Prince Edward Island

The day after sightseeing in Halifax, we embarked for our next destination, Prince Edward Island, but only after eating a delicious breakfast at a Canadian fast-food chain, Tim Horton, and touring an old cemetery where most of the Titanic wreck victims were buried. I have to make a quick plug for Tim Horton's before I go on---unlike any US fast-food chains, this one not only had delicious food with healthy choices, but served food in real dishware and with real silverware.

To get to PEI, we took a lovely ferry ride across the Northumberland Strait and saw other lighthouses on the way. On our way to Charlottetown, the capital city of PEI, we stopped at one of the farm stands by the road and bought some delicious apples, for which I had been having a huge craving. In Charlottetown we went to a few museums that finally clarified the history of Canada to me and my fellow travelers. First, we visited the mansion where a first important agreement to form Canada was signed by the representatives from Nova Scotia, PEI, Upper Canada (Toronto), and Lower Canada (Quebec). The history museum we visited next had the best interactive display on Canadian history---it was interesting to note the difference in the approaches to their colonies by the British in the US and Canada, especially after the US independence. Frightened by the internal in-fighting in the days after the US independence, the Canadians decided that they were better-off under the British rule and never really pursued their independence in the way that the US colonies did.

That night we were supposed to stay in a cottage in Cavendish near the House of Green Gables (as in "Anne of Green Gables") so after a quick dinner in Charlottetown, we drove through the fields and meadows of PEI until we arrived at "Kindred Spirits Cottages." Upon arrival, we were told that there would be tea and cookies in about an hour, so after checking into our cottage, we were barely able to wait until cookie time, which proved to be a cozy gathering of the inhabitants of other cottages and the adjacent Inn. Canadians seemed to be really lovely people!

Halifax, Nova Scotia

The cute maritime city of Halifax was once a home to a large British military base. The Citadel, the site of the base, offered a nice tour and even a chance to see the canon being fired into the sea. It gave us a sense of what the history of the city was and how it came about. The harbor was very cute, with some cargo ships and recreational boats. The Maritime Museum was great, especially since the first "thing" you see there was a talking parrot---I had never seen one before, so hearing him talk was a blast. The museum had an interesting exhibit on the great explosion that rocked the city in the beginning of the century when two ships collided in the harbor. It also had a hall dedicated to the numerous shipwrecks that happened in the Atlantic not far from Nova Scotia---many rescue missions originated from Halifax, including the most famous and tragic one, in the April of 1912, when the city got news of the crash of the Titanic. The museum had a fascinating exhibit of how people were mobilized to be send to search for survivors and what happened to those who survived and those whose bodies were found floating in the water.
The Citadel

A funny thing happened to us when we were trying to find a place to eat lunch.We were following the suggestions in the Lonely Planet Canada guide (published in 2008) and wanted to eat at this one restaurant that sounded really good. We walked over to where it was supposed to be, but couldn't find it. We walked around the area, trying to solve the mystery, when I saw an abandoned building right where the restaurant was supposed to be and realized that it must have gone out of business! We ended up eating delicious street food (fish and chips) sitting on a bench by the harbor and feeding the birds with the leftovers.
The site of our lunch place:)

We had another destination planned for the day---the famous lighthouse on Peggy's Cove. The trip there was on a winding country road with a lot of cabins and B&Bs and beautiful lakes and woods. The lighthouse did not disappoint. It was very serene, and, even though there were a lot of people around, we managed to get some good shots and enjoy our time by the water.

We ate a delicious dinner at the restaurant overlooking the lighthouse and the ocean (topping it off with the tastiest blueberry crisp ever!!!). Right when we left the restaurant, the sun was setting so we got to see the lighthouse at sunset---breathtaking!!!

Oh Canada

For my vacation in 2009, I decided to go to the big country to the North. I had always been curious about what Canada was like so it worked out perfectly to go there in September. A few friends and I flew up to Portland, Maine and then drove to several places of interest in Canada. I was very excited about this aspect because it meant crossing the US-Canada border on land, which I had not done before.

So, the day of my actual birthday, we drove north on I-95 to the border checkpoint. Unfortunately, the whole process didn't end up being all that exciting, even though we had a very animated Canadian border patrol officer, who at least kindly stamped out passports (which, apparently, is not a standard procedure). However, were were instantly rewarded by this awesome road sign. The rest of our time in Canada, we saw a lot more of those (note: different from deer warnings), but never managed to see an actual moose.

Even though we drove for a loooong time that day to reach our destination, Halifax, Nova Scotia, driving in Canada was quite pleasant: barely any cars on the road, no trucks, no cops, no one is speeding, and the fall scenery breathtaking. We reached our hotel in Halifax late in the evening and prepared for the next day of adventures.

