by Sarah Blinco | Oct 4, 2011 | North America, Travel blogger destinations
Today I’m soaring across a regional patchwork of green and brown, although for a while we’ve been cruising over a vast inland body of water. Judging by the route map I’m thinking we may currently be flying by Lake Michigan. We’re headed for a stopover in Denver, then on to San Francisco. The last time I flew a similar route was about ten years ago, from the west coast into Chicago. Unfortunately we’re not stopping in the ‘Windy City’ this time around, although perhaps we’ll fly across it so I can wave hello. Instead we’re on a route from Boston and excited to have finally ticked one more American city ‘to do’ off the bucket list.
Visiting Boston and Salem, Massachusetts
Regardless of drizzly weather, the city of Boston (one of America’s first big and important cities), to us had a lovely feel; a nice vibe with very friendly talkative locals, rich and influential history, and a bounty of exploration options. In fact, three days wasn’t nearly enough time in the region – just so much to see! Even aside from the city itself, there’s Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, numerous New England excursions, The Hamptons (playground to the wealthy – Revenge, anybody?), Rhode Island and Harvard University on Boston’s outskirts.
Boston is a popular US ‘walking city’, and much of the centre is accessible by foot. We chose a combination of walking, trolley tour, and public transport (using a weekly pass – called a ‘Charlie’ ticket – approx US $15) to make our way between famous landmarks including America’s first public park opened in 1634, Boston Common; School Street and the site of the very first public school in America (established by Puritans in 1635), and along The Freedom Trail – a 2.5 mile red-brick walking trail that leads to 16 nationally significant historic sites. Each stop along the Trail showcases an authentic American treasure, often with importance relating to the American Revolution. We dropped by the Cheers Boston (yep, the original 80s series’ pub!), and wandered along the city’s waterfront, through Chinatown and colourful markets.
Ask a local what the best free, fun things to do are, and they’ll suggest ideas like keeping an eye out for television or movie filming, visiting Boston’s Italian quarter on Hanover Street to sample authentic Bostonian fare; or instead of paying for a tour to a well-known (ie. expensive) beach-front hotspot, utilise the convenient ‘T’ (metro system) and take a train to a seaside town like Rockport, or to the fascinating and ‘bewitching’ town of Salem – ‘witch’ is exactly where we travelled on our chosen day-trip from the city.
Saturday was appropriately grey as we ventured up the coast towards Salem, a small city founded in 1626 and critical to America’s east coast because of its strong military and shipping history (along with witches of course, but we’ll get to that soon enough). Little kids were all decked-out in their wet-weather wellies, dogs out for a rainy weekend walk, and townsfolk dressed as, you guessed it, witches, ghosts and other Halloween-esque characters.
Salem – it’s the city renowned for the witch trials of 1692, upon which many books, plays and films, in particular The Crucible, are based. Throughout October everyone gets into the ‘spirit’ of Halloween, and I must admit to battling an overpowering urge to purchase ‘lucky’ trinkets, fancy-dress costumes, tickets to psychic readings, magic sparkly things, and dancing witch dolls (complete with straw broom and striped-socks) from the many celebratory ghoulish shops around town.
Jest aside, we did visit the memorial for those accused throughout the hysteria of Massachusetts’ infamous witch trials. Unlike regions of Europe where in some cases this type of frenzy lasted for many years, witch trials only remained for a year in these parts – but they were renowned. Today the stories stand as a lesson of tolerance. The memorials are surrounded by engraved fragments of final pleas of innocence: the missing words are to symbolise the sad fact that in the end no one was listening.
We’d recommend a ride on one of Salem’s trolley tours which takes visitors around town to interesting sites. One of these is Winter Island, a popular camping ground formerly the site of Boston’s last public execution when a young boy was hanged for stealing a horse. Another is Dead Horse Beach, a terrifying place where many people and horses who drew fire-carriages perished in a shocking fire. The horses were taken out to sea and ‘buried’ at low tide, but then floated back up again at high tide – bones are still found today, a hundred years on. We viewed the famous witch museums, extraordinary ‘old town’ areas where homes are engraved with the year they were built – oldest homes we saw dated back to early 1700s; House of the Seven Gables, the oldest surviving original home connected with the witch trials, is appropriately painted all-black.
Salem was home to America’s first billionaire, as well as to the founder of Harvard Law, and America’s oldest candy company, Ye Olde Pepper Candy Companie, which was developed by Mary Spencer – an incredibly poor mum who started the candy business as a way to take care of her children. Long story short, it worked and she became very very successful. Oh, and incidentally she is also a direct descendent of Lady Diana Spencer, aka Princess Di.
