Farsighted Fly Girl

After several years of scheduling issues, I'm excited to finally be visiting The Yukon. This region of stunning scenery is home to Canada's highest peak, Mount Logan, pictured above. It's also home to the world's largest nonpolar ice fields, which I'll be viewing along with glaciers on a flightseeing excursion. I'm actually traveling to The Yukon for its annual culinary festival, where I'll be learning about cuisine traditions and chef innovations. I'm also looking forward to gold panning and a visit to Diamond Tooth Gertie's in historic Dawson City and exploring the S.S. Klondike National Historic Site. My trip is sponsored by Tourism Yukon  , who will be hosting me and three other journalists in what promises to be a really adventurous experience. Please stay tuned!

My first glimpse of Quebec City history and culture was the stately Parliament building just outside of Old Quebec. I thought the building looked distinctly French with its Second Empire architecture so I wasn't surprised to learn that it was inspired by the expansion of Paris' Louvre Museum when it was constructed in 1877. I was surprised, however, when I discovered that the Parliament houses a restaurant, Le Parlimentaire, that's open to the public. Anyone can make a reservation and eat with the prime minister if he's in the building. I watched the restaurant's chef pick herbs from the garden and then show visitors what they were used for. With a highly rated restaurant in the province's capitol building and a chef that works with fresh ingredients, it's clear that the French influence in Quebec shows up on every level!

For the first time ever, I will forgo, my first Quebecois love, Montreal and travel to  historic Quebec City. I'll check out the Le Festival de'ete de Quebec  (French hip hop!) as well as the UNESCO Word Heritage Site of Old Quebec City and all its cobblestone and walled charms. My visit is sponsored by  Quebec Tourism so I'll be diving into all aspects of Quebec City history and culture. I expect to be dazzled so stay tuned!

In the highlands of the Lake Atitlan region of Guatemala, there are communities of  Mayan women who carve out a living from traditional ways of life. Many of these villages are filled with mostly women because Guatemala's Civil War claimed the lives of so many men. I didn't sense much sadness however, only a gentle determination to provide for their families. The cooperatives of women weavers are quite famous but there are also women who showcase and earn money from other Mayan traditions, including food, art and music. I met this woman in the back of a village, where her shop displaying medicinal herbs and herbal beauty products overlooks a river. I was impressed with her herbal knowledge and the innovation she used to display her potions and plants in recycled water bottles. But looking at this photo, snapped on the fly as I was leaving, I'm more taken with the strength and beauty reflected in her face.