Monthly Archives: June 2009

What is it with Americans and ice? Do they eat the stuff? Do they put it in the bath tub to lower the water temperature? Our New York hotel room is three doors away from the corner. Around the corner … Continue reading →

“Don’t try to walk more than 10 blocks”, our daughter advised us from New York a fortnight earlier. Much of New York is surprisingly walkable. You probably wouldn’t want to walk from Central Park to Battery Park (about 90 blocks), … Continue reading →

During coffee, my mobile rings. It’s Reuben. “Ian, are you anywhere near Times Square?” I tell him we’re about five minutes walk away. “Great. Could you take a look around and give me 100 words on the scene down there … Continue reading →

The SuperShuttle whisks us off to Manhattan. We go through three separate tolls booths on the 30 minute journey. As the New York midtown skyline comes into view before we plunge into the tunnel under the river, the sight is … Continue reading →

Calgary on Sunday is quiet. Although still cold, the sun is now shining crisply as the taxi drops us off at the airport. Self-service check-in takes quite a while – there are a lot of screens to plough through. We … Continue reading →

We are keen to see this new city, so we venture outside into downtown Calgary in search of breakfast. It’s now minus 1 deg C and there is a sprinkling of snow that soon turns to light sleet. And this … Continue reading →

The taxi picked us up at 6.15 am as promised and whisked us to the station where the Rocky Mountaineer was waiting for us in the pale morning sunlight. I like the traditional way of climbing up the steps into … Continue reading →

The people in our railcar are becoming more relaxed and chatty as the time we spend together lengthens. Over breakfast on Day 2, I take a look around at the people nearest to us. Across the aisle are mom and … Continue reading →

Ospreys hunt, nest and breed along the Fraser and Thompson Rivers. Sometimes called the Sea Hawk, these large, majestic birds return to their same nests every year, renovating and enlarging them, to lay their eggs and rear their young. The … Continue reading →