Farsighted Fly Girl

Montreal is a foodie paradise. Whatever cuisine or dining experience you desire, you will find an excellent version in Montreal. The restaurant scene bubbles with cafes, chic dining spots and casual eateries on every other corner. But there are a few culinary requirements for every visitor. You must try an authentic Montreal bagel and you must sample poutine. Bagels are a very serious thing in Montreal. They were brought by Eastern European Jews in the early 20th century and they quickly grew into an essential Montreal food. Now I'm not a huge bagel fan but Montreal bagels differ from the more familiar New York bagel. Montreal bagels are smaller, sweeter and less doughy. They are cooked in a honey water solution and then baked in a wood fire oven. They are not meant to be sliced but are munched warm from the oven and dunked in flavored creme cheese if you like. There's a contentious rivalry between Fairmount and St, Viateur Bagel Shops and locals pledge their alleg...

I love Montreal. And the proof of that love is reflected in the fact that I am visiting this exciting city in the middle of the winter. I love Montreal in the summer, when the port of Old Montreal is filled with activity and outdoor fests energize every other weekend. I love Montreal in the fall when the ice wineries feature non-stop tastings and restaurants host pop ups and tours. I love Montreal in the spring when locals dance in the parks and Jean Talon market  smells like fresh cannolis. But I don't know Montreal in winter. I've never been brave enough to subject myself to a winter more frigid than Chicago but when I was invited by Tourism Montreal to snow shoe in Mount Royal Park   (shown above) and to try fat biking and kick sledding in the Eastern township of Magog, I couldn't resist. I love snow shoeing , biking and sledding. So stay tuned for my inaugural winter adventures in Montreal. I'll also visit the  Lumiere winter festival of performing arts, gastr...

I love gardens and flowers so I always try to visit the botanical gardens of the destinations that I visit. I've explored many gorgeous gardens and been absorbed by the heady delights of blooming plants and trees. But I've never seen anything like Victoria's Butchart Gardens.  It's called a garden but it's more like a fairytale land, as you can glimpse in the photo. The thing is, there's not just one garden at Butchart Gardens, there are many, including a sunken garden, an Italian garden, a Japanese garden,a rose garden and a Mediterranean garden. There's even a carousel with exotic animals!  With a restaurant that serves an afternoon tea service and dishes created from the organic produce grown on the grounds, Butchart Gardens is the kind of oasis that beckons you to spend days, not hours.

One of the things that I love about Vancouver and Victoria is the vibrant presence of First Nations culture. From the time you step into Vancouver International Airport, , aboriginal art pieces,especially totem poles, are on prominent display. Strolling around both cities, I discovered that totem poles are as common as the trees that often surround them. At Capilano Suspension Bridge Park , totem poles dot the landscape, they tell the story of the people who lived there hundreds of years before. In fact, totem poles are sometimes called story poles. I learned that totem poles are monuments created by Northwest Coast aboriginal people and they can serve as signboards, genealogical records or memorials. They are typically carved from red cedar and then painted. The poles communicate symbolically across all First Nations groups. The surprising thing that I discovered about totem poles is that they don't have to be towering heights but that they come in all...

When I landed in beautiful and bustling Vancouver, it was hard for me to understand that I was actually on a coastal seaport. I spotted mountains and buildings everywhere I turned but it wasn't until I headed to the peninsula of Granville Island that I grasped the water connection. Granville Island is a shopping district that actually requires you to hop a ferry to reach. Floating on the boat, I glimpsed the prettiest aquatic scenes. Vancouver showcases sleek architectural structures like the Science World sphere above. The city also boasts quaint Victorian building like the ones adorned with Canadian flags above. It didn't really matter where I looked, the water just seemed to make everything that more scenic.

