYC Travel Junkie

[vegasbound]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

Depends a bit on your interests.

In Sydney we took in a show at the Opera house, took the ferry across the harbour to the excellent zoo, took the train up to the Blue Mountains (Katoomba) and rode the skyway/tram and hiked at Scenic World. Toured the Australian museum and the National Maritime Museum. We also went to the botanical gardens and did an app-based scavenger hunt there that my kids really enjoyed.

In Melbourne I definitely recommend taking a day trip to Phillip's Island for the penguin parade. We stopped at Moonlit Sanctuary on the way to feed some kangaroos/see koalas etc. Our kids enjoyed the powerhouse museum, and everyone enjoyed Aussie rules football. Spend some time just taking the tram around and exploring. The Lego store had a huge lego version of a Melbourne tram that was fun for pictures.

Awesome, thanks! The zoo and the National Maritime Museum are on my list for Sydney as well as the Blue Mountains!



I think for Melbourne I have so far the Great Ocean Road and a half a day tour on the Puffing Billy train.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by vegasbound

Awesome, thanks! The zoo and the National Maritime Museum are on my list for Sydney as well as the Blue Mountains!



I think for Melbourne I have so far the Great Ocean Road and a half a day tour on the Puffing Billy train.

The Bondi to Coogee walk in Sydney is a great way to get some exercise, fresh air, see the beaches and feel like a local.

You should definitely also explore the Rocks (my old hood), go on the weekend for the market and in late afternoon/evening check out the many old historical pubs in the area (the Fortune of War, the Lord Nelson, the Australian Heritage Hotel, the Observatory, the Glenmore). There also used to be (still is) a ghost tour of the Rocks that would stop by some of the old pubs (it also stopped in front of my house, which was definitely haunted).

The Sydney Harbour Bridge climb is a bit pricey and you need to book in advance but it's unforgettable (and there's not really any climbing involved, just a couple pretty easy ladders).

[activeStick]

I've added photos to my first post here, https://forum.calgarypuck.com/showpo...postcount=6214

Day 5, 6 – Guangzhou

We spent Day 5 traveling to the village my dad grew up in which was a 90-minute drive from Guangzhou. The visit was the whole purpose of this trip, as it’s important for kids to go back to their parents’ villages if they can at some point and something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. Seeing where he and his family grew up was mind blowing. The home is still there, though locked up now as nobody lives in it anymore, with a ton of old stuff still around inside, like old woks that are rusted now, giant, weaved pads that my dad told me they used back in the day to dry foods like fish (for salted fish) or vegetables, etc. I also learned that my grandfather had a Diaolou, which are “fortified multi-storey watchtowers in rural villages, generally made of reinforced concrete. In 2007, UNESCO designated the Kaiping Diaolou and Villages a World Heritage Site.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diaolou Pretty cool walking up the tower and checking out all 4 floors that still had a ton of super old items inside and knowing that our family has one that is part of our property. My dad’s parents, along with some of his siblings and other earlier generations are all buried about a 30 minute walk from the homes in the hills. Got to pay my respects to my grandparents and other family members for the first time.

On Day 6, we went to Shunde, which is a famous area known as one of the top places for Cantonese cuisine and famed for producing an unusually high proportion of top Cantonese chefs around the world. We went to Fengjian Village/Watertown https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fengjian_Village to walk around and get a taste of village life even though it’s become sort of a tourist attraction and afterwards, went to Baomo Garden which was another absolutely gorgeous park and definitely a site I’d recommend people visit. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baomo_Yuan

If there's any questions about sites, or anything else about China you'd like to know if you're planning to go, just send me a PM!

Spoiler!

[Wormius]

Are gate passes available at YYC?

[WideReceiver]

Just back after 4+ weeks in Japan. What a wonderful, unique place. We’d love to return but do it differently.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by WideReceiver

Just back after 4+ weeks in Japan. What a wonderful, unique place. We’d love to return but do it differently.

For those of us who haven't gone yet what would you do differently?

