Find Inspiration On This Epic Cascadian Adventure

America and Canada provide everything a road tripper needs for an amazing travel experience. From wide-open plains, towering forests, and breath-taking mountain ranges, both countries offer incredible itineraries, but to fully appreciate their similarities and contrasts, why not combine both? The best way to experience this is by taking a trip through Western Canada, and up to the northernmost US territory of Alaska. This inspirational trip offers a taste of amazing city experience in the beginning and sends you deeper into nature as you progress.

Begin at the Border

What better place to begin than America’s famed Emerald City, Seattle? Spend a day in the capital of the Pacific-Northwest before crossing the border. Go to Pikes Place Market for fresh seafood and craft goods, check out Olympic Sculpture Garden for a taste of Seattle’s thriving art culture, and ride to the top of the Space Needle to take in views of the entire city. Hop on the road for a quick two and half hour jaunt up to Vancouver (avoid hitting border traffic by leaving early in the morning or later in the evening). The largest city in British Columbia, Vancouver will be your last chance for urban excitement on this trip, so get it while you can! Visit the English Bay for some incredible skyline views and culture of this Canadian metropolis.

Into The Wild

Now it’s time to leave the city in the rear-view. With 1,800 miles ahead of you to Alaska, often with long periods between services preparation is crucial, so make sure your vehicle is well-maintained. Prepare an emergency kit with water and food. Cell phone service will be limited or nonexistent for many durations, so have a map handy or offline GPS app such as Maps.Me downloaded. The drive north through British Columbia is a feast for the eyes as you pass through sky-scraping mountain ranges and evergreen forests. A plethora of scenic points and trailheads adorn the roadside, photo-ops and wonderful hikes through nature are abundant. You’ll pass through historic landmarks such as the Fur Trading Center at St. James and the Xatśūll Heritage Village.

The Alcan Highway

As you venture further north, the road runs parallel to Alaska. However, you’ll have to continue into the Yukon Territory to merge with the Alcan Highway and cross the Alaskan Border. Stop for a night in Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon and experience life in this historic oil town. The final Alcan stretch into Alaska is quite barren, although plenty of opportunities for spotting wildlife exist. Bison, black bear, elk, and moose inhabit the surrounding area, and will often travel along the road.

300 miles from the Yukon you’ll reach the Alaskan border. Once across, you now have the northernmost part of America at your disposal. Go off-road on the Denali Parks Highway for a straight shot to Denali National Park. Continue south to visit the city of Anchorage, the magical Kenai Peninsula (rated the most scenic drive in Alaska), or press on to the capital of Juneau. If you’d rather see the top of the world, drive north to Barrow and step foot in the Arctic circle.

The trek north to America’s largest state offers many possibilities. With so much to choose from, there’s plenty to inspire future road trips and excursions. With so much beauty to explore, the drive through British Columbia to Alaska is an adventurers dream.

Is Road Tripping The New Best Way To Travel?

If you are hoping to spend some time getting away from it all this year, you’ll likely have a lot of planning to do. Perhaps you are someone who likes to go on a big, exotic, extravagant all-inclusive package holiday, or maybe you much prefer a simple quiet sit by the beach. For many, there is nothing better than simply getting in the car and driving in any direction, not caring too much where they will end up or even how long they will be gone. If you quite like the idea of road tripping, but you have never actually done it in the past, you might want to think about it as a possible way to travel next time around.

As it happens, it is one of the more exciting ways to see a country, and you might find that there is a joy in it which you simply don’t get with many other kinds of travel. In this post, we will look at road tripping in some detail, to help you get excited and plan for yours. First, we will discuss some of the practical ideas concerning how to get the most out of a road trip, then we will talk about some important safety and security elements. Finally, we will look into some of the best parts of the world to go road tripping.

The Practicalities

First up, let’s talk about some of the more practical aspects of taking a road trip. As exciting as it might be, you till need to make sure that you are adequately prepared, just as you would be for any other kind of trip. Fortunately, many people have trodden this particular path before, and you should find that it is fairly easy to get yourself ready for your own road trip in good time. So what are some of the most critical practical concerns which you might need to focus on here?