Another interesting Salem fact is that it’s the town where the Parker brothers (Parker Bros.) developed games like Monopoly and Clue, and in fact it was their company that kept this region afloat during the Great Depression earlier in the 1900s. They employed most of the townsfolk at that time and paid using Monopoly money when there wasn’t any real money to go around. The town businesses accepted Monopoly money when times were tough, which kept the economic wheels turning. Amazing, don’t you think?
As in all supernatural tales, the sign of ‘3’ appeared out of nowhere. I arrived in town, we met a dog named Sarah and then promptly happened across poor Sarah Good’s memorial (she was one of those famously accused of witchcraft); I’m the third Sarah – am still unsure as to whether all this is a good sign or bad omen, but nothing has seemed out of the ordinary, so far…
S x
by Sarah Blinco | Sep 28, 2011 | Beautiful destinations, islands, North America, Travel blogger destinations
I’m presently sitting on a remote beach somewhere on Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, waiting for sunset so I can take photos as the light goes down across the far reaches of the world.
If I was to set sail on the ocean in front of me I’d be heading back towards the UK, which might otherwise be a bitter-sweet thought, but given that the experience on PEI has been sublime I simply can’t be anything other than at peace.
I had waited my whole life to come here. Like many, it’s the appeal of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables (image from the tv-movie starring Megan Follows, pictured above) that drew me to this far away land, but I’ve also always perceived Prince Edward Island to be some kind of heaven: and as the wind gently echoes across the green fields, quaint colourful homes and sparkling ocean I am pleased to share that I was right.
The Gentle Isle, Prince Edward Island
It wasn’t looking so good to start with though. I’ve been planning this pilgrimage for a while and each turn to get here since leaving London was plagued with one problem or another. We missed the summer season by one week, and consequently quite a few of the shuttles and bus services that would have made the journey on and off the island simple are closed for another six months.
The longer I investigated journeys in and out, the higher travel costs became. Note to prospective travellers – PEI is absolutely worth the trip, but organise yourself early and book flights in and out of Charlottetown to avoid any hassle.
The complications continued to the very end when our train from Montreal was delayed by two hours overnight causing us to miss the last connecting bus to the island, and then the following day there was a delay with our transport on arrival into the island thus drastically reducing our limited window of exploration time. I was quite distressed by this point, really feeling like I wasn’t meant to get here – what could go wrong next?
Fortunately the bad luck subsided, and I’m here! The weather has been stunning, accommodation in our little cabin at the Anne Shirley Motel & Cottages fabulous, locals friendly and helpful, and the island itself simply stunning. Prince Edward Island is much bigger than I had expected. It’s a vast space of land consisting of rugged beach front, rivers, lakes, bays, lighthouses, pastoral land, small white churches with tall steeples, deep-sea fishing boats, and scattered townships and cities including the capital where we landed initially, Charlottetown.
Regardless of it being larger than I had imagined, the maritime province is still the smallest in Canada, but it is significant as being the ‘birthplace of Confederation’. This is marked by the famous (and loooong) Confederation Bridge which links PEI with Moncton in New Brunswick, the place where we were stranded the evening before arrival.
Pockets of civilisation were founded throughout the area from the 1700s, and it’s obvious from where founding fathers (whether by original land discovery or through spoils of war) hailed – examples of township names include New London, New Glasgow, Cornwall, Kensington, Stratford, Greenwich, IIe Saint Jean and Irishtown.
Visiting Green Gables was obviously a highlight. It’s straight out of a storybook! What I didn’t realise is that the building is historical, not just a film set. In real life (back in the 1800s), the farm was the home of the Macneill’s, cousins to the famous author L.M Montgomery. She grew up nearby with her grandparents but was always inspired by Green Gables and the surrounding woodlands which she named Lover’s Lane and the Haunted Wood, as depicted in the fictional Anne of Green Gables series.
Green Gables is just one of many beautiful examples of quaint homes and gardens across Prince Edward Island though. When driving around it is easy to be captivated by the scenery, but the houses are just as striking! Gorgeous triangular roofed homes – colourful, well-kept with beautiful gardens, huge farm barns, and often matching dog houses out in the large back yards. In fact, my initial impression of the island was that it is so picturesque that it’s almost like a country version of the Desperate Housewives set! Similar architectural styles exist whether located in the ‘middle’ of the island across sprawling green countryside surrounded by cows, sheep, horses and dogs, or on waterfront property bordered by boats bobbing in the breeze.
