Tony Bennett has indeed left his heart in San Francisco after donating a cute heart sculpture in Union Square - see photo. We have left many a footprint after spending a fabulous three days walking around the City. Stuart is very fond of SF with this being his third visit and I was really looking forward to experiencing the haunts he has spoken about for many years. I too have now become a fan of this laid back and quirky metropolis. Crossing the Ba...

Money to tight to mention Departing Vancouver Island - Tuesday 13th September Well I was being tight - we had purchased a full tank of fuel up front so could drop the hire car off empty and that was my goal. I had eighty miles left in the tank and calculated that $8 would get us enough to make the trip back in good time to drop the car off, book our luggage on board the Seattle ferry, post some things back home and have breakfast. $8 paid, the Satnav indicated...

In his last blog, Stuart failed to mention Big Bad John's salty nuts! Upon arrival he presented us with a container full of monkey nuts with his compliments. I love monkey nuts and quickly dug in making a neat pile of shells next to my pint, my plan being to put the shells in the container after we had finished munching. 10 minutes passed and Big Bad came along and swept the shells on to the floor. It was at this point I noticed the floor was covered i...

Over the water we go to Vancouver Island - leaving behind the mountains and lakes of the mainland for the mountains and lakes (oh and a bit of the seaside thrown in too) of the island. Sail on Leaving Vancouver - 8 September 2011 We boarded a Pacific Line Bus late morning on a warm sunny day. An hour or so later the coach passed long queues of traffic waiting to board the ferry at Tsawwassen. We were the first to board and (apart from a few foot passengers) w...

Sunday 4th September I was sad to be leaving the mountains, bears and friendly ambience of Alberta. It must be the West Country girl in me but cities just do not have the same appeal. However, this trip is all about experiencing a range of different settings and the travel books rave about Vancouver so my expectations were high. After lots of kindle time during our epic journey I was relieved to finally arrive at the Sandman Suites in downtown Vancouver. ...