[WideReceiver]

We circumnavigated on a cruise and added 10 days in Tokyo. Next time I’d take the bullet train and visit a few other cities that we didn’t get to on our cruise stops.

[RichieRich]

Crazy how many Calgarians have been going to Japan the last year... and over the next few months. I know about a dozen. It's a great place to visit for sure. I've heard over some people who have been 5+ times... and their feedback was that it was different every time.
Some of our favorites have been:
Okinawa island (and aquarium of course)
Japanese Alps tour
Hakone Loop
Enoshima


Future trip considerations: slow travel; Hokkaido; the north west seashore areas; southern areas.


That said... so many places in the world to see and experience. ASIDE from North America... what would your top 5 travel destinations be and why?

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by RichieRich

That said... so many places in the world to see and experience. ASIDE from North America... what would your top 5 travel destinations be and why?

Top five trips outside NA for me:

1) Australia. Just awesome. Big city stuff in Sydney/Melbourne, scenery (Blue Mountains, Great Ocean Road, Daintree rainforest), snorkel the great barrier reef, cool wildlife, etc.

2) Safari. We did Kenya/Tanzania, saw the wildebeest migration, big 5, etc. Tented camps are a nice mix of outdoorsy and luxurious.

3) Argentina. Buenos Aires is amazing. Sitting in the cafes is great, touring around, eating steak, and Iguazu falls is legit one of the coolest things I've ever seen

4) Middle East. We did Egypt/Israel/Jordan all in one trip, not sure if that is possible/adviseable now. Pyramids, valley of kings, old city of Jerusalem, Petra.

5) Central Europe. Vienna/Budapest. Loved Vienna, sights, music, etc. The food in Budapest was excellent, and it was great to just walk along the river.

6) Honorable mention to the Baltics. We did this via cruise. Difficult to go to St Petersburg now (and it was a highlight) but Stockholm was also amazing. The Vasa (ship they pulled up intact that sank hundreds of years ago) is very neat. I also really liked Copenhagen, although man that city is expensive.

I also really enjoyed and would return to Brazil, Thailand, Italy, and Hong Kong.

[Amethyst]

Originally Posted by RichieRich

That said... so many places in the world to see and experience. ASIDE from North America... what would your top 5 travel destinations be and why?

1) Galapagos Islands: Just a whole other world, with so many cool animals to see, who weren't afraid of humans at all. Definitely do it as a cruise, versus staying on land because you can get to more islands that way. And if you're going there, spend a few days in mainland Ecuador as well.

2) Portugal: Beautiful, friendly, not super expensive. Fun things to see and do (port tasting in the Douro Valley, rose wine museum in Porto, day trip to Sintra.

3) Mongolia: Did a canoe trip and then a 4x4 van trip, stayed in gers, rode camels, stopped at these little stores in the middle of nowhere and bought whatever random things they were selling (always alcohol and then something else). Met a guy from Alberta on top of a sand dune in the Gobi Desert.

4) Poland: The saltworks museum in Wieliczka was very cool. They have all kinds of thing, including a church built underground in a salt mine. When I was there, people could have their weddings there.

5) Kenya and Tanzania: Did the safari thing and it was amazing. Also stayed on Lamu Island, a small island with a town built out of stone. There are no cars on the island, so everything is transported by donkey. Easy for visitors to get lost, so the locals often just walk you to where you're trying to go.

Honourable mention to Hungary and Finland, two countries I lived in many years ago.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by Amethyst

Honourable mention to Hungary and Finland, two countries I lived in many years ago.

Doing a two-day side trip to Helsinki in August. Any suggestions/recommendations?

[tony-soprano]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

For those of us who haven't gone yet what would you do differently?

Donkey Kong Country opened recently at Universal Studios in Osaka.

[Amethyst]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

Doing a two-day side trip to Helsinki in August. Any suggestions/recommendations?

I was an au pair in a smaller city on the west coast, back when I was in university, so it was a LONG time ago and I didn't spend much time in Helsinki.

