Exploring the stunning architecture of Belem, Portugal. From the incredibly ornate detailing found throughout the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to the Padrao dos Descobrimentos– the Monument of the Discoveries built to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the death of Henry the Navigator, to the Moorish influence found in the Torre to Belem, Belem is definitely worth a visit. After a long day of exploring the areas historical buildings, be sure to stop at Pasteis de Belem for one of their famous Portuguese tarts!
Learning about life under the sea at the Oceanario de Lisboa, Europe’s second largest oceanarium. Here, visitors can explore ocean habitats from each of the world’s oceans. Visit penguins in the Antarctic tank, see otters playing in the Pacific tank rock pools, gaze at the colourful fish and tropical coral reef in the Indian Ocean tank, watch sharks swim by and more including a special exhibit of sea turtles.
Exploring Cascais, Portugal, a beautiful beach resort area of gorgeous old mansions and former fishermen’s houses surrounding a bay covered with sandy beaches.
I’ve never been the kind of girl who makes a big deal out of Valentine’s Day, most years, it’s just another day. However, there is one Valentine’s Day that stands out more than most days. Valentine’s Day 2008, while I was living in Kenya volunteering in an orphanage is one crazy day I’ll never forget!
Joseph, the man who ran Manaseh children’s home, is definitely what you would call a character. On this particular morning, he burst into the kitchen saying “Crystal, will you accompany me on a short journey?” By this point I had learned that a ‘short’ outing with Joseph could mean anything from a couple of hours to a full day adventure.
After convincing the two other volunteers not to leave me alone, we set out through the village and made our way to Christine’s home for tea. This sweet, tiny woman became my Kenyan grandma while I was living there and I always enjoyed our lively conversations over tea or a meal. However, today after greeting us, Christine disappeared outside. After waiting in the sitting room for over half an hour we began to wonder what the hold up was just as Christine rushed back into the kitchen with a boiling pot of chai. She apologized for the wait, explaining that she was out of milk so before she could make the tea she had to send her son to milk the cow! This was definitely the freshest cup of tea I’ve ever had! As we drank our chai, Christine asked if I was married. When I told her no, she told me I’d be welcome to get married at her house and she said she would be honoured to slaughter a goat to celebrate, maybe two if I married a Kenyan man!
Already 2 hours in to our ‘short journey’ Joseph decided it was time to move on and we walked another mile or so along a dirt trail to one of the local schools. After greeting the principal, we were then paraded through all the classrooms as the students silently stared at the Mzungus standing in front of them. After being introduced as a dancer, which anyone who was in my ballet class clearly knows I’m not, Joseph would announce that I was now going to perform a song for them. This happened everywhere we went, so luckily by this point I had my Hippo song armed and ready to go.
‘Hip, Hip, Hip, Hippopotamus, Hip, Hip Hooray God made all of us, ‘Hip, Hip, Hip, Hippopotamus, Hip, Hip Hooray he made us.” By the time we made it through all six classrooms an hour later, we had a parade of kids following us singing the Hippo song and laughing hysterically.
Our next stop was lunch as Joseph steered us into the back of a butchery and ordered us each a big bowl of ugali and cow innards. Luckily lunch also came with an orange Fanta to wash the cornmeal paste and bones down with!
Back on the street, I realized the long red dress I chose to wear for Valentine’s Day might not have been the best choice for someone who already stood out like a sore thumb. However, it did provide entertain for the others as a number of men asked me to be their Valentines using a variety of tactics.
We made our way through the Dagoretti Slum until we came to the open-air slaughterhouse to pick up some meat for dinner. The sign posted on the door read ‘If you are entering this yard in the morning wear your goggles and apron to avoid blood spatter.’ Great! Lucky for us by this point it was mid afternoon. Now I’ve never been in a slaughterhouse before and even if I had I’m not sure any of us were ready for what we saw as we pushed through that stained white gate. At least half a dozen cows hung from the ceiling as their decapitated heads stared at us from the side. Each butcher was in charge of selling meat from his own cow, meaning chaos ensued as everyone fought to have us buy from their cow. Joseph explained that to ‘order’ the meat all you had to do you was point to the part of the cow you wanted and the butcher would hack it off with a machete. Ok. As we looked for a cow that appeared even slightly appetizing, the blood birds began to dive bomb the slaughterhouse drinking up the blood and making our decision much faster. “I’ll take that section please.” As the butcher raised his machete to hack off the chunk of cow I’d pointed out, another man appeared beside me. “Excuse me miss, but as you know it is Valentine’s Day and I was wondering if you would be my Valentine?” he asked just as the butcher dropped the chunk of raw cow meat into my bare hands.
