A handwritten note from the Atlantic

A handwritten note from the Atlantic

Summer, 2017

It was a summer of green plateau and turquoise ocean when I had my first, and possibly last, Acadian crush. He was a married man with a pair of the clearest blue-hazel eyes I’d ever seen in a person, and dark curly hair with slight golden tips hidden underneath a grey hat that made him look much younger than he actually was.

Luca Gauthier and I ventured into the Acadian, boreal, and taiga forests of Cape Breton Highland that morning of July 13th. He brought an apple in his blue backpack, and a tiny container of almond, ham sandwich, and celery sticks that his wife had prepared for him. “How are you?” He asked me. “Great, can’t be more thrilled,” I said. “It’s my first time in the region and I’ve been looking forward to this trip for months.”

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What you need to know before traveling to Cusco, Machu Picchu, and around in Peru

What you need to know before traveling to Cusco, Machu Picchu, and around in Peru

¡Hola!

I just got back from a trip that could be perfectly summarized as the most amazing and surreal week I’ve had this year. Undoubtedly. Imagine a 23-year-old girl from Indonesia who does not even speak Spanish traveling solo to South America for the first time.. Yup, that’s me!

Recollecting memories from the journey still got me as pumped as I was when I was just about to depart from Calgary Airport in Alberta, Canada to that other continent in the other side of the world. Hence while the memories are still vividly preserved, I have decided to write down the details about my trip to the beautiful country of Peru which could be the case of many of you: a non-Spanish speaker wishing to travel solo to witness the grandeur of Machu Picchu–on a budget. If that sounds familiar to yourself, keep going! I might just have the perfect story to share with you.

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VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 12: Victoria, BC

VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 12: Victoria, BC

The city of Victoria was the last stop I made during my journey with VIA Rail using the Youth 150 pass. And this city underlined exactly the definition of the coast-to-coast trip I’ve had because to get to the city we had to cross a strait that goes beyond into the Pacific Ocean. So I’ve met the Atlantic in the east, and now it’s the Pacific that I say hi to!

Victoria was a subtle place surrounded by coastlines. It wasn’t too huge, but the trip was very well worth it. We went to the Victoria Butchart Garden which is possibly the most famous world-class flower garden in the entire Canada, and then went for a few hours of stop to the downtown of Victoria. However, the most remarkable part of all to me was the ferry trip since the sunset was just spectacular.

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VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 11: Vancouver, BC

VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 11: Vancouver, BC

Remember when I said that Cape Breton Island in one of the easternmost provinces in Canada is all about the rare exposure of the mountain meeting the sea? Well, apparently, living in the western side of the continent doesn’t mean such grandeur is far too out of reach. We don’t necessarily need to travel across the continent to spot such majestic scene, because, apparently Vancouver has it too!

It’s a different type of mountain-and-sea kind of scenery, obviously, because Vancouver is the next level of a metropolitan city while Cape Breton Island and its composing small towns are the exact opposite. Nevertheless, Vancouver is one great example of a big city that truly knows who they are, what they’re good at, and what they’re capable of hence able to showcase the truly best version of themselves. I’m talking about a crowded city that is still such a delight to look at and live in, because all the best features and natural wonders that create them in the first place are still preserved and blending altogether, in harmony, with the modern developments that create the backbone of the city today.

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VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 10: Ottawa, ON

VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 10: Ottawa, ON

Despite the major tourist attractions such as magnificent classic buildings that surround the majestic and historical Parliament Hill and around, I must say that the most remarkable thing I did back in Ottawa was watching The Bad Batch in an old, hippie cinema of Mayfair Theatre with a new friend I met through Couchsurfing. That was my third attempts on CS, and legitimately convinced me that the next time I travel to someplace new, I won’t bother checking out other accommodation-booking websites without trying the best out of CS first.

Being a capital city that is actually smaller than other metropolitan cities in Canada, all the major touristy spots in Ottawa are close to each other and hence you could basically cross all the must-visit list within a day just like I did, and even with the bonus of swinging by to a vintageous cinema on top of all that. I missed few places of my original plan indeed but they were all of the secondary priority, hence I didn’t mind that much. Particularly because I am never really a huge fan of big cities, hence skipping one or two places do not necessarily bother me that much.

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VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 9: Montréal, QC

VIA Canada 150 Trip Part 9: Montréal, QC

Montréal is just a heaven for street photographers. I myself am not one, and I never thought I would be interested in becoming one as well, but once I made my first visit to Montréal I just knew right away that I wouldn’t actually mind to give it a shot for the upcoming three days. Cause, frickin’ Montréal!

Every corner in every neighbourhood just got their own artsy–and sometimes slightly edgy–vibes. From the Old Montréal, to the Port of Montréal, all the way to the effin’ colourfully aesthetic Gay Village and basically everywhere else in the city, they’re all just gems the way they are. To be honest, it requires so little effort to find beautiful housings with nice-looking paintings or beautiful vintage decors. And the place where I stay in the University of Montréal area is no exception, where I couchsurf for the second time with another super-lovely host and another amazing guest as well.

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