For one thing, you need to make sure that you have a rough idea, at least, of where you are going. You don’t necessarily need to plan it all out perfectly, although if you do that could be a fine way to travel and see a lot of any particular country. But you should at least know a few stopping-points which you would like to take, so that you can appreciate if nothing else the length of the drive you are about to undertake. You should also make sure that you know where many restrooms, restaurants, and hotels are along the way, so that you don’t get lost out in the middle of nowhere with nothing around to help you out. Carrying a tent could be a good idea here, just in case you do get stuck somewhere.

Beyond that, another hugely important practicality you will need to think about is the cost. Your primary cost, of course, is going to be the fuel, and you need to make sure that you are going to be able to afford a journey of the distance that you want to make. You will also need to budget for food, any accommodation you might need at any point, and for any excursions or sights you might want to see along the way too. As long as you plan for your finances, you will find it considerably easier to be able to make your road trip work out successfully.

Once you have the route and the money sorted, you are pretty much there – unless, of course, you don’t yet have a suitable vehicle to travel in. You need a car you can trust, and which you feel is going to safely take you the whole way without complaining along the way. These can be hard to come by, and you, in particular, will want to make a point of servicing the vehicle before you go, to make sure that you are driving something you can trust for that kind of distance. This is important even for a shorter road trip.

PAs you can see, there are plenty of practical issues you need to be aware of. But you also need to make sure that you are staying safe, which is a whole issue in itself.

Your Safety

If you don’t make a point of focusing on your own safety and the safety of those around you, it is much less likely that you will be able to enjoy your journey, mainly if something untoward does actually occur and you end up in trouble somewhere. Fortunately, it is relatively straightforward to make sure that you are remaining safe and secure while on the road, and in this section, we will look at some of the essential things you should consider doing in order to keep yourself and your fellow travellers as safe as possible. If nothing else, this will also help you to enjoy your road trip as fully as you would hope to.

We have already looked briefly at the issue of finding a car that you feel you can fully trust. This is one of the most vital things you need to think about, as if you can’t trust it you can’t be sure that you are a going to remain perfectly safe – and that will ruin your experience and enjoyment of the whole road trip, in turn. So what are some of the road trip car safety checks you should be making before you set out on such a journey? As it happens, some of the most important are the really obvious and commonplace ones. You should, for instance, make sure that you check your oil and water levels just before you go, topping up whatever is necessary to be topped up. You should check the tyre pressures too, and inflate them to the desired psi for your tyre type and size. That will make accidents considerably less likely, and breakdowns less likely too. You should also make sure, as we have said briefly already, that your vehicle has recently been serviced, so that you can entrust it as fully as possible.

POnce you are on the road, it is vital to drive as safely as you can. It can be all too easy, when you are driving for long periods of time, to accidentally slip into some bad habits, or even to find yourself almost dozing at the wheel. You must make sure that you pull over or swap to another driver as soon as you start to feel drowsy. If you don’t, the consequences could be absolutely fatal, and it’s not a situation that you will want to find yourself in if you can help it. Drive slow, pay attention to the local laws and road signs, and make sure that you are retaining your common sense at all times. These simple things will ensure that you can remain safe, and that those you are travelling with can remain safe along the way as well. That will mean you come back from your road trip in one piece, but also that you enjoy it considerably more along the way.

Remaining safe is hugely important. But it’s also important that you enjoy yourself actively, and one of the most essential ingredients in that is enjoying the places that you are visiting and the surrounding country. So where are some of the best road trips in the world?

Top Road Trip Locations

If you want to enjoy your road trip fully, you need to make sure above all else that you are happy with the route you are taking. You may already have somewhere in mind, but if not – or if you are still open to new possibilities anyway – here are some of the world’s best road trips you might want to think about taking.

PCabot Trail, Canada. This 298 km road is one of the longest road trips you might care to take, and as such it is not for the faint of heart. But it is worthwhile, with some of the most stunning scenery anywhere in the world, and a beautiful variation of landscape to take in along the way. This beautiful Nova Scotia surrounding is going to honestly take your breath away – and why not consider staying at some of Canada’s amazing lodges while you’re at it?

Snowdonia, Wales. If you would instead prefer something a little shorter, then how about this 70-mile journey around this beautiful part of Northern Wales? If you are in that part of the world already, this is one of your best choices, and you will even get to see some stunning views of one of the three highest peaks in the British Isles.

