This past late November/early December, I went on my first G Adventures tour to Costa Rica. It was also my first adventure type, nature-y focused trip I’ve been on. I did things that were totally outside of my comfort zone, things I would normally be afraid of and would hesitate to do. Like, for example, I went canyoneering [while it was pouring rain], ziplining “Superman” style high up above the canopy forest and did the Super Tarzan Swing (where you jump off from high up and free fall for almost 5 seconds before you swing back and forth), went on a night walk through a forest where there were creepy crawlies galore including snakes, tarantulas, and insects. And most significantly, I went on the Cerro Chato EXTREME hike, which really was extreme, up an inactive volcano beside Arenal Volcano.

And while these were activities that made me all nervous and scared to do at first, I have no regrets and I’d even say this was one of my best trips I’ve been on.

More pics, videos and review on the activities below.

In 2015 was pretty fun.

There was a lot of trips.

Work was nuts.

And it went by kinda quickly.

A mere month (or so) ago, I had put “meet Oprah” as my Before I Die aspiration, thinking it would never, ever happen. Sure, I may have deluded myself into thinking that Oprah and I were totes going to become BFFs, or the next incarnation of a buddy cop comedy duo like Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, after she tweeted me back in October. But let’s be real, there’s us mere plebeians and there’s Oprah — these paths rarely cross.

But, the stars must have aligned because on April 13th, 2013, I did end up meeting Oprah-freakin’-Winfrey. Alas, this meeting didn’t result in her asking if she could adopt me or inviting me to a sleepover where we would braid each other’s hair and chat about cute boys (then eventually offering me a show on OWN to try out cupcakes, burgers and pizza all over the world). It was still a remarkable experience, one that I cannot put into words how awesome it was, but I will try to in this post. Weeks later, I am still in disbelief.

There was a quote I came across a few months ago, attributed to C.S. Lewis.

There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.

After I read it, I instantly liked it and felt it resonated with me. I have a tendency to fear the next step and making commitments to things happening in the future has always scared me. Maybe I’m scared of failure or the unknown, but it’s mainly apprehension that makes me want to stick with what I know. But as hokey as this may sound, reading this quote accompanied by the visual really inspired me.

So I sat on this idea for awhile.

I saw Salt-n-Pepa perform at Toronto’s Festival of Beer a.k.a. Beerfest on July 27th, 2012. Years later, and frankly after seeing their episode on Oprah, I didn’t even know or think they were still touring and performing. Even though they are in their mid-late 40s, you really wouldn’t know it – they looked and sounded great, still as talented as ever!

DJ Spinderella wasn’t there though, it was just Cheryl ‘Salt’ James and Sandra ‘Pepa’ Denton from the original group.

Here are some photos and videos from their performance.

Continuation of Part 1 – Italy and Part 2 – Greece.

Lastly, the Greek islands! I think this part of the trip would have been 100X better if I hadn’t done it via cruising. We only had three days to visit Mykonos, Kusadasi, Patmos and Santorini and in those three days, majority of it was traveling time. I would one day like to do a re-do of the Greek islands.

Overall, I would say Santorini was one of my favourite places I visited on this trip. I mean, I rode a donkey and drove an ATV (without killing or injuring anyone), that is pretty awesome.

Continuation from Part 1 – Italy, next up on the Mediterranean Trail is Greece, more specifically, Corfu and Athens (the Greek islands are in part 3).

While in Italy I learned some phrases (my favourite being ‘scusi’) that to this day, still remember. But the only Greek phrase I remember from this trip? Pretty much just OPA! And I intend to start using it more often in everyday conversation now that I am back home (similar to how I will throw in ‘scusi’ whenever it feels appropriate). So opa!! Let’s go!

After my trip to Thailand, I have been counting the days until the new vacation calendar at work kicks in so I can book another trip. You can say I’ve been bitten by the travel bug or, some might say, I’m just really on the verge of an Office Space moment and need to step away from everyday life. In any case, I ordered some Contiki and G Adventures brochures in late March/early April and once they arrived, I excitedly scoured through them and bookmarked the places that really appealed to me (so pretty much every page). On my bucket list, I wanted to hit every continent and I really wanted to visit Peru to see Machu Picchu. But when researching airfares, it seemed like it wasn’t really a good time so I decided on Europe because I shamefully have never been. And, this is going to sound really lame, but ever since I saw Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Eat Pray Love, I’ve always wanted to visit Greece and Italy (respectively). And so, I decided on the Mediterranean Trail plus 3 day cruise in the Greek islands with Contiki!

Continued from Part I and Part II

Continuing on the adventure, where I check out a fire dancing show on Koh Phi Phi island, have my feet nibbled by tiny fish at “Doctor Fish”, ride an elephant in Krabi and end off the trip in Hong Kong in a slight whimper!

Continued from Part I

December 17th was our last day in Phuket. Last day of seeing ladyboys everywhere (though apparently I am oblivious to them and had to have them pointed out to me), seeing scantily-clad women dancing on poles outside, being bombarded by people trying to get me to a PING PONG SHOW or asking if I wanted a tuk tuk. We were going to a more low-key place, Koh Phi Phi island!

Day Four: Off to Koh Phi Phi Island!

We boarded a ferry to Koh Phi Phi island, an hour and half from Phuket. An hour and a half of sea sickness fun! By the time we got there, the sky was dark and cloudy and it looked like it was going to pour. And it did, as we were walking across the island to our hotel.