Thoughts & Things

Places I Have Been

I imagine having a bit of wanderlust is common for both readers and writers. You read and write about so many far away places, and you want to go to them. I mean, I would literally rather stay in my house than go out most days. But I also want to see the world. I have been privileged enough in my life to have made a fair few trips so far, and I thought it would be nice to share a bit about where I have been, and what I have done while there.

Canada
First off, I would like to note, I was born, raised, and live in Canada. I reside in Ontario, as I always have. Growing up, my parents would take us on trips out of town during the summer. I recall many fond weeks in the Georgian Bay area, which I highly recommend. Snorkeling in the water there is incredible, even if it is cold; the grotto is absolutely breathtaking; and the hiking trails are gorgeous and challenging. Niagara Falls is only a couple hours away. I have made several journeys to visit the falls, and to enjoy the tourist attractions in the city. We were even there one Victoria Day to see fireworks set off over the falls. I was also born in Ottawa, although I grew up much further south, so we took many trips to visit friends in Ottawa and western Quebec. I have visited many of the museums in Ottawa, and have toured our Parliament building, an absolutely stunning piece of architecture.

There was an incredible summer where we were able to take a road trip across the eastern portion of the country. We drove through Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. I had ice cream in every province--the best in Prince Edward Island, the worst in New Brunswick. I ate at a top end seafood place in PEI. I wandered the streets of Old Quebec. I visited Springhill, Nova Scotia, where my family lived two generations ago, and apparently still have distant cousins residing. We went to the Anne Murray Centre there, as well as an excellent tour of the mines there, infamous for two explosions. We visited the Bay of Fundy. I don't recall where, but I got to stand ankle deep in the Atlantic.The most significant thing for me was our visit to Green Gables. As in Anne of Green Gables. I set foot in literature.

Michigan
I have made a number of trips to Michigan. These are actually not particularly notable in terms of tourism and travel, but it always makes for a lovely day. Usually they are day or weekend shopping trips with my grandmother. We stop in at stores we don't have in Canada. We would sometimes stay in a hotel. I believe I had been on a similar trip to Ohio as a small child as well, but I am not positive.

Massachusetts
I was in my late teens when I visited Massachusetts. I was there seeing friends, so sadly I didn't get to visit any historical sights. I love history, and always wanted to go to MA for the history, so this does sadden me. I did get to do some pretty exciting things while there. I went to an NFL game; I saw the Patriots play the Chargers, and the Pats won. I went to Six Flags New England, and enjoyed all of the roller coasters they had. I saw Opeth play in Worcester. It was a fun trip, even if I didn't get any history out of it.

New York
I have made a number of trips to New York for visits in my late teens and early twenties, and I ended up doing much of the obligatory tourist stuff. I went to the top of the Empire State Building, the view was just as incredible as promised, and the elevator was unexpectedly fast. I took pictures of the art on the walls inside Penn Station. I took a brief tour of the New York Public Library, probably one of the most architecturally beautiful buildings I have ever been in, and even saw part of an original, handwritten copy of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. I went to the Museum of Natural History. I had other places to be that day, so I sadly did not see nearly as much as I had hoped for, but being surrounded by that much history was magical. One of the things I still cherish the most was my trip to a Broadway show. I saw the 2014 revival of Les Miserables, and even met the cast outside afterwards to have them sign my playbill (which I still have). I love musical theatre, and I am particularly fond of Les Miserables, so this is something that was incredibly special for me.

I also traveled through Pennsylvania and New Jersey to get there by bus. I don't have much experience with either, and didn't spend any time in either to justify there own places on my list. What I saw of NJ was incredibly beautiful though.

Northern Ireland
My very special significant other resides in Northern Ireland, so I have made multiple trips there, that last for a couple of weeks. I fly into Dublin when I go, and bus through the Irish countryside to get to the north, which is incredible and very film-like. I have spent time in Derry, Omagh, and Belfast. I saw many of the incredible local nature sights, spent time in local bars, ate top notch curry, and had the best soft serve ice cream I have ever had. I got to wander the streets of Belfast, and go in and out of shops. I spent a good bit of time at Derry's walls, which is an incredible bit of history I am thrilled to have seen in person. I also participated in a very tourist-oriented tour of the Antrim Coast. My boyfriend was less fond of this, as it got rather corny at times, but I ate it up. We crossed the Carrick-a-Rede bridge, this being one of the things he was less fond of due to fear of heights. We had lunch and samples at the Old Bushmills distillery, which was lovely. We spent a couple of hours touring the Giant's Causeway, an incredibly beautiful natural location, and it really brought me back to my childhood to climb around on the rock formations. During the bus ride, we drove past old man made caves, and past the real life film location for Castle Black and the wall from Game of Thrones. We also stopped for some incredible photo opportunities at Carrickfergus Castle and Dunluce Castle.

As I am there to visit my boyfriend, tourist attractions are actually a very small part of my visits to him. They are a nice bonus, and I have loved getting to do them and to share them with him, but they are really only bonuses. Much of my time there is spent cuddling on the couch watching movies, and the like. I love him even more for his willingness to humour me in the odd tourist activity.


That's all for now, but I would love to travel so much more. Probably more than I will ever actually manage. Coming soon, a post about where I would like to go.