PThe Garden Route, South Africa. Finally, if you are keen to get out there and be exotic, you must consider this top road trip in South Africa. Known for its fascinating sights and explorative sense, it’s not for the faint of heart – but it is indeed incredible to experience.

As you can see, road tripping can be a truly fantastic way to see the world, so long as you know what you are doing, where you are going, and how to make the most of it.

The Perfect Non-Toxic or Natural Beauty Routine

Natural beauty. Organic. Vegan. Eco-Friendly. These aren’t buzzwords in the beauty industry, they are musts. Finding a better way to upgrade beauty from testing on animals and keep the people who love makeup and skincare feeling good about it.

It is almost unfathomable when we think about only a few hundreds of years ago, ladies faces were painted with lead, and poisonous fruits merely because they looked good.

Over a period of time, you can lower the number of chemicals that you use on a daily basis. Some of the chemicals that we use on a regular basis are of course absorbed into the skin and may have a negative impact on you long term. But by making a few small changes your skin, hair, and nails with thank you for it.

For nails, you can swap to water-based nail polish, and you’ll see a difference very quickly.

Here is a short natural beauty routine that might help you on your way to being a bit of an earth goddess.

Start with your usual routine, it might consist of one or more of these items:

  • Toner
  • Face mask
  • Hair mask
  • Deodorant
  • Cleanser
  • Moisturiser
  • Spot treatments
  • Exfoliation

Here is a great starting point:

For exfoliation, if you have oily skin, you might have a go-to product that you know removes that excess. While you are transitioning, you might not love the results but once your skin has purged all of the nasties it will be in much better condition. Sea salt and almond oil will gently remove impurities without stripping the natural protective oils on the skin. If you have combination skin, a homemade sugar scrub will be perfect. Dry skin needs some extra care so think about a softer sugar scrub with added oils.

Cleanser for oily skin can use a castor oil mix. ⅔ castor oil and a ⅓ olive oil. A reusable cotton cloth will be a perfect partner for this. Combination skin will love a combination of ¼ castor oil and ¾ sweet almond oil. For dry skin, castor oil is likely to have an adverse effect so a simple cotton pad and some coconut oil should work perfectly.

For moisture for dry skin, organic shea butter is a super simple and effective option. Normal and combination skin can get away with a small dab of the coconut oil. And, for oily skin, you won’t need to add moisture as often when you a light layer of coconut oil is perfect, and for toning a diluted apple cider vinegar is great.

You can support your newer natural routine will some supplements too. Magnesium as an anti-inflammatory, and to help improve your metabolism. Melatonin to enhance sleep and naturally banish dark circles and lackluster skin. Biotin will help support healthy skin, nails, and hair too.

Of course, it goes without saying that if you are treating your outside to natural beauty, you should treat the inside better too. Fruits, veggies, and plenty of water is a must also.

How to Travel Lighter

When we go on vacation we tend to take a lot more luggage with us than we really need to. This is something that could become a bit of an issue at the airport when they weigh your luggage. However, you can travel lighter and still have everything you need while you’re on vacation. So how is this possible? Read on for more great ideas:

Take Smaller Luggage

One of the first things you need to do is use a much smaller suitcase. If you plan to take a big suitcase on vacation you’re more likely to fill it. Using a smaller suitcase or even a backpack will mean you have to pack less.

Plan your Outfits

We all know how tempting it is to pack as many outfits as possible but this could result in you taking too many clothes with you. Think about what you’re going to wear and where you’re going to wear it. The next step is to check the temperature in your chosen destination as this will ensure you’ll pack what you need.

Pack Lightweight Clothes

If you can, and if the weather permits pack lightweight clothes. Jeans, for example, weigh much more than linen trousers. If you want more clothes-related ideas you’ll find that many vacation companies have a few tips so check their website for more information.

Don’t Pack your Suitcase Yet

Another great way for you to help you travel lighter is to pack your clothes etc. outside of your suitcase. This will help you to see how much you’re taking with you and allow you to re-think some of those items of clothing.

Take Fewer Toiletries

When we go on vacation we want to make sure we have all the toiletries we need. However, here is where we can end up packing more than we really need to. Try to use take smaller bottles with you while making sure you use the soap and shampoo that the hotel provides. Using the hotel’s toiletries is not only part of the price you’d paid to stay there it also means you can pack less.