Eight hours after our short journey began we made it back to the orphanage to eat a feast of beef and stale pink Valentine cupcakes with the kids. With my hands still reeking of dead cow, this may not have been a very romantic day, but I’m not sure any other Valentine’s day will ever be quite as memorable!
On our third day at sea, after passing through Tracy Arm Fjord on our Alaskan cruise, we sailed into Juneau’s harbour.
Alaska’s capital is the third largest city in the state and is located on the North American mainland, making it unreachable by road. Good thing we arrived by cruise ship! Continue reading →
I never considered myself a ‘Cruise’ person. In fact, the very idea of being trapped on a large ship with several thousand other people always sounded like a horrible travel idea to me. But, since I had always wanted to go to Alaska and I can’t say no to a free trip, I found myself boarding Holland America’s Zuiderdam ship in Vancouver and setting off into the Inside Passage!
A trip through the Yukon just wouldn’t be complete without learning a bit about one of the Territory’s most popular sporting events – dog sledding! Since it was still summer here, we weren’t able to go out sledding, but we were able to visit some of these incredible dogs that were raised to pull a dog sled.
Uncommon Journeys is located in the Ibex Valley, just outside Whitehorse, and is surrounded by beautiful Northern-Canadian wilderness. The company was founded and continues to be run by Rod and Martha Taylor. The couple are well-respected members in the Yukon tourism industry and are both experienced wilderness guides. Their love of the Yukon outdoors and their beautiful sled dogs led them to opening Uncommon Journeys, which allows them to share this love with those seeking adventure in the Canadian North.Walking into a dog kennel, you expect a lot of noise, especially with over 50 dogs living here. But the kennel was virtually silent as the dogs quietly watched us as we learned all about their lives at Uncommon Journeys. The dogs here are considered part of the family and around 80 per cent of the dogs found at Uncommon Journeys were born and raised here. The remaining 20 per cent were brought to the kennel from world-class sled dog racers who wanted their dogs to go to a nice “retirement” home after finishing their racing careers!
These dogs are quite a friendly bunch and love meeting the thousands of guests that visit Uncommon Journeys each year to learn about dog sledding and the Alaskan Huskies who live here. After hearing stories about how the dogs are trained, socialized and cared for, we got to head into the main dog yard to meet the energetic beasts. Though they are all tied to their doghouses, this doesn’t stop them from running over to lick your hand and rub up against you as you pass by. They are very affectionate dogs who love to be petted and to give you some kisses or even a high five!
The main reason these dogs are so calm and affectionate is the way they are socialized. Here, the mother gives birth in the Taylor’s house and the puppies are around people from the moment they’re born. When it’s time for the pups to open their eyes, the mother is taken away momentarily so that the first thing the puppies see are Rod and Martha, who become their “parents.” The pups love to follow “Mom” and “Dad” around the house as they begin to explore. Then, Rod and Martha’s six-year-old daughter and her friends take over the puppy socializing by spending hours playing with the pups. By the time the puppies begin their sled dog training, they are so used to human interaction, loud noises and rowdy play that nothing shocks or spooks them and they genuinely love being around people. Even as adults, there is a “dog of the day” at Uncommon Journeys, and that lucky dog gets to roam free, eat with the family, and sometimes even curl up at the foot of the Taylor’s bed!
It doesn’t take long to realize that these dogs are truly loved and the care they receive here is incredible. Uncommon Journeys is the first kennel in Canada to be certified at P.R.I.D.E’s highest level. P.R.I.D.E, Providing Responsible Information on a Dog’s Environment, was started by a group of top dog mushers in Alaska to support the humane treatment and care of sled dogs and has since grown to represent mushing interests across North America and the world.
Walking into that dog yard, it’s hard not to fall in love with these friendly Alaskan Huskies. However, they didn’t look like I expected them too. Alaskan Huskies, unlike the beautiful Siberian Husky, don’t have a unified look. I learned that this is because there was a huge shortage of dogs in the North during the Gold Rush, so people began to steal any dog they could find that was bigger than a Schnauzer from Seattle to ship up North! Over time, a new breed of dog developed that could withstand cold Arctic temperatures and that loved to run and pull a sled. While there was quite a range of appearances found in the dogs in the kennel, there was no mistaking that these were Alaskan Huskies as soon as the harnesses came out!
Before we left, the staff hitched up a team of dogs so we could see them in action. Since there wasn’t any snow, they were hitched up to a modified ATV with the brakes on. Brakes or no brakes, as soon as the peg was lifted, they were gone, whizzing past us in a matter of seconds.
It was definitely an impressive sight and after spending a few hours here learning about the dogs, I began to think that maybe dog sledding through the Yukon wilderness might be a great future adventure….I’ll just need to bring A LOT of warm clothes!
Tales of a Travel Addict 
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