The locals are simply divine too, with several going out of their way to help, guide and chat to us. The folks at Anne Shirley’s Motel were more than helpful, and today we even met a real life Anne Shirley, a lovely lady who was indeed named after Montgomery’s character, and who in the 50s used to own a hair salon and visitors used to ask for her autograph – cute!
Prince Edward Island is the magical land I’d always imagined it to be, perhaps thanks to L.M Montgomery, or Maud as she liked to be called, and her vivid descriptions of her truly beautiful homeland that she wrote about all those years ago. Over the past day and a half on PEI we’ve met two lovely people who both said their lifelong dream was to visit our home, Australia, all the way across the other side of the globe. They said they probably won’t get to travel the distance though, which makes me sad for them, but also makes me realise that I am very lucky to have been able to see this place − so far away but always on my mind. I’m very lucky and grateful indeed.
Getting to PEI:
Try Air Canada, ViaRail and Acadian Bus Lines. Read more here
Stay:
Anne Shirley Motel & Cottages anneshirley.ca
Getting around:
You’ll need a map of the island and a car – we hired from Enterprise Car rental (Charlottetown) enterpriserentacar.ca. Alternatively, there are cycle lanes surrounding the island so hire a bike and go exploring.
Dining:
It’s customary to try a ‘Lobster supper’ on Prince Edward Island, and some of the best are allegedly located in New Glasgow.
**More useful information at tourismpei.com
If you have visited Prince Edward Island, please do drop a line in the comments and let me know if you loved it as much as I did x
I adore it in this part of the world.
by Sarah Blinco | Sep 26, 2011 | North America, Travel blogger destinations
We’ve just come from the charming province of Quebec where we were based in Montreal, but took a day-tour to beautiful old Quebec City.
Montreal is colourful and artistic, known for its majestic churches, the Olympic Stadium, fun festivals, vast underground shopping city (for when the weather is a little nippy (that is, literally freezing!), and as being home to Cirque du Soleil. It is also the world’s second largest French-speaking city!
In fact, I didn’t really feel like I was in Canada in Montreal! We were told that Montreal is somewhat like the ‘Melbourne’ of Canada, and I think that’s true if you’re taking into account the city’s prevalent art and music scene. It’s a little older than Melbourne though (obviously), and one of the city’s coolest hotspots is actually its most aged: The ‘Old Town’, filled with fabulous old (French) architecture, quaint pubs, and Poutine shops.
Oh, and Poutine – well let me just tell you this is one of my new favourite things – fries, cheese and gravy – oh my! Travel in Quebec is divine!
I quite liked Montreal for its ‘interesting’ factor: There are dozens of amazing museums here, covering everything from contemporary to fine arts, ancient history, artefacts, dance and modern history – whatever you can think of really. We were lucky enough to test-run an economical City Museums Pass which entitles the holder to unlimited entry to all museums, public transport and special offers. A steal if you’re in the city! Our pick of such attractions would be the Biodome – an environmentally regulated indoor menagerie of plants and animals – including monkeys!
We were also lucky enough to strike the city during a celebration dubbed PopFest, which just so happened to culminate in a massive (I’m talking 80,000 revellers in the street outside our hotel) free street party/concert – full sound, stages, lighting, food and drink stands, port-a-loos and headlining act, the hugely popular Canadian group, Arcade Fire, on Thursday night. Amazing!
We didn’t rave on ‘til the crack of dawn with the locals though, because on Friday we were up bright and early, set for our adventure to historic Quebec City where history and modernity coexist harmoniously. I’d seen this place once, live on Channel 9 (Australia) when the breakfast show broadcast live from Quebec for a week. Ever since I’ve been keen to see it for myself. Turns out the sweet fairytale-esque town was actually falling into disrepair a few decades ago, but following the discovery of some very old, very important artefacts under a cathedral in the city centre, money was spent to restore the buildings to their former romantic state.
Now visitors can roam the winding roads and along the waterfront, admiring old homes and shops (some streets inspired by the English, the rest French), inspecting local artwork (a prominent industry here) and huge outdoor murals, and enjoying some local cuisine in between shopping up a storm on locally-made products. Quebec City again adds to the aforementioned ‘interesting’ factor in that its primary industries are tourism, government, agriculture and what they call the ‘economy of knowledge’. In fact, the region is renowned worldwide for offering the foremost research and technology into areas like psychology, oncology, infectious diseases, aerospace sciences and even the study of actuary!
I was somewhat expecting a little more of ‘Europe’ in Quebec, especially Quebec City, but the intriguing thing is that the city is a true mixture of its historical influences. Like Montreal, Quebec City was settled and raised by the English, French, Scottish and Irish. It’s a culture mash-up of grand proportions – a place where there is a Changing of the Guard ceremony that is commanded in French, and a grand statue of Joan of Arc stands within proper English gardens! Some streets look English; some French.
