Well hello there! It’s been a long time with no blog post… too long. Between traveling for nearly three weeks, having friends visit us in Paris, and being pretty busy with work, it’s been a hectic (in a good way) month. I’ve got some fun new recipes and a capsule wardrobe to share soon, but for now, I thought I’d share some travel highlights from our Great Canadian Tour (that actually started in Dublin)!

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With only two full days to spend in Dublin, we had planned to cram in as much as possible… but from the moment we left Paris, things went a little downhill. We flew from Paris to Dublin on RyanAir, which would have been fine on its own, but RyanAir leaves Paris from Beauvais airport (well over an hour outside Paris), which was a nightmare to get to at 6:00 AM, and complete chaos once we got there. Once we arrived in Dublin, we discovered that the AirBnB that we had booked was AWFUL (like, could. not. stay. there.), and we spent the rest of the day trying to figure out where else we could stay on such short notice. And somewhere in there I dropped my iPhone on the sidewalk and it EXPLODED. So suffice to say that things got off to a rough start! But all was not lost, and we still enjoyed the rest of our trip, and ate some amazing food. Highlights include:

1. Etto
A big thank you to French Foodie in Dublin for recommending this restaurant – we had the most amazing meal here!

2. 777
A mexican restaurant that we just happened to go to on TACO NIGHT. Couldn’t have been better. Also, the margaritas were top.

3. The Cake Cafe
One day, when we move back to St. John’s, this is exactly what I want to do with my life – open a cafe like this one! Sweet desserts and baked goods, and lovely lunches too. I sampled four desserts and had a glass of prosecco. No shame.

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Although the motivation for our Canadian trip was a wedding on the West Coast, we couldn’t possibly miss the chance for a few days at home in Newfoundland. We stayed for just under six days, so it was a little rushed trying to see all of our family and friends, but it was so good to be home home. We also got to try out a couple of restaurants that have opened since we’ve been away:

1. The Merchant Tavern
Great food, and they have a pastry chef making wicked desserts – including a vinegar pie (TRY IT). The cocktail list is also impressive.

2. St. John’s Fish Exchange
We had an awesome meal with friends, and the view is great too.

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We stopped into Vancouver for a few days, just for fun, on our way to Calgary. Easily one of my favourite Canadian cities. Some highlights:

1. Biking the Seawall in Stanley Park
I’ve visited Vancouver a few times, and this has always been on my list of to dos, but somehow I had never gotten to it. So this trip, we made it a priority, and I’m so glad we did (and sad I hadn’t done it sooner). It was such a fun way to spend a day, and Stanley Park is just incredible. Probably my favourite part of our entire trip.

2. The Birds & The Beets
A lovely cafe with great coffee and lunches, and local beer on tap.

3. Vij’s Restaurant
Some of the best indian food I’ve ever had. They don’t take reservations, but they have a really nice bar where you can wait, and they bring you all kinds of things to taste while you wait. If you go, get the lamb lollipops.

4. Brassneck Brewery & Granville Island Brewing
Vancouver has to have the most microbreweries per capita… they’re everywhere! These in particular were great – loved the sour raspberry beer at Brassneck, and the Saison at Granville.

5. Wildebeest
I love when a restaurant offers a tasting menu, and it includes all kinds of things you might not have picked yourself but end up loving. We had seven courses, and couldn’t decide which one we liked best – so good!

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1. A Wedding
And of course, the main purpose of our trip to the lovely West Coast was to see two beautiful friends get married! It was such a wonderful wedding, and we were so happy to be there with all of our friends ♥

2. Hiking in Canmore
The day after the wedding, our friends had organized a hike in Canmore ( Grassi Lakes Trail ). The scenery was gorgeous!

3. Ten Foot Henry
Enjoyed an awesome meal here with friends.

4. Village Ice Cream
We couldn’t believe how long the line up was (after 10 PM on a weeknight too!) at this place… but it was worth the wait! There is a definite possibility I ate a litre of ice cream…

And then we flew back to Paris, where it took several days to get over that 8 hour time change! I’m missing Canada, but it’s also good to be home in Paris, with all my furries!