First Stop, Copenhagen

(By the way - I have just about had it with blogger and lining up (or really not lining up) my pictures in my post!)

Well, that is not quite true. Before Copenhagen I was in Portland, Providence, and Boston - all wonderful cities, but just not quite as exciting or exotic as the second half of my vacation.

I had not done a spec of planning for my time in Copenhagen. So untypical for me. Instead I let KC, who had been living there for 6 months, play tour guide and show me her Copenhagen.

We did a lot of walking around the city.

And spent an afternoon sailing!
































Which included some swimming. There was a bit of a heat wave going on.


















We BBQ'd for the 4th. And taught some Danes how to make s'mores.























We rode bikes (without helmets!?!?). And played volleyball. And ate ice cream.




Actually, we ate a lot of ice cream!

Neighbors to the North

May started out with a trip to Vancouver with a group of girls - one I've know for awhile and would like to get to know better and two that I met as we all hopped in the car. If I had to describe the weekend in one word, it would be FOOD. The whole weekend revolved around eating. And it was awesome.

Friday was lamb gyros and gelato while sitting along Horseshoe Bay.















Saturday was strolling through the Granville Market.
















To purchase the fixings for a picnic in Stanley Park.
















Next we stopped at the aquarium. This didn't involve eating but did involve adorable beluga whales.

Saturday was going to be a hot night on the town. We put away our running shoes and put on our heels. OK, they put on their heels. I put on my clogs. And had incredible sushi (which cost next to nothing!).
















Followed up by a wild night in our hotel room consisting of room service desserts and a couple of bottles of wine (I did actually wake up with a bit of a hangover - oops!?!?)
















Our final day in Canada consisted of window shopping, amazing indian food, and a crepe with nuttella and bananas. Yum!

I wasn't hungry again until Tuesday. Seriously.

Ahoy There Matey!

While I'm off on this weekend's adventure up in Canada, I thought I'd leave you a post of last weekend's adventure on the high seas known as Elliot Bay (per L's request!).




















When I moved to Seattle - 7 years, 8 months, and 15 days ago - I had this plan. I was going to meet a boy (a cute one of course) who just happened to have a boat, and he would take me sailing.




















Well... that never happened. Instead, I met a friend, who had a friend, who had a membership to the sailing club and took me sailing.
















Although it was hard to call it sailing, as there was hardly any wind.















But just sitting in a boat on the water was wonderfully relaxing... until a cargo ship and tug boat were headed straight toward us! Oh no!

But we survived. And I'd go out again in a heartbeat!

The Library

One of my most favorite things about Seattle is the library. Who needs to buy books when you can read them for free!

I mostly frequent my neighborhood branch, but wandering around downtown with my dad (who was in town for work), we stopped in the main branch. Even if it wasn't filled with books, the building is absolutely amazing!

From the outside.



And from the inside.

The Visitor

I've live in Seattle almost 8 years. My first year in Seattle, my mom visited 4 times. Several friends flew across the country early on. But I haven't had a visitor since my mom was last here (for her 7th or 8th time) in April 2007. So when L decided to extend her business trip and stay in Seattle for the weekend, I was excited.


She did a good job recapping the weekend (and her whole week in the Pacific NW), but I thought I'd add in some additional pictures (some hers and some mine).

Compare and Contrast

Camping Last Weekend, Deception Pass:

Camping This Weekend, Washington Coast:

Cyprus: Limassol, Driving on the Left, Old "Stuff," and Hiking Around

I spent a few days in Limassol because it was home to the cheapest guesthouse in all of Cyprus. There was also a wine festival with free wine. Yes, you read that right, FREE WINE. Too bad I didn't have any of my wino friends with me!





I rented a car to explore more of the country. This involved driving on the left side of the road. Note: I can't tell my left from my right. One of the downsides of being ambidextrous.



Don't worry, I didn't crash into anything. I did visit the ancient city of Kourion. It definitely was a city with amazing views!





I also saw more ancient ruins in Pafos. And crazy cool mosaics.

Not quite so old, but still a pretty pic.

The next day I drove into the Trodoos Mountains and went "hiking," which really was like walking on a flat, dusty trail. I was certainly the most fashionable girl on the trail.

The towns in the mountains were quaint.

I spent my final day back in Limassol. Where I...

RODE A MOTORCYCLE!! If I had a life to-do list, this would certainly be on it.

And that was Cyprus.

Cyprus, Part 3: Northern Cyprus - St. Hilerion Castle

I only took a brief excusion into Northern Cyprus to check out St Hilerion, an old castle built into a mountain.



From here you could see the northern coast and Kyernia.



Supposedly the castle was inspiration for Walt Disney when creating Snow While (the castle of the wicked witch or stepmom, or whatever she was).



Lots of climbing on uneven surfaces. maybe that is why my knee continues to hurt?