My last day in Oviedo, the capital of Asturias, had arrived. After a nice breakfast I checked out of the Barcelo Oviedo Cervantes Hotel and …
Exploring Bermiego, Quiros, San Martin de Teverga & the Cave La Huerta
To get to know the outdoor travel opportunities in Asturias, we had spent the morning cycling along the 22 km long Bear Trail or Senda …
A Bicycling Adventure on the Bear Trail
After a nice day of discoveries in Oviedo and Gijón, a grey sky and drizzly weather greeted me on this late May morning, and I …
A Visit to Gijón, the Largest City in Asturias
On this gorgeous Tuesday morning, I had really enjoyed my local tour through Oviedo, the historic capital of Asturias, one of Spain’s northern provinces. My …
Pre-Romanesque Santa Maria del Naranco & the La Balesquida Festival
After a much needed restful sleep on my arrival day at the Barcelo Oviedo Cervantes Hotel, I woke up early at 7 am and was …
Arrival in Oviedo – the Capital of Asturias
Spain has long been one of my favourite travel destinations. I love the Spanish language and am fascinated with Spanish history and culture. Since 2002 …
Friendly Hospitality at the Beacon by the Bay B&B
My last few hours in Peterborough had started and my three and a half day escape in the Kawartha Lakes region was rapidly coming to …
Biking to Lakefield & Kayaking on the Trent Canal
Accompanied by outdoor adventure experts Lloyd Graham and his friend Clare from Pedal and Paddle, I had spent the morning exploring Peterborough by bicycle. Then …
Bicycling through Peterborough with Pedal and Paddle
After a fabulous long day with a visit to the Lang Pioneer Village, a tour through the Elmhirst’s Resort and a great evening of outdoor …
The Elmhirst’s Resort & an Evening at the 4th Line Theatre
I had really enjoyed my first-hand introduction to pioneer life at the Lang Pioneer Village this morning and arrived late at my next stop: the …
Pioneer History Brought to Life at the Lang Pioneer Village
Day 2 of my Peterborough adventure started with gorgeous sunshine. Cora Whittington, my hostess at the Golden Pathways B&B, and I were talking in the …
Dinner at the Holiday Inn & a Free Concert by the Lake
During my introduction to Peterborough I had already been exposed to many different places and activities that make this mid-size city 90 minutes east of …
The Canadian Canoe Museum & a trip to the Otonabee River
After the excitement of having passed over the world’s highest hydraulic lift lock, I now wanted to explore another one of Peterborough’s landmark sites: the …
A Visit to the Farmer’s Market & a Lift Lock Cruise
After my brief stay in Peterborough over the July long weekend I decided to head back there to explore this travel region in greater detail. …
The Magical Village of Cuitzeo and the Monastery of Santa Maria Magdalena
On a gorgeous sunny morning my last full day in Mexico had begun. The last 12 twelve days had been an absolute whirlwind. After barely …
Exploring Lake Pátzcuaro – Tzintzuntzan, Janitzio and the town of Pátzcuaro
After our interesting visit in Quiroga, a colourful market town less than half an hour from Morelia, we had now arrived in Tzintzuntzan, literally translated …
The Rural Market Town of Quiroga, Home of the Famous Carnitas
Brilliant sunshine greeted me again on another gorgeous day in Mexico’s colonial heartland. After a restful night of sleep at the venerable Hotel Catedral, I …
Exploring the Colonial City of Morelia and Cathedral Fireworks
My second and last weekend in Mexico had arrived and I was ready to start my next out-of-town excursion from Guadalajara: I was planning to …
A Walking Tour of Tlaquepaque with a Tourist Police Officer
My second last day at the Guadalajara Language Centre had begun. During my two hours of instruction we had a great discussion about cultural differences …
A Driving Tour to Tequila: Seeing How Tequila is Made
After a nice tour through the Municipal Market in Tlaquepaque and a Spanish lesson, I was going to head out of town this afternoon. Local …
The Guadalajara Language Center and the Tlaquepaque Municipal Market
After two excursions to Lake Chapala over the past couple of days, I had another busy day ahead of me. In the morning I was …
Retiring on Lake Chapala – Meeting someone who did it
I got up early again to download all my photos from my Lake Chapala trip yesterday and headed to the Guadalajara Language Center, my Spanish …
A Driving Tour of Lake Chapala: Mexcala Island, Chapala Town, Ajijic
I had enjoyed my personal tour through “El Centro Cultural El Refugio” in Tlaquepaque and gotten good insight into the historical and artistic highlights of …
The Cultural Centre El Refugio in Tlaquepaque
After an interesting excursion to downtown Guadalajara yesterday, I had needed a good night’s sleep to rest up for another busy day. This Tuesday morning …
A Sightseeing Tour of Guadalajara
On this sunny Monday morning I got up early to download my pictures from my exciting three-day weekend in Guanajuato. I also had to get …
The Diego Rivera Museum in Guanajuato
After this morning’s exciting mountainbiking adventures outside of the city, this afternoon I would have a chance to delve into Guanajuato’s cultural attractions one last …
Bicycling Adventures in the Mountains of Guanajuato
Over the last day and a half I had received a great introduction to the city of Guanajuato. From the beautiful downtown of Guanajuato, which …
Mexico Travel: Guanajuato’s Famous and Eerie Mummy Museum
Mexico Travel – Guanajuato: The Callejón del Beso, the Mummy Museum of Guanjuato and the Famous “Estudiantina” On this busy Saturday morning we had already …
Admiring Ceramic Art and Exploring Guanajuato’s History at La Alhóndiga
After a beautiful restful night in my suite at the Quinta Las Acacias I had woken up really hungry and was looking forward to breakfast. …
Downtown Guanajuato & the Luxurious Quinta Las Acacias Hotel