Back to the Andes (or how to visit 2 countries in 4 days)

My great job had another pleasant surprise for me...a trip to my second home, Bolivia, even though most of the time was to be spent in Peru (since Puno, Peru is much closer to La Paz than to Lima, I got to fly into La Paz). This was a great opportunity not only to see the magnificent Andes once again, but also to see my Bolivian family, even though the visit was to be very short since I couldn't get a later flight.
This was also the first time that I flew into a country and went to work directly from the airport, especially considering the altitude. I must admit, proudly, that that it was actually the day that I felt the best (altitude-related headaches followed me the rest of the time). The research team picked me up at 7:30 am, and we drove directly to a small Andean community situated right on the shore of Lake Titicaca and featuring a mountain called the Sleeping Dragon (it resembles a dragon sleeping on the lake shore). This location gave me an extra boost of energy since this lake is one of the most beautiful bodies of water in the world---because of the altitude, the sun reflects in the lake and gives it several beautiful shades of blue, ranging from cerulean to royal blue. We met with the communal authorities, and after taking a walk by the lake, saw a presentation of the traditional Andean grains (quinoa, oka, canihua, etc) and a tremendous variety of potatoes grown in the Andes (the project that I was there for is aiming to preserve agrobiodiversity of Andean grains and tubers). I also got to chase around a herd of baby pigs trying to escape my picture-taking. In the evening, I got a chance to see Sara, my Bolivian sister, and her mom for a nice dinner, and also discovered that I got my nose and forehead burned by the Andean sun, so the rest of the trip I walked around looking like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

Me by the Sleeping Dragon

The Lake

Andean agrobiodiversity

One of the piglets

The next morning we embarked on a trip across the Bolivian border and into Peru. Normally the trip takes 4-5 hours, but it took us forever because of the parades dedicated to the Bolivian Independence Day (August 6th) and the long lines at the immigration on the Peruvian side of the border. Once we arrived in Puno and found our hotel (it did take 3 tries since most of the hotels have the word "plaza" in them, we met the Peruvian research team for lunch (oh, I do love having cocktails for lunch) and began the meetings. Over the course of the next two days, we met to discuss the project, and I made 2 presentations, both in Spanish!!! (gold star for me)

Crossing the borders


On Thursday morning I left the hotel to go back to Bolivia---this time, the trip only took about 4 hours, and I was safely and soundly with my dear friends in La Paz by lunchtime. Conveniently, the whole family got together for lunch to celebrate Independence Day, so I got to see everyone. It really felt like I never left La Paz. It was great to catch up with Sarita and the rest of the family. After getting about 3.5 hours of sleep, I embarked on my plane back to the US. Even though it was a very short trip, I got to see the unforgettably clear blue Andean sky, my favorite mountain overlooking La Paz, and walk along the shores of Lake Titicaca.

Me and Sarita at the airport early in the morning

Some family time

After seeing Meg off in Moscow, I returned to Vladimir for a few days with my family. My brother came from St. Petersburg the next morning so we had a chance to hang out and catch up. During that week we made a day trip to Suzdal, which is about 45 min away from Vladimir and is an old historic town, which used to be the capital of the Russian kingdom at some point and was a home to numerous monasteries. Many of its old historic buildings are still preserved, so we walked around, went to a museum, and even visited an ancient church (build in the 12th century), which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The night before I left we went to our cabin in the country, had Russian-style barbeque, and took numerous pictures of a seagull that made a nest in one of the trees, chasing the poor thing off her laid egg (This actually became a family obsession throughout the evening as we tried for hours to take a picture of the bird on her nest---she was very alert and would fly off the nest the second anyone would approach. My dad, who is an old-time hunter, had me put on a dark jacket (since seagulls apparently can recognize colors:), sit in hiding for about 30 minutes, and then go from behind the fence, where we were finally able to snap some shots of the bird on her nest). Here are some pictures.

View of Suzdal

Birdhouse on one of the trees near our cabin, which is occupied every spring with new tenants

View of the Russian countryside (I used to swim in this river every summer growing up)

With my bro (that's right, the t-shirt was a gift from me and the color is not accidental---Go Celtics!)

Finally, I was able to sneak up on the poor seagull and take some pictures of her on her nest

Red Square and other sites

After spending a day in Vladimir, we took a morning train to Moscow for about a day and a half before Meg's flight back to the US. After settling into our hotel, we decided to take a short nap, which actually turned into a few hours of hardcore jetlag-induced sleep. However, once we woke up and felt refreshed, we headed out to the Moscow city center to do some sightseeing. I had told Meg that a visit to Russia can be summarized by a picture of a person in Red Square---and we got it, so Meg can now officially say that she has been to Russia.

We walked around the square, which was already decorated for the Victory Day celebration (May 9th), went into my second most favorite church building in Russia (St. Basil's cathedral), witnessed the change of guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier right outside of the Kremlin, walked through the Alexander Gardens (alongside the Kremlin wall) all the way to the magnificent Church of Christ the Savior (very tumultuous history) and then down Old Arbat, a very old cobble-stone street that is filled with artists (similar to Montmartre in Paris), and finished the night by eating at my favorite pancake chain.

St. Basil's Cathedral in Red Square

The Kremlin clock tower (we did hear it chime)

Church of Christ the Savior

On the banks of the Moscow river overlooking the Kremlin

Quick trip to the homeland

Even though it has almost been two months, I wanted to post a quick recap of my trip home to Russia in early May. Considering that this was a very unexpected trip (you simply cannot pass up a $230 ticket to Russia!), it didn't have a whole lot of adventures, but included a quick trip to Moscow, this time actually for fun, and not for an errand. My travel buddy Meg came along for a few days (hey, her ticket was only $213!), so it was fun to show her around my city and then spend a day in Moscow walking around some of the most famous sites. Here are some pics from Meg's 1 day in Vladimir---we walked around the historic downtown, went to a couple of museums, stopped by my favorite tea shop, and even had lunch at a Soviet-style cafeteria (a restaurant made to look like the caf with decorations and food).

The Golden Gate, the symbol of Vladimir, a former fortress now a museum

In front of the Church of Assension, a beautiful orthodox church in Vladimir