After 10 minutes of driving from the beach (it probably wouldn’t take more than an hour to drive around the entire island), we reached Vesuvius. We didn’t know the name of the restaurant, but from the institutions in the “town”, Seaside Restaurant was probably the only place to grab a bite. Oysters, fish and chips (halibut), and clam chowder:



Tasted extra good, after all the fails with the clams. The chowder had huge chunks of clam, the fish was fresh and had good meat to batter ratio, and we were ready to keep going. For a little place on a tiny island, the food was better than good. If they set up shop on the mainland, I might go again, but it’s still not worth the 3 hour ferry ride.



1:00PM: Mt. Erskine

Trail is a bit steep, but the fairy doors are worth it.

More info on this trail: https://saltspringmarket.com/hiking-on-salt-spring-island/mt-erskine-from-juniper/

Side note: S8 came out today. I dropped my S7 from the seat of H’s 4Runner (now known as Big Bertha), while I was getting out of the car, and it tumbled to hard cement ground. A couple side scratches, no cracks. Faith restored in Samsung.


Return to Day 1 on Salt Spring
Go to Day 2 on Salt Spring

Met up with P and S after class yesterday. Pasta Tuesday at Trattoria was conveniently located close to all of us, and we had the happy hour menu as ell as the $12 pizzas! Score.

I had the fusili lunghi + meatballs on the side. We shared the Sicilian pizza, and P had the pasta with the short rib (next to the pizza). S had the one with the seafood and a meatball. Man, we eat a lot.

I think P made the best choice, the short rib was so flavorful! The pizza crust was sort of too thick, and the cheese wasn’t melted properly. Not the best service, it sort of felt like we were being rushed out, but it was pretty good overall for what we paid.

 

Today, International Women’s Day, marked by Trudeau’s announcement of $650 million being invested in reproductive health and rights around the world. I took the day off to go exploring. Found a green puddle. It was a good day.

I’m very glad that the work crew dragged me out to this hike, needed to escape, runaway and hide in the fog for a day. Recharged and ready to go for the next week! (This doesn’t always last very long, I usually crash by mid week and am ready to runaway again).

A rest area after the switchbacks.

Lesser Lake comes first, poor thing gets a put down name.

Walk faster guys…

First views of the lake.

So calm.

Sneaky shot of somebody meditating.

Around to the other side of the lake.

Time to go home. Photo credits – PvN

Hiking boots are a huge plus, it’s getting muddy up there. Make sure to carry enough water and food, but not too much. I don't recall how crowded it was last time that I visited, which was probably about 3 years ago, at least. It's still not too bad. I think the wet ground and the switchbacks keep people away.

More on this hike here:
https://www.vancouvertrails.com/trails/garibaldi-lake/
https://www.livetrails.com/trails/Garibaldi-Lake-19.html
http://whistlerhiatus.com/whistlerhikes/garibaldi-lake.html

My photo style keeps switching with my mood… That soft foggy look is so moody, and the clear almost HDR look brightens up the page. Either way. Hope to squeeze in more hikes before snow season.

Feelings are supposed to be irrelevant – John Oliver on Donald Trump and the Republican National Convention

Chocolate Chip Sea Salt Cookie and Iced Latte:

Turkey sandwich and iced Americano with milk (and C’s hat):

All very delicious, just what I needed on a hot summer afternoon, post Pokemon walk. The cookie was not the soft kinds I usually bake, so I don’t think I’d get it again except in a pinch. Don’t take it the wrong way, I liked it a lot, but not enough to want to try baking it on my own. Definitely heading back for that iced latte – SO SMOOTH.

Sometimes, it’s hard to understand why people do things, especially at the end of the day when we’re all exhausted. I wish the explanation for all inexplicable behavior could be a brain infection, but that only happens for some lucky friends of mine. I’m just glad to know that there are amazing places like Lindeman Lake out in the wild, and Platform 7 in the middle of the city for us lost souls to visit and try to find ourselves.

Here’s where you can read about the rest of the trip

Day 1 and Day 1.2

Day 2 and Day 2.2

Day 2.3 and 3

Day 4, 5, 6, 7

It’s only been a month since we came back, but it feels like years. It’s a whole new world over there and still so much to explore. I only briefly touched on our glacier tour, so I wanted to bring us back to the good old days when I was in Iceland…

We went on our glacier tour, booked through Trip.IS at their office for about $220CAD per person. They provide a guided tour of Solheimajokull, all the equipment (crampons and pickaxes), and a bus to take us there. Also included a quick ice climbing session (no pictures, because I was too busy being spiderwoman). There are some tours for a much better price, but we were pretty last minute so we didn’t bother searching too much.