One trick that will ensure you take fewer toiletries with you is to purchase those reusable travel bottles that come with a screw top or flip lid. When you fill one of these bottles up with shampoo, for example, you’re unlikely to need very much more. The same can be said for shower gel and hand lotion. These bottles can usually hold enough shampoo etc. for at least one week.

Wash your Clothes

If you have the chance to you should wash your clothes so you can wear them another day. This will prevent you from having to take a different outfit for each day. If your hotel does not have a laundry you can usually find laundry powder for sale in one of the local shops. As you can see, it’s perfectly possible for you to travel lighter. Use the above tips the next time you’re about to go on vacation and your suitcase

Egypt Photo Diary: Abu Simbel

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Happy Year of Pig

I usually like Mondays because it’s another new beginning and there’s so much to look forward to. Today it’s even more special. It’s the Chinese New Year’s Eve when traditionally we’d have a great feast to celebrate.

Tomorrow will be the first day of the year of Pig and pig is the luckiest out of the 12 chinese zodiac. Sometimes I wish it were my star sign. Haha just kidding. Of course our star sign alone doesn’t design our destiny – we make our own luck!

So pigs or not, let’s drink to our lucky stars and happy Chinese New Year to all of us!

Nile Cruise – High Dam -Philae temple & First Bitter Taste Of Traveling In Egypt

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After visiting Saint Catherine Monastery, we continued our journey to Cairo. The road trip to Cairo was long but I looked out the car window with great interest. The Egyptian land! Africa! The part of world I always wanted to travel to! Can you imagine how excited I felt? There was endless desert. And the Red Sea. The Red Sea in Egypt looked differently compared to the Red Sea I saw in Israel. It was dreamy pink dotted with may private luxury beach resorts that were not accessible to local Egyptians.

At 11:30pm, we finally checked in my hotel in Cairo. Instead of staying in Cairo for sightseeing as per our itinerary, I was told to catch an early flight the next morning and start Nile Cruise. Can’t remember the reason why but it was a private tour, the decision was easily made for me. So I got up 4am the next day and caught the early flight to Aswan.

A local tour guide picked me up at the airport and that was the start of Nile Cruise. The ship was marvellous and my cabin was luxurious but there was no time to enjoy it yet. After quickly checking and dropped my luggage at the reception, we headed to High Dam and Philae Temple.

High Dam was a bore, haha. Sorry to say that, I understand the importance of it but it’s a very plain sightseeing place with not much to see.

We then caught a little boat to cross the water to reach Philae Temple on the island. Before setting our foot on the boat, the tour guide gave us a lecture about tipping. Note, it is compulsory to tip in Egypt so the boat driver must be tipped separately. That was kind of expected but little did I know that what I experienced in Egypt really showed me a different level of harassment.

Philae temple is an amazing site. Originally locted in Upper Egypt, the temple complex was dismantled and moved to nearby Agilkia Island as part of the UNESCO Nubia Campaign project, protecting this and other complexes before the 1970 completion of the Aswan High Dam.

As I was in awe at the sight of this ancient construction, two Egyptian men dressed in typical southern Egyptian garments waved at me. And indicated that me should take a photo of them with the temple. So I did. Silly me. The bigger one of these two men then started to follow me and the other one followed on. At first a didn’t understand what was the problem. Then the bigger Egyptian used his body language to demand money.

Ahhh… Of course, you must tip every step you go in Egypt. I paid them. For taking photos of them. And that was the first lesson learnt.

The most important lesson I learnt from my trip is Egypt is to remember not to make eye contact or smile at anyone! NO ONE apart from fellow tourists. I thought in Petra nobody will help you unless you tip them, but in Egypt, you must stay away from local Egyptian as far as possible. They will follow you, ask money from you and try to trick you regardless but just keep walking on and maintain a serious facial expression. Smiling makes you to be perceived a weak person and an easy target.

Back to the Cruise, I couldn’t wait to enjoy my spacious, comfortable cabin and to gaze out at the Nile River, day dreaming. Within a minute, some one knocked on my door. A waiter was outside my cabin. He started to introduce himself and stared at me eagerly. I gave him some money, put “Do Not Disturb” sign out and shut my door again.