Quebec City is alluring to the traveller’s imagination, having been lovingly and carefully restored to look as it did several hundred years ago, and the fact that French is being spoken all around simply adds to the thrill. Montreal itself is undergoing a renaissance of sorts, with much of the inner city being cleaned up, rebuilt and remodelled (one nice example is that of a new cultural centre which is presently being built near The Marriott on Saint Catherine Street).
All in all, an interesting ‘Canadian’ experience – unexpected in a way, because I really didn’t feel like I was in Canada – the one I’m familiar with anyway; fascinating nonetheless, to see how this only-French-speaking region in North America (and one of the earliest settlements on this continent) has evolved over the past few centuries.
Loved our travel in Quebec, but now we’re off to PEI (yay!)
We adore Canada and believe it’s one of the most countries places in the world.
By Sarah Blinco
by Sarah Blinco | Sep 23, 2011 | North America, Travel blogger destinations
I thought it pertinent to stop by with a few quick tips based on our experiences because in all honesty, I’ve spent hours researching how to travel this side of the world on a budget.
I always thought it would be quite simple to ‘backpack’ through North America. Unfortunately it is much more expensive than I had anticipated, and the spaces between places we want to visit is much more vast than I originally understood.
For example, it’s been a struggle to find a way to get out of Prince Edward Island (Canada) that is time or cost-effective (time over, I would have done this location first, then booked a flight long before to get a good rate; or taken a train out across to Montreal, rather than doing Toronto and Montreal first).
Also, the theory that it is ‘cheaper and more efficient’ to fly rather than ‘train’ or ‘bus’ it here is true. I’ve literally spent hours (if not weeks) investigating numerous possible routes and paths through to various cities, as well as accommodation options.
USA and Canada top travel tips and sites
a) Greyhound services are not great (that’s putting it mildly).
b) Amtrak services aren’t that terrific either – but I suppose I’ve been a bit spoilt for choice in Europe and the UK because the rail services there are excellent.
c) Hiring a car is more difficult than you would expect – if you want to hire a car in one place and drop it off in another, the prices are exorbitant, which defeats the purpose in the end.
Hiring a car isn’t such a bad option if you are happy to travel in a loop, back to the original destination. If you’re driving and want to camp, some mates made us aware of reserveamerica.com which offers details on free places you may set up camp.
d) I always compare reviews on sites, and if in general the reviews address your individual requirements (eg. we don’t mind if somewhere is a bit older, as long as it is clean and close to public transport) then the place is probably worth a go.
I’ve found accommodation to be very expensive, especially in cities like Toronto, New York, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, so shop around and compare. I have generally been flicking between expedia.com, booking.com, hostelbookers.com and comparing reviews on these sites against tripadvisor.com. I’ve also begun adding reviews in on properties – it’s only fair to share your experience with others who may benefit in the future, and also to give a ‘thumbs up’ to properties that deserve a good review.
e) Throughout America I’ve found that Southwest Airlines is pretty good value (price and baggage). We also had a fantastic experience flying AirTransat (operates budget flights between Europe and Canada).
Alternatively I’ll shop around for flights on expedia.com. Also we’ve found cheapair.ca to advertise inexpensive flights that are booked out – only you find this out after inputting credit card details and regardless of a message to say you’re not charged, I have random ‘tax’ charges on my credit card for transactions that were ‘cancelled’ which I’m yet to follow up.
f) Finally, if you’re in Canada, ViaRail is a decent option – relatively inexpensive, and even the economy seats are pretty good – large, there’s a power supply for computers etc. and on most journeys there is WiFi. The food car is reasonably priced too, but I’d still advise taking some of your own snacks.
In summary, probably best to choose a section of North America and travel it ‘bit at a time’, as it has proved an expensive exercise to hop from one side to the other. Still, keep saving because regardless of higher prices we adore this part of the world!
We love travelling around America and Canada! So fun and diverse.
By Sarah Blinco
by Sarah Blinco | Sep 20, 2011 | North America, Travel blogger destinations
Sitting on the coach and on the way to our second Canadian stop, Montreal – we’re aboard a Megabus (great discount group over this way, also in the UK) and am pretty pleased with the free WiFi – can now catch up on my blogging.
We’ve spent the past few days in Toronto, a place where, in all honesty, I always wanted to visit but more for the sake of what has been filmed here rather than for the city itself. For some reason I imagined Toronto to be something like a concrete jungle but I was quite wrong: it’s actually a very colourful, multicultural and beautiful spot, brimming with great cuisine and culture. Toronto is set on the banks of the vast Lake Ontario, so big (similar to Lake Michigan off Chicago) that it looks like the ocean.