The snow is black because of the ash from recent volcanic eruptions (2010? is that still recent). The ash actually helps to protect the ice and insulate it. There were random cracks and  holes, so it would’ve been a pretty treacherous hike if we did it on our own.

I really can't wait to go back, but with Europe the way it is now (France... Turkey... less recently Brussels), I can't help but be afraid to visit. I think I've decided on a few places I want to see, so look forward to more #luwesatravels posts.

After hot dogs, we went to find Glymur, the second tallest waterfall in Iceland (it used to be the tallest until a taller one formed on Morsárjökull). We got lost along the way, which stressed me out, but in the end, we made found the sign that we were supposed to turn at:

…we found the sign behind the gate at the head of the trail…

 

…we found the other little signs pointing towards Glymur…

…going down the steps…

…sitting on a precipice (can you spot T?)…

…going into the dark and heading back into the light…

…crossed the log bridge that actually is not available in the winter to discourage the faint of heart…

…up the rock steps…

…found it!

And here’s the view with your back facing the waterwall. I find this a bit more fascinating:

Then, be greeted by animals all the way home:

We tried this licorice chocolate that I got for half price because it was expired at the tourist trap that we visited:


Pretty fucking gross. End of Day 2.

1. Lost luggage
2. Lost on the trail
3. Lost cellphone
4. Lost Altoids box
5. Lost passport

All found. This is the place to find yourself. There’s so much space to develop and grow. It was exactly what I needed.

1. Lost luggage

We arrived on the 24th after a 7 hour plane ride at the lovely KEF airport. I was feeling quite excited and refreshed, because I slept pretty much the whole way. H makes a magnificent pillow. We went through customs with no problems, met up with TPL, and went to grab our luggage. We all grabbed our stuff, and waited for T’s suitcase to come out of the chute. We waited and waited and waited for a black suitcase with a little red string on the handle. Where was it?!

As the rest of the crowd dispersed, we realized it would not make sense for us to keep waiting pointlessly, so T went to the counter to ask. D and TPL went to get the car, while H and I went to pick up alcohol at the duty free (it’s so much cheaper!). T eventually had some forms to fill out and was sitting near the conveyer belts, where one of the airport attendants was checking the remaining pieces of luggage left behind. There was a black one, a random stroller, some other bags, and a grey one. The airport attendant approached T, who was sitting forlornly by the belts.

“Is this one yours?” she asked, pointing at the grey one. “It has your last name on the tag.”

“No, it’s not, mine’s black, it’s probably somebody else’s.” T was sure that it wasn’t his. “If it’s mine, you can laugh,” he says, stubbornly.

“Pretty sure it’s yours, it even has the same flight.” The attendant starts laughing.

At least we picked up some good alcohol:

We dropped off stuff at the place we were staying (Airbnb is the way to go in Iceland – we each spent about $218CAD for 7 nights), and headed back out for what was supposed to be breakfast, now brunch. Went to Kaffi:

This place took a bit of hunting to find – had to ask a kind stranger for help. Food was great, maybe because we were all starving. It was pure vegan heaven. Too bad I’m not a vegan. We were now ready to continue exploring the rest of this quaint little city (town?).

Today has been food and caffeine filled. How else would I spend my Saturday? Took a break from baking to have lunch with H, and visited Parker Street Cafe, where they were roasting fresh coffee beans:

Got the Parker’s Special, cold Americcino, which is blended ice with a shot of cold brew. (Shamelessly displaying H’s handmade leather wallet… Give me a shout if you want one.)

Nice place to hang out, quiet neighborhood, not a lot of traffic. Coffee’s STRONG. I like it. Come back soon!!!!

I just want to go back to this…

Might as well just eat.

Look at all that butter. @Happy Date Bakery & Restaurant. Maybe I don’t exercise enough to have this, but we’re all going to die one day, and I’d rather eat this and be happy than deprive myself of all that fluffy bread with butter.

Reasons why I cannot sleep:

1. SimCity BuildIt is keeping me awake.
2. I dread transiting to work, but how else am I going to save some money?
3. Too much coffee today to stay awake.
4. Just not ready to sleep yet.

Waking up at 6AM tomorrow to bus to work when I could be riding comfortably in my Veloster. (Maybe not that comfortably, I get pretty nervous when I’m driving these days, probably because of all the previous accidents). It’ll be my first time using the monthly pass on the Compass card. I’ll let you know how it goes.