If you were going to Finland in general in July, I would recommend the Pori Jazz Festival in Pori. Which is really an all kinds of music festival, not necessarily jazz.

[Johnny199r]

Originally Posted by RichieRich

Crazy how many Calgarians have been going to Japan the last year... and over the next few months. I know about a dozen. It's a great place to visit for sure. I've heard over some people who have been 5+ times... and their feedback was that it was different every time.
Some of our favorites have been:
Okinawa island (and aquarium of course)
Japanese Alps tour
Hakone Loop
Enoshima


Future trip considerations: slow travel; Hokkaido; the north west seashore areas; southern areas.


That said... so many places in the world to see and experience. ASIDE from North America... what would your top 5 travel destinations be and why?

1.Vietnam. The Ha-Giang Loop was the best tourist experience of my life. Also did Cambodia and Thailand on the same trip.
2.Egypt and especially Jordan.
3.Kenya and Tanzania Safari
4.Australia
5 Ecuador

I'm doing a 5 country cycle tour from Zambia to Cape Town, South Africa early next year.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

Doing a two-day side trip to Helsinki in August. Any suggestions/recommendations?

I had a day there quite a few years ago, it’s a really cool city to just walk around and explore, but the first spot to pop into my head is Temppeliaukio church. It’s very cool.

[fotze2]

Just booked flights to Costa Rica . My buddy bought a sweet pad there I’m gonna use. Been years since I was scared to leave the country and fly. I forgot how miserable booking flights is. Wife and I got into about four fights this weekend over it. There’s ikea furniture assembly and close second is booking flights for vacations.

I don’t give a crap if we are seated together. The kids certainly don’t care.

Been told to not rent a car there, just do excursions. Can use his side by side to get to the beach.

[craigwd]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

Doing a two-day side trip to Helsinki in August. Any suggestions/recommendations?

Hop on the ferry and explore Suomenlinna for a couple of hours.

Check out Temppeliaukio Church.

Go through the market.

[Huntingwhale]

Originally Posted by Amethyst

4) Poland: The saltworks museum in Wieliczka was very cool. They have all kinds of thing, including a church built underground in a salt mine. When I was there, people could have their weddings there.

Just got back from our annual PL trip yesterday. I know I'm a bit biased having lived there a few years ago, but I don't understand why more people don't go there. Seems like it's mostly Germans, Brits and Swedes I run into who are the main tourists. It's such a cool, hidden-gem type place.

It's as easy to get to as any other European city from North America (usually one transfer there, and one back). It's relatively cheap even in most tourist areas. Of course you can break the bank if you want, but I've eaten at so many higher end places where dishes are no more than $25CAD. Some places we'll go with 5 people, and with drinks included it's even less than $100. The food is pretty good and hearty. It's very safe and clean. So many historical places that are easy to get to by train, which is also very cheap. The people are damn fine looking, friendly and almost everyone under 40 speaks English.

In a world where the price of traveling continues to trend upward, it's a great place to go where you can feel like a baller and not break your bank account. The only thing that bums me out is that the history is so tragic when it comes to WW2. It's very surreal going to some random walk in a park and learning thousands were butchered where you stand. But the country has done well for itself over the past 2 decades and it really shows. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a nice vacation that has European charm but not super expensive.

[RichieRich]

Thanks for your "top 5" lists... I need to plan/budget for some travelling in my future! My future list may include: Poland and especially that saltworks sounds mindblowing. Other central Europe trip comes close behind for me; then perhaps Peru/Argentina. Costa Rica jungle tour/beach would likely happen soonest though.


Huntingwhale - regarding your comment about tragic histories... sadly just about every country has some history in that regard; some worse than others for sure. I find I'm sensitive to being in areas of major drama (killings, torture, slave trade, etc) so some monuments or locations wear heavily.

[Amethyst]

You can certainly add other central European places on to a trip to Poland. When I visited, it was part of a Berlin-Poland-Czechia-Vienna-Budapest trip. My main reason for Poland was the WW2 history stuff. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the rest of the country as well.