My first few hours in Guanajuato had already exposed me to so much of the unique history and architecture of this gorgeous Mexican silver mining …
A First Look at Guanajuato, the La Valenciana Mine and El Pípila
During my language study trip to Guadalajara I had allocated two weekends for out-of-town excursions with the goal of visiting some of Mexico’s other colonial …
Discoveries in Tlaquepaque and Tonalá
After my very chilly first night in Mexico I woke up at 7 am at my homestay in Tlaquepaque, a pretty suburb of Guadalajara. Although …
Studying Spanish in Guadalajara
There are two things that I am very passionate about: traveling and learning languages. I like to combine both of them where I can and …
A Walking Tour of Chinatown and Kensington
In all my explorations of Toronto over the last few years I have learned that in addition to numerous world-class sights and attractions, Toronto has …
A Cross-city Cycling Tour, Salsa on St. Clair and Multiple Free Concerts
My summery biking adventures through Toronto continue. This morning I packed my backpack and as usual I entered the Taylor Creek Park system. Heading down …
A Bicycle Tour to the Toronto Islands
Sometimes you get hooked on an activity, and exploring Toronto by bike has become one of these pastimes for me. Not only is it great …
Exploring Toronto with Sights on Bikes
There is no doubt in my mind that bicycling is one of the best ways, if not the best way, to explore a city. You …
The Outer Limits – Linking Toronto and Kolkata and Changing Lives
Human transformation and progress towards a more positive enlightened way of living have long been topics that fascinate me. Many of the articles on this …
A Behind-the-scenes Look at the Royal York Hotel
The more time I spend discovering Toronto the more I realize it is a fascinating city with interesting people and places, historic and current, famous …
First-hand Explorations of the Nooks and Crannies of Casa Loma
Casa Loma, Toronto’s castle and the city’s second most important tourist attraction, has an extremely interesting history. It was the life dream and brainchild of …
Casa Loma and Sir Henry Pellatt – Fascinating Toronto History
As part of my “Celebrate Toronto” article series I have set out with a goal of making one of the most complete discoveries of this …
Detailed Explorations of Toronto’s Distillery District
As a European immigrant, historical districts always hold a great fascination to me. Over the last few years, Toronto has been enriched by the revitalization …
T.O. Sizzles in the Summer
It’s been a pretty amazing summer so far. The weather has been pretty good since as far back as April. Occasionally, we’ve had rain showers …
Skydiving – for a Great Cause
I am a great believer in volunteer work and dedicating time and effort to the greater good. Corporate responsibility embodies this spirit on the business …
The 2006 Toronto Street Festival and Afrofest
So many festivals to choose from, so little time….. This weekend Toronto had so many special events to offer, there simply wasn’t enough time to …
Summerlicious 2006: Toronto’s Restaurant Festival
During summer Toronto goes all out to entertain its residents and visitors with a wide array of festivals including street, theatre, music and culinary festivals. …
The Toronto International Dragonboat Festival 2006
One of my favourite spots in Toronto is the Toronto Islands, that lovely patch of land right in front of downtown Toronto, separated by just …
Music, Food and Fun at the Taste of Little Italy
Festival season is in full swing. Summer is a great time to be in Toronto since there are multiple events going on at the same …
Doors Open – Toronto’s Architecture Festival is a Resounding Success
Judging by the line-ups of architecture buffs on the streets, Toronto’s free architecture festival, Doors Open, is a resounding success. Since 2000 Doors Open has …
Ignite the Night – A Toronto Circus Night Benefits Street Children in Cusco
“Tonight a dream has come true”, said G.A.P Adventures CEO and founder Bruce Poon Tip. About a year ago he and a few of his …
Winter Images – High Park & the Beaches, Starring the Leuty Lifeguard Station
Well, all throughout January we had above average temperatures. Now it’s mid February and winter has arrived. For the last few days we have officially …
T.O. History Revisited – Toronto’s Most Haunted Street Corner
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisted – The Gooderham (Flatiron) Building
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – The St. Lawrence Market (2)
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – The St. Lawrence Market (1)
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – The Royal York Hotel
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – Toronto’s St. James Cathedral
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – Toronto Island (2)
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – Toronto Island (1)
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
T.O. History Revisited – The Gooderham & Warts Distillery
By Bruce Bell Bruce Bell is the history columnist for the Bulletin, Canada’s largest community newspaper. He sits on the board of the Town of …
Novice Golf and a Kawartha Lake Region Tour
It is unbelievable how nine days can just fly by. Today my brother, sister-in-law and our two Austrian friends are scheduled to fly back to …
Visiting High Park and Toronto’s West End Neighbourhoods
One of the beauties of Toronto is its diversity, the fact that hundreds of ethnic groups from all over the world congregate here in this …
A Tour Through Niagara Wine Country
Two days ago I took our European visitors on a little driving tour of the Niagara Peninsula, specifically to explore some of the 50 something …
Exploring the Waterfront by Bicycle and the CN Tower
Since my European visitors are quite sporty I figured that renting a bicycle would be the perfect way of exploring the city. So to join …