There it was, a moment of peace in my own cabin.

Confidence Comes With Age

Ageing: Why do we spend so much time fearing it and not enough time enjoying the benefits it brings with us? Sure our bodies change, but so does our mind, confidence and outlook on life.

It’s a hard one to call but for a lot of us we’d probably just about take our older bodies and limitless confidence over our younger more self-conscious selves. But what can you expect from your body and your mind as you leave your twenties and even your thirties behind you and approach a new decade?

In this blog we take a little look at the ageing process and what to expect. Don’t expect top tips on beating older age or ageing gracefully, we want you to embrace it, live it and love it. Expect instead, tips on how to keep up your fitness and mental well being for the best decade of your life.

And if you need more convincing that 40+ is the best so far, then bear in mind the likes of Halle Berry, Sandra Bullock and not to mention authors JK Rowling and Toni Morrison who didn’t achieve commercial success until later life.

Take Charge

You’re no-one’s push over and it’s time you remembered that you’ve earned the right to take charge of your life.

If you still find yourself running around trying to please everyone in your life then you need to employ the powerful art of just saying no and not feeling any guilt about it.

It’s also time to seize back control of your destiny to do the things that you might have said no to previously because of a young family, lack of confidence or too many time constraints. Now is exactly the right time to pick hobbies and sports back up that got left by the wayside or start learning a whole new skill.

Think health

Not because you’re going to stand a chance of finding some kind of magic rejuvenation process but because nurturing and caring for your body is the right thing to do. You have nothing to prove to anyone, so if you want to train for a marathon do it because you want to, likewise if you want to invest in an expensive daily beauty regime, it’s your call.

When it comes to looking after your physical self, make time to get any niggling injuries treated through physiotherapy and take time to stretch out any aches and pains. There’s no sense in trying to ignore it and push through, your comfort is paramount so make time for it.

You’ll want to stay fit to make sure that as you grow ever older you’re able to maintain your active and independent lifestyle long into retirement. You might not want to think about that, but investing in your health now is a prize you’ll reap later down the line.

Sleep more

While you still have heaps of drive, you may need a bit more sleep than you used to and that’s ok. Turning down social invitations to catch up on your sleep is a healthy and good choice. It will leave you better refreshed and able to deal better with the vigour of your job or home life the following day.

Make sure the sleep you’re getting is great quality, so put down your phone or tablet at least an hour if not two before bedtime and give your brain a fighting chance of unwinding before you shut down for the night.

Sleep in a cooler but not cold room, as dark and quiet as you can make it. Lifestyle experts all sing the praises of consistent, great quality sleep as one of the best ways to combat stress and feel mentally and physically on top of your game.

Say yes

Once you’ve harnessed the power of saying no remember you can also say yes. Yes to new experiences, yes to spending a little bit more on the finer things in life and yes to living life the way you want it. If your younger years were about getting on the career ladder and finding out what you wanted in life, now is the time to embrace that sense of achievement and celebrate how far you’ve come.

Embrace mindfulness

If you haven’t already, check out how mindfulness techniques will help you get the very best out of living in each moment and fully embracing both your present and your past. If you are going through some emotional turbulence, mindfulness practice can help you to live with your emotions without feeling overwhelmed by them.

Combined with something like meditation or even just a walk, this way of thinking and breathing can help you combat stress and anxiety and lead to a more improved sense of well-being and mental health.

Keep learning

Always wanted to play the piano? Get your lessons booked. You might never be Elton John but you’ll be delighted with the achievement of belting out a tune to your long-suffering friends, family or pets.

Learning something new, every day if possible, is the secret to a sharp mind. Even in our forties we see how forgetfulness can creep in and start robbing us of precious memories so stay hungry to learn and you’ll stave off those memory lapses.

Age ain’t nothing but a number

Remember to keep it all in perspective. That date on your birth certificate is only a fractional amount of everything that makes you, you. If you were to be defined by your age, you might find yourself already shutting down and refusing to take risks or go on adventures. Alternatively, you might find yourself thinking that you’re too young to be saying no to nights out and start burning the candle at both ends when you just need a little bit more sleep.

A number does not own you and it does not decide who you are and what you want to be. Want to redesign your whole look? Go for it. Embrace who you are, gather up your confidence and live your middle years with gusto.