Chaudière Island and Victoria Island are two of the more well-known islands on the Ottawa River. They are undergoing heavy construction in 2020 so they don’t make the best picnic destinations. Fortunately, locations such as Bate Island, Lemieux Island, and Petrie Island are all great green locations. Located on a Read more…
Nobody knows where Chamonix is until you mention Mont Blanc, so it helps to use the full town name in first reference. Even though Italy and France share Mont Blanc, all the best access points are on the French side. Funnily enough, it’s sometimes mistaken for being a Swiss ski Read more…
It feels like not that long ago when I published my 400-post celebratory post. Before I know it I’ve moved on and written another 100 posts on new places I’ve visited, new lessons learned, and new people met. It was also my birthday this week and I realized that I Read more…
Well known for building the Unité d’Habitation in several cities like Marseille and Berlin, co-designing the UN building in New York City, and inspiring the concept of the Radiant City, Le Corbusier also had an impact in his home country of Switzerland. Born in La Chaux-de-Fonds near the French border, Read more…
There’s no shortage of venerated academic institutions in Massachusetts. There’s Harvard, Northeastern, Berklee, and MIT. One of the first things I noticed when I arrived at the Boston MIT campus was the name of their bus stop: 1 Harvard Square. I wonder if Harvard has a building located on 1 Read more…
A mere hour away from Geneva, Annecy was hard to resist. Reading all about its delicious baked goods, boat rentals, and island castle made me eager to give this town a visit. Sitting in the middle of the River Thiou, the Palais de l’Isle is undoubtedly the main attraction in Read more…
I visited the National Air Force Museum of Canada in Trenton, Ontario on the week of Remembrance Day. The museum is operated by lovely elderly gentlemen who are former members of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Ottawa is home to the Canadian War Museum that has exhibits on more than Read more…
On the Ottawa side of the Ottawa River, the Canadian War Museum is run by the Canadian Museum of History, located on the Gatineau side of the Ottawa River. The striking architecture was designed by Raymond Moriyama to bring peace and hope into a museum dedicated to the history of Read more…
Pascal and I have known each other since we were 13 and grew up together in Hong Kong. We didn’t really connect all too often during our teenage years, it was a hello here and a goodbye there with an occasional conversation while eating for the school bus or passing Read more…
Brockville was renamed from Elizabethtown after Major General Sir Isaac Brock, who helped win the war of 1812 against the Americans. Fitting with the naming of the town, it was also one of the first Loyalist settlements in Upper Canada back in 1784. Its courthouse was built in 1843 and Read more…