The famous Toronto Film Festival had just wrapped up when we arrived. This year the event attracted the likes of George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Keira Knightley, so there’s an excited buzz in the air! My personal ‘excited buzz’ however, was when we inadvertently passed filming for one of my fave shows of the moment, Nikita (and yes, for anyone who cares I did also love the ’90s version La Femme Nikita which was filmed in Toronto too), as well as filming for the remake of Total Recall which this time around stars the fabulous Colin Farrell. We spotted Nikita filming within an hour of arrival, which was awesome; and Total Recall on Saturday morning featured a huge futuristic car mounted in the air in front of green screens (as well as several guards surrounding the block who had their eyes on me… ;-).
On Saturday we wandered around the delightfully chic Bloor-Yorkville precinct and then along the world-famous Yonge Street (formerly listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest street in the world), essentially one of the ‘main roads’ into the city which is brimming with every kind of business. Once we made it to the waterfront we decided to take a ferry 15 minutes across Lake Ontario to what is known as Toronto Island – a peaceful oasis of parkland, small amusement park with an animal farm, cafes, restaurants, ducks and bird life, rivers, lakes all the way through to beach-front on the other side of the island. This trip was delightful, a mere $6.50 return and is worthwhile for the photo opportunities alone.
Having viewed the iconic CN Tower from the island ferry, we decided to take a look ‘downtown’ to inspect it further. The impressive structure was actually completed in 1976 and was at the time the world’s tallest building. Surrounding the CN Tower in downtown Toronto are other fun attractions such as Rogers Centre (stadium) and the Steam Whistle Brewing House which we toured – it’s only polite to sample premium local pilsner (especially when it’s as nice as this!): Highly recommended experience and an interesting local company built on the old grounds of an original Roundhouse that was originally used to repair and clean steam locomotives.
Exploring Toronto under a warm autumn (or ‘fall’, as they say here) sun proved to be a really lovely experience. The city is entertaining and enjoyable – everything from the food to the filming, parks, shopping, unique attractions and even the beer. The city is probably better known as being a centre for business in Canada than anything else, but we’ll vouch for its value as a tourist destination too.
The attraction to affirm this point is one that we visited on Sunday, located just a couple of hours from Toronto – the awe-inspiring Niagara Falls, the most powerful waterfalls in North America. These voluminous falls are situated on the Niagara River which drains Lake Erie into Lake Ontario and forms the international border between Ontario (Canada, where we were viewing from) and the US state of New York (which we could see across the other side over the falls). I’d booked another Megabus service to the falls in advance in order to score a great deal on price, but there are numerous tours available from Toronto for anyone who is keen.
The day was sunny and the falls glorious. Riding on the famous Maid of the Mist was a highlight – expect to get wet, but also to laugh like a kid again throughout the ride. As the ferry jigs underneath one of the powerful torrents of water the sky around disappears and rain-like mist envelopes all passengers, at which point we realise why the ferry is named as such. It is fun, and always nice to have the opportunity to enjoy a little bit of nature’s magic. We spent the next few hours exploring the falls, surrounding shopping precincts and we were even cheeky for lunch, adding TGI Fridays Niagara Falls to our growing list of the chain’s restaurants dined at; so far we’ve checked in at TGIs Yokohama, Piccadilly Circus, Covent Garden, Prague, New York and now here. It’s a trashy tradition, but still, it’s one Cooper and I enjoy together.
Definitely a wonderful time all round – but then, it’s Canada so it’s going to be great (yes, I’m a fan).
Toronto and Niagara Falls top travel tips
1. Keep a city map handy and explore Yorkville and Yonge Streets by foot. It’s easy enough to catch the metro back to your accommodation when/if you get tired (approx $3 for a one-way journey).
2. Toronto is actually quite expensive, so take advantage of supermarkets if you find them. Staying in an apartment or even a nicer hostel such as All Days is a pretty good idea too – is nice to be able to utilise a kitchen – save your money for adventures.
3. Day trip (or overnight) to Niagara Falls.
4. The CN Tower is a must-see, along with the entertainment district downtown.
5. If you have some warmth and sun why not take a day at the beach? Toronto’s waterfront overlooking Lake Ontario is fantastic; alternatively head across to the gorgeous Toronto Island for your pick of parkland, river-side picnic space or sandy beach.
We adore Canada and believe it’s one of the most beautiful countries in the world.
By Sarah Blinco