There's nothing more iconic than a bald eagle soaring over the mountains so I was excited to get a close up experience of this in Quebec's Laurentian mountains. At the summit of Mont Tremblant, a Birds of Prey show demonstrates the beauty and skill of native aviary predators. It was raining and cold but I was determined to see and grab some shots of the birds and I was rewarded with the image above. That striking profile against the sweeping mountain backdrop makes it my fave animal photo so far. The falconer explained how there used to be only six nesting bald eagles in Quebec, just 15 years ago. Now, thanks to conservation and the banning of DEET insecticide, there are 200 nesting bald eagles in the region. We got the chance to see owls and smaller birds dive through the sky, and capture meals mid air but I liked the eagle the best. It's a rare thing to get so close to these majestic creatures and I feel lucky to have been close enough to gaze into its eyes. Have...

If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a huge fan of Quebec. I love the culture, the beauty and the hidden discoveries of the region. This week, I'll be traveling to The Laurentians, a mountain area just North of Montreal. Mont Tremblant is the main town, just brimming with charm, as you can see above. The region boasts 9,102 lakes, 103 rivers and two sprawling national parks. I'll be visiting the Mont Tremblant International Blues Fest as well as dipping into the Scandinavian outdoor spa in the Red River and exploring an alpine! aquatic! park. Please stay tuned!

In Whitehorse, the capitol city of the Yukon, the Yukon River commands much of the city's focus. Running along the town in untamed waves, it really represents why Whitehorse is called "Wilderness City."  I strolled the boardwalk near the river and was excited to see a musician playing his guitar. He had come from Montreal to play for his cousin's wedding that night. He was practicing by the river and the guitar rhythms seemed to flow at the same pace as the waves. Check out my video to hear a portion of  his soothing tune.

I was prepared to see glaciers and gold during my visit to the Northern Canadian region of the Yukon but I was not prepared to see a desert. In the first of many fascinating surprises that I discovered in the region, the Carcross (Caribou Crossing) desert has been declared the world's smallest desert by the Guinness Book of World  Records. Measuring just one square mile, it looks more like a scenic sandbox than an actual desert but according to Canadian history, 10,000 years ago, this spot was the bottom of a large glacial lake and its connecting sand dunes The retreating glacial ice expanded the dunes,which serve as handy recreation for sand boarders and skiers in the winter. Technically, the climate is too humid to be considered a real desert and the Yukon is actually six degrees south of the Arctic Circle but those facts are just not as fun.

One of the things that I loved about traveling in the Yukon was the vibrant First Nation culture that was visible everywhere. Traditional paintings, sculptures, food and clothing were displayed in every town that I visited but I really enjoyed seeing the totem poles. The one above stands in Whitehorse . This totem pole sits in the middle of CarCross ( Caribou Crossing), surrounded by shops covered in beautiful First Nation symbols. All tribes don't have totem poles but those that lived near forests carved them to represent the tribal nation's history and stories.You can see the intricate detail and work that goes into the carvings. I was tempted to climb them to look at the figures up close, but I didn't. Besides being difficult, it would be highly disrespectful to climb a totem pole. I spotted this teepee on a farm just outside of  Dawson City . It's made with traditional elk skin and wood, with an opening on top for smoke. I really enjoyed connecting wit...

There is no place on Earth like the Yukon. I had no idea what to expect when I visited this striking and unconventional region of Canada and that was probably a good thing because you just have to experience it. Descriptions and expectations just don't measure up. So when I sifted through the hundreds of photos I took of all of my out of this world experiences--glaciers! elk hearts! human toe cocktails! a real caveman!, it was hard to choose a singular image of how to sum up the Yukon. But this pic of a Yukon wedding does a great job of capturing the spirit of the place. This wasn't posed or set up, this is the real wedding party on a vintage fire engine, rolling through the dusty streets of Dawson City. It was actually the first of two wedding parties that I witnessed, the other was on a pickup truck. They waved and invited me to join the reception as they rolled off.  They didn't know who I was, I didn't know who they were but they didn't hesitate to invite me ...